Markus Andrews

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailCreating a sexually explicit “deepfake” image is to be made an offence under new legislation, the Ministry of Justice has announced.Under the new legislation, anyone who creates a sexually explicit deepfake without consent will face a criminal record and an unlimited fine.They could even face jail, if the image is shared more widely.The creation of a deepfake will be an offence irrespective of whether the creator intended to share it or not, the department added.The new offence will be introduced through an amendment to the controversial Criminal Justice Bill, which is still making its way through Parliament.Minister for Victims and Safeguarding Laura Farris said the creation of deepfake sexual images is “unacceptable irrespective of whether the image is shared”.“It is another example of ways in which certain people seek to degrade and dehumanise others – especially women,” she said.“And it has the capacity to cause catastrophic consequences if the material is shared more widely. This Government will not tolerate it.“This new offence sends a crystal clear message that making this material is immoral, often misogynistic, and a crime.”Deborah Joseph, European editorial director of Glamour welcomed the planned amendment.“In a recent Glamour survey, we found 91% of our readers believe deepfake technology poses a threat to the safety of women, and from hearing personal stories from victims, we also know how serious the impact can be,” she said.“While this is an important first step, there is still a long way to go before women will truly feel safe from this horrendous activity.”Yvette Cooper, Labour’s shadow home secretary, welcomed the announcement too.“Superimposing somebody’s image onto sexually explicit photos and videos is a gross violation of their autonomy and privacy, which can cause enormous harm, and it must not be tolerated,” she said.Ms Cooper said it was “vital” the Government gets ahead of “fast-changing threats”.She added: “It’s essential that the police and prosecutors are equipped with the training and tools required to rigorously enforce these laws in order to stop perpetrators from acting with impunity”. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe Tory MP who reported Angela Rayner to the police amid an ongoing row over the sale of her council house refused to explain what alleged offences he thought she had committed.James Daly, the Conservative Party deputy chairman, failed to answer the question three times during an awkward exchange on the BBC’s Daily Politics programme.“Well, the Greater Manchester Police last week…announced that they were investigating various matters in relation to this and therefore I think it’s perfectly appropriate to allow that investigation to proceed,” he said.Mr Daly, who represents the red wall seat of Bury North in Greater Manchester, contacted police to make them aware that neighbours of Ms Rayner had contradicted her account that a property, separate from her husband’s, was her main residency.Greater Manchester Police later launched an investigation into whether Ms Rayner had broken electoral law, having initially said she had no case to answer, following questions about whether she paid the correct amount of tax when she sold the property before becoming an MP.James Daly was asked three times what offence he thought Rayner had committed but did not answer More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe UK government is facing growing calls to proscribe Iran’s Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organisation following its attack on Israel. The British Board of Deputies, which represents British Jews, have led the calls for Rishi Sunak to ban the organisation. They have been backed by MPs from across the political divide, while Israel made similar representations to the United Nations security council. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps is a powerful force within Iran and also controls the “axis of resistance” against Israel across the region.In a letter to Mr Sunak on Monday, the Board of Deputies President Marie van der Zyl said: “The IRGC’s role in funding, arming and training a host of terror proxies, including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, is clear”. Senior Tories also urged Mr Sunak to take action, with former party leader Iain Duncan-Smith describing ministers’ justifications for not designating the organisation as “absurd”.He told the Guardian: “The government should have already proscribed IRGC. The USA have asked us to do it. The excuses the government uses are [firstly] that if the UK proscribes the IRGC it will lose influence. That’s absurd as we clearly have no influence.”Bob Blackman, chair of the all-party parliamentary group on Israel told The Independent he wants to see the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps proscribed and the Iranian embassy “closed in London, as well as our embassy closed down in Tehran, and all our diplomats brought home.”Shadow defence secretary John Healey also said the threat to the UK from allowing the IRGC to operate should be sufficient for the government to be “responsible” and ban the organisation. He added: “It’s the leading edge of the threat that Iran poses not just to Israel, but to Arab countries and western interests right across the region”. Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy said on Sunday that the attack “highlights once again the extreme danger of the IRGC”.Foreign secretary David Cameron said that proscribing the “dangerous” organisation was something ministers were keeping under review, alongside a number of possible further sanctions against the stateHe added: “I keep this under review but the police and security services say they have the powers to deal with it here or elsewhere.”Foreign secretary David Cameron has said that proscribing the force was something ministers were keeping under review More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWatch live as Rishi Sunak is set to address parliament following Iran’s attack on Israel, after home secretary James Cleverly takes questions from MPs.The House of Commons returns from Easter recess on Monday 15 April, one day after Tehran launched an “unprecedented” strike on Tel Aviv.Foreign secretary David Cameron has urged Israel to be “smart as well as tough” by not escalating the conflict with Iran in the hours following the attack.The government’s Rwanda legislation, meanwhile, is also high on the agenda for MPs today.Mr Sunak is braced for a fresh round of parliamentary wrangling over his Bill to save the government’s stalled deportation scheme.Sunday became the busiest day yet for Channel crossings this year after more than 500 migrants arrived in the UK in a single day.It means some 6,000 people have made the journey in 2024 to date, with more than 75,000 arrivals recorded two years on from the Rwanda deal being signed.MPs will consider amendments to the Safety of Rwanda Bill by the House of Lords, which inflicted a series of defeats against the controversial policy before rising for the spring break. More