Author: Sam Al-Hamdani

Responding to the Chancellor's comments today, warning manufacturers that "there will not be alignment" with the EU after Brexit, Acting leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: “Major industries across the country have time and again made clear that pan-European regulatory alignment has been a success in supporting the creation and retention of millions of jobs.  “To risk all that in favour of narrow, ideological ends is a real slap in the face. It is the height of irresponsibility for which the British public will be forced to pay. “Liberal Democrats will continue to oppose Brexit and hold this shambles of a Government to account. The Chancellor must take the blinkers off and pay attention to industry.”

Responding to news that Beales Department Store may have to call in administrators, Sarah Olney MP, Liberal Democrat Business Spokesperson, said: “This weekend we've seen Mothercare close its last branches, Debenhams shutting more outlets and now Beales announcing that they are at risk of collapse. Every closure will see people around the country face the bleak prospect of losing their jobs and livelihoods.   “The internet age means shopping is changing. But that doesn't mean we should accept seeing our High Streets hollowed out. Too many online stores rake in profit but pay little or no tax, while High Street shops are saddled with costly business rates and exorbitant rents.  “The Government must urgently look at radical reform, or consider scrapping business rates completely. This system is not fit for purpose…

Responding to GDP figures which show the UK has had the lowest 12 month growth for 7 years, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: “The UK’s economy is suffering from the worst slowdown since the aftermath of the financial crisis, yet Boris Johnson has no plan to turn this around. “Businesses looking for certainty about the Conservatives' economic policies won’t find any with Boris Johnson who seems to make it up as he goes along. “Johnson’s insistence on a hard Brexit and his willingness to keep a no-deal Brexit is a major cause of this shockingly poor economic performance. “Liberal Democrats will challenge Johnson and the Conservatives on behalf of workers and business across the UK who know they are being let down badly.”

Responding to the HM Inspectorate of Probation report, which has found that the National Probation Service (NPS) is hampered by staff shortages, stretched middle managers and poor facilities, Liberal Democrat Justice Spokesperson Daisy Cooper said: “This Conservative Government is failing in its most important duty: keeping people safe. Staff shortages in the Probation Service mean that high-risk individuals in our communities are not being properly supervised. “This alarming report shows that ending private probation contracts and unifying the system, while clearly necessary, will not be nearly enough to fix the major problems in probation. “Liberal Democrats are calling for a fundamental rethink about the way probation works. It must be far more coordinated and tailored to the individual, based on the risks they pose and the support they need to build…

Responding to the Prime Minister's suggestion that the Iran nuclear deal should be replaced with a 'Trump deal', Ed Davey, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats said: “Johnson's dishonesty is apparent yet again. His claim that he will continue to support the current Iran nuclear deal is immediately undermined by his suggestion of a 'new Trump deal'. Let there be no doubt: when Trump says jump, Johnson asks 'how high?'.  “The current nuclear deal with Iran is all about stopping this brutal regime from becoming a nuclear state. Johnson needs to remind President Trump just how high these stakes are. “The UK is best served by working with our allies in Europe and the wider world to reinvigorate the Iran nuclear deal as a means to deescalate the current crisis.  “If…

Responding to news that the UK failed to pass on the details of 75,000 convictions of foreign criminals to their home EU countries and tried to conceal the scandal, Christine Jardine MP, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesperson, said: “UK police rely on EU-wide data-sharing systems to identify criminals and keep us safe. For the Home Office to fail so badly to live up to its side of that agreement is shameful. “The Home Office has serious questions to answer over this. Not just the failure to pass on details of convicted criminals to other EU countries, but the cover up afterwards as well. “Ministers must also tell us how this affects negotiations for a future security partnership with the EU. We urgently need a deal that protects access to these databases for our police,…

Following the reports that the Conservative government is considering cutting air passenger duty on domestic flights as part of a plan to save regional airline Flybe from collapse, Liberal Democrat Transport spokesperson Munira Wilson said: “Flybe looks set to follow Thomas Cook, despite only being ‘rescued’ last year. The way to ensure our businesses stay afloat is to provide certainty, rather than the chaos the Conservatives have presided over for the last three years. “Offering troubled airlines like Flybe cuts to Air Passenger Duty is not the answer and a huge worry for climate campaigners - particularly when Boris Johnson is going soft on his commitment to high speed rail.  “This Conservative Government must not only commit to building HS2, but start taking the climate emergency seriously. In a year when…

The Liberal Democrats have called for the Transport Secretary to "sack Northern" following the announcement that the Government is considering awarding Northern a short-term contract. Liberal Democrat Transport Spokesperson Tim Farron said: “The Conservative Government’s big announcement on Northern is just more delay, something that rail passengers in the North are all too familiar with. “It’s completely unthinkable that the Secretary of State is prepared to award Northern a short-term contract, despite their complete failure to actually run trains on train lines. “What more evidence does he need that this company are utterly incapable of running a half-decent train service? “The Transport Secretary needs to stop shilly-shallying, pluck up the courage and sack Northern.”

Responding to a report released today by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services into 'county lines' gangs, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesperson Christine Jardine said: “When children as young as 12 are being exploited by drug gangs, the Government’s approach clearly needs to change. We need to stop both the supply and demand of illegal hard drugs. “Unnecessary Tory cuts to the police have made it easier for organised criminal networks to spread. Cuts to the Border Force have made it easier for gangs to traffic illegal drugs and guns into the UK, and cuts to youth services have made it easier for them to prey on young people. “The Conservatives have now promised to strengthen the National Crime Agency to tackle county lines, and the Liberal Democrats will make sure…