25Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Not a penny for new aid in Tonga this year, following aid cut

Not a penny for new aid in Tonga this year, following aid cut

Parliamentary news
Layla Moran MP has been granted an Urgent Question on the humanitarian situation in Tonga, following the eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcano on 15 January.  Liberal Democrat analysis from the Government’s own DevTracker shows that UK aid spending in Tonga has been reduced to £0 in 2021-22, a reduction of more than £500k on 2020-21, in the first year of the Government’s aid cut.  The Government is yet to announce the release of any new financial aid to the country following the eruption. Layla Moran criticised the Government’s decision to cut the international development budget, saying that it “has left us responding to disasters like this with one hand tied behind our back”.  The eruption of Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcano and subsequent tsunami in Tonga on 15 January has particularly affected smaller islands - on…
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21Jan 2022 by Sam Al-Hamdani
At a moment of danger in Europe we would expect the Foreign Secretary to be at the table

At a moment of danger in Europe we would expect the Foreign Secretary to be at the table

Parliamentary news
Responding to Liz Truss’s visit to Australia, thereby missing a meeting of the ‘Quad’ (comprising the US secretary of state Antony Blinken; French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock) to discuss the Russia/Ukraine crisis, Layla Moran MP, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Foreign Affairs, commented: “Agreements with Australia are all well and good - but is flying to the other side of the world really a matter of diplomatic urgency at a moment when Europe is coming perilously close to war? “At this moment of danger, we would expect the Foreign Secretary to be at the table, with her counterparts from the US, France and Germany. But she’s not in the room - she’s not even on the continent. “Truss’s diplomatic priorities are half a world…
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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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20Sep 2021 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Government must ‘not let the sun go down’ on the UK performers

Government must ‘not let the sun go down’ on the UK performers

Parliamentary news
Liberal Democrats have backed calls from Sir Elton John for the UK Government to urgently resolve the growing crisis facing the UK cultural sector. At their national Conference today, the party has unanimously backed calls for swift action to address the red tape and paperwork that is stopping UK artists, performers, and musicians from being able to tour and perform in Europe. Sir Elton has been a vocal critic of the Government’s failure to resolve this issue, which was caused following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU without a full scheme in place to enable paperless travel for performers. Earlier this year, Liberal Democrat Peer Lord Paul Strasburger hosted a meeting between Sir Elton and Lord Frost, the Government’s chief Brexit negotiator and now Minister for EU Relations, to discuss…
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25Feb 2019 by Sam Al-Hamdani

Moran: Use of Vagrancy Act should shame the Government

Campaigns, Parliamentary news
A Freedom of Information request has shown that 6,518 ‘offenders’ were found guilty under the Vagrancy Act (1824) between the years 2014 to 2017 in England and Wales.  The Metropolitan Police were the most likely force to use the Act, which criminalises rough sleepers, averaging 459 convictions a year. West Midlands police force area averaged 161, and Merseyside averaged 148 per year.  Commenting on the findings, Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran, who has brought forward legislation to scrap the Vagrancy Act, said: “The Government, and local authorities, should be ashamed that they have continued to allow the use of a law that makes rough sleeping a criminal offence, and for it to be used so prolifically with little regard for the people afflicted. “This law was controversial 200 years ago,…
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31Jan 2019 by Sam Al-Hamdani
Moran: Rough sleeping shames our whole country

Moran: Rough sleeping shames our whole country

Campaigns, Parliamentary news
The Liberal Democrats have today called for cross-party support for Layla Moran's Bill to scrap the Vagrancy Act following the publication of official figures which reveal there were 4,677 rough sleepers across England in Autumn 2018.Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran said:“The fact that thousands of people sleep rough every night shames our whole country. These figures don’t even capture the many more ‘hidden homeless’ in insecure and unsuitable accommodation. “Even worse, hundreds of homeless people die each year, as the tragic death of Kane Walker in Birmingham on Sunday reminded us. The Tories are failing our most vulnerable people."The Liberal Democrats demand better. We want the Government to be building up to 100,000 social homes a year, provide accommodation and support to those in need, and finally back my Bill to scrap…
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