Boris Johnson's woeful government has done it again.
Their needless belligerence towards our neighbours has devastated the national supply chain. Shelves are bare and prices will rise.
By refusing to work with the European Union, importing and exporting goods has become much harder. The skilled worker visa system brings high costs, inflexibility and bureaucracy. It's too hard to hire from the EU, and many EU nationals have gone home. And that's all thanks to this divisive government.
Lib Dem leader Ed Davey gave his keynote speech to conference today! We've pulled some of the highlights for you - but if you want to read the full speech you can find it here.
Boris Johnson's Conservative Government is steering us all into another terrible crisis.
Some years ago Serco stuck labels on the Derbyshire Dales District Council's black (or grey) bins saying 'no food waste'. Some bins still have them attached - albeit faded.
Clearly committing food waste to landfill was regarded as a 'bad thing' - why was this?
Also new legislation is making the separate collection of food waste compulsory for all local authorities from 2023 - why?
The government plan to remove the £20 per week uplift in universal credit at the end of the month has come in for a lot of criticism.
For many families with low earning jobs in retail and hospitality this is part of a double whammy which is about to hit them following the increase of 1.25% in national insurance contributions. This NI increase is to fund limits in social care costs which will primarily benefit those with high priced properties in southern England - they will now be able to protect their inheritance. The tax starts to be paid at only £184 per week.
The Home Secretary's latest wheeze to turn around small boats carrying migrants in the channel and send them back to France is yet another example of this inward-looking, xenophobic, reactionary government's approach to immigration. It is a disgrace and would add to the sullying of the UK's name in the international community, not that we have much hope of recovering any goodwill at the moment. However, as the Guardian reports, the plan may not be as water tight as Priti Patel hopes.
They quote Lucy Moreton, a professional officer at the Immigration Services Union (ISU), who says she would be surprised if the policy was used "even once":
The proposals, which would require maritime law to be rewritten, have already been rejected by the French government.
Moreton told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "In practical terms, if this happens even once, I would be surprised.
"There are understandably a lot of constraints around it and you cannot do this with a vessel that is in any way vulnerable and more importantly you need the consent of the French to do it.
"Because when you turn the vessel back toward France, when it is across the median line it has to be intercepted and rescued by the French and it appears the French will simply not engage with this, in which case it's - if you excuse the pun - dead in the water."
Tim Loughton, a Conservative MP and member of the home affairs select committee, also poured cold water on the prospects of the tactic being used in practice, although supported the underlying principle.
He said: "It sounds good. But I'm afraid in practice it's just not going to happen. These are flimsy boats coming over. Even those that are tougher are completely weighed down.
"Any boat coming up alongside at speed would capsize most of these boats anyway and then we're looking at people getting into trouble in the water and drowning … and then we'll get blamed for that. It sounds good pushing them back but it's not going to work in practice."
How much longer can this discredited and illiberal politician be allowed to continue in the role of Home Secretary?
