Whilst the drama was, unusually, at the Lords end of the Palace of Westminster today, there was plenty else going on. So much so, that we’re breaking this piece in two today. The second half will be along shortly…

• Swinson: Shared Parental Leave must be a right from day one
• Vince Cable visits Yeovil to launch final push of Lib Dem local election campaign
• Cable: Corbyn must put any deal he agrees with PM back to the people

Swinson: Shared Parental Leave must be a right from day one

The Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Jo Swinson, has today launched a bid to reform shared parental leave, including requiring the Government to make shared parental leave a day one right.

The former Employment Relations Minister, who first introduced shared parental leave four years ago this week, said “shared parental leave is good for children, good for families” but warned a government review and improvements are overdue.

The Liberal Democrat MP, who herself has used shared parental leave over the last year, is therefore introducing a new Private Member’s Bill which she is calling on Ministers to back.

To mark the bid, Jo Swinson will host a roundtable with dads today to discuss the benefits of shared parental leave and the pressure on many dads not to take it.

Jo Swinson said:

Shared parental leave is good for children, good for families and good for equality in the workplace. We have made a lot of progress, but too many parents and children are missing out.

Shared parental leave should be a day one right for all workers, just as maternity leave is, and be extended to self-employed dads. And to better support families of all sizes and shapes, the right to request flexible working must also be a day one right.

Employers should also put their money where their mouth is. If they’re serious about being more family-friendly, then they must enhance shared parental pay in the same way they do for maternity pay.

If the Conservatives were not bogged down in their own Brexit mess, then they could have delivered these changes already. Lucky for them, the hard work is done, and all Ministers need to do is back my Bill. Parents are watching.

Vince Cable visits Yeovil to launch final push of Lib Dem local election campaign

A vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote for a brighter future for your community and for Councillors who demand better for their local area, the party has said as they launch the final push of their local election campaign.

Liberal Democrat Leader Vince Cable will today join South Somerset Council Leader Cllr Val Keitch in Yeovil to launch the party’s final push.

The Liberal Democrats will visit the Fair View homeless sheltered accommodation in Yeovil, which was opened in April 2018 by the Lib Dem-run district council. They will then address a rally of activists in the early evening.

Vince Cable MP, Leader of the Liberal Democrats, said:

Liberal Democrats right across the country are fighting a positive campaign to build on our track record of listening, working hard and getting things done for local people.

We expect to make gains both against the Conservatives, who have cut services nationally and locally, and from Labour, many of whose voters feel completely let down by Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership.

A vote for the Liberal Democrats at these elections is a vote to send a message to the parties who brought us Brexit, and every Liberal Democrat elected in May will be a local champion fighting for their communities and protecting local services.

Cllr Val Keitch, Liberal Democrat Leader of South Somerset Council, added:

The investment in the Fair View homeless accommodation – which is managed for us by Bournemouth Churches Housing Association – is one of our council’s proudest achievements, and has helped us become a national leader on tackling homelessness.

We know that keeping displaced and vulnerable families out of unsuitable B&B accommodation is an absolutely vital part of a caring approach to tackling homelessness in our area.

Despite the double blow of funding cuts from the Tories in Westminster and Tories at Somerset County Council, your local Lib Dem council has kept council tax down while investing in vital services like these.

Cable: Corbyn must put any deal he agrees with PM back to the people

Today, Leader of the Liberal Democrats Vince Cable has written to Jeremy Corbyn to offer support for any Brexit deal he may negotiate with the Prime Minister, providing it is put back to the people for a final say with the option to stay in the EU.

Following the letter, Vince Cable said:

Any Brexit deal, whoever it is negotiated by, will be damaging for our country.

Millions of Labour supporters are watching and waiting and hoping that Jeremy Corbyn will finally stop sitting on the fence about a People’s Vote.

Liberal Democrats will offer support to a deal providing it remains tied to a People’s Vote. It would be a travesty if Corbyn and the Conservatives cook up a deal behind closed doors, and deny the public the final say.