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Boris Johnson’s government has been urged by Labour to drop its “Trumpian” plans to make voters show ID before casting ballots at elections, with the opposition party arguing that the proposals are an attempt to “rig democracy” in the Conservatives’ favour.Labour has warned that the plans, which are due to be set out in Monday’s Elections Bill, are “undemocratic” and will make voting harder for groups who do not tend to have identification.On Sunday, shadow democracy minister Cat Smith accused the Tories of attempting to use the “cover of the pandemic to threaten British democracy”.“Voting is safe and secure in Britain. Ministers should be promoting confidence in our elections instead of spreading baseless scare stories which threaten our democracy – this Trumpian tactic has no place in our democracy,” Ms Smith said.“We’ve already seen how Conservative ministers ignore the rules, now they are trying to change the rules and rig our democracy in their favour.”She added that the proposals would hit working class, older and ethnic minority Britons who do not have photographic ID.At the last general election in 2019, just 595 cases of alleged electoral fraud were investigated by police, according to the Electoral Commission.Only four of those led to a conviction and two people were given a police caution, leading the Commission to conclude that the UK has “low levels of proven electoral fraud”.Representatives from organisations including the Electoral Reform Society, Stonewall, Liberty, Operation Black Vote and the National Union of Students have called for a rethink of the voter ID scheme, warning that 3.5 million people currently do not have photographic ID.Senior Conservatives have also raised concerns about the proposals, with former Brexit secretary David Davis telling The Independent in May that there was “no evidence” of a problem with voter fraud at polling stations.Mr Davis said: “It’s an illiberal solution in pursuit of a non-existent problem.“If you’ve got an ID card, you’re putting a barrier in the way of people to exercise their own democratic rights, which is not necessary and shouldn’t be there.”Downing Street has said that acceptable forms of ID have not yet been set out but a free council-issued “local voter card” will be available.Government officials have also noted that ID is already required to vote in Northern Ireland, as well as countries such as Canada, France, the Netherlands and Sweden.“Everyone eligible to vote will be able to do so – voters in Northern Ireland have been using photo identification since 2003 with no adverse effect on participation and a free, local voter card will be available to those who need it,” a Cabinet Office spokesperson said.Additional reporting by PA More

Boris Johnson is poised to announce the easing of social distancing rules, despite a backlash from scientists over his willingness to accept more serious illnesses and deaths from Covid-19.People will be urged to “learn to live with this virus”, when the prime minister unveils decisions on whether to scrap the “one-metre-plus rule” and work-from-home guidance, on Monday.He is expected to say England is on course to remove the distancing rule on 19 July – allowing drinkers to order at the bar again – after a cabinet minister revealed the wearing of face masks will be voluntary.But the likely end to restrictions, and a call by Sajid Javid, the new health secretary, for an acceptance that “cases are going to rise significantly”, likening Covid to flu, drew fierce criticism.Mr Johnson will brace the public for serious illness and deaths to continue, at a Downing Street press conference – with the link from rising infections only “weakened”, not severed – but at far lower levels than before most people were vaccinated.One member of the government’s Sage advisory body called Mr Javid’s comments “frightening”, while a second warned it would result in new “variant factories”, as transmission soared.A public health expert branded the removal of all Covid restrictions in just two weeks’ time “absolutely bonkers” and Mr Johnson was warned the pandemic could still spiral “out of control”.But the prime minister, who is also expected to kill off plans for Covid-status certificates to attend large events, will also argue for the virus to be considered like flu – which kills 20,000 people in a bad winter.“As we begin to learn to live with this virus, we must all continue to carefully manage the risks from Covid and exercise judgement when going about our lives,” he will say.Ministers and scientists will weigh up the latest data at a morning meeting. On Sunday, a further 24,248 lab-confirmed infections, and 15 deaths, were announced, while hospital admissions are rising by 24 per cent week-on-week.The backlash came after Mr Javid called the health arguments for lifting all restrictions “compelling”, saying: “We also need to be clear that cases are going to rise significantly.”Professor Stephen Reicher, a Sage member, tweeted: “It is frightening to have a ‘health’ secretary who still thinks Covid is flu, who is unconcerned at levels of infection, who doesn’t realise that those who do best for health also do best for the economy, who wants to ditch all protections while only half of us are vaccinated.“The key message of the pandemic is “this isn’t an ‘I’ thing, it’s a ‘we’ thing. Your behaviour affects my health. Get your head around the ‘we’ concept.”Professor Adam Finn, from the government’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), warned the pandemic could still spiral “out of control” in the UK.“I shall certainly be continuing to wear a mask if I have got any symptoms, or if I am in an enclosed space with lots of other people for a prolonged period of time,” he said.And, warning of countries in “fourth and fifth waves”, he added: “I’m worried about that, not just out of a sense of fairness for the people around the world, but actually also for us in the UK.”Pointing to the arrival of the highly-infectious Delta variant from India, Prof Finn told Sky News: “That will happen again if the pandemic goes forward unchecked around the world.“Then we’ll be left with a worse problem and I think that is the most likely scenario to cause a fourth or fifth wave in this country that would be out of control.”Professor Robert West, a public health expert at University College London, argued the removal of all Covid restrictions so quickly was “absolutely bonkers”.“It’s like having a government that thinks road safety should be completely up to ‘individual responsibility’: no traffic lights, no highway code, no law about driving on the left, no crash barriers,” he tweeted.Earlier, Robert Jenrick, the communities secretary, lifted the lid on Mr Johnson’s series of announcements, as he hailed “very promising” data for completing the roadmap out of lockdown on 19 July.Confirming mask wearing would be voluntary, he told Sky News: “The state won’t be telling you what to do, but you will want to exercise a degree of personal responsibility and judgement.“So different people will come to different conclusions on things like masks for example.”On Saturday, the British Medical Association pleaded with the government not to scrap all face covering rules, with Covid cases rising sharply and a third wave underway.But Mr Jenrick hailed “a much more permissive regime” from 19 July, although final decisions will only be announced one week earlier.Labour’s Rachel Reeves attacked off-the-record briefings that the data is heading in the right direction, telling ministers to “present the evidence” from scientists.“It is important, if QR codes are going to stop, if the masks are going to come off, that we are absolutely confident that is the right thing to do,” the shadow chancellor said. More

A fresh Conservative revolt is threatening Rishi Sunak’s plans to slash £20-a-week from Universal Credit payments in the autumn.Six former work and pension secretaries have joined forces to urge the Chancellor to think again, in an unprecedented alliance spanning both left and right wings of the Tory party.The pressure could see the government defeated on the controversy, with scores of ‘Red Wall’ MPs also deeply unhappy about reversing an increase brought in when the Covid pandemic struck.Ministers said recently that the £5bn cut will go ahead at the end of September, as intended, rejecting warnings that thousands of families will be pushed into poverty as “purely speculative”.But Iain Duncan-Smith, Damian Green, Stephen Crabb, David Gauke, Esther McVey and Amber Rudd have penned a letter to the Treasury, saying that would be a mistake.“As the economy reopens, and the government re-evaluates where it has been spending money, we ask that the current funding for individuals in the Universal Credit envelope be kept at the current level,” they have written.“We ask that you protect the investment in Universal Credit, to strengthen work incentives for those who can work and support more generously those who cannot work.”The cut – worth £1,000-a-year to many hard-up families – would hit 6 million households and push 200,000 more children below the breadline, the Child Poverty Action Group fears.But the government has continued to insist it was a temporary increase and believes the looming end of Covid restrictions makes the case for ending it.In the Commons recently, welfare minister Will Quince told MPs the boost “will end once our economy has opened” and dismissed any direct connection to poverty levels.“It is difficult to isolate the specific impact of one policy and determine its effect on how many people fall below the poverty threshold, which itself changes over time,” MPs were told.Mr Sunak is eager to start plugging the huge black hole in his finances caused by parts of the economy being shut down – but instead faces a lengthening list of pleas for more money.Tory MPs also want him to halt his £4bn-a-year overseas aid cuts, ex-Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson warning their party will again be seen as the “nasty party” if he refuses.Health leaders are demanding to know how much cash they will have to tackle mounting hospital waiting lists and there is fierce criticism of the failure to fund school recovery plans.Mr Sunak – who will stage a spending review in the autumn – is, however, expected to release around £4bn-a-year for a bumper increase in the state pension age, next April. More

The world’s largest ever trial of a four-day working week and reduced working time in Iceland was an “overwhelming success” and should be tested in the UK, researchers have said.More than 1 per cent of Iceland’s working population took part in the pilot programme which cut the working week to 35-36 hours with no reduction in overall pay.Joint analysis by think-tanks in Iceland and the UK found that the trials, which ran from 2015 to 2019 and involved more than 2,500 people, boosted productivity and wellbeing and are already leading to permanent changes.Icelandic trade union federations, which collectively negotiate wages and conditions for most Icelandic employees, have already begun to negotiate reduced working hours as a result.The researchers estimate that as a result of new agreements struck in 2019-2021 after the trials ended, 86 per cent of Iceland’s entire working population now either have reduced hours or flexibility within their contracts to reduce hours.The trials were launched by Reykjavik city council and the Icelandic national government after pressure from trade unions and civil society groups. Workers covered by the experiment included a mix of nine-to-five employees and those on non-standard shift patterns – with workplaces including offices, play-schools, hospitals, and social services employees.The joint analysis, carried out by the think-tanks Autonomy in the UK and the Association for Sustainability and Democracy (Alda) in Iceland, found that the well-being of workers who took part improved dramatically across a range of indicators.Perceived stress and burnout, as well as health and work-life balance were significantly improved across practically all groups.And as a result, researchers say, productivity and service provision remained the same or improved across the majority of workplaces included in the trial.”The Icelandic shorter working week journey tells us that not only is it possible to work less in modern times, but that progressive change is possible too,” said Gudmundur D. Haraldsson, a researcher at Alda. “Our roadmap to a shorter working week in the public sector should be of interest to anyone who wishes to see working hours reduced.”The trials were designed to be revenue-neutral for both the city council and the government that ran them.Will Stronge, director of research at Autonomy, said: “This study shows that the world’s largest ever trial of a shorter working week in the public sector was by all measures an overwhelming success. It shows that the public sector is ripe for being a pioneer of shorter working weeks – and lessons can be learned for other governments.“Iceland has taken a big step towards the four-day working week, providing a great real-life example for local councils and those in the UK public sector considering implementing it here in the UK.”The idea of a four day week has some support in the UK, with 45 MPs from parties including from Labour, SNP, Plaid Cymru, the SDLP and the Green Party signing an early day motion calling on the government to set up a commission to examine the proposal. A poll published in July last year conducted by Survation found that 63 per cent of the public support the idea of a four day week with no loss of pay, while only 12 per cent oppose. More

Boris Johnson ducks call for action to tackle HGV driver shortageThe Conservatives will again be seen as the “nasty party” unless they halt their furiously contested £4bn cuts to foreign aid, Ruth Davidson has warned.The former Scottish Tory leader accused Boris Johnson of ducking a promised vote for MPs because he will lose it, amid a fresh push by Tory rebels to try to force a vote before the Commons enters its summer recess in less than three weeks’ time.Meanwhile, despite praising Labour’s candidate Kim Leadbeater, shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has suggested that Sir Keir Starmer deserves the credit for the party’s narrow electoral victory in Batley and Spen, which – setting aside the Tories’ two recent victories in Copeland and Hartlepool – saw the largest swing to a governing party in a by-election for 39 years.Ms Reeves’ defence of the Labour leader came as she unveiled her first major policy intervention – revealing a post-Brexit plan for the UK to “buy, make and sell” more in Britain, which she denied amounted to “slapping a Union Jack” on public procurement.Read more:Show latest update

1625409623Tory revolt threatens Rishi Sunak’s plans to slash £20-a-week from Universal CreditOur deputy political editor Rob Merrick has more on the Tory revolt facing the Chancellor over his plans to axe the £20 Universal Credit uplift.He reports that the pressure – led by six former work and pensions secretaries – could see the government defeated on the controversy, with scores of ‘Red Wall’ MPs also deeply unhappy about reversing the increase, brought in when the pandemic struck.Ministers had said recently that the £5bn cut will go ahead at the end of September as intended, rejecting warnings that thousands of families will be pushed into poverty as “purely speculative”. The cut would hit six million households and push 200,000 more children below the breadline, the Child Poverty Action Group fears.Andy Gregory4 July 2021 15:401625408339Homeowners to be given 15 years to sue rogue developers, housing secretary confirmsHomeowners are to be given 15 years – up from the current six – to take legal action against builders and developers who carry out “shoddy workmanship” on their properties, Robert Jenrick has confirmedThe housing secretary said the shift, reportedly included in the Building Safety Bill which is due out on Monday, came after a realisation that some household appliances have better guarantees on them than new homes.But, as pointed out by Newsnight’s policy editor Lewis Goodall, many affected homeowners will be unable to afford any such legal action, regardless of whether the law permits it.Speaking on the BBC earlier today, Mr Jenrick insisted that the “lion’s share” of the 469 buildings identified as fitted with dangerous cladding in the wake of the Grenfell tower tragedy would qualify under the 15-year retrospective law.Andy Gregory4 July 2021 15:181625407061Rishi Sunak urged to make Universal Credit uplift permanentSix former Conservative work and pension secretaries have spoken with “one voice” to urge Rishi Sunak to make permanent the pandemic-inspired £20-a-week uplift to Universal Credit.Former Tory leader and architect of Universal Credit and the Bedroom Tax, Sir Iain Duncan Smith, along with five of his successors – Stephen Crabb, Damian Green, David Gauke, Esther McVey and Amber Rudd – have penned a letter in a bid to persuade the Chancellor to stick with the £5bn benefits investment even after coronavirus restrictions have been eased.The extra cash for benefit claimants was brought in as an emergency spending measure during the Covid crisis but is due to expire on 1 October, having already been extended for six months at the March Budget.But Sir Iain warned that a failure to keep the uplift in place permanently would “damage living standards, health and opportunities” for those that “need our support most as we emerge from the pandemic”Andy Gregory4 July 2021 14:571625405268Tories will be ‘nasty party’ again unless foreign aid cuts halted, Ruth Davidson warnsRuth Davidson is warning Boris Johnson that the Conservatives will again be seen as the “nasty party” unless savage cuts to overseas aid are halted, our deputy political editor Rob Merrick reports.The “horrific pictures” of famine in Ethiopia will repel voters, the former Scottish Tory leader said – accusing the prime minister of ducking a promised Commons vote because he will lose it.Tory Rebels are convinced they will, eventually, find a route to table an amendment to legislation – after the Commons Speaker demanded a vote – but the government is currently blocking a showdown.Andy Gregory4 July 2021 14:271625403802Stop ‘unnecessary’ safety work on high-rise buildings ordered after Grenfell tragedy, Cabinet minister saysOur deputy political editor Rob Merrick has this report on Robert Jenrick’s announcement this morning that the government wishes to stop “unnecessary” safety work on high-rise buildings ordered in the wake of the Grenfell disaster.The housing secretary said it was time to “instil proportionality” into the repairs programme, saying that “only three people” a year die in high-rise fires, adding: “You have a much greater chance of dying in a house or a bungalow than you do in an apartment.”Andy Gregory4 July 2021 14:031625402722Boris Johnson ‘actively considering’ U-turn on foreign aid vote, report suggestsIn an apparent bid to head off another amendment by Tory rebels, Boris Johnson may reportedly be about to U-turn on his rejection of a Commons vote on his deep and hotly contested cuts to foreign aid.According to The Sunday Times, the prime minister is “actively considering” plans to allow MPs a binding vote on the £4bn cuts before parliament rises for the summer recess at the end of this month.While he is yet to give his official view on the proposal, the paper reports that he has been advised to grant the vote.“We did much worse than we thought we would do in Batley and Spen” one Tory grandee was quoted as saying. “It’s clear there are no votes to be won on this issue in the red wall seats and there is a feeling among colleagues that we are turning back into the ‘nasty party’.“It’s not just the cut to aid, but the chumocracy claims and Hancock’s resignation, which all bundled together have an aroma of nastiness about them.”Last month, Mr Johnson defied Speaker Lindsay Hoyle’s demands for MPs to be given a binding vote as he dismissed calls from Tory backbenchers, including Theresa May, for the government to meet its own promises on international aid as “lefty propaganda”.Andy Gregory4 July 2021 13:451625401042Shadow chancellor denies by-election leaflet featuring PM and Narendra Modi was a ‘dog whistle’Rachel Reeves has denied that a Labour leaflet featuring Boris Johnson and Indian premier Narendra Modi – widely considered to be hostile to Muslims in his country – was a “dog whistle” to Muslim voters in Batley and Spen.“If you look at some of the actions by Boris Johnson, during the course of this pandemic, one of the things that stand out very sharply is the failure to close the borders properly to protect us from new variants of virus including the Delta variant,” the shadow chancellor told Sky News.“Boris Johnson wanted his trade visit to India to get a trade deal, but he put at risk the vaccine rollout and allowed new variants to enter the country. That is not responsible, that is not acting in the national interest.”She continued: “Labour called on the government to close down that border to protect the UK, long before the Prime Minister eventually woke up to the reality, the rising number of cases, and the risk to our successful vaccination programme.”Tory Party co-chair Amanda Milling has called on Labour to apologise.Andy Gregory4 July 2021 13:171625399722Health minister defends parliamentary pass for Gina ColadangeloLord Bethell has written to the House of Lords’ commissioner for standards to apparently pre-empt a Labour complaint over his sponsorship of a parliamentary pass for Gina Coladangelo, reportedly some 72 hours after he was appointed a parliamentary undersecretary at the Department of Health.According to a copy of the letter posted to Twitter by The Sunday Times’ Gabriel Pogrund, the Tory peer said: “Gina Coladangelo provided me with unpaid parliamentary research support, helping me to draft speeches, engaging with stakeholders and assisting with my communications.”Andy Gregory4 July 2021 12:551625398522The Independent’s senior football correspondent is currently among those on social media contrasting Priti Patel’s recent comments about the issue of fans booing England’s national football team for taking the knee with her show of support for their victory over Ukraine last night.Andy Gregory4 July 2021 12:351625397190Labour’s economic plans ‘infused with fake patriotism’, expert suggestsLabour’s new “buy British” economic policies appear to sit within a UK political environment currently “insular and infused with fake patriotism”, according to one trade expert.Noting that the plans are “in line with European and US fashion for economic intervention”, David Henig – the UK director of the European Centre for International Political Economy – suggested they “[play] into the continuing wrong narrative that the UK makes nothing” and “does nothing for most workers”.He added: “I fear that is the UK politics for the time being – insular and infused with fake patriotism because for whatever reason we aren’t proud of what our economy actually produces, don’t want to talk about real trade and the EU, or questions of distribution.”Andy Gregory4 July 2021 12:13 More

Keir Starmer deserves the credit for Labour’s by-election win in Batley and Spen, a shadow cabinet ally says – dismissing suggestions that a strong local candidate secured the win.The popularity of Kim Leadbeater – the sister of the seat’s former murdered MP Jo Cox – has been seen as the crucial factor in fighting off the Tory challenge.But Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, while heaping praise on Ms Leadbeater’s “inspiration”, added: “Under Keir’s leadership, we won in Batley and Spen.”Amid the admiration for Ms Leadbeater’s determination and bravery – in a by-election stoked by “division and hatred” Ms Reeves said – she was asked if the “excellence of your candidate” had tipped the balance.But the shadow chancellor told Sky News: “Keir will take us into the next election and I believe that result, in the early hours of Friday morning, is the start of more victories for Labour.”The comments came as Ms Reeves announced a new post-Brexit “buy British” policy, to “ensure we buy, make and sell more in Britain”.The patriotic platform is designed to help Labour continue to halt the Conservative advance into the party’s strongholds in traditional manufacturing areas.More public contracts would be awarded to British businesses, as opposed to handing them to overseas firms, although exactly how this would be achieved is unclear.And there would be an emphasis on securing more high-skilled UK jobs for the future in the green, financial technology, digital media and film, and other industries.Ms Leadbeater squeaked to victory over Tory rival Ryan Stephenson by 13,296 votes to 12,973 – a margin of just 323 – while George Galloway’s Workers Party won a surprisingly healthy 8,264 votesOn Friday, the new MP appeared to dodge a question about Sir Keir’s influence, saying: “The focus of the campaign was very much listening to local people and speaking to local people.”Ms Reeves denied a Labour leaflet attacking Boris Johnson and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi – criticised as hostile to Muslims in his country – was a “dog whistle” to Muslim voters in the constituency.“Boris Johnson wanted his trade visit to India to get a trade deal, but he put at risk the vaccine rollout and allowed new variants to enter the country,” she said, defending its use.“That is not responsible, that is not acting in the national interest.”Ms Reeves also said Labour is prepared to consider widely expected tax rises to pay for a solution to the social care crisis, which the government is expected to put forward in the autumn.“We are willing to look at how you fund it because taxes may need to pay for it.,” she told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show.“I will make sure that any policies that I set out and that Labour set out will be fully costed and we explained how they will be paid for.” More

The Conservatives will again be seen as the “nasty party” unless savage cuts to overseas aid are halted, Ruth Davidson is warning Boris Johnson.The “horrific pictures” of famine in Ethiopia will repel voters, the former Scottish Tory leader said – accusing the prime minister of ducking a promised Commons vote because he will lose it.A Conservative MP also urged Mr Johnson to recognise the rising threat of the Liberal Democrats if concerned voters are ignored, following the shock by-election defeat in Chesham and Amersham.“Knocking down the Red Wall, only to allow the cultivation of a Yellow Hedge, isn’t smart politics,” said Anthony Mangnall, the MP for Totnes, in Devon, elected in 2019.The comments represent a fresh push by Tory rebels to try to force a vote before the Commons enters its summer recess in less than three weeks’ time.They are convinced they will, eventually, find a route to table an amendment to legislation – after the Commons Speaker demanded a vote – but the government is currently blocking a showdown.Aid has been slashed from 0.7 to 0.5 per cent of national output – swiping around £4bn a year – and ministers have refused to set a date for restoring the “temporary” reduction.Now Ms Davidson, who is about to made a Conservative peer, has spoken out, saying Parliament’s opposition to the cuts is “clear from the debates in both the House of Commons and the Lords”.“Commitment to the 0.7 per cent runs deep and, if there’s no vote before summer, Tory MPs will join the rising chorus of outcry in the press at the same time as horrific pictures of the unfolding famine in Ethiopia hit our screens along with the ongoing horrors in Yemen and Syria”, she said.“It really does risk us being transported back to being thought of as the ‘nasty party’ in peoples’ minds once again.”Mr Mangnall added: “Voters in the south can’t be taken for granted. On planning reforms, on overseas aid and on a zero-sum interpretation of the levelling-up agenda, we ignore our own heartlands at our peril.”And Karen Bradley, the Conservative chair of the Commons Procedures Committee, warned MPs would continue to explore a way to secure a “binding vote” to overturn the cuts.“This hasn’t happened yet in this Parliament, but there are now unfortunately several issues where the government is out of step with its backbenchers,” she said.The World Health Organisation warned earlier this month that “hundreds of thousands of people” will die from tropical diseases because of the aid cuts.It is among numerous agencies alarmed by the impact of the decision – breaking a Tory manifesto pledge and, some legal experts say, the law.Funding will only be restored “when the fiscal situation allows”, ministers have said – amid huge pressure to hike spending on social care, education and elsewhere. More

Rules will be relaxed to stop “unnecessary” safety work on some high rise buildings ordered after the Grenfell fire tragedy, a Cabinet minister says.Robert Jenrick said it was time to “instil proportionality” into the repairs programme, criticising what experts now believed is an “extreme risk aversion” – hitting residents with unjustified bills.The communities secretary said “only 3 people” a year die in high-rise fires, adding: “You have a much greater chance of dying in a house or a bungalow than you do in an apartment.“So we’ve got to be careful that we instil proportionality – because, at the end of the day, it is only the homeowner who will miss out because they’ll end up having to pay.”The comments come after fierce criticism of ministers for breaking a promise that leaseholders would not have to foot the bill for repairs which are not their fault.No funds will be provided for other safety defects revealed when cladding is removed – and leaseholders in shorter buildings face £50-a-month charges to repay loans for the cost of work.With costs easily reaching £40,000 in many cases, those residents could be paying off their debts for decades, it is feared.Ahead of the Building Safety Bill being published on Monday, Mr Jenrick was confronted over why the pledge to meet the cost of fixing historic safety defects had been abandoned.But he replied: “It doesn’t water down that pledge,” suggesting a clause in the Bill has been changed while refusing to reveal any details.Mr Jenrick also announced that homeowners will be given up to 15 years to sue builders and developers for “shoddy workmanship”, instead of the current six years.But he faced criticism from Mr Marr that it would be hugely expensive for them take on deep-pocketed developers, in what would not be a “level playing field”.Lucy Powell, Labour’s shadow housing secretary, said: “This will bring little relief to homeowners trapped in unsellable, unmortgagable homes.“Rather than doing the bare minimum and washing their hands of the problem, the government needs to establish a building works agency, to assess, fix, find and certify every building.”On cladding costs, Mr Jenrick admitted that some leaseholders had been placed “in an impossible situation” in the fallout from the 72 deaths in the 2017 Grenfell inferno.But he told Sky News: ‘We’re working with lenders and insurers and surveyors to try to create a much more sensible and proportionate way forwards.”Accused of watering down the vow that leaseholders would not face unaffordable costs – “that sounds, gurgle, gurgle, gurgle”, Mr Marr said – Mr Jenrick replied: “You’re reading from an old copy of the draft.“We have actually changed the clause that you’re referring to, but you’ll have to wait until we publish that in the House of Commons.” More