Labour’s Sir Keir Starmer has claimed the Conservative Party are “hopelessly distracted by sleaze and scandal” ahead of the final weekend of campaigning for local elections across the UK.
The leader of the opposition’s comments come after a string of scandals implicating the Tories – including concerns around the lobbying activities of former prime minister David Cameron, and allegations that flat renovations undertaken by Boris Johnson were paid for with a loan from the Conservative Party.
Writing in the Northern Echo, Sir Keir said: ““The Prime Minister may not know the value of the pound in his pocket, but we know you do. The least people should be able to expect from their government is that taxpayers’ money is spent wisely.”
Conservative Party staff have been told they have one week to hand over all communication related to renovations of the PM’s flat in 11 Downing Street or face criminal consequences, according to reports.
The Times and The Sun reported all Conservative Party staff received an email from human resources about the Electoral Commission’s inquiry into how the redecoration work was funded, which told them: “You are put on notice that this is a criminal investigation.”
It comes as Nicola Sturgeon has slammed a “Brexit betrayal of fishing” after talks collapse over access to Norwegian seas, sparking anger.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer also said fishing communities had been “betrayed by the prime minister” after the talks broke down earlier this week.
The failure to reach a deal means fish and chip shops will be selling Arctic cod imported from Norway rather than landed in Britain, UK Fisheries said.
Tom Tugendhat gets jabbed
Conservative MP and chair of the foreign affairs select committee Tom Tugendhat is the latest politician to get called up to come and get his coronavirus jab.
The provision was recently extended to make all over 42s eligible for the inoculation
For all the latest coronavirus news, make sure to check out our coverage on the coronavirus live blog:
What next for Labour after local elections?
There are fears that the Labour leader is is not quite the vote-winner that had been hoped for. If Starmer fails to deliver, what has the party got left?
Chief political commentator John Rentoul says Labour should be worried:
UK aid cuts mean world’s poorest children will suffer, says UN
The United Nations children’s agency has spoken out against the UK’s massive overseas aid cuts, warning the world’s poorest youngsters “will suffer the consequences”.
Funding to UNICEF will be slashed from £40m to just £16m, it has learned – the latest in a series of dramatic spending reductions on key projects that have sparked criticism around the world.
Brexit ‘Farmageddon’
Campaign group “Save British Farming” – which has opposed government plans to weaken food standards after Brexit – has likened the government’s treatment of the fishing industry to its approach to farming.
“I wonder if George Eustice [minister for environment, food and rural affairs] will apologise to us farmers for promising that Brexit would ensure a golden era for farming when in fact it means fArmageddon?
PM ‘killing off’ Hull fishing industry, says MP
Hull MP Karl Turner says that Boris Johnson has “killed off” the local fishing industry for good with the government’s failure to negotiate a deal with Norway.
“Our people from Hull have had difficult careers fishing off the subarctic sea for hundreds of years. Kids left school and joined ships, some became skippers. Many brought families up off the back of it. It was dangerous graft and we lost too many,” he tweeted.
“We remain enormously proud of all of them. They are our history and heritage. The industry has suffered over the years and it barely survived. And now we have Boris Johnson killing it off for good. Sad times.”
Meanwhile former Brexit MEP June Mummery – who had claimed that the industry would benefit from the UK leaving the EU – has renewed her attack on Boris Johnson’s “betrayal”.
“He lied to the fishing industry and coastal communities when he repeatedly said we would take back control of our waters and the resource,” she added.
May Day Extinction Rebellion protests
Meanwhile Extinction Rebellion have organised a series of individual protests across the UK to mark two years since the UK declared a climate emergency.
“In multiple courageous acts of nonviolent civil disobedience, people are sitting alone in the face of oncoming traffic in towns and cities around the UK – including Scarborough, Weymouth, Birmingham, Oxford, Ipswich, Lincoln, Canterbury, Newcastle, Portishead, London, Newquay, Swansea, Bangor in Northern Ireland and many more”, the group said.
Kill the Bill protest gets underway
Protesters have been gathering in London’s Trafalgar Square for the latest “Kill The Bill” demonstration since 12pm.
The various groups involved include Sisters Uncut, CND, Stand up to Racism, the Socialist Workers Party and Disabled People Against Cuts.
The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Court Bill is a 300-page piece of proposed legislation that aims to provide the police with more power, including imposing restrictions on protests and making it an offence to “intentionally or recklessly cause public nuisance”.
Donaldson set to enter leadership race
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, who is Northern Ireland’s longest serving current MP, is “highly likely” to enter the race for the DUP leadership, according to reports.
The PA news agency said it had been told that Sir Jeffrey had more endorsements from MPs and MLAs than the existing frontrunner Edwin Poots.
“He has very strong support from the parliamentary team,” a source said.
Donaldson, a former member of the Ulster Unionists, was one of the most outspoken critics of David Trimble during the peace process.
‘Absolutely disastrous’
The government has been hit with criticism over its failure to strike a post-Brexit fishing deal with Norway – including from Nicola Sturgeon, who blased it as a “betrayal”.
One person who has spoken out is the boss of the UK’s last distant waters fishing business, who said no deal was “absolutely disastrous” and the environment secretary owed the industry an explanation as jobs have been “sacrificed”.
Emily Goddard has the full story:
Independent Scotland should pay no UK debt – Salmond
In other news, Alex Salmond has told a newspaper Scotland should go for a “clean break” over debt with the UK during any independence talks.
The former first minister said the position of Alba – his new political party – was for the country to pay no share of national debt after separation from the union.
Additional reporting by PA
