Labour

Jon Trickett MP, Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, commenting on reports that almost a thousand Government files detailing some of the most controversial episodes in 20th-century British history have vanished after the Government removed them from the country’s National Archives and then reported them as lost, said:

“The loss of documents about controversial periods in history is unacceptable.

“The British people deserve to know what the Government has done in their name and their loss will only fuel accusations of a cover-up.

“These important historical documents may be a great loss to history – and their disappearance must urgently be investigated.”

Ends

Sue Hayman MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, commenting on a Tory U-turn on fox hunting, said:

“After backing fox hunting at the last election and promising a free vote in the Tory manifesto Theresa May has been forced to U-turn on this cruel policy. Under pressure from Labour, the Conservatives are finally rethinking their abysmal record on animal welfare. 

“The government must now move to halt their poorly regulated and unscientific badger cull across England.

“The Tories have taken rural areas for granted. While they continue to focus on fox hunting, rural poverty remains a huge issue and infrastructure and services in rural areas have been run into the ground.

“It’s time this Government started taking action to tackle the real issues facing rural communities.”

In his Christmas message, Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Labour Party, calls for people to show each other care and love. He says Britain is a “compassionate” country with people thinking of others at this time of year, as well as enjoying themselves.

Jeremy Corbyn MP, Leader of the Labour Party, said:

“At Christmas we spend time at home with family and friends.

“It’s a time of the year when we think about others. Like those who have no home to call their own or who are sleeping rough on our streets.

“We think about those who feel cut off and lonely. Many older citizens to whom we owe so much will be spending what should be a time of joy alone.

“We think of others such as carers who look after loved ones, people with disabilities or dementia.

“And abroad we think of those living in nations like Yemen, Syria and Libya in fear of bombs and bullets, of injury and death.

“None of this is inevitable. We pride ourselves on being a compassionate nation.

“My Christmas wish is that we all do more to help bring about the kind of society and world we want to live in.

“Whenever you can show people love, show them you care and enjoy your Christmas.”

Research by Labour has revealed that the number of people spending the Christmas period stuck in hospital due to Delayed Transfer of Care almost doubled between 2010 and 2016.

The Patient Snapshot, which is the number of people who are stuck in hospital at midnight on the last Thursday of the month, showed that this had increased from 1,995 people on December 30^th 2010 to 3,929 on 29^th December 2016.

The last time the snapshot fell directly on Christmas was 2015 when 3,155 spent Christmas Eve stuck in hospital.

Barbara Keeley MP, Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Minister for Social Care, said:

“The shocking rise in delayed transfers of care is directly attributable to the cuts imposed by the Tory Government and will mean those needing care will have to spend their Christmas stuck in hospital.

“Tory cuts to local authorities since 2010 will have seen reductions in social care budgets of £6.3 billion by March 2018 and a 26% drop in the numbers of older people receiving publicly funded care – some 400,000 people.

“Families of people with care needs will be concerned by the possibility of their vulnerable relatives being stuck in hospital unnecessarily over Christmas because of the lack of available care in their community.

“The Tory Government offered no additional funding for social care in either the Budget or the Local Government Finance Settlement. It is clear that only Labour can ease this Tory social care crisis: Labour would invest £8 billion across the Parliament with £1 billion pledged this year to offer more publicly-funded care services.”

Jonathan Ashworth MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, responding to the news that Trusts will be allowed to cancel non-urgent elective operations until mid-January, said:

“Theresa May’s claims that she has suitably prepared our NHS for the winter season are looking increasingly doubtful. Despite the best efforts of our overstretched staff, numerous Trusts are already running at full capacity with no spare beds at all.

“Cancelled operations will pile more misery on patients this winter. It’s time Tory ministers got a grip.”