Debbie Abrahams MP, Labour’s
Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary,
responding to the Government’s announcement of jobcentre closures, said:

“At a
time when the Tories are cutting social security and introducing sanctions for
low-paid workers, it’s reckless at best and perverse at worst for the
Government to close so many Jobcentres.

“Only this government’s distorted
austerity agenda could lead to such contradictory policies.

“This
Tory Government’s decision to close Jobcentres across the country shows they
are not serious about helping people to find decent, secure and well-paid
work’.

Barbara Keeley MP, Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Minister for Mental Health, commenting on a report by the National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Deaths on Mental Health in General Hospitals, said:

“It is well known that patients with severe mental health conditions are likely to develop physical health conditions earlier in life, yet this report shows that only 46 percent of patients with a mental health condition received good care in General Hospitals. It is unacceptable that patients with a mental health condition receive both poor physical and mental healthcare.

“The number of people attending A&E with psychiatric conditions has risen sharply since 2010 and many patients also have an underlying mental health condition. Yet, the Royal College of Psychiatrists has reported that only seven percent of A&E departments provide liaison psychiatry services 24/7.

“Tory Ministers should pay serious attention to reports like this. They should be aiming to have a mental health liaison team in every A&E as soon as possible. This could help reduce the level of readmissions to hospital highlighted in this report and improve the standards of care for patients with a mental health condition.“

Ends

Jeremy
Corbyn MP, Leader of the Labour Party,
commenting on the Prime Minister’s meeting with President Trump, said:

“Theresa
May must stand up for our country’s values when she meets Donald Trump and
oppose his support for torture, which is inhumane, illegal and delivers false
intelligence. There can be no indulgence of the US President’s renewed threat
to ban Muslims or build a wall on the Mexico border.

"The
Prime Minister must assure the British people that any trade deal with the
United States won’t open up the National Health Service to privatisation and
control by US companies. We won’t let Theresa May turn Britain into a bargain
basement tax haven off the coast of Europe to be ripped off by the world’s
biggest corporations.

"And
for the future of the planet, Theresa May needs to remind President Trump that
climate change is real and not a hoax invented by the Chinese.”

Diane Abbott MP, Labour’s Shadow Home Secretary,
speaking after the release of police workforce statistics, said: 

“With over 20,000 officers lost since 2010, the Tories are risking
public safety with these extreme cuts.

“They slashed police budgets in the last Parliament and are
reducing funding even further now.

“The latest crime statistics show the true scale of the challenge
our officers now face. This is the worst time to cut the police.”

Rebecca Long-Bailey MP, Labour’s Shadow Chief Secretary to the
Treasury, responding to GDP figures published today, said:

“While we welcome today’s Q4 GDP figures, growth for 2016 as a whole is
lower than 2015, and lower than forecast by the OBR just two months ago in the
Autumn Statement. It is clear that the Tories’ rigged
economy simply isn’t delivering for the majority of people in
Britain. Prices are rising but earnings are still
below where they were before the financial crash. As a result, we have
extremely high levels of household debt as people struggle to make ends meet on
incomes alone. 

"Manufacturing is bumping along without proper support from government to
power it through Brexit, even the Bank of England acknowledged recently that
our economy was being driven by consumer spending rather than trade and export.
This is clearly not a Government serious about making sure that we support British
industry and claim a prestigious place at the world’s table as we leave the
European Union. 

"Labour will fix our rigged economy with a real living wage, expected to
be £10 an hour by 2020, and the long-term, patient investment we need to
make sure that businesses thrive and that nobody and no community is
left behind.”