Sue
Hayman MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs, commenting
on the announcement that the government intends to bring forward legislation to
increase maximum sentencing for animal cruelty cases, said:

“I am
pleased that the Government has decided to follow Labour’s manifesto commitment
to increase maximum sentencing for the worst cases of animal cruelty.

“We know
that judges have complained for some time that they want to hand down tougher
sentences to those guilty of abusing animals. The current six-month maximum
sentence is simply inadequate for the severity of some of these terrible
crimes.

“While
this is a step in the right direction from this Conservative government, they still
have a long way to go to prove their credibility on animal welfare following
Theresa May’s declared support for fox hunting and their recent shocking and
poorly regulated roll out of the badger cull.

“We will
be monitoring the Government closely to make sure they implement this
policy having previously announced and failed to deliver on a ban on ivory
trading and wild animals in circuses.”

Returning
from a day of talks in Northern Ireland with Union leaders, management and
politicians about the Bombardier/Boeing tariff crisis, Barry Gardiner MP,
Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for International Trade, said:

“The
government must wake up to the fact that this is a major crisis for Northern
Ireland. Bombardier represents 40 per cent of all the GDP produced by the
private sector in Northern Ireland; these 4,000 jobs are the economic bedrock
for so many families and communities. Yet the company is now facing a
calculated and cynical attempt from Boeing to eliminate a competitor.

“Today
it was made abundantly clear that for months civil servants and politicians in
Northern Ireland were explaining their case to Tory ministers too pre-occupied
with a post Brexit U.S. trade deal to listen, and who chose to swallow the
American line that Bombardier were at fault and that Boeing were willing to
negotiate when they clearly were not.

"Theresa
May’s government must now summon Boeing’s Global Chief, Dennis Muilenburg, to
an urgent summit and seek a meeting with the US government to get sensible
negotiations back on track and this vicious and baseless case taken off the
table.”

Sue Hayman MP, Shadow
Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, responding to evidence
by the Guardian and ITV showing tampering of food safety records and use-by
dates, said:

“The evidence
presented here is extremely concerning and raises a number of serious
questions. The supplier in question is the largest supplier of chicken to UK
supermarkets, meaning the number of consumers impacted will be significant.

“It is welcome that
five major food retailers are going to launch immediate investigations but the
Government must do the same. The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs must respond to the findings of the investigation to reassure
consumers that this matter is in hand. Stepping back and shunting the issue on
to the Food Standards Agency, as during the imported egg crisis, will not do.

“It is vital that the
Government ensures that the highest food standards are being upheld in the UK
and that consumers are presented with correct information at the point of
purchase.”

Debbie Abrahams
MP, Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, commenting on the letter from
Conservative MPs calling for a halt to Universal Credit, said;  

“I am glad that
Conservative MPs are waking up to the disastrous effects of Universal Credit,
and backing Labour’s call for a pause to the programme.

“The rising debt
and arrears under Universal Credit are a direct result of the six week wait for
payment introduced by this Government. This policy can be changed.”  

“Labour is again
calling on the Government to halt the roll out of Universal Credit and remove
the punitive elements of the programme which are pushing so many families into
poverty.”

Jonathan Ashworth,
Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, responding to the Royal College
of Nursing’s new “Against the Odds” report, said:

“Seven years of
Tory mismanagement and underfunding has placed an unacceptable level
of pressure on nursing staff to keep NHS services running. 

"The Government
is constantly asking NHS workers to do more with less, and over 70
per cent of nurses surveyed by the RCN have said their last shift had unsafe
numbers of staff. This is a threat to the quality of care which patients can
expect to receive. 

"At
the election Labour promised to bring in a new law to guarantee safe
staffing levels in hospitals. Ministers must step up and explain what action
they’re going to take to get enough nurses in place to keep services for
patients running safely.”