A minister has denied there is a culture of misogyny in parliament despite reports more than 50 MPs are facing allegations of sexual misconduct.
Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng suggested the issue was people “working in a really intense enivronment” with “long hours”.
Asked about reports 56 MPs are allegedly facing allegations of sexual misconduct that have been referred to the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme, he said it was “extraordinary” but insisted he had “never seen any of it” in parliament.
It comes following the resignation of Tory MP Neil Parish after he admitted watching pornography in the House of Commons in what he described as a “moment of madness”.
The Tiverton and Honiton MP claimed he looked at adult material twice, the first time stumbling on a porn website while looking for tractors online, but returning deliberately on the second occasion.
Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle has called for “radical” reform to working practices in parliament, suggesting staff should no longer be employed by the parliamentarians they work for.
Nicola Sturgeon ways she will not ‘shy away’ from dealing with misconduct in SNP
Nicola Sturgeon has said she will “not shy away” from dealing with issues of misconduct within her party.
Appearing on Sky News, the first minister was asked about sexual misconduct allegations within her own party, as SNP MP Patrick Grady is investigated over claims he groped two male researchers.
She said she did not know the status of the investigation, adding: “I’ve seen what has been reported, as I understand it the process is under way. I have not seen any findings.”
Ms Sturgeon stressed she was not trying to “dodge” the issue and said the claims should be fully investigated.
She added: “I’m not trying to dodge this. It’s important that the process is allowed to proceed.
“When I do know whether … finally things have been upheld, I’m happy to come on and talk to you about that.”
PM’s ‘anti-woke’ agenda fuels sexism in parliament, says senior Labour woman
Boris Johnson’s “anti-woke agenda” has helped fuel the rise in misogynistic behaviour in parliament, one of Labour’s most senior women MPs has said.
Margaret Hodge’s comments came after the resignation of Tory MP Neil Parish for watching porn in the Commons chamber, and amid a flood of complaints about women at Westminster being groped, objectified and belittled because of their sex.
Our political editor Andrew Woodcock has the full story:
‘Anti-woke culture driven from top’ allows sexual misbehaviour to be seen as norm, says veteran MP
Veteran Labour MP Margaret Hodge has claimed an “anti-woke culture driven from the top” has allowed behaviour like that of a politician caught watching porn in the Commons chamber to be seen as the norm.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s The World This Weekend as 56 MPs reportedly face allegations of sexual misconduct, she said: “What’s it all about? I think it’s partly the MPs think of themselves as special and important and therefore it’s ok for them to behave like that and I also think it’s something about the culture led from the top.
“We have had Boris Johnson sort of creating a culture where it’s OK to break the rules and we’ve got a sort of anti-woke culture being driven from the top.
“Before I came on the programme, I looked at Liz Truss’s Twitter account – she hasn’t commented on this and yet she’s minister for women. She ought to have done and it’s sort of that anti-woke culture has also I think allowed this sort of behaviour to be seen as the norm.”
Greens still seek UK’s exit from Nato despite Ukraine war, says leader
The Green Party would seek to move the UK out of Nato in the long-term once the conflict in Ukraine is over, its co-leader has said.
Adrian Ramsay told Sky News he did not want to “change structures in the middle of a conflict”, but believes the UK should leave the military alliance in the future.
Asked on Sky News whether the Greens’ position on Nato had changed as a result of the Ukraine conflict, Mr Ramsay confirmed it had not.
He said: “We have a long-term policy about reviewing what structures we need to have to build peace in the world and we have to remember this conflict has happened at a time when we are part of Nato, when we are still seeing nuclear weapons dominate.
“Of course we are not about changing structures in the middle of conflict and what we need to do at the moment is focus on how Ukraine can be supported in a wide variety of ways.”
Mr Ramsay suggested the UK needs to focus on “peacekeeping and getting the parties to the table” as well as “stronger economic action”.
Sir Keir Starmer says he will not ‘hug any previous Labour leader’ in hi style of leadership
Sir Keir Starmer has said he will not “hug any previous Labour leader” in his style of party leadership.
But he did pay tribute to former prime minister Sir Tony Blair, who has endorsed Sir Keir in a campaign video ahead of the local elections.
Asked by Sky News if he felt closer to the leadership of Sir Tony or Jeremy Corbyn, Sir Keir repeated a claim he made ahead of his election as Labour chief that he would not have “the name of some previous Labour leader tattooed on my forehead”.
He added: “Let me just tell you what I said at the time, which was I am not going to hug any previous Labour leader because I don’t believe that you go backwards to go forward.
“I will learn from any Labour leader, I will talk with any Labour leader and if it is Tony Blair who has won three elections, Gordon Brown who won it with them, then I will happily take their advice and talk with them.”
PPE storage costing taxpayers nearly £500k a day, claims Labour
PPE storage is costing the taxpayer nearly half a million pounds a day, Labour has claimed, as the cost-of-living crisis begins to bite.
The government has revealed that storage of personal protective equipment (PPE) related to Covid is estimated to be £3.3 million a week.
Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner, who requested an estimate of the costs, has claimed this equates to £471,429 being spent every day on storing PPE.
She said struggling families would be “outraged” to learn how much is being “frittered away” on PPE storage costs.
Labour also claimed its analysis shows government “waste” on PPE over the course of the pandemic would be enough to save each household in the UK more than £310.
The written question from Ms Rayner also revealed that £5.8 million of taxpayers’ money had been spent on PPE storage in China at the end of 2021.
Tensions over cost of living surface, as Kwarteng sets face against ‘arbitrary’ windfall tax on energy firms
Cabinet divisions over the cost-of-living crisis have burst into the open, as business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng set his face firmly against an “arbitrary” windfall tax on energy firms just days after Rishi Sunak indicated he was ready to consider the move.
Mr Kwarteng’s comments came as inflation and the cost of living emerged as the key issue for crunch local elections across Britain on Thursday, with opposition parties arguing that a windfall tax could help ease the burden of soaring gas and electricity bills on families.
Andrew Woodcock has the full story:
Call to make watching porn in public place a criminal offence
Watching pornography in a public place should be made a criminal offence in the UK, the author of a keystone new report on misogyny told The Independent.
Eminent barrister and peer Helena Kennedy said that had been a dramatic and alarming increase in recent years in men viewing hardcore porn on trains or buses when seated next to women they do not know or showing women graphic pictures in workplaces, pubs and clubs, apparently getting a thrill from the discomfort and distress they cause.
More on this from our political editor Andrew Woodcock:
Business secretary unclear on ‘emergency budget’ to tackle cost-of-living crisis
Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng suggested there will not be an “emergency budget” to tackle the cost-of-living crisis, before walking back the comments.
He told Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday: “There won’t be an emergency budget…”
Questioned further, he said: “I’m not ruling out, it’s not in my power to do that.
“You know as well as I do, and many of your viewers, that budgets are for the Chancellor. All I’m saying is that there’s been considerable amount of support already.”
Cabinet rift appears over prospect of windfall tax on oil and gas profits
Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has voiced firm opposition to a windfall tax on oil and gas companies despite Chancellor Rishi Sunak raising the possibility.
The cabinet minister was adamant it would be a “disincentive” to investment by energy giants despite his colleague in the Treasury using the threat to encourage spending, as their profits soar along with customers’ bills.
But Mr Kwarteng did not rule out that the move, long called for by Labour, is being considered by the Government as a measure to alleviate the cost-of-living crisis.
He told Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday: “I’ve never been a supporter of windfall taxes – I’ve been very clear about that publicly. I think they discourage investment.”
And he said on the BBC’s Sunday Morning show “it doesn’t make much sense to me to then hit them (energy firms) with a windfall tax which is arbitrary and unexpected”.
