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To use the words on the order paper, the House of Commons officially “believes that the government should stop the planned cut in universal credit and working tax credit in April and give certainty today to the 6 million families for whom it is worth an extra £1,000 a year”.Despite the overwhelming vote and the constitutional convention that the Commons (or at least parliament) is sovereign, this expression of “belief” will make no immediate difference. It is an Opposition Day debate, under a longstanding arrangement providing for proper scrutiny of the executive, but it has the same status as any other vote on a motion. There is a string case that it should alter government policy, even though the vote creates no new laws.Politically, though, it is highly significant. The government whips instructed Tory MPs to abstain, in an attempt to make the exercise seem more irrelevant than it is, and, moreover, because there was a risk the government would lose the vote. Despite the effort, there was a Tory rebellion, including new Tory MPs who captured so-called Red Wall seats from Labour in 2019, plus some former ministers. Once again it is proof that a notional working majority of more than 80 is no defence against defeat in a party addicted to conspiracy, factionalism and revolt. Boris Johnson only escaped another humiliation (of parliamentary defeat or an emergency U-turn) by offering his own dissidents some rubbery commitments to review things at the next Budget. There are suggestions that the Treasury is ready to “buy out” the £20 a week temporary uplift to social security with a one-off final payment of £500 or even £1,000.   More

Treasury minister Jesse Norman has said “it is not absolutely obvious” that taxes will need to be raised in the UK, providing the economy recovers following coronavirus.  Speaking before Westminster’s Treasury Select Committee on Monday, Mr Norman said he had been “struck by remarks” made by “experts” about potential tax hikes.“Paul Johnson [of the Institute for Fiscal Studies] said he wasn’t absolutely sure that taxes needed to rise and I think that’s quite an interesting external view,” he told MPs.
His comments come after the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) projected borrowing could reach £393.5bn by the end of the financial year in March which, if correct, would be the highest since the Second World War.
These estimates were made before the latest national lockdown, though, and are now expected to rise as the budget deficit built up by the pandemic worsens.  Explaining that the OBR would do another forecast before the next Budget, he told the committee “we will have to see where they get to” before any decisions are made.  “Even after that, it will be quite difficult because we may end up with a somewhat delayed but nevertheless very pronounced bounce. There are features of the economy that would suggest that could be quite significant,” he said.
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 weekdayThe Treasury is also reportedly looking at abolishing stamp duty and council tax to “level up Britain”, at some point later this year, implementing a national property tax in its place.A senior Whitehall source told The Times that chancellor Rishi Sunak saw corporation tax as the most reasonable way to raise revenues because only UK businesses who have made profits would be hit.  “Things would have to go pretty badly wrong for us not to begin some consolidation in the budget,” the source said.
However, Mr Norman hinted to the committee that the chancellor was looking for other ways to grow the economy that do not involve more taxation.“He is looking to build strong, sustainable public finances over the longer term when circumstances permit that,” he said of Mr Sunak.  “And that seems to me to be a judicious recognition that some taxation could impede growth, could damage our recovery, could obstruct the transition from the extreme Covid circumstances we’re in at the moment back to something approaching normality and I think that’s a fair and proper recognition.”Mr Norman was asked several times to signal whether tax rises would be included in March’s Budget but declined to comment. Although, he did suggest it could be a logistical nightmare to revalue residential properties under council tax reforms, saying such a process “would be an enormous job”. “Council tax is just one form of property tax … but it is certainly a matter we keep under review and is a topic of increasingly live political interest,” he added.
Mr Sunak, who was not present, has been criticised for failing to appear before the committee on many occasions, with critics suggesting he would rather dodge scrutiny than explain his decisions.   More

Workers need stronger protections against digital surveillance by bosses while they work from home, Labour has said.The opposition is calling on the government “urgently” update guidance amid what they call a “sharp increase” in the use of remote surveillance by businesses.Managers are increasingly using privacy-busting software following an increase in home working among office workers during the Covid-19 pandemic.But Labour says the new technological frontier needs better regulatory oversight to ensure workers are not monitored without their consent.Workers are increasingly flagged and ranked by software based on metrics like how long it takes them to reply to emails and Zoom meeting attendance.But the party cited research by the Trades Union Congress warning that such monitoring software risks increasing discrimination against disabled workers and people caring for children. A survey by YouGov/Skillcast found that 12 per cent of all firms have implemented remote tracking software, with a higher prevalence of 16 per cent among larger companies.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 weekdayResearch by the TUC found thatone in seven workers believe that monitoring and surveillance at work has increased during the Covid-19 pandemic.Some companies are thought to be making use of artificial metrics in deciding which staff to let go, and even using artificial intelligence (AI) to make the decisions.Labour says the Code of Employment Practices issued by the Information Commissioner’s Office must be updated.They also said all personal data collected through surveillance should be subject to a Data Protection Impact Assessment, and that employees and trade unions must be consulted on all measures.
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Boris Johnson is facing rising pressure not to remove support for millions of families in the middle of the pandemic as some of his own MPs backed a Labour motion demanding the government abandons a cut in universal credit.It comes amid a major row over whether to extend the £20-per-week increase in benefits that is due to expire at the end of March. The £6bn measure was introduced at the onset of the Covid-19 crisis to alleviate pressures on low-paid families.In the absence of a guarantee the support will be extended in the spring, the Commons voted in 278-0 in favour of the non-binding motion on Monday evening, urging the government to maintain the payments as the country suffers the economic fallout from Covid-19.It passed after the prime minister – bruised by a previous row over a similar motion on free school meals – instructed Conservative MPs to abstain on the issue to avoid the prospect of a potentially damaging defeat on the issue.Despite ministers describing the Labour motion as a “political stunt”, six Conservatives voted with the opposition including Stephen Crabb, the former work and pensions secretary, Robert Halfon, the chair of the Commons Education Committee, and backbench MPs Peter Aldous, Jason McCartney, Anne Marie Morris and Matthew Offord.During the debate Mr Crabb urged the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, to increase the uplift for another 12 months and provide certainty to low-paid families.He told MPs: “The question for us right now is whether at the end of March this year, just 10 weeks away, it’s the right time to begin unwinding this support – specifically to remove the extra support for universal credit claimants – and I don’t believe it is the right moment.”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 weekdayConservative MP Simon Fell echoed Mr Crabb’s comments, saying “now is not the time” to cut the benefit, adding: “This uplift was brought in to help people through the extreme challenges of the pandemic and those challenges haven’t passed. Indeed, as furlough ends we may be entering even more challenging times.”However, alongside several Tories, he argued it was “absolutely right” that decisions are taken at the Budget in March by Mr Sunak rather than through Labour’s Opposition Day motion. Reports have also suggested the chancellor is mulling a one-off £500 payment to claimants to avoid the uplift in payments becoming permanent. Earlier on Monday, Mr Johnson repeatedly declined to state whether or not the increase will be extended when questioned during a visit to Oxfordshire.“What we have said is we will put our arms around the whole of the country throughout the pandemic,” he told reporters. “We have already done £280bn worth of support and we will keep all measures under constant review.”Sir Keir Starmer called Mr Johnson “pathetic” for telling Tories not to vote on the motion and said that “in their heart of hearts”, Conservative MPs would back Labour’s move.After the vote, shadow work and pensions secretary Jonathan Reynolds added: “It is disappointing that the Conservative government refused to vote with Labour to provide families with certainty and secure our economy. They can still do the right thing and drop their plans to cut universal credit.“Britain is facing the worst recession of any major economy because of the government’s incompetence and indecision. Families cannot be made to pay the price.”Alison Garnham, the chief executive of Child Poverty Action Group, said: “The pandemic and its economic fallout are far from over and families are looking to the government to provide some security of income and some certainty so that they can plan for the future.” “In dodging a decision on the universal credit uplift the government today failed to provide that security and certainty.“The £20 uplift has acted as a stabiliser for millions of families forced on to universal credit by coronavirus. If it is not retained and extended to all legacy benefit claimants, struggle will turn to real hardship for many more families – at the bleakest point – and more children will show up in the poverty statistics.”A report published by the Resolution Foundation also warned on Monday that Britain’s poorest households would be pushed further into poverty if the government cut the increase, worth £1,040 a year, with millions facing the sharpest drop in living standards in a generation in 2021.The think-tank estimated that withdrawal of the benefit increase this spring would drive up relative poverty from 21 to 23 per cent by 2024-25, pushing a further 730,000 children into poverty. “Deciding if the £20-a-week uplift to universal credit should be extended will determine whether millions of households are able to enjoy any sort of living standards recovery next year,” said the Resolution Foundation’s senior economist Karl Handscomb.“And looking further ahead, the decision on whether to keep the UC boost will help define whether this is to be a parliament of ‘levelling up’ living standards, or pushing up poverty.” More

Gavin Williamson has told MPs “live” education is the “best way” to deliver teaching remotely to students – despite guidance issued to educators branding the assertion an “unhelpful myth”.The embattled minister has increasingly come under fire over the course of the pandemic following his response to the A-level grading scandal, the provision of laptops to less well off pupils and legal challenges his department issued to schools over closures that were soon after made mandatory by lockdown rules.Now Mr Williamson has contradicted guidance issued to teachers to help them through the pandemic – claiming lessons in which they lead learning via video link is better than education provided through pre-recorded mediums or digitally available classwork.“What we do want to see and we do want to encourage is as much live teaching as possible,” Mr Williamson told the Commons, adding it was “shown to be the best way in terms of delivering teaching”.Asked if he had plans to increase the amount of live teaching, he added: “We would encourage schools to put on as much live provision as possible. This is very beneficial.”In guidance issued to schools by Ofsted, teachers were told the idea that “the best way to deliver remote education is always through live lessons” was an “unhelpful myth” that was “not based on evidence”.“Some think that a live lesson is the ‘gold standard’ of remote education. This isn’t necessarily the case.” It adds.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 weekday“Because evidence suggests that concentration online is shorter than the length of a typical lesson, filming a classroom lesson may be ineffective.“Different approaches to remote education suit different types of content and pupils.”It comes after teachers, unions, politicians and even his own party membership have aired their disapproval of the minister, with a December poll of members by Conservative Home placing him as the least popular member of the cabinet with approval of minus 22.5 per cent.Shadow education secretary Kate Green told the Commons: “He was late in planning the voucher scheme, he was late getting laptops to students, late consulting on replacing exams and late announcing that students would not return to school in January.“After delay after delay, has he finally realised what parents, pupils and staff have known for months, he just isn’t up to the job?”Responding, Mr Williamson said: “Time and time and time again we have recognised where there are real challenges in terms of dealing with the global pandemic, that is why we have taken the action that we have.” More

Jeremy Corbyn’s suspension from the parliamentary Labour Party “went behind an agreement to reinstate” him “at all levels”, the High Court has heard.At a remote hearing on Monday, the former leader of the opposition’s legal team said he was considering legal action against Labour for “an injunction to restore the whip immediately”.Mr Corbyn was suspended in October after claiming antisemitism in the party had been “dramatically overstated for political reasons”.Despite being reinstated as a party member by the National Executive Committee (NEC) three weeks after his suspension, Mr Corbyn’s successor Sir Keir Starmer blocked him from sitting as a Labour MP – accusing him of “undermining” work to restore trust and confidence in Labour’s ability to tackle antisemitism.Speaking earlier before the hearing, Sir Keir told reporters he was “not going to comment on [this] particular case”.  “I don’t want to see the Labour Party tied up in court proceedings, I want to see the Labour Party out there campaigning,” he said.  Mr Corbyn, the MP for Islington North, later clarified his comments in a statement, which he insists was agreed with Labour, saying concerns about antisemitism were “neither ‘exaggerated’ nor ‘overstated’”.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 weekdayHis legal team is now applying for “pre-action disclosure” from the Labour Party ahead of an “anticipated claim” over his suspension.On Monday, Mr Corbyn’s barrister, Christopher Jacobs, told Judge Lisa Sullivan: “We need to know the involvement of the Labour Party leader [Sir Keir] in accepting the NEC decision.“We need to know the conduct of the Labour Party leader in accepting the agreement [that there would be] no requirement for further sanction and the matter would be closed. And we need to know the extent to which the decision to impose a second suspension … was influenced by third-party interventions.”Calling Labour’s treatment of his client “grossly unfair”, Mr Jacobs said the decision to prevent his client returning legitimately to the party seemed to be the result of “political interference”.
Mr Jacobs argued “the party and the party leadership in particular” went behind “the legitimate and final decision of the NEC” to reinstate Mr Corbyn, arguing that its “complete about-turn is perverse”.He also argued that the suspension of Mr Corbyn – who was due to attend the hearing on Monday – from Labour was “a fundamental breach of contract” in relation to his client’s membership of the party.
Mr Jacobs told the court that Labour had breached a “settled agreement” to restore the party whip to Mr Corbyn and that, at two separate meetings in November, “it was agreed that there would be no further sanction imposed in respect of my client”.
Rachel Crasnow QC, for Labour, said the party had already provided “adequate disclosure”, adding: “There was no agreement in any event.”
She said Mr Corbyn’s proposed claim against Labour was “a straightforward contract claim based on two agreements: firstly, his membership of the party … and, secondly, upon a supposed agreement reached between his representatives and party representatives”.
She added that disclosure was also unlikely to resolve the dispute without the need to bring legal proceedings because “this case has an important political significance to Mr Corbyn that will not be satiated by obtaining early disclosure”.
Once both sides were finished, Judge Sullivan said she would give her ruling on Mr Corbyn’s application “as soon as I can”. There has been no indication yet as to how long the process might take.  Even if the pre-action disclosure application is unsuccessful, though, a case is expected to go ahead on the basis of the claim that the second whip suspension was not procedurally fair, according to reports by LabourList.Additional reporting by PA More

Today’s daily politics briefingBoris Johnson will come under intense pressure to maintain the £20-a-week uplift to Universal Credit when Labour forces a Commons vote on the government’s scheduled cut on Monday.Keir Starmer accused the prime minister of being “pathetic” over the payments worth £1,000 a year, and said families deserved certainty about their incomes during the pandemic. No 10 dismissed the opposition motion as a “political stunt”, but several Tory MPs are expected to rebel and side with Labour on the issue.It comes as more than 20 Scottish fishing industry trucks – with slogans such as “Brexit carnage” – parked on the roads around parliament to protest Brexit red tape and delays which have stopped them exporting to the EU over the past two weeks.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
1610981359Britain after Brexit: Singapore of Europe?Boris Johnson and his chancellor Rishi Sunak will speak to a group of 30 top business leaders on Monday for their thoughts on cutting regulation and boosting growth after Brexit. The Times reported the meeting as part of government plans to turn the UK into the “Singapore of Europe”.It follows criticism over reported plans to scrap the 48-hour week could be ditched, along with other protections enshrined in EU law as part of an overhaul of labour rules.
The PM and chancellor will speak to the leaders of some of Britain’s largest companies, including British Airways, BT, pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline and Jaguar Land Rover. The government is also setting up a “better regulation committee”, chaired by Sunak. More

The roll-out of the government’s vaccine programme is “not quite working right” and has issues that need to be resolved, a Cabinet minister has said.Therese Coffey said constituents were receiving “distressing and annoying” information about who was being given priority for jabs before them or their family members.The Work and Pensions Secretary she has been contacted by people with concerns that younger people were getting vaccinated before some over-80s, and even over-90s in her constituency. From this week the government plans to contact millions of over-70s and clinically extremely vulnerable people to arrange their doses.But ministers said that this would only happen when higher priority groups, as determined by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), have been served first.But in an update to her constituents posted on Facebook, Ms Coffey said she was receiving reports that this was apparently not always the case.The minister said on Monday morning that her Suffolk constituency has mostly received the Pfizer vaccine so far, which she said is “more challenging to distribute especially in a rural area” because of the need for ultra-cold storage.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 weekdayShe added: “Something is not quite working right yet though, particularly in one part of the constituency, as I am hearing from people in part of the area that 80+ and 90+ year olds have not been contacted while some 70+ patients in the same GP practice were invited for vaccination.”I know it is both distressing and annoying when people hear that other cohorts of a lower priority (according to the JCVI) are being vaccinated ahead of our oldest and most vulnerable. On that point, every care home resident will be vaccinated by next Sunday.” More