Markus Andrews

George Galloway hit out at Labour and the Conservatives in his first House of Commons speech on returning to parliament, claiming most people “feel a wish for a plague on both their houses”.The leader of the Workers Party of Britain criticised the chancellor’s Budget as an “absolute nothing burger” which would not help Rochdale, the town he now represents.In his first Commons outing since he swore the oath of allegiance to the King and took his seat, Mr Galloway also paid tribute to his Labour predecessor Sir Tony Lloyd, whose death from cancer triggered the by-election which led to his victory. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWatch as David Cameron takes questions in the House of Lords on Tuesday 12 March.The foreign secretary is likely to be questioned on increasing the amount of humanitarian aid to Gaza as he speaks to peers in the chamber.Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell, meanwhile, has said the British government will be pressing for a full investigation into reports Gazan medical staff were beaten and humiliated by Israeli troops.The BBC reported that staff at Nasser Hospital, in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, were blindfolded, forced to strip, and were repeatedly beaten by soldiers from the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).The IDF has not responded directly to accounts the BBC has put to it, but denies medical staff were harmed in its operation.Mr Mitchell said the government would be pressing for a full explanation and an investigation into the reports, after being asked about them in the House of Commons.The minister, who acts as a deputy for Lord Cameron in the Commons, told MPs: “We have seen these reports. I think that a full explanation and investigation is required and that is what the British government is pressing for.” More

The Labour party is “very concerned” about Diane Abbott after alleged remarks made by a Tory donor towards her, shadow women and equalities secretary Anneliese Dodds said.Frank Hester said he is “deeply sorry” after reportedly saying in 2019 the MP made him “want to hate all black women” and that she “should be shot”.The chief executive of The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) admitted making “rude” comments but said they had “nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin”.”We’re very concerned about the impact of this on Dianne Abott,” Ms Dodds told Sky News on Tuesday, 12 March. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email A court in Belgium sentenced prominent far-right activist Dries Van Langenhove to a year in prison on Tuesday for running an organization that a judge said spread “racist, hateful, Nazi and negationist speech,” in a major ruling on how the nation deals with extremism. Five members of the extremist group that Van Langenhove led received suspended sentences, including two who work for the far-right Flemish Interest party, which is slated to make big gains in June elections. Tom Van Grieken, the leader of the Flemish Interest party, said the ruling was proof that “Belgian justice is rotten to the core” and called the proceedings “a political trial from day one.”They were accused of using a chat group to exchange racist, antisemitic and other extremist comments. Van Langenhove, a former Belgian parliamentarian, also had some of his civil rights suspended for a decade, making him ineligible for office.Investigative journalists from the VRT public broadcaster were at the heart of the case as their 2018 documentary on Van Langenhove’s Shield and Friends group highlighted its public and private militaristic and extremist activities. “The defendant raved about Nazi ideology, which has caused and continues to cause untold suffering to countless people. The file showed that he wants to undermine democratic society and replace it with a social model of white supremacy,” said Judge Jan Van den Berghe. The chats on the Shield and Friends site included the most macabre jokes and memes on anything from famine in Africa to Holocaust concentration camps. Van Langenhove, 30, said he did not commit any crimes. “A years-long investigation, on which the Justice Department wasted millions of euros of taxpayers’ money, shows that the … activists cannot be charged with anything other than some memes. Humor. Memes that I didn’t even post myself,” he said in a reaction.Some of the parties in the case lodged complaints following the VRT documentary. “The ridiculing of gas chambers, of incinerators, that was so over the top for me that I spontaneously lodged a complaint,” said Henri Heimans, a former magistrate whose parents survived the Nazi death camps. “Then, of course, I unwittingly ended up in a procedural battle that lasted for years.” Van Langenhove was not at the court in Ghent, some 50 kilometers (30 miles) west of Brussels, but his lawyer said he would appeal the ruling, which automatically suspends his imprisonment. He was also fined 16,000 euros ($17,470). Right-wing extremism, racism and antisemitism has been on the rise through much of Europe, and far-right political parties have made big inroads in many European Union nations over the past few years. They’re set to be a key issue at the June 6-9 EU elections. More

Michelle Donelan apologised for publicly posting a letter on social media falsely suggesting an academic had expressed sympathy for Hamas, saying she was sorry for the “distraction” caused by the false claim that cost the taxpayer £15,000.The science secretary later retracted her comments about Professor Kate Sang, who sits on the UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) advisory group, and agreed to pay her damages.Ms Donelan posted a letter to UKRI on X/Twitter expressing “disgust and outrage” that the academic and Dr Kamna Patel had “shared extremist views”.Ms Donelan later accepted there was “no evidence” of her allegations. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailMichelle Donelan has apologised for publicly posting a letter on social media falsely suggesting an academic had expressed sympathy for Hamas.The Science Secretary later retracted her comments about Professor Kate Sang and agreed to pay her £15,000 in taxpayer money.She accepted there was “no evidence” the academic, who had recently been appointed to the UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) advisory group on equality, diversity and inclusion, was a Hamas supporter.Speaking at the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee on Tuesday, Ms Donelan said she should have privately written to UKRI raising her alleged concerns, instead of posting the letter on X, formerly known as Twitter.She also said that civil servants were aware that she was going to publish her letter on the platform.Ms Donelan told the committee: “While I always err on the side of transparency, I am now clear that in this case, I could have sent the letter in confidence to the UKRI in order for them to undertake the investigations privately.“And I do apologise for not having done so, and for any distraction that this decision has caused from this Government’s positive agenda.”She added: “I highlighted it on the platform that the original tweet was done on – Twitter, or X – and that was something I have apologised for.“With hindsight, I could have just sent it privately and if I had the ability to do it again, I would certainly just send it privately.“So I’ve said that publicly as well as retracting the original comments, which I do think is important.“In terms of advice, of course, with long-time precedent, we don’t get into the actual nature of the advice.“But what I can tell you here today, is that both policy and legal were not only cited but also cleared the approach taken.”The letter written by Ms Donelan expressed “disgust and outrage” that Prof Sang and another academic, Dr Kamna Patel, had “shared extremist views” and, in Prof Sang’s case, expressed sympathy for the terrorist group after the October 7 attacks in Israel.This followed a tweet by Prof Sang saying: “This is disturbing. Suella Braverman urges police to crack down on Hamas support in UK” with a link to an article by the Guardian describing the response to the Hamas attacks in the UK.Ms Donelan has since accepted that Prof Sang’s comments referred to the story as a whole, and not just the headline.The Science Secretary told the committee she is a champion of academic freedom of speech and that the incident had to be viewed in the context of the recent Hamas attack at the time.My actions were never motivated by any political desireScience Secretary Michelle DonelanMs Donelan continued: “And we have seen a great deal of hatred across online social media platforms – something that I had addressed directly with the platforms themselves – and we were very worried about potential violence on our own streets.”She also told the peers: “My actions were never motivated by any political desire.“They were motivated by a concern around whether proper process and due diligence had been followed.“And as I outlined at the very beginning, in my initial statement, the specific tweet, or X, that I saw I felt was concerning especially given the context at the time, and that is why I highlighted it for an investigation by UKRI.”Ms Donelan also explained that there is “no surveillance at all” of academics and she had been alerted to the initial tweet by an official within the department.Asked how the damage caused by the incident can be repaired, the Science Secretary said there would be an “internal review of processes to ensure that we learnt the lessons of this and that we don’t ever repeat those”. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email A major donor to Britain’s ruling Conservative Party came under fire Tuesday after he reportedly said a Black member of Parliament made him “want to hate all Black women” and she “should be shot.”The remarks by Frank Hester, chief executive of healthcare software firm The Phoenix Partnership, about Diane Abbott, the first Black woman elected to Parliament, were blasted by opposition parties who said the Tories should return the 10 million pounds ($12.8 million) he donated last year.“The comments about Diane Abbott are just abhorrent,” Labour leader Keir Starmer told ITV. “This apology this morning that is pretending that what was said wasn’t racist or anything to do with the fact she’s a woman, I don’t buy that I’m afraid, and I think that it’s time the Tory Party called it out and returned the money.”The Guardian reported that Hester told a company meeting in 2019: “It’s like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and you’re just like … you just want to hate all Black women because she’s there. And I don’t hate all Black women at all, but I think she should be shot.”Hester said he phoned Abbott to apologize Monday for the “hurt he has caused her,” according to a statement from his company.“Frank Hester accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor color of skin,” the statement said. “He wishes to make it clear that he regards racism as a poison which has no place in public life.”Hester’s company has has been paid more than 400 million pounds ($510 million) by the National Health Service and other government bodies since 2016. Abbott, 70, was elected to the House of Commons in 1987 representing an area in north London. She sits as an independent after being kicked out of the Labour Party caucus for comments that suggested Jewish and Irish people do not experience racism “all their lives.”Abbott issued a statement Tuesday saying the comments were alarming for a public figure who is a visible presence in the community because she doesn’t have a car and regularly walks or takes the bus. “It is frightening,” Abbott said. “I am a single woman and that makes me vulnerable anyway. But to hear someone talking like this is worrying.”A spokesperson for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, speaking on condition of anonymity according to government policy, said Hester’s comments were “clearly unacceptable” but refused to say they were racist. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailNHS and Government websites should be made free of data charges to ensure the least well-off can use important public services online, ministers have heard.Labour MP Simon Lightwood called for a change in the law, requiring all mobile phone data providers to mark public authority websites as “zero rated”, guaranteeing free access.The Wakefield MP urged the Commons to back his Public Sector Websites (Data Charges) Bill, which he said would help anyone “no matter their situation” access services like Universal Credit and NHS health information without depleting their data allowance.We know that those with the greatest need to access online services are often the ones facing the greatest barriers to do soLabour MP Simon LightwoodIntroducing his Bill by the 10 minute rule procedure, Mr Lightwood said: “The increasing prevalence of public information and resources being available online is good thing. As a former NHS worker myself, I know it has the capacity to make our public services more efficient, more agile and better value for money for taxpayers.“But being able to access the NHS website should not be constrained by someone’s financial situation. Likewise, someone on Universal Credit shouldn’t have to worry about not being able to access their account because of their data allowance.“Simply put, we know that those with the greatest need to access online services are often the ones facing the greatest barriers to do so.”He said that during the pandemic operators including Vodaphone, EE, Virgin Media, O2 and Three “recognised the huge surge in need” and gave their customers free online access to the NHS website, Covid information, the NHS App and online education resources like BBC Bitesize and the Oak National Academy.Mr Lightwood added: “This procedure is known as zero-rating, whereby accessing any of these websites would not consume a user’s mobile data allowance.”The Labour MP said some have continued zero-rating public websites after the pandemic “after seeing what a vital help it can be for their least well-off customers during the cost-of-living crisis”.By making gov.uk and nhs.uk sites zero rated, we can extend universal free access to the most vital services like Universal Credit, local authority services, and NHS health information for everyone, no matter their financial situationLabour MP Simon LightwoodHe added: “My Bill very simply proposes that we continue this good work that some operators have already done by extending this precedent into a legal requirement for all network providers operating in the UK.“By making gov.uk and nhs.uk sites zero rated, we can extend universal free access to the most vital services like Universal Credit, local authority services, and NHS health information for everyone, no matter their financial situation.”Mr Lightwood’s Bill is set to be considered by the Commons again on May 17, but is unlikely to become law without Government support. More