I have been away for a week, and I have a little catching up to do. David Webster has drawn my attention to a report by the UN Committee on Economic and Cultural Rights. David draws particular attention to the criticism of the sanctions regime, which refers to “the absence of due process and access to justice for those affected by the use of sanctions”, but the criticisms of current UK government policy go well beyond that, including its actions on poverty, inequality and people whose status is marginal in society, such as travellers and migrants. It points to the lack of a regulatory framework for business, the failure to consider distributive impacts and the lack of legal protections. These are all points which opposition parties in the UK have persistently failed to address.