The comments made by Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, on 16 February 2021.
The charges against Aung San Suu Kyi are politically motivated, and the latest example of the Myanmar military undermining democratically elected politicians. Aung San Suu Kyi and all other elected politicians arbitrarily held must be released immediately.
The UK and likeminded nations will not ignore these violations. We will ensure those responsible are held to account.
The comments made by Alok Sharma, the COP26 President, on 16 February 2021.
Thank you so much.
Friends, ladies, gentlemen, honourable guests.
Good afternoon from Nigeria. I’ve been here over the past twenty-four hours and I’ve had a range of productive meetings with the Vice President, other government ministers, and civil society on our shared need to act urgently to tackle climate change.
And it is an absolute pleasure to be joining you today and a very great thanks to my friend Dr Mathur for inviting me to participate in this very important summit.
And I’m also very delighted to be speaking alongside Mr Frans Timmermans and Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu, who we know are great champions for climate action.
May I first start by expressing my deepest condolences for the situation in Uttarakhand.Our thoughts and prayers are for all of those who have been sadly affected by this tragedy.
As we’ve heard, today marks the conclusion of the 20th annual World Sustainable Development Summit. Over those past two decades, the world has experienced its hottest ten years on record.
We have seen what the UN calls a “staggering” rise in climate disasters.
Affecting more than four billion people across the world.
And causing almost $3 trillion of losses to the global economy.
It is overwhelmingly clear that the climate crisis is impacting all our lives. And that crisis is unfortunately accelerating.
And to avoid it getting unimaginably worse, we must act now.
And we must act together.
As an international community we have agreed what we need to do.
In 2015 the world came together and signed up to the Paris Agreement, which established the framework for a clean, resilient global economy.
But although progress has been made, we are not on track to meet its goals.
If we do not change course, the climate impacts that we are already experiencing will grow into a tragedy of epic proportions.
We will end up seeing entire communities destroyed.
We’ll see many millions more pushed into poverty.
So, our aim as the COP26 Presidency is to get the world on track to make the Paris Agreement a reality.
This requires countries to act and to act now.
By making robust adaptation plans and policies.
By investing in green recoveries.
And by committing to net zero.
And of course, by announcing aligned Nationally Determined Contributions, and policies and plans to get there.
Plans like Prime Minister Modi’s commitment to generate 450 gigawatts of renewable power by 2030.
And NDC’s like the UK’s – which puts us on track to meet our 2050 net zero target.
But we also need action from across society.
And we need to work together.
Because making the Paris Agreement a reality requires us all to act in concert.
The UK COP Presidency aims to unite countries, and groups across society, behind the aims of the Paris Agreement. And, importantly to place inclusivity at the heart COP26.
We are urging businesses, investors, cities and regions to join the Race to Zero campaign for example, by committing to reach net zero by 2050 at the latest.
And we’ve seen many companies come forward. Companies like Dalmia Cement and Mahindra group have done so. We’ve seen cities like Delhi and Kolkata have signed up to this too.
And we are bringing the voices, of civil society, women, young people, Indigenous Peoples, and marginalised groups, into COP26.
These communities are some of the most affected by climate impacts.
Their knowledge, leadership, and expertise are absolutely essential to developing effective solutions.
Over the past two weeks I have met personally with youth and civil society climate activists in Ethiopia, in Gabon in Egypt, and here in Nigeria.
And I will continue to prioritise these interactions in all my country visits on the road to COP26.
The UK’s COP26 Presidency has established the Civil Society and Youth Advisory Council to help shape the Summit.
And this group includes brilliant young climate leaders from countries such as India and Kenya.
Our Friends of COP Advisory Group includes Indigenous leaders.
And the UK Government is supporting a mentoring initiative to encourage women from a diverse range of backgrounds to participate in climate negotiations.
And I also want to welcome and thank the work that has been done by TERI and WSDS to bring the voices of youth and women to the forefront.
The UK COP Presidency is also working to enhance international collaboration.
Between countries and across society.
Bringing together governments, business, civil society and financial institutions around five critical climate issues: finance, adaptation, nature, clean energy and clean transport.
Because we know that if we all focus on specific challenges and sectors, we can make progress faster.
By sharing solutions, bringing down costs, and driving innovation.
Together, we can accelerate the transition to clean growth.
Creating those jobs and prosperity and spurring development, which we all want to see.
And I very much recognise India’s leadership in this area. With pioneering initiatives like the International Solar Alliance and the Coalition on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure.
I look forward to working with both organisations over the coming year. And to showcasing them at COP.
And we are delighted that India is participating in the new forums for collaboration that the UK COP Presidency has created. Like the Energy Transition Council and Zero Emissions Vehicles Transitions Council.
With its vision and its flair and its leadership, India will be absolutely vital to the success of COP26.
As we approach Glasgow, I am pleased to say that the partnership between our two countries on climate change has never been stronger.
And I very much look forward to visiting in person next week and hearing first-hand about India’s ambitions.
The UK COP Presidency is committed to working in partnership with those countries most vulnerable to climate change.
Which for so many years have led the world’s attempts to tackle it.
We saw this in 2015 when Prime Minister Modi played a decisive role in getting the Paris Agreement over the line. And Small Island Developing States touched the conscience of the world, persuading it to pursue efforts to limit warming to 1.5 degrees.
And we see this today too.
As Barbados and the Maldives announce their aim to reach carbon neutrality by 2030.
And we see countries like India and Bangladesh use early warning systems to save thousands of lives.
And Ethiopia – where I’ve just been – plans to plant 20 billion trees by 2024.
The UK COP Presidency wants to amplify the leadership of those countries vulnerable to climate change. And to work together to make progress on critical issues like finance and adaptation.
So, we’re very pleased to be co-chairing the next meeting of the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure in March, alongside our friends and partners in India.
And, last month, Prime Minister Boris Johnson launched the Adaptation Action Coalition.
Which the UK has developed with Egypt, Bangladesh, Malawi, the Netherlands, St Lucia, and the UN.
This Coalition is a chance for developed and developing countries to share knowledge and best practice on adaptation and resilience at every level: local, regional and global.
And next month the UK COP Presidency will hold a Climate and Development Ministerial.
This will bring Ministers together to look at four key issues: access to finance; quantity and quality of climate finance; response to impacts; and fiscal space and debt.
And civil society organisations will be part of this conversation.
Together, we will look for ways to move forward on these key issues. And plan how we can make progress through events like the G7, the UN General Assembly, and COP26 itself.
Friends, in conclusion, we all share one precious life-giving but fragile planet.
And we all have a stake in its future.
Through partnership, collaboration, and with all of us on board, we can bring the benefits of clean growth and resilient economies to countries around the world.
And thereby protecting our people and our planet.
Thank you.
The comments made by Steve Barclay, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, on 16 February 2021.
We’re committed to giving the Welsh Government the resources and flexibility it needs to tackle coronavirus and today we’re delivering an extra £650m boost.
We have worked closely with the Welsh Government in advance of this announcement to ensure they have the certainty they need ahead of finalising their budget on 16 February.
UK Treasury schemes such as furlough, support for the self-employed and business loans also continue to protect jobs and livelihoods across Wales.
The comments made by James Murray, the Shadow Financial Secretary to the Treasury, on 16 February 2021.
Labour has set out what should be the priorities for securing our recovery – protecting jobs with a smart extension to the furlough scheme, and helping British businesses back on their feet by extending the business rates holiday and reduced rate of VAT.
Instead of introducing these urgent measures to protect jobs and business, the Chancellor is hitting households up and down the country with council tax rises, pay freezes, and cuts to Universal Credit, and threatening businesses with a mountain of debt.
The Chancellor is on the wrong side of the argument when it comes to securing our economy. Sadly, it’s the British people who will be left picking up the pieces from his mistakes.
The comments made by Anneliese Dodds, the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 16 February 2021.
This review is a missed opportunity. UK markets are becoming more concentrated, hitting consumers and workers and stopping small businesses in their tracks.
Labour would re-evaluate the role of the Competition and Markets Authority, ensuring it has the tools it needs to tackle the growing concentration of market power.
We need more robust competition policy, including action to crack down on tax avoidance and block mergers and acquisitions that either take on unsustainable debt or that aren’t in Britain’s long-term strategic interest.
The statement made by Matt Hancock, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on 15 February 2021.
I would like to pay tribute to Dame Fiona Caldicott whose death has been announced by her family. Dame Fiona spent her entire career serving the NHS and medicine, working as a clinician in the early part of her career and latterly as the National Data Guardian for Health and Social Care.
In this role she was a phenomenal advocate for the public and was instrumental in making sure that the NHS treats the public’s health data with the respect it deserves. The fact that every NHS organisation in the country now has its own Caldicott Guardian to protect the confidentiality of people’s data is testament to all that Dame Fiona achieved.
I send my deepest condolences to Dame Fiona’s family, friends and colleagues.
The statement made by Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, on 15 February 2021.
Today the national vaccination programme continues to power past the target we set six weeks ago with more than 15 million people vaccinated across the UK.
And once again I pay tribute to the astonishing efforts of everyone involved – the GPs, the nurses, the volunteers, the army and the pharmacists like Hardik Desai – who rallied local volunteers to vaccinate 3,000 people in his village hall in Ticehurst in Sussex, while keeping his pharmacy open – and of course I thank all of you who have come forward to be vaccinated.
This is an unprecedented national achievement but it’s no moment to relax and in fact it’s the moment to accelerate because the threat from this virus remains very real.
Yes, it’s true, we have vaccinated more than 90 per cent of those aged over 70 but don’t forget that 60 per cent of hospital patients with Covid are under 70.
And although the vaccination programme is going well, we still don’t have enough data about the exact effectiveness of the vaccines in reducing the spread of infection.
We have some interesting straws in the wind. We have grounds for confidence. But the vaccinations have only been running for a matter of weeks – and while we are learning the whole time – we don’t today have all the hard facts that we need.
And the level of infection remains very high, with more people still in hospital today than at the peak last April and admissions running at 1,600 a day.
So we have to keep our foot to the floor. And I can tell you today that the next million letters are landing on people’s mats right now, offering appointments to the over-65s and we are also contacting all those aged between 16 and 64 with underlying health conditions, as well as adult carers.
And if we can keep this pace up – and if we can keep supply steady – and I hope and believe we can – then we hope to offer a vaccination to everyone in the first nine priority groups – including everyone over 50 – by the end of April.
And at the same time we will be giving second doses to millions of the most vulnerable within twelve weeks of the first.
So this moment is a huge step forward but it’s only a first step.
And while it shows what the country can do we must be both optimistic but also patient.
And next week I will be setting out a roadmap saying as much as we possibly can about the route to normality even though some things are very uncertain.
Because we want this lockdown to be the last. And we want progress to be cautious but also irreversible.
So please continue to stay at home, protect the NHS and save lives.
Thank you.
The comments made by Kate Green, the Shadow Secretary of State for Education, on 15 February 2021.
A decade of Conservative Government had eroded families’ safety nets with poverty rates rising even before the pandemic.
The last year has shone a light on the impacts of poverty on health, wellbeing and learning. As we rebuild after this pandemic, we must deliver a transformation in support for families, starting with cancelling the planned cut to Universal Credit and guaranteeing provision of free school meals across all school holidays this year.
The comments made by Jim McMahon, the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, on 15 February 2021.
The reality is there is an £11bn pothole backlog across the country which will take more than a decade to fix.
Rehashed announcements from last year won’t repair our roads. The Government needs to recognise the scale of the problem and fund local services properly, not force councils into economically illiterate tax hikes.
The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, on 15 February 2021.
Today’s findings are troubling and unsurprising, and a perfect example of how this government believes it is one rule for them another for the rest of us.
It is appalling that the government not only dismissed these very credible claims of connections influencing this contract as ‘nonsense’ – but also that it took a judicial review to bring to light what should be publicly available information on how taxpayer money is being spent.
This government’s contracting has been plagued by cronyism and waste and they must take urgent steps to address this now – by urgently winding down emergency procurement, releasing details of the VIP fast lane, and publishing all outstanding contracts by the end of the month. This cronyism must stop.