Election 2019: The MSE Leaders' Debate

Labour's Green Industrial Revolution will grow our economy and transform our communities along clean, sustainable lines. We will upgrade almost every one of the 27 million homes in the UK to highest energy efficient standards feasible through a combination of grants to low income households and interest free loans to those able to pay. We will provide interest-free loans for buying electric vehicles.

Public transport has suffered under neglect and privatisation. We will invest to rebuild it and adopt measures to encourage usage, such as providing free bus passes to under 25s, as well as making Britain among the most walking and cycling-friendly places in the world.

The climate emergency demands bold action. We all need to do our bit, but a big role the government can play is to make the green choice the easiest, cheapest choice.

Liberal Democrats will make it greener and cheaper to stay warm, with a 10-year programme to insulate every home in the country and investment in wind, solar and tidal energy so that 80% of electricity comes from renewables by 2030. We will require that all new homes generate at least as much energy as they use, including being fitted with solar panels.

We will cut VAT on electric vehicles and install more charging points, so that every new car is electric by 2030. And we'll encourage alternatives to driving or flying: restoring bus routes, introducing a national walking and cycling strategy, and improving our rail network.

We need a rapid plan to eliminate plastic pollution if our seas are to recover from the damage we've done. Liberal Democrats will end the UK's addiction to plastics, with a deposit return scheme for all food and drink bottles and containers and an end to the use of all non-essential non-recyclable single-use plastics within three years.

In order to help people, live more sustainably, we will build 20,000 new homes. We will ensure that new build houses will be insulated to the highest standard and equipped with photovoltaics for electricity generation and solar heating. We will improve the infrastructure for Electric Vehicle Charging to make it more viable for people to buy EVs.

We will electrify the railways to allow more trains, thus improving commuter comfort and times. We will create a publicly-owned bus system which will decrease fares and mean that communities are better served.

We have called for a pioneering Plastic Bottle Deposit Scheme and our AMs have been fighting for these schemes to be rolled out in the Senedd.

Our Green New Deal is about allowing people to live better lives, where the greenest options are the cheapest and most convenient.

We strongly believe in the idea of energy citizens, the idea that each and every citizen of the UK will be able to produce clean, renewable energy from their own home or business. And to do that it has to make financial sense and be financially beneficial. Through our Green New Deal we aim to meet most of our energy needs through the domestic production of renewable energy. This will in turn lead to the creation of millions of new jobs, in renewable energy, transport, land management and other sectors transformed by the transition to a net zero carbon economy. We will roll out solar panels and other forms of renewable domestic energy generation, giving one million households a year the means to generate a proportion of the energy they use. This will mean that 10 million homes are able to generate their own renewable energy by 2030.

On vehicles, we think electrification has a role to play, but we don't want to see a like for like replacement of all existing cars. We'll invest in a local transport revolution so taking public transit is the easiest option for the majority of journeys, alongside massive investment in walking and cycling – the truly zero carbon transport.

And yes, we'd support a plastic bottle deposit scheme – it's a no brainer for us.

People in vulnerable situations clearly need better protection from aggressive bailiffs whose unscrupulous behaviour far too often causes significant stress and anxiety. Labour backs the calls for an independent regulator to crack down on rogue bailiffs, who are often pushing the law to its limits or even going beyond it.
 

We know that there is a strong link between financial problems and poor mental health. It is shocking that more than 100,000 people in problem debt attempt suicide every year.

Liberal Democrats will build a more compassionate culture towards those in debt by ending threatening debt collection practices, including making debt collection letters less threatening and setting up an independent regulator and complaints process.

We will also stop firms profiting from consumers' poor mental health by introducing a suite of measures to give power back to consumers.

Yes. We need a responsible approach to debt and the current system simply isn't fit for purpose.

Day after day, our MPs and AMs have people in the constituency surgeries scared after receiving letters, calls and knocks on their door from people demanding money they simply do not have.

A lot of the time, these people simply need a helping hand not more fear and threats.

Yes – we will explore how the bailiff industry could be better regulated. Green councillors have already been working to protect residents who have fallen into council tax arrears – particularly after cuts to council tax support – and have received intimidating letters from bailiffs.

Labour MPs have done important work on the APPG on Mortgage Prisoners, and we will look seriously at this issue in government with a view to finding a solution for all those affected by this situation. 

 

It is only fair that the thousands of people affected by the crash of the mortgage market get the help they need to overcome their burden. We support the creation of an official review into the issue to identify the necessary policy responses. In the meantime, further sales of mortgages to non-FCA-regulated firms should be stopped, and more flexible rules should be introduced for mortgage prisoners affected by the financial crash.

It is completely unacceptable that because of the irresponsibility of the big banks people are continuing to suffer. The damage they did to our economy 10 years ago is still being felt across our communities, but this is a direct result of their recklessness coupled with bad government policy.

It is welcome news that some building societies are looking to offer an innovative approach to deliver a way out, but what we need is the Westminster Government to step up and help these mortgage prisoners out. A first step would be to listen to the FCA recommendations to relax affordability rules for those trapped, but if necessary, the Government should take a more widespread approach to the regulation of the mortgage industry.

We would also make sure a fund is set up to help those at risk of losing their home because of this awful situation.

We are committed to setting up a network of regional community banks, based on the mutual model. These banks will have a duty to provide services, particularly loans, in the public interest.

We will explore whether the mortgages of mortgage prisoners can in time be transferred to these new community banks, so that the mortgages can be administered in the public interest, rather than for private gain by financiers.

Labour will bring our railways into democratic, public ownership. This will enable us to make fares simpler and more affordable, rebuild the fragmented railways as a nationally integrated public service and cut the wastage caused by operators seeking private profit.

Our publicly owned rail company will steer network planning and investments. It will co-ordinate mainline upgrades, resignalling, rolling stock replacement and major projects. We will implement a full, rolling programme of electrification. Our model will ensure continuity of skills, jobs and supply chain capacity to reduce costs, improve productivity and support the economic benefits of Labour's Green Industrial Revolution.

We will introduce a long-term investment plan including delivering Crossrail for the North as part of improved connectivity across the northern regions. We will consult with local communities to reopen branch lines. We will also unlock capacity and extend high-speed rail networks nationwide by completing the full HS2 route to Scotland, taking full account of the environmental impacts of different route options. We will deliver rail electrification and expansion across the whole country, including in Wales.

Liberal Democrats will improve the UK's railways to provide reliable and affordable train services. We will freeze rail fares for commuters and season ticket holders for the next five years, while fixing the broken fares and ticketing system.

We will cancel the 2.7% rail fare increase currently planned for January 2020, and freeze commuter fares and season tickets for the entirety of the next five years. This will save season ticket holders across the UK hundreds or thousands of pounds.

We will overhaul the ticketing system to make it simpler, with season tickets for part-time commuters and early-bird fares. And we will require all rail franchises to compensate passengers for delays of 15 minutes or more.

Plaid Cymru believes that Wales deserves a rail service fit for a 21st century European nation.

The Labour Welsh Government recently took over the running of the Welsh rail network and have failed to deliver an improved service through their work with private rail companies.

This isn't helped by the fact Wales has not had its fair share of rail investment. Despite having 11 per cent of the track, we only get 1 per cent of the money spent on rail infrastructure.

Plaid Cymru MPs would fight to fix that situation.

As a priority we would look to electrify all major rail lines in Wales by 2030. We will complete the planned electrification of the South Wales Valley Lines. The next line to be electrified should be the North Wales Coast Line. We will build a super-Metro for south-east Wales with new stations acting as development hubs.

We will look to integrate public transport to ensure that travel on Wales public transport can be made as simple as possible.

Capacity also needs to be significantly increased on Welsh rail lines. Currently many passengers are left behind on stations due to overcrowded trains.

We will also look to deliver the new Swansea Bay and Western Valleys Metro, and reopen rail services for the Amman, Swansea, Neath and Dulais Valleys.

A metro for north-east Wales and relocate the Chester Transport for Wales Depot to the north of Wales would also be a priority.

For anyone who has tried to travel from the north to the south of Wales will know how bad our rail network is. That's why we will create a trans-Wales railway: connecting Wales' coastal communities by re-opening the Carmarthen to Aberystwyth line together with a second phase linking our communities from north to south as well as a Cross-Rail for the Valleys, from Porth to Pontypool.

We want to make travelling by public transport cheaper than travelling by car, by reducing the cost of travelling by train (by 20%) and bus (40%). We'll also bring our rail network up to scratch, electrifying all rail routes that connect cities and creating a government-owned rolling stock company which would invest in a fleet of new electric trains to run on newly electrified lines. Electric trains are twice as reliable as other trains, leading to less delays and more reliable rail travel. This will form part of a £12 billion per year investment in our railways, to create a new golden age of train travel.

Almost £8 billion has been lost from social care budgets since 2010 due to Conservative government cuts. The current care system is at risk of collapse. A Labour government will build a comprehensive National Care Service for England. We will provide community-based, person-centred support, underpinned by the principles of ethical care and independent living. We will provide free personal care, beginning with investments to ensure that older people have their personal care needs met, with the ambition to extend this provision to all working-age adults.

We will develop eligibility criteria that ensures our service works for everyone, including people with complex conditions like dementia. We will ensure no one ever again needs to face catastrophic care costs of more than £100,000 for the care they need in old age, which we will underscore with a lifetime cap on personal contributions to care costs. We will also invest in other social care packages to reverse the damage done by Conservative cuts and provide additional care packages to support both older people and working-age adults living independently in their own homes.

Labour will invest to end the social care crisis, end 15-minute care visits and provide care workers with paid travel time, access to training and an option to choose regular hours. We will increase the Carer's Allowance for unpaid full-time carers.

Like all of our manifesto, this investment in our future will be funded from measures to ensure the top 5% of earners and corporations contribute a little more, though corporation tax levels will remain below what they were in 2010.

We need to fix our social care system so that people do not lose their dignity when they grow old or get ill.

Liberal Democrats will urgently invest to plug immediate funding gaps in social care with 1p on income tax. We will also establish a cross-party health and social care convention which builds on the existing body of work from previous conventions, select committees and the 2018 citizens' assembly on healthcare to find a secure and sustainable future for social care. A cap on cost of care based on the Care Act 2014 would be a key starting point for Liberal Democrat participants in cross-party convention.

Liberal Democrats would also create a new Professional Body for Care Workers to promote clear career pathways, ensure ongoing training and development, with improved pay structures. We would also raise the professional standards for care staff by providing support for ongoing training of care workers with the goal of improving retention and raising the status of caring.

87,000 people from other EU countries work in adult social care in England. Liberal Democrats will stop Brexit and save freedom of movement, which is vital to the social care sector.

Led by health and social care professionals, Plaid Cymru has done detailed work on the development of a National Health & Care Service, to create a system that, like our health service would deliver care for those that need it free at the point of use.

We propose abolishing all social care charges, including those for non-residential care, and believe social care should be free at the point of need, paid for through general taxation.

This issue is devolved to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Scottish Government has already succeeded in delivering free social care. We are extremely disappointed that the Labour Government in Wales has failed to deliver a similar system and will be pushing them to do so.

Addressing the social care crisis needs to be one of key priorities of any government entering Downing Street. Recognising this, we will provide an additional £4.5 billion a year to fund councils to provide free personal social care to people over 65 who need support in their own homes. This model has been in place in Scotland since 2001 and has helped millions of people be cared for in their own homes – it's time to extend this right to free home care to pensioners in England (care in Wales is devolved to the National Assembly for Wales). We will also explore how this free social care at home could be extended to everyone who needs it, regardless of age.