Markus Andrews

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA leading think tank has accused Labour and the Conservatives of a “conspiracy of silence” as it warned voters that tax rises are likely in the next five years.The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) criticised the manifestos of both main parties, saying they leave voters “guessing” and casting their ballots in a “knowledge vacuum”.It also accused Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party and the Greens of poisoning the debate around the painful economic decisions ahead with what it described as unattainable pledges on tax. The next government faces a stark choice between making tax rises beyond what it promises in its manifesto, cutting spending, and increasing borrowing, the think tank warned. Paul Johnson, the director of the IFS, said it would be “a considerable surprise if no other taxes are increased over the next five years”, and that none of the main parties are facing up to the difficult choices ahead.“We’ve called this a conspiracy of silence, and that has been essentially maintained,” he said. “Regardless of who takes office, they will soon face a stark choice: raise taxes by more than they have told us in their manifesto, implement cuts to some areas of spending, or break their fiscal rules and allow debt to rise for longer.“That is the trilemma. What will they choose? I don’t know; the manifestos do not give us a clue.”Mr Johnson also accused Labour and the Conservatives of making “essentially unfunded commitments” to improve the NHS. Paul Johnson, director of the IFS appearing on the BBC One current affairs programme, ‘Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg’ More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailAlistair Carns’s decision to leave the Royal Marines after 24 years’ service to stand for Labour in the coming election came as a huge surprise. The colonel, who won the Military Cross in Afghanistan, was widely viewed as someone who would rise very high in the armed forces.Standing in Birmingham Selly Oak, he is one of 14 former services personnel to stand as prospective Labour candidates in this election, something that does no harm to Keir Starmer’s attempts to portray his party as one that can be trusted with the defence of the realm.Carns, who joined the Royal Marines at 19, was due to be promoted to brigadier this month, which at the age of 44 would have made him among the youngest in that rank. He has served in every major conflict this country has been engaged in for the last two dozen years.Much of Carns’s service history – 14 of his 24 years – cannot be made public for security reasons. He won his Military Cross during a six-month tour that began at the end of 2010. Those of us who reported from Afghanistan remember the fierce, sustained violence of this period as the Taliban made increasing use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and lethal ambushes.But it was during his last posting in a conflict zone that Carns began to think hard about how he could best address the challenges Britain faces in an increasingly dangerous world. The answer, he decided, was to enter politics.“We are seeing a completely different form of warfare. We are seeing, for example, the use of hundreds, thousands of drones, drones destroying battle fleets. How many drones have we got in the army? How many drones are in the navy? What lessons are we learning? Are we moving fast enough to keep up with the character of conflict, and if we go to war tomorrow, are we ready?” Carns says.“We need leadership, and at the moment, Keir Starmer, without a shadow of a doubt, is the person who can provide it. One of the biggest points for me is Labour’s reinvestment in national security being at the centre of the manifesto, and the simple reason is that you can’t have a growing and secure economy without national security in these dangerous times. These [matters] are intrinsically linked, as is our foreign policy. Labour governments have consistently funded defence more than the Conservatives.“I have worked for three defence secretaries in the national security structure, and I feel this gives me the ability to put plans into practice.”Carns says he decided to stand because ‘change is best delivered via the ballot box’ More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA high-flying Royal Marines colonel who has given up his military career to run for parliament has insisted that “only Labour can be trusted on defence”.Colonel Alistair Carns is one of 14 veterans standing for Labour at this general election, in a significant shift since Jeremy Corbyn was leader of the party in 2019.Col Carns was due to be promoted to brigadier at the age of 44, making him among the youngest in Britain to achieve that rank, but is instead campaigning to be the MP for Birmingham Selly Oak.The decorated military hero has spoken exclusively to The Independent about why he decided to go into politics.“We need leadership, and at the moment Keir Starmer, without a shadow of a doubt, is the person who can provide it,” he said. “Only a Labour government can be trusted to defend our country.“One of the biggest points for me is Labour’s reinvestment in national security being at the centre of the manifesto, and the simple reason is that you can’t have a growing and secure economy without national security in these dangerous times. These [matters] are intrinsically linked, as is our foreign policy.”‘Keir’s army’ of former military personnel join the Labour leader in Manchester More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA shock new poll appears to have confirmed that Reform holds a narrow lead over the Tories with just 10 days to go before the general election.According to the Redfield and Wilton survey of 10,000 voters polled after Nigel Farage made his comments blaming the west for Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, his Reform UK are one point ahead of the Tories both unchanged on 19 percent and 18 percent.The findings have all top three parties unchanged from the survey on 19 and 20 June last week with Labour on top on 42 percent.Redfield and Wilton’s director of research Philip van Scheltinga told The Independent that the size of the survey meant “it was a very robust sample”.Farage still ahead of the Tories despite being described as pro-Putin More

Former Olympian turned Conservative candidate James Cracknell has described his own party as a “shower of s***”.Mr Crackell is standing in Colchester which the Tories won with a majority of over 9,000 at the 2019 General Election.Speaking in the video, released on Facebook on Saturday (22 June) he said: “Two weeks out from the Olympics. If we were competing against the Conservative party my teammates and I would be saying they are a shower of s**t*. And if one of my teammates got caught for cheating they’d be dead to me. That abuse of trust is unforgivable.“So why am I still canvassing and delivering leaflets? Because I believe the Conservative way is the best for the country.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailKemi Badenoch has hinted she could make another run for the Tory leadership, if the party loses the election next month.During a debate hosted by the Institute of Directors and Bloomberg on Monday, the Business Secretary was asked about her intentions if Rishi Sunak is ousted on 4 July. She claimed there was “no better job” than Business and Trade Secretary, which she described as being “a lot easier and a lot less pressured than being prime minister”.But the senior Conservative suggested she could have bigger ambitions to become a Tory leader wannabe despite losing the 2022 contest.The Conservative right-winger, who is fighting for re-election in the redrawn North West Essex seat, said: “The fact of the matter is, I stood and I lost. And what terrifies me now is not not becoming leader, it is seeing Labour come in.“This is one of the things that I’ve found most difficult doing this job, that people tend not to know what it is, because I’m always asked the leadership question. We’re so interested in the personalities, in the gossip and so on.“We need to focus on this election. The choice is going to be between us or between them. Be afraid if it is them, is all I would say. And we will talk about leadership things after an election, but not before.”The former women and equalities minister is favoured by the right of the party More

Nigel Farage has hit back at Boris Johnson after the former prime minister accused the Reform UK leader of a “morally repugnant” repetition of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s justification for the invasion of Ukraine. The Reform Leader addressed crowds in Maidstone, Kent, whilst on the campaign trail on Monday (24 June), saying that he would “never, ever defend” Putin and that he had been “more far-sighted” in predicting a war in Ukraine. Mr Farage, who has been criticised for saying the West “provoked” the war in Ukraine, then went on to unveil a blown up poster of the i newspaper’s front page from 10 May 2016, with the headline “Boris blames EU for war in Ukraine”. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe Independent is giving readers the chance to chat directly with candidates from some of the major political parties in a special general election series of Ask Me Anything events.In this question and answer session, our community can chat exclusively with Dr Ellie Chowns, who is hoping to be elected MP in North Herefordshire for the Green Party.Serving as the party’s housing and communities spokesperson, Dr Chowns served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the West Midlands for the party from 2019 to 2020. She has also been a councillor on Herefordshire Council since 2017, representing the Bishops Frome & Cradley ward, and is leader of the council’s Green group.The Greens have pledged to create 150,000 new council homes every year by the end of the parliament, end the Right to Buy scheme, introduce rent controls and end no-fault evictions.The party is also promising to stop “all new fossil fuel projects”; impose a wealth tax of 1% annually on assets above £10m; invest £50bn in health and social care – including making personal social care free at the point of use; and bring water companies, railways, and the big five retail energy companies into public ownership.If you have a question about the Green Party’s manifesto, pledges or policies submit it now, or when Dr Chowns joins you live at 6pm on Friday 28 June for the “Ask Me Anything” event.Register to submit your question in the comments box under this article. Simply scroll down or click here to leave your comment.If you’re not already a member, click “sign up” in the comments section to leave your question. For a full guide on how to comment click here.Don’t worry if you can’t see your question – they may be hidden until the Q&A starts. More