Tag Archives: Labour

Keir Starmer MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, commenting on David Davis and Michel Barnier’s joint press conference, said:

“After three rounds of negotiations, real progress should have been made and in principle agreements reached on all phase one issues. Instead, the two sides appear to be getting further apart. 

“The risk of not reaching the October deadline to move on to the main negotiations is now very real; which increases the risk of Britain leaving with “no deal” in March 2019.

“No deal would be the worst possible outcome for the British people.

“Both sides need to redouble efforts and work together to reach a strong Article 50 deal and a close future partnership. If more negotiating sessions need to be added between now and the October deadline, they should be. Substantive progress and clear outcomes are urgently needed.”

Tom Watson MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, commenting on online gambling firm 888 being ordered to pay a record £7.8m penalty by the Gambling Commission, said:

“This outrageous case is more evidence of a gambling industry that needs to do more to protect vulnerable customers – not exploit them. With 430,000 problem gamblers in the UK, and over 2 million more at risk of addiction, the sector has to take responsibility and help people not to bet more than they can afford.”

Jonathan Ashworth MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, responding to reports in today’s Financial Times that the NHS is facing a £100m agency bill to boost GP numbers, said:

“This is yet another example of the Government’s financial mismanagement of our NHS and their lack of action when it comes to the GP workforce.

“Under the Tories, general practice is being stretched to breaking point, and patients are being let down as a result.

“This Government needs to come up with a workable plan for boosting the number of GPs and investing in frontline services, otherwise under the Tories, more and more taxpayers’ cash will be spent on expensive agency bills.”

Alan Whitehead MP, Labour’s Shadow Energy Minister and Climate Change, responding to reports that Ofgem will implement an energy price cap for two million vulnerable households, falling short of Theresa May’s General Election promise, said:

“Theresa May misled voters during the election by pledging to cap energy bills for 17 million households before quickly backtracking. Now she is trying to mislead people again by claiming the responsibility to introduce a cap for all households on standard variable tariffs lies with Ofgem, despite the regulator making clear it needs the government to legislate.

“Unlike the Tories, the next Labour government will offer more than empty words by introducing an immediate emergency price cap to keep household bills down, while we transition to a fairer system for bill payers.”

Peter Dowd MP, Labour’s Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, commenting on the Public and Commercial Services union announcement that protests about pay are due to take place across the UK, said

“These protests reinforce the unfairness of the public sector pay cap and the poor treatment that civil servants and other public sector workers have faced at the hands of this Tory Government. Civil servants and other public sector workers have seen their real wages fall constantly over the seven years of Conservative pay freezes and caps.

“It is shocking that our public servants have been forced into protesting their poor treatment and falling wages caused by the Tory Government’s pay freezes and caps. 

“Meanwhile, the Conservative’s cabinet of chaos continues to stand up for a privileged elite – handing out tax cuts for the rich and failing to properly tackle tax avoidance.

“The next Labour Government will lift the public sector pay cap and give all workers the pay rise they deserve so that the economy works for the many and not the few.”