Markus Andrews

There are still not enough black headteachers in England’s schools, the education secretary has said.Addressing the school leaders union, the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) in London on Saturday, Nadhim Zahawi said workplace diversity at the top of education was “not good enough”.The new secretary of state’s comments appear to mark a break in emphasis with predecessor Gavin Williamson, who he replaced in a Cabinet reshuffle last month.Mr Williamson, who was unpopular with teachers, had in another context dismissed concerns about diversity, when referring to the school curriculum.But asked about diversity at the union conference, Mr Zahawi responded that was “critical” that teaching was an “inclusive profession” so that pupils from all backgrounds felt represented and motivated.“School leadership is not representative when it comes to race, and as you say, there aren’t enough black headteachers,” he said. “I’d go further and say there aren’t enough black leaders in the civil service and high echelons of departments across Government and we need to do better there as well.”Mr Zahawi added: “I really do think that it’s critical that teaching is an inclusive profession. Schools and their leadership teams should reflect their communities and their pupils and I’m absolutely determined to see improvements.“I think we need inspiring teachers to represent and motivate pupils from all walks of life. It’s not good enough. We have got to go further and I hope we’ll do it together. I want us to make sure that we continue to encourage more black and ethnic minority candidates into the profession.”Speaking after Mr Zahawi addressed the NAHT’s conference, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the union, said: “Broadly, what we heard from Mr Zahawi today was encouraging.“The real test, though, is what he is prepared to do immediately to prise more investment from the Treasury in the Comprehensive Spending Review, and then how he chooses to develop policy in the coming weeks and months.“Mr Zahawi took questions on funding, on the move to turn more schools into academies and on the need to see a more diverse group of people becoming school leaders.“We thank him for his commitment to engage with us and to take an evidence-based approach. From my position on the conference platform I saw a real desire from him to be true to his words.” More

Energy supplies are increasingly being used as a “weapon” by foreign powers to put pressure on other countries, the defence secretary has said.Ben Wallace’s warning about “unconventional” weapons came as No.10 raised fears that a new gas pipe line being built by Russia could have security implications for the UK.The minister’s comments come as energy supplies, in particularly those of natural gas, squeeze ahead of what ministers have said will be a “difficult winter”.Mr Wallace told the Daily Telegraph newspaper: “We see some countries use energy, migration, cyber and organised crime as weapons. “Our reforms and improved cross-government integration are all designed to resist the effects.”A Downing Street spokesperson said on Friday that Britain had “repeatedly aired our significant concerns about NordStream 2, its implications for European energy security, its use in a decarbonised future and its impact on Ukraine”.Critics say the pipeline would increase European dependency on Russian natural gas and have geopolitical implications.Also week the French government threatened to use energy supplies as a way to “put pressure” on Britain to comply the Brexit agreement.Speaking on Tuesday morning the country’s Europe minister Clement Beaune told Europe 1 radio that France was exasperated by restrictions on French fishing fleets and that “the United Kingdom depends on our energy supplies”.He said measures would be taken at a national or European level in due course. More

A Conservative MP has been criticised for suggesting anyone using the term “white privilege” should be reported to the Home Office as an extremist.The Independent has obtained a leaked recording in which Jonathan Gullis says anti-racism campaigners using the term should be referred to the government’s “Prevent” programme – which is meant to track down potential terrorists.Mr Gullis, who made the comments in front of an invited audience of Tory activists at a late-night event last week, was branded “dangerously authoritarian” and urged to withdraw his remarks.During a question time session on the fringes of his party’s conference Mr Gullis, who until recently sat on parliament’s education committee, also said Labour-supporting teachers that criticise the Tories should be sacked. “The term white privilege – very quickly – is an extremist term, it should be reported to Prevent, because it is an extremist ideology,” he told the activists. “It’s racist to actually suggest everyone who’s white somehow is riddled with privilege.”The Home Office’s Prevent programme was set up to counter violent extremism and stop people from sympathising with terrorism – but it has been criticised for restricting freedom of expression and institutionalising anti-Muslim racism.Mr Gullis, who was speaking at an event organised by the Conservative Friends of Education, added: “I hope [using the term white privilege] will be reported, I hope that will be looked into, and any teacher who’s perpetuated it in the classroom ultimately should face a disciplinary hearing at the very least.”Speaking at the same event, the Stoke MP promised “consequences” for left-wing teachers, telling the audience: “The other way we can stop the cancel culture is by actually saying to the woke left lecturers and the woke left teachers – who seem to becoming more and more apparent – is that ultimately, what’s going to happen if you are going to push your ideology in the classroom there are going to be consequences for you.”He added: “For some reason if a Labour Party member wants to stand up in front of the classroom and say how bad and evil the Tories are, then the headteacher has to take some kind of sympathetic view to that. It’s absolutely disgusting, we need to start sacking people who are pushing their political ideology.”Labour MP Dawn Butler told The Independent: “For a Member of Parliament and recent member of the Education Select Committee to show such ignorance is as shocking as it is dangerous.”To insist that anyone using the term white privilege should be referred to the counter-terrorism Prevent course is not only bizarre, it is dangerously authoritarian and from a dystopian philosophy.”Jonathan Gullis must withdraw his comments immediately and apologise for his insensitive and frankly offensive remarks.”White privilege is the idea that a person who is white benefits from inherent advantages in a society where racism existsMr Gullis is far from the first Conservative MP to make extreme remarks on the subject of anti-racism. His MP colleague Tom Hunt previously claimed the Black Lives Matter movements wants to abolish the family, while Suella Braverman has referenced the “cultural Marxism” conspiracy theory.Equalities minister Kemi Badenoch has meanwhile railed against “critical race theory”, an amorphous term that has gained currency in right-wing circles to push back against a new wave of anti-racism.But some Tories are uncomfortable at their party’s shift towards radical right-wing rhetoric. Party chair Oliver Dowden was challenged by party activists at the conference who criticised his “anti-woke rhetoric” and the government’s pursuit of draconian legislation “antithetical” to Tory values. Meanwhile Matt Warman, MP for Boston and Skegness told a fringe event: “[Woke’] now means so many things to so many different people, it’s becoming an increasingly diverse term that is somewhat devoid of value.“And we need more sophisticated, more nuanced ways of talking about this stuff – because, otherwise, we will be trapped into a debate that doesn’t work in the way that we need to.” More

Czechs voted in a parliamentary election for a final day Saturday, with polls suggesting Prime Minister Andrej Babis a populist billionaire, has a good chance of retaining power despite a turbulent first term featuring numerous scandals..Two days of balloting to fill 200 seats in the lower house of the Czech Republic’s parliament took place in the immediate wake of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists reporting details of Babis’ financial dealings in a project dubbed the “Pandora Papers.”The consortium’s findings alleged Babis put over $20 million into shell companies to buy 16 properties in France. The Pandora Papers presented details of how many of the world’s richest and most powerful people allegedly hide their wealth from tax collectors.Babis, 67, has denied wrongdoing.All polls favor his centrist ANO (YES) movement to place first in the election with at least 25% of the vote. But it’s not clear if the euroskeptic prime minister will win big enough to be able to form a new coalition government in the Eastern European country, which is a member of both the European Union and NATO.Election results were expected later Saturday.Babis has led a minority coalition government of ANO and the leftist Social Democrats He has also governed with the support of the maverick Communists. Both the Social Democrats and the Communists might struggle to win any parliamentary seats this time. Five opposition parties put aside their differences to create two coalitions aimed at ousting Babis from power. The center-right Together coalition consists of the conservative Civic Democratic Party and Christian Democrats and the liberal-conservative TOP 09 party. The liberal Pirate Party and STAN, a group of mayors and independent candidates, formed a center-left coalition. Each coalition is predicted to win about 20% of the vote. During his aggressive campaign, Babis portrayed migration as a threat even though his country is not a typical destination for asylum-seekers and refugees. Ha also condemned the 27-member EU’s plan to tackle climate change.He hasn’t ruled out forming a coalition with Freedom and Direct Democracy, an anti-migrant, anti-Muslim party that wants to lead the Czech Republic out of the EU and to hold a referendum on its NATO membership. Polls gave the party a bit over 10% support. More

The EU is expected to lift a ban on sausages made in Britain being sold in Northern Ireland as part of proposals to improve post-Brexit trading arrangements, with plans to “dramatically” reduce the level of checks on goods, according to reports.European Commission vice president Maros Sefcovic announced this week that the EU was preparing to table “far-reaching proposals” aimed at reducing trade friction related to the Irish Sea.It has been reported that Mr Sefcovic will table four papers on Wednesday to improve the Northern Ireland Protocol, with measures to address the availability of UK-approved medicines and inspections on meat, diary and plant products.The proposals are expected to include a “national identity” exemption for British sausages from EU rules on prepared meat, according to The Guardian, ending a long-running dispute between Brussels and the UK government.Senior EU sources also told Euronews on Friday that the commission was preparing to announce a “bespoke” arrangement for Northern Ireland, which remains in the bloc’s single market for goods, to prevent a hard land border with Ireland.“We obviously can’t get rid of all checks; we need to protect the single market, so surveillance will still apply but we hope to simplify a lot of this,” a source told the news network.Boris Johnson has previously said that he would do “whatever it takes” to stop the ban on exports of sausages and other meat products from mainland Britain, suggesting that he could attempt to suspend the protocol over the issue.The reports on Friday came as Ireland’s premier Micheal Martin insisted that the UK and EU were in “solution mode” over the problems arising from the post-Brexit trade arrangements.Mr Martin was in Belfast to hold talks with Northern Ireland’s political leaders over the implementation of the protocol, which he noted was an issue of “genuine concern” for people.“They do need resolution,” the Irish leader told reporters, adding that Mr Sefcovic was “really applying himself” to the matter.“I am in no doubt that the European Union is in solution mode and will be coming forward with proposals in relation to this issue.”He added: “The United Kingdom government are signalling that they’re solution-focused as well.“So, there is a window of opportunity over the next six weeks to two months to try and get these issues resolved to the mutual satisfaction of all, so that we can make the protocol work operationally for the benefit of the people of Northern Ireland.”Additional reporting by PA More

Fears are growing of Christmas chaos for British businesses and consumers after industry warned of factory shutdowns within weeks as fuel prices spiral upwards.In an emergency conference call with energy intensive industries, business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng was warned that electricity costs five times their normal level were “not sustainable” for a host of companies – some of which risk irreparable damage to facilities if they are forced to turn the power off.Meanwhile, in an indication of growing concern in Downing Street about shortages in the shops at Christmas, Boris Johnson appointed a supply chain tsar to try to ensure the smooth flow of goods after weeks of empty shelves in supermarkets and snarl-ups at ports. Downing Street itself acknowledged the issues facing businesses across the UK were now “acute”.Sir Keir Starmer accused the prime minister of allowing the country to descend into chaos by failing to develop a plan to cope with shortages of workers, including HGV drivers and meat processors, or with the unprecedented spike in global energy prices.And Labour branded Johnson a “chancer” after he turned to former Tesco CEO Sir David Lewis as supply chain adviser just days after accusing business of creating the labour crisis by underpaying staff and relying on cheap migrant workers.Sir David will head a new Supply Chain Advisory Group operating until the end of this year in a bid to head off shortages of goods in the vital festive period of soaring demand.As Ofgem warned of a “significant” rise in domestic heating costs in the spring, industry sources told The Independent they expected April’s hike in the energy price cap to be a massive 34 per cent, pushing bills for around 15 million households on default tariffs over £1,700.The developments came as the Bank of England warned of a wave of insolvencies from companies left vulnerable by the scale of debt they have accrued during the Covid-19 pandemic – including from government loans to keep them going through the outbreak.And research by the Office for National Statistics found that one in six adults in Britain (17 per cent) have been unable to buy essential food items and 23 per cent non-essential food items because they were not available in shops in the last fortnight.Friday’s video meeting between Mr Kwarteng and the Energy Intensive Users Group (EIUG) came after the government rejected suggestions that they might have to curb industrial energy use with a 1970s-style three-day week this winter due to a global supply shock that economists fear could derail the recovery from the pandemic.China’s regime has instructed coal mines to increase output after the country suffered blackouts in recent weeks, and the EU Commission is working on potential plans to pool natural gas purchases and storage.Speaking after the talks, UK Steel director general Gareth Stace called on the government to act as soon as possible to ease pressures on industry by cutting green levies on energy bills, as well as network charges.“On Wednesday, the prime minister said that the economy should move toward higher wages,” said Mr Stace. “The steel sector is a high-wage employer, providing high-skilled jobs that pay significantly more than the regional average.“Failing to act will mean we move away from a high-wage economy and walk blindly toward a low-wage one. We are a sector that should be at the heart of levelling up, bringing wealth and opportunity to communities outside London.”EIUG chair Dr Richard Leese said “prompt and preventative measures” were needed urgently to prevent recent shutdowns of fertiliser and steel plants being repeated in other sectors.Mr Kwarteng told representatives of sectors including steel, chemicals, paper, mineral products and glass that he was “keen to help our industrial base”.“We want to help as best we can,” said the business secretary. “There needs to be a cross-Whitehall effort and I can help make your case.”But there was no immediate announcement of action after what sources said was a listening exercise. Officials are to gather more data and information from companies over the coming weeks.And shadow business secretary Ed Miliband said: “This is an energy crisis made in Downing Street. Kwasi Kwarteng is scrambling to meet industry bosses but he is all talk.“This chaotic Tory government got us into this mess in the first place and has no plan to address it. Warm words at a meeting will be cold comfort for consumers and business who are facing ever increasing energy prices and a cost of living crisis.”The director-general at the Confederation of Paper Industries, Andrew Large, said it was “very, very clear” across all sectors that there are “serious risks of factory stoppages as a result of the costs of gas being too high to bear”.He warned: “In those circumstances, there will be a gradual knock-on effect through supply chains, right the way across manufacturing, consumer retail and other products. And so the risks are very, very real.”Mr Stace said that producers are struggling in the face of energy prices five times last year’s average on top of sudden, erratic price spikes.He added that “longer and more frequent pauses in production are becoming a fact of life” for the manufacturers. “These circumstances are simply not sustainable for the sector. We urge the government to take action, as has been done in Italy and Portugal, to support the sector.”“Energy prices are so high that some companies have been forced to suspend production even at a time when the market for steel is incredibly healthy.”While transport secretary Grant Shapps said the UK was now “at the tail end” of a petrol crisis which has seen pumps run dry for more than two weeks, the new supply chain tsar will be confronted with a host of other potential Christmas shortages, from computer consoles to pigs in blankets.On top of expensive and time-consuming Brexit red tape at the border, businesses in the supply chain have been disrupted by an estimated 100,000 shortfall of HGV drivers – many of them EU nationals who stopped working in the UK after its withdrawal from the EU.Supply chain issues have been massively exacerbated by the Covid pandemic, which has interrupted the steady flow of imports and exports around the world and driven the cost of a 40ft shipping container from China to Europe up from around $2,000 to $14,000 or more.British farmers are increasingly irate over the government decision to allow just 1,000 visas for meat-processing staff, rather than the 15,000 the industry claims it needs.Shortages of butchers and abattoir workers have prompted a cull of up to 120,000 pigs, while British turkeys will also be off the menu in many households due to a shortage of farmhands and processors.Mr Johnson said Sir David “brings a wealth of experience which will help us continue to protect our businesses and supply chains” by future-proofing them against “global supply issues”.But Labour business spokeswoman Seema Malhotra said: “British business deserves better than the chancer in Number 10. “One minute the Prime Minister is bashing business and blaming them for every ill he’s created with his chaotic government, the next he’s begging a leading businessman to help him fix shortages and the Christmas supply chain crisis.” The CBI, which has been calling for a taskforce modelled on the government’s Cobra emergencies committee, welcomed Sir David’s appointment.Director general Tony Danker said: “Establishing a taskforce to move quickly – with both business and government around the table – will ensure government is far better informed about the nature and scale of the challenges and can formulate responses at speed.” More

Boris Johnson has appointed a former Tesco boss to resolve supply chain issues causing empty shelves in shops and supermarkets.In a dramatic escalation of government acceptance of the scale of the crisis facing retail, the prime minister admitted that the problems are “acute” and affect businesses across the UK.Former Tesco CEO Sir David Lewis has been appointed in an temporary capacity as supply chain tsar to try to ease blockages in the period up to the end of the year, in a reflection of official concern that Christmas could be spoilt by disruption to the availability of food items and gifts.Deliveries of large numbers of products have been disrupted over recent months by a shortage of HGV drivers estimated by the Road Haulage Association to stand at around 100,000 – of whom about 30,000 are EU nationals who stopped working in the UK because of Brexit.The UK’s withdrawal from the EU, which took effect on 1 January this year, has also meant expensive and time-consuming new red tape at borders, as well as sharp hikes in charges for sending parcels to and from the continent.Sectors which were reliant on migrant labour from the EU, often travelling to the UK for seasonal work over a few months a year, have in many cases found themselves unable to recruit homegrown replacements. Farms have reported being forced to leave fruit unharvested for want of pickers, while a cull of an estimated 120,000 pigs is under way because of reduced capacity at meat-processing plants.And supply chain issues have been massively exacerbated by the Covid pandemic, which has interrupted the steady flow of imports and exports around the world.The cost of shipping containers from China to Europe surged over the course of 2021 from around 2,000 US dollars to $14,000 or more per 40-foot container, though recent weeks have shown signs of price pressures easing.The truck driver shortage has led to snarl-ups at commercial ports, with Felixstowe last month informing customers that it was restricting the return of empty containers because its storage yards were overfull.Downing Street said Sir David will “assess and resolve acute supply issues facing businesses across the UK”.This will include advising Mr Johnson and Cabinet Office minister Stephen Barclay on long-term changes to UK supply chains for goods, as well as working with government officials on action swiftly to resolve short-term blockages.He will co-chair the new Supply Chain Advisory Group of external experts as well as the new Industry Taskforce, to listen to concerns of professionals on the ground.Mr Johnson said: “I’m pleased that Sir David Lewis is joining the team who have been working on future-proofing our supply chains across the United Kingdom as we recover from the pandemic.“There are currently global supply issues which we are working with industry to mitigate and Dave brings a wealth of experience which will help us continue to protect our businesses and supply chains.”Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer criticised the PM for “refusing to take responsibility” for shortages and “offering only jokes and slogans”.Speaking during a visit to a breakfast cereal factory in Manchester, Sir Keir said: “Boris Johnson failed to act when industry warned him of driver shortages months ago, allowing this chaos to develop.“Without an adequate plan to recruit and train more drivers now, the chaos will continue as demand rises in the run-up to Christmas.“Britain needs a high-wage high-productivity economy, but this government has no plan to get there.“Instead, wages are stagnant, bills are rising, and the Conservatives are raising taxes on working families and small businesses.” More

Keir Starmer accuses Tories of ‘turning on the poorest’ over Universal Credit cutBoris Johnson has brought in former Tesco boss Sir David Lewis in a bid to resolve supply chain issues causing empty supermarket shelves, after dismissing fears of a crisis earlier this week.In a dramatic escalation of government acceptance over what the retail sector faces, the PM admitted the problems are “acute” and affect businesses across the UK.Ex-Tesco CEO Sir David has been appointed in an temporary capacity as supply chain advisor to try to ease blockages in the period up to the end of the year, in a reflection of official concern that Christmas could be spoilt by disruption to the availability of food items and gifts.It comes amid various crises threatening the UK’s economy all at once, with fresh warnings today that millions of consumers face a massive increase of more than one-third (34 per cent) in energy prices next spring. Meanwhile, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer accused the government earlier of “turning on the poorest in our society” by choosing to go ahead with the £20-a-week Universal Credit cut. Follow our live coverage belowShow latest update

1633704860Watch: Government film urges people to get their winter vaccinesGovernment film urges people to get their winter vaccinesSam Hancock8 October 2021 15:541633703979Opinion: ‘PM makes Starmer look like a serious man for serious times’Our political columnist Andrew Grice on public opinion post-conference season.The public (Tory voters included) are increasingly critical of the government’s economic record. According to YouGov, Labour has drawn level with the Tories as the best party to handle taxation, and more people expect taxes to rise under the Tories than expect them to under Labour. But Labour still has much work to do: 29 per cent say the Tories are the best party to handle the economy, and only 19 per cent Labour.Opinium found that voters preferred Starmer’s conference speech (5.9 out of 10) to Johnson’s (4.7), but the prime minister’s landed well with 2019 Tory voters, and Labour will be disappointed that the Tories’ overall poll lead has not yet been eroded.Some Labour insiders smell danger in Johnson’s other desired dividing line: between his optimism and Labour’s pessimism. Read the piece in full here:Sam Hancock8 October 2021 15:391633703408Watch: Driver hits out at Insulate Britain protestersDriver hits out at Insulate Britain protesters blocking daughter from getting to schoolSam Hancock8 October 2021 15:301633702675Flags at Westminster lowered to half-mast for MP BrokenshireThe flags in New Palace Yard in the Palace of Westminster have been lowered to half-mast in tribute to James Brokenshire.The Tory MP, who served as a Cabinet minister under Theresa May, died this week after a long battle with lung cancer.Sam Hancock8 October 2021 15:171633701177‘Dramatic escalation of acceptance’: PM hires ex-Tesco boss amid supply issuesFollowing my post at 2.10pm, here’s our political editor Andrew Woodcock on what Boris Johnson appointing ex-Tesco boss David Lewis means.In a dramatic escalation of government acceptance of the scale of the crisis facing retail, the prime minister admitted that the problems are “acute” and affect businesses across the UK.Former Tesco CEO Sir David Lewis has been appointed in an temporary capacity as supply chain advisor to try to ease blockages in the period up to the end of the year, in a reflection of official concern that Christmas could be spoilt by disruption to the availability of food items and gifts.Read the full report here:Sam Hancock8 October 2021 14:521633701017‘Today is a very say day,’ Hoyle says after Brokenshire deathAnother touching tribute now for Tory MP James Brokenshire, whose family announced today he had died after suffering from lung cancer.Sir Lindsay Hoyle, speaker of the House of Commons, said: “I will always remember James for his positivity and good sense of humour – and for being one of the most friendly, thoughtful and well-liked people in the House of Commons. His passing is a profound loss to us all.“He was a politician who commanded affection and respect from colleagues, no matter which party they represented. In a career spanning 16 years, James’ contribution to public life was immense, serving in successive governments in ministerial roles across the Home Office, as well as serving as secretary of state for Housing, Communities and Local Government, and later secretary of state for Northern Ireland. His commitment to serving his constituents in Old Bexley and Sidcup was also obvious to anybody he knew.“Today is a very sad day. My thoughts go out to his wife Cathy and their three children.”Sam Hancock8 October 2021 14:501633700553Factories face temporary closures over spiralling energy costsIndustry leaders in these energy intensive sectors will meet the business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng on Friday afternoon. They plan to lay out the severe impact energy prices for electricity and natural gas have had on their operations, The Independent understands.The impact of sustained high energy costs is so severe several companies are weighing temporarily closing operations in the weeks and months ahead. Electricity hedging costs for early next year, as an example, are five times the average seen last year in some cases.Our economics editor Anna Isaac and political editor Andrew Woodcock have the full report:Sam Hancock8 October 2021 14:421633699403Watch: Starmer calls PM’s conference speech ‘a load of baloney’Boris Johnson’s conference speech ‘a load of baloney’, says Starmer’Sam Hancock8 October 2021 14:231633698630PM appoints former Tesco CEO to help with supply chain crisisPoliticsHome’s Adam Payne reports the following:Sam Hancock8 October 2021 14:101633698134Ministers warned of 34% rise in energy price cap in springMinisters have been privately warned that millions of consumers face a massive increase of more than one-third in energy prices next spring, The Independent can reveal.Energy industry sources said that they told the government that the huge hike in the energy price cap will be needed next April, based on current trends, to avoid further companies going under.A 34 per cent rise in the legal maximum charge for fuel would mean bills soaring by an average of around £434 a year for customers on default tariffs paying by direct debit, and even more for those with pre-payment meters.Follow our political editor Andrew Woodcock’s exclusive report:Sam Hancock8 October 2021 14:02 More