Irish foreign minister says he does ‘not anticipate any particular difficulties in respect of the EU side’
Back at the home affairs committee James Daly (Con) asks why so few police investigations end up in people being charged.
James Cleverly, the home secretary, says the Crown Prosecution Service is independent. He wants to make sure investigations are as professional as possible.
Continue reading...Angela Rayner tables question about criteria for launching investigation into potential breach of ministerial code
And here are some of the lines from what Rishi Sunak has been saying at the London defence conference.
Sunak said the challenge posed by China should not lead to a “blanket descent into protectionism”. He said that China’s rise represented an “epoch-defining challenge”. He explained:
It is a country that has both the means and the intent to reshape the global order.
Its behaviour is increasingly authoritarian at home and assertive abroad and in light of that we do need to take the steps to protect ourselves.
There are a limited number of very sensitive sectors of our economy, or types of technology, where we want to take a particularly robust approach: semiconductors, for example, dual-use technologies, quantum, etc.
But this is not an excuse for a blanket descent into protectionism.
He said that G7 countries should not be engaged in subsidy competition. Asked whether the UK needed an industrial strategy, he replied:
That means different things to different people. If that means we should just be focusing on who can subsidise industries the most, then my answer is no.
We discussed that at the G7 and actually you will see in the G7 communique very specific language acknowledging that subsidy races that essentially just shift industrial capacity between allies in some kind of zero-sum competition are not appropriate.
Continue reading...Former deputy PM not planning to contest Esher and Walton seat, after quitting cabinet over bullying claims
Dominic Raab will stand down as an MP at the next general election, weeks after he quit Rishi Sunak’s cabinet over bullying claims.
The former deputy prime minister, who was elected to parliament in 2010, served as foreign secretary during the botched evacuation from Afghanistan when he was heavily criticised for being on holiday as the extraction was organised.
Continue reading...FDA union votes to use ‘all means available’, including ‘targeted legal action’ in wake of Dominic Raab scandal
Senior civil servants have voted to take a stand against inflammatory language from politicians and in favour of legal action to combat bullying, as former cabinet ministers Jacob Rees-Mogg and Dominic Raab renewed their attacks on officials.
Members of the FDA union passed a motion in favour of using “all means available” to challenge bullying and harassment of officials, including “use of targeted legal action”, in after the scandal that forced Raab to resign.
Continue reading...Foreign secretary says efforts to support British nationals trapped in Sudan currently ‘severely limited’
Oliver Dowden is often viewed as one of the safest pairs of Conservative party hands in media performances, but he’s had a tricky couple of minutes here where Sophy Ridge has first challenged him over concerns about appointments to the BBC raised with him when he was at the DCMS, and is struggling to answer on whether he thinks it would be embarrassing if Boris Johnson appointed his own father to the House of Lords.
Sophy Ridge has pointed out to Oliver Dowden that there have been nine justice ministers in the last few years, and that the backlog in crown court cases is not diminishing. He tried to pin the backlog on Covid, to which she said: “That’s not true, the backlog started before the pandemic.”
Continue reading...No 10 adviser urges political appointments in a radical plan following crisis over bullying
Radical plans to bring in more “politicisation” of Whitehall by allowing ministers greater powers to appoint their own civil servants – including some with overt political affiliations – are being considered by the government’s own adviser on the civil service.
Writing in today’s Observer, the Conservative peer and former Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude, who is expected to report shortly to Rishi Sunak, says that in order for ministers to get the best advice possible, we need “to be more robust and less mealy mouthed about ‘politicisation’”.
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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.
Continue reading...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.
Continue reading...Sources say PM did not ask deputy to go despite bullying inquiry finding he engaged in ‘abuse or misuse of power’
Dominic Raab has been forced to quit as deputy prime minister after Rishi Sunak begrudgingly accepted an official inquiry that found his close ally bullied civil servants by acting in an intimidating and aggressive manner.
A five-month investigation by a leading employment barrister found that Raab, as foreign secretary, had engaged in “abuse or misuse of power” to undermine or humiliate staff. He was “intimidating and insulting” in meetings at the Ministry of Justice.
Continue reading...Dominic Raab denies wrongdoing after report on his behaviour delivered to Rishi Sunak this morning
Today’s announcement by the Association of School and College Leaders that it is to hold a formal ballot for national strike action for the first time in its history (see 9.49am) marks a significant development in the ongoing dispute between teachers and the government.
Up until now only members of the National Education Union (NEU) have taken strike action in England, with five more days of strikes planned for later this term. In addition a fresh ballot is to be held to provide the NEU with a mandate for further strike action up until Christmas.
Continue reading...Sources say expectation is that Rishi Sunak will have to sanction Raab once report arrives on Thursday
Senior Ministry of Justice officials could quit if Dominic Raab is cleared of bullying, the Guardian understands, with the fate of the deputy prime minister to be decided as soon as Thursday.
Preparations at the heart of government are ramping up for the publication of the long-expected report into claims of bullying by Raab.
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Eagle how the pay settlement for health workers will be funded.
Hunt says, as with all pay settlements, departments fund them from the money they get in the spending review. But in exceptional circumstances they can speak to the Treasury about extra help.
But we make a commitment that there will not be a degredation of frontline services for the public.
Continue reading...Downing Street reveals cost of improved pay offer for nurses and paramedics but will not say where the money will come from
Downing Street says the improve pay offer for health workers in England announced yesterday will cost around £4bn.
At the morning lobby briefing, a No 10 spokesperson said the “non-consolidated element for 2022-23” – the one-off payments worth up to 8.2% – would cost an extra £2.7bn.
Analysis showed that in two years’ time - by which point Labour could have won a general election - two million people could face paying taxes of up to 55 per cent on their pots as a result of [Rachel] Reeves’ policy.
Continue reading...Move follows pressure from campaigners such as Julie Devey and Carole Gould whose daughters were murdered
Domestic abusers in England and Wales who kill their partners or ex-partners are to face tougher sentences under government plans after a campaign by bereaved families.
The justice secretary and lord chancellor, Dominic Raab, will push for a change in the law after pressure from campaigners such as Julie Devey and Carole Gould, who have been calling since 2020 for a change to the minimum sentence for domestic homicide.
Continue reading...New rules also cover transgender women ‘with their male genitalia intact’, says Dominic Raab
Rules barring some transgender women from female prisons in England and Wales are to come into force on Monday, the justice secretary has announced.
Dominic Raab had already announced in October that trans women with male genitalia or who had committed sexual offences would not be allowed in women’s prisons.
Continue reading...Chancellor’s comments follow call from consumer champion Martin Lewis to cancel the rise in the energy price cap
This morning the Daily Mail splashed on a story about AstraZeneca building a new factory that had been planned for the north-west of England in Ireland instead. Sir Pascal Soriot, the company’s chief executive, suggested the government’s plan to increase corporation tax was a key factor (although, as my colleague Nils Pratley reports in his analysis, other factors are relevant too). The Mail is one of the Tory papers pushing for tax cuts and it reports the story as evidence that supports its case.
Asked about the AstraZeneca decision, Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, said today he was “disappointed” but that he would not implement tax cuts funded by borrowing. He told reporters:
We’re disappointed that we lost out this time and we agree with the fundamental case they’re making which is that we need our business taxation to be more competitive and we want to bring business taxes down.
But the only tax cuts we won’t consider are ones that are funded by borrowing because they’re not a real tax cut. They’re just passing on the bill to future generations.
Continue reading...Sources say prime minister also wants to split Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Rishi Sunak is planning a mini-reshuffle to replace Nadhim Zahawi as Conservative party chair as he tries to reassert his grip over his divided party, according to reports.
The prime minister is also believed to be considering a shake-up of Whitehall by splitting the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy into two or three new departments to better reflect his priorities.
Continue reading...Ally of Robert Buckland says Raab used ‘heavy-handed tactics’ in discussions over British bill of rights
Robert Buckland has confirmed that he and Dominic Raab had “a disagreement” when they were both in cabinet, after it was reported Raab tried to get Buckland sacked as Welsh secretary last year amid a fallout over policy.
An unnamed ally of Buckland told the Times that while the former minister did not view Raab’s actions as bullying, Raab’s approach after Buckland publicly criticised plans for a British bill of rights was “very odd, very punchy”.
Continue reading...Some officials were signed off for ‘extended periods’ while others stayed at work to protect colleagues, says complaint made by 27 staff at Ministry of Justice
A single official complaint regarding the behaviour of the deputy prime minister Dominic Raab represented the concerns of 27 of his officials, the Observer has been told.
The group of Ministry of Justice officials are understood to be represented by a memo warning that some colleagues had been forced to take time off for “extended periods” as a result of having to deal with Raab. It states that others affected felt they needed to stay at work to stop extra pressure being placed on their colleagues.
Continue reading...Justice secretary facing a number of bullying claims says Miller’s allegations are ‘baseless and malicious’
Michelle O’Neill, the Sinn Féin leader in Northern Ireland and first minister designate, has said she is “encouraged” by what she is hearing about the prospects of the UK and the EU reaching a deal on the Northern Ireland protocol.
Speaking after a meeting with Micheál Martin, the Irish foreign minister and tánaiste (Irish deputy PM), in Belfast, she said:
I am very much encouraged by what we’re hearing, I think the tánaiste shares that same assessment and we want both sides to continue in earnest to get a deal, to close this out, to close it out as quickly as possible.
This was a useful and constructive conversation. Over eighteen months ago we outlined the parameters for the way forward. We set our tests and those continue to be our yardstick for measuring any deal between the EU and UK.
There will be no restoration of the NI executive until the protocol is replaced with arrangements that unionists, as well as nationalists, can support. Northern Ireland’s place in the UK internal market must be restored and our constitutional arrangements must be respected.
Continue reading...