Markus Andrews

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailAndreas Michli, an independent candidate running for London mayor, has said he will end knife crime and “get a grip on the deaths” in the capital. Mr Mitchli is a health and fitness entrepreneur and gym owner, who describes himself as “just a regular guy – a born and bred London family man”. Speaking to The Independent, he said: I’ve had enough of the way our city is being run, and that is why I am running for mayor. “I could count on one hand the amount of positive good things Sadiq Khan has done, it would most likely be one or two fingers, so I will be doing absolutely everything different to what he’s done. “The main focus of my campaign is around police and crime, in particular, knife crime. That’s an area in which none of the other candidates are addressing there’s 13 candidates in total, as you’re aware, and out of all 13 candidates, I’m the only candidate who’s come forward with a plan to end knife crime in London.”His plan to end knife crime, named Operation Brennan, is a “complete multifaceted approach from all angles to deal with the issue.”He said: “The sole priority of the plan to preserve life and get a grip on the deaths.” “We must reintegrate the police back into the communities as we’ve lost engagement with the police. “There’s ever widening gap, and nobody trusts them anymore. There is a lack of respect for the police and we’re never going to advance in our society with this distrust. We need to address the deeper rooted wider cultural issues surrounding knife crime.” Mr Michli would also reduce City Hall’s share of council tax, scrap Ulez and the Congestion Charge. “Charging people to use our public highways is a fundamental infringement on our right to travel,” he said. “We can’t keep penalising ordinary working-class Londoners for the failings of City Hall.”In relation to Ulez, he claimed “there is very little correlation with the air quality in London and motor usage.” A report published at the end of last year commissioned by Logika Group Air Quality Consultants found more toxic air pollution has been averted by Ulez than is produced by the capital’s airports or its river and rail transport combined. “I genuinely care about ordinary, working class Londoners because I am one of them,” the independent candidate added. “Make London strong. That’s what I want to do.”  His main manifesto pledges include: Make London StrongDeploy Operation BRENNAN to end knife crimeEnact Radical reforms to fix our broken police forceEmpower Londoners to take control of their healthAbolish ULEZ and get a handle on TfL’s financesBuild strong, build plenty, build beautifulReduce City Hall’s share of council taxCombat air pollution without penalising the publicYou can read Andreas Michli’s full manifesto here.When is the London mayoral election? Voters can cast their ballot in person on 2 May, by post or by proxy. Find your nearest polling station here.Everyone will need to show photo ID at polling stations before they vote.The results will be announced at City Hall on Saturday 4 May.Read the full list of candidates here. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailFemi Amin is the Animal Welfare Party candidate for London mayor, who came to the UK as a Afghan refugee when she was 15-years-old. Ms Amin told The Independent that arriving to the UK as a refugee has greatly shaped her perspective, as she bids to replace Sadiq Khan when Londoners go to the polls on Thursday. “I’ve grown up displaced and I’ve learned first-hand the importance of resilience and empathy as a refugee,” she said. “When I first moved to the UK, I did not have the right qualifications, and had to balance college with long working hours. I was on the brink of homelessness. “All these experiences have helped fuel my passion, which is creating a fairer and more compassionate world.”Ms Amin’s main priority is to oppose all forms of discrimination in the capital, including speciesism, she said. “I love how diverse London is, and that’s what’s amazing about the city,” the candidate explained. “The diversity and the inclusivity and the acceptance which has, which has really led me to running for mayor,” she added. “We must take bold action and we need to show that we need to be compassionate as leaders, even if those decisions are difficult.”Regarding policing and crime, the Animal Welfare Party candidate said there must be a holistic approach. “We need to build stronger relationships between the Met Police and the communities they serve,” she told The Independent. “I will increase the numbers of police officers on the street, whilst ensuring the recruitment policy focuses on better reflecting the ethnic and gender diversity of the city.”Ms Amin has set out seven key manifesto pledges:Prioritise the climate and biodiversity crises in all decision-makingSave NHS funds, improve human and planet health by promoting and supporting plant-based lifestylesIncentivise public and active transport, improving reliability, safety and affordabilityEstablish an Animal Welfare Committee to increase protection for the millions of animals in the capitalBuilding homes that are affordable and sustainableOppose speciesism: where wildlife is valued and managed non-lethally, developments in animal-free testing are championed and the sale of foie gras & fur is rejectedDedicate urgently needed space for nature and scrapping the use pesticides and herbicidesShe said: “I want the opportunity to leave a legacy of positive change and progress for Londoners. I would expect to be remembered as someone who prioritised the well-being of all the capital’s residents, both humans and animals included, and I would want foster a city that is inclusive, sustainable and resilient.”You can read Femi Amin’s full manifesto here.The previous Animal Welfare Party candidate, Vanessa Hudson, received 16,826 votes in the 2021 election. When is the London mayoral election?Voters can cast their ballot in person on 2 May, by post or by proxy. Find your nearest polling station here.Everyone will need to show photo ID at polling stations before they vote.The results will be announced at City Hall on Saturday 4 May.Read the full list of candidates here. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailOn May 2, the country will go to the polls as local elections get underway.Alongside the thousands of local councillors, many voters will also pick their candidate for regional metro mayor. Ten of 12 positions are up for grabs this year, representing around 44 per cent of the English population.Metro mayors are directly-elected leaders who chair combined authorities in the UK. These authorities have powers that are devolved from central government, covering areas such as transport, business support, and sometimes housing, crime and health.There are currently ten metro mayors in the UK, but this will rise to 12 after the May 2 elections. A new mayoral post has been created for the East Midlands, while the North of Tyne combined authority will be absorbed into the new larger North East authority.Here’s everything you need to know about the UK’s eight metro mayors facing election battles on May 2:Sadiq Khan, LondonMayor of London Sadiq Khan urged young people to vote on May 2 (Stefan Rousseau/PA) More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe final set of local elections before the looming general election offers parties a final litmus test of their electoral prospects before the nation decides who they want hanging the curtains in No.10.But interpreting local election results requires nuance. Historically, challenger and fringe parties often outperform expectations, driven by localised issues and lower turnout.Still, locals can provide insight into broader political trends. These results serve as a barometer of the national mood and potential shifts. This set of locals may set hares running. Rishi Sunak is holding together a divided majority, with murmurs of a leadership challenge looming if losses prove substantial. Speculation is swirling about the possibility of an early general election. Labour’s commanding poll lead suggests inevitable Conservative losses, but the tipping point for altering the party’s course remains uncertain. So, what scenarios constitute disaster or triumph? Delving into the key benchmarks, The Independent dissects where success and failure lie for Labour and the Conservatives.Rishi Sunak’s authority is on a knife-edge as local elections loom More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailFormer England cricketer Monty Panesar will stand for the Workers Party at the general election, its leader George Galloway has said.Mr Panesar will contest the Ealing, Southall seat in west London, currently held by Labour with a majority of 16,084.“Monty, of course, was a great left arm spinner and so we could do with him”, Mr Galloway told LBC on Tuesday.The left-wing firebrand was on Tuesday set to unveil 200 parliamentary candidates outside parliament, with Mr Panesar, who appeared in 50 tests for England and represented Sussex, Essex and Northamptonshire at county level, the headline announcement.Speaking after his candidacy was confirmed, Mr Panesar said he was running for parliament so that he could stand up for the working class.“When I played for England there was so much support from the fans and the whole nation when they put me where I am today, it’s my turn now to actually help the working class people, whatever problems they have,” he said.“The gap between the rich and the poor is getting bigger and bigger”.Monty Panesar More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWatch live as David Cameron gives evidence during a committee session on Tuesday 30 April.The foreign secretary yesterday urged Hamas to accept the “generous” ceasefire package which has been put on the table, amid a push by Western leaders to end fighting in Gaza.Lord Cameron called for the militant group to agree to a ceasefire while speaking at the World Economic Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.He claimed it “never pays” to be optimistic in pushing for an end to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, but insisted the group should take the deal being offered.US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had earlier weighed in, saying Hamas had been presented with an “extraordinarily generous” offer by Israel that he hoped it would accept.The UK wants to see an immediate pause in the fighting to get more aid in and hostages out of Gaza, then progress towards a permanent and sustainable ceasefire. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailCalls to prevent foreign state involvement in UK online media are being examined by the Government, Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer has said.Ministers have previously agreed to amend the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill to ban foreign states from owning UK newspapers and magazines.But MPs pressed ministers to go further as they welcomed news that RedBird IMI, an Abu Dhabi-backed fund, has withdrawn from a takeover deal for the Telegraph newspaper group.We are looking at the online news space, that is absolutely vitalCulture Secretary Lucy FrazerConservative former leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith warned the Government is dealing with a “digital world with analogue tools”.He told the Commons: “I know there’s an amendment coming through on another Bill, but we really, really, really need to speed this process up by saying very simply that no foreign state could own any of our media and we now need to look at the online elements as well if we can.”Ms Frazer said the amendment to the Bill “puts beyond absolute doubt” that it would be “inappropriate” for a foreign state to own UK news media.She added: “I do recognise that other point in relation to online media and that is absolutely something we are already looking at.”Conservative MP Alexander Stafford (Rother Valley) also sought assurances on how the Government will prevent foreign involvement in online and television media.Ms Frazer replied: “We are looking at the online news space, that is absolutely vital.“It is important to emphasise that Ofcom already has significant powers in the broadcast space, has already taken actions in relation to foreign involvement in our broadcast media over here, has banned certain entities from operating and of course we always need to look at how we tackle misinformation – and that’s something we’re doing across government as a whole.”Conservative former minister Sir John Redwood earlier welcomed the Government’s stance, adding: “I do hope that in the proposals for amending the law it will be very clear that’s not just a government, but it could be a nationalised industry, it could be a public authority, it could be a company with a shareholding by a state of significant influence because otherwise they might try and find ways around it.”He added: “Can we please have an amendment that absolutely nails press freedom in the way we want it, free from influence from foreign states?”Ms Frazer said it is important “we don’t have loopholes” in legislation, adding: “We thought about that as a department very carefully, how do we protect against that and I think he will see when the legislation comes back to this House this afternoon that we’ve defined foreign state ownership very broadly … it includes not only ownership, it also includes control and influence.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailLabour has announced a crackdown on shoplifting and assaults of retail workers as new analysis reveals that a quarter of a million shoplifters got away scot-free last year. Keir Starmer has announced that his government would reverse the Tory ‘Shoplifter’s Charter’ – a rule that means shoplifting of goods under £200 isn’t investigated – and has committed to boosting police numbers in a bid to lower crime as incidents of shoplifting hits record levels across Britain.Analysis of newly released Home Office statistics by Labour found that over 248,000 shoplifting cases were closed without a suspect being found, or where further action was considered not to be in the public interest.At a speech today at the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers’s (Usdaw) annual conference, Sir Keir said he’s putting shoplifters “on notice”. Addressing the conference, the Labour leader said: “You might get away with this under a weak Tory government. But if Labour takes power, we won’t stand by while crime takes over our streets.”The Labour leader has made tackling crime one of his five missions, including introducing a new Community Policing Guarantee to crack down on shoplifting and antisocial behaviour in Britain’s town centres, with a surge in neighbourhood policing. Sir Keir says the mission is driven by his own values and has been informed by his experience as director for public prosecutions between 2008-13. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is visiting the USDAW conference today More