Labour’s Arts Everywhere Fund will give funding to 130 cultural venues, local museums, and libraries – to ensure that everyone can access arts in their local area.
Venues ranging from The Lowry Centre in Salford, The Hexagon in Reading and the Royal Shakespeare Company in Warwickshire will receive a share of a £127.8 million funding boost.
As the cost of living continues to affect families across Britain, funding for these venues will help provide welcoming, affordable spaces for communities to visit, come together and celebrate what makes their local area special.
Read more ➡️ 130 cultural venues, museums, and libraries to receive funding boost that will improve access to arts and culture across the country
🗞️ The Guardian: Cultural venues in England to share £130m under Arts Everywhere scheme
Women’s Health Strategy
A renewed Women’s Health Strategy sets out how the Labour government will improve women’s health and healthcare over the next 10 years.
For too long, women have felt let down by a health service that too often gaslights them, treating their pain as an inconvenience or an overreaction. Now, women’s experiences will be put at the centre of care across the healthcare system.
Reforms in the strategy include:
- A new trial in which women’s feedback is directly linked to provider funding and targeted improvements – holding services accountable for listening to women - A single referral point so that women are directed to the right professional first time - A new standard of care for appropriate pain relief for invasive gynaecological procedures - Redesigning clinical pathways for heavy periods, endometriosis, urogynaecology and menopause, to speed up diagnosis and treatment - A new £1 million programme to improve menstrual education, so girls can recognise the symptoms of unhealthy periods
Under this government, gynaecology waiting lists have already fallen by over 30,000 since June 2024, bolstered by record spending in the NHS and wider plans to tackle waiting lists through the 10 Year Health Plan.
Read more ➡️ Women's voices to be at the heart of renewed health strategy
📃 Policy paper: Renewed Women’s Health Strategy for England
🗞️ The Guardian: Streeting relaunches women’s health strategy to tackle ‘medical misogyny’
Protecting British families and businesses from energy price shocks
Labour is setting out new measures to ‘break the link’ between gas and electricity prices, reducing the impact of global gas price shocks on the price of electricity.
Furthermore, we are giving Ofgem new powers, in the first major update to the energy regulator’s scope since it was founded in 2000. This will include the ability to ban bonuses for the bosses of energy companies who breach licence conditions and cause harm to consumers.
Working people shouldn't bear the brunt of global gas price shocks while electricity generators make exceptional profits.
In a speech at the National Growth Debate, Energy Secretary Ed Miliband set out how we will harness untapped public land to build wind, solar and batteries – going further and faster to build clean energy projects to boost Britain’s energy security.
Read more ➡️ Decisive action to break influence of gas on electricity prices
➡️ Ofgem transformed to strengthen protections for energy consumers
🗞️ BBC News: Electricity bills targeted in planned shakeup to energy pricing
🗞️ LBC News: Energy bosses could see bonuses banned if they cause 'significant harm' to consumers under new reforms
🗞️ The Independent: Energy firm bosses could lose bonuses if they ‘break the rules’ in major Ofgem reforms
🗞️ The Mirror: New energy saving grants for households in face of Iran war bill threat
💬 Speech: The era of clean energy security
McDonald’s supports government drive to get young people earning and learning
McDonald’s is the latest major employer to support Labour’s Youth Guarantee, as it launches the biggest work experience programme in the country.
From August, McDonald’s will roll out 2,500 paid work experience placements across the country, with 625 places ring-fenced for young people most at risk of dropping out of education and work.
Meanwhile, the Youth Guarantee launched on Monday this week in 81 Jobcentres across Great Britain. Young people aged 18 to 24 not earning or learning after 13 weeks on Universal Credit will be guaranteed a referral to a job, apprenticeship, learning, work experience or training.
Read more ➡️ McDonald’s is supporting the government's drive to get young people earning or learning
🗞️ Retail Times: McDonald’s UK launches nation’s largest in-person work experience programme
Committed support to Ukraine
Despite the events in Iran, it’s vital we don’t take our eyes off Russia.
That’s why the Prime Minister went to Faslane last weekend to meet our brave submariners who’ve just finished a 206-day patrol deployment and thanked them for their work helping deter Putin.
Speaking to the Mirror during the visit, Keir Starmer said that our nuclear deterrent is “the most important capability we have as a country, and it has kept us safe for many years. It is committed to Nato, and therefore it's not just kept the UK safe, it's helped to keep Nato safe.”
Read more 🗞️ The Mirror: Keir Starmer warns UK must not take eyes off Putin from top-secret Vanguard sub visit
Celebrating St George’s Day
The Prime Minister marked St George’s Day at a reception in Downing Street this week.
“St George’s flag stands for unity over hatred and decency over division. Those are the values I will always fight for. Some try to hijack our flag to spread hate, I reject their plastic patriotism.” -Keir Starmer
Read more 🗞️ The Mirror: Keir Starmer shares St George's Day message - as he blasts 'plastic patriots'
SHAREABLES
Here’s 11 things Labour’s Plan for Change has delivered over the last two weeks:
📉 NHS waiting lists are down by over 400,000 thanks to Labour’s investment and modernisation - and the extraordinary effort of NHS staff across the country
🩺 Labour’s investment in 36 new and expanded Community Diagnostic Centres will mean patients get quicker tests closer to home
📱 The Prime Minister has called tech giants to Downing Street, demanding action to keep children safe online
💧 Labour is forcing water companies to pay for damage, securing a record £8.5 million to restore rivers and habitats
🌊 Communities are being better protected from flooding, with nearly 62,000 homes and businesses now safer
⚡ Labour is cutting energy bills and boosting energy security, breaking the link between gas and electricity prices to protect households from global shocks
🔌 Labour is strengthening protections for billpayers, with tough new powers to hold energy firms to account and ban bonuses for failing bosses
💳 Labour is backing British fintech to drive growth, with major reforms to modernise payments and support innovation in digital finance
🎓 Labour is protecting free speech in universities, with new powers to fine institutions and a complaints scheme for those silenced
📈 Services exports have surged by £25 billion, showing Britain’s strength as a global hub for finance and professional services
🛡️ Labour is strengthening cyber defences, working with industry to develop AI-powered protection for critical national infrastructure
Find more local and national shareable content on Labour Social .
Best wishes,
The Political Office Team in Number 10
