A Guardian newspaper investigation has found one in five school buildings in England require urgent repairs. Liberal Democrats Shadow Education Secretary Layla Moran said:
The Government's approach to policing is increased crime, increased vulnerability and an increasing fear of crime. They are not the party of law and order. Tory Brexit plans would make us less safe and their manifesto seeks to undermine the rule of law. Priti Patel has claimed that the Conservatives are "the Party of Law and Order" however they simply cannot claim to be the party of law and order.
The Liberal Democrats have announced that they will move more than 9,000 members of staff out of the Home Office, under the party's plans to strip the discredited department of responsibility for immigration and asylum.
Just get it done so that we can get on. Attractive refrain. But does returning Mr Johnson to No 10 really Get It Done? We are promised that the EU trade deal will be done by the end of 2020. If not we leave without one. So No Deal is still very much on the table.
The Liberal Democrats have accused the Conservatives of failing to protect local small businesses, after figures revealed that 1645 businesses in the area have closed over the last three years. It comes as the Liberal Democrats have unveiled a series of measures to reverse this decline and boost local firms, to mark Small Business Saturday. Recent figures show that 1645 have closed in Mole Valley between 2016 and 2018, a 13.8% increase compared to the previous three years. Across the UK one million businesses have closed their doors between 2016 and 2018, an increase of almost a third compared to 2013- 2015. The Federation of Small Businesses has warned that a no deal Brexit, which Boris Johnson has repeatedly refused to rule out, would mean more damage to firms. Firms are also being held back by the Conservative government's failure to reform business rates, and by new taxes on the self-employed that business groups have described as "disastrous". Liberal Democrats have said that they will Stop Brexit a
The Liberal Democrat candidate for South Swindon has today challenged the local Conservative candidate to rule out a no-deal Brexit in December 2020.
Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath and spokesperson for Energy Security and Net Zero, called on the government to provide incentives for energy providers to develop solar power in the UK.
Mrs Hobhouse slammed the government for falling behind on meeting the UK’s renewable targets for solar energy capacity. The government plans to deploy 70 GW of solar power across the country by 2035. However, as of 2022, the UK had only installed 14.3 GW of solar pv.
Following a visit to a rooftop solar system installed by Bath & West Community Energy (BWCE) at Beechen Cliff School last year, Wera Hobhouse is keen to encourage the development of similar solar projects across Bath. The solar system is predicted to significantly cut the school’s fuel costs and reduce their carbon emissions by 52 tonnes a year.
In the House of Commons on the 27th February, the Bath MP noted that the UK is lagging behind the rest of the world in renewable energy investment, she urged the government to offer incentives to energy providers to improve solar capacity.
However, Andrew Bowie, Parliamentary Under Secretary for Energy Security and Net Zero, ignored Hobhouse’s proposals, failing to describe the ways in which the government could incentivise solar energy. Instead, Bowie said that the government’s Solar Taskforce would publish recommendations for solar power and reiterated the government’s target to deploy 70 GW by 2035.
Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath and spokesperson for Energy Security and Net Zero, commented:
“The Conservatives are falling dangerously behind on meeting our targets for renewable energy production. It is no good the government setting an ambitious 70 GW solar target if they are nowhere near reaching it.
“It is clear that they have no plan to get us back on track to reach Net Zero. Evidently, they are more than happy to dismiss perfectly good proposals like incentivising solar power. That is why I am so proud that Bath is home to many community energy projects like the solar system at Beechen Cliff School, so that we can lead the way in renewables.”
“It is not just our climate targets harmed by the Conservatives’ delay. Families in Bath and across the country are struggling to pay soaring energy bills which investment in renewables could curb. That is why we Liberal Democrats would build significantly more renewable energy, aiming to generate 80% of our electricity from renewables by 2030.”
Peter Capener, Managing Director of Bath & West Community Energy said:
“Our work with schools is really demonstrating the value of community energy in both addressing the climate crisis and reducing fuel bills. Rooftop solar installed last year has already saved local schools a combined total of £134,209 and has reduced carbon emissions by 224.3 tonnes, which is equivalent to 12,173 journeys from Bath to Edinburgh by train!”
