The comments made by Jonathan Ashworth, the Shadow Health Secretary, on 17 March 2021.
People across the country will be anxious and worried that the booking of new first dose vaccination appointments will be paused from the end of March.
Matt Hancock needs to explain exactly what these supply issues are and what he is doing to resolve them. Trying to dismiss or downplay the legitimate concerns of anxious people waiting for a vaccine is simply not good enough.
The comments made by Jonathan Reynolds, the Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, on 17 March 2021.
This is a welcome judgement on a frankly absurd policy that disproportionately pursued those with very little means, just at the point they had begun to turn their life around.
Universal Credit deductions and the five-week wait for payments have been a disaster – forcing people already struggling to get by into debt and destitution.
Labour would replace Universal Credit with a fair and compassionate system that offers security to all.
The statement made by Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, in the House of Commons on 16 March 2021.
I am pleased to set out to the House findings from the first part of our two-part review into the role of police and crime commissioners (PCCs).
The Government’s manifesto committed to strengthening the accountability of PCCs and expanding their role. The public want to see a reduction in crime and PCCs are elected to deliver on the people’s priorities. Eight years on from their introduction, it is the right time to step back and consider how we can better ensure that the public can hold PCCs to account for the performance of their force.
In delivering the recommendations from part one of the review, we will make it easier for the public to make an informed decision about the record of their PCC at the ballot box by strengthening accountability and improving transparency. The recommendations set out below apply to PCCs and Mayors with PCC functions.
Part one of our internal review began in late July and collated views and evidence from stakeholders across policing, fire and local government as well as voluntary and community organisations. Through polling and focus groups the review also took account of public views and opinions. We focused on changes required to sharpen the model which, where possible, can be delivered ahead of the 2021 PCC elections.
On policing, the Home Office will bring forward a range of measures which will: strengthen PCC accountability; improve their transparency to the public; clarify the relationship between PCCs and chief constables; bring more consistency to the PCC role; raise professional standards; and improve the checks and balances currently in place.
The review concluded there was more to be done to explain the role of PCCs and make their record on crime more transparent to the voting public, thus enhancing their accountability. To help achieve this:
The Home Office will amend the specified information order to require PCCs to provide a narrative on their force’s performance against the Government’s crime measures, and Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) force performance reports. The specified information order currently places a duty on PCCs to publish certain information within specified timeframes, to ensure the public have the information they need to hold their commissioner to account at the ballot box.
In line with the Government’s manifesto position in favour of first past the post, which provides for strong and clear local accountability, and reflects that transferable voting systems were rejected by the British people in the 2011 nationwide referendum, the Home Office will work with the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to change the voting system for all combined authority Mayors, the Mayor of London and PCCs to first past the post. This change will require primary legislation, which we will bring forward when parliamentary time allows.
We concluded there are clear steps we can take to sharpen local accountability and ensure the framework guiding the relationship with chief constables is clarified:
The Home Office will work with the College of Policing, Association of Police and Crime Commissioners and National Police Chiefs’ Council to build on the accountability guidance already in place, including in relation to the performance management of chief constables, to help to promote and embed a positive relationship between chief constables and PCCs.
The Home Office will consult on potential changes to the Policing Protocol Order 2011 to provide a “brighter-line” on the boundaries of operational independence and reflect changes in the relationship between the parties to the protocol which have taken place over time. The protocol sets out how the policing governance relationships should work, including that of the Home Secretary, and clarifies the roles and responsibilities of PCCs, chief constables and police and crime panels.
The Home Office will also legislate to amend section 38 of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011, to make the chief constable dismissal process more rigorous and transparent, by requiring a PCC to give the chief constable written notice (including grounds), as the first stage of the dismissal process; allowing for the chief to provide HMCIC with a response to those grounds; and introducing some form of time limit or review interval on a chief constable’s suspension from office. The Home Office will also work with the College of Policing, NPCC and APCC to develop a framework for the use of independent mediation in appropriate circumstances.
We will also seek to address the HMICFRS recommendations included in its “Leading Lights” (September 2019) report, looking into the role of the College of Policing in the senior recruitment process. We will work with stakeholders to address the issues raised through this review in relation to fixed-term appointments.
To improve scrutiny, the Home Office will work with the Local Government Association (LGA) to develop a good governance training package for police and crime panels.
Part two of the review will also allow us to consider the role of the Independent Office of Police Complaints (IOPC) with respect to their handling of complaints made about the conduct of PCCs and their deputies.
The review concluded more should be done to ensure that all PCCs adopt best practice and, given our later recommendations on fire, there is now a need to improve the resilience of the Office of the PCC:
We recommend that the APCC works with the College of Policing to build on the policing knowledge hub to develop a “what works” compendium for PCCs.
The Home Office and APCC will jointly develop a comprehensive set of non-statutory guidance on the core elements of the PCC role. In conjunction, the APCC should deliver a formal programme of induction for new and returning PCCs post-elections in May 2021.
To enhance resilience and capacity of PCCs, given our intention to expand the role into fire, the Home Office will bring forward legislation to mandate that each PCC must appoint a deputy (of the same political party where the PCC represents a political party). In the interim, we will issue guidance to PCCs’ offices requesting that a formal succession plan is put into place to deal with vacancy and incapacitation, involving the police and crime panel in those discussions as necessary. This will not apply to Mayors with PCC functions, where legislation already mandates that a deputy Mayor must be in place.
To ensure PCCs have the levers they need to tackle crime, in part two of the review, the Home Office will consult on giving a general power of competence (as afforded to local authorities) to all PCCs, to potentially help PCCs with the role they play in the wider crime and criminal justice landscape, and will consider partnership arrangements more fully.
On fire, the Government are clear that further reform of fire and rescue is required in order to respond to the recommendations from phase 1 of the Grenfell Tower inquiry and the Kerslake review, and to build on the findings from Sir Thomas Winsor’s state of fire and rescue report. Our reform agenda will focus on three key areas: people; professionalism; and governance. Taken together, improvements in these areas will help deliver higher standards and greater consistency across fire and rescue services.
The review kick-started our work on fire service governance and the findings signalled strong support for a directly elected individual taking on fire functions to help simplify and strengthen the governance of fire and rescue services across England. The Home Office will be launching a consultative White Paper on fire reform later this year. The White Paper will be used to set out our reform agenda in further detail and explore the review proposals on fire governance which include:
Consulting on whether to mandate the transfer of fire and rescue functions to the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner model across England where boundaries are coterminous, unless there is an option to transfer fire governance directly to an elected Mayor.
Consulting on how to address coterminosity challenges, including in the south-west.
Legislating to create operational independence for chief fire officers and to clearly separate and delineate strategic and operational planning for fire and rescue.
Considering options to clarify the legal entities within the PFCC model.
With regard to mayoral devolution, this review has cemented our view that the join up of public safety functions under a combined authority Mayor has the potential to offer wider levers to prevent crime. We will take steps to remove barriers to more Mayors taking on these functions and will work with MHCLG to develop the forthcoming devolution and local recovery White Paper with that longer-term trajectory in mind.
Part two of the review will begin after the 2021 elections and will allow us to consider further ways to strengthen and expand efforts to help cut crime. It will focus on longer-term reforms and the potential for wider efficiencies to be made, with a view to implementation ahead of the 2024 elections. Terms of reference for part two of the review will be published in this House at the appropriate time.
I would like to put on record my thanks to our advisory group which supported the first part of this review, comprising senior external stakeholders with expertise in the policing and fire sectors.
The comments made by Jo Swinson, the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Employment Relations and Consumer Affairs, on 17 January 2013.
We are committed to finding ways to support both businesses and employees when a working relationship breaks down. The measures I have announced today will do just that.
Central to this is promoting the benefits of good communication, better management, and early dispute resolution, as this can lead to the best outcomes for everyone. We are working closely with Acas to get the rules and procedures for Early Conciliation right, and welcome the views of interested parties in our consultation.
Settlement agreements can be a helpful tool and work in the interest of both employer and employee. Creating a code and simple guidance will mean that these arrangements are more readily available to those in small businesses, not just large corporations.
Employment Tribunals are costly for everyone, in terms of money but also time and stress. We need to tackle unrealistic expectations about the levels of compensation awards, especially when only 1 in 350 people who make a claim for unfair dismissal receive an award of more than their own salary, and the average award is less than £5,000. Tribunals should be the last resort not the first port of call.
The comments made by Jo Swinson, the then Minister for Consumer Affairs and Minister for Equalities, on 21 December 2012.
This change from Europe is disappointing especially in these tough times when budgets are stretched. Insurers have no choice but to comply with the European Court of Justice’s ruling, but it means that for car insurance women are likely to face higher premiums and it could hit young women drivers particularly hard. So my message to women is simple: don’t take this lying down. Do your homework, shop around and nail the best deals. For motor insurance, new drivers might also consider taking extra qualifications like Pass Plus which can build driving confidence and cut insurance costs, and telematics policies which reward good driving behaviours with lower premiums.
The comments made by Jo Swinson, the then Competition Minister, on 4 December 2012.
The food industry plays an important role in economic growth, and the Groceries Code Adjudicator will help to ensure that the market is operating in a fair and healthy way. Large supermarkets form a big chunk of this industry, and generally provide consumers with low prices and variety whilst providing business for farmers and suppliers.
But where supermarkets are breaking the rules with suppliers and treating them unfairly, the Adjudicator will make sure that they are held to account. We have heard the views of the stakeholders who were keen to give the Adjudicator a power to fine, and recognise that this change would give the Adjudicator more teeth to enforce the Groceries Code.
We expect fines to be used as a last resort, but the fact that the Adjudicator has the power to impose them will send a strong message to retailers that compliance with the Code is not optional. I am confident that these changes will mean that the Adjudicator is able to ensure fair play in the food supply chain and keep the industry growing.
The comments made by Jo Swinson, the then Equalities Minister, on 20 November 2012.
Today we honour and remember those brave people who have dared to be themselves and had the courage to stand up and express who they are. Shamefully, transgender people continue to face discrimination and inequality and sometimes even violence here in the UK and abroad. This is simply unacceptable in the twenty first century. Everyone should be treated equally regardless of who they are, and we all have a part to play in working towards a future free from ignorance and prejudice.
The comments made by Jo Swinson, the then Employment and Consumer Affairs Minister, on 19 November 2012.
‘midata’ is all about putting power into the hands of consumers. Many businesses reap huge commercial benefits from the information they gather from consumers’ daily spending patterns. Why shouldn’t consumers also benefit from this by having access to their own data to enable them to make better choices?
It’s great when your energy provider tells you how much gas or electricity you’re using at any point in the year or when phone companies tell you which one of their tariffs suits you best. But it’s even better when consumers can use that information to get better value for money deals or adjust their lifestyles.
This is just one of many ways ‘midata’ can help, as businesses increasingly recognise sharing data as a means to deliver a better service for their customers.
The comments made by Jo Swinson, the then Women and Equalities Minister, on 31 October 2012.
What women need is confidence, not quotas. So rather than telling companies what to do, we’re encouraging them to see the real business benefits of taking voluntary action. Our approach is beginning to pay off. We have already seen the biggest ever jump in the number of women on boards and it doesn’t stop there. Many of the UK’s leading companies are now reporting on gender equality throughout their workforces under our Think, Act Report scheme and the Women’s Business Council is investigating how to help remove barriers to female success. This ongoing work will help even more women rise to the top and give the economy a real boost.
The speech made by Ben Wallace, the Secretary of State for Defence, on 16 March 2021.
It’s a privilege to speak to so many maritime professionals this morning.
As an island nation, Britain’s trade has always depended on the tide.
And at the turn of the century, the UK built an astonishing 60 per cent of the world’s ships.
We might no longer be the workshop of the world.
But your industry remains global leaders in Design and Innovation.
You still bring in billions to our economy and spread wealth right across the country.
And you still directly provide for the livelihoods of some 44,000 people from Appledore to the Clyde and many more in the supply chain.
But, as Shipbuilding Tsar, you know I want our ambition to be greater still.
And, as chair of the Maritime Working Group, I’ve been pushing my colleagues right across government to create the conditions to help you be successful.
We know we must up our productivity because our international counterparts are getting ahead.
Our UK shipyards currently lag behind our European rivals, as does our cost base, and this needs to be improved.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s led-study into UK productivity provided us with a foundation to build on.
It gave us a better understanding of the challenges you face as an industry and a better understanding of how Government can work with industry to increase productivity.
The “rich picture” of the industry developed by the Maritime Enterprise Working Group has further strengthened our understanding, identifying areas which require improvement, investment and consolidation.
We also know we need to do more to develop the skills of the future.
That’s where the Department for Education’s work comes in.
They’ve been speaking to employers across England to understand the skills requirements throughout the enterprise.
We’re in the midst of analysing their work. These findings will help industry gain the skills they need for the future.
We need to be more innovative too.
How can we develop hydrogen powered ships? How can we make better use of autonomy? How can we build a digital backbone into this industry?
Another of my Working Group colleagues, Minister Courts, will be speaking to you later about our exciting plans in this area.
And we need to be more competitive.
I want to see us out there exporting. And DIT’s work on export credits will help you by making sure no viable UK export fails through lack of finance or insurance.
But the key to our future success is a sense of certainty.
Certainty breeds confidence.
The good news is this Prime Minister is determined to give you that certainty.
That’s why, when he announced an extra £24bn for Defence, he talked about spurring a renaissance in British shipbuilding across the UK.
It’s why we’re building a pipeline of future projects.
It’s why we’re developing a maritime enterprise export plan to deliver state-of-the art British ships to our global allies.
And it’s why, I can announce today, that we will be refreshing our National Shipbuilding Strategy.
Why will it be different?
First, our strategy is going to be much more wide-ranging. It will no longer be primarily about hulls but about looking right across the shipbuilding enterprise, from naval and commercial shipbuilding to systems and sub-systems.
Secondly, we’re going to be sending you a much clearer demand signal about what we’re trying to achieve with our procurement programmes – for the first time releasing a 30-year pipeline of all Government vessel procurements over 150 tons.
This will encompass not just military vessels but all ships including those procured by Home Office, DFT, Defra, BEIS and the Scottish government.
The strategy will also deliver for all parts of the UK, building on the proud traditions of shipbuilding in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
We’re going to be letting you know our policy and technology priorities for shipbuilding. What green capabilities we’re after to achieve our net zero commitments. And how we will take account of the social value of shipbuilding when making appraisals.
In return for the certainty we instil, I expect you to up your productivity, invest in your people and develop the advanced manufacturing skills necessary to compete on the global stage
Finally, we’re going to be working more seamlessly with central, local government and devolved governments as well as industry and academia, to realise our aspirations. The Maritime Working Group has already shown the benefits of this approach
But we’re going further. I have just approved a cross sector study to identify the challenges, priorities and ambitions that the Royal Navy shares with the wider Maritime Enterprise in Scotland. I want to see how we can do more together to boost skills, innovation, and green projects.
More broadly, I want us to create local hubs of expertise. So that the ships that leave these shores aren’t simply famed for bearing a stamp saying “made in Britain” but for the stamp that says Belfast or Birkenhead.
And I want to make sure that, once you’ve built those era-defining ships, we do more to trumpet your achievements.
My vision is for a supercharged, successful and sustainable UK shipbuilding enterprise.
By 2030, I want our industry to be at the forefront of the technological and environmental revolutions driving our sector.
But Government cannot reinvigorate the enterprise alone. We can only make this happen by working together.
Fittingly, this year we will see HMS Queen Elizabeth embark on her first operational deployment I can’t think of a more impressive floating showcase of the talents you all possess.
Nor a stronger signal to the world that the renaissance in British shipbuilding is now firmly underway.