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Bridget Phillipson – 2020 Letter on the Job Retention Scheme

Below is the text of the letter written by Bridget Phillipson, the Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, to Jim Harra, the Permanent Secretary of HMRC, on 9 July 2020.

Dear Jim,

First of all, I want to pay tribute to the impressive work of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) staff in recent weeks and months. I know many HMRC staff will have worked for long hours to put in place the systems which have seen the delivery of support we have welcomed, such as the Job Retention Scheme and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme. Labour is proud to put on record its thanks to the HMRC staff who work to ensure that taxes are collected fairly and efficiently.

This morning there are press reports that you required a Ministerial Direction before implementing the Chancellor’s Job Retention Bonus scheme, because of concerns about value for money. You will be aware that these are exactly the concerns that I and other Labour colleagues raised in debate yesterday. This morning the Chancellor of the Exchequer himself admitted on the radio the potential deadweight cost associated with the scheme.

Ministerial directions can be an important part of how government ensures fast and effective action in a crisis. However, Parliament needs to understand when Ministers are overriding the advice of their own experienced and knowledgeable civil servants. Given both the huge amount of public money involved and the immense importance
of achieving value for money with government spending, I am requesting that HMRC:

immediately publish whatever information or analyses HMRC staff prepared such that you informed the Chancellor of the Exchequer that you were unable to support the scheme without a Ministerial Direction;

immediately publish any estimates or modelling of the scheme you may have prepared, including any work you may have done on this with Treasury colleagues, on the expected uptake of the scheme, including distributional, sectoral, and regional analyses;

give evidence to Parliament before any legislation is considered which would give effect to the Job Retention Bonus Scheme, in respect of whether the scheme constitutes Value for Money.

It is so important that we see decisive and effective government action to support jobs, livelihoods, and companies in the months ahead, and value for money is critical.

Every penny given to those who don’t need it, when whole sectors of our economy are in trouble, is money not available to support jobs at risk, money not helping the families and firms in desperate need.

You will understand that given the amount of public money involved and the wider
public interest in effective and efficient public spending, I am publishing this letter.

Yours sincerely,

Bridget Phillipson MP

July 9, 2020
Jo Stevens – 2020 Comments on Sport and Culture

Below is the text of the comments made by Jo Stevens, the Shadow Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Secretary, on 9 July 2020.

We welcome the opening of swimming pools, gyms and other leisure facilities as part of the easing of lockdown and the re-opening of the economy.

This news and the guidance about grassroots sports will be welcomed by millions across the UK who have missed the opportunity to exercise and play sport together.

Allowing outdoor theatres and music performances will also give hope to many in a sector which has largely shut down over the past few months and audiences desperate for entertainment. But there are real concerns around keeping staff safe when these venues reopen.

While the government’s failure to get test and trace properly running will mean that many do not feel confident enough to take part in these activities.

It is astonishing that the Secretary of State is only now commissioning research about the spread of the virus and these sectors – the Government needs to put sport and culture at the top of the agenda instead of it being an afterthought.

July 9, 2020
Kate Green – 2020 Comments on a German-Style Education System

Below is the text of the comments made by Kate Green, the Shadow Secretary of State for Education, on 9 July 2020.

Any new support for further education is welcome, but it’s a bit rich for the government to complain about a crisis in FE that they themselves have created. Funding has been slashed by billions of pounds and support for learners scrapped.

Repeated speeches from the Secretary of State calling for a German-style system are no replacement for the investment the sector needs. Attempts to set up further and higher education against each other are damaging and counterproductive. Everyone in post-16 education will tell you what’s needed is collaboration across both sectors to maximise opportunities for lifelong learning so people can develop new skills and have fulfilling lives.

It is time for the government to move beyond the empty rhetoric and give post-16 education the investment it needs.

July 9, 2020
Jim McMahon – 2020 Comments on Air Bridges

Below is the text of the comments made by Jim McMahon, the Shadow Transport Secretary, on 9 July 2020.

This small step is welcome news. Holidaymakers and businesses were rightly incredibly keen for the government’s quarantine measures to be safely eased. Labour has said from the start that this has been a blunt tool, hindered by a lack of a comprehensive testing strategy.

The fact they have been unable to negotiate air bridges is an indictment of their failure to tackle the crisis at home. They were too slow to take lockdown, too slow to order PPE and too slow to protect our country.

Labour has consistently called for a sectoral deal that supports the whole aviation industry including the supply chain based on our six conditions. Tory Ministers have failed to act and workers are paying the price and trips are being cancelled.

July 9, 2020
Thangam Debbonaire – 2020 Comments on Government’s Giveaway to Second Home Owners

Below is the text of the comments made by Thangam Debbonaire, the Shadow Housing Secretary, on 9 July 2020.

It is unacceptable that the Chancellor tried to sneak out this huge bung to second home owners and landlords while millions of people are desperate for support. He should be targeting support to those who need it, not helping people invest in buy-to-let properties and holiday homes.

An unnecessary subsidy for second home-owners will only worsen the housing crisis by reducing the supply of homes overall.

We need a credible plan from Tory Ministers to build the homes our country needs and get people on to the housing ladder. We didn’t see that this week.

July 9, 2020
Chi Onwurah – 2020 Comments on Investment in Life Sciences

Below is the text of the comments made by Chi Onwurah, the Shadow Minister for Science, Research and Digital, on 10 July 2020.

Investment in the life sciences is a critical part of our response to this pandemic and the health challenges we face as a nation. But our investment doesn’t reflect regional science capacity or health needs as the IPPR analysis makes clear.

The North receives less than half of the life science investment per head that the South of England does even though it has great teaching hospitals and significant health inequalities.

We need to see that change as we invest in science to beat the pandemic and create new jobs across the country.

July 9, 2020
Bridget Phillipson – 2020 Comments on Rishi Sunak’s ‘Deadweight’ Comments

Below is the text of the comments made by Bridget Phillipson, the Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, on 9 July 2020.

The Government have had months to prepare for the end of lockdown and design targeted support to protect jobs – but instead we have an on-the-hoof fix that the Chancellor himself admits risks wasting billions of pounds of taxpayer money.

Hard-pressed sectors where thousands of jobs are at risk, like aviation, oil and gas, and tourism, will be missing out on the help they need while companies who are returning to normal get public money they don’t.

The Chancellor should be targeting support on those who need it, not handing it out aimlessly to those who don’t. It’s not brave to admit the Government plans to waste billions at a time when others are crying out for support.

July 9, 2020
Jo Stevens – 2020 Comments on Free TV Licences for Over-75s

Below is the text of the comments made by Jo Stevens, the Shadow Culture Secretary, on 9 July 2020.

The refusal of the Government to fund this vital service after promising to do so is nothing short of betrayal.

Many over-75s have spent months at home with TV providing an invaluable source of company during the pandemic. For the Government to blame the BBC who are having to contend with huge cuts is simply passing the buck.

July 9, 2020
Lucy Powell – 2020 Comments on Job Losses at Boots and John Lewis

Below is the text of the comments made by Lucy Powell, the Shadow Minister for Business and Consumers, on 9 July 2020.

This is deeply worrying news for staff at John Lewis and Boots and the travel hubs and town centres these stores are in. These announcements underline the dangers facing our high street, as many businesses struggle to survive through the Covid-19 crisis and the necessary public health measures which limit capacity and demand.

The Chancellor’s statement was a missed opportunity to protect jobs with properly targeted support for the businesses and people that need it.

Ministers must acknowledge that different parts of our economy face very different challenges in the months ahead and come forward with a real plan to protect jobs in sectors fully closed or only partially reopened, and develop an urgent programme to boost retailers and save our high streets from becoming ghost towns.

July 9, 2020
James Cleverly – 2020 Statement on Prisons Under Sentence in Bahrain

Below is the text of the statement made by James Cleverly, the Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, in the House of Commons on 9 July 2020.

The UK and Bahrain continue to have a close and important relationship. We benefit from an ongoing, open and genuine dialogue in which we work together on mutually beneficial issues while also raising points of significant difference with one another.

It is because of this long-standing partnership that we are able to have candid conversations about matters of importance to the UK—in particular, our human rights concerns. Our relationship allows us to raise sensitive and difficult issues, both privately and publicly, in a constructive manner in order to uphold our moral responsibility on human rights issues. We have raised and will continue to raise the cases both of Mohammed Ramadhan and Hussain Moosa at senior levels with the Government of Bahrain.

On 8 January, British embassy Manama officials attended the final session of the Court of Appeal for the retrial of the two men mentioned. Both individuals were convicted of terrorist charges and given the death sentence again. On 8 January, the former Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison), publicly stated our deep concern that death sentences were again handed out, and the UK’s position has not changed on this matter. We continue to actively monitor these two cases as they are taken to the court of cassation for final review.

The UK’s position on the use of the death penalty is long-standing and unequivocal: we oppose its use in all circumstances and in all countries as a matter of principle. The Government of Bahrain are fully aware of our view. This was made explicitly clear by the former Minister to a senior Bahraini counterpart last year. It was then reinforced by my noble friend Lord Ahmad in the other place, who issued a public statement expressing the UK’s opposition to the use of the death penalty, in response to actions taken in Bahrain.

I can assure the House that our efforts to raise these cases, and also the broader issues of the use of capital punishment, with the Bahraini authorities will continue. Bahrain is a Foreign and Commonwealth Office human rights priority country, in part due to its policy surrounding the death penalty. We continue to monitor developments on all matters that relate to human rights within the country. We remain absolutely committed to the promotion of universal freedoms and upholding human rights globally. That has been made clear only this week with the introduction of the UK’s first autonomous human rights sanctions regime.

July 9, 2020