Category Archives: Politics

Opposition MPs demand full legal advice on Northern Ireland protocol bill

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Lib Dems say failure to provide it would look like ‘another attempt to cover up Boris Johnson’s repeated lies and law-breaking’

Opposition parties have demanded ministers release their full legal advice over a bill to unilaterally amend the Northern Ireland protocol that is expected imminently in the Commons, saying refusing to do so risked accusations of a cover-up.

The bill, which sets the UK on a potential collision course with the EU and which critics see as Boris Johnson’s latest attempt to mollify rebellious backbenchers and reassert his authority, is scheduled to be published on Monday afternoon.

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Liz Truss accused of ignoring evidence of rendition of UK citizen to Nigeria

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Family of Nnamdi Kanu, a separatist leader, say he was seized and tortured in Kenya and then flown to Nigeria

The family of a British citizen have accused the foreign secretary of ignoring “overwhelming evidence” he was taken to Nigeria in an act of extraordinary rendition and failing to end his “unlawful” imprisonment there.

Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob), a prominent separatist movement proscribed in Nigeria, has been held there since June last year.

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Poll says Keir Starmer worse choice for PM than Boris Johnson

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Labour ahead of Tories by two points, but Labour’s leader failing to make a personal breakthrough

Boris Johnson makes a better prime minister than Keir Starmer would despite Partygate, the cost of living crisis and the confidence vote in Johnson held by his MPs, according to the latest Observer poll.

The Opinium figures, which will raise further concerns within Labour over the party leader’s performance, shows that the prime minister has a two-point lead over his opponent. It also reveals that Starmer’s party holds a narrow two-point lead, compared with a three-point lead in the last poll a fortnight ago. Labour are on 36% of the vote, with the Tories up one point on 34%. The Lib Dems are on 13% with the Greens on 6%.

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Boris Johnson faces rural fury over post-Brexit food strategy

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Anger grows before West Country byelection as farmers say they will be left poorer and unable to compete with foreign producers

Boris Johnson’s hopes of surviving as prime minister have been dealt a serious blow after farmers and environmentalists condemned his government’s post-Brexit food strategy as a disaster for people in the countryside – with less than two weeks to go before a key rural byelection.

In an interview with the Observer, the president of the National Farmers Union, Minette Batters, said ambitious proposals to help farmers increase food production, first put forward last year by the government’s food tsar, Henry Dimbleby, had been “stripped to the bone” in a new policy document, and meant farmers would not be able to produce affordable food.

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Commons will be a ‘menopause-friendly’ employer, says Speaker

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Sir Lindsay Hoyle unveils plans to ‘break the taboo’, and agrees to sign the Menopause Workplace Pledge

The House of Commons is to become a “menopause-friendly” employer, with Sir Lindsay Hoyle unveiling plans to “break the taboo” and offer practical adjustments for those affected.

The Commons Speaker will sign the Wellbeing of Women charity’s Menopause Workplace Pledge, which will commit the House of Commons Service to supporting employees going through the menopause.

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Boris Johnson warned NI protocol ‘rule-breaking’ will repeat mistakes of Partygate

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Tory tensions high over risk of illegality in imminent bill to improve trade between Northern Ireland and rest of UK

Boris Johnson is being warned that he will repeat the mistakes of Partygate by backing “rule-breaking over the rule of law”, when he publishes plans on Monday that are expected to prompt a new Tory rebellion over Brexit.

Frantic legal and political negotiations have been taking place this week among Johnson, his cabinet and MPs in advance of the government’s bill designed to improve trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. The legislation will be published on Monday.

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Family of UK man sentenced to death by Russia call for cooperation

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Shaun Pinner’s loved ones ‘devastated’ after he received verdict alongside Aiden Aslin in what UK calls a ‘sham’ sentence

The family of a British man sentenced to death for fighting Russian forces have said they are “devastated” and called for “urgent cooperation” to secure his release.

Shaun Pinner, 48, received the death penalty, along with fellow Briton Aiden Aslin, this week in what the UK government has branded a “sham” sentencing.

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NHS needs reform rather than more money to deliver, Sajid Javid says

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Health secretary says service has enough resources but admits waiting lists will grow before they shrink

The NHS needs reform rather than more money, the health secretary has said, while admitting that record-high waiting lists will continue to rise before they fall.

Sajid Javid said the health service already had the resources it needed and did not require more to care for patients effectively. “The NHS now has locked in the resources it needs. It doesn’t need any more money. What it needs to deliver for more people is not money. It needs reform,” he said.

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Not full of confidence: Labour frets over Starmer’s response to Tory chaos

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Many in the opposition fear their leader is not sufficiently punishing the government’s weakness

At Tuesday’s shadow cabinet meeting, less than 24 hours after Boris Johnson’s humiliating confidence vote, Keir Starmer gave his troops what one called “a bit of cold reality” about how much work remains to be done in developing Labour’s policies and message in the months ahead.

Many could not agree more. Conversations with shadow cabinet members, party aides and other senior Labour figures this week revealed deep disquiet about whether Starmer and his team are ready to capitalise on the Tories’ weakness.

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Boris Johnson stands to make £5m a year after No 10, say experts

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PM could join lecture circuit and rejoin paper where he complained of ‘chicken feed’ £250,000 salary

Boris Johnson could make more than £5m a year after he leaves Downing Street, experts have estimated.

The figure will be welcome news to a prime minister who is said to regularly complain to friends that he is hard up, citing his second divorce, several children and his reduced income since entering No 10.

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Prince Charles criticises ‘appalling’ Rwanda migrant scheme – reports

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Source says Prince of Wales was ‘more than disappointed’ with deportation plans

Prince Charles has privately criticised the government’s policy of deporting migrants to Rwanda, calling the practice “appalling”.

The heir to the throne has been heard opposing the policy behind closed doors, a source has told the Times and the Daily Mail.

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Tory MP apologises for calling Birmingham and Blackpool ‘godawful’

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Heather Wheeler, a minister in the Cabinet Office, made comments at technology event in London

A UK government minister has apologised after calling England’s second city and one of the country’s best-known seaside resorts as “godawful”.

Heather Wheeler referred to Birmingham and Blackpool during a launch of the government’s new digital strategy on Thursday. According to Chris Middleton, a technology journalist who was at the launch, the junior minister in the Cabinet Office said: “I was just at a conference in Blackpool or Birmingham or somewhere godawful.”

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UK deportation flight to Rwanda can go ahead, high court judge rules

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Judge refuses to grant interim relief after lawyers for asylum seekers argued policy was unlawful

A high court judge has ruled that a controversial deportation flight to Rwanda that was due to take off early next week can go ahead.

Mr Justice Swift refused to grant interim relief – urgent action in response to an injunction application made by several asylum seekers facing offshoring to Rwanda.

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Draft legislation on overriding Northern Ireland protocol to be published next week

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Draft legislation to be issued Monday, as Keir Starmer promises a Labour government would repeal law if it passes

Legislation to disapply parts of the Northern Ireland protocol will be published next week, but senior government sources acknowledge it is going to be a “difficult” process to get it through parliament.

The new laws are aimed at unilaterally changing parts of the protocol to make trade easier between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, but critics say overriding the post-Brexit treaty could contravene international law.

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Home Office misled refugees about UN involvement in Rwanda plans, court told

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Letters to asylum seekers assured them UNHCR was ‘closely involved’ in deportation scheme, high court hears

The United Nations refugee agency has made a dramatic intervention to try to halt Priti Patel’s plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda.

In a late submission of evidence, the UNHCR claimed the home secretary misled refugees over the organisation’s support for the plan. The agency has also said the scheme failed to meet the required standards of “legality and appropriateness” for transferring asylum seekers from one country to another.

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Former head of ‘British FBI’ fears impact of Whitehall cuts on fight against crime

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Former National Crime Agency chief worries civil service reductions could have devastating effect

The former head of Britain’s equivalent of the FBI has said she fears ministers’ plans to cut civil servant posts could have a “devastating” impact on tackling serious and organised crime.

Speaking to Policing TV, Dame Lynne Owens, the former director general of the National Crime Agency (NCA), said she was keeping a “keen eye” on discussions about proposals to axe 90,000 jobs and how they may affect the agency she led for five years.

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Home Office tried to ‘sanitise’ staff education module on colonialism

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Disagreements have led to delay in course rollout as civil servants think empire material ‘too controversial’

Civil servants have attempted to “sanitise” a Home Office teaching module on race, empire and colonialism, according to those involved in devising a mandatory course on British history for the department’s 36,000 employees.

Disagreements have led to a year-long delay in the rollout of the project, which was due to be launched in June 2021. Home Office civil servants are understood to be nervous that some of the proposed material addressing issues of race, colonialism and empire is “too controversial” and have urged academics to tone down some of the content.

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Rishi Sunak ‘wasted £11bn by paying too much interest’ on UK debt

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Labour accuse chancellor of wastefulness for failing to insure against interest rate rises

Rishi Sunak has been accused of wasting £11bn of taxpayers’ money by paying too much in interest servicing the government’s debt.

The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said the losses were the result of the chancellor’s failure to insure against interest rate rises on £900bn of reserves created through the quantitative easing (QE) programme.

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Rail managers could join strikes across network in Britain

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TSSA union ballots could lead to complete national shutdown by time of Commonwealth Games in July

Managers and train drivers could join the strikes across the railway, potentially setting up a complete national shutdown by the time of the Commonwealth Games in July.

The Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) union, whose members manage control rooms, signalling and power for train operators and Network Rail, has launched its first strike ballot, while the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (Aslef) union has called the first regional walkouts by drivers.

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Boris Johnson promises action on cost of living crisis but says higher wages risk further inflation – as it happened

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This live blog has now closed, you can read more on Boris Johnson’s comments about a potential ‘wage-price spiral’ here

The Queen has received a present from the cabinet to mark her Platinum Jubilee, No 10 says. It is a specially-commissioned musical box, with pictures of all the 14 prime ministers who have served here around the side. When it opens it plays Handel’s Hallelujah.

In every office there is always someone who organises the presents and this picture, on the No 10 Flickr account, suggests that in cabinet that job falls to Michael Ellis, the paymaster general.

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