Category Archives: Labour

Labour has 18-point lead on Tories as local election day looms

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Opinium poll shows slump in personal ratings of Rishi Sunak, with 26% approving of his performance and 44% disapproving

Labour’s lead over the Conservatives stands at a commanding 18 points, according to the last Opinium poll for the Observer before a huge set of local elections.

With more than 8,000 council seats across 230 authorities in England up for election on Thursday, the Tories had been hoping that polls would tighten as they attempt to avoid heavy losses in both the red wall of old Labour seats and the blue all – south-eastern seats where, traditionally, they have been strong.

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Steve Barclay says RCN left him with no choice but to go to court to block unlawful strike – UK politics live

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Health secretary defends court action as Pat Cullen says government decision could make nurses more determined to vote for further strike action

Maclean tells MPs that the last Labour government required photo ID for voting in Northern Ireland. She claims fears that this would lead to people being disfranchised did not materialise.

Earlier, in response to opposition claims that the policy was all about voter suppression (reducing the chance of non-Tories voting), she said Labour required party members to provide photo ID when they turned up to vote to select a Labour candidate.

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MPs vote to support the Illegal Migration Bill by 289 to 230 – as it happened

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Theresa May had warned bill will cause more people to be consigned to modern slavery while Geoffrey Cox also raised concerns. This blog is now closed

Q: [From Matthew Barber, the police and crime commissioner for Thames Valley] What can the Home Office do to cut bureaucracy for the police?

Braverman says, if someone is having a mental health crisis, there should be a healthcare response, not a police response. She says police officers are having to spend too much time in hospital with people.

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Labour accuses Tories of turning country into ‘open sewer’ in Commons water debate – UK politics live

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MPs debate Labour motion that would set aside parliamentary time to pass Labour’s water quality (sewage discharge) bill

Rishi Sunak is seeking to capitalise on his improved relations with the EU with hopes of an agreement to allow British passport holders to use e-gates when travelling in the bloc, Lisa O’Carroll reports.

On small boats, Starmer told This Morning that he wanted to stop the boats. Labour would focus on two policies in particular, he said.

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Labour to use tactic that finished off Truss to force Tories into sewage vote

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If Tory MPs vote down opposition day motion, Labour can accuse them of thwarting attempts to clean up rivers, beaches and chalk streams

Labour is planing to use the same Commons procedure that helped remove Liz Truss from Downing Street to force Conservative MPs into a politically embarrassing vote about whether to toughen up rules on sewage discharges.

The party plans to use its regular opposition day motion on Tuesday to push a binding motion, which would oblige the government to set aside Commons time next week for a debate and vote on a Labour bill to impose tougher penalties for sewage spills.

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Labour cuts ties with CBI and says lobby group needs ‘root and branch reform’

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Flood of Confederation of British Industry members have quit since allegations reported by the Guardian

The Labour party has cut all ties with the Confederation of British Industry after the Guardian’s revelations about alleged sexual misconduct by male employees at the lobbying group.

The CBI experienced an exodus of major member businesses at the end of last week, including the insurer Aviva, the retailer John Lewis, the manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover and the banking firm Natwest Group. Companies said the lobby group was unable to carry out its role effectively following the allegations, after a second woman alleged to the Guardian that she was raped by two male colleagues when she worked at the CBI.

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Labour suspends Diane Abbott in attempt to stifle fresh antisemitism row

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MP loses party whip after writing letter suggesting Jewish, Irish, and Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people had not experienced racism

Labour has sought to head off a fresh antisemitism storm by suspending the party whip from Diane Abbott, after the former shadow home secretary played down suggestions of racism against Jewish people.

In comments that were swiftly condemned by senior Conservatives and faith groups, the MP argued that minority groups – such as Jewish people, as well as Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people – faced similar levels of prejudice to people with red hair.

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Dominic Raab dismissed warnings about his behaviour, says ex-Foreign Office colleague – as it happened

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Hugo Swire, a Tory peer, said he thought Dominic Raab was “too big a talent” not to be back “in some capacity” following his resignation over bullying accusations.

Lord Swire told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme:

I think to lose somebody who has been a justice secretary, a lord chancellor, deputy prime minister and foreign secretary at this stage is very unwise.

I think this is a career which has been brought prematurely to a temporary halt because I fundamentally believe that a talent such as Dominic will reappear in some place at some time.

It is the government’s loss. I think he will be back in some capacity.

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Dominic Raab blames ‘activist civil servants’ after resigning over bullying report – as it happened

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Raab resigns as deputy prime minister and justice secretary after report finds he displayed ‘persistently aggressive conduct’

There is quite a contrast between the overnight briefing on behalf of Dominic Raab (see 9.06am and 9.24am). That could be explained by his allies talking complete rubbish to journalists. But a much more likely explanation is that last night Raab thought he could stay in office, but that by this morning – presumably after direct, or indirect, contact with Rishi Sunak – he realised that if he did not resign, he was going to sacked.

This is not so much a resignation letter as a “resignation” letter. It reads as if it was written by someone pushed out.

Mr Tolley concluded that I had not once, in four and a half years, sworn or shouted at anyone, let alone thrown anything or otherwise physically intimidated anyone, nor intentionally sought to belittle anyone.

In setting the threshold for bullying so low, this inquiry has set a dangerous precedent. It will encourage spurious complaints against Ministers, and have a chilling effect on those driving changen on behalf of your government – and ultimately the British people.

I am genuinely sorry for any unintended stress or offence that any officials felt, as a result of the pace, standards and challenge that I brought to the Ministry of Justice.

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Colin Beattie ‘steps back’ as SNP treasurer following arrest amid party finance investigation – as it happened

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PMQs is starting in five minutes.

The Cabinet Office has just published the revised list of ministers’ interests. This is the document that is supposed get updated every six months, but which has not been updated for around a year – partly because it’s the job of the No 10 independent adviser on ministes’ interests (aka, the ethics adviser), and for months the post was empty because two of Boris Johnson’s resigned, and then he gave up trying to find a replacement.

The prime minister’s wife is a venture capital investor. She owns a venture capital investment company, Catamaran Ventures UK Limited, and a number of direct shareholdings.

As the prime minister set out in his letter to the chair of the liaison committee on 4 April 2023, this includes the minority shareholding that his wife has in relation to the company, Koru Kids. The guide to the categories of interest (section 7, pages 4-6) sets out the independent adviser’s approach to the inclusion of interests declared in relation to spouses, partners and close family members within the list. The prime minister’s letter of 4 April is available at https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/38992/documents/191876/default/

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Scottish Labour leader criticises ‘deluded’ SNP amid party donations row

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Anas Sarwar tells rally in first minister’s constituency the party is rapidly losing right to govern

The Scottish Labour leader, Anas Sarwar, has accused the Scottish National party of being politically bankrupt and deceitful, as further questions emerged about Nicola Sturgeon’s role in discussions over party finances.

Sarwar told a Labour rally in Glasgow the SNP was rapidly losing its right to govern after Sturgeon’s party endured a divisive battle to succeed her as leader, followed by a series of dramatic developments in the police inquiry into SNP finances.

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Poll reveals voters negative about Labour and Tory attack ads

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Posters attacking Rishi Sunak on crime made Britons feel less favourable about both main parties, Opinium finds

Labour’s controversial “attack ad” accusing Rishi Sunak of failing to put paedophiles in prison has caused more voters to think negatively of Keir Starmer’s party than a Conservative poster that accused the Labour leader of being soft on crime, according to an Opinium poll for the Observer.

The striking result, when people were asked to react to the two posters, comes after 10 days of internal Labour ructions over its sudden switch to hyper-aggressive and personalised online campaigning.

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Joe Biden due to address Irish parliament after saying US relationship with Ireland getting ‘stronger and stronger’ – politics live

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US president praises emerging relationship with Ireland to taoiseach Leo Varadkar

Chris Philp, the policing minister, has published an article in the Telegraph today explaining the changes being introduced to the way that police record crimes in England and Wales. The changes are being introduced following recommendations from the National Police Chiefs’ Council.

Philp says:

Firstly, we are dropping the requirement for police to record some crimes twice or more, reintroducing the previous “principal offence” rule. This will remove multiple entries on the database which effectively re-record the same incident many times.

Accurate crime recording is vital, and these changes will better reflect victims’ experience. Recording crime does not equate to investigating crime and the police will continue to pursue all offences involved in the incident.

Accurate records of crime must be kept, and crimes will be recorded. These changes to the crime-recording rules will enable police to target and focus investigations and provide victims the service they deserve.

Ambulance response times for all types of emergencies have got longer, including for life-threatening illnesses and injuries, but remain below record levels.

Meanwhile around one in 10 people arriving at major A&E departments are having to wait more than 12 hours before being admitted, transferred or discharged – the first time data of this kind has been published.

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Why has Labour turned nasty? – podcast

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The party’s latest ad campaign launches personal attacks on Rishi Sunak. What’s behind its new ruthless approach?

Labour’s new attack ad campaign came as a shock, even to some senior members of the party. Its social media strategy ahead of next month’s local elections started with a highly personal attack on Rishi Sunak, suggesting he somehow does not think adults who sexually assault children should go to prison. It was followed by another ad focusing on the Sunak family’s taxes.

It’s a marked change from Keir Starmer’s previous approach of emphasising his personal integrity and insisting he wants to bring honesty back into politics. So what’s changed? The Guardian’s deputy political editor, Jessica Elgot, explains what it says about the party’s confidence, unity – and the threat posed by Sunak. And she tells Hannah Moore whether it could mean the next general election will be be the most ruthlessly fought yet.

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Labour to take aim at Sunak’s leadership on cost of living crisis

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Party will continue to single out PM, after campaign ad last week that led to accusations of ‘dog-whistle’ politics

Keir Starmer will shift his aim this week on to Rishi Sunak’s role in presiding over the cost of living crisis after days of anger over Labour’s crime campaign.

The party will continue to single out the prime minister in the minds of voters, claiming “his fingerprints are all over their struggling household budgets”, as part of an attempt to hold Sunak – still seen by some as a change of the Tory old guard – personally accountable for 13 years of Conservative failures.

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Labour’s attack ads risk painting Starmer as just another politician

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Messaging on law and order has racist undertones, say critics, and could scupper the party’s efforts to appear to offer a ‘fresh start’

The controversy surrounding Labour’s attack advert suggesting Rishi Sunak does not support jailing child abusers dominated the headlines over the Easter break, drawing furious criticism from both the left of the party and the Conservatives.

Labour officials have insisted that the shock tactic was helping their message to cut through, putting the Tories’ poor record on crime under the spotlight. But that was not the experience of candidates doing canvassing ahead of the local elections.

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‘Stand by every word’: Keir Starmer defends attack ad on Rishi Sunak

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Party leader says he will ‘make absolutely zero apologies for being blunt’ after facing widespread criticism over advert

Keir Starmer has said he will “make absolutely zero apologies for being blunt” in an article published after a row over a widely criticised Labour attack advert on child sexual assaults.

In a veiled message to critics within his own party, the Labour leader said he will “stand by every word Labour has said on this subject” and would continue to use the Conservatives’ record on crime as a legitimate criticism “no matter how squeamish it might make some feel”.

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Yvette Cooper was ‘not told’ about Labour’s Sunak attack ad in advance

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Shadow home secretary was not consulted about the widely criticised advert that claims Rishi Sunak did not believe in jailing child abusers

The shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, was not informed or consulted about the release of a widely criticised Labour advertisement that claims Rishi Sunak does not believe adults convicted of sexually assaulting children should go to prison, the Observer has been told.

As several senior party figures distanced themselves from the poster that has caused a huge row within the party, Labour sources said that Cooper “had nothing to do with it” – despite being in overall charge of crime policy for Labour.

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Labour strategists to press on with Sunak attack ads despite criticism

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Shadow ministers privately say they feel ‘uncomfortable’ over ‘distasteful’ ad amid calls for Keir Starmer to apologise

Labour frontbenchers have been left uneasy by a “spectacularly misjudged” advert claiming that Rishi Sunak does not support jailing child abusers, but party strategists are preparing to double down on the aggressive campaign.

Keir Starmer faced calls to personally apologise and order the retraction of the ad, which, a campaign group warned, “poisons the water that we all must drink from”.

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No honeymoon for Humza Yousaf as byelection looms over crisis-hit SNP

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Labour is pouring resources into Rutherglen and Hamilton for expected contest that could be ‘tipping point in Scottish politics’

It was a small but deliberate act by Humza Yousaf, Scotland’s new first minister, a politician increasingly keen to distance himself from Nicola Sturgeon and one with a keen eye for symbolism.

On Thursday, for his first briefing with Holyrood’s political correspondents at Bute House, the first minister’s elegant Georgian townhouse in Edinburgh, settees had been placed in a circle in the drawing room. Gone were the regimented ranks of chairs used by Sturgeon; gone was her lectern facing the room. Yousaf provided Tunnock’s chocolate wafers, tea and coffee. This, reporters were told before they sank into the sofas, was a fireside chat.

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