Labour

John McDonnell MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, commenting on the revelations by Equality Trust that the average FTSE chief executive earns 386 times more than a worker on the national living wage, said:

“These shocking figures show that after seven years of Tory failure on the economy, it’s the super-rich who’ve gained at the expense of the rest of us.

“It also exposes the Tories’ rigged economy, where despite real earnings still being lower than before the crash and public services like the NHS experiencing their worst-ever crisis, they are handing out £70 billion in tax giveaways to the super-rich and big corporations. At the same time the Tories are cutting in-work benefits to the low paid.

“Only Labour will deliver a fair economy that doesn’t hold people back by introducing a £10 an hour Real Living Wage, a fairer taxation system, and by tackling excessive boardroom pay with fairer distributions of rewards within companies.”

Richard Burgon MP, Labour’s Shadow Justice Secretary, commenting on the Tory Government’s plans to build four new prisons, said

“We need modern prisons fit for the modern age. But simply replacing one prison with another prison doesn’t deal with the overcrowding crisis. No amount of press releases can distract from that.”

Barbara Keeley MP, Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Minister for Mental Health, commenting on the EPI report in to Child Mental Health Improvements, said:

“The Prime Minister said in January that she wanted to ‘transform the way we deal with mental health problems right across society’ but the findings in this report show these were just warm words.

“With nearly three quarters of Clinical Commissioning Groups failing to meet NHS England’s improvement standards in children’s mental health, and more than two thirds of these groups without fully-funded crisis care plans, it is clear that the Prime Minister’s rhetoric on child mental health is not being matched by reality.

“The most worrying part of this report is the increase in the number of young people being treated on adult mental health wards which shows an abject failure of the Government to grasp the problems in the mental health system.

“The Government need to make sure that frontline mental health services get the money they need rather than using it to balance NHS budgets elsewhere.”

Richard Burden MP, Labour’s Shadow Aviation Minister, responding to the announcement of a cabin baggage ban on laptops on certain direct passenger flights to the UK from Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia, said: 

“The safety and security of passengers must always be the overriding priority for Government and for airline operators. If the Government has evidence the level of security checks on passengers carrying electronic devices is of exceptional concern in the countries listed then it is right that prompt precautionary action should be taken.

“This announcement leaves a number of important questions unanswered and we are seeking urgent clarification from Ministers. It’s important the Government set out clearly the precautionary steps they have taken in response to advice from security services to reassure passengers and the public. The Government must also work with airline operators to ensure all passengers are given the necessary information and flights can continue where appropriate with minimal disruption as possible.”