Markus Andrews

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailLabour has become embroiled in a fierce row this week as as party officials moved to bar several parliamentary candidates on the left of the party from standing at the upcoming general election.Long-standing MP Diane Abbott was readmitted into the party on Tuesday after a suspension that lasted over a year. Despite her future as a Labour MP being cast into doubt this week, it appears she may now stand for the party after leader Sir Keir Starmer said she was free to do so.The case has drawn strong criticism from local Labour members and anti-racism campaigners. It comes alongside the barring of Faiza Shaheen, former Labour candidate for Chingford and Woodford Green.Being only a few weeks away from the general election, it is Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC) – and not local party members – that will select candidates for the upcoming election.Follow The Independent’s live coverage for the latest political updates ahead of the general electionFaiza Shaheen, Jeremy Corbyn, and Diane Abbott (L to R) More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSir Patrick Vallance, whose face become synonymous with covid briefings during the lockdown, came out in support of Labour’s Great British Energy plan in the election campaign today.The former chief scientific officer’s backing was unveiled as Sir Keir Starmer revealed that the publicly owned company which he argues will bring down energy costs will be based in Scotland.But Sir Patrick is just the latest former senior Whitehall mandarin to support Labour in a move which has already angered the Tories.Patrick Vallance during a coronavirus press conference at Downing Street More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA Tory MP has become the 79th to quit ahead of the general election, despite having campaigned for re-election for a week.Aaron Bell said it was “with a heavy heart” that he was stepping down, raising questions about why he had been on the campaign trail since Rishi Sunak called the snap summer poll.Until as recently as Wednesday, the Newcastle-under-Lyme MP was telling constituents he was hoping to be re-elected.Former Conservative MP Aaron Bell has announced ‘with a very heavy heart’ that he will not be standing at the General Election (Yui Mok/PA) More

Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UKSign up to our Brexit email for the latest insightVoters back Michael Heseltine’s claim that the current general election risks being “one of the most dishonest” in history because the main parties will not discuss Britain’s relationship with the European Union.The We Think voter intention poll has revealed that almost six in 10 voters (58 per cent) think that Brexit and Britain’s relationship with the EU should be one of the main issues in the election.The survey of 1,242 voters commissioned by the pro-EU European Movement UK followed an intervention by the former deputy prime minister Lord Heseltine in The Independent this week where he warned no issue can be discussed without referring it to Brexit.The veteran Tory heavyweight said: “We are now at the start of what I foresee will be the most dishonest election of modern times.Michael Heseltine warns election campaign will be ‘dishonest’ More

Related: Keir Starmer denies Labour ‘left-wing cull’ after Abbott and Shaheen suspensionsSign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSir Keir Starmer has said Diane Abbott is “free” to stand as a Labour candidate in the General Election, following growing concerns over a purge of the left.Labour is now facing anger from prominent Black personalities who have signed an open letter condemning the party’s “disgraceful” treatment of the Hackney North MP and warned of a losing loyal supporters.The controversy continues as Labour replaced pro-Palestinian Muslim candidate for Chingford and Woodford Green Faiza Shaheen with a member of the Jewish Labour Movement Shama Tatler. This came after much criticism by Muslim groups and the left of the party of Starmer’s position on Israel.Adding further fuel to the fire, Sir Keir leader admitted he would work with Donald Trump if he gets into the White House despite facing an “unprecedented” situation.He added that he “respects the decision of the court” that found Trump Donald Trump has been  guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records as part of a conspiracy to corrupt.Show latest update 1717159668Breaking: Starmer says Diane Abbott is free to run for LabourAfter days of intense speculation, Sir Keir Stamer has confirmed Diane Abbott is free to stand at the general election. He said: “Diane was elected in 1987. The first black woman MP. She has been a trailblazer. “She has carved a path for other people to come into politics and public life. The whip has obviously been restored to her now, and she is free to go forward as a Labour candidate.”Asked about whether he understands Ms Abbott’s intention to stand, he replied: “She’s free to go forward as a Labour candidate. The whip is back with her. It’s been restored. And of course you know she was a trailblazer for many, many years and has been a path for others to come into politics. “So, formally a matter for the NEC, I’ve not expressed a view up until now. She’s free to go forward as a Labour candidate.”( More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA celebrity Tory election hopeful has dropped out of the race to represent Tunbridge Wells after 48 hours because a clip emerged of him saying he never liked the area.LBC presenter Iain Dale, who quit on Tuesday night to run for the Conservatives in the general election, announced he was throwing in the towel on Friday morning.It came after a clip from his For the Many podcast from 2022 was widely shared in which he said he lived in Tunbridge Wells “slightly against my will”.Iain Dale is no longer standing to be an MPHe told his co-host, former Labour home secretary Jacqui Smith: “I have lived in Tunbridge Wells since 1997, slightly against my will.“I’ve never liked the place. Still don’t, and would happily live somewhere else.”On Friday he revealed the Liberal Democrats had contacted his local Conservative association about the clip, which made him fear it would be “on every single Lib Dem leaflet that was put out in the election campaign”.Announcing his decision to withdraw from the race, Mr Dale said: “I thought to myself, well, if they’ve got this on day one, I mean, I’ve done thousands of hours on LBC over the last 15 years, I’ve done hundreds of hours in podcasts… what if they had got something else that I have said?”He added: “I wasn’t willing to suffer death by a thousand cuts. I mean, imagine if the day before nominations close next week, they had found something else that was even worse than this.“And I don’t know what that would be, but they could have done.”Mr Dale, who has been a staple on the channel since 2010, was hoping to replace retired Tory MP Greg Clark, who won the seat in 2019 with a comfortable 14,645 majority. But the seat is expected to be a difficult contest, with the Liberal Democrats and Labour enjoying significant support.Iain Dale and Jacqui Smith will continue to host the For the Many podcast More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email The U.K.’s first Black female member of parliament will be allowed to stand for the Labour Party in the upcoming general election, leader Keir Starmer said Friday following a fractious few days over her political future.Starmer told reporters that Diane Abbott, who has been a Labour lawmaker since 1987, is “free to stand as a Labour candidate in the election on July 4.“She is free to go forward as a Labour candidate,” Starmer said.Her future in the party has been in question over the past year, particularly in the wake of the announcement of the election last week from Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. At the time of that announcement, Abbott, 70, had been in limbo as she was serving a suspension for comments last year that suggested Jewish and Irish people do not experience racism “all their lives.” Though she apologized instantly for those remarks, the party’s machinery only reinstated Abbott earlier this week, but had not made a decision whether she would be the candidate for her constituency in northeast London. Over the past few days, Starmer’s attempt to get his party’s message across on a range of issues, including the economy and health, have been overshadowed by questions over Abbott. Though praising Abbott as a “trailblazer,” Starmer faced accusations that he was purging the more left-wing elements of his party, especially those with a close connection with former leader Jeremy Corbyn, who has been expelled from Labour and is standing as an independent candidate in his constituency in north London. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailDiane Abbott is “free” to stand as a Labour candidate in the general election, Sir Keir Starmer has said.After days of back and forth about whether the veteran MP would be blocked, the Labour leader confirmed she will be able to contest the election as a Labour candidate. Sir Keir told reporters: “The whip has obviously been restored to her now and she is free to go forward as a Labour candidate.”Diane Abbott is ‘free’ to stand as a candidate in the election, Sir Keir Starmer has said (Jonathan Brady/PA) More