02Sep 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Schools: Davey calls on PM to provide proper catch-up funding

Schools: Davey calls on PM to provide proper catch-up funding

Parliamentary news
Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey MP has called on the Prime Minister to provide proper funding so that children can catch up on the education they missed during during the pandemic. Ed Davey said: “Boris Johnson’s refusal to fund his own adviser’s education catch-up plan is a shocking betrayal of our children’s futures. “As children go back to school, parents are understandably anxious about all the learning they've missed out on during Covid. “Children, parents and teachers have done everything that’s been asked of them during the Covid crisis, but have been let down repeatedly by the appalling failures of Gavin Williamson and this Conservative Government. “Tory Ministers must listen to what parents are telling them and stump up the cash schools need to make up for the…
Read More
16Aug 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Government stats reveal care home covid cases triple in July

Government stats reveal care home covid cases triple in July

Parliamentary news
Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey has accused the Government of “leaving our care homes exposed” as statistics have shown care home cases tripled in July. The stats on Adult Social Care in England for August 2021 show: There were 14,660 positive Covid tests among care home staff in the four weeks to July 27, triple the 4,552 positive tests recorded among care home staff in June, analysis of figures from the Department of Health and Social Care have revealed.The figures are the highest since the pandemic was surging during the second wave in February of this year.2,047 care home residents tested positive in the four weeks to July 27, up from 596 the previous month. The figures also show 78% of staff in care homes have now received two doses…
Read More
16Aug 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Holidaymakers paying millions for PCR tests that aren’t checked for new variants, research reveals

Holidaymakers paying millions for PCR tests that aren’t checked for new variants, research reveals

Parliamentary news
Holidaymakers paid an estimated £26.7 million for PCR tests in July while only 293 positive tests were checked for variants, equivalent to around £90,000 for each sequenced result.Fewer than one in twenty positive tests are being checked for new variants from top holiday destinations including France (4.9%), Greece (3.5%) and Portugal (4.2%).Only one in twelve (8.4%) positive tests of arrivals from Spain and one in ten (10.2%) from Italy are being sequenced for Covid mutations.Liberal Democrats warn that “travellers are paying through the nose for a system that isn’t doing its job.” UK holidaymakers are paying out millions of pounds for PCR tests that aren’t checked for new Covid variants, research by the Liberal Democrats has revealed. Analysis of the latest NHS Test and Trace data1 has found that arrivals…
Read More
16Aug 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Self-isolation relaxation: “Too far, too fast”

Self-isolation relaxation: “Too far, too fast”

Parliamentary news
Commenting on the Government’s plans to relax the self-isolation rules for under 18s and those that are fully vaccinated, Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care spokesperson, Munira Wilson MP said: “The Government is going too far too fast. There is certainly a need to rationalise the self-isolation rules for those who are double jabbed and under 18s, but not to scrap them entirely.  “As we head into winter the virus will only spread faster and we still need measures in place to slow the spread. There are still 3.8 million critically extremely vulnerable people who are at significant risk who have not yet had their booster jabs. Masks on public transport and sensible self-isolation rules will be key to keeping them safe and healthy. “The Liberal Democrats believe that the…
Read More
06Aug 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Alok Sharma’s hypocrisy shows Government’s contempt for the rules

Alok Sharma’s hypocrisy shows Government’s contempt for the rules

Parliamentary news
Reacting to the revelation that COP26 President Alok Sharma has been allowed to travel to Red List countries without quarantining, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Transport Sarah Olney MP said: "As usual with this Government, it's one rule for them and another for everybody else. While Alok Sharma flies to Red List countries with abandon, hard-working families can hardly see loved-ones or plan holidays as the Government changes travel rules on the hoof. "People are sick of the Government giving themselves get-out-of-jail free passes while the rest of us stick to the rules.   “The Conservatives have fallen completely out of touch with the concept of decency and this is another example to add to a catalogue of errors made during this pandemic. Only an inquiry can do the British people justice.”
Read More
26Jul 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Davey: Government must “stop putting paperwork over people”

Davey: Government must “stop putting paperwork over people”

Parliamentary news
The Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey has called upon the Chancellor to be "on the side of the self-employed", as a million people face being slapped with a tax bill on money they never earned. Income tax bills landing at the doors of the self-employed and freelancers of this country at the end of July will be calculated based upon their earnings in 2019-20 - neglecting the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on business and trade. In a letter to Chancellor Rishi Sunak, Davey sets out five urgent actions required of HMRC to take into account Covid losses on earnings, focused around clear and proper communication with taxpayers. Leader of the Lib Dems Ed Davey MP writes in the letter to the Chancellor: "Covid-19 has wrought havoc on…
Read More
26Jul 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Government punishing young people for pandemic mistakes

Government punishing young people for pandemic mistakes

Parliamentary news
The Liberal Democrats are warning that young people are bearing the brunt of this pandemic following reports that students may have to be double-vaccinated to return to lecture halls. Many students have lost out on education after almost 18 months of restrictions, while their mental health is also believed to have been severely impacted by the pandemic and lockdowns. Liberal Democrats Spokesperson for Health Munira Wilson MP said: "It is completely unacceptable that the Government is considering this. While it is crucial every adult who can get vaccinated does get the jab, attempting to withhold face-to-face education from students until they do is crossing a line. "Young people are bearing the brunt of this pandemic, and Government attempts to strongarm them into getting vaccinated will simply push them away. Along…
Read More
22Jul 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Starmer is right to oppose illiberal vaccine passports

Starmer is right to oppose illiberal vaccine passports

Parliamentary news
Reacting to Labour's announcement opposing vaccine passports, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Alistair Carmichael MP said: “It took him long enough but I am glad that Keir Starmer has come out against vaccine passports. "We need a united front against these illiberal and unworkable proposals and a national campaign through the summer to convince the government to change course. "The Liberal Democrats will be fighting this Covid ID scheme all the way and we will welcome all the supporters we can get.”
Read More
21Jul 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
1m children not in school: Education crisis worsening by the day

1m children not in school: Education crisis worsening by the day

Parliamentary news
Munira Wilson MP, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Health and parent of a child told to stay at home due to covid rules, has responded to news that 1 million children are currently not attending school. She said: "We are in the midst of an education crisis which is worsening by the day. "As a parent myself with a child told to stay at home right now, I know how tough it is when the dreaded text from school arrives. "Behind this number are children without laptops, untold impacts on their mental health and parents forced to stay at home instead of working. "The Prime Minister needs to act today on this if schools are to return in Autumn. He must act without delay to protect millions of children's mental health…
Read More
21Jul 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Oldham Liberal Democrats back campaign to end Summer holiday hunger

Oldham Liberal Democrats back campaign to end Summer holiday hunger

Borough news
Oldham’s Liberal Democrat Councillors have backed a call from the National Education Union to the government to end school summer holiday hunger. The councillors have co-signed a letter to the Prime Minister seeking the return of a special payment to poorer families of £15 per week for each child normally in receipt of means-tested free school meals. This is to provide families with extra food to compensate them for the loss of free school meals for that child during the summer holidays. Commenting, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE said: “Last year, the government finally listened to the many voices, including ours, calling for an end to kids going hungry over the summer and did the decent thing by introducing this payment whilst Britain was in the grip of the COVID pandemic.…
Read More