John
McDonnell MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, responding to the ONS public sector
finance figures today, which show the national debt having risen to £1.7
trillion
at
the end of December 2016, said:

“After
six wasted years of Tory failure on the economy it seems that under Philip
Hammond it is only going to get worse.

"It
appears 2016 was yet another bad year for the national debt with the Tories
adding an increase of £91.5 billion, or an average of £251 million each
day over the last year: the equivalent of £1,400 per head in the last 12
months.

"Under
Hammond’s new fiscal rules, presented in the House today, there is insufficient scope for investment in our economy,
which will hinder growth and therefore our ability to reduce the national debt.

"Only
Labour has a real investment plan underpinned by our Fiscal Credibility Rule to
tackle the national debt and to deal with the public finances, so we can
transform and rebuild Britain in order that no one and no community is left
behind.”

China’s food watchdog has ordered stepped up inspection on food safety in the rural areas after eight people have died from tainted food over the past two months.

In one incident on Dec. 18, 2016, 30 residents came down with food poisoning, two of whom later died, after the cook mistook sodium nitrite for salt during a funeral dinner in Miaoya Village, Bazhong city of Sichuan Province, according to a circular released by the China Food and Drug Administration.

The other two cases included one in a village in Mudanjiang City in northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province and one in Huilong Village in Hubei Province in November and December last year. In both instances, methanol was mistakenly served during the banquets, leading to three deaths in each case.

The administration ordered enhanced inspection of the liquor market and strict penalties for illegalities such as selling fake or adulterated liquor.

Regular inspections and supervision of rural catering services should be strengthened and standardized guidance should be released for food safety and banquets in rural areas to prevent such incidents from happening again.

Andy McDonald MP,
Labour’s Shadow Transport Secretary, commenting on the publication of
Transport Focus’ National Rail Passenger Survey, revealing significant declines
in passenger satisfaction for 2016, said:

“The results of this survey expose the failure of
our privatised railways.
With promised upgrades delayed or cancelled and fares rising way ahead of
wages, it’s disappointing but not surprising to see passenger satisfaction down
across the board for 2016.

“With
this decline in passenger satisfaction, it’s becoming more difficult for the Government
to justify allowing private and foreign state-owned companies to take money out
of the system that should be used to improve services or hold fares down.

“It’s
clear than an alternative is needed for Britain’s railways. It is time for our
railways to be run under public ownership, in the public interest as an
integrated national asset in public hands with affordable fares for all and
long-term investment in the railway network.”

The central government has issued a guideline to encourage more college graduates to work at the community level.

The guideline, which was jointly issued by the General Office of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and the General Office of the State Council, has been designed to involve college graduates in economic and social development.

College graduates will be encouraged to find employment in the modern seed industry, agrotechny, countryside tourism, rural e-commerce, rural cooperatives and water conservation projects, according to the guideline.

The guideline says college graduates will be encouraged to work in the middle and western parts of the country, the northeast China and other less-developed and remote areas.

Graduates will also be encouraged to join the army with preferential policies.

The guideline says college graduates will be encouraged to work for small- and medium-sized enterprises, or start their own businesses.

To be attractive to graduates, companies must offer good training programs as well as higher wages and allowances, according to the guideline.

The guideline stipulates that civil servant recruitment in provincial-level agencies will only consider candidates with at least two years of grassroots working experience.

The government estimates that about 7.95 million college students will graduate this year, accounting for over a half of newly-added urban labor force.