UK Politics

Michael Gove has suggested that falling levels of home ownership were a factor in the Tories’ local election losses.The levelling up and housing minister said more had to be done to get Britons on the property ladder, noting that the proportion of people living in their own homes has gone down in recent decades, while the number of those renting has risen.Home ownership has fallen from 51 per cent in 1989 to 28 per cent in 2019 among 25 to 34-year-olds.“There are people who are perfectly capable of servicing a mortgage who are paying more in rent than they would for their mortgage. That is wrong.” Mr Gove said.He added: “There is a particular challenge for us in London and I think that challenge in London relates to…homeownership.“There are other factors. But I think that for young people in London, there is a responsibility on the incumbent government to address some of the factors that have made it more difficult for them to own their own home.“That’s one lesson that I would draw at this stage. The other one is that the Labour Party doesn’t seem to have made anything like the progress outside of London, that you would expect an opposition to do if it was on course for victory.”Just last month, Mr Gove spoke at a conference hosted by the charity Shelter, where he said there had been a “failure to ensure that there are homes which are genuinely affordable for all”.The government’s plans to increase the supply of homes form part of its Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill will be unveiled in the Queen’s speech next week. The reforms also aim to revitalise high streets and town centres, including by giving councils getting extra powers to force landlords to rent out empty shops.Speaking on the Bill, Boris Johnson said: “High streets up and down the country have long been blighted by derelict shopfronts, because they’ve been neglected, stripping opportunity from local areas.“We are putting that right by placing power back in the hands of local leaders and the community so our towns can be rejuvenated, levelling up opportunity and restoring neighbourhood pride.” More

Keir Starmer performed worse than Jeremy Corbyn in last night’s local elections outside London, a leading polling expert has said.Despite the party claiming historic victories in London, Professor Sir John Curtice said that, from results announced overnight, Labour’s share of the vote and numbers of seats won outside the capital were actually lower than the last time the seats were contested in 2018.There was “very little sign” of the party making progress in Brexit-backing areas of the North and Midlands which fell to Conservatives in 2019, when Boris Johnson made deep inroads into the so-called Red Wall of Labour’s traditional heartlands. More

Sinn Fein has hailed a “new era” for Northern Ireland as the Irish nationalist party swept history aside and emerged the largest political force at Stormont assembly for the first time.Michelle O’Neill, the party’s leader north of the border, challenged the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) to drop its obsession with Brexit checks and “work together” to restore the power-sharing executive which collapsed in February.“Today represents a very significant moment of change, it’s a defining moment for our politics and our people,” said Ms O’Neill after the republicans won the most votes and most seats for the first time since the country’s political institutions were set up a century ago.Sinn Fein won 27 seats and received 29 per cent of first preference votes, compared with 24 seats and 21.3 per cent of first preference votes for the DUP – putting Ms O’Neill on course to become the first-ever Irish nationalist first minister.DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said his party would accept the outcome of the election, but insisted that the Northern Ireland protocol remained a barrier to power-sharing.“Our position remains that we need to remove the long shadow of the protocol that is inhibiting our ability to operate and function properly,” Sir Jeffrey told the BBC. “The sooner that happens, the sooner we’ll be in a position to move forward.”Asked whether failing to serve alongside Sinn Fein would be “anti-democratic”, the DUP leader said: “There are lots of parties in lots of places in the world who decide not to go into a government, but we are committed to the political institutions.”But Ms O’Neill insisted that the urgency of the cost of living crisis meant that “we must all turn up” at Stormont next week, adding: “The people can’t wait. The people have told us they expect us to work together. The people are right.”Boris Johnson’s government is drawing up legislation aimed at tearing up checks on goods moving between Great Britain and Northern Ireland unilaterally – a move which is sure to spark a major row with the EU.But the bill is understood to be on hold until after the 10 May Queen’s speech, with ministers hoping that the election results can persuade Brussels to agree that checks must be dropped to restore power-sharing arrangements.Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis, set to travel to Belfast on Monday to meet political leaders, responded to results by encouraging the parties to form an executive “as soon as possible”.The cabinet minister said the electorate “were clear that they want a fully functioning devolved government in Northern Ireland, they want the issues around the protocol addressed, and that they want politics to work better”.Labour urged the government to “prioritise practical solutions through negotiation with the EU and not chase headlines with empty threats”.Peter Kyle MP, shadow Northern Ireland secretary, said Sinn Fein had “earned the right to nominate a new first minister”, adding that protocol issues “should not prevent a return to the executive”.Bertie Ahern, former prime minister of Ireland, called for the UK and EU to come to a compromise over the protocol. “I think what we desperately need in the island of Ireland now is for those negotiations to come to a successful conclusion,” he said on Saturday. More

The election of Sinn Fein as the biggest party in Northern Ireland’s Assembly is a historic moment — the first time an Irish nationalist party, rather than a British unionist one, has topped the voting. With all but two of the assembly’s seats filled Saturday, Sinn Fein has won with 27 seats out of 90. The Democratic Unionist Party, which had been the largest for two decades, has 24 seats and the Alliance Party, which defines itself as neither nationalist nor unionist, has 17.WHY IS THIS A BIG DEAL?The outcome is hugely symbolic. A party that aims to unite Northern Ireland with the neighboring Republic of Ireland has a mandate to take the reins in a state established a century ago as a Protestant-majority region within the United Kingdom.It’s a major milestone for a party long linked to the Irish Republican Army, a paramilitary group that used bombs, bullets and violence to try to take Northern Ireland out of U.K. rule during decades of unrest. More than 3,500 people died in 30 years of violence involving Irish republican militants, Protestant Loyalist paramilitaries and the U.K. army and police.A 1998 peace accord ended large-scale violence and Northern Ireland now has a government that splits power between British unionists and Irish nationalists. The arrangement has often been unstable, but has endured.WILL SINN FEIN NOW GOVERN NORTHERN IRELAND?The result gives Sinn Fein the right to hold the post of first minister in Northern Ireland’s power-sharing government, with the DUP taking the deputy first minister role.But it’s unlikely a government will be set up smoothly soon.Under Northern Ireland’s delicate power-sharing system, the posts of first minister and deputy first minister have equal status, and both posts must be filled for a government to be formed.While Sinn Fein is ready to nominate its Northern Ireland leader Michelle O’Neill as first minister, the DUP says it will not follow suit unless there are major changes to post-Brexit border arrangements that it says are undermining Northern Ireland’s place in the U.K.WHAT DOES BREXIT HAVE TO DO WITH IT?Britain’s decision in 2016 to leave the European Union and its borderless free-trade zone has complicated Northern Ireland’s position. It is the only part of the U.K. that has a border with an EU nation. Keeping that border open to the free flow of people and goods is a key pillar of the peace process.So instead, the post-Brexit rules have imposed customs and border checks on some goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the U.K. — a border in the Irish Sea, rather than on the island of Ireland.Unionists say the new checks have created a barrier between Northern Ireland and the rest of the U.K. that undermines their British identity. The largest unionist party, the DUP, is demanding the arrangements, known as the Northern Ireland Protocol, are scrapped.Britain’s Conservative government says the arrangements cannot work without unionist support, and is pressing the EU to agree to major changes. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has threatened to unilaterally suspend the rules if the bloc refuses.But the U.K.-EU negotiations have reached an impasse, with the bloc accusing Johnson of refusing to implement rules he agreed to in a legally binding treaty.WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?The Northern Ireland Assembly must meet within eight days so the newly elected legislators can take their seats. Assembly members will then choose a Speaker, followed by the nomination of ministers, starting with the first and deputy first ministers.If, as seems likely, no executive can be formed because the DUP refuses, ministers from the previous government will stay in power and basic governance can continue — though ministers are barred from making major or controversial decisions.If there is still no executive after 24 weeks, a new election must be held.IS IRISH REUNIFICATION LIKELY?Irish unity did not play a big role in this year’s Northern Ireland election campaign, which was dominated by more immediate worries, especially a cost-of-living crisis driven by the soaring costs of food and fuel. But it remains Sinn Fein’s goal, and party leader Mary Lou McDonald says a referendum in Northern Ireland could be held within a “five-year framework.”The 1998 Good Friday peace deal stated that Irish reunification can occur if referendums support it in both Northern Ireland and the republic. In Northern Ireland, such a vote would have to be called by the British government, “if at any time it appears likely to him that a majority of those voting would express a wish that Northern Ireland should cease to be part of the United Kingdom and form part of a united Ireland.” There are no set rules for deciding when that threshold has been met.Complicating the picture is the fact that Northern Ireland’s identity is in flux, with a growing number of people — especially the young — identifying as neither unionist nor nationalist. That is reflected in the strong showing of the centrist Alliance Party. There are growing calls for the power-sharing rules to be changed to reflect the move beyond Northern Ireland’s traditional religious and political divide. More

Tories lose Wandsworth as Boris Johnson faces backlash from own councillorsSinn Fein has hailed a “new era” for Northern Ireland as they became the largest party at Stormont for the first time and pushed the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) into second place.The Irish nationalist party’s vice-president Michelle O’Neill said it was a “defining moment for our politics and our people” and said she wanted to “work together” with the DUP to restore power-sharing arrangements at Stormont.Sinn Fein has won 27 seats and received 29 per cent of first preference votes, compared with 23 seats and 21.3 per cent of first preference votes for the DUP – raising the prosect of the first-ever Irish nationalist first minister.Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon, whose nationalist party also made gains in local elections, said earlier it would be an “extraordinary result” if Sinn Fein came out on top and “something that seemed impossible not that long ago”.Over in England, the Conservatives have recorded a loss of nearly 500 seats in local elections to date as well as a string of flagship councils, including the London boroughs of Wandsworth and Westminster.Show latest update

1651953464The politics blog is now closed, however we’ll be back tomorrow with the latest news from the heart of Westminster and beyond.Joe Middleton7 May 2022 20:571651953009Keir Starmer should ‘consider position’ if fined by police, says Diane AbbottSir Keir Starmer should “consider his position” as Labour leader if he is fined as part of a police inquiry into a takeaway meal with colleagues, former shadow minister Diane Abbott has said.Durham Constabulary is investigating claims that an event attended by Sir Keir along with other senior party figures and activists while campaigning last year might have broken local Covid regulations.“I think if he actually gets a fixed penalty notice he really has to consider his position,” Ms Abbott, a left-wing critic of Sir Keir’s leadership, told LBC.Adam Forrest has the details.Joe Middleton7 May 2022 20:501651952109Nicola Sturgeon congratulates Sinn Fein on ‘historic result’Joe Middleton7 May 2022 20:351651951265Sinn Fein’s Michelle O’Neill hails ‘new era’ in Northern Ireland after victorySinn Fein’s Michelle O’Neill hails ‘new era’ in Northern Ireland after victoryJoe Middleton7 May 2022 20:211651950909Parties should restore power-sharing as ‘soon as possible’, says NI secretaryNorthern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis, set to travel to Belfast on Monday to meet political leaders, said he encouraged the parties to form an executive “as soon as possible”.The cabinet minister said: “The electorate delivered a number of messages on Thursday. They were clear that they want a fully functioning devolved government in Northern Ireland, they want the issues around the protocol addressed, and that they want politics to work better.”Mr Lewis added: “Over the coming days I will be meeting with all the party leaders and will urge them to restore the Stormont institutions at the earliest possible moment, starting with the nomination of an Assembly Speaker within eight days.”Joe Middleton7 May 2022 20:151651949469Sadiq Khan: Starmer allegations a million miles from Boris Johnson’s actionsSadiq Khan: Starmer allegations a million miles from Boris Johnson’s actionsJoe Middleton7 May 2022 19:511651947909Labour urges ‘return to the executive’ despite protocol rowLabour has urged Boris Johnson’s government to “prioritise practical solutions through negotiation with the EU” over the protocol and “not chase headlines with empty threats”.Peter Kyle MP, shadow Northern Ireland secretary, congratulated Sinn Fein and said they had “earned the right to nominate a new first minister”.He added: “Unionism will still have a strong voice within power sharing and calls for progress on the remaining issues of the protocol have been heard and should not prevent a return to the executive”.Mr Johnson’s government is drawing up legislation aimed at tearing up checks on goods moving between Great Britain and Northern Ireland unilaterally – a move which is sure to spark a major row with the EU.But the bill is understood to be on hold until after the 10 May Queen’s Speech, with ministers hoping that the election results can persuade Brussels to agree that checks must be dropped to restore power-sharing arrangements.Joe Middleton7 May 2022 19:251651946209Sinn Fein hails ‘new era’ in Northern Ireland as nationalists become largest party for first timeSinn Fein has hailed a “new era” for Northern Ireland as the Irish nationalist party swept history aside and emerged the largest political force at Stormont for the first time.Michelle O’Neill, the party’s leader north of the border, challenged the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) to drop its obsession with Brexit checks and “work together” to restore the power-sharing executive which collapsed in February.“Today represents a very significant moment of change, it’s a defining moment for our politics and our people,” said Ms O’Neill after the Republicans won the most votes and most seats for the first time since the country’s political institutions were set up a century ago.Sinn Fein has won 27 seats and received 29 per cent of first preference votes, compared with 23 seats and 21.3 per cent of first preference votes for the DUP – raising the prosect of the first-ever Irish nationalist first minister.Adam Forrest reports.Joe Middleton7 May 2022 18:561651945404Labour lose control of Tower HamletsLabour has lost control of Tower Hamlets council in London to the Aspire party, after it won 24 of the 45 seats on the council, with two seats still to be declared.On Friday, Aspire’s Lutfur Rahman defeated Labour incumbent John Biggs to become the elected mayor of Tower Hamlets.It a remarkable turnaround, seven years after Rahman was removed from the same post for multiple breaches of electoral law. He was banned from politics for five years after an electoral commissioner ruled he had “driven a coach and horses through election law”.Joe Middleton7 May 2022 18:431651944962DUP leader says party is doing ‘extremely well’ despite success of Sinn FeinDUP leader says party is doing ‘extremely well’ despite success of Sinn FeinJoe Middleton7 May 2022 18:36 More

A group of activists disrupted a speech by Priti Patel at a Conservative event to protest the government’s controversial plan to offshore asylum seekers in Rwanda. Campaigners from Green New Deal Rising – a climate activist and social justice group – managed to infiltrate a spring dinner event hosted by the Bassetlaw Conservatives that featured the home secretary as a guest speaker.Video footage posted online by the group showed an activist interrupting Ms Patel just as she began speaking and called the home secretary’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda an “inhumane” policy which will “ruin people’s lives”. More