08Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Davey: We must match the scale of the crisis with the courage to invest

Parliamentary news
Speaking after the Chancellor's Summer Statement, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: “Coronavirus has left countless families facing serious financial hardship. More than a million people have lost their jobs and many more are worried about losing theirs in the weeks and months ahead. “While I welcome short term measures to help people now, the Chancellor has no serious long term economic strategy for dealing with unemployment, climate change and inequality. “Totally absent today was any measure to help the millions excluded from Covid support - like new starters, newly self-employed people and freelancers. They haven’t been helped at all so far and yet represent some of the most vulnerable groups. They must not be left behind. “Fundamentally, we need a radically new approach to building a…
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07Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Davey: we need a devolution revolution to drive the green revolution

Campaigns, Parliamentary news
Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey has delivered a keynote speech to the Local Government Association outlining his plan for a devolution revolution to drive a green revolution. Ed Davey called for the government to make £45bn new funding available to local authorities over three years alongside a range of new powers so that local government can spearhead the green recovery from the coronavirus crisis. Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: “Even as coronavirus has caused unbearable heartbreak and hardship, it has been truly uplifting to see the great work councils right across the country are doing to support local people. “The sheer cost of failing to prepare for the predicted risk of the pandemic crisis should be a dramatic wake up call to prepare properly, now,…
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07Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Chancellor must act to help those excluded from Government support

Parliamentary news
After the initial meeting of the APPG for ExcludedUK today, Liberal Democrat MP and Chair of the APPG Jamie Stone has joined with the other co-chairs in calling on the Chancellor to help those who have so far been left out of the financial support measures introduced by the Government. The APPG has been set up with the help of ExcludedUK to represent the 3 million individuals who have not been entitled to the Government support in response to the coronavirus crisis. The first meeting this morning was the largest of any inaugural APPG meeting, seeing over 150 MPs join online. In a joint letter to the Chancellor ahead of his speech tomorrow, Jamie Stone and the co-chairs of the APPG (William Wragg MP, Tracy Brabin MP, Alison Thewliss MP,…
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07Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Government green recovery plans do not match ambition of other countries

Parliamentary news
Responding to Chancellor Rishi Sunak's announcement of a package of measures worth £3bn, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: “Across our country millions face an unprecedented economic and health crisis. We need a radical new direction to meet this challenge. We need a massive green stimulus so we both provide jobs and tackle this crisis and the climate crisis.  “The Government’s spending on climate change simply does not match the scale of ambition necessary to reshape our economy, nor does it match the sums other countires have pledged. That is why the Liberal Democrats are calling on the Chancellor to do more and invest £150 billion over three years through a Green Recovery Plan.  "We must not forget this pandemic hasn't affected everyone equally. Amongst the worst hit are self employed workers, many of…
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03Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Government’s claim of protective ring around care homes “completely bogus”

Parliamentary news
Responding to the latest ONS figures showing almost 20,000 care home residents have died with coronavirus, Liberal Democrat Health, Wellbeing and Social Care spokesperson Munira Wilson said: “The devastating scale of the coronavirus crisis in our care homes is heartbreaking. It shows the Government's claim that they had a "protective ring" in place was completely bogus. "We must learn the lessons of this crisis in real time. Alongside adequate protective equipment, routine testing for residents and care workers could not be more important. The Government must ensure every care home has access to regular testing now and for as long as is required to stop more families losing loved ones. "The failure to protect those in care is yet more evidence of the pressing need for an independent inquiry into…
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03Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Government must publish scientific basis for air bridges

Parliamentary news
Responding to the publication of the list of countries for which quarantine will not apply for people arriving back in England, Liberal Democrat Health, Wellbeing and Social Care spokesperson Munira Wilson said: “The coronavirus crisis remains deeply worrying, particularly for the most vulnerable. While we all want to get back to normal life, we must ensure it is safe to do so. "Where quarantine is concerned, the Government have been all over the place. Clearly, that hasn't changed. People deserve better. To avoid yet further confusion, Ministers must publish the scientific basis for their decisions. “Underpinning everything the Government does must be the motivation to keep people safe. Ministers can only do that by delivering a comprehensive strategy to test, trace and isolate to prevent a new surge."
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03Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Government shouldn’t need to mull on EU coronavirus vaccine scheme

Parliamentary news
Responding to reports that the UK Government is considering whether to participate in the EU coronavirus vaccine scheme, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs and Brexit spokesperson Alistair Carmichael said: “When it comes to saving lives, there should be no mulling to do. Joining the EU’s coronavirus vaccine scheme is not about the old arguments of Brexit. It is simply the right thing to do. “It is all very well Boris Johnson claiming he regrets the loss of life but if he then refuses to do something because of politics then his regret is worth nothing more than a bucket of cold sick.  "The Prime Minister must put ideology aside and commit to participating immediately."
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02Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Government must move faster to improve NHS Test & Trace system

Parliamentary news
Responding to news that the NHS Test and Trace system is still failing to find a quarter of people who have tested positive for COVID-19, Liberal Democrat Health, Wellbeing and Social Care spokesperson Munira Wilson said: “The latest NHS Test & Trace figures suggest the system is not improving at the rate that it needs to. "With lockdown restrictions due to be eased further from Saturday, a robust and effective system to test, trace and isolate every case of coronavirus to keep people safe is absolutely critical. "Ministers must move much faster to improve the Test & Trace system and local authorities must be at the heart of those efforts. This means providing real-time, postcode-level data now on positive tests so that local Directors of Public Health, who have the…
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02Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Government woefully underprepared to ensure every young person can return to school

Parliamentary news
Speaking following the statement on schools reopening, Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson Layla Moran said: “Today's statement shows just how woefully underprepared the Government are to ensure every young person can return to school in September. “Despite the very real risk of further local outbreaks of Covid 19, the Education Secretary refused to give any commitment that children will get the equipment they need to learn from home. Without them, too many will have no chance of catching up on their education and will continue to fall behind. “Every day disadvantaged children go without the laptops they need is another day the digital divide gets worse. This is a complete dereliction of duty by the Education Secretary and he must take immediate steps to address it.”
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02Jul 2020 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Government must stop overlooking green investment to create sustainable jobs

Parliamentary news
Responding to the news that some 11,000 job losses have been announced in the past 48 hours, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: “The coronavirus pandemic has created an unprecedented economic challenge.  “Behind these statistics, there are thousands of individuals and families facing real hardship, who will now be worried about putting food on the table and paying basic bills. “Given the scale of recent announcements of yet more job losses, Ministers need to move faster on their economic response and to look into special help for those sectors still being hit hard by COVID-19. “Ultimately the way out of this crisis is to create new, good quality jobs through a Green Recovery Plan that will tackle climate change while building back our economy. “The Government must stop overlooking…
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