Keir Starmer has admitted that Labour is climbing a “mountain”, after polls predicted that his party will lose tomorrow’s crucial by-election in Hartlepool.
Speaking the day before the local elections, Mr Starmer said he faced many chanllenges when he became the party’s leader last year.
“That’s the mountain we’re climbing. We’re on that mountain, we’re climbing and we’re going into the elections tomorrow fighting for every vote,” he added.
Elsewhere, Jonathan Reynolds, the shadow work and pensions secretary, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that things had improved since Jeremy Corbyn’s tenure.
“It’s a lot warmer for Labour than it was in 2019, there’s more willingness to engage with us,” he said.
However, he admitted the party still had some way to go, saying “people might not be totally convinced yet but they want to have that conversation”.
Up in Scotland, the incumbent first minister Nicola Sturgeon has promised not to hold a “wildcat” second independence referendum if the SNP gains a majority at Holyrood.
“I’ve said consistently all along, sometimes to criticism from people in my own side of the argument, I would not countenance an illegal referendum – not least because it would not deliver independence and I want Scotland in the fullness of time and in due course to become an independent country,” she told Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross.
Raab outlines UK’s ‘expanded commitment’ to Indo-Pacific
Dominic Raab has spoken about the UK’s “expanded commitment” to the Indo-Pacific region at a meeting with his Australian counterpart.
The foreign secretary met Marise Payne this morning, declaring that the UK would cooperate closely with Australia on security challenges in the region.
The ministers also discussed the treatment of the Uighurs in Xinjiang, China, and the situation in Myanmar after the coup on 1 February.
A FCDO spokesperson said: “Both the foreign secretary and foreign minister agreed to work closely together on our mutual priorities. They also discussed the international Covid-19 response and the need to ensure equitable distribution of vaccines.”
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UK and Germany resolve to work together on climate action
Boris Johnson and the German chancellor Angela Merkel have resolved to work together to tackle the global climate crisis.
The pair had a conversation before the Petersburg climate dialogue on Thursday.
A No 10 spokesperson said: “The Prime Minister spoke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel this afternoon, ahead of the Petersburg climate dialogue tomorrow.
“They discussed the importance of all countries making concrete commitments to reduce carbon emissions and supporting developing countries to do the same, including by raising contributions towards climate finance.”
Outcome of Brexit negotiations down to ‘quarrels and betrayals’ of Tory MPs, says Barnier
The outcome of the UK and EU’s Brexit trade deal resulted from “the quarrels, low blows, multiple betrayals and thwarted ambitions of a certain number of Tory MPs”, Michel Barnier has said.
In his diaries – published in France under the title The Great Illusion – the bloc’s chief negotiator wrote that Theresa May was “a courageous, tenacious woman surrounded by a lot of men busy putting their personal interests before those of their country”.
He described her successor Boris Johnson’s negotiation tactics more harshly, saying he tried “advancing like a bulldozer, manifestly trying to muscle his way forwards” without any sense of legal nuance.
Scrap National Citizen Service and fund youth services, Lib Dems say
The government should scrap the National Citizen Service (NCS) and use the money to properly fund council youth services, the Liberal Democrats have said.
Branding the youth programme “David Cameron’s pet project”, Lib Dem education spokesperson Daisy Cooper said the money should be given to councils who would make better use of it.
The policy recommendation comes amid warnings of the widespread impact of lockdown on children’s mental health and emotional wellbeing, reports our policy correspondent Jon Stone.
Who are Wales’ first minister candidates?
Thursday’s 2021 Welsh parliament election will see its three largest political parties – Welsh Labour, the Welsh Conservatives and Plaid Cymru – compete to form the country’s next government.
But who are the party leaders vying to be the country’s next, or returning, first minister (FM)?
Mark Drakeford – current FM
Mr Drakeford, 66, who became the Welsh Labour leader and FM of Wales in December 2018, following the resignation of his predecessor Carwyn Jones, will fight in his first election as party leader this year.
While his public profile has been boosted within Wales and across the UK due to the pandemic, he has faced criticism from Welsh businesses for his cautious easing of restrictions and was forced to defend comments that Wales’s vaccine rollout was “not a sprint” as the country initially lagged behind the rest of the UK.
During the pandemic Mr Drakeford has opposed growing support for Welsh independence, instead arguing for “an entrenched form of devolution” which cannot be rolled back by the UK government.
In March he said the United Kingdom “is over” and a new union should be crafted to reflect a “voluntary association of four nations”.
Andrew RT Davies
Mr Davies was reappointed as group leader of the Welsh Tories in January. This is his second election, having led from 2011 to 2018 before quitting following a party row over his support for Brexit.
Unlike his rivals, Mr Davies’ official title only extends to leader of his party’s group in the Senedd and not of the party itself.
In January, the 53-year-old was criticised for accusing Sir Keir Starmer of campaigning to “overturn democracy” in a response to the Labour leader’s condemnation of the mob invasion of the US Capitol in Washington DC, but Mr Davies refused to apologise for his comments.
He has previously said that Wales needs an independence referendum “like it needs a hole in the head” and is satisfied with the country’s devolution settlement.
Adam Price
Adam Price became leader of Plaid Cymru in September 2018 after taking over from Leanne Wood. Since then, Mr Price, 52, has tirelessly campaigned for Welsh independence and claimed the pandemic was “game changer” for the movement.
He has also claimed the UK government’s initial refusal to extend its furlough scheme to accommodate Wales’s firebreak lockdown – only to do so when England went into its own lockdown – would go down in history as the moment that put Wales “on the path to independence”.
During his time in Westminster he campaigned to impeach Tony Blair over the Iraq War, and was ejected from the Commons in March 2005 for refusing to retract a statement accusing the then-PM of misleading parliament.
He joined the Welsh Assembly in 2016 and later became the first openly gay party leader in Wales’ history following his 2018 leadership victory.
‘It’s been a tough campaign for the Lib Dems,’ admits Davey
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has said the pandemic’s impact on campaigning, and the ability to be a “community politician”, has been tough on his party.
Campaigning in Surbiton today, in his own constituency, he stopped to tell BBC reporters: “We are community politicians, people know we get things done.
“We’ve had a weird election campaign because of the pandemic – not been able to get on the doors as much as we would have liked to, but when we have been able to talk to people they respond positively to the Liberal Democrat message.”
When asked if he would predict how the party will do in tomorrow’s election, he said:
“We are going forward to polling day positively. We think we can make gains from the Conservatives and Labour, but it’s just been such a weird campaign – it’s difficult to say anything beyond that.”
“It’s been a tough campaign”, he added.
You can read more about the 20 Mayor of London candidates here.
Johnson appeals to West Midlands voters in Tory mayoral race
Boris Johnson has, once again, urged voters to back Andy Street in the “very close” West Midlands mayoral election as he joined the Conservative mayor for a canal bike ride.
The PM stopped to tell members of the public that Mr Street would “boost skills and drive long term growth in jobs”.
But the former John Lewis boss faces competition from current Labour MP for Birmingham Hodge Hill Liam Byrne, who previously said his party’s losses in the region in 2019 were “really significant”.
The West Midlands is the largest region in the UK outside of London and is subsequently seen as a key battleground in the upcoming local and mayoral elections.
Mr Johnson said he expected the vote to be “very close” but urged West Midlands voters to back Mr Street’s “fantastic agenda”.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is also campaigning in the region today on behalf of Mr Byrne.
Home Office announces immigration fast-track for winners of Oscars, Nobel Prizes and Golden Globes
Winners of awards including Oscars and Nobel Prizes will be fast-tracked through the UK’s immigration system, the Home Office has announced.
Priti Patel said the reforms would help attract “the best and brightest” to Britain.
Our policy correspondent Jon Stone reports:
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