Andrew Gwynne MP, Labour’s Campaigns and Elections Chair, in response to Theresa May’s speech this afternoon in South Wales, said:

“It is clearer than ever that a vote for the Tories is a vote for the few, not the many. Rather than uniting the country and tackling the challenges we face, their policies are divisive and are taking us backwards.

“Only Labour will invest to create shared prosperity. Only Labour will protect our public services.”

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John McDonnell MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, responding to the ONS Public Sector Finances figures which show that the national debt has gone up by  £123.5 billion since March 2016 under the Tories, said:

“After seven wasted years of Tory economic failure, supported by both Philip Hammond and Theresa May, the deficit has not been cleared as they promised, and the national debt continues to rise.

“The Tories promised when they were first elected that they would have balanced the books by 2015, but now they cannot promise to do it by 2020, and instead the past year has seen both borrowing and debt has increased.

"Today’s figures reveal that the national debt has gone up by £123 billion since March last year, and with a Tory Chancellor who won’t rule out raising taxes on low and middle earners, and has no plan to deal with inflation rising ahead of earnings, it is clear the Tories want the rest of us to pay for their mistakes.

"Yet despite their broken promises on the public finances they continue to hand out tens of billions in tax giveaways to the super-rich and big corporations, while enforcing spending cuts on everyone else; underfunding our NHS and leaving our care system in crisis for the most vulnerable.

"Only a Labour government will have a serious plan for the public finances with strategic investment underpinned by our Fiscal Credibility Rule, so that we stand up for the many, not the few.”

“These latest occupancy statistics show a strong picture for tourism in Wales, and continue to reflect the success  we have experienced over the last two years.

“Figures for the first 9 months of 2016 show a substantial increase of 12% in the number of overseas visitors coming to Wales and a 9% increase in the amount they spend while they are here. We have also seen a significant increase in the number of day visitors coming to Wales.   

“In what is an extremely competitive market place, tourism in Wales is in a strong position.  We’ve had two record breaking years and our aim is to sustain growth – being aware that global events and competition will mean that not every year will be a record breaking one. The overall picture – taking into account tourism day visits, international visitors as well GB overnights visits – indicates that Wales saw an increase of almost 16% in overall tourism volumes during the three quarters of 2016, which includes the important summer peak.”

“We are working hard to sustain these levels of success in 2017 through continued investment in marketing and product development. Our Year of Legends 2017 has also got of to a great start with Wales being named as one of the top must-visit destinations globally from the likes of Lonely Planet Trip Advisor, Wanderlust and Rough Guides.” 

Events planned as part of the public consultation for the South Eastern franchise have been cancelled following the announcement of a general election on 8 June.

The following events will now not take place:

The planned stakeholder event at Woolwich Town Hall on Thursday 27 April will also now not take place.

The consultation remains open until 23 May 2017. Please visit the Future of South Eastern rail services consultation page for details of how to respond.