It looks as though we’ve had another surge of press releases so we thought that we might share them with you…
- Channel crossings: Govt must rule out dangerous ‘pushback’ tactics
- GP Shortages: Only 4-in-10 able to get same-day appointment
- Nick Fletcher’s Dr Who comments straight out of the 1950s
Channel crossings: Govt must rule out dangerous ‘pushback’ tactics
Responding to Immigration Minister Kevin Foster’s refusal to rule out using ‘pushback’ tactics to turn back small boats in the Channel, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Alistair Carmichael MP said:
It is disgraceful that the government is even considering pushing boats back in the Channel after yesterday’s tragic news.
Priti Patel must immediately rule out these dangerous and cruel pushback tactics which don’t work and could cause yet more unnecessary deaths.
The government’s incompetence and failure to get to grips with this crisis has led us to the heartbreaking situation we find ourselves in. Instead of yet more unworkable gimmicks, ministers must now focus on providing safe and legal routes to take refugees out of the grip of smugglers and traffickers.
GP Shortages: Only 4-in-10 able to get same-day appointment
Only four in ten (40.3%) of people were able to get a same-day appointment with their GP in October, a two-year low, NHS figures published this morning have revealed.
Meanwhile over one in four (28.8%) people had to wait eight days or more for an appointment, the highest level since before the pandemic in February 2020.
The Liberal Democrats said the figures showed the government must urgently fix the GP recruitment crisis, and warned that delays to GP appointments are piling more pressure on A&Es ahead of a difficult winter.
It comes after Health Secretary Sajid Javid admitted on Sunday that the government is not on course to meet its target of recruiting 6,000 more GPs by 2025.
Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said:
People across a country are struggling to get a GP appointment because of the government’s dismal failure to recruit more doctors.
This is having a devastating knock-on impact on our hospitals, as people who can’t get an GP appointment desperately turn up at their local A&E instead.
Boris Johnson must urgently get a grip of this crisis ahead of the challenging winter months ahead.
People want to see concrete action now so they can get an appointment with their GP when they need one. Instead all we get is yet more broken promises from a Conservative government that is running our health service into the ground.
Nick Fletcher’s Dr Who comments straight out of the 1950s
Responding to Conservative MP Nick Fletcher’s comments today suggesting Doctor Who being played by a woman may have pushed young men into crime, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Alistair Carmichael MP said:
It seems Nick Fletcher has stepped into the TARDIS and taken a trip back to the 1950s, where his attitude belongs.
The Conservatives are so desperate to pass the buck for their failure to tackle crime and keep our communities safe that they’re even blaming Doctor Who.
This baseless assertion would be laughable if it wasn’t so harmful. There are plenty of positive role models for young children regardless of gender.
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4 Comments
Johnson’s letter to Macron, publicised on social media is the clearest indication that Johnson has no serious interest in the issue, perhaps he is interested in a bit of Daily Express publicity.
Brexit, particularly Johnson’s Brexit ensured that agreements concerning refugees were terminated. France which accepts more refugees than the UK, has no interest in taking on people who do not want to be in France, who very probably entered Europe through another country and are likely to be undocumented. Nor does France want to get sucked into puerile political posturing.
The Party should be stating clearly that a consequence of Brexit is that the UK has to take its own responsibility for the issue and also to respect international agreements and protocols, adding that we have a Prime minister for whom taking responsibility and respecting international norms is beyond his comprehension.
The present situation with migrants (a word we are now apparently being told not to use any more) cannot continue, for everybody’s sake. Here’s a suggestion as to how we might deter some of the more unscrupulous operators.
Firstly, despite many having misgivings, we are going to have to bite the bullet and accept some form of national ID card. Then it needs to be made clear that nobody without a valid card will be allowed to work over here, or be entitled to benefits for their dependents.
How a non resident gets a card will require their taking part in a screening process. Where and when this takes place is negotiable. That might just deter some of the so called ‘economic migrants’ from attempting to enter the U.K. As for those genuinely seeking asylum, there must be effective official channels available. They should use them and we should more actively encourage them to do so. If these channels require updating they should be.
I realise that the above is far from perfect; indeed, many will undoubtedly consider my proposals draconian and ‘illiberal’. My reply will be that nothing has worked so far. Do we really want a free-for-all with individuals disappearing into the black economy, where they may likely to become victims of exploitation?
Safe routes for asylum seekers is a challenging issue for Conservatives. However, they must realise that allowing a number in using humanitarian visas will be less politically damaging than scenes of deaths in the channel. Once seekers are registered they can then be prioritised and the unfortunate given other options.
The great fault is that “screening” is now done in Britain. It used to be done in the original country -in our consulate I think. Presumably this was changed to make it more difficult.
Typical.