• Lib Dems: Bolster energy security to tackle “stubbornly high” inflation
• Ed Davey calls for public inquiry into Afghan data leak and unprecedented superinjunction
• Davey speech warns of Farage’s plan to tie Britain to Putin’s Russia
• Carmichael to lead parliamentary debate on Global Plastics Treaty

Lib Dems: Bolster energy security to tackle “stubbornly high” inflation

Responding to June’s inflation figure of 3.6%, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said:

These stubbornly high inflation figures are hammering the pockets of households who are still struggling with a cost-of-living crisis that refuses to go away.

The Conservatives’ mismanagement of the economy led us here and now Donald Trump’s senseless trade war and the Government’s wage suppressing jobs tax are only adding to people’s pain.

Only by building an economic coalition of the willing to stand up to Trump’s bullying, scrapping the Government’s jobs tax and bolstering our energy security will we see pressure ease for families across the country.

Ed Davey calls for public inquiry into Afghan data leak and unprecedented superinjunction

Ed Davey has called for a public inquiry into the MOD data leak that put at risk the lives of up to 25,000 Afghans who supported the British campaign in Afghanistan, and the unprecedented superinjunction used to keep it hidden from the public for years.

The Liberal Democrats have criticised the Conservatives’ cloak-and-dagger efforts to protect Ministers’ identities via an unprecedented 600-day superinjunction, only revealed following a concerted effort by the British media to bring the details into the public domain.

The party’s leader, Ed Davey, has called for an urgent public inquiry – to report by the end of the year – which would allow for the level of scrutiny appropriate to the “size and significance” of the data breach and subsequent Government efforts to keep the details hidden from public view.

This follows comments made by High Court Judge Martin Chamberlain who, after lifting the order Tuesday, said it was “fundamentally objectionable for decisions that affect the lives and safety of thousands of human beings, and involve the commitment of billions of pounds of public money, to be taken in circumstances where they are completely insulated from public debate.”

Ed Davey, Liberal Democrat Leader, said:

It’s catastrophic that a security breach of this size and significance – with potentially lethal consequences for Afghans who bravely supported the British campaign in Afghanistan – could occur at the MoD under the Conservatives’ watch.

The scale and length of the superinjunction used to cover up the Ministers who oversaw this scandal – as well as the potentially enormous cost to the taxpayer – is unprecedented. The British media should never have been forced to go to court to shed light on this scandal.

Keir Starmer must launch a full public inquiry – to report by the end of this year – to ensure no stone is left unturned in the pursuit of answers. Such scrutiny is well overdue.

Davey speech warns of Farage’s plan to tie Britain to Putin’s Russia

Speaking at the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey has given a speech setting out his plan to halve energy bills by 2035 saying that it would be an “energy policy in the service of the British people”.

He will challenge Reform and Conservative leaders Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch over their peddling of “myths” about renewable energy that “would only benefit foreign dictators like Vladimir Putin”.

Ed Davey will say this needs to be achieved by breaking the link between gas prices and the cost of electricity, so households can save hundreds of pounds a year from cheap renewable energy. By doing so Ed Davey says ministers will “stop tinkering, stop dithering, stop deliberating” and begin “easing the pressures on families and businesses”. He said it should form part of a wider plan to create “an economy that is truly innovative, dynamic, prosperous and fair” that will “champion free trade” so that “everyone feels the benefits”.

Ed Davey will add that MPs should be given more of a say over the Budget, warning that the current process is a “sham” that has “weakened” Britain’s economy with “the Treasury, hoarding power behind those intimidating walls on Horse Guards Road”. He will call for MPs to be able to properly amend and debate the Budget before it is finalised to hold the government to account, backed up by a new Office of the Taxpayer based in Parliament.

Carmichael to lead parliamentary debate on Global Plastics Treaty

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has secured a debate in the House of Commons on the Global Plastics Treaty, to be held on Thursday 17th July. The debate, backed by MPs across Parliament and initiated with the support of environmental group Greenpeace, will be an opportunity for parliamentarians to discuss policy priorities for tackling plastic pollution ahead of the next round of negotiations over the Global Plastics Treaty this summer.

UN Member States are currently negotiating a legally-binding, international agreement on plastics that will address the entire life cycle of plastics, from design to production and disposal. The next session of negotiations will held on the 5 to 14 August 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Mr Carmichael previously introduced the Plastic Pollution Bill to Parliament, which would have set legally binding targets for ministers to cut plastic pollution in the UK, but was not taken up by the last government.

Mr Carmichael said:

I am delighted to have secured this debate to press the government on what they are doing to support the Global Plastics Treaty. While there is much we can do individually and as individual governments, the issue of plastic pollution – like all pollution – is a global one, which requires global commitments to tackle it. That is why leadership from our government, driven by Parliament and by supportive organisations, is so vital to get this treaty over the line in August. The clock is ticking.

Plastic pollution is a matter of particular concern for people in the Northern Isles – we see it on our coastline every single day. The sea connects us all, as anyone who finds the detritus of fishing nets and plastic packaging on our shores can attest.

This is an issue that knows no border and recognises no party and so I am glad to have secured broad cross-party support to bring this debate to Parliament. We can and must drive more action to cut plastic pollution for the good of our planet and future generations.

Rudy Schulkind, Political Campaigner, Greenpeace UK said:

This is a historic opportunity for the UK government to create a lasting legacy that ends plastic pollution and puts people before polluters. Plastic production could triple by 2050, which flies in the face of global efforts to address plastic pollution and reduce carbon emissions. The fossil fuels lobby are attempting to derail and weaken the treaty negotiations and we are urging high ambition countries such as the UK to stand firm for a strong Treaty that results in a legally binding global target to cut plastic production.