Celtic authorities to work together on areas such as holiday homes crisis, offshore wind and language conservation
They are separated by choppy waters – and different political ideologies.
But the leaders of Wales and Cornwall have come together to sign an agreement vowing to work together on shared issues, ranging from the crisis of holiday homes to the prospect of cooperating on offshore wind power projects in the Celtic Sea.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Yvette Cooper to tell RUSI thinktank that economic security and national security go hand in hand
Contractors linked to hostile foreign powers such as China will be targeted by a new security taskforce if Labour wins the next general election.
In a joint initiative from the shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, and the shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, the new body will aim to anticipate risks to Britain’s national security.
Continue reading...Leader says party in power will stick with Tory policy seen as driving low-income families into deeper poverty
Keir Starmer has confirmed that a Labour government would keep the Conservatives’ controversial two-child benefits cap, despite unease among his top team and leading academics over the policy, which has been blamed for pushing families into poverty.
Starmer said on Sunday that he was “not changing that policy”, when asked if he would scrap it if Labour wins the next election. His shadow work and pensions secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, had condemned it as “heinous” just last month.
Continue reading...Mick Lynch downplays prospects of a resolution to dispute over pay, jobs and conditions
The RMT leader, Mick Lynch, has claimed he has not met a government minister since January as he downplayed prospects of a resolution to the long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions.
The next strike by members of the of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union takes place on Thursday, with strikes also scheduled for Saturday and 29 July.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Labour leader urges left to ‘care more about growth’ and rules out spending ‘vast sums of money’
Labour will only succeed in winning power and rebuilding Britain if it prioritises economic growth, wealth creation and radical reform of public services over reckless spending promises, says Keir Starmer.
With four days to go before a crucial set of parliamentary byelections, the Labour leader delivers the most robust defence to date of his strategy for returning his party to power after 13 years, in an exclusive article for the Observer. Starmer takes on, directly, those who say his agenda is dull and uninspiring, insisting that the hard grind of rebuilding economic credibility must come first, as opposed to Labour retreating to its normal “comfort zone” of promising “vast sums of money”.
Continue reading...Defence secretary rows back comments about Ukraine needing to show ‘gratitude’ and says he will not contest next general election
Ben Wallace is to leave government at the next cabinet reshuffle after four years as defence secretary and will not stand in the general election.
Wallace, who has played a key role in responding to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and was a close ally of Boris Johnson, told the Sunday Times he was “not standing next time” but he ruled out leaving parliament “prematurely” and forcing another byelection on Rishi Sunak, of whom he remains supportive.
Continue reading...Sharon Graham, of UK’s second largest union, says party lacks ambition and is not showing itself as distinct alternative to Tories
Labour should “talk about what they can do to change Britain”, the leader of the UK’s second largest trade union has said.
Sharon Graham, the general secretary of Unite, said the union could reduce the amount of money it gave to Labour if the party’s leadership did not back more of its policy priorities, saying “people want something to vote for”.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Former envoy raises concerns over possible ‘deliberate defunding of climate diplomacy under Sunak government’
The UK Foreign Office has said it does not know how many of its officials and diplomats are working on climate change and energy issues, in response to freedom of information requests.
The government has frequently described itself as a world leader on climate issues and the Foreign Office recently stated that “climate change remains an area of utmost importance and is a central focus of our diplomatic relations on a daily basis”.
Continue reading...LGA says single-use e-cigarettes are a litter blight and cause problems in bin lorries and recycling centres
Councils are joining paediatricians in calling for a ban on disposable vapes owing to the environmental damage they cause and the soaring number of young people taking up the addictive products.
The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents councils in England and Wales, said urgent action was needed to save taxpayers’ money – as single-use e-cigarettes are costly to recycle without going through special treatment – protect the planet and keep children safe.
Continue reading...The hiring of former PM and Treasury chief was to lend credibility to broader Beijing brand, intelligence watchdog told
David Cameron’s appointment as vice-chair of the £1bn China-UK investment fund and Sir Danny Alexander’s appointment as vice-president of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank were in part engineered by the Chinese state, parliament’s intelligence and security committee (ISC) found.
Their appointment was to lend credibility to Chinese investment as well as the broader Chinese brand, according to confidential evidence given to the intelligence watchdog.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Move penalises courses with a high proportion of working-class or minority ethnic students, critics say
Rishi Sunak will force universities to limit the number of students taking “low-value” degrees in England, a measure which is most likely to hit working class and black, Asian and minority ethnic applicants.
Courses will be capped that do not have a high proportion of graduates getting a professional job, going into postgraduate study or starting a business, the prime minister will announce on Monday.
Continue reading...Former prime minister condemns ‘procrastination’ and says no country is in greater need of accession
Boris Johnson has criticised Nato’s “mealy mouthed procrastination” and called for a timetable to be drawn up for Ukraine to join the alliance, after this week’s difficult summit in Lithuania.
Writing in his weekly column in the Daily Mail, the former prime minister said it was “no wonder” that Volodymyr Zelenskiy “found it hard” to conceal his frustration at the joint declaration released on Tuesday that stopped short of outlining a roadmap to Nato membership.
Continue reading...Party hopes election candidates will all be singing from the same hymn sheet after event in Stratford-on-Avon
Keir Starmer is whisking his top 100 prospective parliamentary candidates to Stratford-on-Avon this weekend for a crash course in message discipline, media training and the art of campaigning.
The Labour leader will be hoping they gain communications inspiration in the birthplace of William Shakespeare as the party trains them in its election strategy.
Continue reading...Saudi heir’s official visit would be first since he was accused of being behind killing of Jamal Khashoggi
The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, has been invited to the UK on an official visit in late autumn, the first such visit by the heir to the Saudi throne since he was accused of masterminding the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post columnist and dissident.
Numerous UK ministers have been to Saudi Arabia in the interim, and senior Saudi ministers have also come to the UK, including the foreign minister, Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.
Continue reading...Education Secretary Gillian Keegan urges BMA to ‘look at’ pay offer as union says proposed increase fails to address years of underpay
Almost 1,000 workers at Gatwick Airport, including baggage handlers and check-in staff, are to strike in a dispute over pay.
Members of Unite employed by four private contractors will walk out for four days from 28 July and again for four days from 4 August, PA reported.
Our members at Gatwick airport undertake incredibly demanding roles and are essential to keeping the airport and airlines working, yet their employers somehow think it is acceptable to pay them a pittance.
As part of Unite’s unyielding focus on the jobs, pay and condition of its members, the union has drawn a line in the sand and is committed to eradicating the scourge of low pay at the airport.
It is a good use to have all kids in school.
That’s not what we want headteachers doing all of their days. But to be honest, right now, if that works to get somebody in school, it’s worth it.
Continue reading...Health unions suggest industrial action likely to continue as Gillian Keegan defends 6% rise on the table
A senior cabinet minister has urged health unions to take the government’s pay offer “seriously”, after union bosses warned the proposed deal would drive doctors out of the profession and could lead to further strikes.
Gillian Keegan, the education secretary, defended the offer of a 6% pay rise for junior doctors a day after the government accepted the recommendations of the public sector pay review bodies.
Continue reading...Voicing support for traffic schemes has no statistically significant effect on re-election chances, study finds
Councillors who publicly declare support for low-traffic neighbourhoods do not suffer at the polls as a result, research suggests, indicating that the schemes might not be as politically divisive as is often believed.
The study also indicates that local politicians who openly express displeasure about LTNs do not suffer consequences in elections, although Labour councillors may benefit from a slightly positive effect.
Continue reading...Questions continue to be raised about £38,500 for travel to Tory events, now declared to be from millionaire Akhil Tripathi
Rishi Sunak has changed his expenses declaration over the funding of private jet travel to Tory events after questions were raised about why they were recorded as coming from a small company linked to a multimillionaire businessman.
Sunak’s latest declaration now names the donor of £38,500 to pay for air travel by the prime minister and staff as Akhil Tripathi, a British-Indian medical tech entrepreneur who made a fortune from an anti-snoring device.
Continue reading...Public service workers in England offered 5%-7% rises but departments must fund them from existing budgets
Health union leaders have reacted furiously to a warning from Rishi Sunak that his offer of a 6% pay rise this year was final and that “no amount of strikes” would change his mind, as they began their longest walkout yet in England.
The British Medical Association said the government was “driving doctors away” from the health service and had missed an opportunity to put a credible pay offer on the table to end strikes when it accepted all the recommendations of the pay review bodies.
Continue reading...The government has offered rises of between 5% and 7% to workers including teachers and doctors
Millions of public sector workers ranging from teachers to prison offers are in line for pay rises of between 5% and 7% as part of a government offer that could head off some strikes.
Before the announcement, ministers had stressed the need for “discipline” at a time of rising inflation. Rishi Sunak said pay increases could not “fuel the fire” of inflation running at 8.7%.
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