UK Politics

Rishi Sunak says he will give his £400 energy rebate to charityFormer attorney general Jeremy Wright has become the latest of at least 25 Conservative MPs calling on Boris Johnson to resign, as the Partygate scandal rages on.The latest in a string of such calls came on Monday as Downing Street failed to deny that Mr Johnson had attended a birthday gathering during the first lockdown, after fresh reports claimed he had joined his wife Carrie and friends in their No 11 flat to celebrate his 56th birthday hours, just after being supposedly “ambushed by cake”. Asked eight times by reporters on Monday, a spokesperson failed to deny that Mr Johnson attended the alleged gathering, which was not mentioned in Sue Gray’s Partygate report.The Cabinet Office was forced to reject claims on Sunday that Ms Gray’s report had been tampered with, after it was claimed that senior members of Mr Johnson’s team sought to pressure her to omit certain details and names, with one source claiming “the entire machine fought her”.Show latest update

1653922225Another Tory MP reveals he has submitted letter of no confidence in Boris JohnsonCarshalton and Wallington MP Elliot Colburn has told a constituent that he had submitted a letter of no confidence in Boris Johnson “some time ago” to 1922 Committee chair Sir Graham Brady and had seen nothing in the Sue Gray report to persuade him to withdraw it. He is one of at least 26 Tory MPs who have called on Boris Johnson to resign.Andy Gregory30 May 2022 15:501653921685Imperial measurements could add ‘cost and confusion’ to business, warns trading bodyThe Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) has voiced its concern that the government intends to bring back imperial measurements.The CTSI, which represents the trading standards profession, said the move seemed “counter-intuitive” and would require “significant investment” in training and education of the public.“At a time when consumers and businesses are already feeling the pinch from higher prices and inflation, it is really important that any proposed measures don’t bamboozle the public on value for money and the prices of everyday items, or add unnecessary costs and confusion to business,” said the group’s chief executive John Herriman.Andy Gregory30 May 2022 15:411653920878UK firms slam post-Brexit EU trade as they face ‘same nightmare week after week’Business chiefs have hit out at post-Brexit trading rules, with one describing life outside the EU as “the same nightmare week after week”, my colleague Matt Mathers reports.Mark Brearley, who runs Kaymet, which makes tea trolleys and other kitchen equipment, said both the cost and red tape involved in the exporting of goods to the EU has increased.He said that a large proportion of his time is spent with “things going wrong” and that the EU feels like “the hardest place in the world to ship things to sometimes.”Andy Gregory30 May 2022 15:271653919885Sinn Fein ‘not giving up’ on attempts to elect speaker at StormontSinn Fein vice president Michelle O’Neill has said her party will keep having the Stormont Assembly recalled until a new speaker is elected, after the DUP thwarted a second attempt to elect a speaker as part of its continued protest over the Northern Ireland Protocol.“Here we are 26 days after the public have spoken, they placed their votes, they have voted for politics to work, they have voted for parties to work together to start tackling the issues that are worrying everybody right now, cost of living crisis and the fact that our waiting list situation is completely out of hand,” Ms O’Neill said.“We had our second attempt today to try and get things up and running, but unfortunately the DUP stand-off continues. We will come back again, we will do this again because I’m not giving up. I believe in making this institution work.“I’m disappointed, the public deserve a functioning Executive and Assembly. The DUP are punishing the public, it is the public who are missing out, it is the public who are being held to ransom because of their actions.”Andy Gregory30 May 2022 15:111653918925Angela Rayner hauls up No 10 over ‘totally untrue’ flat gathering commentAngela Rayner is among those to point out that No 10 had previously said claims of a birthday gathering in Boris Johnson’s No 11 flat were “totally untrue”.After ITV News reported claims in January that Mr Johnson hosted family friends in his private residence on birthday in June 2020, a No 10 spokesperson said: “This is totally untrue. In line with the rules at the time the Prime Minister hosted a small number of family members outside that evening.”But asked again today in light of fresh reports, a Downing Street spokesperson repeatedly failed to deny that the PM attended such a gathering.Andy Gregory30 May 2022 14:551653917965Stormont fails again to elect new speaker as DUP Brexit protocol protest continuesThe Stormont Assembly has failed for the second time to elect a new speaker, after the DUP refused to back the bid in protest until the UK government takes action over the Northern Ireland Protocol.The two nominations for the role, the Ulster Unionists’ Mike Nesbitt and the SDLP’s Patsy McGlone, failed to secure the necessary cross-community support from MLAs, and the plenary session of the Assembly was suspended.Sinn Fein had brought a recall petition to elect a speaker, deputy speaker – and to appoint a first minister and deputy first minister, which the DUP are refusing to do.Sinn Fein vice president Michelle O’Neill told the chamber: “The people have spoken and they want action, not protest. They want the parties and every single MLA elected to this democratic institution to get their sleeves rolled up and to get down to business.”She added: “The DUP’s stand-off is with the public and not with the European Union. As I stand here today I am ready to work with others.”But the DUP’s Paul Givan described the recall as “hypocrisy” not a “serious attempt” to restore powersharing, calling it “another attempt at majority rule” which “has no credibility when it comes forward from the party that kept these institutions down for three years”.Andy Gregory30 May 2022 14:391653917005Ex-minister calling for PM’s resignation ‘not a usual suspect’With the new statement from Jeremy Wright, two of the government’s most prominent backbench lawyers are now calling on Boris Johnson to resign, BBC Newsnight’s policy editor points out.In an increasingly familiar observation over recent days, ITV’s Paul Brand notes that the former attorney general is “not one of the usual suspects” to be calling for Mr Johnson to step down.Andy Gregory30 May 2022 14:231653916214Enough letters to trigger no confidence vote may have already been met, former government adviser suggestsThe requisite number of letters needed to trigger a no confidence vote in Boris Johnson’s leadership could have been reached, but are being held back until parliament returns next week, a former government adviser has suggested.While only Sir Graham Brady knows how many letters he has received, Sam Freedman – a senior fellow at the Institute for Government and former Department for Education adviser – noted that, in the event that the threshold of 54 has been reached, the 1922 Committee chairman would likely notify Tory MPs who have submitted letters to ensure they stand by their position, increasing the potential for news of a looming announcement to leak.Our chief political commentator John Rentoul has this running tally of potential letter-writers:Andy Gregory30 May 2022 14:101653915565Tory MP says he is ‘very disappointed’ but not among those calling for PM’s resignationDespite being “very disapppointed” by the “very painful episode” of Partygate, Conservative MP Anthony Browne has confirmed he is not among those calling for Boris Johnson to resign.Speaking to BBC Radio 4, Mr Browne was asked about former attorney general Jeremy Wright, who a moment ago became the latest of at least 25 Tory MPs to call on the PM to step down.”Well, I came on to talk about economic growth,” Mr Browne said. “I mean, clearly, the whole parties in Number 10 has been a very painful episode“I’ve been very disappointed by it, as many other people but the government, the prime minister has got the big measures right in terms of the pandemic and in terms of the war in Ukraine, which is obviously a huge international crisis that is ongoing at the moment.”On whether he is therefore not going to be among those calling for the prime minister to resign, the MP for South Cambridgeshire said: “No, but I am happy to answer questions about growth.”Andy Gregory30 May 2022 13:591653914660MP’s missing statement on Boris Johnson resignation reappearsA Conservative former minister’s statement calling for Boris Johnson to resign returned to his official website after disappearing.Jeremy Wright’s statement, which said the prime minister should resign because of the “real and lasting damage” of Partygate, was replaced with a “page not found” message for several minutes.It has now reappeared.Andy Gregory30 May 2022 13:44 More

Ministers have been warned of potential power cuts to as many as six million households this winter, with the government reportedly drawing up plans for rationed electricity if supply issues deteriorate.Government modelling of a “reasonable” worst-case scenario predicts major gas shortages in winter if Russia cuts off more supplies to the EU over the Ukraine war, it is claimed. Limits could be imposed on industrial use of gas, including on gas-fired power stations, causing electricity shortages.As a result, six million homes could see their electricity rationed, primarily during morning and evening peaks, in curbs that may last more than a month, according to The Times. Threats to security of supply have prompted business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng to ask Britain’s coal-fired power stations to delay their planned closures.The business secretary is also considering whether Hinkley Point B nuclear plant “might continue beyond its planned end of life”, technology minister Chris Philp confirmed on Monday.Mr Philp told Sky News that the government was looking at “sensible precautionary measures to guard against the potential worst-case scenario”.“[Mr Kwarteng] asked I think the three remaining coal-fired power station operators to just keep their power stations available … and I think he is considering whether Hinkley B, the large nuclear power station, might continue beyond its planned end of life as well,” he said.Asked about the safety of extending the life of the nuclear facility, Mr Philp told Times Radio: “We have no intention at all of diluting those world leading and incredibly high safety standards.”Downing Street made clear that had been planning for the worst-case scenarios, and said the government did not expect power cuts this winter, nor did it expect the rationing of electricity.“I think you would expect government to look at a range of scenarios to ensure plans are robust, no matter how unlikely they are to pass,” said Boris Johnson’s official spokesman. “Neither the government or National Grid expect power cuts this winter.”A Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy spokesperson also said the UK “has no issues with either gas or electricity supply, and the government is fully prepared for any scenario, even those that are extreme and very unlikely to pass”.A government spokesperson also confirmed that the request for the coal power stations in Drax, Ratcliffe and West Burton, which were due to shut in September, to stay open was made “in light” of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.“It is only right that we explore a wide range of options to further bolster our energy security and domestic supply – bringing down costs in the long-term,” the spokesperson said.“While there is no shortage of supply, we may need to make our remaining coal-fired power stations available to provide additional back-up electricity this coming winter if needed. It remains our firm commitment to end the use of coal power by October 2024.”It comes as EU leaders gather Monday to discuss energy dependence, as divisions remain over whether to target Russian oil in a new series of sanctions.Hungary is leading a group of countries – along with Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria – that rely on Russian oil and can’t afford to cut supply. Prime minister Viktor Orban has insisted that an oil embargo should not be discussed at the summit.Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who will address the 27 heads of state by video this evening, has repeatedly demanded that the EU deprives Moscow of billions of dollars each day in supply payments. More

A government push to boost the use imperial measurements after Brexit will bring British “culture” back into shops, a minister has claimed.Boris Johnson is expected to make an announcement this Friday to coincide with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee to pave the way for greater use of pounds, ounces, feet and inches.Appearing to confirm the plan, technology minister Chris Philp told Sky News: “It’s allowing a bit of our national culture and heritage back onto the shop shelf.”The government has been accused of trying to “weaponise nostalgia” among Brexit voters at a time when the cost of living crisis hits hard-pressed families.Denying ministers were ignoring more important issues, Mr Philp said: “The government is throwing everything at this cost of living problem, as we rightly should.”The government is preparing to open a consultation into how to further incorporate imperial measurements after Brexit. No 10 hopes the move could shore up support in Leave-voting areas.Labour MP Angela Eagle said the measurement move was a “pathetic” attempt to “weaponise nostalgia”.Tory MP Alicia Kearns also criticised the move. She said “not one” of her constituents was calling for imperial measurements.“This isn’t a Brexit freedom. It’s a nonsense,” said Ms Kearns, who said she no longer has confidence in Mr Johnson in the wake of the Partygate scandal.Fellow Tory MP Tobias Ellwood – another critic of the PM – said bringing back imperial measurements as a desperate attempt to “shore up and chase a slice off the electorate”.The defence select committee chair said: “There will be some people in our party which will like this nostalgic policy in the hope that it’s enough to win the next election. But this is not the case. This is not one-nation Conservative thinking that is required to appeal beyond our base.” EU weights and measures directive came into force in 2000, with traders legally required to use metric units for sale-by-weight or the measure of fresh produce.It remains legal to price goods in pounds and ounces but they have to be displayed alongside the price in grammes and kilogrammes.The Independent understands has been told there will not be a move away from metric units but the consultation will look at where it makes sense to incorporate or switch to imperial measurements such as feet and yards, and pints and gallons.It is part of a wider effort in Whitehall to review what EU regulations remain on the UK’s statute books after Brexit.Mr Johnson is said to be planning a “bonfire” of EU regulations in a bid to shore up support among Brexit-backing MPs and voters. A list of rules set to be repealed will be announced alongside the Brexit Freedoms Bill, according to i news.Meanwhile, it emerged that a family of average earners will be around £800 worse off this year, even after the extra £15bn package of support announced by chancellor Rishi Sunak last week.Analysis from the Commons Library shows that two median full-time employees earning £33,790 each will pay an extra £220 this year. More

Sir Keir Starmer should stand for re-election if he is fined and forced to resign as Labour leader over the so-called Beergate saga, said the party’s former chief whip.The opposition leader has vowed to quit if he receives a fine from Durham Police over an April 2021 Labour event at which beer and curry was consumed.But senior Labour MP Nick Brown, chief whip under six party leaders, suggested that Starmer put himself forward in a leadership contest if he has to step down.The ex-minister told BBC Politics North: “I think he’s done the right thing. He is a man of absolute principle and integrity. I don’t believe for one moment that the police will find against him. But let’s just for the sake of the argument, say they did.”Mr Brown added: “If they did, Keir would do what he said he would do and would resign. And I would be the first person urging him to seek re-election and to lead us into the next general election.”Durham Police announced earlier this month that it would investigate potential breach of Covid laws by Starmer and Labour staff, despite initially deciding not to take action when images of the gathering first appeared.The Labour leader then announced that he would resign as leader if he is issued with a fixed penalty notice by the force. “I believe in honour, integrity and the principle that those who make the rules must follow them,” he said.His deputy, Angela Rayner, who was also at the event last spring, said she too would “do the decent thing and step down” if issued with a fixed penalty notice.But Sir Keir and Ms Rayner have continued to stress they believe no rules were broken, saying staff continued to work on local election campaign.“I simply had something to eat whilst working late in the evening, as any politician would do days before an election,” said the Labour leader. Ms Rayner added: “Eating during a long day’s work was not against the rules.”It comes as Boris Johnson faces a steady trickle of Tory MPs calling for his resignation following the damning report last week by top civil servant Sue Gray into lockdown parties.Under party rules Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee, will be obliged to order a confidence vote if 54 Tory MPs submit a letter calling for one.Some 25 MPs have now publicly said they have lost confidence in the PM. Though it is not clear whether all of them have written to Sir Graham, while others may have putting in a letter without declaring it – making the exact numbers hard to know.Senior Tory Tobias Ellwood said some colleagues are in denial about the losing the next general election and are suffering “Stockholm syndrome” when it comes to Mr Johnson remaining leader.“We still seem to be in denial,” the defence committee chair told Sky News. “We will lose the next election on current trajectory, as reflected in recent [local] elections.”Labour has demanded that the PM account for his “whereabouts” on his 56th birthday after reports emerged that he may have attended a second gathering that day.According to the Sunday Times, there is possible evidence of a second gathering taking place a few hours after the Cabinet room party, with Mrs Johnson said to have been in the Downing Street flat with “several friends”.Starmer’s party is also pushing for a vote on Mr Johnson’s decision to change the ministerial code in a move his critics say “waters down” rules on members of the Government’s front bench. More

Boris Johnson is the least popular member of cabinet among Conservative activists, according to a new survey.The monthly ConservativeHome survey of party members puts the prime minister’s ratings deep into negative territory, with 15 per cent more thinking he is doing a bad job than a good one.It is the first time Mr Johnson has come bottom of the satisfaction ratings in the regular survey since December, and appears to mark the end of a surge in popularity following his robust response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine which saw him reach a positive rating of +33 in early April.The ConHome survey is not a scientific poll, but its findings are widely regarded as a good guide to the views of the most committed Tory activists.With at least 20 letters of no-confidence in the PM submitted by Tory MPs, today’s results appear to reflect a growing concern among the party’s grassroots that the Partygate scandal has turned Mr Johnson into an electoral liability rather than an asset.Most popular cabinet minister in the rankings is defence secretary Ben Wallace on +85, followed by education secretary Nadhim Zahawi on +66 and trade secretary on +65. Foreign secretary Liz Truss, who led the table for much of last year and is seen as a leading contender to replace Mr Johnson if he is forced out, came in fourth with +60.One-time leadership favourite Rishi Sunak saw a rise in his ratings following last week’s £15bn package of cost-of-living support, edging up from -5 to +12 in overall satisfaction. But he remains at the bottom end of the popularity table, with only Cop26 chair Alok Sharma and Mr Johnson below him. More

Conservative MPs are in denial about the losing the next general election and are stuck in “Stockholm syndrome” with Boris Johnson, a senior backbencher has warned.Tobias Ellwood said Tories were in a “difficult place” as he urged colleagues to shake off any psychological dependence on their leader after Sue Gray’s Partygate report.“The party is increasingly in a difficult place. This is going to be a testing summer, polling is now saying we could lose 90 seats,” Mr Ellwood, chair of the defence committee, told Sky News.“And we still seem to be in denial. It’s time to shake off this partisan Stockholm Syndrome, I believe,” added the senior Tory MP, who first called on the PM to go in February.Mr Ellwood said backbenchers had to realise the Tory brand was “suffering”, adding: “We will lose the next election on current trajectory, as reflected in recent [local] elections.”A group of 25 Tory MPs have called on Mr Johnson to quit now, but 34 MPs have publicly questioned his future as Tory leader. It is not known how many Tories have sent no-confidence letters to the 1922 Committee.Sir Graham Brady, chair of the committee, requires 54 letters before a confidence vote can be held. One Tory MP told The Independent that their “educated guess” was that the number of letters stands at 35 to 40.Mr Ellwood urged colleagues to stop using the Russia threat as an excuse to delay action on the leadership question. “Let’s not use Ukraine as a fig leaf to deny the fact that we have a serious issue … that needs to be addressed,” he said.Over the weekend allegations surfaced that Ms Gray was told about a potential gathering in the Downing Street flat on the evening of the PM’s 56th birthday but opted not to investigate.The Cabinet Office said it seriously disputes the version of events as detailed in the Sunday Times, but Labour is demanding answers over whether a rule-breach occurred.Chris Philp, the technology minister, told Sky News on Monday that there was no need for any further inquiries. “We’ve had an unbelievably comprehensive set of investigations … it’s not immediately obvious to me that we need any more.”The Sunday Times also reported that the PM’s chief-of-staff Steve Barclay edited out details about a gathering in the Johnsons’ Downing Street residence on 13 November 2020, removing details about music being played at a so-called “Abba party”.Separately, the Daily Telegraph said Ms Gray was told by at least four officials about Abba songs being played on the night in question, but her report published last week did not make mention of music being heard.The Tory party would only hold three of its 88 battleground seats if a general to take place tomorrow, according to recent YouGov polling.Mr Johnson is said to be looking for ways to appease possible Conservative rebels, with the prime minister reportedly keen to repeal “dozens” of EU regulations.The PM is also expected to announce moves to boost the use of imperial measurements. Mr Ellwood ridiculed the idea as a desperate attempt to “shore up” support among Brexit backers.“There will be some people in our party which will like this nostalgic policy in the hope that it’s enough to win the next election. But this is not the case,” he said.The influential MP added: “This is not one-nation Conservative thinking that is required to appeal beyond our base. It’s far from the inspirational, visionary progressive thinking that we require.”Last month Mr Johnson denied reports that he had called the senior MP “that c*** Ellwood”. More

Government staffing cuts could lead to a significant reduction in the number of passports being processed, jeopardising Britons’ holiday plans, Labour has said.The opposition party’s warning comes as complaints mount about the current passport-processing backlog.Given the passport crisis, Labour said it would be “damaging” for the Conservatives to reduce the number of staff working at the Passport Office.This follows the government’s announcement earlier this month that it wanted to reduce the number of jobs in the civil service by up to 91,000 over the next three years. In preparation for these cuts, Downing Street has reportedly asked every government department to draw up plans to lower staffing by between 20 and 40 per cent.New Labour analysis suggests that 8,000 fewer passport applications would be completed each day if civil service jobs were slashed by 20 per cent. However the Passport Office said it “didn’t recognise” these numbers.The prediction was based on the 43,478 passports that were processed daily in March 2022 by 4,000 workers. With 800 fewer staff, Labour estimates that the Passport Office would only be able to issue 34,782 passports a day, a reduction of almost 8,700.Angela Rayner, the Labour deputy leader, hit out at the “damaging cuts”, which she said would cause “huge delays” for people trying to access the service.“It is truly unfair that people are losing thousands of pounds because of Priti Patel’s Home Office and their failure to plan ahead,” she said. “They ignored warnings, and it is families across the country missing out on hard-earned holidays who are paying the price,” Ms Rayner added.Meanwhile, the shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said the Home Office “shouldn’t make it worse in the middle of a passport crisis”.“We need proper long-term service planning instead. Priti Patel’s Home Office is already effectively in special measures. They need to get a grip,” she said.Responding to Labour’s analysis, a spokesperson for HM Passport Office said: “We do not recognise these claims – our staff continue to process 250,000 passport applications each week, and across March and April we completed the processing of nearly 2 million passport applications.“We have increased staff numbers by 500 since April 2021, and are in the process of recruiting another 700.”British holidaymakers are currently waiting as long as 10 weeks to receive their new passports, with the backlog standing at around 500,000 applications, according to Labour.However, Boris Johnson claimed in the House of Commons that “everyone is getting their passport within four to six weeks”.The number of passports in circulation fell sharply in the first two years of the pandemic, tumbling by 2.6 million from the end of 2019 to the end of 2021.Delays in passport processing could lead to £1.1bn in cancelled trips this summer, according to recent research by the Centre for Economics and Business Research. The warning about summer holiday chaos comes as half-term travel plans were thrown into disarray this week when airlines including TUI and easyJet cancelled flights. More

The Windrush scandal was caused by decades of racist immigration law that was designed to reduce the number of non-white people living in the UK, according to a bombshell leaked Home Office report.The report, seen by the Guardian, concludes that the origins of the Windrush scandal lie in racist policies perpetuated by the government. “During the period 1950-1981, every single piece of immigration or citizenship legislation was designed at least in part to reduce the number of people with black or brown skin who were permitted to live and work in the UK,” the analysis reportedly says. The 52-page report tells how “the British Empire depended on racist ideology in order to function”, The Guardian reported. The Home Office has said that the report was written as part of internal training designed to be given to civil servants. They said that the training has been piloted but it has not been widely rolled out. According to reports, the paper argues that the Windrush scandal was caused by a failure of government to recognise the impact of its immigration law. “As a result, the experiences of Britain’s black communities of the Home Office, of the law, and of life in the UK have been fundamentally different from those of white communities. “Major immigration legislation in 1962, 1968 and 1971 was designed to reduce the proportion of people living in the United Kingdom who did not have white skin,” the leaked report is quoted as saying. The paper, written by an unnamed historian, was commissioned by the Home Office to consider the origins of the Windrush scandal. It emerged in 2017 that hundreds of Commonwealth citizens, many of whom were from the Windrush generation, had been wrongly deported and denied their legal immigration rights in the UK. The document, which analysed the impact of immigration law from the 20th century, has not been published and requests for it to be made public have been rejected. A Freedom of Information request for the report was refused by the government on the basis that it contained “sensitive issues involving the development of policies.”A Home Office spokesperson said: “This is a unique programme of training, which we are committed to getting right.“We have already made good progress against Wendy Williams recommendations. She highlighted many achievements, including the work we have put into becoming a more compassionate and open organisation.“We know there is more to do. Many people suffered terrible injustices at the hands of successive Governments and we will continue working hard to deliver a Home Office worthy of every community we serve.” More