Sue Hayman MP, Labour’s Shadow Environment Secretary, commenting on the government’s plastics announcement, said:

“It is disappointing that this announcement falls short of EU
proposals announced earlier this week, especially when we have had warm
words from government that British environmental standards will not lag
behind after Brexit. Despite the headlines, it appears that plastic
drinks stirrers are the only item that will be totally banned from sale.

“Meanwhile, recycling rates have slumped and the UK continues to
export large amounts of recyclable materials to countries that have
little or no waste infrastructure – which is how a lot of plastic ends
up in our oceans.

“Labour is calling for a truly comprehensive waste and recycling
strategy that tackles our lack of domestic infrastructure to deal with
what we throw away as well as further action to reduce waste at source
and improve levels of recycling.”

John McDonnell MP, Shadow Chancellor,
responding to news that inflation has increased to 2.1% and that
borrowing in the latest full financial year has exceeded the March
forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility, said:

“With rising prices and surging government borrowing today, it’s
clear the Tories have left the economy unprepared for the shock of a No
Deal Brexit.

“They have broken their promise to eliminate the deficit by 2015, and
have overseen stagnating wages driven by slumping business investment
and productivity.

“Only a Labour Government will deliver the radical transformation
that is desperately needed to boost livelihoods and protect future
generations.”

Shami Chakrabarti, Labour’s Shadow Attorney General, commenting on the government’s appointment of an international ambassador dedicated to the promotion of human rights, said:

“Any nod in the direction of human rights is welcome and we wish the new Ambassador well.

“But gestures alone are insufficient, and Rita French’s task will be
an uphill struggle in a party that has consistently campaigned to scrap
Human Rights instruments and cosied up to every despot in the pursuit of
trade.

“The race to be next Tory leader has so far involved pretenders
competing to be the most authoritarian. We wait to see if this
announcement sees a reversal of this worrying direction of travel.”

Nia Griffith MP, Labour’s Shadow Defence Secretary, responding to reports that a new defence review will be launched, said:

“The decision to hold a separate defence review cannot simply be an excuse to kick the difficult decisions facing the defence budget into the long grass.

“Just this week we have had serious warnings from the Head of the Army about the threats that this country faces and there has been growing concern that the Government’s deep cuts to our nation’s defences have left us ill-equipped to respond to those threats.

“The true test of any defence review will be whether it delivers real investment in our nation’s defences and the resources that our Armed Forces so badly need. You cannot do security on the cheap and it is high time that the Government recognised this.”

Justin
Madders MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Minister, responding to the latest NHS vacancy data, said:

“Theresa May
has overseen an unprecedented workforce crisis in our NHS, with over 100,000
vacancies across the system. These latest figures reveal in the starkest
fashion how serious shortages have become, with new trainees put off from
joining and existing nurses increasingly retiring early.

“Even in her
own backyard, the situation is desperate. Thames Valley managed to hire just
five nurses for 1,957 advertised posts – just one in 400. On the day her own
Foreign Secretary has called for emergency funding, Theresa May must get an
urgent grip of this escalating chaos in our NHS.”

Ends