Markus Andrews

Understanding the politics of Northern Ireland is not easy. The Democratic Unionist Party’s weird manoeuvres and internal machinations can make Tory party plots look as tame as a Sunday-school picnic.The DUP staged a strange piece of political theatre this week by announcing that the party’s agriculture minister, Edwin Poots, would halt checks on goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. Simultaneously, DUP first minister Paul Givan quit in protest at the UK government’s failure to bring the legal checks agreed with the EU to an end.What is the DUP playing at? How badly has it messed up the Northern Ireland protocol arrangements forged in the Brexit deal? Could the latest developments even spark a trade war between the UK and the EU?It’s hard to say exactly how London and Brussels will respond in the days ahead, given that we still don’t know how the DUP’s radical move will play out.But we do know that the party’s actions have raised the stakes, as UK foreign secretary Liz Truss and her EU Commission counterpart Maros Sefcovic wrestle with a potential compromise deal over the protocol, which would ease the rules on checks.Civil servants have continued to carry out agri-foods checks this weekend amid legal uncertainty, while Mr Poots’s order for border officials to stop the checks is being challenged in the courts.It remains unclear whether the checks will be halted next week – or whether the order will be stuck in legal limbo for many weeks to come. Trade bodies are advising companies to carry on as normal, for now.Sinn Fein, not unfairly, have described the DUP’s moves as “stunts” purely aimed at improving the party’s chances at the forthcoming May elections. But the radical electioneering has intense and potentially catastrophic real-world consequences.The Republic of Ireland’s foreign affairs minister, Simon Coveney, has said that the ending of the checks required by the protocol would be a “breach of international law”, and would violate the terms of the Brexit deal.Top EU officials are keeping calm for now, but are deeply unimpressed that Ms Truss and other ministers are refusing to condemn the DUP or otherwise get involved, with the UK government taking the line that the mess is a “matter for the executive” in Belfast.Mr Sefcovic has said that the UK government has a “responsibility” for the checks agreed in the protocol, and can’t blame the failure to meet these obligations on the naughty children running the show in Northern Ireland.But Ms Truss and Team UK will try to argue that the facts on the ground show exactly why the EU needs to give way and ease up on the checks.It’s unlikely that the EU would look at the end of agri-food checks as amounting to the triggering of Article 16 – the means by which Downing Street has threatened to suspend parts of the protocol – by default.But the ending of checks would put considerable pressure on the UK to agree to a deal with the EU quickly. And in the absence of an agreed London-Brussels compromise, the DUP’s incendiary move could light the fuse on the dispute, hastening a breakdown in talks and pushing Boris Johnson’s government into triggering Article 16.This takes us into trade-war territory, in which the EU takes a series of retaliatory measures for the suspension of protocol arrangements.Brussels chiefs have previously been said to have a “nuclear” option of terminating the Brexit Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), forcing the UK to trade with the EU on World Trade Organisation terms – essentially a “no-deal” Brexit scenario.But Brussels experts think it’s more likely they would consider retaliating through a lesser-known part of the TCA: Article 506. The moves could range from stopping fishing in EU waters to tariffs on UK fish going into the EU, and then move on to tariffs on other goods.Alternatively, the two sides could see sense and do a deal that would ease much of the red tape on agri-food products through an agreed list of certain goods that would still require stricter checks.Sam Lowe, a trade expert at the Centre for European Reform, said that there is another scenario in which the whole rotten mess rumbles on indefinitely – one in which the UK “continues to engage in low-level non-compliance” while “negotiations begin, stall, and begin again”.What about Mr Johnson? What does he want to do now? It’s hard to say if the embattled prime minister, fighting to stave off a Tory rebellion over Partygate, has given the problem much thought in recent days.Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the DUP leader (yes, there is actually someone in charge), has claimed Mr Johnson told him privately that there was only a “20 to 30 per cent chance” of negotiating a new protocol deal with the EU in the next few weeks.Make of that what you will. Mr Johnson makes a lot of promises that turn out to mean very little. So we are left hoping there are still enough grown-ups around to sort the whole thing out. For a while, at least. More

Former Brexit minister Steve Barclay is to become Boris Johnson’s chief of staff as the prime minister battles to save his premiership with further changes at No 10.Mr Barclay – currently the Cabinet Office minister – will combines his ministerial duties with a new job of overseeing the running of Downing Street amid the turmoil over the Partygate scandal.Downing Street also announced that Mr Johnson’s former spin doctor Guto Harri will become director of communications after Jack Doyle resigned at the end of last week.Mr Johnson claimed the shake-up of his “senior team” would “strengthen the role of my cabinet and backbench colleagues and accelerate our defining mission to level up the country”.No 10 said Mr Barclay new dual role would help would “integrate” the soon-to-be-revamped Office of the Prime Minister with the Cabinet Office.Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner said Boris Johnson was “panicking as he frantically rearranges deckchairs” – criticising the idea of Mr Barclay working for both No 10 and the Cabinet Office.“This is a farce. Being No10 chief of staff is a 24/7 job so if Steve Barclay is taking it on as his third job then Tory MPs and the public can have no confidence that the dysfunction in Downing Street will come to an end,” said Ms Rayner. Mr Harri takes on the spin doctor role after resigning from the right-wing channel GB News last year. He had been suspended for taking the knee live on air during a debate about racism and the stance taken by England’s footballers.The PR man, Mr Johnson’s spokesman and chief of staff during his first term as London mayor, recently defended Mr Johnson over his handling of the Partygate scandal – but said the PM had to “cover his weaknesses”.Mr Harri criticised Mr Johnson’s failure to get good people advising him in an interview with BBC Newscast. “Boris has always underestimated how critical it is to have a fantastic team around him,” said the new No 10 spin doctor.He also told Laura Kuenssberg on the podcast that some working in politics at Westminster had told him they were not interested in helping Mr Johnson by going to work at Downing Street as the scandal rages on.Mr Harri said he had spoken to someone who told him: “‘I’m not interested in going in to walk into the gallows’ … He said, ‘The danger is that [Mr Johnson] will leave it to the last moment and then all he is asking him to do is to join him in the gallows’.”Asked about Mr Johnson’s grilling by Beth Rigby on Sky News early in mid-January, during which the PM appeared badly shaken, Mr Harri said: “He was in a really bad place at that – bad because it was bad for him. Bad because he’s exhausted and he’s got two young kids.”The changes come after Mr Johnson lost five aides in the space of 24 hours. Mr Johnson also attempted to put a positive spin on the exodus of senior officials on as part of reset, but policy chief Munira Mirza quit in protest over his Savile smear against Sir Keir Starmer.The PM’s official spokesperson said that the resignations of principal private secretary Martin Reynolds, chief of staff Dan Rosenfield and Mr Doyle had been “mutually agreed”.In a desperate bid to win over wavering MPs considering no-confidence letters, Mr Johnson has promised them a greater role in policy-making with a “direct line” into No 10.More announcements are expected in the coming days with what No 10 said would be a “particular focus on improving engagement and liaison with MPs”. More

Cabinet ministers appear to be squabbling over loyalty to the prime minister after chancellor Rishi Sunak and health secretary Sajid Javid distanced themselves from his Jimmy Savile smear.One cabinet member called for Boris Johnson to sack Mr Sunak, according toThe Times, which also reported that two other ministers have accused him of being “on manoeuvres” for party leadership. The chancellor publicly criticised the prime minister’s discredited claim that Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer “failed” to prosecute Savile – with Mr Sunak saying he “wouldn’t have said it”.An unnamed cabinet minister told the newspaper that Mr Sunak was making “blatant” efforts to position himself as a replacement prime minister. “Once the May elections are out the way, there will be a reshuffle. Sunak has to go. I don’t see how he [Mr Johnson] can keep someone who is so openly on manoeuvres.”A fellow cabinet minister said Mr Sunak was being “sly” and “looking at the future and can see the end of Boris on the horizon”, while another criticised the chancellor’s advisers for “encouraging him to stir things up”.Mr Javid also appeared to find fault with the prime minister over the smear, saying Sir Keir deserved “absolute respect” for the job he did as director of public prosecutions.Culture secretary Nadine Dorries, a fierce defender of Mr Johnson, said on Saturday that Mr Javid was “quite shocked” at how his remarks had been reported as criticism. “I spoke to Sajid Javid last night and he reassured me that he is 100 per cent behind the prime minister,” she said. “What you’re reporting about Sajid Javid turning his back on the prime minister is not true.”Asked about Mr Sunak’s comments on the Savile saga, Ms Dorries said Mr Sunak was “entitled to his views”. But junior treasury minister John Glen has said the situation with No 10 was “deeply uncomfortable, disappointing, and embarrassing”.Writing in his local newspaper The Salisbury Journal, the MP did not call for Mr Johnson to resign, although he did say the culture in No 10 “fell short of what the country had a right to expect”. The minister said he spoke to Mr Johnson this week “and took the opportunity to tell him in person how frustrated and let down we all feel”.Speaking on Newscast, BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg said she had been told Mr Johnson was making pledges to wavering MPs in a bid to shore up support. The prime minister was said to have told a backbencher he could sack Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg.“Some say he promised to get rid of the chief whip and one MP suggested he said he would get rid of the leader of the Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg,” said Ms Kuenssberg.She added: “That is not a proven claim but that is what one MP said that in good faith the prime minister told him personally … Whether he does some of the other things he promised to MPs, we will see.”Mr Johnson has also promised backbenchers more power by announcing in a letter on Friday the creation of backbench committees to advise on government policy. More

Boris Johnson’s time at Downing Street appears to be “beginning” to end, a former Conservative minister has said.Tory MP Stephen Hammond suggested he and many others were “considering very carefully” this weekend whether to submit a letter of no-confidence in the prime minister.Asked if he had already sent a letter to 1992 Committee chair Sir Graham Brady, the senior figure said: “No I haven’t – but I’m making it very clear to you that I am considering very carefully over the weekend what are the next steps.”Mr Hammond told BBC Radio 4’s The Week in Westminster: “I think all Conservative colleagues, all of whom I know who are in it for trying to do their best for their constituents and the country, will be wrestling with conscience this weekend.”Asked if it was now “the beginning of the end” for Mr Johnson, he said: “It certainly looks like that at the moment … It looks very difficult for the prime minister from here.”The former transport minister said many wavering MPs would be considering “what he’s explained so far” on Downing Street parties during the pandemic – as well as “looking at knowledge of his personality”.Mr Hammond also rubbished claims by culture secretary Nadine Dorries that moves against the PM were a “Remainer” plot of Tories who did not want Brexit. Ms Dorries has also claimed the small “handful” of people keen to see the PM go had always disliked him.“This is predictable rubbish from a predictable source,” said the senior backbencher. “If you look at where the letters are coming from, I don’t know how anyone could stand up that claim. I think the secretary of state needs to think again.”Tories who want an end to Mr Johnson’s premiership include some red wall MPs from the 2019 intake, some former ministers and the “one nation” caucus opposed to Brexit – as well as some Brexiteers who have lost faith in his leadership.Mr Hammond, a one nation Tory, said he “did not know of any co-ordinated action” by those fed up with Mr Johnson. “Sir Graham Brady has a justified reputation for discretion. It appears colleagues are making their own minds up, over the weekend, as they should.”The backbencher said a no-confidence vote should not be “rushed” – but made clear he thought Mr Johnson had made “very serious errors” and suggested many MPs were now considering his future without waiting for the Metropolitan Police probe to conclude and the full Sue Gray report.He said it was hard for the whips to put in a “counter-operation” because MPs from all wings of the party were now doubting whether Mr Johnson had any future as prime minister.Ms Dorries told Times Radio on Saturday that “regicide runs in the veins of my party” – before insisting that attempts to overthrow the leader was limited to “a small group of MPs”.She said: “There are a small number of voices, whether they are people who were ardent supporters of Remain, who see this as their last opportunity to reverse Brexit.” More

A Black civil servant was handed a six-figure settlement by the government over allegations of racial discrimination in Whitehall, with the deputy cabinet secretary warning that there was a “systemic issue” in the Cabinet Office, The Independent can reveal.Kay Badu, 36, said he had been subjected to bullying at the hands of white managers over the course of three years in the Cabinet Office, which left him with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. At one stage, he contemplated suicide.Mr Badu, who joined the Government Digital Service in 2018 as an executive assistant, said he was held back from promotion, that a manager had used the n-word, and that he had been asked in front of colleagues: “Why do some Black people play the race card when they get into trouble?” After raising complaints, Mr Badu later found himself the subject of an investigation.Prompted by Mr Badu’s case, Dame Helen Macnamara wrote to Alex Chisholm, the Cabinet Office permanent secretary, raising concerns about the handling of race issues in the department, which describes itself as “the centre of the UK government”.In the March 2021 letter, included in Mr Badu’s employment tribunal claim submission, Dame Helen wrote: “There is a striking absence of compassion in the way Kay was dealt with from the beginning, including the way that the organisation responded to the event where Kay told people that he had been contemplating suicide.“The grievances have allowed what has happened to be interpreted as a disagreement between individuals rather than a systemic issue.“Having heard a number of testimonies over the last year in particular, I think there is a proper question to ask about how [the Cabinet Office] deals with race at a systemic level. That is not about individuals (although individual behaviour could also be problematic); it is about whether the Cabinet Office is demonstrating it is listening to people raising these concerns and taking action to change.” More

Boris Johnson ‘toxic’ even to his allies, says Malcom RifkindA photograph of Boris Johnson drinking a beer at a birthday event held for him in No 10 is among the 300 images handed to the Metropolitan Police, it has been reported.The prime minister was pictured standing next to Rishi Suank and raising a can of Estrella towards the camera in a photo allegedly taken by the official Downing Street photographer during the first national coronavirus lockdown.Defending Mr Johnson on Saturday morning, culture secretary Nadine Dorries backed a suggestion that the growing rebellion against the PM was partly a “Remainer plot”, after long-serving former schools minister Nick Gibb became the 15th Tory MP to publicly announce he has submitted a letter of no confidence.His intervention came hours after Red Wall MP Aaron Bell also called for Mr Johnson to go, declaring the prime minister’s position was “untenable” because of his handling of the Partygate scandal.Meanwhile the PM has been trying to win over unruly backbenchers – as No 10 insiders warned the increasingly isolated prime minister is becoming “unpredictable and erratic”.Show latest update

1644072648Nadine Dorries says new laws would ‘hold Netflix to account’ over Jimmy Carr’s Holocaust jokeHere’s more from Nadine Dorries’ interview on BBC Breakfast this morning.The culture secretary suggested new laws would hold to account streaming sites from airing jokes such as those made by Jimmy Carr about the travelling community and the Holocaust.In a widely-shared clip from his one-hour Netflix special, His Dark Material, Carr joked about the horror of the Holocaust and “six million Jewish lives being lost” before making a disparaging remark about the deaths of thousands of gypsies at the hands of the Nazis.Ms Dorries said: “We are looking at legislation via the Media Bill which would bring into scope those comments from other video on-demand streaming outlets like Netflix. So it’s interesting that we’re already looking at future legislation to bring into scope those sort of comments.”Pressed that she had previously claimed “left-wing snowflakes are killing comedy”, Ms Dorries said: “Well, that’s not comedy”, adding that the comments were “abhorrent and they just shouldn’t be on television”.Andy Gregory5 February 2022 14:501644071634No 10 situation ‘disappointing and embarrassing’, says Treasury ministerJohn Glen, a junior Treasury minister, said the situation with No 10 was “deeply uncomfortable, disappointing, and embarrassing”, Adam Forrest reports.Writing in his local newspaper The Salisbury Journal, the MP did not call for Boris Johnson to resign.But Mr Glen said the culture in No 10 “fell short of what the country had a right to expect, and responsibility must be taken for the mistakes that were made”.He said he spoke to the PM this week “and I took the opportunity to tell him in person how frustrated and let down we all feel”.Andy Gregory5 February 2022 14:331644070779‘No government in my lifetime has ever imploded in this way,’ Tory MP saysThe assistant editor of The Spectator – the magazine of which Boris Johnson was editor from 1999 to 2005 – reported this week that the consensus among all of the Tory MPs she had spoken to in the wake of No 10’s staff exodus was that “it is definitely a case of when Boris goes, not if”.The magazine reported on Thursday night that “everyone” agrees that Munira Mirza’s departure “ups the dial for Boris” and that while it has “felt fatal for about a week now, things are speeding up”.A formerly pro-Johnson MP – who is yet to send a no confidence letter – is reported to have told the magazine: “The staff are always the last to leave! They’re normally there in Downing Street crying as the PM finally quits, they’re thinking about the resignation honours list. “No government in my lifetime has ever imploded in this way.”Andy Gregory5 February 2022 14:191644069832Erratic PM will ‘make a mess… then play the victim when it blows up in his face’A No 10 insider told The Independent Boris Johnson’s mood has been swinging wildly amid the turmoil in Downing Street.“He’s been erratic. Boisterous and confident one moment and then bleak and full of recriminations the next,” said the source, speaking anonymously.“It’s becoming a pattern. He was difficult to handle after he’d had Covid, and after Dom [Cummings, his former top adviser] left, but now he’s even worse. He’ll make a mess, like Savile, Peppa Pig, the early lines on parties – against the clearest advice – and then play the victim when it blows up in his face.”Laurie Churchman5 February 2022 14:031644068452Ukraine: 41% of Britons think Boris Johnson handling crisis badlyLaurie Churchman5 February 2022 13:401644067252People crossing Channel to UK forced to wait hours on concrete floorPeople crossing the Channel to the UK in small boats are being forced to wait on narrow benches and a concrete floor for hours while being held at a processing site, Border Force staff have warned.The union representing immigration officers said a new temporary reception facility for processing new arrivals on the Kent coast is “less than optimal” for the men, women and children who are held there, sometimes for many hours at a time.“You’ve got folk coming through who have gone through a very hard journey. They’re wet, they need to be warm, they need to be safeguarded. We’ve got no hot food or hot water, we can’t feed or wash them,” said Lucy Moreton, professional officer at the Immigration Services Union (ISU).Laurie Churchman5 February 2022 13:201644066091PM speaks to Macron about Russia-Ukraine tensionsBoris Johnson spoke to French president Emmanuel Macron this morning about rising tensions on the Ukraine border.Russia has moved more than 100,000 troops to its neighbour’s border but denies planning an invasion.In a readout of the conversation, a spokesperson said: ““The leaders updated one another on their respective discussions with international partners, including the prime minister’s visit to Kyiv last week. They agreed that finding a diplomatic solution to the current tensions must remain the overriding priority.“The prime minister and president Macron stressed that Nato must be united in the face of Russian aggression. They agreed to continue to work together to develop a package of sanctions which would come into force immediately should Russia further invade Ukraine.“The leaders discussed their work to strengthen Nato’s Eastern flank, ensuring that allies are fully defended against malicious Russian activity, wherever and however it might occur.”The two leaders also discussed a border closer to home.The readout continues: “The prime minister re-emphasised to president Macron his commitment to work with France on the shared challenge of illegal migration in the Channel. The leaders agreed on the need to cooperate to stop people traffickers.”Laurie Churchman5 February 2022 13:011644065026Revealed: Rishi Sunak’s behind-closed-doors meetings with banking bossesRishi Sunak met with dozens of financial firms and banking industry lobby groups before seeking a “bonfire” of regulations for the City of London, analysis by The Independent has shown.The chancellor, who is reported to be putting the finishing touches to his Tory leadership campaign, is set to relax regulations and tear up rules, including some measures aimed at preventing a future financial crises.My colleague Ben Chapman has the full exclusive report here:Andy Gregory5 February 2022 12:431644064126Tory MP says he is mulling no confidence letter ‘very carefully’Tory MP Stephen Hammond has said he is “considering very carefully this weekend” whether he still has confidence in Boris Johnson, saying it “certainly looks like” the beginning of the end.He told the BBC he would be “reflecting on the events of the week, reflecting on the fact that my constituents and I and almost all of the country obeyed rules, and there seems to be a group of people who haven’t”.He said he had not yet put a letter into Sir Graham Brady, but he said: “I think I’m making it very clear to you that I am considering very carefully over the weekend, what are the next steps.“I think all Conservative colleagues, all of whom I know, are in it for trying to do the best for their constituents and the country will be wrestling with their consciences this weekend.”Asked whether it was “the beginning of the end” for the PM, he said: “It certainly looks like that at the moment.”He added: “It looks very difficult for the prime minister from here.” My colleague Adam Forrest has the full story here:Andy Gregory5 February 2022 12:281644063166‘Remainer plot’ against Boris Johnson is ‘complete nonsense’, Tory MP saysA Tory MP has disagreed with culture secretary Nadine Dorries’ characterisation this morning that those who want Boris Johnson to resign are Remainers or those have always opposed him.Stephen Hammond told BBC Radio 4: “All the rubbish written in some of the right-wing red tops about a Remainer plot, that is complete nonsense. I think as far as I can see, the people who so far declared that they’ve written a letter are from all wings of the party and none.”He said it was “predictable rubbish from a predictable source” to suggest those who wanted him to resign were all from a group of usual suspects.He said: “I’ve known Boris Johnson … I was on his campaign committee in 2008 and 2012, when he was running for Mayor of London, I’ve known Boris for all that time. I think the idea that I’ve always been against him is just nonsense.“If you look at where the letters are coming from, I don’t understand how anyone could stand up that claim, and so I think probably the Secretary of State needs to think again.”Andy Gregory5 February 2022 12:12 More

Cabinet minister Nadine Dorries has admitted that “regicide runs in the veins” of the Conservatives, as Boris Johnson fights to save his premiership from a growing backbench rebellion.The culture secretary also suggested anti-Brexit Tory MPs were behind a plot to get rid of Mr Johnson as he struggles to recover from the Partygate scandal.However, Ms Dorries also claimed the vast majority of backbenchers were still behind Mr Johnson – suggesting that “97 per cent” of Tory MPs backed him.“There are a small number of voices, whether they are people who were ardent supporters of Remain, who see this as their last opportunity to reverse Brexit,” Ms Dorries told Times Radio.Asked whether the moves against Mr Johnson were a “Remainer plot”, Ms Dorries said: “There are a number of reasons actually, it’s not just one, but that certainly is at play with a group.”The minister said “regicide runs in the veins of my party” – before insisting that attempts to overthrow the leader was limited to “a small group of MPs”.Ex-minister Nick Gibb has become the 14th Tory MP to publicly call on Mr Johnson to resign, though the number of MPs to have submitted no-confidence letters to 1922 Committee chair Sir Graham Brady is believed to be higher.Tories now keen to see an end of Mr Johnson’s premiership include some red wall MPs from the 2019 intake, some former ministers and those passed over for positions, the “one nation” caucus opposed to Brexit – as well as some Brexiteers who have lost faith in his leadership.But Ms Dorries claimed those moving against Mr Johnson were “the same names that we continually keep cropping up” and were limited to “safe seats”.She added: “Some of those same names tried to get David Cameron out and tried to get Theresa May out and are now trying to get Boris Johnson and the truth is no prime minister would please any of those.”The culture secretary told Sky News: “There are 365 Conservative MPs. And I can promise you that the vast, vast majority of those MPs, 97% of them will be out in their constituencies today, who are delivering on the promises they made to their constituents and Boris Johnson has made to them.”It comes amid reports the PM was pictured holding a beer in a photo from his 2020 birthday gathering. Mr Johnson also continues to come under pressure over his discredit claim that Sir Keir Starmer “failed” to prosecute Jimmy Savile.Chancellor Rishi Sunak raising eyebrows by criticising the PM’s Savile slur – saying he would not have made the discredited claim.Ms Dorries said Mr Sunak was “entitled to his views”. But she defended Mr Johnson’s remarks by insisting it was right for the Labour leader to have acknowledged the failure of the Crown Prosecution Service when he was head of the body.“What I would say is that when you lead an organisation, you are responsible, the responsibility lands on your desk for what happens within that organisation when you’re leading it,” she said.Health secretary Sajid Javid also appeared to criticise the prime minister over the smear attack, saying Sir Keir deserved “absolute respect” for the job he did as director of public prosecutions.But Ms Dorries told Sky News Mr Javid was “quite shocked” at how his remarks had been reported, adding: “I spoke to Sajid Javid last night and he reassured me that he is 100% behind the prime minister. What you’re reporting about Sajid Javid turning his back on the prime minister is not true.”Earlier on Saturday, Ms Dorries refused to say how much she “communicates” with Mr Johnson in an awkward interview with BBC Breakfast.She also appeared to mix up two Tory MPs with similar names – Martin Vickers and Matt Vickers – while defending Mr Johnson on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. More

David Cameron’s controversial legacy project has had its budget slashed by two-thirds in a review of government youth funding.The National Citizen Service (NCS), set up by the then prime minister in 2011, has had its share of cash cut from 90 per cent of the overall government budget for youth funding to just 30 per cent.It follows an investigation in The Independent that found the scheme had consistently failed to meet government targets or deliver value for money, that executives were being handed six-figure salaries despite dwindling youth participation and that a former board member said the programme was little more than “a holiday camp for mostly middle-class kids.”NCS, which has received £1.3bn of taxpayers’ money since 2011, was set up to run summer and autumn residential programmes for 16- and 17-year-olds to help them become better citizens, but no residentials were run in 2021 and only one smaller residential in autumn 2020 due to Covid-19.Now the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has dramatically reduced money for the scheme. It has announced a total youth services package of £560m over the next three years, of which £171m – 30 per cent of the total – is earmarked for the NCS, down from more than 90 per cent in previous years.This gives NCS only £57m a year, less than one-third of their typical pre-Covid funding package of around £180m a year, and a sharp reduction, too, on funding for the last two Covid-affected years of £75m and £85m respectively. Shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell MP said the government had been “playing favourites” for years with Cameron’s pet project “without ensuring results and value for money”.She added: “Ministers cannot deflect from their legacy of failure, which has slashed grassroots youth support to the bone in communities across the country, whilst disproportionately funding the National Citizen Service. There is a desert of support in many areas of the north and midlands because this government has played favourites without ensuring results and value for money.”DCMS said its new spending plans were the outcome of consultations with 6,000 young people and 170 youth organisations, in which the biggest clear ask to emerge from young people was for “regular weekly clubs and activities” – in stark contrast to the one-off residentials offered by NCS, which involved young people for just two or three weeks a year. DCMS will instead use the majority of the youth budget to fund up to 300 new and refurbished youth facilities “in the most deprived parts of England”, providing young people with “a space to engage in positive activities outside of school” and ongoing “access support from youth workers”. DCMS has also effectively slapped down NCS for being too middle-class, demanding the organisation starts to “reform”, be more “cost-effective”, and reach more young people “from disadvantaged backgrounds” in a “year-round offering” as part of the government’s so-called “levelling up” agenda. The chief executive, Mark Gifford, acknowledged that the organisation would need to evolve its strategy to keep up with the expectations of users as well as meeting the “levelling up agenda” expectations of the government. Asked about the £85m last year, Mr Gifford said: “Whilst we did not run any residentials due to government restrictions, we ran programmes which delivered a similar experience, but with day travel to activities in the local community. On the summer programme, despite Covid, we reached around 35,000 young people and in autumn we reached just over 12,000. We also delivered skills booster sessions in a range of schools. We have some programmes still running and are not able to confirm final numbers for this financial year until April 2022.”Mr Gifford sought to remain upbeat, despite the funding review falling short of expectations. He said: “We’ve always been ambitious with our plans but are also aware of the incredible demands on the public purse as the country emerges from Covid. Far from feeling disappointed, we are fired with energy and optimism for what we can do to support the next generation of citizens.”Mr Gifford continues to take a remuneration package of over £160,000, with five other members of the leadership team paid well over £100,000 a year. But with current annual costs of £72m exceeding the future funding package by £15m, the organisation faces tough choices and severe cuts as it seeks to reimagine its purpose, balance its budget and keep a clear vision. More