UK Politics

As the government’s plan for the Northern Ireland protocol continues to bubble, political correspondent Adam Forrest answered reader questions on Brexit during an ‘Ask Me Anything’ event on Wednesday.Downing Street has defended plans to override parts of the protocol after the EU confirmed that it is taking legal action over the UK’s proposed changes to the post-Brexit trading arrangements.Here are seven key questions asked by readers, answered by Adam.I don’t see how the government can be confident about the legality of overriding the protocol. Surely it breaks the law?The EU certainty thinks so. “Let’s call a spade a spade – this is illegal,” said EU Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic today. The fact that Boris Johnson’s government has produce a summary of legal position (rather than the full legal advice) suggests it is not so confident. The legal justification – that the protocol is causing serious societal and economic difficulties – has been branded “hopeless” by the government’s former chief lawyer Jonathan Jones. The unilateral plan to green ‘green’ and ‘red’ channels for goods in Northern Ireland isn’t so very far away from the compromise package the EU has already offered. But Brussels was shocked by how far the protocol bill goes in giving UK ministers powers to change huge swathes of the protocol.There’s been talk of the Lords blocking the bill – they can’t really stop it though can they?Tory peer Ken Clarke predicts that the “vast majority” of Lords will oppose the bill and will “hold it up for a considerable time”. Some think it hold it up for a year. But peers can do more than delay. They can actually dilute the bill. In November 2020, the Lords handed the government a significant defeat over the Internal Market Bill – a previous bid to override parts of the Brexit agreement – by voting 433 to 165 to remove key clauses. It’s not impossible the Lords could secure some important amendments during the “ping pong” phase if the mood in government towards EU is different is six to 12 months’ time. And the mood is always different in six to 12 months’ time.How will the EU respond to the protocol bill ‘law-breaking’?The bill won’t necessarily spark a trade war anytime soon – though it remains a possibility. Despite genuine outrage, the legal action and all the feisty rhetoric, the EU will not overreact. Brussels chiefs are aware it could take six to 12 months for the legislation to get through parliament. Experts have told The Independent that the European Commission would start “preparatory work” on possible retaliatory moves – including tariffs on British goods or ways to suspend the Trade and Cooperation Pact (TCA) – as the bill moves through parliament. We could see the row fall into the muddle of suspended legal action. And however heated things seem at the moment, it’s possible we’ll see new talks aimed at a compromise at some point.Does the Tory government need a “forever war” with the EU to maintain their dwindling support?Despite the recent Tory rebellion, there are still relatively few Tory MPs willing to speak out on Brexit issues since they know they’ll be dismissed as bitter “Remoaners”. Which could damage the cause of getting rid of Boris Johnson. But ‘One Nation’ types are anxious about the idea of breaking international law. So an unnecessary row with the EU will lead to some quiet frustration on the Tory backbenches. It’s unlikely to change any MPs’ views on Brexit. Or the views of Brexiteer supporters. But you wondered how many years a Tory government can pick fights with the EU without even some Brexiteers getting exhausted.Surely we can see now that the evidence is pretty clear about the cost of Brexit?The Centre for European Reform (CEF) has just carried out a very interesting study. By the end of last year, Britain’s economy was 5.2 per cent – or £31bn – smaller than it would have been without Brexit and the Covid pandemic. But the CEF found Brexit was “largely to blame” for the shortfalls, saying Britain suffered from sluggish economic performance – relative to our neighbours – both before and after the Covid lockdowns.Why are the DUP not respecting democracy and the will of the people of Northern Ireland that voted to stay in the EU on a majority?The government is certainly wondering how long the DUP can hold out for. According to The Times, ministers are ready to give the unionist party an ultimatum: saying they won’t push on with the bill’s second reading unless the party commits to resume power-sharing. The DUP will have to decide whether they really want to make Sinn Fein look like the sensible ones, and risk losing more voters to Alliance, if they hold up government at Stormont for the rest of the year.Will Jacob Rees-Mogg actually find ways to remove EU regulations from UK?Rees-Mogg is said to have told the cabinet that he wants to introduce automatic expiry dates for up to 2,000 pieces of EU regulatory legislation (by June 2026). He hopes the deadline will force ministers to get their departments looking at rules that can be scrapped or changed. But lawyers have warned that “blanket” changes are a recipe for “potential chaos”. Business is worried that blanket changes at a “cliff edge” deadline will create a lot of uncertainty and turn investors away. And some cabinet members are thought to be worried about practicality of such a plan.These questions and answers were part of an ‘Ask Me Anything’ hosted by Adam Forrest at 3pm on Wednesday 15 June. Some of the questions and answers have been edited for this article. You can read the full discussion in the comments section of the original article.Do you have any topics you’d like to see an expert host an ‘Ask Me Anything’ on? Let us know your suggestions in the comments below. More

The Conservative candidate in a make-or-break by-election said the Brexit campaign was “built on lies” and that he regretted voting for it.Nadeem Ahmed, who is fighting to cling on to the Wakefield seat for Boris Johnson, also warned leaving the EU had triggered an increase in racist attacks and backed a second referendum.“I voted to leave and I regret the decision. All my friends who voted similarly are the same,” the then-leader of Wakefield Council told a newspaper, shortly after the referendum in 2016.“The immigration issue has been overplayed and the most identifiable group are being targeted because we have darker skin colour.“What is especially worth noting is that the majority of people being targeted, like me, were actually born in Britain. We were raised here and know no other life.”The comments are a huge embarrassment for Mr Johnson, who led the Leave campaign based – infamously – on the false claim that leaving the EU would deliver a £350m-a-week bonus to the NHS.It was also criticised for wrongly arguing Turkey was poised to join the EU – opening the door to more immigration – and that trade deals with major economies such as the US would be struck easily.However, those attacks normally came from the prime minister’s political opponents, rather than from his candidate in a crucial by-election, taking place next week.Wakefield was a key prize as the ‘Red Wall’ crumbled at the 2019 general election, but the Tories have a majority of just 3,358 – making Labour the favourites to win back the seat.In the interview, with Asian Express, Mr Ahmed was also quoted as saying the Leave campaign was “built on lies” and that he supported a further referendum.Mr Ahmad had recently been the victim of racist abuse, having been told to “return home to Pakistan” on a visit to a local ‘drive thru’ restaurant.He told the paper: “The immigration issue was overplayed in Brexit and now people are being targeted.“The term immigrant is even something that needs addressing. There are around a million Brits living in Spain, we call them expats. There is a negative connotation to the word immigrant now.”Mr Ahmed, who has been a councillor in Wakefield since 2006, has been approached to say if he stands by the comments made.The by-election follows the resignation of Imran Ahmad Khan, the MP elected in 2019, after his conviction for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy. More

An independent panel investigating sexual misconduct by an SNP MP laid blame on the victim, the Women’s Equality Party has said.The criticism came after the panel advised the suspension of Patrick Grady from parliament for two days after making a sexual advance to a teenage SNP staff member.The 42-year-old, who is the MP for Glasgow North, was found to have touched and stroked the neck, hair and back of a co-worker 17 years younger than him at a social event in a pub in 2016.Mr Grady, who is the SNP’s former chief whip, admitted wrongdoing and apologised “without reservation” in the House of Commons on Tuesday.But Amy Killen, a spokesperson for the Women’s Equality Party, criticised how parliament’s independent expert panel dealt with the case. She told The Independent: “It’s unacceptable that a panel investigating sexual misconduct claims assigns blame to the victim and implies that speaking out will come at a cost: reduced consequences for the perpetrator.”The panel said Mr Grady’s punishment would have been tougher if the SNP staffer had not leaked details of his complaints and the investigation to the media. Ms Killen argued the repercussions for an individual found to have perpetrated sexual misconduct should not be centred around how the victim handed the situation.“It should be based on what is appropriate given what they found happened in the case,” she added. “Grady received a two day suspension only. The panel used the victim’s actions as a justification for that and essentially blamed him for the fact the sanction was only two days.”Ms Killen said placing the onus on the victim “flies in the face of the very idea of justice and reveals the ugly truth of a political system awash with impunity and intimidation.” She added: “This report is effectively setting up a blueprint to silence and punish victims and is reflective of a political culture that values image over people and justice.“This is an issue that transcends party lines and the only way to change this is for a zero-tolerance approach to abuse and harassment. That means all parties must decline to select candidates facing unresolved allegations.”Ms Killen argued MPs being investigated by the police or the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS), which looks into complaints about bullying, sexual harassment or forms of misconduct, should be named unless doing so would reveal the identity of the victim.She added: “ And additional resources must be made available to deliver a dramatic reduction in the length of time that ICGS investigations currently take – as the current average completion time is 111 working days.”The panel’s report states: “In considering any sanction, the independent expert panel must consider the impact on a respondent of breaches of confidentiality, and consider whether that factor should mitigate the appropriate sanction. We will do so here.”Ms Killen’s warning comes as the victim, who was 19-years-old when the incident occurred, claimed Mr Grady was not fit to be an MP and must resign from his role – as well as hitting out at how the SNP dealt with the incident. He said was pushed into feeling like he was to blame for the incident and also said his life has been a “living hell”.In his apology to the commons, Mr Grady said: “I am profoundly sorry for my behaviour and I deeply regret my actions and their consequences,” as well as providing a “firm undertaking that such behaviour on my part will never happen again”.Mr Grady, who left his job as SNP chief whip last year in the wake of claims over his conduct, also said he had undergone “bespoke and generic training” to adjust his behaviour since what had happened.The independent panel report explicitly states: “An unwanted physical touching, with sexual intent, from a senior MP to a junior member of staff, even on a single occasion, is a significant breach of the policy.”But the report also said Mr Grady demonstrated “genuine remorse” and made “efforts to address his behaviour”, but advised he “be suspended for two sitting days, make a public apology in the House of Commons, and a private one to the complainant”.Mr Grady’s “unwanted sexual advance” took place “while under the influence of alcohol” at a 2016 social event held by the SNP, the panel said.Its report also examined how the apology was handled by Ian Blackford, who is the leader of the SNP in the Commons, stating Mr Blackford enabled an “impromptu informal resolution” meeting where Mr Grady made an informal apology without the complaint being aware the MP would be attending the meeting.“The complainant accepted the apology but made clear in his evidence that the circumstances of the informal resolution were difficult,” stated the report. “He felt under pressure to accept the apology and felt ‘ambushed’ by Mr Blackford and Mr Grady, as he had no advance notice of why he was asked to go to Mr Blackford’s office, nor was he told that Mr Grady would be there.”The report continued: “The complainant said he felt intimidated into accepting the apology when put in such a situation with two people who had so much influence over his career.” More

Human rights expert explains what stopped the first Rwanda flight
The humane, decent and moral response to migrants crossing the Channel is to send them to Rwanda, home secretary Priti Patel has said.Insisting the government will press ahead with its plan, she told MPs that “the usual suspects” had set out to “thwart” it, in an apparent reference to human-rights lawyers who have challenged it.But she added: “This government will not be deterred from doing the right thing. We will not be put off by the inevitable legal last-minute challenges. Nor will we allow mobs to block removals.”She said the decision by the European Court of Human Rights that halted last night’s flight was “disappointing and surprising” but “we remain committed to this policy”.The government will challenge the ruling from the European Court of Human Rights that grounded the Home Office’s Rwanda flight last night, a cabinet minister said earlier.Boris Johnson’s official spokesperson has confirmed the government is considering withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights, saying “all options are on the table”.Show latest update

1655304745Opinion: Don’t blame Boris Johnson for the Rwanda mess – it’s what the public wantsA lot of people voted Conservative precisely because of things like the Rwanda policy, and Labour hasn’t come up with any credible alternative plans, writes Sean O’Grady. No one is explaining how the the European Convention on Human Rights protects people in this country or why migration is good for Britain. Until they do, England is drifting into becoming what you might call a Millwall nation:Jane Dalton15 June 2022 15:521655302264Today’s Dover arrivals tally hits 150The tally of people brought ashore in Dover today has risen to nearly 150, as low winds create ideal weather conditions for Channel crossing attempts.So far, approximately 146 people including around 28 children have been rescued from small boats in the Channel and taken to the Kent port on board Border Force ships.At Dover, the asylum-seekers are then put on buses and sent to processing centres.Border Force and RNLI ship activity suggests there may also have been rescues carrying migrants into Ramsgate or Dungeness.With crossings going on well into the night on Tuesday, it is likely there are more crossings to come and this number will increase when the Ministry of Defence releases the official figures on Thursday.The majority of people brought ashore in Dover today were men aged from their late teens to their 30s or 40s but there were also a number of women and children.The countries of origin of the people coming ashore in Dover included Afghanistan, Iraq and Egypt. More

Starmer says Boris Johnson thinks he’s ‘on Love Island’
Downing Street has defended the government’s plan to override parts of the Northern Ireland protocol after the EU confirmed that it is taking legal action over the UK’s proposed changes to the post-Brexit trading arrangements.Boris Johnson’s official spokesperson said the government “disappointed” in the EU’s decision to take the issue back through the courts.“We will consider these documents carefully and respond formally in due course, however we are disappointed the EU has taken this legal action today,” the spokesman said.“The EU’s proposed approach, which doesn’t differ from what they have said previously, would increase burdens on business and citizens and take us backwards from where we are currently.“The infractions are related to the implementation of the protocol in our recently published Bill. It is difficult to see how scrapping grace periods and adding additional controls and checks would be the situation better.”Show latest update

1655304210Labour denies claim of planning return to EU single marketLabour has rejected claims it would seek to take Britain back into the EU single market and customs union after a shadow frontbencher expressed the hope it could return.A party spokesman said Anna McMorrin, a shadow justice minister, had been spoken to by Sir Keir Starmer after it was reported that she suggested a Labour Government may be able to renegotiate the UK’s deal with Brussels.However, she retained her frontbench role after she issued a statement making clear that she backed the official party line that the UK had left that EU and that Labour was committed to making the existing deal work.The Sun obtained footage of Ms McMorrin answering questions from supporters last week in which she said: “We need to renegotiate the deal, certainly.”She added: “I hope, eventually that, we will get back into the single market and customs union, and who knows then.”In her statement, Ms McMorrin said: “Labour policy on Brexit is clear. We have left the EU, Labour voted for the deal. Now it is the job of all of us to make it work.”The spokesman said: “That is the Labour Party position.”In the Commons, Boris Johnson taunted her about her remarks when she challenged him at Prime Minister’s Questions about comments by his new cost-of-living tsar saying that he “has to go”.The Prime Minister replied: “I read the other day that she wants to go back into the single market and into the customs union.”If that’s the real policy of the Labour Party, going back to the EU, why won’t the Leader of the Opposition admit it?”Matt Mathers15 June 2022 15:431655303454Braverman – Goverment would ‘prefer’ to negotiate with EUThe attorney general has said the goverment would “prefer” to negotiate with the EU after the bloc announced it was taking legal action against the UK’s move to take unilateral action on Brexit’s Northern Ireland protocol.Speaking to the BBC, Suella Braverman said: “Listen my preferred alternative right now is negotiation and my invitation to our EU friends is to come back to the table and to engage substantively with our proposals.“They’ve failed to do that for over two years now and that’s why we’ve regrettably been left with no option but to take these measures.”In the same interview, Ms Braverman accused the BBC of framing the UK Government as “always malevolent” and the EU as “the honest broker”.Appearing on the corporation’s World At One programme, Suella Braverman was asked: “This Government keeps doing things that others judge to be illegal – we can go back to prorogation, partygate, the Northern Ireland protocol, deporting asylum seekers – I wonder how comfortable you feel with the reputation that this Government has being built up as with regard to law-breaking?””With respect, I think that’s a BBC view, if you don’t mind me saying, that the UK Government is somehow always malevolent and the EU is always acting as the honest broker and the good guys,” she replied.”It was the Supreme Court that ruled on prorogation,” presenter Sarah Montague interjected.Matt Mathers15 June 2022 15:301655302554ICYMI: EU launches legal action against Boris Johnson for breaking international lawOur policy correspondent Jon Stone reports: Matt Mathers15 June 2022 15:151655301723Editorial: The Rwanda flight is grounded – but migrants should be more than ammo in Tory MPs’ culture warThis humiliation for the government was brought about not by ‘lefty lawyers’ but by government incompetence.
Read the full Independent editorial here: Matt Mathers15 June 2022 15:021655300779Patel refuses to say how much failed deportation plane cost Priti Patel has refused to say how much last night’s failed Rwanda deportation flight cost the taxpayer.Asked whether it cost £500,000, the home secretary said: “We don’t speak about operational costs”.Matt Mathers15 June 2022 14:461655299854Germany’s ambassador to the UK has said the EU’s trust in Britain has been damagedMiguel Berger told the BBC’s World At One programme: “I think the most important issue is really to have a relationship of trust in everything we are doing together. That’s also why this draft on Northern Ireland is so disappointing.”We have this excellent cooperation on Ukraine where we have worked together, in Nato, in the G7, bilaterally, and in such a circumstance to have a dispute between the UK and the European Union is totally unnecessary.”And I think the main issue is really how can trust be re-established?”Pressed on whether the UK is no longer trusted, Mr Berger said: “I would not go so far to say that, but obviously it has had a negative effect.”Matt Mathers15 June 2022 14:301655299785Downing Street confirms PM considering withdrawal from human rights treatyBoris Johnson’s official spokesperson has confirmed the government is considering withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights, saying “all options are on the table” in the wake of last night’s cancellation of a deportation flight to Rwanda.Our politics editor Andrew Woodcock reports: Matt Mathers15 June 2022 14:291655298954No 10 ‘disappointed’ by EU legal actionThe government is “disappointed” in the EU’s decision to launch fresh legal action against the UK over the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol, Downing Street has said.The prime minister’s official spokesman said the latest proposals from Brussels for resolving the the issue would lead to more checks and controls, making the situation worse.”We will consider these documents carefully and respond formally in due course, however we are disappointed the EU has taken this legal action today,” the spokesman said.”The EU’s proposed approach, which doesn’t differ from what they have said previously, would increase burdens on business and citizens and take us backwards from where we are currently.”The infractions are related to the implementation of the protocol in our recently published bill. It is difficult to see how scrapping grace periods and adding additional controls and checks would be the situation better.”Matt Mathers15 June 2022 14:151655298054Labour lauches review to ensure UK is ‘best place in world’ for new businessesLabour is announcing a new review aimed at supporting fledgling British businesses and ensuring the UK is “the best place in the world” to launch a start-up.Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves will set out the party’s vision for harnessing the “creativity and drive” of the country’s entrepreneurs at the Times CEO Summit in London on Thursday.Driven by business experts including cross-bench peer Lord Jim O’Neill, the review will explore how to ensure start-ups can grow in Britain, to increase jobs and investment across the country, Labour says.The announcement will build on a five-point plan set out in January by the shadow chancellor to boost the economy, which includes a target to create 100,000 new businesses over the next five years.Matt Mathers15 June 2022 14:001655297154Scottish government planning second independence poll for October next yearThe Scottish government plans to hold a second independence referendum in October next year, the constitution secretary has said.However, at the same time as Angus Robertson revealed the possible time for the crunch vote, a former adviser to both Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon cast doubt on whether it could be delivered by then.Campbell Gunn, who was a special adviser to Mr Salmond and then Ms Sturgeon, said that the “timescale is very difficult”.Mr Gunn, speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme, said: “We’re now 15, 16 months from when the referendum is likely to be held, we don’t have a section 30 order, it will probably end up in the courts.”I just don’t see the timescale working for the SNP.”His comments came after Mr Robertson told the same programme the Scottish Government intends holding the referendum in October of next year – going further on the timing than Ms Sturgeon, who has only said she wants the ballot to be held before the end of 2023.Matt Mathers15 June 2022 13:45 More

Boris Johnson’s official spokesperson has confirmed the government is considering withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights, saying “all options are on the table” in the wake of last night’s cancellation of a deportation flight to Rwanda.The prime minister is facing fury from Tory backbenchers over the last-minute ruling from the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg which blocked last night’s flight, with many calling for the UK to pull out of the convention which it helped draw up in the aftermath of the Second World War.Mr Johnson yesterday hinted he was ready to consider withdrawal, saying it “may very well” be necessary to change some rules to allow future deportations to go ahead unhindered.And his spokesperson today confirmed that this could include action on the ECHR.Asked whether withdrawal from the convention was being considered, the spokesperson told reporters: “We keep all options on the table as part of our work to address the issues raised by the repeated and sometimes meritless claims that we see consistently with removal flights, while obviously making sure that we continue to protect the vulnerable.”He added: “We will do whatever it takes to deliver this new approach, including being prepared to explore any and all further legal reforms which may be necessary.”All European states are signatories to the convention with the exception of Belarus, whose application to join the Council of Europe has been blocked because of its failure to meet democratic standards, and Russia, which pulled out in the wake of this year’s invasion of Ukraine.Withdrawal would put at risk the Good Friday Agreement, which states that the UK government will ensure that the Convention is directly enforceable in Northern Ireland. Senior Labour MP Chris Bryant said: “If we leave the ECHR we will be required to leave the Council of Europe. The only similar pariah state is the Russian Federation. The government is wilfully trashing our international reputation by repeated deliberate law-breaking.”And Labour frontbencher Imran Hussein said: “The ECHR was part-founded by Churchill’s Tories and is key to the Good Friday Agreement but it blocked their racism extravaganza so now the Tories want to ditch it. The only other country that’s done this is Russia!”The PM’s spokesperson made explictly clear that ECHR withdrawal was among the options under consideration, saying: “What we are doing is considering the judgement before coming to a decision on how best to proceed.“Now that will both look at the role of the ECHR but also existing UK legislation and whether it is functioning as envisaged.”Attorney general Suella Braverman later echoed his comments, telling BBC Radio 4’s World at One: ”The government has been clear… that all options are on the table. So we’re not ruling anything in and we’re not ruling anything out.“We are definitely open to assessing all options available as to what our relationship should be going forward with the (ECHR).”The comments came just hours after senior government ministers said that they did not believe that membership of the human rights convention was up for question.Cabinet minister Therese Coffey told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I don’t think that’s even a question that I’m aware that’s on the table at all… I’m not aware of any decisions or hints of leaving the ECHR.”Another minister in Ms Coffey’s department for work and pensions, Guy Opperman, also told Times Radio: “I don’t believe it is our policy, nor would it be something I will be advocating for, withdrawing from the ECHR.”He added: “This is not necessarily a final prevention that has taken place last night. This is a temporary delay whilst matters are considered in more detail by the UK courts.“And I think that is the thrust of it, that the ECHR has basically said that there needs to be more time to consider the applications involved and that the UK courts should do that.”But other members of the Johnson administration were openly calling for the UK to remove itself from the jurisdiction of the Strasbourg court.These included Jonathan Gullis, a parliamentary private secretary (PPS) at the Northern Ireland Office, who posted on Facebook: “The ECHR has no place in the UK judicial system. The government needs to free itself from it entirely.” Shortly afterwards, the Stoke North MP amended his message to read: “The ECHR’s role in UK law needs looking at urgently.”Liberal Democrat Northern Ireland spokesperson Alistair Carmichael said: “You might think that the PPS to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland would have some clue that withdrawing from the ECHR would breach the Good Friday Agreement. This is just embarrassing from someone on the government payroll.” Mr Johnson himself said while campaigning for Brexit in 2016 that he was a supporter of the ECHR, which he said was “one of the great things” which the UK had given to Europe. More

Keir Starmer has reportedly urged his shadow cabinet to stop calling him “boring”.The Labour leader has faced criticism from anonymous party members who have described him to the media as “semi-serious and a bit dull”.At a meeting on Tuesday, Sir Keir is said to have told his shadow cabinet in response: “What’s boring is being in opposition.”He reportedly asked them to focus on criticising the government, adding that it was “boring” to undermine Labour’s aim to get back into power.Several other party members are said to have echoed Sir Keir’s message and think the Labour leader has not been given enough credit for positive changes in the party.It comes after multiple senior figures in the party criticised the Labour leader for being slow and lacking passion for policy development and tangible change in the party.Andrew Fisher, who acted as Labour’s head of policy under Jeremy Corbyn, told The Guardian: “There doesn’t seem to be much passion or detail around any policy area from Keir Starmer.”One anonymous senior aide said: “There’s no sense of where we can make political hay against our opponents, areas we can be exploiting to draw a clear dividing line between ourselves and the Tories.”Another MP added: “Fundamentally, I don’t think Keir thinks it’s his job to come up with ideas.”In opinion polls this week, it was revealed that many voters believe Boris Johnson still makes a better prime minister than Sir Keir would, by 28 per cent to 26 per cent, and “boring” was the most commonly used word to describe the Labour leader by the public.But, recent voting intention figures by YouGov and The Times show Labour is the most popular choice between parties. When asked who they would vote for if a general election was to be held tomorrow, 36 per cent of participants say they would vote Labour compared to 32 per cent choosing Conservative. More

The government’s inaugural deportation flight transferring UK asylum applicants to Rwanda at a cost of £500,000 to the taxpayer was grounded late on Tuesday evening following a last-minute intervention from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).The decision left a deeply unpopular Home Office policy up in the air while the planes intended to carry it out stood idle on the runway at MOD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire.Both the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal had rejected efforts from immigrant rights campaigners to stop the plane earlier this week before the ECHR stepped in to overrule their verdicts.Meanwhile, attorneys for the refugees had mounted frantic case-by-case appeals on behalf of their clients, desperate to avoid being flown to the central African nation for processing. This led to the passenger list being drastically cut down from 31 to just four before takeoff was finally cancelled outright.The strategy of outsourcing asylum claims to Rwanda, a country with a highly questionable human rights record, has been met with a storm of criticism since it was first announced in April. Prince Charles reportedly branded it “appalling”, while protesters have demonstrated outside a detention centre in Crawley and in Westminster.More than two dozen Church of England bishops, including Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, wrote an open letter to The Times over the weekend calling it an “immoral policy that shames Britain.”But a defiant home secretary Priti Patel insisted that Tuesday’s legal defeats would not deter her office from “doing the right thing”.“Our legal team are reviewing every decision made on this flight and preparation for the next flight begins now,” she said.Work and pensions secretary Therese Coffey reiterated that message on Wednesday in an interview with Sky News, saying the government is already working on organising the next flight and “highly confident” it can challenge the ECHR, setting the stage for a fresh legal battle.However, she declined to give a timeframe as to when a second flight might take place.Yolande Makolo, a spokesperson for the Rwandan government, said that, for its part, her country “remains fully committed to making this partnership work”.“Rwanda stands ready to receive the migrants when they do arrive and offer them safety and opportunity in our country,” she said.As outraged Tory MP Greg Smith leads calls for Britain to sever its ties to the ECHR in the wake of the intervention – a step shadow foreign secretary David Lammy has already warned would have “grave” consequences – the future of the Rwanda policy hangs in limbo.Speaking to BBC Breakfast on Wednesday, human rights lawyer Frances Swaine, who represents one of the prospective passengers to Kigali, called on the government to wait until a judicial review can be held before chartering a new plane.“The European Court of Human Rights has recommended that there are no other flight proposals put together until the substantial judicial review hearing into the whole policy is heard,” she said.“We’re expecting that that would take place in about six weeks time during July although we don’t have a firm date for it yet.“And I think if I was the government, which obviously I’m not, but if I was, I would be sitting back and thinking was it worth it, either from a financial or a legal perspective, to organise one of these very expensive flights again when they’ve been so unsuccessful this time around on legal grounds.“Because there will be a decision in July as to whether or not this policy can be extant, or whether there would need to be some changes to the law if the government was absolutely determined to see it through.“But wait until we have the decision first and then decide whether to go ahead.”However, Ms Patel is likely to be eager to press ahead and get her policy back on track following Tuesday’s resounding humiliation, especially as the problem of illegal immigation via the English Channel remains acute.On Tuesday, the UK saw a two-month high of 444 people attempting to reach British shores from the coast of northern France, with 11 small boats picked up containing approximately 40 refugees each.Last year, more than 28,000 people made the dangerous journey across the Channel in unsafe vessels, many with the support of human traffickers, a figure more than three times the total seen in 2020, hence the government’s hasty search for a ready answer to the problem.A frustrated Boris Johnson went so far as to accuse the lawyers challenging the Rwanda policy of “abetting the work of criminal gangs” during a Cabinet meeting earlier this week, insisting that his government would not be deterred despite the opposition it had encountered, “not least from lawyers”. More