Policy Announcements, Tuesday 13 February

Government

• Litter created by employees around their workplaces, including discarded cigarette ends, could become the responsibility of businesses to clean up. Defra proposals, published for consultation today, would widen the range of premises which face Street Litter Control Notices to include all types of eating and drinking venues and office buildings. This would give local authorities the power to require the occupiers or owners to clear up litter in the immediate area of their premises, including that created by their customers, and to install disposal facilities or risk a fixed penalty notice of up to £110.
• Ending the shortage of doctors and nurses in the world's poorest countries got a double boost today as Hilary Benn and Patricia Hewitt, Secretaries of State for International Development and Health, welcomed the publication of Lord Crisp's review of how the UK can help health services in developing countries and announced £1 million for the Global Health Workforce Alliance (GHWA). Lord Crisp's review, commissioned by the Prime Minister, sets out 16 key recommendations on how the UK can contribute to health services in poor countries.

Liberal Democrats

• Liberal Democrat Shadow Constitutional Affairs Secretary, Simon Hughes MP, commented the civil court system: "If Britain is to continue its reputation for proper access to high quality justice then we need to invest in our justice system as befits a key part of the welfare state. The next Comprehensive Spending Review should give a generous settlement to the Department of Constitutional Affairs and the sooner we get a Ministry of Justice to battle publicly for these services the better."
• Commenting ahead of Ruth Kelly’s suggestion today of a new ‘right to own’ for social housing tenants to encourage them to buy as little as a 10% stake in their own homes, Liberal Democrat Housing Spokesperson, Dan Rogerson MP said: "None of the policies announced today will deal with that. In fact they’ll make the problem worse unless more social homes are built. The Government should be investing in more social housing. Among other things, that means allowing councils to use right to buy receipts to build more homes for those currently without a place to properly call home."

Conservatives

• Conservatives have called on the Government to "get serious" about rail safety after new British Transport Police figures revealed deteriorating levels of crime on the trains. With the number of railway assaults against passengers and staff up by almost 50 per cent over six years, Shadow Transport Minister Owen Paterson protested: "If the Government really wants to encourage people out of their cars, they need to get serious about making our trains safer."