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Clipper Logistics, whose boss has given £735,000 to the Conservatives, secured the order to supply the NHS when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, without facing any rival bids. But The Independent can reveal that the Clipper Logistics deal, reported to be worth £1.3m, has still not been published on the government’s official website, almost 12 months on.Labour said such “secrecy has to end”, demanding to know why the government was still failing to be open about contracts “if there’s nothing to hide”.“Taxpayers deserve know how their money is being spent,” said Fleur Anderson, the party’s Cabinet Office spokesperson, “there is simply no excuse for the persistent failure to do so.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayRead more:“This government has wasted millions on unsafe and unusable PPE, leaving our NHS staff exposed on the frontline and handing them a pay cut in return, while Tory friends and donors won big on contracts like these.”The secrecy came under the spotlight when the landmark court ruling, earlier this month, found that only 608 of 708 Covid contracts awarded by last October had been released.Yet, 11 days earlier, challenged in the Commons on the missing information, Mr Johnson told MPs: “All I will say is that the contracts are there on the record for everybody to see.”Ministers have dismissed the “cronyism” criticism, arguing the unprecedented crisis trumped normal rules for scrutinising how huge sums of public money were being spent.“I think most people in this country will understand that in very difficult if not desperate times last spring, we had to work as fast as we possibly could,” the prime minister told MPs.But controversy has raged since the revelation that hundreds of firms were fast-tracked for contracts after tips from ministers and MPs, as £18bn was handed out under emergency rules.The ripping up of procurement and transparency rules in the scramble for equipment – with some deals secured by Tory allies – was sharply criticised by the National Audit Office.Labour has uncovered that Stephen Parkin, the chairman of Clipper Logistics, has donated £735,000 to the Conservatives in eight separate payments since 2016.One – a gift of nearly £10,000 – was made in July, four months after the contract was reported to have been awarded.Clipper Logistics, “a new breed of logistics company” according to its website, typically serves retailers selling everything from fashion and alcohol to luxury goods.Founded in 1992 with a single delivery van, it now reportedly employs more than 10,000 people at 52 sites across Europe and has a fleet of about 500 delivery vehicles.In December, it reported a 38 per cent leap in interim pre-tax profits to £14.3m on the back of having “processed over 7.4 billion items of PPE on the NHS contract”. More

A recent fall in support for Scottish independence could be the result of a “vaccine bounce” for the UK government, new analysis suggests.Support for Scotland to leave the UK was high at the end of last year, when Boris Johnson’s administration’s handling of the global pandemic was seen as poor, research by pollster Savanta ComRes suggests.But perceptions have changed as more and more people receive their vaccine against Covid-19.Earlier this week, it emerged that the Conservatives had received an electoral “vaccine bounce” in England among older people who had already received their jabs.The phenomenon was first identified among the over-65s, but appears to have spread to the over-55s as more and more are called up for their Covid shot.Chris Hopkins, from Savanta ComRes, suggested a similar trend may be happening in Scotland, ahead of what will be crunch elections for the SNP.Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP leader, has said that victory in May’s vote would be a mandate to hold another referendum on independence, the first since 45 per cent of Scots voted to leave the UK in 2014.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayBut the election comes at a difficult time for Ms Sturgeon and the SNP.She is facing allegations she misled the Scottish Parliament over when she knew of allegations against her predecessor Alex Salmond, a charge she denies .Mr Hopkins said:  “Over the last few months we’ve seen an increase in perceptions of how the vaccine rollout is going, an increase in the favourability towards Boris Johnson and the UK Government, and a decrease in the personal ratings of Nicola Sturgeon.“All of these things coupled together, in addition to the ongoing Salmond Inquiry which is creating divisions within the SNP among the architects of independence, mean it would not be surprising to infer that this could be causing a downturn in support for independence.“Indeed, when support for independence was at its highest at the back end of 2020, the UK government were seen to be performing poorly managing the pandemic, while the Scottish government were seen to be doing well. Since the beginning of the vaccine rollout in 2021, perceptions towards the competence of the UK government has changed, and that could tip the balance for those on the fence about independence from Yes to No.”The SNP have been approached for comment. More

A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission said it was seeking to establish whether any sums relating to the refurbishment should have been declared under the law on party political donations.In response, the Conservative Party said that all reportable donations were correctly declared in compliance with the law.It follows reports by the Daily Mail that £60,000 of party funds were used to help cover the reported £200,000 cost of refurbishing the official flat over 11 Downing Street where Mr Johnson lives with his fiancee, Carrie Symonds.In a statement, the commission said: “We are in contact with the party to establish whether any sums relating to the renovation works fall within the regime regulated by the commission.“If so, they would need to be reported according to the rules specified in law, and would then be published by the commission as part of our commitment to the transparency of political finance.”Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayRead more:Tory sources said that, like all parties, they had regular discussions with the commission.A party spokesperson said: “All reportable donations to the Conservative Party are correctly declared to the Electoral Commission, published by them and comply fully with the law.“Gifts and benefits received in a ministerial capacity are, and will continue to be, declared in government transparency returns.”Earlier this month, the Prime Minister’s press secretary Allegra Stratton told reporters that Conservative Party funds were “not being used to pay for any refurbishment of the Downing Street estate.”Press Association More

Boris Johnson has urged everybody called for a vaccination to “go and get it”, after receiving his first jab.“I literally did not feel a thing and so it was very good, very quick,” Mr Johnson told reporters as he left St Thomas’ Hospital, wearing a sticker to show he had received the jab.“You know what I’m going to say – I cannot recommend it too highly. Everybody, when you get your notification to go for a jab, please go and get it. It’s the best thing for you, the best thing for your family, and for everybody else.”Asked what he would say to people worried by some EU countries suspending use of the vaccine, he replied: “Don’t just listen to me, listen to all the scientists. The risk is Covid, this is a great thing to do.”Earlier, the 56-year-old was pictured with his left shirtsleeve rolled up to the shoulder, being injected with a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayRead more:Another photo showed the prime minister sitting in the chair where he received the vaccination, raising both thumbs in the air.Mr Johnson is among more than 26 million people in the UK who have received at least their first dose of a vaccine. More

Nicola Sturgeon ‘not surprised’ by ‘partisan leak’ from Salmond inquiryNicola Sturgeon is facing mounting pressure over claims she misled the Scottish Parliament about Alex Salmond, as Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives at Holyrood urged her to consider her position.Sir Keir Starmer earlier said the first minister should resign on principle if she is found to have broken the ministerial code.The Labour leader was responding to reports that a Holyrood committee had concluded Ms Sturgeon misled a parliamentary investigation into the handling of sexual misconduct claims against Alex Salmond.MSPs on the Scottish Government harassment complaints committee voted 5 to 4 that the first minister gave an “inaccurate” account of a meeting with her predecessor during the live investigation, a source told the PA news agency.Earlier, the European Commission vice-president said the UK government has been advising businesses in Northern Ireland to break international law.Traders working across the new border have been told how to duck the terms of the Northern Ireland protocol, Maros Sefcovic said days after the EU launched legal action against Britain over its unilateral extension of post-Brexit grace periods for goods.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayShow latest update

1616150316Salmond vs Sturgeon: Your complete guide to the ‘whole sorry story’If you’re wanting to get up to speed on the Sturgeon-Salmond affair, look no further than The Independent’s complete guide to the bitter mess engulfing Scottish politics.Adam Forrest has laid out the key moments in the row, along with a look at the wider SNP and where allegiances lie:Liam James19 March 2021 10:381616165368Ruth Davidson says Nicola Sturgeon should ‘consider her position’Ruth Davidson, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives at Holyrood, has urged Nicola Sturgeon to consider her position over claims she misled parliament about Alex Salmond.Ms Davidson told the BBC: “There’s clear evidence now that Nicola Sturgeon misled parliament and I think she should consider her own position. ”“The first minister really has spent her entire political career standing on her honour, and if she had a shred of integrity, she would now choose herself to go.”More on this from our Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin:Liam James19 March 2021 14:491616164873Love the flag and the Queen or ‘move to another country’, Conservative MP tells the publicConservative MP Lia Nici has suggested people should leave the country if they do not feel pride in “our flag or Queen”.The Grimsby MP was commenting after minister Robert Jenrick was mocked on BBC Breakfast over the floor-to-ceiling Union flag placed for viewers to see.Several Tories have raged at the incident but Ms Nici went further, tweeting: “Of course if people are not proud to be British, or of our flag or Queen, they don’t have to live in the UK. Perhaps they should move to another country they prefer.”Liam James19 March 2021 14:411616161791Londoners told not to join planned weekend protestsPeople planning to join protests in central London this weekend in breach of coronavirus restrictions risk arrest, the Metropolitan Police said.A number of demonstrations are expected to take place in the capital, including a rally at Speakers’ Corner in Hyde Park to support Piers Corbyn’s mayoral bid.The brother of the former Labour leader has been at the forefront of the anti-lockdown movement since restrictions were imposed a year ago.There are also expected to be protests against plans to give police in England and Wales more power to impose conditions on non-violent protests, including those deemed too noisy or a nuisance.Samuel Osborne19 March 2021 13:491616160957UK has ‘strong measures’ at border, Downing Street says as France faces third wave of coronavirusA spokesman for Boris Johnson said the UK had “strong measures” at the border when asked whether the government was concerned about rising Covid rates in France and other European countries.Professor Neil Ferguson, from Imperial College London, who spurred the UK’s decision to go into lockdown last March, warned a “significant fraction” of European cases were likely to be of the South African variant, which it is feared the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine could be less effective against.Asked about Prof Ferguson’s remarks, a spokesman for the prime minister said: “What I would say in relation to those specific comments, we already have strong measures in place at the border as you will be aware.”It is currently illegal to go on holiday and anyone arriving in England has to self-isolate, take two mandatory PCR tests on day two and day eight of their 10-day isolation period, and have a negative test before travel as well.”Modelling is showing that a combination of specific policy options such as pre-departure testing and isolation are effective measures for mitigating the public health risk.”Pressed on whether some EU countries could be placed on the “red list”, meaning a stint quarantining in a hotel upon arrival in England, the No 10 spokesman replied: “I would point you back to the wide variety of strong measures that we have in place at the border.”We have them in place and believe them to be strong and robust measures.”Samuel Osborne19 March 2021 13:351616159947Slapdown for Jacob Rees-Mogg from Boris Johnson over attack on journalistBoris Johnson has slapped down Jacob Rees-Mogg over his attack on a journalist under cover of parliamentary privilege, with Downing Street saying: “These are not comments that the prime minister would have made.” Political editor Andrew Woodcock has the full story:Samuel Osborne19 March 2021 13:191616159444Majority of British support nurses’ strike against 1 per cent pay rise, poll finds | ExclusiveA majority of British voters would back nurses taking strike action against the 1 per cent pay rise offered by the government after a year on the Covid-19 frontline, a new poll has revealed.The Savanta ComRes survey for The Independent found 53 per cent support for industrial action by NHS nurses, against just 28 per cent in opposition.Just 11 per cent said that nurses should receive a 1 per cent hike, compared to an overwhelming 77 per cent who said the settlement should be more generous – including 25 per cent who said the rise should be 10 per cent or more.Read the full report from our Political Editor Andrew Woodcock here: Liam James19 March 2021 13:101616157658What next for Nicola Sturgeon?“There are no protest marches or riots in the streets calling for Sturgeon to go – quite the opposite, with many unable to follow the technical, procedural lawyerly wrangling.”Nicola Sturgeon won’t be resigning just yet, but, Sean O’Grady explains, the fight for Scottish independence has been dealt a blow: More

Nicola Sturgeon is facing mounting pressure over claims she misled the Scottish Parliament about Alex Salmond, as the leader of the Scottish Conservatives at Holyrood urged her to consider her position.Earlier Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said Scotland’s first minister should resign if she is found to have broken the ministerial code.But Ruth Davidson told the BBC: “There’s clear evidence now that Nicola Sturgeon misled parliament and I think she should consider her own position. ”The first minister is currently awaiting the findings of a report into whether or not she breached the code, expected to be published next week.Separately, a report by a Holyrood inquiry, also due next week, is reported to have concluded it is “hard to believe” she was unaware of concerns about her predecessor’s behaviour before November 2017, as she told MSPs. Sir Keir said the issue was not one of individuals but of principles.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayRead more:“If you’re going to have integrity in the Westminster Parliament or the Scottish Parliament, breaches of the ministerial code in either parliament ought to lead to a resignation,” he said.Ms Davidson said: “The first minister really has spent her entire political career standing on her honour, and if she had a shred of integrity, she would now choose herself to go.”Ms Sturgeon has hit back at reports the committee has concluded she misled them, denouncing what she said was a “very partisan leak” from the inquiry.She told Sky News: “I stand by all of the evidence I gave to the committee, all eight hours’ worth of evidence.”What’s been clear is that opposition members of this committee made their minds up about me before I uttered a single word of evidence, their public comments have made that clear.”So this leak from the committee – very partisan leak – tonight before they’ve finalised the report is not that surprising.”A Scottish Parliament spokeswoman said the committee, which is made up of four SNP members and five from other parties, is still considering its report.The Committee on the Scottish Government Handling of Harassment Complaints was setup after Mr Salmond was awarded a £512,250 payout over the Scottish Government’s investigation into the allegations.A spokesman for the First Minister said: “The First Minister told the truth to the committee in eight hours of evidence, and stands by that evidence.”It is clear from past public statements that opposition members of this committee had prejudged the First Minister at the outset of the inquiry and before hearing a word of her evidence, so this partisan and selective briefing -before the committee has actually published its final report – is hardly surprising.”The question of the First Minister’s adherence to the ministerial code is being considered independently by James Hamilton, and we expect to receive and publish his report soon.”Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross has called for Ms Sturgeon to resign and said his party was “really only waiting for confirmation of what we already know.”We have detailed that the First Minister misled the Scottish Parliament. Nicola Sturgeon has not told the public the truth about what she knew and when.”We cannot set a precedent that a First Minister of Scotland can mislead the Scottish Parliament and get away with it.”We have to trust that the First Minister will be truthful. We no longer can.”Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said: “I am not going to prejudge the outcome of the committee report and we await its findings, but if it does conclude that the first minister has misled Parliament and potentially breached the ministerial code, then that is incredibly serious.” More

Labour’s candidate at the Hartlepool by election described Saudi Arabia as a “modern, progressive” country after going on a junket organised by its autocratic regime, it has emerged.Paul Williams said the stage-managed trip to the oil-rich monarchy had “totally changed my view of the country” and recounted telling his embassy handlers that his previous ideas had been “blown out of the water”.Parliament’s register of interests shows Dr Williams accepted the trip as an £8,762 donation from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its Shura Council – the country’s powerless parliament that is entirely appointed by the king.He was picked by his party on Thursday to contest the seat of Hartlepool, which Labour is hoping to retain after its MP Mike Hill resigned amid allegations of sexual harassment, which he denies. Until 2019 Dr Williams was an MP 30 minutes down the road from Hartlepool in Stockton South, but was ousted by voters at that year’s election. He went on the Saudi Arabia trip a year earlier in 2018 while he was a sitting MP.The former MP was the only candidate included on Labour’s candidate longlist for the by-election, and was reportedly favoured for the contest by Keir Starmer’s chief advisor Jenny Chapman, another former MP who lost her seat in 2019.Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayRead more:Following the visit to Saudi Arabia on 12 April 2018 Dr Williams tweeted: “Asked by Yousef, from the Saudi Embassy in UK, whether my perceptions of Saudi Arabia have changed after this trip, I said that my previous notions have been blown out of the water. I’ve seen a modern, progressive Saudi Arabia that has totally changed my view of this country.”Amnesty International has criticised Saudi Arabia for using torture, staging public beheadings, banning protests, heavily restricting free speech, discriminating against women, and banning human rights organisations.The country has also been criticised for its military intervention in neighbouring Yemen, which the UN says has contributed to a “humanitarian catastrophe”, and for the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was critical of the regime. In October of that year after the killing of Mr Khashoggi, Dr Williams tweeted: “The whole Khashoggi incident is appalling. It appears the Saudi security services have done a disgraceful thing and they should be help to account. Doesn’t change the fact that I met progressive people working to improve their country when I visited though.”I did see progressive things and meet progressive people on a trip to Saudi. That doesn’t make me a supporter of their government and it appears that atrocious things have been done by the Saudi government. I’m independent-minded enough to criticise where it’s due.”Allan Hogarth, head of policy and government affairs at Amnesty International UK, told The Independent: “We’d urge Dr Williams and others accepting the hospitality of the Saudi Arabian authorities to be aware that Riyadh operates a well-honed PR machine, involving everything from expenses-paid political visits to multi-million-pound sportswashing ventures.“It’s vital that those who travel to Saudi Arabia aren’t duped by the PR. They need to remember that under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s crackdown on human rights has been ferocious and is still ongoing, while the Saudi air force’s indiscriminate bombing of Yemeni homes and hospitals has been an obvious scandal for the past five years.”Questioned on social media about the trip at the time of his original comments, Dr Williams said it was “important for MPs to hear both sides of an argument.””We’ve made our own links and met a range of different people (as well as some things that the government wants us to see, and probably some being hidden). I thought I’d find most people to be deeply conservative, obvious state restrictions on individual behaviour and a stifling bureaucracy.”Labour did not respond to a request for comment on Dr Williams’ views.Amanda Milling, co-chair of the Conservatives, describe the Labour candidate as “a failed former MP who has already been rejected by the people of the North East”. More

A Conservative MP has suggested people should leave the country if they do not feel pride in “our flag or Queen”.Lia Nici spoke out amid controversy and ridicule over more and more politicians displaying huge flags in the background during TV interviews.Robert Jenrick, the local government secretary, provoked laughter on the BBC over the floor-to-ceiling Union flag placed for viewers to see – triggering an angry response from many Tories.Ms Nici, the Grimsby MP, went further, tweeting: “Of course if people are not proud to be British, or of our flag or Queen, they don’t have to live in the UK. Perhaps they should move to another country they prefer.”Another Conservative, Bracknell’s James Sutherland, said, of the amused reaction of presenters on BBC Breakfast: “Yet more smirking nonsense from the increasingly out of touch BBC.“This odious behaviour needs to be cut out of our national broadcaster before it loses even more viewers.”Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayInside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekdayRead more:The tactics are seen as an attempt to retain the support of Labour switchers in ‘Red Wall’ seats’, by provoking Keir Starmer’s party into a response.When criticised for her comment on Twitter, Ms Nici added: “Being proud of the country we live in isn’t about nostalgia, it’s about believing in what we can achieve now and in the future.”On Thursday, the BBC presenters Naga Munchetty and Charlie Stayt mocked Mr Jenrick’s huge flag, with a picture of the Queen also visible behind the Cabinet minister.“I think your flag is not up to standard size, government interview measurements,” Mr Stayt said, as he ended the interview.“I think it’s just a little bit small, but that’s your department really. It’s just a thought.” Mr Jenrick, who was speaking via video call from Westminster, did not respond.Ms Munchetty was seen attempting to stifle her laugher, then she said: “There’s always a flag. They had the picture of the Queen though. In the Westminster office I am assuming.”The presenter later apologised for liking a series of tweets that referenced their interview and the flag. More