17Aug 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Raab’s sticking plaster on aid: Outrageous

Raab’s sticking plaster on aid: Outrageous

Parliamentary news
Responding to Dominic Raab's comments on the BBC Radio 4 Today Programme where he said he would increase the aid budget he "slashed to the bone" by 10%, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Layla Moran MP said: "It is outrageous that the Foreign Secretary has come out of hiding to announce this pitiful amount of support. This is the same person who cynically slashed aid to vulnerable women and girls in Afghanistan, making life even harder for people in the country. "They should do the honourable thing and immediately recommit pre-aid cut levels to Afghanistan to support those women and girls who need it now more than ever. "Dominic Raab's legacy as Foreign Secretary will no doubt be one of shame and downright incompetence."
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05Aug 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Govt record on electric vehicles “frankly embarrassing”

Govt record on electric vehicles “frankly embarrassing”

Parliamentary news
The Liberal Democrats have slammed the Government as new statistics reveal just 292 new “rapid” electric vehicle chargers were installed in the last three months, in spite of Tory promises to dramatically increase the number of fast chargers. The news comes as the Prime Minister’s COP26 Spokesperson Allegra Stratton said she was sticking with her diesel car because of concerns about range and recharging - suggesting she would buy an EV if “the stop times for recharging improve so much that it’s half an hour.” Rapid chargers will charge an EV from 0% to 80% in roughly the same time Ms Stratton desires, rather than the 8 hours that a standard “fast” charger takes. Earlier this year, the Conservatives cut grants available to new electric vehicle owners and the number…
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21Jul 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
NI Protocol: Government “taking us all for mugs”

NI Protocol: Government “taking us all for mugs”

Parliamentary news
Reacting to Lord Frost's statement on the NI Protocol, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Home Affairs and Northern Ireland Alistair Carmichael MP said: "This is a joke. The Government is taking us all for mugs when they say this mess could not have been predicted. They signed up to the Protocol knowing full well businesses would be caught up in a game of political football. It is time to get a grip and sort it out. "Their confrontational attitude will get us nowhere. Instead, they must focus on working together with the EU to help those people caught in the middle of it all. "The reality is that a solution to the Protocol’s problems is on the table by aligning with animal and food standards, which is what businesses want. That…
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14Jul 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Ten years on from Dilnot, Tories have Done ‘Nowt’ about social care

Ten years on from Dilnot, Tories have Done ‘Nowt’ about social care

Borough news, Parliamentary news
Ten years on after the Dilnot Report made recommendations to fairly and properly fund social care, the Conservative Government has still woefully failed to act in the face of a worsening underfunding crisis. Oldham Liberal Democrat Group Leader, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, is dismayed that after a decade of inaction under Tory ministers Britain’s elderly and most vulnerable people in receipt of care still face a future of anxiety and uncertainty. “Whilst in the recent Queen’s speech contained just nine words about social care and no more money,” laments Councillor Sykes. “The Dilnot Report was published on 4 July 2011 during the Coalition Government. It sought a commitment that Dilnot would be delivered, but the commitment was soon ditched once the Tories ruled alone." Councillor Sykes added: “The Prime Minister…
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14Jul 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Davey on aid cut: Broken promise will switch off Blue Wall voters in droves

Davey on aid cut: Broken promise will switch off Blue Wall voters in droves

Parliamentary news
Responding to the Government winning a vote to abandon its commitment on international development spending, Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey MP said: "Boris Johnson has just switched off millions of Conservative voters by callously breaking his promise and abandoning millions of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in our world. "It's decisions like this that will make millions of voters, especially in the Blue Wall, move away from the Conservatives in droves. This Conservative Government has lost touch with the values of our country. "Their unlawful tests for aid spending are the height of cynicism - as they were designed never to be met. The 0.7% target has been jettisoned as a result, and the law broken yet again by this Prime Minister. “This Johnson cut is costing…
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25Jun 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Hypocrite Hancock should go

Hypocrite Hancock should go

Parliamentary news
Responding to reports that Health Secretary Matt Hancock has broken Covid rules, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Health and Social Care Munira Wilson MP said: "Matt Hancock is a terrible Health Secretary and should have been sacked a long time ago for his failures. "This latest episode of hypocrisy will break the trust with the British public. He was telling families not to hug loved ones, while doing whatever he liked in the workplace. "It’s clear that he does not share the public’s values. Rules for them and rules for us is no way to run a country. "From the PPE scandal, the crisis in our care service and the unbelievably poor test and trace system, he has utterly failed. It is time for the Health Secretary to go."
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24Jun 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Government recklessly gambling on farmers retirement

Government recklessly gambling on farmers retirement

Parliamentary news
The Conservatives have proposed a retirement scheme to support farmers who wish to leave the industry, freeing up land for new entrants. However, no analysis has been done on the number expected to take up the scheme, nor how many new entrants will replace them. Questions from the Liberal Democrats have revealed that the Government only “think” that new workers will enter the industry. Liberal Democrats Spokesperson for Rural Affairs, Tim Farron MP, said: “This news is deeply concerning. The farming industry has already been battered by the Conservative’s mishandling of Brexit, the failure to protect animal welfare standards and the cuts to support payments without the replacement even being ready. “Now the Government is encouraging people to leave the industry, with no idea who will replace them. This risks…
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16Jun 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Slow down in renewables “failure of leadership”

Slow down in renewables “failure of leadership”

Parliamentary news
New statistics show that renewable energy generation growth has slowed significantly in the last year, despite promises from the Conservatives to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 and to make Britain the “Saudi Arabia of wind energy.” Offshore wind generation capacity grew by just 4% in 2020, compared to 20% the previous year. Onshore wind increased its capacity by just 1.1%, continuing a downward trend since 2017, when the Conservatives made it significantly harder to build new onshore wind farms. Solar capacity increased by 1.6%, continuing its limited growth since the Conservatives cut subsidies for solar power in 2016. Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for the Climate Emergency, said: “In the year the UK is hosting a climate conference, we have to lead the world in tackling the climate emergency. "However,…
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04Jun 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Education Secretary must go after Sir Kevan resignation

Education Secretary must go after Sir Kevan resignation

Parliamentary news
Responding to the resignation of the Education Recovery Commissioner Sir Kevan Collins, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Education Daisy Cooper said: "Sir Kevan was a good appointment and many of us were cheering him on. The Government’s pitiful offer of a £1.4bn to support a generation of young people who have lost months of learning was an insult to him and to our young people.  "Our children deserve better than this useless Education Secretary. Time and time again he keeps getting it wrong. It really is the last straw - the Education Secretary has to go.”
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26May 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Williamson worst Education Secretary in a generation

Williamson worst Education Secretary in a generation

Parliamentary news
Responding to the Public Accounts Committee report (Wed 26 May) criticising the Department for Education's handling of the pandemic, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Education Daisy Cooper said: “Children, parents and teachers have all had an incredibly tough year. The inevitable challenges of Covid have been compounded by the shocking failures of a Conservative Government that has been poorly prepared and slow to act at every stage of the pandemic. “This report makes clear that Gavin Williamson has failed time after time to show leadership. He was shamefully slow to get laptops to pupils who need them, he sleepwalked into last summer’s exam fiasco, and he botched the reopening of schools in January. “Gavin Williamson is quite simply England's worst Education Secretary in a generation. Boris Johnson should have sacked him…
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