• PM must not jeopardise economic recovery with threat of no-deal
• Lib Dems report “appalling” frontpage to the independent regulator
• Lib Dems set out Five Point Plan to help pupils back to school
• Govt’s refusal to extend transition period risks UK’s return to sick man of Europe
• Govt must set out whether regional lockdowns will come into force

PM must not jeopardise economic recovery with threat of no-deal

Responding to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) statistics out today that show the UK’s economy shrank by 20.4% in April, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said:

We face the most serious economic challenge in generations. This is not a time to exit the world’s largest market. This is not a time to increase trade barriers. This is not a time to deny business skills they need with a damaging new immigration system.

Liberal Democrats will continue to make the case for a Green Recovery Plan and policies that back responsible businesses.

We can create jobs and protect the environment by investing in new, green technologies but we need imaginative new policies and strong political leadership.

The Prime Minister should not be putting Britain’s chances for an economic recovery in jeopardy by insisting on an arbitrary Brexit transition deadline and risking a devastating no-deal.

Lib Dems report “appalling” frontpage to the independent regulator

In a letter to the Independent Press Standards Organisation, the Liberal Democrats have condemned today’s frontpage of The Sun as “appalling and unacceptable” and urged the independent regulator to make clear there must be no place for the “glorification of violence” in our media.

In a letter signed by the Liberal Democrat MPs Christine Jardine, Daisy Cooper and Ed Davey, the Party have also called on The Sun to donate all its revenue from today’s paper to the charity Refuge, to support its vital work helping survivors overcome their abuse and rebuild their lives.

The intervention comes as cross-party MPs and charities have come together to condemn the front page of The Sun for giving a voice to an alleged perpetrator of domestic violence, J.K. Rowling’s former husband.

Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said:

To give such a prominent platform to the unrepentant, self-serving taunts of a man who has, by his own admission, committed domestic violence is utterly irresponsible.

That front page should never have been published. The Sun should apologise and donate all its revenue from today’s paper to the charity Refuge, to support its vital work helping survivors overcome their abuse and rebuild their lives.

There must be no place for this sort of glorification of violence in our media or our society. As the body responsible for regulating The Sun, IPSO must publish it’s own guidance to make that clear.

Lib Dems set out Five Point Plan to help pupils back to school

The Liberal Democrats have put forward a plan to “work in unity” at a local and national level to consider ways to safely open schools more widely in England and support disadvantaged pupils in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.

Presenting the Party’s Five Point Plan in a letter to the PM and Education Secretary, Layla Moran urged the Government to bring together council leaders, teachers, unions, experts and opposition politicians to agree a national plan for the safe, phased opening of schools more widely in England.

The plans put forward by the Liberal Democrats offer possible ways to get more pupils back in classrooms safely including:

• Safe space registers enabling schools to use local buildings for social distancing
• Recruiting additional staff through a Teach for Britain campaign
• End the learning void by working with the private sector to ensure no child is unable to access their online learning environment
• Develop a plan for flexible, phased reopening staggering key year groups
• Stop the disadvantage gap from widening further by committing to free schools means through the summer and a new Summer Learning Fund so disadvantaged pupils can access education through the summer holiday.

Layla Moran, Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson, said:

We all want schools to open more widely. Every day pupils can’t be in school is a day lost, but safety must come first. We need to work together to get this right. That’s why I want to see the Government working politicians across the political spectrum, plus unions, teachers and local governments, to consider practical and flexible solutions for the safe, phased reopening of more schools in the future.

My Five Point Plan outlines options that could help to facilitate the phased safe opening of our schools more widely, as well as measures to address the widening disadvantage gap, such as engaging with the private sector to make sure every child can access online learning, or a commitment to a Summer Learning Fund to support those most at risk of falling behind.

We need to learn from successes elsewhere in order to ensure we get this right. Parents, Teachers and pupils all need to be confident that children can go back to the classroom without putting their health at risk. That is what these plans are all about.

Govt’s refusal to extend transition period risks UK’s return to sick man of Europe

Responding to reports that the UK Government has now formally confirmed to the European Union that they will not seek an extension to the transition period, Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Alistair Carmichael said:

There seems to be no end to this Government’s recklessness. By risking the UK crashing out with no deal, the Prime Minister is also risking shortages in food and medicine, as well as another severe economic hit.

Any responsible Prime Minister would put people’s lives, let alone their livelihoods, ahead of ideology. However, Boris Johnson’s pigheaded refusal to extend the transition period will see the most vulnerable in our country suffer the most.

With the UK already struggling due to the coronavirus crisis, it is beyond belief that the Government are determined to add the consequences of Brexit to the list of the problems our country is currently facing. The refusal to extend the transition period shows that under this Government the UK risks a return to being the sick man of Europe.

Govt must set out whether regional lockdowns will come into force

Responding to reports the coronavirus reproduction rate may have risen above 1 in parts of England, Liberal Democrat Health spokesperson Munira Wilson said:

With such a variance in reproduction rate of coronavirus across the UK, joined up efforts to deliver an effective test, trace and isolate system is more important than ever before.

The Government is asking a lot of the public during this crisis, and the British people deserve clear, honest answers about how we pull through this together and ensure no one is left behind.

Ministers must set out in clear detail whether regional lockdowns will come into force and – if so – how they will be implemented, and who is legally responsible for this process.