Peter Dowd MP, Labour’s Shadow
Chief Secretary to the Treasury,
commenting on reports that the Government has been forced to accept the need
for a parliamentary vote on its £1 billion deal with the DUP, said:

“The Treasury’s admission of the
need for a parliamentary vote on the £1 billion DUP bribe is a clear indication
that the Conservatives’ chaotic attempts to circumvent Parliament must come to
an end.

“Hammond must come clean about
whether he intends to increase taxes, slash spending, or increase borrowing to
fund the blackhole created by the £1 billion DUP bribe and the £2 billion
u-turn on his attempt to increase National Insurance Contributions for
self-employed workers. The Chancellor could have settled this by including his
plans in Tuesday’s Finance Bill second reading, but instead he is still hiding
the public finances under a shroud.

“We do not begrudge Northern
Ireland getting the spending that it needs, but people all across the UK are
crying out for the investment, jobs, and decent pay which will only be
delivered by the next Labour Government.”

Kate
Osamor MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for International Development, commenting on the announcement
that Emmanuel Macron will visit St Martin on Tuesday, said, 

“Hurricane
Irma is the worst Atlantic storm to have hit in years, and people’s lives have
been devastated in Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands and across the
Caribbean.

“Boris
Johnson was clear on Sunday that this is a national disaster being treated as
though in Inverness, Dover or St. Ives. Donald Trump is headed to Florida, and
now Emmanuel Macron will visit St Martin tomorrow. 

“But
with the UK response to Irma drawing wide criticism, Theresa May is still to
announce whether she or Boris Johnson will visit those most affected, look
them in the eye and put their concerns at the centre of her government’s
response plan.  

“The British people in the Overseas Territories
deserve to see first-hand that the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary
are doing everything they can to get a grip on this national
disaster.”

Peter Dowd MP, Labour’s Shadow
Chief Secretary to the Treasury,
commenting on reports that the Government has been forced to accept the need
for a parliamentary vote on its £1 billion deal with the DUP, said:

“The Treasury’s admission of the
need for a parliamentary vote on the £1 billion DUP bribe is a clear indication
that the Conservatives’ chaotic attempts to circumvent Parliament must come to
an end.

“Hammond must come clean about
whether he intends to increase taxes, slash spending, or increase borrowing to
fund the blackhole created by the £1 billion DUP bribe and the £2 billion
u-turn on his attempt to increase National Insurance Contributions for
self-employed workers. The Chancellor could have settled this by including his
plans in Tuesday’s Finance Bill second reading, but instead he is still hiding
the public finances under a shroud.

“We do not begrudge Northern Ireland getting the
spending that it needs, but people all across the UK are crying out for the
investment, jobs, and decent pay which will only be delivered by the next
Labour Government.”

Angela
Rayner MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Education, commenting on news that Wakefield
City Academies Trust has pulled out of running 21 schools a few days into the
new school term, said:

“This
situation will create enormous uncertainty for pupils and teachers at these
schools, who have no idea how their schools will be run in future. Ministers
need to take immediate steps to reassure them that their education will not be
put at risk. 

 “This
case is yet another stark example of failure in the Government’s management of
its academies programme and reflects on the system as a whole.

 “A Labour
government would ensure schools are both properly funded and properly
accountable.”

Barry
Gardiner MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for International Trade, commenting on
today’s ONS figures, said:

“Today’s
rise in the trade deficit shows yet again that after seven years of economic
failure under the Tories, this country is falling far behind its potential.

“The
rise in the deficit with non-EU countries is particularly concerning given the
failure of this government to offer serious proposals for Britain’s trading
relationships with the rest of the world, post-Brexit. Tory fantasies about
future trade deals are meaningless without delivering the investment and
industrial strategy needed in this country for future export success.

“Only
Labour will deliver the investment and industrial strategy needed to create
good, secure jobs and build an economy that works for the many, not the few.”