John
McDonnell MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, commenting on today’s worse than expected GDP
figures, which represent the weakest first half of a year since 2012, said:

“Today’s
GDP figures reveal weak growth under a weak government, and expose the last
seven years of Tory economic failure.

“Growth
for the first half of 2017 is below expectations, and it follows continued data
showing working families are being squeezed with wages not keeping up with
prices.

“The
truth is that the Tories’ austerity cuts have undermined working people’s
living standards and weakened the UK economy.

“Only a
Labour Government has a strategic plan of investment to boost growth,
underpinned by our Fiscal Credibility Rule; which will help build a high wage,
high skill economy that works for the many not the few.”

Sue
Hayman MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs,
commenting on the Government’s plans to ban all new petrol and diesel cars and
vans from 2040, said:

“We
have had seven years of illegal air pollution under this Conservative Government
who have only acted after being dragged through the courts.

“Despite
the scale of the problem of illegal air pollution, we are presented today with
further consultations and delays, a squeamish attitude to clean air zones,
shunting the problem onto local authorities and no detail about how the Government’s
2040 target will be achieved. With nearly 40 million people living in areas
with illegal levels of air pollution, action is needed now, not in 23 years’
time.

“This
all comes after years of cuts to grants for electric vehicles and just days
after the Government announced scrapping the electrification of rail lines and
the introduction of diesel trains.

“A
Labour Government will introduce a new Clean Air Act to drive challenging
emissions reduction targets, introduce a network of clean air zones and invest
in greener, integrated public transport systems for the long term.”

Justin Madders MP, Labour’s Shadow
Health Minister, commenting
on the latest NHS Workforce and Vacancies Statistics, said:

“Theresa May has overseen an
unprecedented workforce crisis in the NHS. Her incompetence has left our health
service with a shortage of 40,000 nurses, 3,500 midwives and 10,000 GPs.

“For years the Tories have taken
NHS staff for granted and asked them to do more for less, resulting in a
recruitment and retention crisis which threatens patient care on a daily basis.

“Frankly the Government’s solution
of hiring expensive agency staff or asking hard-pressed existing staff to cover
extra shifts is not in the best of interests of patients or medical
professionals. 

“The public is under no illusions:
a repeat of last winter’s crisis is simply intolerable and Theresa May must now
take urgent action to secure a sustainable workforce in our NHS.”

• Labour analysis shows that the weekly cost of holiday childcare has risen by
  over 50 per cent across the UK;
• Greater London, the North East, and the West Midlands are the worst affected
  areas;
• Over the same period, official figures suggest that wages are lower in real
  terms than they were in May 2010 when the Conservatives took office.

Labour
analysis shows that, across Britain as a whole, the average weekly cost of
childcare has risen by over 50 per cent from 2010 to 2017.

In the
North East, the worst affected area, the average weekly cost of childcare has
more than doubled, while the West Midlands has seen an increase of 82 per cent
and Greater London an increase of 73 per cent.

Over the
same period, official figures suggest that average weekly earnings have fallen
in real terms, leaving working families paying a greater proportion of their
income to cover the cost of childcare.

Angela
Rayner MP, Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary, speaking at a visit to the
Wishing Well community project in Crewe, will say:

“The Tories are quite simply failing working parents, who
are seeing the cost of their childcare skyrocket, their wages fall, and their
Government failing to give them the support they need.

“Childcare costs have shot up since the Conservatives took office
in 2010, and both wages and Government support have failed to keep pace with
either the cost of childcare or the needs of families.”

Sue Hayman MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Environment,
Food and Rural Affairs, commenting on the House of Lords EU Environment Committee report
on animal welfare, said:

“Vets play a key role in ensuring the humane slaughter of animals
and the proper certification of animal shipments. With EU nationals making up
more than 90 per cent of slaughterhouse vets, the concerns expressed in the
report today about vet numbers after Brexit should cause the Government to lay
out plans for the long term recruitment and retention of vets.

“The Conservatives seem to have a problem with animal welfare and
food standards, with a manifesto commitment to bring back fox hunting and
International Trade Secretary Liam Fox appearing to support importing
chlorine-washed chicken as part of a US-UK trade deal.

“Labour calls on the Government to secure the inclusion of high
farm animal welfare standards in any trade agreements negotiated after
Brexit.“