Commenting on the handover of command in Basra from British to US troops, Liberal Democrat Shadow Foreign Secretary, Edward Davey said: “It must be a huge relief for our forces that the end of this disastrous conflict is at last in sight.”

“Our troops’ outstanding courage in Iraq has been matched only by the incompetence of the political leadership which took them there.

“The Government must now focus on what should have been their priorities all along: properly supporting the brave men and women who have made such sacrifices in this conflict; and refocusing on the vital mission in Afghanistan.”

A delegation of Liberal Democrat MPs will be on the ground in the City of London tomorrow to observe and monitor the policing of the G20 protests. It is hoped that their presence will help to defuse any escalation in tensions between police and protesters, as well as providing credible witnesses to any abuse of police powers.

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Justice Secretary, David Howarth, who is organising the delegation, said:

“We do not want to see a repeat of the policing of last year’s camp at Kingsnorth, which was disproportionate, heavy-handed and provocative.

“I was encouraged to hear the Metropolitan police talking seriously about proportionality when I met them today.

“I very much hope that the rights of the protesters to make their important point peacefully will be fully respected.”

Commenting on the announcement of Network Rail’s 5-year spending plan, Liberal Democrat Shadow Transport Secretary, Norman Baker said: “Passengers sick of being booted on to rail replacement buses every weekend will be disappointed to see Network Rail’s lack of ambition.”

“Passengers have been let down by the rail network for years and this investment will not do nearly enough to turn this sorry state around.

“Despite the fact that 600 miles of railway will be replaced by buses over the Easter weekend, Network Rail doesn’t intend to invest in the seven day railway until 2010/11.”

Commenting on the results of a MORI poll for the Ministry of Justice, which shows that 70% of people lack confidence in the justice system, Liberal Democrat Shadow Justice Secretary, David Howarth said: “Public confidence in the justice system has been shattered by the Government promoting what sounds tough rather than what works to make us safer.”

“It is refreshing to see ministers focusing on community penalties, which we know work to reduce crime, as opposed to piling ever more people into prisons. But more than just talk is needed.

“We have yet to see much evidence that the Government is genuinely committed to the principles of restorative justice. That means putting victims at the heart of the criminal justice system and making sure that offenders pay back to them personally.”

Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg has today written to Gordon Brown and David Cameron seeking an urgent meeting to reform the system of MPs’ expenses.

The full text of the letter is below:

I am writing to you to propose that our parties work together to agree an urgent overhaul of MPs’ expenses. The recent scandals make it clear we cannot continue with the current system any longer.

The upcoming inquiry by the Committee on Standards in Public Life will not report this side of a general election. This is far too long to wait. We owe it to the citizens of this country to ensure a fair deal for taxpayers before then.

The move to a principles-based expenses system is welcome but I believe several further reforms are needed to rebuild public confidence. Two in particular would be achievable immediately. First, in the name of transparency, every penny of public money claimed by MPs should only be reimbursed on production of a receipt: taxpayers have the right to know how their money is being spent. Second, the present rules on second homes are incomprehensible to millions of people who have to commute each day: no London MP should be able to claim for a second home.

I know that, by tradition and convention, these matters are dealt with by the House independently of party leaders. I believe passionately in the rights of the Commons, but our fellow citizens’ faith in politics is more important still. For the sake of restoring trust, we need to show political leadership, and act as party leaders to clean up the expenses regime once and for all. This is not a matter for party political point scoring: we must act together or all politicians will find themselves condemned by public opinion.

I therefore propose that we meet at your earliest convenience to agree a way forward. I have laid out my proposals, but I would of course welcome your ideas of other ways in which we can improve the system. I look forward to hearing from you.

Commenting on two Healthcare Commission reports published today [Tuesday], which find failings in the provision of adult mental health care, and that older people are often excluded from services available to younger people, Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary, Norman Lamb said: “Mental health care continues to be a Cinderella service. It suffers from being denied the same guarantees of access that other health services enjoy.”

“The failings in mental health treatment for young adults are bad enough. But it is absolutely intolerable that age discrimination is allowed to exist in the NHS.

“Liberal Democrats would address the current failings in the provision of mental health services, and ensure that patients are entitled to treatment within 13 weeks

80% of NHS hospitals in England are failing to provide local police forces with information that has been proven to significantly cut knife crime, according to research by the Liberal Democrats.

The ‘Cardiff Model’, established in 2002, collects data from Accident and Emergency wards about the precise locations and times of violent incidents and shares them anonymously with the police. This new approach has led to a 40% drop in knife crime in some areas.

The figures, contained in replies to Freedom of Information requests, shows that:

• Only 25 of the 123 NHS trusts which responded to Freedom of Information requests are following the Cardiff Model
• The situation is no better in the nine areas in England taking part in the Tackling Knives Action Programme, where only 10 out of 58 trusts (17.2%) are following the Cardiff Model
• Three areas had no trusts using the model – Essex, Lancashire and Nottinghamshire

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary, Chris Huhne said:

“Posturing on tougher punishments by Labour and the Tories is irrelevant if you do not catch more criminals. The Government is failing to deliver on a proven method that cuts knife crime by nearly half.

“With 43 young people killed through knife crime last year alone, it beggars belief that the National Health Service is not pulling its weight in tackling the problem.

“If the police are to catch more knife carriers, they need to intensively patrol knife crime hot-spots. They are best identified from anonymous hospital data, which is free from the meddling hand of Whitehall.

“Heads at the Department of Health and the Home Office must be knocked together to ensure that the Cardiff Model is used in every emergency ward in the country.”

Commenting on the news that the Government is to launch a mass programme of health checks for over-40s in England this week, Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary Norman Lamb said: “Any move to encourage people to go for health checks is positive and to be welcomed.”

“However, the danger is that this initiative will fail to reach those who need it most, and will instead only be used by those with already healthy lifestyles.

“Screening programmes are not taken up in nearly as great numbers in poorer communities, so there is no reason to believe simply receiving a letter will encourage any great uptake in these groups.”

Commenting on today’s uSwitch report into the regional effects of the recession, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor, Vince Cable said: “This survey shows that many people up and down the country are being hit hard by the recession.”

“Ministers should use next month’s budget to radically cut taxes for those least well off, paid for by abolishing tax loop-holes exploited by the wealthy.

“With the country slipping ever further into recession it is critical that the Government reverses the wasteful and ineffective VAT and invests in a works programme that creates jobs for today and assets for the future.”

Commenting on Government plans to reduce the use of free bus passes, Liberal Democrat Transport Spokesperson, John Leech said: “Ministers appear to be weaving their way out of the national concessionary bus scheme.”

“They are trying to push an extra burden on to local authorities when many councils are already struggling to make up a funding shortfall in the current scheme.

“The Government is trying to make this change without any Parliamentary debate. That is why we will be pushing for a vote on Monday.”