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Tag: Rachel Reeves

  • Rachel Reeves – 2021 Comments on DPD Suspending Delivery Operations

    Rachel Reeves – 2021 Comments on DPD Suspending Delivery Operations

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, on 8 January 2021.

    This government said it was prepared for a smooth transition – but instead major carriers like DPD are left wrangling with completely overwhelmed systems without any help.

    As well as consumers, this impacts on British companies large to small – from carriers like DPD to the many small, independent businesses already under such huge strain trying to sell across Europe.

    This government seems to prefer throwing taxpayer money at expensive consultants over listening to experienced businesses and offering them the practical, common sense support they need – like a helpline that functions when they’re operating.

    This government can talk the talk, but clearly can’t walk the walk when it comes to supporting British businesses.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Michael Gove’s “Bumpy Moments” Interview

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Michael Gove’s “Bumpy Moments” Interview

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, on 28 December 2020.

    The Government is treating its own incompetence as inevitable.

    There is no reason why the deal the Government ended up with had to be run so close to the wire, nor why this period must be bumpy had the Government prepared properly.

    But instead they refused to engage with business on preparations and dodged repeated questions from Labour for months on how many customs agents were recruited and ready, and what IT systems are properly in place.

    They should behave like grown-ups and take responsibility for governance.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Government Contracts and Tax Havens

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Government Contracts and Tax Havens

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, on 10 December 2020.

    Taxpayers deserve to know their money is being handled with great care – and that any risks of its misuse through tax havens is carefully handled by this government.

    Despite evidence from the National Audit Office that taxpayer money was used to pay well over the odds for PPE, and that this government’s procurement process seriously lacks important transparency, we are seeing no real moves to increase clarity or trust.

    This government cannot continue to brush worrying patterns like this off. They must commit to cleaning up their contracts now and be far more open to restore public confidence.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on a Brexit Deal

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on a Brexit Deal

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office, on 5 December 2020.

    The British people were promised a deal and, with time running out, we urge both sides to get on with reaching an agreement.

    We can then focus on the job at hand which is securing the economy and rebuilding our country from the pandemic.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Government’s Border Operations Centre

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Government’s Border Operations Centre

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office, on 1 December 2020.

    Once again, this government is putting the burden on businesses to prepare for the end of the transition period, when it has not explained what it is those businesses are getting ready for. Is it for tariffs or no tariffs with the EU?

    The government is rebadging a basic element of preparation but still can’t tell us how many customs agents are recruited or trained or whether crucial IT is ready.

    With glaring questions like these still unanswered, this government must do much more than just ‘demand action’ from UK businesses, already under huge pressure from the pandemic – and instead provide them with some much needed answers.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on NAO Investigation into Government Procurement

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on NAO Investigation into Government Procurement

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, on 18 November 2020.

    This report confirms that this Tory government’s approach to procurement has fallen far short of what this country deserves. Lessons must be learned.

    The National Audit Office has shown how, at best, this incompetent government can’t even get basic paperwork right.

    At worst, that the government may be deliberately attempting to cover their tracks, avoid scrutiny or withhold information from the public while wasting taxpayer money.

    From paying for useless PPE to a maintaining Serco’s failed contract tracing system, we have seen disastrous decisions which have squandered public money and held back our country’s response to Covid-19.

    The country deserves to have confidence their money is being spent effectively by the government – and to know without doubt that friends and donors to the Conservative party aren’t profiting from this pandemic.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Serco Profits

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Serco Profits

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, on 16 October 2020.

    This is grim beyond belief. While Serco is raking in the profits, people are paying the price for its failure.

    If the Government can’t bear to curb its obsession with pouring money into big companies over our local public health teams, it surely can see that this wasteful approach lacks basic common sense and isn’t reducing the transmission of the virus.

    It is time to sack Serco and bring in a short circuit breaker, so we can fix test and trace, protect the NHS and get control of the virus.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Serco

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Serco

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, on 14 October 2020.

    For months, Labour has been asking this government to put contact tracing into the hands of councils and local public health teams who know their own communities better than anyone.

    In the face of all the evidence, the Tories are continuing with a system that rewards failure by handing enormous sums of money to big companies such as Serco and Sitel.

    This approach has defied the experience around the world, left underfunded public services to clear up the mess days later and made our communities vulnerable to rising infection rates.

    The government should look at the science, follow Labour’s call to bring in a circuit break and transfer control of contact tracing to local authorities, so that we can better protect people’s lives and livelihoods.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Legal Action Taken by European Commission

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Comments on Legal Action Taken by European Commission

    The comments made by Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, on 1 October 2020.

    There is clearly a deal to be done. Both sides need to drop the posturing and the threats by getting back round the negotiating table and getting a trade deal done. The country wants the Government to move on from past divisions, secure the trade agreement we need and focus on defeating this pandemic.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2020 Speech on the End of the Transition Period

    Rachel Reeves – 2020 Speech on the End of the Transition Period

    The speech made by Rachel Reeves, the Labour MP for Leeds West, in the House of Commons on 23 September 2020.

    I thank the right hon. Gentleman for advance sight of his statement.

    The news today that there could soon be tailbacks of 7,000 lorries in Kent is quite extraordinary. I know that the Government have said that they are committed to building new infrastructure, but I did not realise it meant concreting over the garden of England. Today’s warnings are based on a reasonable worst-case scenario, but given that we have a reasonable worst-case Government, we have to assume that these scenarios could play out quite soon.

    In their letter to the road haulage industry, the Government say that business should get ready, but what about the Government? There is a long list of promises for the future in the letter: the UK Government will be contacting haulage companies; they will be running targeted advertising; they will be publishing an updated haulier handbook; and they will launch advice stands at UK service stations. Why are these essential prerequisites for a smooth transition not already here? It is all well and good to tell businesses to act now, but without the systems in place, frankly, it is like telling me to bake a cake but forgetting to turn the oven on.

    Sectors from farming to haulage and car manufacturing are crying out for the Government to get this right. These sectors are the backbone of British industry, and they are vital to our everyday economy. If we do not listen to these experts, we will lose exports. I met the Road Haulage Association last week. It is tearing its hair out. It has since met Ministers and described that meeting as “a washout”. Frankly, this is not good enough.

    In the summer, I visited the proposed lorry park in Ashford, Kent, where construction had just begun. It was with some dismay that I later read that workmen had encountered a Saxon brick wall in their excavations. ​I hope this is not a metaphor, but can the Minister assure the House that progress there is on track? Another site apparently earmarked is in Ebbsfleet. It is currently a covid testing centre. With the test, trace and isolate system on its knees, this would be farcical if it were not so serious. Is it really too much to ask for a little bit of joined-up government from Ministers?

    On 4 September, the Government granted themselves the power to build additional lorry parks in 29 local authority areas without consulting residents. Can the Minister tell us exactly where those facilities will be? That is the least that local people deserve. Will he also tell the House how many customs agents and intermediaries are trained and in place? This is so important for the system to work.

    In the summer, the Government admitted that there would be £7 billion-worth of additional bureaucracy for UK businesses. It is the last thing they need right now, so is that still the most accurate assessment of the costs for businesses?

    It has been estimated that 10 new IT systems will be needed to make our new trading relationship with the European Union work. Can the Minister list those IT systems and guarantee that they will be in place and fully operational on 1 January? Given that we were promised a contact tracing app, first in May, then in June and then in July, and it is now September, what assurance can he give that this time the Government will deliver that vital technology and that it will be working and delivered on time? Frankly, the Government’s track record does not inspire confidence.

    We have just 100 days until the end of the transition period. Labour’s message to both sides in this negotiation is clear: stop the posturing, and start negotiating. It is in our national interest—it is in all our interests—that the Government get a deal, and get it soon, so that businesses have time to prepare. The Conservatives have had three Prime Ministers and four years since the referendum in 2016. We have seen serial incompetence and countless U-turns. I say to Ministers: get a grip on preparations, and get a grip now. The transition period comes to an end on 31 December. Will the Minister guarantee, not just to this House but to the whole country, that we will be ready?