Labour

Barbara Keeley MP, Labour’s Shadow Social Care Minister, commenting on the Government’s decision to temporarily suspend HMRC enforcement action and waive historical penalties for sleep-in shifts, said:

“This announcement does little to help sort out the issue of pay for sleep-in shifts.

“Care providers still face a £400 million bill and care workers still have no idea when they will get the money they have rightfully earned. Delaying enforcement action for a few weeks does nothing to address the issue and is a dangerous and retrograde step that risks undermining the very principle of a statutory minimum wage. If an exemption is granted in this case, it will not be long before other employers start pleading poverty to get out of their duty to properly pay their workforce.

“This Tory Government needs to stop burying its head in the sand about the problems in social care and put the funding of social care on a long-term sustainable footing.”

Alex Cunningham, Shadow Work and Pensions Minister, commenting on the Rethink Mental Illness report, said:

“This report highlights the shocking barriers faced by people with mental health conditions trying to find a job, and demonstrates this Government’s total failure to get to grips with the disability employment gap.

“The Government’s flagship Disability Confident scheme doesn’t appear to have had any impact at all. They seem unable to point to a single person who has found a job as a direct result of the scheme.”

“Labour will halve the disability employment gap, by supporting employers to remove barriers to work and retain employees who may have developed a long-term health condition or an impairment.”

Andrew Gwynne MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, responding to the announcement of the terms of reference for the Grenfell Taskforce, said:

“Today’s announcement has come too slow and falls far short of the action that is needed. Residents of Kensington and Chelsea have made it very clear in the past weeks that they do not trust the leadership of the council, and nothing from central government has been done to address this.

“The objectives set by the Government for the taskforce show that they are aware of these problems – but there continues to be a real issue of accountability. Delivery of these objectives remains the responsibility of a council that have shown they are not equipped to deal with the task ahead, and Sajid Javid has refused to step in and take on the responsibility himself to ensure that survivors, still homeless after this tragedy, get the support they need.”

Ends

Richard Burgon MP, Labour’s Shadow Justice Secretary, responding to the Supreme Court’s judgement on Employment Tribunal Fees, said:

“We welcome the Supreme Court’s judgement which finds tribunal fees unlawful. The Conservative Government should do the right thing, accept the ruling and consign their immoral Employment Tribunal Fees to the dustbin of history, rather than spending more taxpayers’ money trying to defend the indefensible.

“It’s an important day for access to justice for ordinary working people everywhere. The Conservative Government – which in coalition with the Lib Dems brought in this immoral restricted access to justice – must now pay a £32 million price for attacking workers.

“Labour’s manifesto pledged to abolish Employment Tribunal Fees. Labour’s position has been vindicated by the highest court of the land and Unison should be congratulated on winning a victory for working people everywhere.”

Sue Hayman MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, commenting on further reports of cabinet division, said:

“Liam Fox defended the practice of chlorine washing chicken last night. This morning, in yet another example of Conservative chaos, Michael Gove has ruled out chlorinated chicken imports.

“This casual and inconsistent attitude towards the importing of chlorinated chicken undermines everything British poultry farmers do to produce high quality produce and uphold high animal welfare standards.

“Theresa May must put an end to the internal disarray in her cabinet and set the record straight by publicly supporting British poultry farmers and committing to protect the British public from substandard food produce in a race-to-the-bottom Brexit.

“Labour reiterates our calls for the Government to secure the inclusion of high food and animal welfare standards in all trade agreements negotiated after Brexit.”