Markus Andrews

The far-right group Britain First has been allowed to re-register as a political party by the Electoral Commission.The watchdog said an official application “met the legal criteria”, despite leader Paul Golding holding convictions for a terror offence and hate crimes.In a statement, Britain First vowed to field candidates in upcoming elections as a “fully-fledged political party”.“This is a stupendous victory for the Britain First movement,” said an email to supporters.“Although our street activities will continue, this day marks the birth of Britain First as a traditional political party that will take the fight to the establishment through the ballot box.”Britain First was a political party from 2010 until it was deregistered by the Electoral Commission in 2017 for administrative reasons.It became notorious for “mosque invasions” and other activism targeting Muslims, and was condemned by the government after Donald Trump shared Britain First tweets in 2017.At the time, Britain First had a large following on Twitter and more than 2 million likes on Facebook, but the pages have since been removed.Its official registration as a political party was announced on Monday, hours after Golding, 39, and his former deputy Jayda Fransen, 35, agreed to pay “substantial damages” to settle a libel case.The High Court heard that they falsely claimed the Halal Food Authority and two employees were involved in funding terrorism in February 2017, and offered no defence to the resulting defamation claim.Both Golding and Fransen were jailed for religiously-aggravated harassment in March 2018, after filming and harassing innocent Muslim victims they wrongly believed to be involved in a rape trial.In May last year, Golding was convicted of an offence under the Terrorism Act for refusing to allow police access to his phone and computer when stopped while travelling back to the UK from Russia.Britain First leaders jailed for anti-Muslim hate crimeHe is listed as the leader of Britain First on the Electoral Commission website, while treasurer Tim Burton was convicted of harassing an anti-hate crime campaigner in 2017.The Independent understands that their convictions are not a bar to registering as a party official under electoral law.The registration process does not include an assessment of political policies or views, although the Electoral Commission must check any constitution or membership policy under its public sector equality duty.There have been previous calls for Britain First to be proscribed in the wake of attacks carried out by its supporters.The Finsbury Park terrorist Darren Osborne had read material from far-right activists including Fransen and Golding before ploughing a van into Muslim worshippers in June 2017.Days later, Britain First supporter Marek Zakrocki drove his car into a restaurant after telling his wife he wanted to “kill a Muslim” and was “doing this for Britain”.The extremist, who was also carrying a kitchen knife and Nazi coin, had donated money to Britain First and police found the group’s flyers at his home.An Electoral Commission spokesperson said: “The application to register Britain First as a political party has been approved. We assessed this application against the criteria set out in law, including consideration of public comments submitted to us. The party’s application met the legal criteria and the party has therefore been registered.”In 2019, Britain First was fined more than £44,000 for multiple breaches of electoral law, including undeclared donations and a failure to provide proper financial records or accounts.At the time, the Electoral Commission said it had shown a “disregard for the law” and a “disappointing lack of transparency into the party’s finances”.Britain First attempted to bring a legal challenge against the Electoral Commission over its refusal to register the group as a political party in Northern Ireland, but the case was dismissed by a Belfast judge in March. More

Senior figures around Keir Starmer are preparing to fight for him to stay on as Labour leader if the party loses the next general election.With crucial organisational changes to the party’s rulebook secured at this week’s conference in Brighton, they believe Labour is ready to step up preparations for a poll which some think could come as early as next year and most expect in 2023.But shadow cabinet ministers who spoke to The Independent on condition of anonymity were frank about the possibility that Starmer may need two elections to get Labour into power and are pushing for him not to “do an Ed Miliband” and stand down if he fails to secure victory at the first attempt, as his predecessor-but-one did.They said there were few illusions among Labour’s high command about the scale of the challenge ahead in not only persuading the electorate that the party is a government-in-waiting but also that it is the government they want.“We are hopeful, but if I was a gambling person I wouldn’t put too much money on victory next time,” said one. “We don’t want an immediate leadership contest if we lose. It’s been disastrous in the past.”With Boris Johnson’s Tories enjoying an 80-seat majority in the Commons, Labour is preparing an aggressive campaign to seize back “Red Wall” seats in the Midlands and the north that they lost in 2019, and make inroads into Scottish National Party dominance north of the border.A long-list of around 125 Labour marginals and target seats, where the bulk of campaigning effort would be focused, could be whittled down by early next year to a shortlist about half that length of Tory and SNP-held constituencies which must be won to block Mr Johnson from a second overall majority.One shadow cabinet minister said that winning a large chunk of the “red wall” back at the first time of asking is vital, amid concerns that traditional Labour voters who switched in 2019 might get into the habit of voting Tory if the seat stays Conservative for longer.“The worry is that if we don’t win the red wall seats back next time, then we never get them back,” said the MP.And there is a recognition that more than a dozen gains are needed in Scotland to give Labour hope of success nationally.Mr Starmer is expected to step up his campaigning presence in Scotland, after Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar made clear that recent years’ practice of treating the country separately was not bearing fruit.The possibility of Mr Starmer being in a position to deliver change in Scotland at the head of a national government is seen as a key factor in winning over voters north of the border to break Nicola Sturgeon’s stronghold.With Covid restrictions moving into the past, it is expected that Mr Starmer will attempt to win a higher profile as a potential leader for the whole nation, and will stress Labour’s credentials as a patriotic party – though there are concerns that he cannot be seen to be too obviously “wrapping himself in the Union flag”.He is not expected to take Mr Johnson on in a battle of personalities, instead majoring on his reputation for honesty and competence.Senior Labour figures believe that Mr Johnson has misjudged the public mood on patriotism in rows over statues and the England football team “taking a knee”. They believe that Labour can tap into a majority which combines love for the country with a willingness to embrace diversity and welcome refugees fleeing persecution abroad.Mr Starmer, who, as a lawyer, was used to being ticked off in court if a judge felt he was repeating himself, was now mastering the political skill of shamelessly repeating his message until it gets through to voters, said one shadow minister.Changes to the party rulebook completed this week are seen as key to making Labour ready for a long election battle.Although Mr Starmer lost his attempt to ditch one-member-one-vote elections for future party leaders, it is felt that the 20 per cent threshold for MP nominations agreed at Brighton is enough to reassure voters that Labour will not fall once more into the hands of the far-left.The most important change being celebrated by his inner circle is the 50 per cent minimum now required for local activists to trigger a reselection battle for sitting MPs, which will permit them to speak out more strongly for Mr Starmer’s agenda without risking being ousted by a radical minority in their constituencies.The change is expected to embolden MPs to support action to keep Jeremy Corbyn out of the Parliamentary Labour Party, which they might have shied away from if they felt vulnerable to removal by left-wing local parties. More

Labour is to invoke Tony Blair’s “tough on crime” message and promise a crackdown on antisocial behaviour if it is elected.In a speech to the party’s conference, Nick Thomas-Symonds, the shadow home secretary, will accuse the Tories of being “soft on crime and soft on causes on crime”. The comments are a knowing reference to Mr Blair’s claim New Labour would be “tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime”.The slogan was coined by Mr Blair when he was shadow Home Secretary in 1993, and kept on when he took over the party leadership.But Keir Starmer’s party will try to get ahead of the Tories on law and order by pledging an increased police presence in communities, including the creation of “police hubs” in towns and cities across the country.The party says the “hubs”, which appear to resemble police stations, will be “located in visible and accessible places” to reassure residents, “providing a place the public can go to talk to the police”. The party is also promising to create a “next-generation neighbourhood watch”, which “will bring people together to share advice and information about their area through online networks, and backed with a tough approach to closing down drug dens”.It will also promise to launch a major recruitment drive for special constables, whose numbers have dropped sharply since 2010. In his speech to conference on Tuesday, Mr Thomas-Symonds is expected to say: “The safety of our communities is at risk from this Government. The reality is that the Conservatives have failed on crime.“This Home Secretary likes to talk tough but she never delivers. She says she backs our frontline police officers and staff but then insults them with a pay freeze. It’s no surprise that she has lost the confidence of 130,000 rank-and-file officers represented by the Police Federation.“The Conservatives are the party of crime and disorder. They are soft on crime and soft on the causes of crime.”Anti-social behaviour was a major focus of Tony Blair’s home office, with initatives like ASBOs (anti-social behaviour orders) attracting criticism from civil liberties groups. More

Shadow cabinet frustration at Andy Burnham’s high-profile presence at the Labour conference has burst into the open, with accusations that the Greater Manchester mayor is “on manoeuvres” in the case of a leadership race.One shadow minister told The Independent that there was resentment at the way Mr Burnham had left Westminster to build a personal fiefdom in the north, rather than joining in the work of wresting the national party back from the left.Any attempt to secure a swift return to the Commons – essential if he was to stand for leader – would not necessarily be met with the offer of a safe seat, one suggested.“If he thinks he can swan off to Manchester and leave everybody else to do the s*** work and then come back like a conquering hero, he can think again,” said the shadow minister. “He has been elected mayor, he should see out his term.”Speculation is building over Mr Burnham’s leadership ambitions, with the Greater Manchester mayor, who has not ruled out an attempt to return to Westminster after the next election, set to appear at no fewer than 11 fringe events during Labour’s annual conference.A second shadow cabinet minister told The Independent that the Labour membership did not like Mr Burnham’s willingness to criticise Sir Keir Starmer in public.“Members don’t like him having a go at Starmer. They think it’s rude. Andy has always lacked judgement, and I think this is another example. I don’t know that he would win a leadership contest anyway, when you look at his last two tries.”Last night, in an interview with BBC News, the former cabinet minister took a swipe at Sir Keir Starmer for focusing on internal battles over Labour’s rulebook, rather than taking the fight to the Conservatives, echoing a similar criticism made by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn on Saturday.Speaking at an event hosted by the New Statesman, Mr Burnham piled further pressure on the Labour leadership, stressing that Labour needed to set out its “stall”on a string of key issues such as social care, and claimed the party remained too “Londoncentric”.While he said Labour was now in a better position to govern the country since party delegates last gathered in Brighton for conference two years ago, Mr Burnham said: “It’s got a lot of work to do. A lot of work to do.”Recalling his own frustrations as a shadow minister under Ed Miliband’s leadership of the party trying to push reform of social care, he added: “I remember the arguments: set it out nearer the election.“I just don’t think the world works like that any more,” he went on. “If the government comes forward and puts an unfair social care policy on the table, which they did a couple of weeks ago, your criticisms won’t be heard unless you say ‘here’s what we will do’.“You can set a policy out on everything, I understand that, but on the big things that are the issues – levelling up, social care and all these things, you have to set out your stall.“I say this as wanting to see everyone, Keir and all the shadow cabinet succeed. I think you have to start setting out your stall if you’re to get people to start listening and engaging.”Elsewhere, Mr Burnham revealed he will present Boris Johnson with a “levelling up” deal for Greater Manchester, as he praised Michael Gove’s appointment to oversee the key government brief as “good news”.With ministers set to descend on the northern city for the Conservative Party conference next week, Mr Burnham said he would lobby ministers to support a package including the establishment of a “London-style” transport system.He stressed there was an “outrageous” inequality between transport costs in the capital and elsewhere and would not wait while the prime minister struggled to define his levelling-up election slogan.“When the government comes to Manchester next week, I will put on the table a constructive proposal – a levelling-up deal – that has a London-style public transport system at its heart,” Mr Burnham said.He also suggested Mr Johnson signing a deal would make political sense, with the government able to blame him if he failed to deliver, or take credit if a “very visible sign of levelling-up” emerges in the north of England.Following the appointment of Mr Gove to the position of communities secretary during the reshuffle – rebranding the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local government the Department for Levelling Up – the mayor told the event Mr Gove was “good news” for levelling up.“I was his shadow when he was education secretary, and honestly we clashed over pretty much all of that agenda he brought in in 2011, but the thing about Michael Gove is at least he does things, he brings energy to what he does,” he said.Mr Burnham added: “You may disagree with him, but he acts as a minister and he creates an agenda and then implements it.“I’ve observed so many in the current government who aren’t doing that, their just minding the shop. Gove doesn’t do that. I think, I hope, when I put this levelling-up deal to him, I’m hoping he will embrace it.”In a nod to Mr Gove’s recent raving at an Aberdeen nightclub, Mr Burnham later joked he was keen to impress the new communities secretary when he arrives in Manchester next week, “so we are going to lay on a special Warehouse Project Hacienda night”. More

Keir Starmer has been hit by a shadow cabinet resignation in the middle of his party conference after a row with one of his top team over minimum wage policy.Andy McDonald, the shadow secretary of state for employment rights, said on Monday afternoon his position on Sir Keir’s front bench was “untenable” and that he could no longer work for the party leader.In his resignation letter Mr McDonald said Sir Keir’s office had “instructed” him “to go into a meeting to argue against a national minimum wage of £15 an hour and against statutory sick pay at the living wage”.Mr McDonald said this was “something I could not do”. He warned that Labour was “more divided than ever” under Sir Keir’s leadership.The resignation is a blow for the Labour leader who was hoping to turn the page on a row with the party’s left wing that characterised the first part of the conference.Sir Keir kicked off the conference with a defeat on plans to end one member, one vote for Labour leadership elections, but narrowly passed alternative changes to Labour rules that will make it harder for MPs with less support from their colleagues to get on the ballot.During negotiations with trade unions over the rule changes Sir Keir was reportedly taken to task by union leaders for not backing a £15 minimum wage. The party says it wants a £10 minimum wage at least, around a £1 increase from the existing £8.91, though the rate may have already risen closer to that level by the next general election.Mr McDonald told reporters outside Labour conference in Brighton: “It was a compositing meeting yesterday when the membership and the unions were promoting [a £15 minimum wage] and to be asked to defend the position and not support what the party and unions wanted to do is something I couldn’t in all conscience sustain.“This is what we should be doing. Is it really unreasonable to expect people going to work, our key workers not to have the level of pay and to be able to sustain their position?”In his resignation letter, Mr McDonald continued: “After many months of a pandemic when we made commitments to stand by key workers, I cannot now look those same workers in the eye and tell them they are not worth a wage that is enough to live on, or that they don’t deserve security when they are ill.“We live in a time when the people of this country have a renewed awareness of how important the work done by millions of low-paid workers truly is. To have the Labour Party, the party of working people, fail to realise that is a bitter blow.“I joined your frontbench team on the basis of the pledges that you made in the leadership campaign to bring about unity within the party and maintain our commitment to socialist policies.“After 18 months of your leadership, our movement is more divided than ever and the pledges that you made to the membership are not being honoured. This is just the latest of many.“I am immensely proud of the work my team has done to produce Labour’s employment rights green paper, which was unveiled earlier this week. I will continue working with comrades across the movement to ensure that this agenda is delivered.“I look forward to being free to fight for the working people of this country from the back benches.”Repsonding to the resignation, Sir Keir said: “I want to thank Andy for his service in the shadow cabinet.“Labour’s comprehensive new deal for working people shows the scale of our ambition and where our priorities lie.“My focus and that of the whole party is on winning the next general election so we can deliver for working people who need a Labour government.”Mish Rahman a Labour NEC member from the left of the party, said that “during the leadership election, it seemed like Starmer understood this” but said “this resignation proves he does not”.He added: “By asking a shadow minister to argue against a higher minimum wage and decent sick pay he has demonstrated just how put of touch he is with working people.”Reacting to the news, Conservative chairman Oliver Dowden said that Labour were “divided and fighting among themselves”. Mr Dowden said: “Now they are even resigning during their own party conference! Labour’s conference gets more chaotic by the minute. How can people trust them to run the country?” More

Government ministers have ordered the deployment of soldiers to distribute petrol and diesel within days, in a dramatic escalation of the national fuel crisis which has seen pumps run dry and prices spike to an eight-year high.At an emergency meeting in Whitehall, ministers agreed to put military tanker drivers in a state of readiness to take the wheel of civilian tankers if normal conditions do not return swiftly. Defence sources said that 75 drivers have been put on standby initially, with a further 75 along with 150 support staff available if needed, with several days of specialised training required before deployment.Meanwhile, transport secretary Grant Shapps issued an extension to driver licences, temporarily freeing tanker drivers from the requirement to take refresher training courses every five years. Licences expiring before the new year will have their validity extended to 31 January 2022 to provide immediate relief from driver shortages.Government ministers issued a plea to the public for calm, insisting that panic buying was unnecessary as there was no shortage of fuel in the UK. And they were backed up by fuel distribution leaders, who said they believed supplies will return to normal within days.But the man set to replace Angela Merkel as Germany’s chancellor, said the crisis – which has seen industry sources warn of a 100,000 shortfall in HGV drivers – was only to be expected as a result of Brexit and low pay in the UK.“We worked very hard to convince the British not to leave the union,” said SPD leader Olaf Scholz. “Now they decided different and I hope they will manage the problems coming from that.”He added: “If you understand that being a trucker is really something that many people like to be and you find not enough [are applying], this has something to do with working conditions and this is something that has to be thought about.”Queues at petrol stations continued to build around the country, with reports of fighting at the pumps and police appealing for motorists not to be abusive to attendants.The Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) reported that up to 90 per cent of its independent members were out of fuel in some areas, after oil giant BP said one-third of its sites had no supplies.Staff at one petrol station told The Independent they had been forced to close down after customers became intimidating and aggressive.And the offer of temporary visas for EU drivers to help plug a manpower shortfall running into tens of thousands won short shrift from one European truckers’ leader.Edwin Atema, of the Federation of Dutch Trade Unions (FNV), told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The EU workers we speak to will not go to the UK for a short-term visa to help the UK get out of the s*** they created for themselves.“It’s not like offering a visa … and the issue will be solved. Drivers need way more than a visa and a pay slip.”Marco Digioia, general secretary of the European Road Haulers Association (UETR), which represents 70 per cent of trucking companies across the EU, said: “I expect many drivers will not return to the UK even if the UK government allows them to.“While offering visas to drivers on the continent would be a welcome step, there are many other issues, such as working conditions, pay and the costs of getting into and working in the UK.”Announcing the request for armed forces assistance under the Military Aid to the Civil Authorities scheme, business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said: “While the fuel industry expects demand will return to its normal levels in the coming days, it’s right that we take this sensible, precautionary step.“The UK continues to have strong supplies of fuel, however we are aware of supply chain issues at fuel station forecourts and are taking steps to ease these as a matter of priority.“If required, the deployment of military personnel will provide the supply chain with additional capacity as a temporary measure to help ease pressures caused by spikes in localised demand for fuel.”The move comes after the government relaxed competition rules to allow fuel companies to cooperate in ensuring supplies get to shortage areas and deal with localised spikes in demand.In a joint statement, nine major fuel distribution companies including Shell, Esso and Wincanton, said: “There is plenty of fuel at UK refineries and terminals, and as an industry we are working closely with the government to help ensure fuel is available to be delivered to stations across the country.“As many cars are now holding more fuel than usual, we expect that demand will return to its normal levels in the coming days, easing pressures on fuel station forecourts. We would encourage everyone to buy fuel as they usually would.”The average price of a litre of petrol across the UK rose from 135.87p on Friday to 136.59p on Sunday, according to figures from the RAC. This is the highest that pump prices have been since September 2013.Meanwhile, the price of wholesale petrol has also risen from 123.25p on Monday 20 September to 125.22p just four days later, with the RAC warning that this could cause pump prices to rise further.Mr Shapps said there were signs of panic buying “moderating”, with more grades of fuel now available at more petrol stations.“People have been responding to the message to only fill up when they actually need fuel, and in any case their cars are now fuller,” he said.Continuing the government approach of blaming the problems on unusual purchasing patterns rather than a collapse in the distribution system, he insisted that the current network of tanker drivers was “capable of delivering all the fuel we need”.Nevertheless, he said that the army had been asked to “plug the gap” while new HGV drivers come on stream.PRA chairman Brian Madderson questioned whether the army drivers would make much difference to the situation.“There has been training going on in the background for military personnel,” he said.“But that’s perhaps just confined to moving the tanker by articulated truck from point A to point B. One of the difficulties is loading,” he said, adding that was “a skilled job”.And unions warned that only “a handful” of former drivers were likely to return to work in response to a Department for Transport letter to 1 million HGV licence holders asking them to consider coming back.Labour is calling for looser immigration rules to ease the crisis, arguing drivers queuing for hours for petrol “couldn’t care less” if lorry drivers are foreign.Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves called for the independent Migration Advisory Committee to decide the issue – after a miserly 5,000 visas were issued to overseas drivers.“Most people who are queuing up this morning, whether that’s in Brighton or Leeds or wherever, to fill up their car, they couldn’t care less whether the HGV driver that’s got the petrol to the forecourt is British or foreign,” she said.“What they want to know is that they can fill up their car or their van and go about the business – so let’s plug those gaps.” More

People condemning Angela Rayner for her comments about Tories should stay off their “moral high horse”, John Bercow has said. Speaking at a fringe event at Labour’s annual conference in Brighton the former Speaker said he would not have chosen Ms Rayner’s form of words when she berated Tory “scum”.But he said the party’s deputy leader was “passionate” and “angry” about what the Conservative government had done to the country.”I wouldn’t have used that term, but I think that people are passionate: I know Angela well and she’s a passionate person and she believes in her values and she feels very, very angry about what is being done to this country by a Conservative government,” he said.”Do I think Angela Rayner, should be damned to perdition for that one comment? Absolutely not. I think Angela Rayner is a damn good person, she’s got strong and good values. I wouldn’t have used that expression but I don’t think we should get on our moral high horses about it.”Ms Rayner on Monday stood by her comments in which she described Conservatives as “homophobic, racist, misogynistic scum” – adding that said she would happily sit down with Boris Johnson to discuss his history of racist comments. But senior Tories accused her of “throwing insults” and “talking crap”.Mr Bercow announced this summer that he had jointed the Labour party after a long career as the neutral Commons speaker – and before that a Conservative MP.He came to his highest prominence during the course of Britain’s departure from the European Union, where he helped backbenchers hold Theresa May’s minority government to account. Addressing the issue, Mr Bercow told the audience in Brighton a hard Brexit could have been stopped if Remain campaigners had compromised and worked together.The former Speaker said those in favour of a second referendum should have reached beyond their “first preference” and considered a soft Brexit.He pointed to a series of indicative votes taken in the House of Commons during which MPs were asked to select from a series of options.During the votes some MPs, including short-lived centrist party Change UK voted for a second referendum but not for options to stay in the single market or customs union.As a result there was no majority of the House of Commons for an alternative to the government’s plan for a full break with the EU.Commenting on Labour, Mr Bercow said he thought Keir Starmer was “a good guy” but that the party needed “clear policies”.He said the opposition party should “craft a vision of how Britain will look different and be better with Labour values”. He also backed Labour’s policy to tax private education but said Labour needed “excite people”.Mr Bercow said he had no interest in a career in Labour and did not intend to stand for parliament again. He said he “absolutely” intended to join a trade union in the near future but had not done so yet. More

The mayor of Manchester Andy Burnham, has joked that he will put on a special night at live music venue the Warehouse Project, for Conservative MP Michael Gove.Mr Gove, the new Secretary of State for Leveling Up, Housing and Communities, is due to visit Manchester next week for the Conservative party conference, where Mr Burnham is expected to present ministers with a proposed “levelling-up” deal for Greater Manchester.The mayor of Manchester has said he will seek government support for a package including the establishment of a London-style public transport system, when ministers appear in the city next week.He also joked that he will make sure Mr Gove has an opportunity to dance, saying: “We are very keen to impress the new Communities Secretary so we are going to lay on a special Warehouse Project Hacienda night.”The 54-year-old was spotted practicing his dance moves, and waving his arms around in time to the music, at an Aberdeen techno nightclub in August.A video circulated of the suit-clad Tory Cabinet minister dancing energetically at Bohemia, a techno club located in the Scottish city. Whatsmore, Mr Gove, who hails from the city, apparently purchased drinks for fellow clubbers throughout the night.Elsewhere in Brighton, MPs from the Labour party let loose at their conference in the East Sussex city. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan DJed at a Jamaican night at the Prizm club, which was organised by former shadow equalities minister Dawn Butler.Mr Khan used his opportunity on the decks to poke fun at Mr Gove, telling the packed event: ‘’The best place in Brighton in this conference week is Dawn Butler’s Jamaica party,” reported The Daily Mail.“I’ve got to tell you I saw Michael Gove coming to Brighton because Michael Gove likes dancing,” he added.“So don’t be surprised if you see Michael Gove here.” More