Rebecca Long-Bailey MP, Shadow BIS Secretary, responding to the implementation of the Trade Union Act, said:

“This is the most unnecessary and anti-democratic assault on the rights of working people in a generation.

“For a Government elected by just a quarter of eligible voters to impose a 40% threshold on public sector workers taking industrial action, is a shameless example of double standards.  

“As all working people know, the decision to take industrial action is never taken lightly. But working people’s rights need to be protected.

“This will save our economy just 0.00002% of GDP, showing that the economic case for this is rubbish. The most effective way of boosting wages and people’s living standards is through them taking collective action in their trade union.

“This Act will perpetuate the chronic low pay in our economy which costs us all through lower taxes and a higher bill for in-work benefits”

Keir Starmer MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the EU, commenting on a report from the Hansard Society about parliamentary scrutiny of the Brexit bill, said:

“It would be wrong for the PM to allow any changes to EU-derived laws without proper Parliamentary scrutiny.

“That is why Labour have been clear that any changes must be delivered through primary legislation and with proper transparency and accountability.

“In particular we will argue that all workers’ rights, consumer rights and environmental protections derived from EU law should be fully protected—no qualifications, limitations or sunset clauses.

“The PM should listen to the warnings she has received today from the Hansard society. And she should be in no doubt that Labour will fight all the way on this”.

The plans are part of the national mission to reform education to benefit pupils. The new standards aim to promote teaching excellence and support career-long professional development for all teachers.

The new standards will:

• Develop the leadership skills of all teachers.

• Provide opportunities for teachers to develop their skills throughout their career to meet the needs of the education system.

• Better support new entrants to the teaching profession by bringing together the requirements for the award of Qualified Teacher Status and the successful completion of induction.

• Enable teachers to work together more effectively to make sure all learners benefit from excellent teaching and learning.

It is proposed that the new standards will apply to all serving teachers from September 2018 and initial teacher training programmes from September 2019. This will provide time to build familiarity with the new standards before they become mandatory.

Kirsty Williams said:

“We are working closely with the profession to help teachers and practitioners be the best they can be, while raising the standard of teaching and, importantly, raising the standing of the profession as a whole.

“The current professional standards are no longer fit for purpose and do not match my vision for our school workforce. The old system set minimum expectations that we want to move beyond.

“These new standards are about making sure teachers develop the right skills throughout their career and all those teaching in our classrooms take on a leadership role as we all work together to raise standards. This is about moving to a system of career-long development. My vision is to strengthen leadership and make sure that there is greater consistency across our schools.

“I am grateful to all those teachers, leaders and other partners who have been directly involved in developing these new standards – it is testament to what can be achieved through us working together.”

Fatal man overboard from scallop dredger King Challenger while south-west of Scalloway, Shetland Islands.

The Prime Minister met His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan at Downing Street today.

They both welcomed the historic and strong ties between the UK and Jordan and the close partnership we have developed over many years on areas such as security and defence.

On Syria, they noted the importance of securing a lasting ceasefire, and reiterated that political talks are essential to reaching a settlement that can bring about a long-term solution to the conflict.

They also discussed the vital regional role Jordan is playing in hosting Syrian refugees. The Prime Minister assured King Abdullah that the UK will continue to support Jordan in these efforts and encourage others to do the same, including through the Brussels Conference in April.

On wider regional issues, the Prime Minister reinforced the UK’s commitment to working with all parties to bring about a two state solution in the Middle East, and they agreed on the need for inclusive political settlements in Iraq and in Yemen as the only way to ensure long-term stability. They also discussed progress in the wider campaign to defeat Daesh.

They ended by committing to further deepen the bilateral partnership for mutual benefit, for example on intelligence and counter-radicalisation.