Markus Andrews

Around two-fifths of families with children at home were already struggling to pay their bills in early April as the cost-of-living crisis deepened, a survey has found.Some 41 per cent of households with children living at home said they had struggled with their bills over the past week, according to the research carried out on 6 and 7 April.This proportion has increased from 29 per cent two years ago, according to comparethemarket.com’s household financial confidence tracker.The latest findings will not yet have captured the full impact of higher bills and additional financial pressures placed on households in April, including the energy price cap increase, council tax rises and a national insurance (NI) hike to help pay for health and social care.Nearly two-fifths (39 per cent) of families with children do not feel confident that they will be able to meet payments or stay on top of household finances over the coming weeks.Over a quarter (27 per cent) of households without children also do not feel confident about their financial future, compared with 17 per cent two years ago.

The rising cost of living is squeezing household finances and it’s becoming harder for families to manage day-to-day spendingAlex Hasty, comparethemarket.comMore than half (54 per cent) of those surveyed are cutting back on eating out, while others are spending less on clothes (48 per cent) and holidays (44 per cent).Nearly a third (32 per cent) said they are cutting back on food.Two-fifths (40 per cent) of households have now spent some or all of their savings built up during lockdown – rising to half (50 per cent) of families with children at home.More than half (57 per cent) do not feel confident that their savings will last them the rest of the year, or will cover future rises in the cost of living.More than a fifth (21 per cent) of households believe they are likely to take on extra debt to afford everyday bills, rising to 37 per cent of those with children living at home. More

The government will attempt to delay a vote on a probe into whether Boris Johnson misled parliament over partygate, after the PM suggested the scandal matters little to voters.Mr Johnson will be on an official trip to India when a Labour-led motion calling for a parliamentary investigation into whether he lied to the Commons takes place on Thursday.The PM tried to avoid discussing partygate on the flight to Gujarat, as he vowed to fight the next election no matter how many times he is fined for breaching Covid laws.The government has tabled an amendment to defer the vote on the Commons inquiry until the Metropolitan Police’s own probe into lockdown-busting parties in Downing Street and Whitehall has concluded, and the Sue Gray report has been published.This will allow MPs “to have all the facts at their disposal” when they make a decision, it said.It is understood that all Tory MPs are being whipped to support the amendment.But former Conservative minister Andrew Mitchell suggested on Wednesday evening that the PM could be referred to the Privileges Committee without a vote.He told ITV’s Peston programme: “I don’t think there will be a vote tomorrow. I think the House of Commons will agree to refer it to the Privileges Committee. More

A new natural history GCSE focusing on how to protect the planet is set to be announced by the education secretary, Nadhim Zahawi, on Thursday.The new qualification – set to be available from September 2025 – will focus on topics such as climate change and biodiversity.Environmentalists have welcomed it as a means of helping teenagers with mental health issues.Mary Colwell, who led the campaign for the subject, said it will be “very nurturing and life-enhancing” by connecting secondary school students with the natural world.She also said understanding nature will help students recognise impacts of climate change as they happen.“But it’s not just about problem solving and tackling climate change,” she said. “I think that the natural world provides people with a lot of solace and inspiration and we are in challenging times, being surrounded by things that nurture us. The study of natural history is very nurturing and life-enhancing.”The lack of engagement with nature among the youth population is a growing concern for policymakers. Spending time in nature is known to have a positive effect on mental health but research has found that three-quarters of children spend less time outdoors each day than prisoners. Ms Colwell said the new GCSE “could help young people with mental health issues and I think that was one of the reasons why [former environment secretary] Michael Gove was very keen – he was very supportive of the idea when we went to see him back in 2018 and he kept raising the idea that I can see the connections between this and a mental health crisis in young people.“There is a connection between connecting with nature and better mental health.” More

Conservative MPs are being warned not to join an “Owen Paterson-style cover-up” by blocking an inquiry into how Boris Johnson misled parliament about the No 10 parties.A vote on Thursday will seek to send the controversy to the Commons privileges committee, with the power to force the release of reports, documents and photos – and recommend any punishment.Crucially, the probe would not start until after the police investigation has concluded, to prevent the government arguing it would clash with the Met’s ongoing work.And it does not accuse Mr Johnson of “deliberately” misleading the Commons – which, under the ministerial code, would require his resignation – again, to make it harder to oppose.Late on Wednesday, the Conservatives tabled an amendment to the motion, tabled by almost all Opposition parties, which would kick the issue into the long grass.It would shelve a vote on whether to hold an inquiry until after both the Met and Sue Gray’s stalled investigation have concluded – and is almost certain to pass, with Tory MPs whipped to back it.But Labour says it will plaster the names of Tory MPs who block the inquiry across local elections’ leaflets and adverts, warning they will pay the price of standing by the beleaguered prime minister.It is pointing back to the public anger after last autumn’s “cover-up”, when Mr Johnson attempted to fix anti-sleaze rules to clear his ally Mr Paterson, a former cabinet minister.“Conservative MPs should reflect on the last time that the government tried to interfere on a privileges investigation, with the Owen Paterson case, and what happened there,” Keir Starmer’s spokesman said.The motion points to four specific statements by the prime minister which “appear to amount to misleading the House”, which are:* 1 December 2021 – that “all guidance was followed” in No 10.* 8 December 2021 – that Mr Johnson had been “repeatedly assured since these allegations emerged that there was no party and that no Covid rules were broken”.* 8 December 2021 – that he was “sickened” by the video of his former spokeswoman Allegra Stratton joking about a party, but “I have been repeatedly assured that the rules were not broken”.* 8 December 2021 – that “the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times”.The Opposition parties’ argument is that the privileges committee probe is needed to establish whether the Commons was misled – which is not the role of either the Met police, or the Gray investigation.Mr Johnson has effectively conceded that it was, by accepting he broke his own Covid rules, having previously denied that any rules were breached.Sir Keir said urged Tory MPs to vote in favour of “restoring decency, honesty and integrity into our politics”.“The British public know that the rules were broken in Downing Street,” he said.Voting to say otherwise won’t persuade the public that everything was fine but will further damage the reputation of any Conservative MP who is happy to say it was one rule for the public and another for this government.” More

Boris Johnson has sent a defiant message to Tory critics on the eve of a crucial Partygate vote, vowing that he will lead the party into the next general election.Brushing aside fears that he has become an electoral liability to Tory MPs, Mr Johnson suggested the row over lockdown-busting parties at No 10 does not really matter to voters, compared to issues like the Ukraine war, jobs, growth and the cost of living crisis.And he doubled down on his attack on Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby for criticising his plans to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, insisting that the removals are “the morally right thing to do”.Mr Johnson refused to apologise for his comments about the Archbishop, which were branded “a disgraceful slur” by the Church of England after reports that he told a private meeting of Tory MPs that Welby had mustered more outrage over the immigration policy than over Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.Speaking to reporters on his trip to India, Mr Johnson said he had “a very good relationship” with the Archbishop, but added: “What I was saying was that I think we have an excellent policy to try to stop people drowning in the Channel and I was surprised to find it criticised.“I think it is the morally right thing to do, to stop cynical criminal gangs exploiting people. I think it’s a sensible, brave and original policy and Priti (Patel) has come up with something that is extremely difficult to pull off.”He firmly denied reports that he also criticised the BBC’s coverage of Ukraine at Tuesday evening’s behind-closed-doors meeting, saying: “I said I thought the policy had been misconstrued by the BBC. I had just come off the phone to (president) Paul Kagame of Rwanda, who was making that very point to me, so it’s not just my view.”The prime minister will miss Thursday’s vote on a formal Commons inquiry into whether he has committed a contempt of parliament by lying over parties, but has put Tory MPs under a three-line whip to vote down the Labour move.Conservatives will try to kick the issue into the long grass by backing an amendment to defer any vote on the proposal until after the police have completed their own inquiry and the report by civil servant Sue Gray has been published.Speaking to reporters on his plane to India, the prime minister refused to discuss suggestions put forward by his own MPs that he might call a confidence vote in himself or voluntarily submit to investigation by the Commons Privileges Committee to draw a line under doubts over his future.And he said he would not speculate on whether he would resign if he faces further fines from the Metropolitan Police for breaking Covid laws at up to five more parties.“I’m not going to speculate,” he said. “I’m going to try and focus on the job in hand.” More

Boris Johnson was accused of “running away” from his Partygate crisis last night, as he flew to India for a trade trip that critics said would achieve nothing significant.Opposition parties seized on the agenda for the visit, with no post-Brexit trade deal to be agreed – and with the prime minister set to avoid a confrontation over India’s refusal to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine.The two-day trip means Mr Johnson will be absent when he orders his MPs to block a Commons inquiry into evidence that he misled parliament about the lockdown-busting parties.No 10 is announcing a deal for a company rescued from bankruptcy by Dominic Cummings using £400m of UK taxpayers’ money to launch satellites from India.The OneWeb contract is among a raft of commercial agreements and export deals with the giant south Asian economy, valued by Downing Street at £1bn in total.But Nick Thomas-Symonds, Labour’s shadow international trade secretary, said Mr Johnson was jetting out without preparing to push forward a long-promised trade deal, by engaging with businesses, trade unions, and civic groups.Any agreement faces the formidable obstacle of Indian demands for more visas to settle and work in the UK – and no breakthroughs are expected.Mr Thomas-Symonds said: “The prime minister should be taking trade negotiations with India seriously to make sure they deliver for the British people.“Instead, he is using them to try and distract from the fact he is whipping his MPs to go through the lobby to hide his law breaking and the ever-growing cost of living crisis.”Layla Moran, the Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson, said: “Boris Johnson’s desperation to escape parliamentary scrutiny is made plain by his trip to India.“We’re told that the prime minister won’t achieve anything on this trip – he won’t sign a trade deal, and he won’t talk tough on Ukraine.”And Naomi Smith, chief executive of better democracy campaign group Best for Britain, said: “The fact that this trip means Johnson will miss a key debate and vote on his own lawbreaking is more than just a coincidence. His running away shows he doesn’t have the bottle.”Downing Street has said it is urging every country to “do everything they can” to ensure “Putin fails” in Ukraine, recently urging China’s president to intervene, in a long phone call.But it has said the prime minister will not attempt to “lecture” Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister, who has also refused to scale back military and energy purchases from Moscow.Instead, the pair will discuss “constructive” proposals for alternative sources to cut India’s reliance on Russia.Any agreement on visas, to enable a trade deal, would have to be compatible with Britain’s post-Brexit employer-sponsored immigration system, which favours workers with in-demand skills, Downing Street has said.At Westminster, any Conservative MP tempted to back a motion to send the Partygate controversy to the Commons privileges committee is likely to be threatened with the removal of the party whip.Charles Walker, vice-chair of the backbench 1922 Committee of Tory MPs, said he would abstain and predicted there would be no attempt to topple Mr Johnson as party leader in the “foreseeable future”.But, he told the BBC: “If the fines keep racking up there is only so long that the prime minister will be able to lean on his party for support.” More

Cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg has suggested the government is considering ditching plans to fit safety devices limiting speed in all UK cars because of a desire not to follow EU rules.Speed limiters were reportedly set to be made mandatory for new British cars under government plans to follow a Brussels safety standards ruling.However, hinting at a row in cabinet, Mr Rees-Mogg said he was against following EU regulations – telling MPs on Wednesday: “I don’t care what the EU does anymore.”The minister for Brexit opportunities suggested he was firmly opposed to the plan. “I better be careful … I don’t want to upset collective responsibility too much,” he told the European scrutiny committee.Mr Rees-Mogg added: “We may be putting speed limiters on people’s cars because the EU’s doing it. Because the EU’s doing it is no argument for doing anything anymore. We want to get away from this mentality.”The new safety technology – known as “intelligent speed assistance” – is dependent upon GPS tracking and cameras on the vehicle and has been described as a “big leap forward” by EU officials.Senior Tory backbencher Craig Mackinlay has urged Boris Johnson’s government against the use of speed limiters being introduced in Europe – dubbing it “Big Brother in your cockpit”.However, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has warned that an attempt to diverge from the EU rules could be bad for British manufacturers.The Department for Transport said last week that no decisions had been made taken on which safety regulations the UK would follow.Meanwhile, Mr Rees-Mogg told MPs the “best is yet to come” when it comes to ditching EU law and attempting to maximise the benefits of Brexit.Grilled on the use of new “freedoms” since Brexit, he claimed that Boris Johnson’s response to the Ukraine crisis was a “monument to freedom” that would not have been possible inside the EU.Mr Rees-Mogg said: “If you want a monument to our freedom, at the moment, it is the extraordinary leadership the prime minister has been able to give over Ukraine – which I think he simply would not have been able to do had we had to go along with … a combined EU mechanism.”The cabinet minister revealed that he now had 31 members of staff from his Brexit opportunities unit sitting in the Treasury building. “But it sits metaphysically in the Cabinet Office,” he added.The senior figure said he and his team were responsible for “innovative thinking” in scrutinising all new legislation to make sure nothing could be held back or influenced by EU law.He promised that his Brexit freedoms bill would offer a “mechanism for updating, changing and removing retained EU law in a way that will be much smoother and faster”.Mr Rees-Mogg also said his own plans for a procurement bill would help “simplify and ease” the burden of paperwork on companies applying for public contracts. More

Boris Johnson has repeated a discredited claim about more Britons being in work than before the Covid pandemic – despite previously accepting a correction by the statistics watchdog.The PM, branded a “Pinocchio prime minister” on Wednesday, told the Commons that they were “more people in work than there were before the pandemic”.It is the same claim that the UK Statistics Authority had previously scolded him for making in parliament – saying it was simply “wrong”.Mr Johnson has sought to use figures showing that there are hundreds of thousands more people on the payroll than before the pandemic began.But the figures do not include the self-employed. The total number of Britons in employment – once the self-employed are included – is more than 500,000 lower than before the pandemic began.UKSA chair Sir David Norgrove previously wrote to Mr Johnson to say “it is wrong to claim that there are now more people in work than before the pandemic began”.Asked by the Commons liaison committee last month if he accepted Sir David’s correction, Mr Johnson said: “Yes I do … I took particular care today, mindful as I am of Sir David’s chastisement on all occasions, I stressed it was payroll employment I was talking about.”But Mr Johnson again talked about “people in work” without referring to payroll on Wednesday.He told PMQs: “We’re going to get on with delivering for the British people, making sure we power out of the problems Covid has left us … More people in work than there were before the pandemic.”The Full Fact group responded: “The prime minister has just said it *again*. There are *not* more people in work now than there were before the pandemic began. There are half a million fewer.”The prime minister did use the distinction later at PMQs, however, when he said that there were “more than half a million people back on the payroll [more] than there were before the pandemic began”.Mr Johnson and his ministers have made at least 27 false statements to parliament since the 2019 election, and have failed to correct them.A recent investigation by The Independent – working with Full Fact – has found that the prime minister made 17 of these statements.None of the statements has been formally corrected – a process that is required under the ministerial code. Will Moy, chief executive of Full Fact, said it amounted to a “crisis of dishonesty”.On Wednesday, Labour published details of its attempt to instigate an investigation into whether Mr Johnson misled parliament in his initial response to reports of Covid breaches at No 10.MPs will on Thursday vote on a motion which, if passed, would refer him to parliament’s privileges committee to consider whether his conduct amounted to a contempt of the Commons.The motion – signed by the Westminster leaders of the Liberal Democrats, SNP, Greens, Plaid Cymru, SDLP and Alliance – highlights comments made by Mr Johnson in the Commons on 1 December and 8 December, including an assurance “that all guidance was followed in No 10”. Mr Johnson was branded a “Pinocchio prime minister” by SNP MP Richard Thompson at PMQs on Wednesday.But Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle called on Mr Thomson to withdraw the remark and “be more moderate” in his language. More