Category Archives: Rishi Sunak

Sunak faces new questions at Covid inquiry after pranksters claim they reached his old phone number

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PM likely to be asked about WhatsApp messages from pandemic that he says are irretrievable, despite reports number accessed

Fresh questions are being raised over whether Rishi Sunak has handed over all relevant material to the Covid inquiry after reports that pranksters have been able to access an old phone number he used during his time as chancellor.

The prime minister will face a day of questioning at the inquiry on Monday, where he is expected to be questioned about his claims that scientists had too much power. He will also be asked detailed questions about the “eat out to help out” scheme that many experts believe allowed the virus to spread.

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Tory right deliver legal rebuke to Sunak’s Rwanda plan

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ERG lawyers conclude plans will not forestall court challenges, echoing concerns of goverment’s own legal team

Rishi Sunak has been dealt a fresh blow over his Rwanda legislation as a legal assessment for the Tory right has concluded that the prime minister’s plans are not fit for purpose.

Bill Cash, who chairs the “star chamber” of lawyers for the European Research Group, wrote in the Daily Telegraph that “at present” the legislation is not “sufficiently watertight to meet the government’s policy objectives” such as circumventing individual legal challenges by people seeking to remain in the UK.

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No 10 team arrives in Delhi to revive talks over free trade deal

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Exclusive: Pre-election agreement would provide a major boost to Narendra Modi and Rishi Sunak

Senior Downing Street officials have flown to Delhi to kickstart talks over a multibillion pound free trade agreement, with the government of Narendra Modi having indicated it is keen to finalise a deal in the next three months.

UK trade negotiators are in the Indian capital talking to their Indian counterparts as they look to revive a deal that looked a distant prospect just a few months ago.

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Home Office ordered to give full cost of Rwanda deportation plan

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Top civil servant summoned to give ‘full and frank’ answers after costs of scheme rose from £140m to £290m

The Home Office has been ordered to disclose the full costs of Rishi Sunak’s secretive deal to deport migrants to Rwanda, as insiders told of turmoil within the department over the controversial policy.

Matthew Rycroft, the permanent secretary of the Home Office, will be hauled before the public accounts committee on Monday, after the initial costs of the scheme rose from £140m to £290m.

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Rishi Sunak claims new Rwanda asylum bill will prevent legal challenges

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Prime minister holds emergency press conference to try to regain control over immigration debate as Tory rebellion grows

Rishi Sunak was forced into a desperate defence of his new Rwanda asylum law as he battled to hold together the fractured Conservative party amid speculation that he could face a challenge to his position.

The prime minister told an emergency Downing Street press conference that he would “finish the job” of getting his controversial deportation plan off the ground despite criticism from the Tory right and anxiety among centrist MPs.

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Rishi Sunak defends Rwanda asylum policy as Tory split deepens – UK politics live

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PM’s press conference follows criticism from Braverman and the resignation of Robert Jenrick

Rishi Sunak says he is holding this press conference to explain why the government is publishing its Rwanda bill.

He says he is the child of immigrants. He understands why people want to come to the UK.

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Covid inquiry: Johnson surprised ‘eat out to help out’ not cleared by scientists

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Former PM also angrily denies comments he made about letting Covid ‘rip’ meant he had been uncaring

Boris Johnson assumed that Rishi Sunak’s flagship “eat out to help out” hospitality scheme had been cleared by government scientists and was surprised to learn later it was not, the former prime minister has told the inquiry into Covid.

In evidence that could pose notable difficulties for the prime minister when he appears before the inquiry on Monday, Johnson said it would have been “normal” for advisers such as Chris Whitty and Patrick Vallance to have been briefed, and that he assumed this had been the case.

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Boris Johnson says he regrets questioning existence of long Covid and admits No 10 culture could be argumentative – UK politics live

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Former prime minister also admits he should have worked more closely with devolved administrations

Hugo Keith KC is questioning Johnson.

He asks if Johnson’s approach has been to give all relevant material to the inquiry.

I understand the feelings of these victims and their families and I am deeply sorry for the pain and the loss and suffering of those victims and their families.

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Rishi Sunak accused of giving Rwanda millions ‘for nothing in return’

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PMQs clash comes as Suella Braverman expected to heavily criticise government’s immigration plans

Rishi Sunak’s government has been accused by Keir Starmer of giving Rwanda “hundreds of millions of pounds for nothing in return” following the signing of a deportation treaty.

In a clash at prime minister’s questions, the Labour leader mocked the treaty, signed on Tuesday, saying the Rwandan government of President Paul Kagame had seen the prime minister coming “a mile off”.

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Tory MPs lobby to change legislation as splits emerge over Rwanda policy

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Centrist Tories want PM to stick by UK’s human rights obligations while those on the right want new bill to override them

Tory MPs are at loggerheads as competing factions engage in last-minute lobbying efforts to try to change Rishi Sunak’s flagship Rwanda legislation before it is published in the coming days.

The prime minister is due to announce a new bill as soon as this week, which Downing Street says will deal with concerns raised last month by the supreme court over the government’s scheme to send asylum seekers to east Africa. It follows the signing of a new treaty with Rwanda on Tuesday by the home secretary, James Cleverly, in Kigali.

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Robert Jenrick says immigration crackdown may not go far enough and further measures may be needed – UK politics live

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Immigration minister says there could be ‘merits’ to an annual cap on net migration

Last night Suella Braverman, the former home secretary and the most prominent voice on the Tory right for tighter immigration controls, gave a qualified welcome to the immigration crackdown. It was “a step in the right direction”, she said in a thread on X. But she said it was too late to have an impact on numbers before the general election, and she said further measures were needed.

Among other things, she called for an annual cap on immigration numbers.

As well as these proposals, we should go further: shortening the graduate route - not just reviewing it again; & we need an annual cap, set by Parliament, across all visa routes, so we don’t get into this terrible situation again & government can be properly held to account.

There are merits to ideas like that. But what matters now is action. The public wants to see us actually deliver reducing levels of net migration, as I’ve been very clear, that people are sick of talk on this topic.

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Tory plan to cut net legal immigration is bolder than most MPs expected

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Clampdown announced by James Cleverly is a shift in strategy by the government, which is rated poorly by the public on the issue

Soon after James Cleverly was announced as the new home secretary, one Labour frontbencher expressed surprise at the appointment.

“This must be the most liberal home secretary we’ve had in years – including during the Labour years,” the person said.

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James Cleverly tells MPs crackdown will cut annual immigration numbers by about 300,000 – as it happened

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Home secretary to announce big hike in salary requirement for migrants to the UK as Rishi Sunak tries to cut net migration figures

Hunt says the government wants to speed up the time it takes to get a connection to the national grid by 90%.

Zanny Minton Beddoes, the editor of the Economist, is interviewing Hunt. She says he has mentioned the 110 policies, but she wants to know what the growth strategy is.

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Rishi Sunak accused of hypocrisy after backing phase-out of fossil fuels at Cop28

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UK prime minister attacked for inconsistency after allowing more gas and oil exploration in the North Sea

Rishi Sunak has been accused of hypocrisy on the international stage after pushing for a phase-out of fossil fuels at the UN Cop28 climate summit in Dubai – weeks after backing more oil and gas exploration in the North Sea.

The prime minister’s lack of “consistency” over climate policy was ridiculed by several senior Conservatives, as well as the former US vice president Al Gore, while members of other international delegations said the UK’s incoherent approach meant it was no longer a global leader on climate issues.

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Marbles row leaves diplomats reassessing Sunak’s strategic grip

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Cancellation of meeting with Greek PM has Europeans wondering how Cameron will work with No 10

The Greek foreign minister, Giorgos Gerapetritis, was attending a two-day Nato summit in Brussels on Tuesday when he received an unexpected message from the British delegation. The foreign secretary, David Cameron, was hoping the minister might be available for an unscheduled meeting. There was much to discuss on migration, as well as the relief operation in Gaza. There was one condition from the UK: that there be no cameras.

Gerapetritis readily agreed, and one can only assume it took only an un-minuted raised eyebrow from Lord Cameron for the former prime minister to distance himself discreetly from Rishi Sunak’s bizarre decision to cancel a scheduled Downing Street visit with his Greek counterpart, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, set for 12.30pm on Tuesday.

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Sunak accused of retreating from global climate leadership at Cop28

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PM attracts cross-party criticism with claim that ‘climate politics is at breaking point’ during combative summit visit

Rishi Sunak has been accused of “shrinking and retreating” from global leadership as he used the Cop28 summit to claim that “climate politics is at breaking point” because of the costs of net zero.

While many other world leaders, including King Charles, spoke of the urgency of action on the climate, the prime minister used his brief appearance at the summit in Dubai to promote his approach to slowing the pace of net zero policies and reducing pressures on family finances.

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Sunak says retaining Parthenon marbles is matter of law as he denies ‘hissy fit’

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PM reaffirms stance after George Osborne suggests snub to Greek counterpart was result of ‘petulance’

Rishi Sunak has denied having a “hissy fit” over the Parthenon marbles row and has said they cannot be returned to Greece “as a matter of law”.

The prime minister this week accused his Greek counterpart of using a trip to London to “grandstand” over the issue of the ancient Greek sculptures.

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Rishi Sunak ‘won’t allow foreign court to block’ Rwanda plan

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Centrist Tories urge PM not to abandon UK’s human rights commitments, but Sunak said his patience ‘worn thin’ by delays

Rishi Sunak has promised not to allow foreign courts to stop Britain sending asylum seekers to Rwanda, even as a group of more centrist Conservative MPs urges him not to abandon Britain’s international human rights commitments.

The prime minister said on Friday his patience was being “worn thin” by delays to the Rwanda plan, which was ruled illegal under domestic and international law by the supreme court last month.

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King Charles to give ‘call to arms’ Cop28 opening statement, says PM

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Rishi Sunak’s attendance comes after he scaled back pledges to help the UK reach net zero by 2050

King Charles will give a “call to arms” in his Cop28 climate summit opening statement, Rishi Sunak has said, expressing delight over the monarch’s record championing the issue.

Sunak said it was a “proud moment” for him to witness Charles deliver his speech on Friday, which “speaks volumes about our type of leadership as a country”.

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British Museum ‘will continue Parthenon marbles talks’ despite fallout

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Institution’s chair, George Osborne, says the row opened Rishi Sunak up to a ‘devastating line of attack’ from Labour

Rishi Sunak opened up a “devastating line of attack” from Labour by snubbing his Greek counterpart this week, according to the British Museum’s chair George Osborne, who said the row had encouraged the institution to press ahead with talks over loaning the Parthenon marbles to Athens.

Osborne said: “That is, I think, something worth exploring. And we can go on doing it whether or not Rishi Sunak meets the Greek prime minister or not. In fact, if anything, things have been rather clarified by this week. We obviously know we’re not going to get any particular support from the Conservative government.”

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