Jeremy Corbyn, Leader
of the Labour Party, commenting on the news that Prince Philip is to retire from
carrying out royal engagements, said:

“I would like to pay
tribute to Prince Philip following his decision to retire from public service.

“He has dedicated his
life to supporting the Queen and our country with a clear sense of public duty.

“His Duke of
Edinburgh’s Award scheme has inspired young people for more than 60 years in
over 140 nations.

“We thank Prince
Philip for his service to the country and wish him all the best in his
well-earned retirement.”

Jeremy
Corbyn, Leader of the Labour Party, responding to Theresa May’s speech in
Downing Street, said:

“Theresa
May is playing party games with Brexit in the hope of winning advantage for the
Tories in the General Election.

“By
winding up the public confrontation with Brussels, the Prime Minister wants to
wrap the Conservative party in the Union Jack and distract attention from her
government’s economic failure and rundown of our public services.

“But
Brexit is too important to be used as a political game in this election.

“These
are vital negotiations for every person in Britain and for the future of our
country. But Theresa May is putting party interest ahead of the national
interest.

“The
Prime Minister is right that there are those in Brussels who don’t want a deal.
But that is also true of leading figures in the Tory party, who want to use
Brexit to turn Britain into a low wage tax haven.

“The
Prime Minister says that no deal would lead to a different economic model for
Britain.

“In
plain terms, that means wiping out employment rights and consumer protections
and giving still more tax breaks to the rich and big corporations.

“That’s
the threat and the risk that comes from this Tory Government.

“Only
Labour can be trusted to negotiate a Brexit deal that puts jobs and living
standards first. Labour will negotiate a Brexit for the many not the few.”

Angela Rayner, Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary,
commenting on reports that Theresa May is facing her first uprising of
the election as the Tories urge her to abandon school funding plans, said:

“It speaks volumes that even Theresa’s own backbenchers realise
her approach to school funding is simply an exercise in moving inadequate sums
of money around. On top of this, their cuts to per-pupil spending will mean
fewer teachers, cuts to school support staff and larger class sizes; while some
schools are not even able to afford basic school repairs.

“Labour supports the principle of moving towards a fairer funding
formula for schools and will ensure that all schools have the funding they
need. Only Labour will build an education system accessible to everyone, not
just the privileged few.”

Labour’s
Andrew Gwynne said:

“This
is yet more nonsense from a Tory campaign that’s all slogan and no substance.

“Their
claims are so flimsy that even the most cursory reading reveals error after
error: claims that don’t add up, things they say are Labour policy which aren’t
and blatant misrepresentation of policies which we have clearly set out how to
pay for. The whole thing isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.

“That
Philip Hammond is willing to put his name to this nonsense is deeply worrying
given it suggests he’s unable to tell the difference between capital and
revenue spending.

“Frankly
this is just the latest desperate attempt by the Tories to distance themselves
from their failures and to distract from the fact that they’ve not ruled out
hitting those on lower and middle incomes with further tax increases.

“Labour’s
policies are fully-costed and properly paid for. Our plans will be set out in
our manifesto. Don’t trust the Tories: they are the party of the few, not the
many.”

Labour
will today announce that a future Labour Government will immediately halt
the proposed closure of A&Es in England and carry out a full scale review
of all proposals. 

Having
listened to campaigners and concerned patients up and down the country,
Jonathan Ashworth, as Labour health secretary will immediately halt the Tories
chaotic ‘sustainability and transformation plan’ (STP) programme. 

Shadow
Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth, will say: 

“Labour
will put the best interests of patients at the heart of our NHS so today I’m
announcing we will halt planned closures to hospitals and other services. We
will have a moratorium on the STPs. 

“We
have listened to the hundreds of patients and campaigners up and down the
country that have been pleading with the Government to hear their concerns
about their local services. Threats of hospitals being closed, A&E services
moved miles up the road, and children’s wards being shut, have caused widespread
concern and confusion. What is more, these decisions have been decided behind
closed doors, with no genuine involvement of local people. It’s a disgrace.

“The
public deserves better. My first job as Secretary of State will be to review
every single STP proposal looking at what’s in the interest of quality of
patient care.

“We’ll
ask a new body – NHS Excellence – to lead that review. And patients and local communities
will be involved at every stage. Local people should be at the heart of
decisions about how care is provided.”