Press release: “Illegal and unscrupulous waste criminals” ordered to pay £175,000
The Environment Agency successfully prosecuted 2 known criminals and their company. read more
Author Archives: GovWorldMag
Passengers should not have had to go to the courts to seek accountability – McDonald
Commenting on today’s High Court ruling ordering the Secretary of State for Transport to produce a report into Southern Rail within 14 days, Andy McDonald MP, Labour’s Shadow Transport Secretary said:
“Passengers should not have had to go to the courts to seek accountability.
“Ultimately, the buck stops with the government. Tory ministers, who designed and awarded the franchise, have been ducking their responsibility for Southern’s abysmal service and for directing this unnecessary industrial dispute.
“A Labour government would stand up for the interest of passengers rather than train companies, taking Southern back into public ownership and creating a new body to have strategic oversight for the railway to end the chaos and fragmentation that has plagued Southern.”
read moreThis chaotic Government is breaking its own laws by refusing to set out its timetable for the state pension age – Abrahams
Debbie Abrahams MP, Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, raised a Point of Order today on the Government’s failure to meet its legal deadline to set out its state pension age timetable. Debbie said:
“This chaotic Government is breaking its own laws by refusing to set out its timetable for the state pension age.”
“Should they implement the recommendations of the Cridland Review, up to 34 million people will be expected to work longer.”
“Given their complete failure to adequately communicate the equalisation of the state pension age for women, it is absolutely vital that this Tory Government comes clean with its plan now.
“In our manifesto Labour is committed to leaving the state pension age at 66, as part of our plans to ensure a secure and dignified retirement for the many, not just a few.”
read moreSturgeon owes Holyrood an explanation over CAP cover-up
29 Jun 2017
Nicola Sturgeon owes the Scottish Parliament an explanation after failing to disclose that her government had sought an extension on farming payments.
Last week, the First Minister refused to say whether the Scottish Government had made the request to Europe for paying Common Agricultural Policy cash to farmers.
It has since emerged she and her cabinet had been informed such an extension would be sought days earlier, and today was put under pressure as to why she pleaded ignorance.
At First Minister’s Questions, the Scottish Conservative leader said having apologised to farmers for botching the CAP payments process for the second year on the trot, she should now say sorry to Holyrood for not being up front last week.
Instead, Ms Sturgeon said farmers across the country were happy with the SNP’s performance on CAP, despite the fact just 82 per cent of the cash has been paid ahead of tomorrow’s deadline.
Audit Scotland have said, if the Scottish Government misses the deadline, it could be fined up to £60 million.
Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said:
“Last week I asked the First Minister three times if her government had contacted the EC to seek an extension, and three times she refused to answer.
“We subsequently found out the extension had been requested, and she had been informed.
“That’s why Nicola Sturgeon has to explain why she tried to hide this from the Scottish Parliament.
“People watching will have rightly wondered if this was a case of misleading parliament.
“Farmers have been badly let down by the SNP, and it’s no wonder they’ve turned their back on the nationalists.
“But parliament needs an explanation too, because the ministerial code is clear about ministers providing accurate and truthful information.
“The SNP fell far below those standards in recent weeks.”
It emerged yesterday that the Scottish Government had been told of the CAP delay, prior to both Nicola Sturgeon and Fergus Ewing denying it:
read moreNews story: Defence Secretary steps up UK commitments to NATO
Sir Michael Fallon has announced a package of new contributions to NATO, underlining the UK’s leading role within the Alliance. read more