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Liz Truss strengthened her lead over Tory leadership rival Rishi Sunak following last night’s TV debate, a bookmaker says.The foreign secretary and former chancellor traded blows on the cost of living crisis, taxation and the economy in a lively contest on BBC One.Both candidates defied warnings by Tory Party grandees to keep the debate clean as they engaged in personal attacks during the hour-long discussion.Ms Truss accused her rival of “project fear” after he warned that her tax-cutting plans would lead to rising interest rates, while Mr Sunak reminded the former international trade secretary of her support for Remain in the Brexit referendum.William Hill said that punters were apparently “initially impressed” by Mr Sunak’s performance but Ms Truss later regained the initiative.Recommended“Liz Truss had drifted to 1/2 but it’s been one-way traffic since and she’s back into 3/10 with our customers feeling she is the more viable candidate at this stage,” Tony Kenny, William Hill spokesperson, said. More

The government has been accused of trying to hide a lack of action over the dumping of sewage into rivers and coastlines around England.Ministers were told their approach to transparency “absolutely stinks” after they refused to disclose to MPs if and when they had met with water bosses to solve the problem.It comes after the government was placed under investigation by the environment regulator for allegedly failing in its duties to manage the quality of water.Deteriorating water quality in England’s rivers and seas is a growing concern, with private water companies routinely discharging untreated human waste on a regular basis.Despite rules that say they should only be dumping the sewage in exceptional circumstances, official figures show storm sewage discharges surged by more than a third between 2019 and 2020, to 403,171 incidents.RecommendedEngland’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty has said the growing problem of faeces in river water is a “major issue” and “unacceptable on health grounds”.But asked through a written parliamentary question when they had met with water companies over the issue, Conservative water minister Steve Double appeared to stonewall.He referred MPs to another answer he had previously given in which he said the government “repeatedly made it clear to the water industry that the current use of sewage discharges is unacceptable” – but gave no list of meetings or indication that any had focused on the problem.”This absolutely stinks of ministers hiding from their failure to stop the sewage scandals,” said Liberal Democrat environment spokesperson Tim Farron, who asked the question.”When will the Government come clean about their lack of action on water companies dumping sewage into our treasured lakes, rivers and beaches?”Mr Farron, a former Lib Dem leader, added: “It is time we made the polluter pay for their actions. “This should include a Sewage Tax on the multi-billion pound profits of water companies. Instead, we have a Minister refusing to even tell us if they are meeting with water companies, let alone taking tough action on them. What a complete farce. “Both the Environment Agency and British public want action on this, yet Conservative Ministers seem to think otherwise.”The Office for Environmental Protection’s investigation, launched last month, is probing whether environment secretary George Eustice, the Environment Agency (EA) and water services regulator Ofwat failed in their duties in the management of water quality.The OEP investigation will seek “to determine whether these authorities have failed to comply with their respective duties in relation to the regulation, including the monitoring and enforcement, of water companies’ own duties to manage sewage”, the organisation said in a statement.Approach for comment, a Defra spokesperson said: “Restoring our rivers is a government priority. We regularly meet water companies at an official and ministerial level to discuss policies and issues related to water quality. Recommended“Ministers and water companies have held three meetings this year where storm overflows were specifically discussed, in addition to further regular meetings to discuss a range of other water quality issues over the course of the year. “We have been consistently clear that we expect water companies to take significant and urgent action to tackle pollution and we won’t hesitate to take further action if we do not see the changes we expect. This has been communicated directly to water companies at all levels.” More

Boris Johnson has admitted a long-running investigation into Islamophobia claims by the Conservative MP Nusrat Ghani must now wait until his successor in No 10 is appointed.It follows the Tory MP’s allegations over six months ago that she was informed by a government whip her Muslim faith was “making colleagues feel uncomfortable” when she lost her ministerial job in 2020.In January, a No 10 spokesperson said the prime minister had tasked the Cabinet Office with conducting an inquiry into the allegations made by Ms Ghani and to “establish the facts about what happened”.But in an update the Commons Liaison Committee — published on Tuesday — Mr Johnson told MPs the investigation had not been completed by his independent ethics adviser Lord Geidt before his resignation.Last month Lord Geidt became the second adviser to quit the post in two years in a major blow to the prime minister, who failed to appoint a successor and floated proposal to abolish the post of ethics adviser.RecommendedMr Johnson added: “The investigation therefore remains outstanding and should be a matter for a new independent adviser function, as soon as appointed by my successor”.It means the probe will now not resume until September at the earliest, with the foreign secretary Liz Truss and the former chancellor Rishi Sunak vying to replace Mr Johnson in No 10.Speaking in January, Ms Ghani said she was told that at a reshuffle meeting in No 10 “‘Muslimness was raised as an ‘issue’, that my ‘Muslim woman minister’ status was making colleagues uncomfortable and that there were concerns ‘that I wasn’t loyal to the party as I didn’t do enough to defend the against Islamophobia allegations’”.She told The Sunday Times at the time it was like “being punched in the stomach” and made her feel “humiliated and powerless”.The situation escalated further when the former chief whip Mark Spencer said that he was the individual who spoke to Ms Ghani, although he strongly denied using the words claimed.“To ensure other whips are not drawn into this matter, I am identifying myself as the person Nusrat Ghani MP has made claims about this evening,” he said in a statement posted on Twitter. Recommended“These accusations are completely false and I consider them to be defamatory. I have never used those words attributed to me.”As part of Mr Johnson’s reshuffle earlier this year, Mr Spencer was appointed leader of the Commons – a position he still holds as part of the outgoing prime minister’s caretaker government. More

Boris Johnson will be a “permanent nightmare” for the new Tory leader and “top of the class” among ex-prime ministers in the ability cause trouble after leaving office, Lord William Hague has warned.Lord Hague claimed it is “already apparent” that Mr Johnson wants “revenge” on Rishi Sunak, whose resignation as chancellor precipitated mass resignations from the ministerial ranks and a fatal cabinet revolt.But the former leader of the Conservative Party between 1997 and 2001 also suggested Liz Truss, the foreign secretary who remained loyal to Mr Johnson, will face an “identical problem” if she wins the contest.His remarks come after the first head-to-head debate between Ms Truss and Mr Sunak, which descended into acrimony last night as the pair trashed each other’s economic proposals in front of Tory voters.Citing previous prime minister’s animosity towards their successor, Lord Hague said: “He is going to be [Edward] Heath with jokes added in, and [Margaret] Thatcher with with consistency taken out, all rolled into a bundle of resentment, denial, attention-seeking and attempted vindication that will be a permanent nightmare for the new prime minister”.RecommendedWriting in The Times, the former Tory leader added: “That he wants revenge on Rishi Sunak is already apparent, but if Liz Truss is elected, she will face the identical problem. The chances of her loyalty to him being repaid are close to zero.“Boris lives his life as a performance, and he will want the next act to fill every seat in the theatre of British political life.”“Johnson might be near the bottom of the class of PM’s in the reputation with which he leaves office, but he could be top of the class in the trouble he can cause afterwards”.The Conservative peer said the Tories had “no choice” but to remove Mr Johnson from No, but added: “The downside is that the party will always have the problem of what he will say next”.RecommendedLord Hague’s remarks also came as the outgoing prime minister privately told a Conservative peer during a lunch at his Chequers residence that he “does not want to resign” and “wished he could carry on” in No 10.Lord Cruddas, who has organised a grassroots campaign to support Mr Johnson, told the Daily Telegraph: “There was no ambiguity in Boris’s views. He definitely does not want to resign. He wants to carry on and he believes that, with the membership behind him, he can”.But after the comments emerged a No 10 spokesperson made the prime minister will leave the post in September when either Ms Truss or Mr Sunak are elected as Conservative leader. “The prime minister has resigned as party leader and set out his intention to stand down as PM when the new leader is in place,” they stressed. More

Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss will battle it out over the next six weeks to be the UK’s next prime minister after making it to the final stage of the Conservative Party leadership contest.The former chancellor and the foreign secretary finished in the top two places after five rounds of voting by Tory MPs, with Penny Mordaunt eliminated after a bitterly fought contest.So what happens next? The final two now switch their focus away from Westminster and begin charming Tory members, who have the final say on who replaces Boris Johnson at No 10 in early September.Their first chance to make their pitch to Tory members – and the wider public – came on Monday 25 July, when they sparred during a heated primetime BBC debate moderated by Sophie Raworth.The duo clashed over their competing tax plans, with Mr Sunak saying Ms Truss risked inflicting “economic misery” through her lavish short-term borrowing pledges “on the country’s credit card”, and were also at odds over their records on Brexit, Russia and China, the contest occasionally taking a personal turn that threatened to become toxic.RecommendedThe two contenders will now face each other at 12 Tory hustings debates around the country, viewable on the party website, starting on 28 July in Leeds and finishing on 31 August in London.Both candidates have also agreed to feature in a Sky News debate on 4 August, with the possibility of more TV hustings events in the weeks ahead.Although the whole process does not come to an end until early September, many of the estimated 160,000 Tory members who get to decide on the next PM could make their minds up much sooner.Ballot papers will begin landing on Tory members’ doorsteps as soon as 1 August, with the party telling paid-up supporters to expect them between 1 and 5 August.And members who wish to vote online will receive an email on 2 August containing two unique security codes allowing them to cast their ballot digitally.Intriguingly, members will be able to change their mind during the contest. They can send both a physical ballot and an online ballot, with the most recent one being counted.Tory members then have until 5pm on 2 September to send their ballot to the party, with the final result announced on 5 September. More

Truss accuses Sunak of being ‘Project Fear’Boris Johnson will be a “permanent nightmare” for the new prime minister, Lord William Hague has warned amid the latter stages of the Conservative Party’s leadership contest.He claimed it is “already apparent” that Mr Johnson wants “revenge” on Rishi Sunak, whose resignation as chancellor triggered a ministerial exodus – leading to the Cabinet revolting against the PM to oust him.Lord Hague, who led the party between 1997 and 2001, suggested that Liz Truss – Mr Sunak’s rival for the top job – will also face an “identical problem” if she is the one chosen next week by 160,000 party members to become prime minister.Mr Johnson will be a “bundle of resentment, denial, attention-seeking and attempted vindication that will be a permanent nightmare for the new prime minister,” he said.Lord Hague’s remarks come after the first head-to-head debate between Ms Truss and Mr Sunak.After the pair trashed each other’s economic ideas, upbringing, and outfits in a BBC debate, Lord Fowler – who served under Margaret Thatcher – warned that such rows will see the return of the “nasty party” reputation.RecommendedShow latest update

1658846750Brexit set to cause shortage of animal medicines in Northern IrelandBoris Johnson‘s Brexit deal is set to create a shortage of veterinary medicines for sick animals in Northern Ireland, a parliamentary committee has warned.Over half of veterinary medicines used in the territory are expected to be become unavailable when the Northern Ireland protocol agreed by the UK and EU comes into full force at the end of the year, writes Jon Stone. The EU has so far extended grace periods on the medicines to allow them to be used in Northern Ireland until the end of 2022 – but supply chains are yet to adjust and MPs and ministers say they are extremely concerned.Drugs affected are expected to include those for cardiovascular conditions, anaesthetics and vaccines, including those that prevent salmonella and E. coli. More

Keir Starmer has set up a fresh clash with his own senior MPs by again ordering them to stay away from picket lines mounted by striking workers.Several shadow ministers defied the Labour leader by joining protests during last month’s rail dispute – after which he backed down on a threat to discipline them.But Sir Keir has waded back into the controversy, ahead of fresh rail strikes and the Royal Mail dispute, saying: “The Labour party in opposition needs to be the Labour party in power.“And a government doesn’t go on picket lines, a government tries to resolve disputes,” he told ITV’s Good Morning Britain.Even some of Sir Keir’s closest supporters called his first picket line ban a mistake, when he was accused of “hiding” from the strikes mounted by the RMT union over pay and redundancies.RecommendedSpeaking after Monday’s stormy TV Tory leadership race debate, the Labour leader condemned Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak “talking about clothing and earrings instead of the health service”.“If ever there was an example of a party that is absolutely lost the plot, lost any sense of purpose, then it was that debate last night,” he alleged.But Sir Keir declined to say whether a Labour government would give public sector workers inflation-matching pay rises, arguing its job would be to “create the framework for success” in negotiations.The Labour leader said: “I support the right to strike but I think the role of government is to facilitate, make sure those negotiations take place to an agreed settlement.”He also pledged: “An incoming Labour government would put in place stronger employment rights for people from day one in the job.”Sir Keir also confirmed he is backing down after appearing to axe plans to renationalise the rail companies, after a backlash from his own transport spokeswoman.Labour is abandoning its 2019 proposal to nationalise water, energy and post services, but he called rail “a bit of an outlier”.“Large parts of rail are already in public ownership and we would continue that, so the rail situation is different because of the way their contracts are run,” the Labour leader said.He added: “Apart from rail, the answer is going to lie in regulating the market, changing the market, rather than simply taking things into public ownership.”RecommendedSir Keir again failed to lift the lid on where he would find the money to fund public service improvements, after Labour opposed the National Insurance rise to rescue the NHS and social care.He repeated that he is “looking at stocks and shares, looking at those who have property portfolios” to create “a fairer tax system or a more efficient tax system”, but gave no details. More

A senior Liz Truss supporter has revealed her anger at Rishi Sunak for constantly “interrupting” her during their stormy TV debate, when they clashed over tax cuts and the economy.The Tory leadership race favourite was captured shaking her head as the former chancellor talked over her – prompting accusations that Mr Sunak was guilty of mansplaining.Simon Clarke, who is tipped to be Ms Truss’s chancellor if she wins the contest for No 10, criticised Mr Sunak, while insisting he would still be welcomed into her cabinet.‘There was genuine frustration at the tone which Rishi struck in the opening 20 minutes or so of the debate and the way he kept interrupting Liz when she was trying to set out her side of the story,” the Treasury chief secretary said.The criticism came as Mr Clarke admitted Ms Truss’s much-criticised £30bn-plus of unfunded tax cuts might led to public spending cuts in her promised emergency budget.RecommendedHe said: “We will look at public spending, at part of a new spending review when she becomes the prime minister, and make the choices required to support her tax plans.”Mr Clarke also said he expected Boris Johnson to appear at the Conservatives’ autumn conference, despite evidence that he bitterly resents being forced from office by his party.“Boris Johnson will always be welcome at a Conservative party conference,” the minister told Times Radio.After the debate, a spokesperson for the Truss camp branded Mr Sunak “not fit for office”, adding: “His aggressive mansplaining and shouty private school behaviour is desperate, unbecoming and is a gift to Labour.”However, the foreign secretary later backed away from the accusation and, at the close of the debate, said Mr Sunak would be offered a top job if she wins the contest.David Davis, a Sunak supporter, dismissed the accusation of mansplaining as “spin”, saying: “Sometimes it’s important to intervene in debates.“When we’re in the Commons, we have these comparatively fierce exchanges lots of times, all the time. This is a debate to find the prime minister of this country.”A snap poll suggested Mr Sunak failed to achieve the breakthrough he badly needs to overhaul Ms Truss when ballot papers go out to the estimated 160,000 Tory members next week.It found 47 per cent of Conservative voters believed the foreign secretary came out on top – compared with only 38 per cent handing victory to the former chancellor.RecommendedThe pair stoked the fears of many Conservatives that their party will fail to heal after the election, Mr Sunak warning Ms Truss’s economic plans would “tip millions into misery”.She hit back by accusing him of “scaremongering”, reviving ‘Project Fear’ – despite Ms Truss being a Remainer at the Brexit referendum – and likening his tax hikes to those of Labour’s Gordon Brown. More