Weekly Update – Friday 28 May 2021

Dear Constituent,

This week the Prime Minister’s former adviser laid out in detail how the Government, through a combination of incompetence and arrogance allowed thousands of people to needlessly lose their lives. Much of what Mr Cummings said we already knew. We knew the Government initially pursued a policy of ‘herd immunity’ which could have destroyed the economy and left hundreds of thousands more people dead. We know the Government had no plan for protecting care homes, for testing, for track and trace or border control. We watched in real time as the Government delayed going into lockdown during the second and third waves, causing yet more people to die.

All of that is public knowledge. The reason Mr Cummings’ testimony has made waves is because somebody who has been given a megaphone by the media has finally used it to state the obvious – this Government killed thousands. The Prime Minister is not competent, nor is the Health Secretary. They shouldn’t have been in power in the first place and shouldn’t remain there.

I’ve signed a statement, along with the other members of the Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs calling on Labour to use this moment to step up and call out the Government for its failing. As the opposition we are here to support the people and not the Government. We should be clear that the Prime Minister and Health Secretary should have resigned months ago and that an inquiry must take place within weeks, not months. There is overwhelming evidence that this Government’s actions led to the deaths of thousands of people. There is no more serious charge than that. The first duty of any Government is to protect its citizens. Something has gone terribly wrong and it’s time we started acting like it.

Viktor Orbán Visit

Despite apparently not having time to meet with groups representing families who have lost loved ones to Covid-19, the Prime Minister found time to roll out the red carpet for the racist autocrat Viktor Orbán today. Mr Orbán is the Hungarian PM with a history of making Islamophobic, anti-Semitic and homophobic remarks. He has also passed legislation which discriminated against the LGBTQ+ community and has gone to great lengths to weaken civil liberties and democracy in Hungary. He is a dangerous autocrat who openly holds views abhorrent to our norms and values. Yet PM Johnson has gone out of his way to welcome Mr Orbán, with the Hungarian PM becoming only the second leader to visit Number 10 since we left the EU.

The message that this visit sends to the Islamic, Jewish and LGTBQ+ communities in the UK is chilling. The message it sends out to our democratic allies across Europe is clear. I’ve written to Boris Johnson to ask him to confirm why he has invited Mr Orbán to number 10 and whether he raised Mr Orbán’s bigotry or attacks on democracy in the meeting. We all deserve answers.

I Voted for a Global Minimum Corporation Tax

This week I voted in Parliament for the introduction of a Global Minimum Corporation Tax (GMCT). Unfortunately, the Government continued to oppose this idea, meaning that Labour lost the vote. This means that the UK remains the only country in the G7 standing in the way of a GMCT. While the idea has been advocated by economic experts for some time it recently became a lot more achievable after President Biden put his weight behind it.

If implemented a GMCT would generate billions of pounds that could be ploughed back into our public services and would ensure that the giant multi-national companies, who make billions from the UK, also pay their fair share in tax.

Official Development Assistance Funding Cut

This week I questioned the Trade Secretary in Parliament about the Government’s cut to vital coronavirus research, which may be reduced by up to 70%. One leading infectious disease expert has said the cuts could damage attempts to tackle the virus and track new variants. The cuts to coronavirus research fall under the hundreds of millions being cut from our development budget. Cuts which, for example, could see 700,000 fewer girls getting an education and aid to Rohingya being reduced by 40%.

The result of these cuts will be a world that is more unstable and less safe for everybody, including the UK. I will continue to pressure the Government on this issue and hope that soon they will see sense and reverse this disastrous decision.

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Thank you for taking the time to read my latest update, if you have any issues that you would like to raise directly with me then please do email  edmontonconstituency@parliament.uk. I’m always happy to help whenever possible.

Kind regards,

Kate Osamor MP