The comments made by Andrew Adonis on 14 November 2021.
There should be a single anti-corruption candidate standing to replace Owen Paterson in North Shropshire, supported by Labour, the Lib Dems & the Greens
Time to get real about politics and forge a progressive alliance.
The comments made by Grant Shapps, the Secretary of State for Transport, on 14 November 2021.
Work is continuing on the integrated rail plan. We will publish it shortly and do not comment on speculation.
The article published by the Sunday Telegraph on 14 November 2021 and issued as a press release by the Government.
We believe in freedom and democracy. Freedom loving societies are not just the best places to live, they are the most successful.
When the Berlin Wall fell and the Iron Curtain came crashing down three decades ago, renewed democracies were established across Eastern Europe. People have become freer, living better lives and their children have better futures. But these hard-won gains are now at risk with malign, autocratic regimes seeking to take away people’s freedom.
Look at what’s happening in Belarus. The escalating standoff at the Polish border marks the latest step by the Lukashenko regime to undermine regional security. He is using desperate migrants as pawns in his bid to create instability and cling onto power, regardless of the human cost.
The United Kingdom will not look away. We will stand with our allies in the region, who are on the frontier of freedom. That’s why we are proud to be the first European country to assist Poland by agreeing to send a small team of personnel to provide engineering support to ease pressure at the border.
In the same way, we were the first European country to put sanctions on the Lukashenko regime, targeting over 100 individuals and organisations with measures including asset freezes and travel bans. This shows we are ready to take the lead in standing up for freedom and democracy, acting robustly, decisively and relentlessly to take on malign actors wherever they are in the world.
We are not just standing side by side with Poland as they bear the brunt of this shameful manufactured migrant crisis, but also others in the Visegrad Four – Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic – and our friends in the Baltics and Ukraine.
In Belarus, this carefully crafted crisis is an attempt to divert attention away from the litany of abhorrent acts and human rights violations that the regime has already committed. Since the fraudulent election in August 2020 we have seen members of the opposition, journalists and activists beaten, jailed and killed, while others have been forced into exile.
In contrast to their tyrannical leaders, the people of Belarus are true democrats. Time and again we have seen ordinary citizens risking everything to stand up for their rights and keep the flame of freedom alive. As the chair of the Belarusian Association of Journalists, Andrei Bastunets, said: “Today, the law does not defend us. Today, we defend the law.”
Russia has a clear responsibility here. They must press the Belarusian authorities to end the crisis and enter into dialogue.
We need to fight for the rule of law, freedom and democracy, and we must take that fight to the where that ideological battle is. Security is no longer solely about military hardware. The battle is now taking place in cyber space, the economy, and in the appalling use of people as collateral.
We will join forces with our partners to advance our shared interests. At the NATO foreign ministers’ summit in Riga in a few weeks’ time, we will put forward new proposals to challenge the 21st century methods of aggression being used by those who threaten our freedoms, economies and democracies.
The world is changing and modern threats are more multifaceted and complex. That idea lies at the heart of the Integrated Review of security, defence, development and foreign policy the government published earlier this year. We need to work with allies who believe we must have a world where freedom loving democracies don’t just survive – they thrive.
That is why we remain the largest European spender on defence in NATO – the world’s greatest defence alliance. It is why we are working with friends and allies in South East Asia where we are deepening our defence, maritime and security ties. This week in Indonesia, the world’s third largest democracy, I agreed new ties in cyber. I also visited Thailand and Malaysia, where our cooperation includes the Five Power Defence Arrangements. We are also increasing our defence collaboration with India, Israel and many others around the world. Through AUKUS we are collaborating with the US and Australia on the next generation of technologies.
I want our friends across Europe to join us. That means standing together for example in opposing the construction of the Nord Stream 2 Pipeline. It risks undermining European security by allowing Russia to tighten its grip on those nations who rely on its gas, despite the pandemic reminding us about the importance of having diverse supply chains to avoid being strategically dependent on unreliable partners.
At this critical time, we should be deepening our investment and trade ties with counties that follow the rules and allow free market economies to thrive. We cannot, and will not, ever give succour to those who want to undermine freedom and democracy.
Together with our friends and allies, we can build a network of liberty, working to repel these malign actors to ensure freedom loving people can live in peace.
The comments made by Ben Wallace, the Secretary of State for Defence, on 14 November 2021.
On Remembrance Sunday we pause to remember all those who died in the service of their country and reflect on the sacrifices our personnel continue to make on operations around the globe. The commitment and sacrifice of our veterans continue to inspire today’s service personnel as they strive to honour their legacy.
The comments made by Nadine Dorries, the Culture Secretary, on 14 November 2021.
Every year we come together on Remembrance Sunday to honour the brave men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our country.
I am pleased that this year we can welcome back veterans in the march past and the public to be part of this special service. I hope that people across the country and from every walk of life will join those attending today in remembering those to whom we owe so much.
The comments made by Boris Johnson on 14 November 2021.
Today we come together to remember those who sacrificed everything in service of our country, in the First World War and every conflict since, including recently in Iraq and Afghanistan.
It’s a sacred ceremony that has endured for more than a century because we know the unpayable debt we owe those brave servicemen and women.
We know that for our tomorrow they gave their today. And we know that here at home and around the world, thousands of men and women in uniform still stand ready to defend our unity and our way of life, our values, and at a cost few among us would be willing to pay.
Today we come together. We wear our poppies with pride and stand as a nation in two minutes of silent tribute.
The comments made by Kwasi Kwarteng, the Business Secretary on 14 November 2021.
The UK is home to some of the most transformative and innovative medical research in the world, and the availability of this research funding, alongside the work of our strong life science and pharmaceuticals sector, will make the most of that research to help those living with motor neurone disease.
It is vital that we increase our understanding of this condition in pursuit of new treatments and better care, and I am pleased to see UK institutions at the forefront of that work.
The comments made by Sajid Javid, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on 14 November 2021.
Neurodegenerative conditions like MND can have a devastating impact on people’s lives and I’m committed to ensuring the government does everything we can to fight these diseases and support those affected.
We’ve already invested millions in understanding and treating MND and our new funding commitment will back more research into this and other neurodegenerative diseases.
The UK is a global leader in medical research. Our world-class research sector was central to the discovery of lifesaving treatments for COVID-19 like dexamethasone and Tocilizumab, as well as the development of the vaccine programme which has saved hundreds of thousands of lives.
We will continue to harness this expertise and innovation to support pioneering projects to find better treatments for those living with motor neurone disease, like the excellent work underway at NIHR Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre where scientists are trialling new drugs to treat the condition.
The comments made by Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, on 10 November 2021.
Sacha [Lord] and I met with members of the Manchester Night In campaign and agreed to look at launching an Anti-Spiking Partnership with key venues in the city-region. Sacha is working up the details of this and we will convene a further meeting in two weeks’ time, I am hoping we can move quickly.
I want to thank the members of the Manchester Night In campaign for meeting with us. I saw the numbers of people participating in the protest and we are committed to taking tangible action.
The comments made by Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, on 12 November 2021.
I am truly humbled by the brave sacrifices of our armed forces. Their heroism made the precious freedoms we enjoy every day possible.
We are in their debt and it is a true privilege to come together, stop, remember and honour those who paid the ultimate price for our freedom.
This Remembrance Day, we reflect on the incredible courage of the service men and women who have worked to keep us safe and remember to never take for granted those who continue to protect our way of life.