UK Politics

Boris Johnson has signed off in his last Commons appearance as prime minister by hurling insults at Keir Starmer, branding him a “pointless human bollard”.Speaking from the famous despatch box for the final time, he also called the Labour leader “Captain Hindsight” and boasted his successor would “wipe the floor” with him “like some household detergent”.Sir Keir exploited Tory divisions by highlighting how the leadership candidates had “trashed every part” of Mr Johnson’s record, including on tax and public services.He said Liz Truss, the new favourite to take over at No 10, had hit out at former chancellor Rishi Sunak over his lack of a “plan for growth” – asking the prime minister if he agreed.And he parroted the words of Penny Mordaunt, one of the three surviving candidates, who admitted that public services under the Conservatives are “in a desperate state”.RecommendedBut, calling Sir Keir “Captain Hindsight” once again, Mr Johnson alleged: “Every time something needs to be done, they try to oppose it, he’s a great pointless human bollard, that’s what he is.”Later, in an extraordinary intervention in the race, the outgoing prime minister urged his successor not to “listen to the Treasury” – in a clear attack on Mr Sunak, laying bare years of tension.He said the next prime minister should “cut taxes and deregulate wherever you can’, in what is likely to be seen as an endorsement of Ms Truss, who has promised the biggest tax cuts.Boasting it was “mission largely accomplished”, Mr Johnson also sought to claim some of the credit for Russia’s failure to conquer Ukraine earlier this year.“I want to use the last few seconds to give some words of advice to my successor, whoever he or she may be,” the departing leader said.“Number one: Stay close to the Americans, stick up for the Ukrainians, stick up for freedom and democracy everywhere. Cut taxes and deregulate wherever you can to make this the greatest place to live and invest, which it is.“I love the Treasury but remember that if we’d always listened to the Treasury we wouldn’t have built the M25 or the Channel Tunnel.”He claimed: “We’ve transformed our democracy and restored our national independence.“I’ve helped to get this country through a pandemic and helped save another country from barbarism, and frankly that’s enough to be going on with. Mission largely accomplished, for now.”RecommendedThe prime minister received a standing ovation from the Conservative benches, although – strikingly – his predecessor Theresa May did not join in with the clapping.Mr Johnson also all-but confirmed he plans to hand out gongs to allies in a resignation honours list, telling MPs to “contain their excitement”. More

The Speaker of the House of Commons has paid tribute to Boris Johnson’s conduct during the “dark times” of the Covid-19 pandemic.Lindsay Hoyle was addressing MPs ahead of the prime minister’s final PMQs session on Wednesday afternoon.Before questions were asked, Sir Lindsay accepted that MPs would have “differing views” about Mr Johnson’s legacy. But he said: “It’s only fitting to note this is likely to be the final time the right honourable member for Uxbridge addresses the house as prime minister. I would like to wish him and his family all the best for the future. “Can I say we’ve been through many dark times within this House and non moreso than through the pandemic, and always will be remembered for what this house did and the way that you conducted those duties during those dark times, prime minister.”RecommendedSir Lindsay also urged MPs to conduct the session in a “respectful manner”, quoting from parliamentary handbook Erskine May that “good temper and moderation are the characteristics of the parliamentary debate”.Mr Johnson was criticised for not locking down fast enough during the initial stages of the Covid-19 pandemic, and Britain ultimately paid one of the worst death tolls in Europe.The prime minister was himself hospitalised with a serious case of the disease while in office.His supporters say his approach to the vaccine roll-out gave Britain an advantage in protecting itself against the disease in subsequent waves.As proceedings were about to begin, Sir Lindsay added: “I understand that members will have differing views about the prime minister’s performance and legacy, and those views will be sincerely and passionately held, but I remind members that our constituents and others around the world watch these proceedings. “Let us conduct them in a respectful manner focusing on issues and policies rather than personalities. I take this opportunity to remind members of the words of Erskine May. ‘Good temper and moderation are the characteristics of the parliamentary debate’. I expect to see that reflected today in the proceedings.”RecommendedMr Johnson was booted out of office by his own MPs after a string of corruption, law-breaking and impropriety scandals pushed the Tories below Labour in the polls.His successor will be picked in September after Tory members vote. More

Britain’s Conservative Party will choose two finalists on Wednesday in the contest to replace Boris Johnson, as the divisive, unrepentant leader makes his final appearance in Parliament as prime minister.Johnson, who quit July 7 after months of ethics scandals but remains caretaker leader until the party elects his successor, will face derisive opposition politicians and weary Conservatives at the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions session. Parliament adjourns for the summer on Thursday, and Conservatives will spend the next six weeks electing a new leader, who will also become prime minister.Conservative lawmakers will hold a final elimination vote Wednesday afternoon to cut the field of three remaining candidates down to two.Former Treasury chief Rishi Sunak, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt are battling for the run-off spots. The two finalists will go to a vote by all 180,000 members of the Conservative Party, with a winner scheduled to be announced Sept. 5.Sunak has led every round of voting so far and is highly likely to make the final two. Truss, who is favored by the party’s right wing, and Mordaunt, who has scored highly in polls of party members, are wooing lawmakers in an attempt to clinch the other spot.RecommendedEven though Truss has come third in every vote so far, bookmakers say she is favorite to win the contest because she is gaining momentum.The bitter campaign has exposed deep divisions in the Conservative Party at the end of Johnson’s scandal-tarnished three-year reign. Opponents have branded Sunak a “socialist” for raising taxes in response to the economic damage wrought by the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Sunak has hit back that his rivals are peddling economic “fairy tales.”The contenders are all trying to distance themselves from Johnson, whose term in office began boldly in 2019 with a vow to “get Brexit done” and a resounding election victory, but is now ending in disgrace.He clung to office through months of scandals over his finances and his judgment, refusing to resign when he was fined by police over government parties that broke COVID-19 lockdown rules. He finally quit after one scandal too many — appointing a politician accused of sexual misconduct — drove his ministers to resign en masse.Despite remaining prime minister, he has largely disappeared from the scene, even as Britain faces a summer cost-of-living crisis and labor discontent as inflation hits 9.4%.Johnson did not attend any government emergency meetings about the heat wave that brought temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) to Britain this week. Last week he took a ride in a Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter jet, with “Top Gun”-style footage released by his office, then threw a weekend party at Chequers, the country house that comes with the prime minister’s job.London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who represents the opposition Labour Party, accused Johnson of wanting to “become Tom Cruise” and urged him to resign immediately.“We need a full-time prime minister looking after our country rather than somebody who’s checked out,” Khan said.Recommended___Follow all of AP’s coverage of British politics at https://apnews.com/hub/boris-johnson More

Sir Keir Starmer has called Boris Johnson as a “complete bulls***er” found out by the British public, and insisted he was looking forward to facing whoever replaces him at No 10.Dismissing the Tory leadership candidates as “B-grade”, Starmer mocked the increasingly bitter contest to be the next prime minister. “Look at the state of them,” he scoffed.“I think that he is a complete bullshitter, and I think he’s been found out,” Sir Keir said of the outgoing PM on the Rest is Politics podcast.Starmer said: “I’m struck by the Partygate stuff because it wasn’t just that he broke the rules, it’s that he then took the p*** out of the public with his ridiculous defences afterwards.”He added: “In the local elections, I accept that not everyone on the doors was saying, ‘It’s that that’s done it for me’. But there was a general realisation that this guy bulls***s. And if he bulls***ting about that, he’s probably been bulls***ing about everything.”RecommendedStarmer rejected the idea that he should be worried about having to face a stronger candidate now that Mr Johnson’s time is almost over – saying it was “good for the country” he had resigned.Asked by hosts Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart if he had lost one of his greatest strengths, he said: “No, I don’t think so. We’ll face whoever wins this awful contest. I mean – look at the state of them.”Starmer mocked the “fantasy” economic pledges being made by the candidates. “More profoundly the Tory party has lost any sense of purpose. They are tearing themselves apart.”The BBC is set to host a head-to-head debate between the final two Tory candidates on Monday, but a recently-planned Sky News debate was scrapped over party fears TV hustings were turning into damaging slanging matches.Labour has released a video clip of Sunday night’s angry ITV debate in which Tory rivals ran down each other’s credentials and mourned the state of the economy.The clip highlights Liz Truss’ claim that Rishi Sunak had put Britain on course for a recission and Kemi Badenoch stating: “Why should the public trust us? We haven’t exactly covered ourselves in glory.”Labour sources have told The Independent that the leadership team wants Ms Truss to win the Tory contest because they believe her “wooden style” would make him look “less unexciting”.Labour see Ms Mordaunt as a more difficult opponent because of her reputation as an effective Commons performer, the sources said, while they are neutral about the prospect of facing Mr Sunak.RecommendedA final vote of Tory MPs on Wednesday will select the two candidates to be put to the party’s membership in the race for No 10.Ms Truss and Ms Mordaunt are battling to win over Kemi Badenoch’s supporters after she was knocked out of the contest. More

Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email It may come as something of a surprise, but the favourite to become the next leader of the Conservative Party, with almost twice as many votes in YouGov’s latest poll […] More

A major NHS nurses’ union has agreed unanimously at an emergency meeting to ballot members on strike action, accusing the government of “disdain and contempt” over a pay award.The general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), Pat Cullen, said it is now “time to stand up and say enough is enough” after millions of public sector workers were awarded pay rises of between 4 and 5 per cent.Most full-time nurses in the NHS will get a basic pay rise worth 4 per cent, a salary increase of about £1,400, though new nursing staff will see starting pay rise by 5.5 per cent to £27,055.Ms Cullen said this would represent around £27 per week before tax with memebers telling her: “That wouldn’t even get them a quarter tank of petrol to be able to go and see their patients.“That’s the disdain and contempt that was shown for the nursing profession yesterday”.RecommendedSpeaking on BBC Radio 4 Today’s programme, said added: “Our ruling council moved last night to a special meeting and immediately and unanimously decided to ballot our members now for industrial action, including strike action.“That will take its time, we will go through the proper process, we will do it safely, we will do effectively.”“It’s time now to stand up and say enough is enough for our profession and when we speak for nurses, we speak for patients.”She said the government had a “moral imperative” to look after the population, adding: “What they did yesterday was again say to the profession… we actually do not care that a lifetime of service translates into a lifetime of poverty for our members.”In an email to hundreds of thousands of nursing staff, RCN chair of council, Carol Popplestone, and Ms Cullen, said last night: “Today the UK Government confirmed its pay award for NHS staff in England for the year 2022-23.“This is yet another pay cut in real terms and we’re clear that nursing deserves better. Tonight, an emergency session of your elected council voted that members in England will be balloted on industrial action.“After years of underpayment and staff shortages, the fight for fair pay must continue. Your voice in the upcoming ballot will be essential to turning the tide on low pay.“Their announcement tried desperately to mislead the public on nursing pay. We need your help in calling it out.”Her comments came as it was announced the vast majority of teachers will get only a 5 per cent increase, while salaries for new teachers outside London will be increased 8.9 per cent to £28,000 as part of a recruitment drive.RecommendedAnd police officers will get a 5 per cent pay rise – an annual salary uplift of around £1,900 – after home secretary Priti Patel accepted the recommendations of the pay review body.The Public Commercial Services (PCS) general secretary Mark Serwotka described the awards as an “outrage” and warned of widespread strikes in the autumn. “We’ll be talking to our colleagues in other unions about organising co-ordinated national strike action,” he said. More

Social housing in England has deteriorated so badly that some homes are now “unfit for human habitation”, according to group of MPs calling on the government to improve conditions.MPs on the levelling up, housing and communities committee urged ministers to commit more funding for regeneration projects, and demanded that social housing providers “up their game”.In a damning report, the committee said too many social landlords were stigmatising their tenants and leaving them in “appalling conditions and levels of disrepair”.Social housing providers should face tougher action from a far more active regulator, MPs said – calling on the government to give the ombudsman the power to award far higher levels of compensation to tenants.The cross-party group recommended that the government empower the sector’s regulator to order providers to award compensation of up to £25,000.RecommendedLabour MP Clive Betts, committee chair, said too many social housing tenants were living in “uninhabitable homes and experiencing appalling conditions and levels of disrepair – including serious damp and mould”.Mr Betts said the poor handling of complaints by some providers was adding “insult to injury”, warning that delays in fixing problems were contributing to levels of disrepair.“Sadly, beyond the distress of experiencing poor living conditions, it is undeniable that tenants also face poor treatment from providers who discriminate and stigmatise people because they are social housing tenants,” he said.“This must change,” the Labour MP added. “Providers need to up their game, treat tenants with dignity and respect, and put tenants at the centre of how they deliver housing services, including by regularly monitoring the condition of their housing stock.”The MPs’ report also pointed out that the sector is under serious financial pressure, with an acute shortage of social housing.Warning that some buildings were “never built to last” and were coming to the end of their life, the report recommends the government commits to a major boost in funding for regeneration projects.MPs also recommended that providers are forced to support the set of genuinely independent tenant associations, calling on the government to establish a national tenant body to drive up standards.The report also criticises the current regime for regulating the quality of social housing. Since 2011, the Regulator of Social Housing has been prevented by the existing “serious detriment” test from proactively regulating standards.The report welcomes the fact that the government is legislating through the Social Housing (Regulation) Bill to repeal the “serious detriment” test, as MPs hope it will remove a significant barrier to more proactive regulation.The report calls for the “passive” regulator to be more proactive in defending the interests of tenants and calls on it to make more use of its enforcement powers, especially in the most serious cases.Candidates have had little to say about social housing or the problems of private tenants in the Conservatives’ leadership contest, with Liz Truss and Penny Mordaunt appealing to homeowners in the Tory shires by vowing to ditch housebuilding targets.It comes as fears grow that the Tory hopefuls are willing to row back on Boris Johnson’s levelling up agenda and commitment to invest more in the north and Midlands.RecommendedThe shadow communities secretary Lisa Nandy said the contest to succeed Mr Johnson at No 10 has been the “final nail in the coffin” for the levelling up policy.“I don’t think Rishi [Sunak] would ever have committed a bunch of funding to it if it wasn’t for Johnson,” one official from Michael Gove’s levelling up department told Politico. “Gove was always going to be a high-water mark – the drop-off will now be massive.” More