Tulip Siddiq MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Children and Early Years, responding to emergency legislation relaxing local authorities’ statutory duties to vulnerable children, said:

“Vulnerable children, children in care and care leavers face huge challenges in this crisis. Many will be under even more pressure at this time, so it is vital that their needs continue to be met.

“Of course we understand the huge pressures that councils are under at the moment and the need to prioritise the most urgent obligations to those in need. But we must ensure that this significant relaxation of councils’ duties to protect vulnerable children does not increase the risk of harm and is strictly temporary.

“The Government must collect and publish information about any statutory obligations that aren’t being met and assess the impact. If these changes lead to bad outcomes for the most vulnerable children, Ministers must immediately reconsider their approach.”