Liberal Democrat conference: Sir Ed Davey pledges two-month cancer treatment guarantee in closing speech

Published

2 years ago

September 27, 2023

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Sir Ed Davey has promised to introduce a guarantee for cancer patients to begin treatment within two months if his party holds the balance of power after the next general election.

In his closing speech to the Liberal Democrat conference in Bournemouth, the party leader attacked “Conservative chaos” in government for leading to “unacceptable delays”.

And he pledged the policy would be the “top priority” for him and his MPs in the next parliament.

Sharing how he lost both his parents at a young age to cancer, Sir Ed told the audience: “My family’s story isn’t unique. There are millions of us whose lives get turned upside down by cancer.

“This very day, across the UK, a thousand people will hear that fateful diagnosis. A thousand people, choking back tears as they try to process what it means for them.

“Far too many people are still waiting, far too long for a diagnosis, or to start treatment after being diagnosed.

“We will hold the government to account, for every target it misses and every patient it fails. We will never stop fighting for better care for you and your loved ones.”

A source close to the leader said that in practice, the policy would work like the Armed Forces covenant – a promise from the nation that those who serve or have served in the armed forces, and their families, are treated fairly – to improve services.

The health secretary would be the person ultimately responsible for making sure the target is met.

Patients would be able to complain to the health ombudsman if they weren’t seen within the timeframe, and it could see the government getting sued as a result.

The source would not be drawn over whether the policy would be a deal breaker in any negotiations with Labour after the election, as the party continues to avoid answering questions about any possible agreement coming from a hung parliament, saying instead that the Lib Dems were “focused on voters”.

But he did reveal the cost of the plan was £4bn over five years.

Sir Ed underlined a number of health pledges the party has made over recent days during the speech – including enabling patients to see a GP within seven days and bringing in mental health MOTs for vulnerable groups.

But he also focused his ire on the Conservatives, as the Lib Dems attempt to win over voters in traditional Tory seats.

Sir Ed said the Tories had “botched” the post-Brexit settlement with Europe, “broken” the UK’s relationship with the continent, and “tied up British business in red tape”.

In a section that received rapturous applause, the Lib Dem leader said his party is the only one to “set out a detailed plan to tear down those trade barriers, fix our broken relationship with Europe and get a better deal for Britain.”

And at the start of his speech – his first conference address as leader – Sir Ed joked that it had been unfair to call the Conservatives “clowns” in July.

But he quipped that he needed to apologise to actual clowns – as they took offence at being compared to the Conservatives. “I’m sorry. I used the wrong C-word,” he said.

Throughout the conference, the party has hammered home its strategy of targeting the so-called “Blue Wall”, with around 80 seats in their sights where they came second to the Tories at the last general election.

Policy announcements made this week designed to appeal to those constituencies included ditching their long-standing pledge to add 1p to income tax.

But the leadership failed to get support from its members to water down its housing targets, losing a vote on the conference floor after a campaign by young activists.

Lib Dems are determined to translate recent by-election wins into more widespread gains at an election

Rob Powell

Political correspondent

@robpowellnews

Despite the cuddly caricature frequently cast on the Lib Dems, the party has a ruthless streak – especially when it comes to by-elections.

If this four-day gathering on the Dorset coast has shown anything, it’s that the party leadership is determined to try and translate the discipline shown during recent individual votes into a wider strategy to pick up seats across the country.

That involves talking a lot about some things – chief among them the NHS, cost of living and the Tory record in government.

But crucially it’s also about barely mentioning others – for that, see the tension on show between members and party HQ over the lack of emphasis being placed on the long-term policy to re-join the EU.

Sir Ed Davey’s closing speech today was another illustration of this approach.

But the lack of some detail and costings around the key policy announcement of a cancer guarantee points to a possible criticism of this broader plan.

Are these serious and realistic answers to the big difficult questions facing the country?

Or just a sort of “centrist populism” that promises the world – just so long as you’re a disillusioned Tory who lives within a handful of marginal seats?

Lib Dems know the risks of making promises you can’t keep.

But after their post-coalition wipeout, they also know that policy can lack much purpose without a presence in parliament.

Sir Ed said: “For the British people, the next general election can’t come quickly enough. People are desperate for change.

“And while Rishi Sunak clings on, out of touch and out of ideas, our job – our responsibility – is to show the British people that positive change is possible. And that we are ready to fight for it, whenever the election comes.

“And this week, we’ve done just that. We’ve shown we have the policies, the passion and the people – not just to get the Conservatives out, but to deliver the real change people want. The fair deal people deserve.”

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Stablecoins are the best way to ensure US dollar dominance — Web3 CEO

Published

8 hours ago

April 6, 2025

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Stablecoins are the best way to ensure US dollar dominance — Web3 CEO

Stablecoins are the single best tool for the United States government to maintain the US dollar’s hegemony in global financial markets, according to LayerZero Labs CEO and founder Bryan Pellegrino.

In an interview with Cointelegraph, the CEO of LayerZero Labs, which created the LayerZero interoperability protocol recently chosen by Wyoming to be the distribution partner for the Wyoming stablecoin, said that the cross-border accessibility of dollar-pegged tokens makes them an obvious choice to drive US dollar demand. Pellegrino added:

“Stablecoins for the US dollar are the single best tool — the last Trojan Horse or vampire attack on every single other currency in the world — whether it is Argentina, whether it is Venezuela, whether it is all of the countries that have massive inflation.”

The CEO said he expects support for stablecoins on both the federal and state levels to grow because of the obvious boost stablecoins give to the US dollar in foreign exchange markets and the financial moat stablecoin-driven demand will create around the US dollar’s global reserve currency status.

Dollar, US Government, Stablecoin — *Stablecoin market overview. Source:* *RWA.XYZ*

US government looks to stablecoins to protect US dollar

Pellegrino cited Tether’s emerging role as one of the largest buyers of US Treasury bills in the world as evidence of the demand for US debt instruments from stablecoin issuers.

Tether recently became the seventh-largest holder of US Treasuries, beating out Canada, Germany, Norway, Hong Kong, and Saudi Arabia.

Speaking at the White House Crypto Summit on March 7, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Trump administration would leverage stablecoins to extend US dollar hegemony and indicated this would be a top priority for officials in 2025.

According to a 2023 report from Chainalysis, over 50% of all the digital asset value transferred to countries in the Latin American region, including Argentina, Brazil, Columbia, Mexico, and Venezuela was denominated in stablecoins.

The low transaction fees, relative stability, and near-instant settlement times for dollar-pegged stablecoins make these real-world tokenized assets ideal for remittances and stores of value for residents in developing countries suffering from high inflation and capital controls.

Magazine: Bitcoin payments are being undermined by centralized stablecoins

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CFPB likely to step back from crypto regulation — Attorney

Published

10 hours ago

April 6, 2025

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CFPB likely to step back from crypto regulation — Attorney

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) will likely see a reduced role in crypto regulations as other federal agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and state-level regulators assume a bigger role in crypto policy, according to Ethan Ostroff, partner at the Troutman Pepper Locke law firm.

“I think with the current administration, my sense is, we are highly likely to see a significant pullback by the CFPB in the context of the activity by other regulators,” Ostroff told Cointelegraph in an interview.

State regulators also have the authority under the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) to assume some of the regulatory roles of the CFPB, the attorney said but also added that some regulatory functions will continue to fall within the purview of the CFPB as a matter of established law.

Ostroff cited the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) and the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) as regulators to keep an eye on as potential leaders of crypto regulations at the state level.

However, the attorney clarified that while the CFPB may see a diminished role during the Trump administration, the agency would not be outright dismantled during the current regime due to “statutorily mandated obligations and requirements” that require acts of Congress to change.

Trump administration targets CFPB in efficiency push

The Trump administration targeted the CFPB as part of a broader push by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to slash government spending and reduce the federal debt.

Russell Vought, the recently appointed head of the CFPB, announced major funding cuts to the agency and scaled back operations within days of assuming the helm at the CFPB in February 2025.

Bitcoin Regulation, US Government, United States, Donald Trump — *Source:* *Russell Vought*

Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized Elon Musk for dismantling the CFPB, which the US senator co-founded back in 2007.

Warren characterized Musk as a “bank robber” and claimed that the Trump administration dismantled the CFPB to undo consumer protection rules and have greater control over the financial system.

In a February 12 interview with Mother Jones, the senator stressed that the Executive Branch of government does not have the statutory authority to fully dismantle the CFPB, which can only be done through Congressional approval.

Magazine: SEC’s U-turn on crypto leaves key questions unanswered

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Nearly 400,000 FTX users risk losing $2.5 billion in repayments

Published

16 hours ago

April 6, 2025

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Nearly 400,000 FTX users risk losing .5 billion in repayments

Nearly 400,000 creditors of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX risk missing out on $2.5 billion in repayments after failing to begin the mandatory Know Your Customer (KYC) verification process.

Roughly 392,000 FTX creditors have failed to complete or at least take the first steps of the mandatory Know Your Customer verification, according to an April 2 court filing in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

FTX users originally had until March 3 to begin the verification process to collect their claims.

“If a holder of a claim listed on Schedule 1 attached thereto did not commence the KYC submission process with respect to such claim on or prior to March 3, 2025, at 4:00 pm (ET) (the “KYC Commencing Deadline”), 2 such claim shall be disallowed and expunged in its entirety,” the filing states.

Nearly 400,000 FTX users risk losing $2.5 billion in repayments — *FTX court filing. Source:* *Bloomberglaw.com*

The KYC deadline has been extended to June 1, 2025, giving users another chance to verify their identity and claim eligibility. Those who fail to meet the new deadline may have their claims permanently disqualified.

According to the court documents, claims under $50,000 could account for roughly $655 million in disallowed repayments, while claims over $50,000 could amount to $1.9 billion — bringing the total at-risk funds to more than $2.5 billion.

The next round of FTX creditor repayments is set for May 30, 2025, with over $11 billion expected to be repaid to creditors with claims of over $50,000.

Under FTX’s recovery plan, 98% of creditors are expected to receive at least 118% of their original claim value in cash.

How FTX users can complete KYC

Many FTX users have reported problems with the KYC process.

However, users who were unable to submit their KYC documentation can resubmit their application and restart the verification process, according to an April 5 X post from Sunil, FTX creditor and Customer Ad-Hoc Committee member.

Impacted users should email FTX support (support@ftx.com) to receive a ticket number, then log in to the support portal, create an account, and re-upload the necessary KYC documents.

FTX’s Bahamian subsidiary, FTX Digital Markets, processed the first round of repayments in February, distributing $1.2 billion to creditors.

The crypto industry is still recovering from the collapse of FTX and more than 130 subsidiaries launched a series of insolvencies that led to the industry’s longest-ever crypto winter, which saw Bitcoin’s (BTC) price bottom out at around $16,000.

While not a “market-moving catalyst” in itself, the beginning of the FTX repayments is a positive sign for the maturation of the crypto industry, which may see a “significant portion” reinvested into cryptocurrencies, Alvin Kan, chief operating officer at Bitget Wallet, told Cointelegraph.