UK Politics

Sir Lindsay Hoyle has vowed to make the House of Commons a “menopause-friendly” employer, with possible adjustments including well-ventilated rooms and fans, flexible working and breathable uniforms.The CommonsSpeaker said he wants to “break the taboo” over menopause by getting “everyone in our parliamentary village talking” about it, and offering support to those affected.He has signed the Menopause Workplace Pledge, launched by the Wellbeing of Women charity, which commits the House of Commons Service to recognising, talking about and supporting employees going through the menopause.Sir Lindsay said he does not want colleagues and staff to avoid promotion or leave Parliament because of their symptoms.

I value my female colleagues and staff, and I do not want them avoiding promotion or leaving Parliament because of the symptoms they are experiencingSir Lindsay Hoyle“I also want to break the taboo – just as we did with mental health issues – and get everyone in our parliamentary village talking about the menopause and offering support for those going through it,” he said.“After all, we men are the husbands, partners, brothers, sons and colleagues of those facing the menopause, so it is particularly important that we are onboard as allies to offer our support and understanding.”Labour MP Carolyn Harris, who chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Menopause, as well as TV presenters Mariella Frostrup, Penny Lancaster, Liz Earle and Lisa Snowdon, joined the Speaker at the signing event on Monday.Sir Lindsay hopes simple adjustments in the workplace and working patterns could make life easier for all those working in parliament.These could include well-ventilated rooms and access to fans; encouraging staff to talk about the menopause; flexible working; breathable uniforms; advice from on-site clinical nurses and occupational health teams; time off for related appointments; training for managers; and awareness events and cafes.It comes after the civil service signed the Menopause Workplace Pledge at a special event last week. Health secretary Sajid Javid said: “For some women, the symptoms of the menopause can be extremely debilitating and it’s absolutely crucial they feel confident asking for support at work.“This pledge will ensure women working across the civil service feel supported. I encourage other businesses to do the same – big companies, such as Asda and Thames Water, are already joining us with this pledge to make sure their workplaces have menopause strategies in place.”The Speaker will also be encouraging all MPs to sign the pledge to cover staff in their Commons and constituency offices.Bupa previously estimated that nearly a million women in the UK had quit their jobs due to the menopause, with research showing those needing to take long-term absence from work to manage symptoms suffered damage to their careers. More

Liz Truss defends Rwanda asylum scheme as ‘completely legal and moral’
Priti Patel has told of her disapointment that the first deportation flight to Rwanda will no longer take off, but said tonight’s legal defeats will not prevent her from “doing the right thing.”The home secretary added: “Our legal team are reviewing every decision made on this flight and preparation for the next flight begins now.”A spokesperson for the Rwandan government has similarly said it will not be deterred by Tuesday’s successful legal bids.“Rwanda remains fully committed to making this partnership work,” Yolande Makolo said, adding: “Rwanda stands ready to receive the migrants when they do arrive and offer them safety and opportunity in our country.”Their remarks follow a series of succesful, eleventh-hour interventions by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which saw all migrants bound for the African country removed from the plane at Boscombe Down, near Salisbury.The appeals were considered by an out-of-hours judge on papers, PA agency understands, who overruled the UK rulings.It is also understood that, at present , there is not a route for the Home Office to appeal against the decision.Show latest update

1655258400Government hired grounded jet because it ‘just wants row and someone else to blame’The government has spent £120m on a deal with Rwanda and hired a plane that was grounded at the last minute “because they just want a row and someone else to blame”, the shadow home secretary has said.Posting on Twitter, Yvette Cooper added:”There is no point in Govt blaming anyone else but themselves. Ministers are pursuing a policy they know isn’t workable & that won’t tackle criminal gangs.”Emily Atkinson15 June 2022 03:001655254800Watch: Rwanda deportation flight called off at last minute after European judges interveneRwanda deportation flight called off at last minute after European judges interveneEmily Atkinson15 June 2022 02:001655251200Government must stop ‘inhumane’ Rwanda policy, says unionResponding to the news of today’s sucessful legal bids, Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services union, said: “We’re pleased the courts have ruled to stop this flight.“It’s time for the government to stop this inhumane policy which is the basest of gesture politics and start to engage seriously with sorting out the asylum system so those who come to our country seeking refuge are treated fairly and according to the law.”Emily Atkinson15 June 2022 01:001655247600‘Send you to Rwanda’ emerging as new racist slur on social media, public figures warnLondon mayor Sadiq Khan, home secretary Priti Patel, Labour MP Diane Abbott and campaigner Femi Oluwole, among numerous others, have been targeted by online users suggesting that they should be removed from Britain and flown to the east African country.Discussing the trend, Sunder Katwala, director of think tank British Future, pointed out that the slur was also being used by both left- and right-leaning commentators against people they disagree with or dislike, with those from ethnic minorities being disproportionately targeted.Our race correspondent Nadine White reports:Emily Atkinson15 June 2022 00:001655246439Here is some of the latest reaction on Twitter to the grounding of the plane that was bound for Rwanda today:Emily Atkinson14 June 2022 23:401655244459Government ‘determined’ to press on with Rwanda planThe grounding of tonight’s deportation flight to Rwanda is “indicative of the inhumanity of the plan” and the government’s “complete refusal to see the face behind the case,” the Refugee Council has said.Chief executive Enver Solomon added: “Whilst we are relieved to hear the flight to Rwanda did not take off as planned tonight, it is clear that the government remain determined to press on with this deal – leaving us to continue to witness the human suffering, distress, and chaos the threat of removal will cause with far reaching consequences for desperate people who are simply in need of safety.Emily Atkinson14 June 2022 23:071655243385‘Preparation for next flight begins now’, says PatelPriti Patel has told of her disapointment that the flight to Rwanda will no longer take off, but said tonight’s legal defeats will not deter her from “doing the right thing.”The home secretary added: “Our legal team are reviewing every decision made on this flight and preparation for the next flight begins now.”Emily Atkinson14 June 2022 22:491655243195London mayor condemns ‘cruel and callous’ Rwanda policyEmily Atkinson14 June 2022 22:461655242103 Rwanda deportation flight called off at last minute after European judges interveneThe flight that was scheduled to deport the first refugees to Rwanda will not take off following a series of eleventh-hour interventions by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).All migrants have been removed from the plane at Boscombe Down, near Salisbury, government sources have confirmed.More follows as we have it:Emily Atkinson14 June 2022 22:281655240639Number of passengers ‘down to zero’, reports suggestEmily Atkinson14 June 2022 22:03 More

Boris Johnson has indicated his government will not cut taxes until inflation is under control, as he came under fresh pressure to slash the amounts paid by households and businesses.The prime minister insisted he was cutting taxes “as fast as we can” after Gerard Lyons, who advised him when he was mayor of London, called for reductions in income and corporation tax.Mr Lyons suggested the latest figures showing a decline in the UK economy highlight the need for a tax-cutting stimulus.The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said gross domestic product (GDP), a measure of the size of the economy, fell by 0.3 per cent in April, following on from a 0.1 per cent fall in March.Mr Lyons, who was picked by Mr Johnson as his chief economic adviser in City Hall, said: “The economy is losing momentum. It is not just a cost-of-living crisis but a weakening growth picture that policymakers have to contend with.“Given this economic backdrop, while the direction for monetary policy is tighter, the speed, scale and sequencing of this tightening needs to be sensitive to economic conditions. The slowing economy justifies fiscal easing and the argument in favour of appropriate tax cuts.”Mr Johnson told LBC Radio: “We want to make sure that we do everything we can to reduce the burden of taxation.”The prime minister pointed to changes to national insurance thresholds in July, the 5p cut in fuel duty and £150 council tax rebate as ways the government is cutting taxes.Mr Johnson added: “He will understand that we are bringing in tax cuts as fast as we can but what we have also got to do is look after people in a tough time.”The country has been hit by an inflationary spike, Mr Johnson said, and “the thing that needs doing at the moment is looking after people who are facing increases in the cost of living”.Expanding on Mr Johnson’s comments, a senior government source told The Telegraph: “The more you spend, inflation spirals. We’ve got to be responsible. We can’t do anything that inflames that further.” More

Scotland’s first minister is set to launch the first in a new series of papers that she says will form an “updated independence prospectus”.Nicola Sturgeon is due to unveil the documents in the Scottish government’s Building a New Scotland series at Bute House in Edinburgh on Tuesday.And while she said the papers – seen as update of the independence white paper published in the run-up to the 2014 referendum – would “set out openly the challenges a newly independent Scotland would face”, she also stressed they would also “point the way” to a wealthier, fairer and more resilient nation.The launch comes after the SNP won the 2021 Holyrood election on a manifesto which included a commitment to hold another referendum on Scotland’s place in the UK once the Covid crisis had abated.The SNP did not win a majority of seats in the Scottish parliament in that election, but voters having also returned a record number of Green MSPs created a pro-independence majority within Holyrood.Scottish Green co-leader Patrick Harvie will join Ms Sturgeon in Bute House – the first minister’s official residence – for Tuesday’s launch event.The SNP leader has repeatedly made it clear that she wants a referendum before the end of 2023, despite fierce opposition from Westminster to such a vote taking place.And while she said “having the full powers of independence does not guarantee a better future” for Scotland it was “striking just how successful” countries that are similar to Scotland were in comparison with the UK.Such nations, she said, “can help point the way to a new Scotland that is wealthier and fairer, more resilient and better placed to help people with issues such as the cost of living crisis than a UK government committed to a hard Brexit whatever the cost”.Speaking ahead of the launch of the first paper, the first minister added: “The Building a New Scotland series will set out openly the challenges a newly independent Scotland would face, how they could be overcome as well as the opportunities that come with independence – as demonstrated by the success of comparable independent nations as well as our own resources and talents.”Opposition MSPs however insisted the Scottish government should be more focused on issues such as the cost of living crisis.Scottish Conservative constitution spokesperson Donald Cameron said: “Nicola Sturgeon is wilfully ignoring Scotland’s priorities to push ahead with plans for a second divisive independence referendum in 2023.”The vast majority of Scottish people don’t want the distraction of another referendum next year. They want the government 100 per cent focused on our recovery from the pandemic, the global cost-of-living crisis, supporting our NHS and protecting jobs.“Yet Nicola Sturgeon is recklessly pressing ahead with her obsession anyway. This is nothing short of shameful when the country is facing so many momentous challenges.”Mr Cameron insisted: “The distraction and disruption of another bitter referendum debate is the last thing Scotland needs right now.”Labour constitution spokesperson Sarah Boyack said that while people were “struggling to put food on the table during the worst cost of living crisis in a decade” the SNP and Greens were focusing on “their constitutional obsession”.Ms Boyack said: “We should be working together to tackle the cost of living crisis now – but instead the SNP-Green government want to tear us apart. This is an appalling waste of time, energy and money when our public services are being cut to the bone.“Far from making us wealthier, happier and fairer, the SNP and the Greens are putting our future at risk with plans that would make Brexit look like a walk in the park.”Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton was also critical of the SNP and Greens, claiming: “They care more about their independence obsession than everyone stuck on the longest NHS waiting lists in history, the cost of living crisis or the climate emergency. Nobody believes education is Nicola Sturgeon’s top priority any more.“The SNP and Greens are taking people for granted. Let’s lay aside talk of an independence referendum and get to grips with what matters right now.” More

Boris Johnson is facing the prospect of new legal action from the European Union as early as Friday in response to legislation published today to tear up the arrangements for Northern Ireland agreed as part of his Brexit deal.A bill published today would give ministers sweeping new powers to override elements of the Northern Ireland protocol, as well as taking new powers for the UK over tax and state subsidies in the region without agreement from Brussels.The long-awaited legislation provoked a furious reaction in both Brussels and Dublin, with Irish premier Micheal Martin saying it was “very regrettable for a country like the UK to renege on an international treaty” which was negotiated and agreed by Mr Johnson in 2019.And a majority of members of the Northern Ireland Assembly – including all Sinn Fein, SDLP and Alliance members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) – signed a joint letter to the prime minister urging him to abandon his “reckless” rewrite of the protocol, which the government believes will ease the disruption to trade with mainland Britain following Brexit.Meanwhile, questions were raised over attorney general Suella Braverman’s claim that the move does not breach international law, as it emerged that she is relying on the “doctrine of necessity” which permits states to break agreements in highly limited and extreme circumstances.Noting that the International Law Commission states that the doctrine can be invoked only when a country’s interests are in “grave and imminent peril” for reasons to which it has not contributed, Cambridge University law professor Mark Elliott said it was “very difficult to argue” that it applied.“The position, therefore, is if the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill is enacted in its present form and enters into force, it is very likely indeed that it will breach international law by putting the UK in breach of clear obligations set out in the withdrawal agreement and protocol,” he said.Foreign secretary Liz Truss said the UK’s preference was to achieve change to the protocol through negotiation with the EU, but said this had proved impossible because member states have refused to amend the mandate of chief negotiator Maros Sefcovic.But Mr Sefcovic said that the UK’s unilateral move was “damaging to mutual trust” and would undermine the Trade and Cooperation Deal governing post-Brexit relations between the UK and EU, as well as calling into question Northern Irish businesses’ access to the EU single market.Confirming that commissioners will use a meeting on Friday to consider issuing “new” infringement proceedings against the UK, as well as unfreezing existing legal action, Mr Sefcovic said: “Renegotiating of the protocol is unrealistic. No workable alternative solution has been found to this delicate, long-negotiated balance.“Any renegotiations would simply bring further legal uncertainty for the people and businesses of Northern Ireland. For these reasons, the EU will not renegotiate the protocol.”Infringement action could lead to financial penalties against the UK, with a full-blown trade war held in reserve until the bill becomes law. But this remains a long way down the track, with stiff resistance in the House of Lords expected to delay its passage through parliament. Government sources confirmed that the legislation tabled today would not automatically trigger changes to the arrangements in place for trade in Northern Ireland, but would merely grant ministers the power to do so at an unfixed point in the future, with protocol rules remaining in force until they do so.One senior Eurosceptic Tory told The Independent that the important issue was that Mr Johnson and Ms Truss had demonstrated their readiness to take unilateral action. “They may be hoping to encourage Brussels to change Mr Sefcovic’s mandate,” he said. “I think that’s the game plan, but my suspicion is that the EU will not be ready to do that.”The bill, finalised in tense negotiations within cabinet last week, would grant ministers the power to create separate green and red channels for British goods destined for Northern Ireland and those set to move into the EU via the Republic, with customs checks only on the latter.The European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) role in disputes relating to the border would be restricted to rulings on points of EU law referred to it by an arbitration panel. Ministers in London could unilaterally amend tax and state subsidies in Northern Ireland – for instance by extending the VAT relief on energy-saving products available in the rest of the UK – even though the province remains part of the EU single market. And the controversial “clause 15” gives Westminster wide-ranging powers to make further changes in future, though Downing Street insisted that the provision was simply a safety net allowing London flexibility in case of changed circumstances.DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said that the unionist party wants to see how the bill fares in parliament before deciding whether to lift its boycott of power-sharing arrangements boycott which has blocked the establishment of a new Northern Ireland executive and assembly following last month’s elections.“Publishing the bill doesn’t deliver anything in and of itself, but it is nevertheless an important step,“ said Sir Jeffrey. “What we want to see now is the bill progressing in parliament and as the bill progresses we will consider what it means for devolution in Northern Ireland.”Meanwhile, Mr Johnson is facing resistance from both sides of his party, with concerns in No 10 that the bill could provide an early opportunity for rebellion by internal critics who voted for his removal as leader last week.Members of the fiercely Eurosceptic European Research Group (ERG) are to reconvene their “star chamber” of senior lawyers to go through the legislation with a fine-tooth comb to determine whether it resolves concerns that Northern Ireland is being treated differently than mainland Britain.Mr Johnson faced robust questioning from ERG MPs in a private meeting last week as the bill was being finalised.One senior member told The Independent that the bill was thought to address with “70-80 per cent” of ERG concerns but that any continuing role for the European Court of Justice in ruling on future disputes would be “problematic”.Centrist One Nation Tories are concerned at the damage to the UK’s international reputation from being seen to have broken international law.Mr Johnson this morning insisted that the measures in the bill were “bureaucratic changes” which would amount to no more than “a relatively trivial set of adjustments in the grand scheme of things”.But Mr Martin said that the legislation “represents a new low point because the natural expectation of democratic countries like ourselves, the UK and all across Europe is that we honour international agreements that we enter into”.And Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the government was “going down the wrong track” in using unilateral legislation to override an international treaty.“The answer to this is to accept there are some problems in the way the protocol works but they can be resolved around the negotiating table with statecraft, with guile, with trust,” said Starmer. “Unfortunately, we don’t have those in the current prime minister.”The joint letter from 52 of Stormont’s 90 MLAs said that tearing up the protocol “flies in the face of the expressed wishes of not just most businesses, but most people in Northern Ireland”.While “not ideal”, the protocol in its current form “represents the only available protections for Northern Ireland from the worst impacts of hard Brexit”, allowing businesses access to both the EU single market and the UK internal market, they said. More

Home secretary Priti Patel’s highly-controversial plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda on Tuesday’s deportation flight has been given the go-ahead by the Court of Appeal.Judges rejected a last-ditch attempt by campaigners to have the first flight blocked until a full hearing on the lawfulness of the “offshore processing” scheme can be heard in July.But campaigners are increasingly optimistic that the government will be forced to cancel Tuesday’s flight after a series of successful individual legal challenges. It came as senior Church of England bishops wrote an open letter excoriating the plan for its lack of compassion, saying: “This immoral policy shames Britain.”The Care4Calais group said several more names were taken off the flight list on Monday – leaving only seven people cleared for deportation to Rwanda.Clare Moseley, founder of the group, told The Independent: “We’ll have to fight every single case individually. We’re very hopeful all of them will be removed from the flight list.”Home Office sources insisted that the department would push ahead with the flight – which the government has already paid for – even if there was just one person left booked on board. One source told The Independent: “The flight would go ahead [if one person was on board]. Legal challenges are still coming in, so we’ll have to wait and see if it goes ahead.”Up to 130 people were originally told they could be sent to Rwanda under the controversial scheme. But the Home Office said at the end of last week that only 31 people were due to leave on the first flight.Since then a flurry of legal challenges have seen the passenger list dwindle. Campaigners said they expected to find a lawyer on Monday to make a challenge on behalf for the last person in the group without legal representation.According to Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the flight was scheduled to fly to the Rwandan capital Kigali on Tuesday at 9.30pm from Stansted airport.The Court of Appeal rejected the last-ditch bid to block the flight brought by Care4Calais and Detention Action, and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), who challenged the legal principle of the overall policy.Judges upheld the High Court judge’s initial decision from Friday, stating: “This court cannot therefore interfere with that conclusion.”Appeal judge Justice Singh, sitting with Lady Justice Simler and Lord Justice Stuart-Smith, pointed out that the lawfulness of the scheme would be considered in full by the High Court in July. The judges also refused permission for a further appeal to the Supreme Court.It emerged that the Home Office admitted to an “error” in letters sent out to some asylum seekers because its own Rwanda safety report – which included warnings from the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) that deportation was not safe – had been “misread”. More

Cabinet minister Michael Gove has admitted the government has not conducted a “full” impact assessment of Boris Johnson’s extension of Right to Buy.Quizzed by MPs, the Levelling Up secretary was also unable to say where the funding for the newly announced policy would come from, insisting: “Watch this space”.It comes after the prime minister unveiled proposals to extend Margaret Thatcher’s flagship housing scheme, Right to Buy, to housing association tenants last week.But housing campaigners dismissed the policy — announced days after Mr Johnson narrowly survived a confidence vote — as a “dangerous gimmick” which could reduce the stock of social housing.According to The Sunday Times, however, officials had not completed an impact assessment of the shake-up while Mr Gove had privately accused No 10 of “bouncing” the policy before it was ready.Pressed by MPs on the Housing Committee whether there had been an assessment on the possible consequences of social housing, Mr Gove replied: “We haven’t conducted a full equalities impact assessment yet”.“We will do as ever when we bring forward policy. The prime minister explained last Thursday on the basis of the pilot — there had been a full evaluation of that pilot — we felt it was now appropriate to roll it out nationally”.Speaking on Monday, the cabinet minister suggested a “full impact assessment” of the policy could not be done until all the details of the policy are “furnished”.He also insisted that the government would ensure housing associations do not “see detriment to their balance sheets” as a result of the policy unveiled by the prime minister last week.But asked where the funds would come from, the cabinet minister replied: “From across government. We’ll be saying more about how we propose to ensure we have the funding necessary in order to deliver the programme.”He went on: “The Treasury has agreed that it will be funded — I think we’ll have to say watch this space.”He also reiterated that the overall numbers of people who will be able to benefit from the extension of Right to Buy will be capped — but did not provide MPs with a precise figure.Setting out his housing policy reforms, Mr Johnson said last week: “We will finish the right-to-own reforms Margaret Thatcher began in the 1980s.He said there are 2.5 million households whose homes belong to associations, saying “they’re trapped, they can’t buy, they don’t have the security of ownership, they can’t treat their home as their own or make the improvements that they want”.He said that some associations have treated tenants with “scandalous indifference”, adding: “So, it’s time for change. Over the coming months we will work with the sector to bring forward a new right-to-buy scheme.”Mr Johnson added that it would give “millions” more the chance to own their own home and would see “one-for-one replacement of each social housing property sold” while being affordable within existing spending plans. More

Boris Johnson is set to open up another rift within his party, as his own MPs warn that controversial plans to override the Northern Ireland protocol go against key Conservative principles.Tory MPs are already braced for the bill to breach international law, despite ministers’ protestations to the contrary.A leaked briefing paper being shared among Conservative MPs describes the move, which experts have warned could provoke a trade war with the European Union, as “damaging to everything the UK and Conservatives stand for”. More