Celebrities including Sophie Okonedo and David Harewood say scheme shows ‘colonial view’ of Africa as ‘dumping ground’
British celebrities have urged Commonwealth leaders in Rwanda to oppose the UK’s plan to deport refugees to the country, saying it shows a “colonial view” of Africa as a “dumping ground”.
It comes as a summit of Commonwealth prime ministers and presidents is under way in Kigali, the first time the gathering has been held since 2018.
Continue reading...Ex-leader Michael Howard among Conservatives to call for resignation after byelection catastrophes
Conservative grandees are urging Boris Johnson to quit after a historic double byelection defeat, as rebellious MPs began plotting new ways to oust him.
The former Conservative leader Michael Howard was among those who demanded the prime minister stand down after the losses in Tiverton and Honiton and Wakefield which prompted the immediate resignation of the party’s co-chair, Oliver Dowden.
Continue reading...Johnson was defiant in Rwanda after his byelection disasters, but at home there was renewed Tory anger
While Boris Johnson was in Rwanda, having an early-morning swim in the luxurious pool of the conference hotel, his Tory critics were already planning another go at ousting him.
The backbench plotters had previously been despondent about the prospects of kicking Johnson out after he narrowly won a confidence vote of his MPs and the cabinet rallied round him.
Continue reading...This live blog is now closed, you can find our latest UK political coverage here
This is from James Johnson, a Tory pollster (who worked for Theresa May in No 10) whose firm JL Partners carried out polling in Wakefield, on who ought to be taking the blame for the byelection defeats.
PM Media has just snapped this.
Boris Johnson has said he will “listen” to voters but will “keep going” after the Tories suffered a double by-election defeat.
Continue reading...Prime minister promises to listen to voters and says he will take responsibility for results
Boris Johnson has promised to keep going in the face of pressure over his leadership following a double byelection defeat and the resignation of a cabinet minister.
The prime minister said on Friday that losing the former Tory stronghold of Tiverton and Honiton to the Liberal Democrats as well as surrendering Wakefield to Labour was tough, but insisted he would listen to voters.
Continue reading...Labour takes Wakefield and Lib Dems snatch Tiverton and Honiton, piling pressure on Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson has faced a double hammer blow to his authority after the Conservatives lost the Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton byelections on the same night, prompting the party co-chair Oliver Dowden to resign.
Labour took Wakefield, while the Liberal Democrats overturned a 24,000-plus majority to snatch Tiverton and Honiton.
Continue reading...Loss of Wakefield, and Tiverton and Honiton could push backbench Tories towards restarting efforts to oust PM
Voting has closed for two crucial byelections, in Wakefield and in Tiverton and Honiton, the results of which could play a pivotal role in Boris Johnson’s political future.
Defeat in both of what were previously Tory-held seats could reignite a challenge to the prime minister from disgruntled Conservative MPs, particularly if the Liberal Democrats overturn a 24,000-plus majority in Tiverton and Honiton.
Continue reading...Proposal to replace Human Rights Act with bill of rights is effort to make government ‘untouchable’, say critics
Downing Street will tomorrow set out sweeping plans to override the power of Europe’s human rights court just days after a judge in Strasbourg blocked the deportation of asylum seekers from Britain to Rwanda.
The abolition of the Human Rights Act (HRA), including reducing the influence of the European court of human rights (ECHR), will be introduced before parliament in what the government described as a restatement of Britain’s sovereignty.
Continue reading...Growing call for inquiry over claims that Boris Johnson tried to secure Foreign Office role for then girlfriend
Correspondence exists confirming that Boris Johnson attempted in 2019 to secure a senior role for his then girlfriend, Carrie Johnson, at the Foreign Office, a source has said, amid growing calls for an inquiry.
The source, who worked with Johnson at the time, said Carrie Johnson – now the prime minister’s wife – had never progressed as far as formally applying for the role.
Continue reading...Unions condemn measure as potentially against international law as 40,000 staff prepare for first day of industrial action
Boris Johnson has responded to the biggest rail strikes in a generation with plans to break the industrial action by allowing firms to bring in agency staff, a move unions have decried as unworkable, unsafe and potentially breaking international law.
As 40,000 workers prepared for Tuesday’s strike, the most wide-reaching on the railways in 30 years, Downing Street brought forward changes to enable employers to replace employees with temporary staff.
Continue reading...Boris Johnson reaffirms commitment to provide long-term ‘strategic resilience’ to help expel Russian troops
Russian-Ukraine war: live updates
Boris Johnson has reaffirmed Britain’s support for Ukraine, cautioning against “Ukraine fatigue” as Russia’s invasion enters its fifth month.
Speaking to reporters on his arrival at RAF Brize Norton after his trip to Kyiv, the prime minister said: “When Ukraine fatigue is setting in, it is very important to show that we are with them for the long haul and we are giving them the strategic resilience that they need.
Continue reading...PM’s former ethics adviser says reason given by Downing Street for his resignation was a ‘distraction’
Boris Johnson’s former ethics adviser has said the reason given by Downing Street for his resignation was a “distraction” and doubled down on claims that the government wanted to break international law.
After he dramatically quit this week, Christopher Geidt said his explanation had used too much “cautious language” leading to “some confusion about the precise cause of my decision”.
Continue reading...PM announces programme including battle skills and counter-explosive tactics that will take place outside Ukraine
Boris Johnson has announced that the UK will oversee a new three-week training programme for Ukrainian soldiers, as he visited Kyiv for the third time this year for talks with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
The prime minister had been expected to address Conservative MPs at the Northern Research Group conference in Doncaster on Friday, but pulled out at the last minute.
Continue reading...Greater role for head of polling company coincides with prime minister’s shift to the right
Lynton Crosby, the election guru and businessman, has been attending Boris Johnson’s 8.30am meetings in No 10, showing he is more involved in the prime minister’s decision making than previously thought.
The Australian political strategist, whose advisory firm has represented tobacco as well as oil and gas interests, is known to have been helping Johnson remotely over his leadership woes but his involvement in the regular meetings shows he appears to have taken a much greater role than before.
Continue reading...Helen Hurford, Tory candidate in Tiverton and Honiton, blames media for stopping public from moving on from Partygate
The Conservative candidate in Tiverton and Honiton has blamed the media for preventing the public from “moving on” from Partygate and twice declined to say that Boris Johnson was honest.
In an interview with the Guardian, Helen Hurford acknowledged the party faced a very tight battle to retain the previously ultra-safe seat and criticised what she called the media’s “persistent regurgitating of Partygate”. Asked if she believed Boris Johnson was fundamentally honest, Hurford twice refused to say.
Continue reading...Boris Johnson ‘carefully considering’ whether to appoint new ethics adviser after Lord Geidt’s resignation
Ellis has finished. He has not told us anything new about why Geidt resigned.
Ellis says the powers of the independent adviser on ministers’ interests have changed.
Continue reading...Unions accuse transport secretary of threats and intimidation of workers, and government of trying to make political capital out of the strike
The transport secretary has told rail staff not to “risk striking yourself out of a job”, before industrial action that will close much of the railway next week.
In a speech in which Grant Shapps said he was “appealing directly to workers” instead of unions, he claimed the strikes were “a bid to derail reforms that are critical to the network’s future, and designed to inflict damage at the worst possible time”.
Continue reading...Feared backlash fails to emerge despite leading Conservative warning of international law breach
Ministers believe they have largely muted Conservative opposition to the Northern Ireland protocol bill, even though one leading Conservative critic has said no MP should be voting for a breach of international law.
Leading opponents of Boris Johnson held off from publicly rejecting the legislation after it was published, despite the government’s fears beforehand that it would provoke a backlash.
Continue reading...Court of appeal judges have rejected a last-ditch legal bid to block a flight due to relocate asylum seekers to Rwanda on Tuesday
Q: Your Northern Ireland protocol plan is holed below the water line because it has so much opposition in your party, isn’t it?
Johnson says the government needs to resolve the problems with the protocol.
Continue reading...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%.
Continue reading...