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Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP Luke Pollard has today [3/2/22] been asked by Keir Starmer to rejoin Labour’s frontbench, taking on the role of Shadow Minister for the Armed Forces. Luke will lead for Labour on military deployments, overseas operations, recruitment and cyber warfare. Luke Pollard MP said: “I’m delighted to be re-joining Labour’s frontbench as Shadow Minister for the Armed Forces. “As the son of a submariner and as the MP for Devonport, I am immensely proud of Plymouth’s military past and present. As a city we contribute hugely to the defence of our country and our allies and I want to secure local jobs and invest in new capabilities. “On the back of Tory defence cuts and with increased tensions in Ukraine,Continue Reading

Luke Pollard has been unanimously reselected as the Labour candidate for the Plymouth Sutton and Devonport constituency for the next General Election. He was confirmed at a meeting of the Plymouth Sutton and Devonport Constituency Labour Party General Committee last night [27/01/22], receiving the unanimous support of Labour members, trade unions and other socialist societies in the area. Luke Pollard said: “I want to thank all the Labour Party and trade union members in Plymouth for putting their faith in me again to once again to be the Labour candidate for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport at the next General Election. Becoming an MP and representing the place I was born and live has been is an amazing privilege, and I’mContinue Reading

Commenting on the news that the Night Riviera Sleeper service will only run on Fridays and Sundays between Monday 24 January and Thursday 17 March, to accommodate for resilience work at Dawlish, Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP Luke Pollard said: “We need a fast and resilient mainline, and so I back work to get us a railway that won’t close as often at Dawlish. “Temporarily reducing sleeper services is probably the least, worst option to achieve this. “However, Ministers must not use this as a precedent for cuts, as we know they’re trying to cut rail funding by 10%. The Sleeper service, alongside other routes in the South West, must not be cut.Continue Reading

The British military is currently “too slow and resistant to change”, according to Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the UK’s chief of defence staff. The urgent always takes priority over the important. But in the context of one of the world’s biggest security issues – climate change – threats and adaptations are evolving at pace. In summer 2021, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change raised the threat level posed by climate change to a “code red for humanity”. Anthropogenic climate change is at once evident and escalating, transforming natural, economic and socio-political environments. As well as mitigating threats, governments and their militaries are manoeuvring to exploit opportunities and leverage advantage. A range of climate scenarios have been forecast – butContinue Reading

Following rapid developments in the sexual abuse lawsuit against Prince Andrew, Buckingham Palace issued a statement announcing that Andrew will lose all his remaining patronages and military titles (such as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards). Additionally, he will no longer use his HRH (“His Royal Highness”) style. This is an overdue step after Andrew effectively left public life following his disastrous Newsnight interview, where he unconvincingly attempted to address the allegations of sexual assault levelled against him by Virginia Giuffre. In late 2019, some titles and duties were suspended “for the forseeable future”, creating the possibility that Andrew could return to public life in the future. Now that the lawsuit against him is proceeding to a trial (unless a settlementContinue Reading

Following mounting pressure and incontrovertible evidence, prime minister Boris Johnson has for the first time admitted that he attended a gathering in the garden of Downing Street in May 2020 – during the UK’s first national COVID lockdown and at a time when group gatherings were prohibited. Johnson started his weekly Prime Minister’s Questions by offering “heartfelt apologies”, saying that he knows the “rage” people feel with him and the government over perceptions that the “rules are not being properly followed” by those who make them. But what did we really learn from his appearance at PMQs? Here are three key takeaways that help reveal what’s really going on behind the apology. 1. Johnson is buying time Numerous MPs haveContinue Reading

Responding to the allegations that the Prime Minister attended parties in Downing Street during lockdown, Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP Luke Pollard said: “The Prime Minister today admitted he partied in Downing Street during lockdown. He lied and lied about it. He is unfit for office. “He must resign and if he doesn’t Tory MPs need to remove him from office. South West Conservative MPs can no longer be silent. They need to demand he goes.”Continue Reading

In response to the government’s announcement on cladding in Parliament today, Luke Pollard, the MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport said: “It was clear that the Government’s refusal to help leaseholders was unsustainable. Today’s announcement is a step in the right direction but it’s still a job half done because it doesn’t include costs for fire safety defects. Leaseholders in Plymouth will still face huge bills.”Continue Reading

The ocean is becoming ever more central to our economies. Around 80% of internationally traded goods are transported by sea, and even brief blockages cause panic in global markets. Fishing remains big business, but in the 21st-century fish farming is even bigger. Most fossil fuel discoveries this century have happened offshore, and offshore wind or wave power will be key to the green transition. As minerals vital to hi-tech industries become scarce on dry land, companies are eyeing the vast mineral wealth of the deep seabed instead. All these trends contribute to what social scientists have called the “blue acceleration” – a trajectory towards a more intense reliance on the ocean and its resources. The ocean is also key toContinue Reading