Brexit minister David Frost has used his speech in Lisbon today to accuse the EU of using Northern Ireland to try to reverse the 2016 referendum result.
The minister said that the Northern Ireland Protocol is the “biggest source of mistrust” between the UK and EU as he called for the protocol to be revised.
“I do understand why the EU finds it difficult to come back to an agreement that was reached only two years ago. Though obviously, that in itself is far from unusual in international relations,” Lord Frost said.
“Equally, there’s a widespread feeling in the UK that the EU did try to use Northern Ireland to encourage UK political forces to reverse the referendum result, or at least to keep us closely aligned with EU.”
It came as eleven European countries signed a declaration criticising the UK over its “inappropriate” stance towards post-Brexit fishing arrangements – the government of Jersey announced in late September that only a small number of French vessels would be given fishing permits to work in its waters.
Good morning, and welcome to The Independent’s rolling UK politics coverage. Stay tuned as we bring you the latest updates as the government backs the business secretary’s energy bailout plan and the defence sector is the latest to be hit threatened by the crisis.
Defence sector could halt due to energy crisis
Without fresh funds factories could be forced to halt production of critical inputs such as high-tech ceramic coatings, steel components and bespoke glassware, according to government and industry sources. Such products are used in a range of high security environments, including nuclear reactors, laboratories, ships and submarines.
Our Economics Editor Anna Isaac and political correspondent Ashley Cowburn have the full story below:
PM ‘to back’ plans for energy firms bailout
Boris Johnson will reportedly back plans to loan millions to help industries hit by the rise in global gas prices.
Despite concerns from the Chancellor Rishi Sunak, No 10 will reportedly back plans submitted by business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.
The government came under fire from heavy industry leaders as soaring energy costs threatens to shut businesses including factories. The Times reported that companies threatened with closure would be given loans to prevent them from shutting down over the winter, and to stop thousands of jobs being lost.
Mr Kwarteng held talks with industry leaders last week, and ministers and officials are set to continue speaking to businesses throughout this week.
He has pledged to keep the energy price cap in place to help households struggling with rising costs.
UK job vacancies reach 20-year high, according to latest figures
UK job vacancies have reached a record high according to latest figures from the Office for National Statistics.
According to the report, vacancies hit 1.1 million between July and September, the highest level since 2001, with the largest increases in the retail and motor vehicle repair sectors.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the increase was “encouraging.”
“The number of expected redundancies remained very low in September, there are more employees on payrolls than ever before and the unemployment rate has fallen for eight months in a row,” he added.
Rishi Sunak criticised for looking to save billions of aid by ‘recycling’ money from IMF windfall
Rishi Sunak has been criticised for looking to save billions of pounds by “recycling” money from an International Monetary Fund (IMF) windfall as aid spending.
Campaigners believe the chancellor is preparing to use a large portion of the windfall in the overseas aid budget rather than on top of it.
Andrew Mitchell MP, who led the Tory rebellion against the aid cut, said the move would have a “devastating effect on humanitarian causes British people care about and send a terrible message about global Britain”.
Our reporter Liam James has the full story below:
There’s ‘hot demand’ for workers, Bank of England member says
Dame DeAnne Julius, a founder member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee, said the latest unemployment numbers showed there was a “hot demand for workers”.
“There’s clearly a reluctance there in the labour market on the supply side of people to come back to work fully,” she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, adding that many people were “sitting on the fence” about returning to their pre-pandemic careers.
Asked whether the growth in average weekly earnings pointed to a higher-wage economy of the kind Prime Minister Boris Johnson has hailed, the economist said: “The evidence is still out on that one.”
National Insurance levy for health and social care would have to double in decade to keep up, IFS says
The Institute for Fiscal Studies said the levy announced by Boris Johnson to pay for extra spending on health and social care may have to more than double by the end of the decade to keep up with increasing demands.
The think tank said the rising cost of healthcare in an ageing population was eating into funds available for services such as the courts, prisons and local government.
IFS director Paul Johnson said: “Rishi Sunak, a Conservative Chancellor, is presiding over an increase in the tax burden to record levels in the UK and an increase in the size of the state to levels not seen since the days of Mrs Thatcher.
“Yet the combined effects of ever-growing spending on the NHS and an economy smaller than projected pre-pandemic mean that he is still likely to be short of money to spend on many other public services.
“On central forecasts, there will be little or no scope to increase spending on things like local government, the justice system and further education, after a decade of sharp cuts.”
Minister refuses to apologise to public over government Covid failings
The Cabinet Office minister refused to apologise when asked repeatedly this morning.
“I suppose you want to start with an apology to the British public?” Kay Burley asked Stephen Barley this morning as he appeared on Sky News.
Watch the full interview here:
UK tomato and cucumber farmers shut down over energy crisis and labour shortages
Some tomato and cucumber growers have already shut down production because they cannot afford to heat greenhouses while potato farmers are struggling to absorb massive increases in the cost of cold storage, the National Farmers Union has said.
The National Farmers’ Union said British farms were in an “even more precarious position” than they had been in the early days of the pandemic when close to a third of the food industry was forced to close down overnight.
“We have a very real risk now of exporting parts of our farming industry overseas and reducing the capacity of UK agriculture to feed the country,” said the NFU’s vice president, Tom Bradshaw.
Our reporter Ben Chapman has the full story below:
‘Lights will not go off this winter,’ says Octopus Energy boss
The boss of Octupus Energy Greg Jackson has assured customers that lights will not go off this winter amid the country’s energy crisis which has seen several energy firms go bust.
Writing in City AM, the boss of the British firm specialising in sustainable energy said the UK has an “unhealthy dependence on fossil energy imports.”
“Last year nearly 45 per cent of UK electricity came from renewable sources,” he said. “In fact, it’s now cheaper to generate power from renewable sources than from fossil fuels. But unfortunately the price for electricity is still set by the price for generating it from fossil fuels, and so is still hooked to those prices.
“The only solution is increased energy independence through renewables, with gas to back it up,” he added.
