Sep182017

The Government has failed to address key questions affecting our security – Diane Abbott MPDiane…

Labour

The Government has failed to address key questions affecting our security – Diane Abbott MP

Diane Abbott MP, Labour’s Shadow Home Secretary, commenting on the government’s announcement about a UK-EU security treaty, said:

“For the sake of our collective security, the UK and the EU need deep co-operation to tackle terrorism, organised crime, people trafficking and other serious crimes.

"Unfortunately, the Government’s approach fails to answer fundamental questions about what form that co-operation would take: how much will we contribute and how are we to maintain current levels of cooperation without accepting ECJ jurisdiction?

"The Tories have provided no answers and once again appear intent on infighting rather than addressing key questions affecting our safety and security.”

Sep182017

Staying within a 1.5C limit is not impossible if we pursue ambitious policies to tackle climate…

Labour

Staying within a 1.5C limit is not impossible if we pursue ambitious policies to tackle climate change – Rebecca Long-Bailey MP

Rebecca Long-Bailey MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Business, Industry and Skills, commenting on analysis published in the journal Nature Geoscience which reveals the aim of limiting global warming to less than 1.5C remains in reach, said:

“This report shows that staying within a 1.5C limit is not impossible, but only if we pursue ambitious policies to tackle climate change.

"Labour will ensure that 60 per cent of the UK’s energy will come from low carbon or renewable sources by 2030. Our manifesto set out plans to support local renewable energy generation and the creation of publicly owned energy companies to bring down prices.

"A Labour government will put us back on track to meet the targets in the Climate Change Act and the Paris Agreement.”

Sep182017

Government action to tackle “concerning” rise in personal debt is long overdue – John…

Labour

Government action to tackle “concerning” rise in personal debt is long overdue – John McDonnell MP

John McDonnell MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, commenting on the Chair of the FCA, Andrew Bailey, raising concerns over the increasing levels of personal debt in an interview with the Guardian newspaper, said:

“The rise in personal debt is concerning, and with real wages lower than they were when the Tories came to power in 2010, government action is long overdue.

"The situation is only set to worsen if Philip Hammond ploughs on with policies such as the planned cuts to in-work benefits and real terms cuts to public sector workers’ pay, which will further add to the growing burden on working families.

"Labour will improve living standards by introducing a £10 per hour real living wage and investing to build a high wage, high skill economy of the future that works for the many not the few.”

Sep182017

As climate change makes bad weather worse, countries must strengthen resilience, UN officials urge

United Nations

18 September 2017 – Noting the ever-increasing impact of extreme weather events, top United Nations officials, including Secretary-General António Guterres and Miroslav Lajčák, the President of the General Assembly today urged efforts to boost resilience and strengthen damage mitigation measures.

“[This year’s hurricane season] fits a pattern: changes to our climate are making extreme weather events more severe and frequent, pushing communities into a vicious cycle of shock and recovery,” said Mr. Guterres at a high-level event on Hurricane Irma, recalling that the past month alone saw four major hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean, causing much damage and destruction.

“Extreme weather linked to climate change has an impact all over the world, including floods in southern Asia and landslides and droughts in Africa,” he added, noting also the impact of rise in ocean surface temperature on weather patterns.

In addition to controlling the carbon emissions to help control the rising temperatures, as well as adaptation methods, he urged better preparation ahead of storms, for mitigating their effects and to recover from them.

Such efforts, he noted, are also important to protect the progress made towards agricultural and economic development as well as to contribute to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Also speaking today, Miroslav Lajcak, the President of the General Assembly also highlighted the growing impact of climate change and that the current trend of greenhouse gases emissions would increase likelihood of severe weather events.

“The impact of Irma, Maria and other recent systems reminds us of the importance of adaptation and resilience to climate change and further strengthening mitigation efforts, through the implementation of the Paris Agreement [on Climate Change], which is a milestone for collective engagements towards the planet’s sustainability,” he said, adding:

Let us be inspired to take personal and collective action to support the victims and survivors rebuild their communities, homes and lives, stronger than even beforeMiroslav Lajcak, President of the General Assembly

“Let us not let the lives lost be in vain. Rather, let us be inspired to take personal and collective action to support the victims and survivors rebuild their communities, homes and lives, stronger than even before.”

The high-level meeting was co-hosted by the Secretary-General and the President of the General Assembly, and saw the participation of a number of top Government officials from UN Member States, including Gaston Browne, the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda; Darren Henfield, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Bahamas; Bert Koenders, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands; Alistair Burt, the Minister of State for International Development and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the United Kingdom.

It was also attended by Achim Steiner, the Administrator of the UN Development Programme; Mark Lowcock, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator; and Kristalina Georgieva, the Chief Executive Officer of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and International Development Association at the World Bank.

Hurricane Irma left a wake of destruction on several islands in the Caribbean, affecting Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, St. Barthélemy, St. Martin, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos and other islands in the Caribbean Sea, affecting hundreds of thousands of people and resulting in massive economic damage across the region.

UN agencies have been assisting with response and recovery efforts since the storm struck and last week, the Organization launched a $15.1 million regional humanitarian response plan, covering the urgent needs of the most vulnerable populations impacted.

The plan aims to reach an estimated 265,000 affected people until the end of this year.

UN emergency relief fund releases $10 million to assist with Irma response

In related news, the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) allocated $10 million to enable humanitarians to help tens of thousands of people in need of assistance following the devastating category five hurricane.

According to a news release issued by the Fund, the allocation will enable UN and other organisations support the national and regional response, including providing immediate food, critical health care, clean water and other urgently needed aid to the people most affected by Irma, in particular women and girls.

“We will continue to stand in solidarity with the people of the Caribbean to ensure maximum support is available to the commendable national and regional efforts,” Mr. Lowcock, who manages CERF on behalf of the Secretary-General, said in the release.

Sep182017

Press release: Foreign Secretary hosts key summit on Burma

HM Government

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and other Foreign Ministers have met with senior Burmese representatives to urge an end to the violence against the Rohingya people and allow humanitarian access.

In the margins of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, the Foreign Secretary brought together Burma’s National Security Advisor and Deputy Foreign Minister with ministers from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Turkey, Australia, Canada, Sweden, Denmark and United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley.

Along with securing full and unhindered humanitarian access for international aid agencies, including the UN, and calling for an end to violence, those present at the meeting also urged Burma to implement the Annan Commission recommendations.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

“While Burma has undoubtedly made encouraging progress towards democracy in the last few years, the situation in Rakhine, the terrible human rights abuses and violence are a stain on the country’s reputation. For this reason Burma should not be surprised to find itself under international scrutiny and on the Security Council’s agenda.

“As I have repeatedly said no one wants to see a return to military rule, so it is vital that Aung San Suu Kyi and the civilian government make clear these abuses must stop. I was encouraged by our discussion and by the participation of the senior Burmese representatives, but we now need to see action to stop the violence and open up immediate humanitarian access.”

As well as hosting the meeting on Burma, the Foreign Secretary, along with International Development Secretary Priti Patel and Minister for the Caribbean and Overseas Territories Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, also convened a high level discussion on the effects of Hurricane Irma.

The meeting set how out the UK, Netherlands and France are working in close partnership to help those affected by this devastating hurricane. While the focus remains responding to the immediate aftermath, it was also agreed that recovery and reconstruction must include plans to help prevent and mitigate future crises.

Commenting on the meeting on Hurricane Irma the Foreign Secretary said:

“It’s vital that we get better at building automatic recovery systems in the Caribbean, ensuring that we work together with our French, Dutch and US partners, so that when something like this strikes we can all respond even faster.

“The UK is committed to helping those affected recover as quickly as possible and can assure people that once the cameras have left and the world moves on to the next crisis, well will still be there.” The Foreign Secretary is in New York for UNGA where he also represented the UK at President Trump’s event on UN reform.

Notes to editors Last week, the UK confirmed an extra £25 million to help people affected by the violence.

Other attendees at the Hurricane Irma event included: * Minister Bert Koenders, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of the Netherlands * Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of France * Commissioner Christos Stylianides, European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management * Sir Rodney Errey Lawrence Williams, Governor General of Antigua and Barbuda * Prime Minister Allen M. Chastanet, Saint Lucia * Mark Lowcock, USG for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Response Coordinator As well as representatives from the affected British Overseas Territories.

Latest information on the UK Government response to Hurricane Irma available here.