News / Carmichael joins parliamentary group to fight for the excluded
NORTHERN Isles MP Alistair Carmichael has joined an all-party parliamentary group to fight for those who have been excluded from any government economic support available in response to the Covid-19 crisis.
The parliamentary group has more than 180 members has been inspired by the Excluded UK pressure group that aims to represent the three million people who have not seen government help.
Carmichael said: “Across the country and in the isles people are struggling to make ends meet because of the impact of the pandemic.
“Many have not had any support at all to date, through no fault of their own. We do not have to cast blame but we do need to work together in parliament, to highlight the gaps and to find ways to fill them.”
The group was formed by fellow Liberal Democrat MP Jamie Stone with members from nine political parties.
Stone said: “Today we created a significant force in parliament, with 180 MPs from nine different parties coming together to fight for the three million people who have been excluded by government support schemes.
“They include hairdressers, taxi drivers, people who have just started a new job – the list is endless. These people are hardworking taxpayers who are desperate for help.”
Carmichael said the main aim of the group was knock heads together to find solutions and implement them for the three million people excluded from government schemes.
He added: “We are standing up for millions of our constituents who are being wrongly excluded from support.
“The chancellor is making a statement to Parliament on the economy tomorrow [Wednesday] – he will find that there are many of us on all sides backing support for excluded groups.”
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