25Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Agnew resignation: Buck stops with Sunak over lost Billions

Agnew resignation: Buck stops with Sunak over lost Billions

Parliamentary news
Responding to the resignation of Treasury Minister Lord Agnew over Covid loan fraud, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Christine Jardine MP said: "Will the last Boris Johnson supporter left turn off the lights? “With two Ministerial resignations in two months and dozens of Tory MPs on the brink of handing in their letters into 1922, this is truly a Conservative government paralysed by chaos. "It is outrageous this Government has allowed fraudsters to steal billions of taxpayer's money, especially when households are facing unfair tax hikes. “The combination of ‘arrogance, indolence, and ignorance’ which Lord Agnew referred to cannot be allowed to continue. “The buck stops with Rishi Sunak. He must explain how he’s going to get back these billions he allowed to be stolen from our schools, hospitals and police…
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25Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Ed Davey: Met Police must interview Boris Johnson under caution

Parliamentary news
Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey has welcomed the confirmation from Commissioner Cressida Dick that the Met Police is now investigating parties held in Downing Street and Whitehall in breach of Covid rules, calling it the “first step towards justice for millions across the country.” It comes after Ed Davey wrote to Cressida Dick two weeks ago calling for a full investigation into the gatherings held in Number 10. The Liberal Democrats say Boris Johnson should be interviewed under caution, and given Fixed Penalty Notices for every time he is found to have breached Covid laws. Over 17,700 people have been fined by the Metropolitan Police for breaching Covid laws during the pandemic, including 113 fines for holding a gathering of over 30 people. Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said: “This…
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25Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Davey on Boris birthday party: Met must investigate this to deliver justice

Davey on Boris birthday party: Met must investigate this to deliver justice

Parliamentary news
Responding to new revelations that Boris Johnson held a birthday party for himself in June 2020, Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: "This can't go on any longer. "Party after party, lie after lie, this disgraced Prime Minister brings more pain every day to bereaved families who have already suffered too much. "It is clear now the Sue Gray inquiry is not fit for purpose. The Met must investigate this to deliver justice for millions who sacrificed so much during this pandemic. "Britain played by the rules which Boris Johnson wrote, but couldn't be bothered to stick to himself. It is time he saved the country even more pain and resigned."
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20Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Plan B ending: A desperate Prime Minister flailing

Plan B ending: A desperate Prime Minister flailing

Parliamentary news
Responding to the Prime Minister announcing an end to Plan B Covid restrictions, Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said: "Boris Johnson has no authority left to make these decisions. He is a desperate Prime Minister flailing out at any policy decision he can find. This is no way to govern the country. "Every time he mutters the word Covid, all the public can think about is his law-breaking party antics. For the sake of the country, he needs to stop meddling and get off the stage. "The problem now is that everything the Prime Minister does - whether or not it’s the right thing - will be seen as him trying to save his own skin rather than governing in the interests of the country."
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17Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Dowden defence of No10 parties ‘pathetic’ say Lib Dems

Dowden defence of No10 parties ‘pathetic’ say Lib Dems

Parliamentary news
Responding to Oliver Dowden's appearance on BBC Sunday Morning, where he defended the Prime Minister and blamed an 'underlying culture' for the Downing Street parties, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Layla Moran MP said: "This pathetic attempt to defend Boris Johnson will just fan the flames of public anger against this rotten Conservative government. "Boris Johnson is once again blaming those around him instead of taking responsibility. "If he really is angry about these parties, he must be furious with himself. Boris Johnson allowed them to happen, he joined in, and then he tried to cover it up by lying to the public. "The very same day Oliver Dowden ordered people to only meet in pairs outside, Boris Johnson was attending a party in Number 10. We don't just need…
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17Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Lib Dems table no confidence motion in Boris Johnson

Lib Dems table no confidence motion in Boris Johnson

Parliamentary news
The Liberal Democrats have tabled a no confidence motion in Boris Johnson, and challenged Conservative MPs to vote for it to force the prime minister to step down. The motion states that Parliament has no confidence in Boris Johnson as he has “broken the Covid lockdown laws his Government introduced, misled both Parliament and the public about it, and disastrously undermined public confidence in the midst of a pandemic.” The motion been so far been signed by 18 MPs from four parties. These include all thirteen Liberal Democrat MPs, two Labour MPs, two from Plaid Cymru and Stephen Garry from the Alliance Party. The Liberal Democrats have also written to Leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg, demanding he put the motion to a vote within the next week.…
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14Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Government fails to recruit ex-teachers after spending under £4,000 on the campaign

Government fails to recruit ex-teachers after spending under £4,000 on the campaign

Parliamentary news
A Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Question has today revealed that the Department for Education spent just £3882 on the campaign to bring retired and ex-teachers back to the profession to fill Covid-related absences. It comes as just 485 ex-teachers have been recruited by the Education Secretary's failed recruitment drive, while official data from the Department for Education yesterday reported 44,000 teachers and school leaders have been absent from schools across the country. In a Government press release, Nadhim Zahawi claimed the campaign was part of [doing] “everything in my power to protect education”, yet spent less than two months average salary for a teacher on the entire campaign. Teacher absences across the country are now reaching crisis point with Zahawi planning for shortages of 25%. Last weekend on the BBC Sunday…
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14Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
6 million NHS waiting list – PM must apologise to patients being let down

6 million NHS waiting list – PM must apologise to patients being let down

Parliamentary news
Responding to the new statistics that show NHS waiting lists have grown to six million while A&E waiting times are the worst on record, Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said: "Patients are being catastrophically let down by this government's woeful neglect of the NHS. "A&E waiting times are the worst on record, while millions are being left waiting in pain for an operation. "Boris Johnson was repeatedly warned about the terrible pressures facing our NHS and frontline staff, but chose to bury his head in the sand. He must apologise now to the millions of patients being let down. "An urgent strategy is now needed to improve morale and recruit more healthcare staff, to tackle the backlog, cut waiting times and offer every patient the care they deserve."
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14Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Davey: Met Police mustn’t let Boris Johnson off the hook

Davey: Met Police mustn’t let Boris Johnson off the hook

Parliamentary news
Responding to the Metropolitan Police's statement that they will not investigate any of the Downing Street parties until after the findings of Sue Gray's inquiry, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey MP said: “The evidence that Boris Johnson broke the law is clear to everyone. Cressida Dick mustn’t let him off the hook through a shady establishment stitch-up. “The police don’t need the Government’s permission to investigate a crime, and they mustn’t turn a blind eye to criminality just because it is committed by Boris Johnson. "It is ludicrous to pretend that we can leave it to a civil servant appointed by Boris Johnson to get to the bottom of this. “The Met Commissioner might think it’s one rule for Boris Johnson and another rule for everyone else, but that doesn’t…
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12Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
High Court VIP Lane ruling: Conservatives treated pandemic as a cash cow

High Court VIP Lane ruling: Conservatives treated pandemic as a cash cow

Parliamentary news
Responding to today's High Court ruling that the Government's use of the 'VIP Lane' to award PPE contracts was unlawful, Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said: "This damning judgment confirms what the public already suspected. Not only did the Conservatives give their mates privileged access to lucrative Covid contracts, they did it unlawfully. "The Tory party treated a pandemic as a cash cow for their friends and donors. Once again, it's a case of one rule for Tory Ministers and their cronies and another for everyone else."
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