Category Archives: Foreign policy

‘Not decided yet’: David Miliband hints at political comeback

Posted on by

Former Labour foreign secretary does not rule out return to UK politics before next election and urges greater EU cooperation

The former foreign secretary David Miliband has fuelled speculation that he is preparing a political comeback in Britain after he said nothing had yet been decided on his return and delivered a set piece foreign policy speech urging the UK to make greater cooperation with the EU.

Miliband lost the Labour leadership to his brother Ed in 2010 and resigned from the shadow cabinet. He stood down as an MP and moved to New York in late 2013 with his family to act as the chief executive of the International Rescue Committee.

Continue reading...

UK condemns ‘abhorrent’ torture of death row inmate in Saudi Arabia

Posted on by

Foreign Office minister says case of Hussein Abo al-Kheir raised ‘at highest level’ and demands end to executions

The British government has condemned as “abhorrent” what it said was the clear torture of a Jordanian national on death row in Saudi Arabia for drug offences, and demanded an end to a sudden spate of executions in the Gulf monarchy.

It was the first time the British government has made the allegation.

Continue reading...

Keir Starmer rules out return of free movement between Britain and EU

Posted on by

Labour leader says it will be a ‘red line’ if party takes power, despite backing the policy three years ago

Keir Starmer has ruled out bringing back free movement of people between Britain and the EU, saying it would be a “red line” for Labour if it gets into power – despite supporting the policy just three years ago.

The Labour leader said free movement “won’t come back” if he becomes prime minister as Brexit has already happened and “ripping up” the deal would lead to years more wrangling with Brussels.

Continue reading...

Alexei Navalny aide says his survival may depend on value to Vladimir Putin

Posted on by

Leonid Volkov warns Russian opposition leader’s health is at risk from indefinite solitary confinement

Alexei Navalny’s survival may depend on his value to Vladimir Putin as a future bargaining chip, his chief aide said, warning that the opposition leader’s health was at risk after being forced into indefinite solitary confinement.

Leonid Volkov, speaking on a visit to London, added that Navalny had lost access to his family and was being permanently detained in a “8 by 12ft” cell after the isolation decision by Russian authorities last week.

Continue reading...

London marchers to call for safe asylum route for Afghan women

Posted on by

Thousands expected to demonstrate on Sunday to urge UK government to help those fleeing Taliban

Thousands of people are expected to take to London’s streets on Sunday calling on the UK government to create a safe asylum route for Afghan women and girls at risk.

Sunday’s march for freedom for Afghan women and girls in London, organised by the campaign group Action for Afghanistan, comes weeks after MPs appealed to the foreign secretary, James Cleverly, for a renewed focus on women and girls at risk after Britain’s 20-year campaign in the country.

Continue reading...

UK foreign secretary visits Kyiv to reaffirm support for Ukraine

Posted on by

James Cleverly, who says Russia will fail in its attempt to ‘break Ukrainian resolve’, announces fresh support package

The foreign secretary, James Cleverly, travelled to Kyiv on Thursday to meet the Ukrainian leadership and promise the UK’s support for as long as it takes to defeat Russia’s brutal efforts to break the country’s resolve.

In his first visit to Ukraine since his appointment as foreign secretary, Cleverly presented a package of support including money for the reconstruction of schools, ambulances, the victims of sexual violence, and grain sales to the world’s poorest markets, such as Sudan and Yemen.

Continue reading...

EasyJet looks to over-45s in cabin crew recruitment drive

Posted on by

Airline launches campaign targeting ‘empty nesters’ or people looking for challenge later in life

The airline easyJet has launched a recruitment drive urging people over the age of 45 to join its cabin crews, as firms devise new strategies for hiring staff in the UK amid a shortage of workers.

The airline said it has seen a 27% increase in crew aged 45 and over in the past four years, including a 30% increase in over-60s in the past year.

Continue reading...

South African president makes first UK state visit of King Charles’s reign

Posted on by

Tory government eager to focus on trade rather than Cyril Ramaphosa’s refusal to put sanctions on Russia

The South African president has started a two-day state visit to the UK, the first since King Charles took the throne, with the Conservative government eager to focus on trade rather than challenge South Africa’s refusal to impose sanctions on Russia over the invasion of Ukraine.

Cyril Ramaphosa’s trip has been much delayed due to Covid and only by chance became the first state visit of the king’s reign.

Continue reading...

UK plans for ‘sunsetting’ EU laws post-Brexit ‘not fit for purpose’

Posted on by

Independent assessor deeply critical of proposals to discard up to 4,000 pieces of EU-derived legislation

The plans for discarding EU-derived laws following Brexit have been called “not fit for purpose” by the government’s own independent assessor.

Under new legislation that was the brainchild of the former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg, thousands of laws copied from the EU to Britain’s statute book will be “sunsetted” by the end of next year if they are not each signed off by ministers to be kept.

Continue reading...

Sunak tries to pacify Brexiters but keeps door open to closer EU ties

Posted on by

Prime minister stresses ‘enormous benefits and opportunities’ of Brexit before business leaders

Rishi Sunak has laid down a red line for any new attempts to improve post-Brexit trade with the EU and managed to quell a rebellion among furious Tories – but kept open the possibility of closer ties with Brussels.

The prime minister dismissed suggestions the UK could pursue a Swiss-style relationship with the bloc, while a senior business leader called the row a “sideshow” and No 10 sources pointed the finger of blame at the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt.

Continue reading...

No 10 seeks to quell hardline Brexiters’ fears over reports of Swiss-style EU deal

Posted on by

Minister rubbishes reports of ‘Chequers’-style plan, as businesses expected to call for more ‘practical’ immigration rules

Rishi Sunak is facing a new row on two fronts over Brexit, as he sought to quell a backlash from hardline Eurosceptics given suggestions the UK could seek a Swiss-style deal with Brussels, while businesses are expected to call for a more “practical” immigration stance.

Ahead of the prime minister’s address to business leaders in Birmingham on Monday morning, Downing Street tried to dampen down speculation that a deal similar to Theresa May’s “Chequers” plan could be adopted, claiming it was “categorically untrue”.

Continue reading...

Brexit: who wants a Swiss-style EU deal and what would it look like?

Posted on by

As reports suggest some in government want closer ties with Brussels, we look as what these might mean

Brexit is slowly but surely creeping back on to the agenda as the blame game intensifies over Britain’s poor growth and looming recession.

Discussion of the effects of the UK leaving the EU were quickly drowned out in the weeks after 31 January 2020 as the Covid pandemic took hold. Since then, much of MPs’ economic focus has been on the fallout from lockdowns, global supply chain issues and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Continue reading...

Inquiry into worst Channel disaster for 30 years fails to contact victims’ families

Posted on by

At least 27 people died when their dinghy capsized in November 2021, but the UK investigation has yet to talk to their relatives

A UK investigation into the drowning of at least 27 people trying to cross the Channel in a small boat has yet to contact most of the victims’ families 12 months after the tragedy, the Observer can reveal.

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has not yet been in touch with the majority of the families despite legal sources claiming it has all their contact details, prompting accusations that the inquiry’s progress is “dehumanising” the dead.

Continue reading...

Alaa Abd el-Fattah exhausted and weak, family say after visit

Posted on by

The activist’s mother was allowed to visit her son for the first time in nearly a month on Thursday

The family of the British-Egyptian political prisoner Alaa Abd el-Fattah say his health has visibly deteriorated due to the escalation of his hunger strike, after being allowed to visit him on Thursday.

It was the first time the activist’s mother, Laila Soueif, had been allowed to visit him in nearly a month. Prison authorities repeatedly denied her access last week.

Continue reading...

Sunak hints he will slow down progress on India trade deal

Posted on by

Prime minister says UK should not sacrifice quality for speed as he seeks to improve terms at G20 talks

Rishi Sunak has hinted he will slow down progress on the India trade deal to improve its terms, saying the UK should not “sacrifice quality for speed”.

The comments, which preceded talks with the UK prime minister’s Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, at the G20 on Wednesday, suggested a marked change of approach from Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, who prioritised speed and hard deadlines, having pledged a “deal for Diwali” that did not materialise.

Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak calls China ‘systemic challenge’, in sign of softer UK stance

Posted on by

PM’s remarks at G20 summit suggest shift away from Liz Truss pledge to redesignate Beijing as a ‘threat’

Rishi Sunak has rowed back from officially recategorising China as a “threat”, saying he views the country as a “systemic challenge”, despite concerted pressure from Conservative MPs.

The prime minister’s remarks are likely to draw ire from the large group of China sceptics on the Conservative backbenches, including former leader Iain Duncan Smith and others such as Alicia Kearns, who chairs the foreign affairs select committee.

Continue reading...

World leaders at Cop27 urged to press Egypt over prisoner Alaa Abd el-Fattah

Posted on by

Global spotlight on host country has heightened scrutiny of human rights record, with Biden due to meet Sisi

As Egyptian officials strive to control the narrative and isolate the case of the detained British Egyptian activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah, pressure is mounting on world leaders at Cop27 to acknowledge Egypt’s poor human rights record and raise his case.

The Egyptian authorities have engaged in a sweeping public relations campaign to try to discredit Abd el-Fattah, including a digital campaign depicting him as a threat to national security.

Continue reading...

Macron and Sunak ‘bromance’ signals intent to reset Franco-British ties

Posted on by

Clear wish in Paris to thaw relations that plummeted to their worst state in decades under Boris Johnson

When Emmanuel Macron rushed to hug the new UK prime minister at their first meeting in Egypt this week, some called it a “bromance”.

Even though the French president’s hands-on embrace of world leaders is almost always called a “bromance” – from Justin Trudeau to Mohammed bin Salman and Donald Trump (a relationship which eventually soured), Macron and Rishi Sunak’s grinning and back-slapping stood out as symbolic.

Continue reading...

Release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah key to UK-Egypt relations, former diplomat says

Posted on by

Ex-ambassador warns hunger striker’s situation at crucial stage after Rishi Sunak meeting with Egyptian president

The release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah, the detained British-Egyptian pro-democracy activist who is on hunger strike, has become the defining issue for British-Egyptian relations, the former British ambassador to Egypt John Casson has warned.

His comments came as Abd el-Fattah’s aunt, the novelist Ahdaf Soueif, said there was a danger the British “are allowing themselves to be fobbed off with the excuses they have been given since last December when we started asking for consular visits”.

Continue reading...

Germany keen to discuss natural gas pact with UK amid supply risk

Posted on by

Officials interested in deal that would allow two countries to bail each other out in event of shortages

Germany is keen to talk to Britain about a solidarity pact that would allow Europe’s largest consumers of natural gas to bail each other out if an extreme cold snap were to create shortages this winter, German officials have said.

Such an agreement could be mutually beneficial for both London and Berlin, the German civil servant in charge of rationing in the case of a supply crisis told the Guardian in an interview.

Continue reading...