Labour frontbencher Darren Jones: ‘The adults are back in the room’

A Labour frontbencher has insisted there will still be opposition in the House of Commons despite the Conservatives suffering a “historic” loss at last weeks election, as Labour engages with the proper scrutiny procedures.

“The adults are back in the room”, Darren Jones, chief secretary to the Treasury, added. 

The comments came as a ex-Conservative minister, Kevin Hollinrake, called for “much slower” leadership contest than the ones held in the recent past to give candidates time to set out their vision.

Ex-minister says Conservative leadership race must take ‘some months to pick the right person’

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Asked on Monday morning if a lengthy Conservative leadership contest would leave Labour with no opposition, Jones told the BBC: “I expect that we will be challenged in the House of Commons.

“Of course the Conservatives suffered a historic loss, but that doesn’t mean there’s no opposition in the House of Commons and of course, we have the House of Lords to get any legislation through as well.

“And the key thing that you’ll see from this Labour government is that we’re going to return both to the service of the British people, but also to the norms. The adults are back in the room.

“Announcements that we make will be made to parliament, they will follow proper processes through parliament, and we welcome them to be challenged and scrutinised by colleagues from different parties.

He added: “That’s the right and proper way to do business and that’s what you will have from this Labour government.”

On Monday morning, Rachel Reeves is set to outline the new government’s plans to kickstart economic growth in her first speech as chancellor.

In it, Reeves will vow to take “difficult decisions” on the economy in order to speed up infrastructure projects and unlock private investment.

Speaking in London, the first female chancellor will tell business chiefs: “Where governments have been unwilling to take the difficult decisions to deliver growth – or have waited too long to act – I will deliver.

“It is now a national mission. There is no time to waste.”

Labour’s manifesto pledged to “immediately” update the National Policy Planning Framework to undo changes made by the Conservatives. 

Looking ahead to Reeves’ speech, Jones told Sky News that the chancellor will be “setting out quite a lot of detail about some of the immediate interventions” that will “try to stimulate growth across the economy”.

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