LABOUR: WE WANT TO SEE EVERYTHING
PM may have to reveal internal memos
LABOUR have called for a Commons vote today that could force ministers to publish all internal government memos on the Windrush scandal.
Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott will use ancient parliamentary rules that would make the result of the vote binding on ministers.
Labour previously used the tactic to force the publication of the Government’s 58 Brexit impact papers.
Abbott said yesterday: “With the resignation of Amber Rudd, Theresa May has lost her human shield and must now fully account for the policies she created and drove through from the Home Office into Downing Street.
“The Windrush scandal has exposed something rotten at the heart of Government. We need to know what has led to this situation.
“If the Prime Minister is too weak to be accountable, Labour will have to force her to be accountable.
“We have had enough of ministers trying to dodge questions and blame others – we need full disclosure of all the facts.”
Labour’s opposition day debate will be a test for Rudd’s successor as Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, who has signalled a break from the past by distancing himself from May’s use of the phrase “hostile environment” when discussing immigration policy.
The Prime Minister’s approach to immigration came under further scrutiny yesterday amid claims she rejected pleas from Cabinet colleagues to ease restrictions on recruiting doctors from overseas.
A report in a London newspaper suggested that as part of plans to reduce net migration to the tens of thousands, May “refused to budge” over calls to lift a cap on the number of skilled workers allowed to come to the UK.
Health bosses have warned that limits on the number of visas issued to doctors from countries outside the European Economic Area are contributing to delays in patients receiving care.
Meanwhile, the Scottish Government called on Javid to recognise Scotland’s “unique” migration needs.
External Affairs Secretary Fiona Hyslop asked for a meeting to discuss the “worrying” decrease in the number of people moving to Scotland from overseas.
She pointed to evidence of the positive impact of migration on the economy and society.
Hyslop said: “Scotland is particularly vulnerable to any reduction in inward migration because of our distinct demographics.
“Population growth is projected to be driven entirely by migration with over a third of Scotland’s local authorities facing depopulation by 2039.”