UK Politics

Bulgarian ex-Prime Minister Boyko Borissov remained in custody on Friday following corruption investigations by European Union prosecutors as his supporters took to the streets to protest his detention.The Interior Ministry said late Thursday that Borissov was being detained for 24 hours in a nationwide police operation that also targeted other former officials. Borissov, 62, was taken into custody along with former Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov, and Borissov’s media adviser, Sevdalina Arnaudova.Authorities haven’t provided details on any possible accusations against them. But local media reported that the cases centered on the misuse of EU funds.“Investigations are currently underway by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, but we will see in the coming days where the Bulgarian prosecuting magistracy stands and whether it will finally side with the Bulgarian people,” Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said about Borissov’s detention, adding that the events show that “no one is above the law in Bulgaria.”Incumbent Finance Minister Assen Vassilev said Friday that authorities were working on a tip from exiled businessman Vassil Bozhkov, whose lucrative lottery business was nationalized in 2020. Based on his tip, financial inspectors had gathered evidence on 556 million leva (280 million euros) that allegedly didn’t go into the state budget under the watch of Borissov and his financial minister.Borissov is a founding member of the center-right GERB party, which is now in opposition.On Friday, all of GERB’s lawmakers walked out of a session and joined protesters in front of Bulgaria’s parliament building calling for Borissov’s release. The legislators called on “all Bulgarian citizens who believe in democratic principles” to join the protests. “From today, every day the GERB parliamentary group will work with all legal means to provoke early parliamentary elections, which are the last opportunity to normalize the political situation and get out of the impasse in which the current government got Bulgaria into,” they declared. The detentions came after visiting European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kövesi announced that European prosecutors had opened 120 investigations of fraud in Bulgaria involving EU money related to public tenders, agricultural subsidies, construction and coronavirus recovery funds. She urged the relevant Bulgarian authorities to “team up with us, including on particularly sensitive cases”. A former three-time prime minister between 2009 and 2021, Borissov resigned after a newly formed party won last year’s general election pledging to uproot widespread corruption. Borissov previously has been the subject of corruption allegations several times during his tenure, but has denied any wrongdoing and no charges had been filed against him. More

At least 30 UK companies covering nearly 2,000 employees have signed up to trial a four-day working week from this summer.The pilot programme, which will start in June, is set to be the largest of its kind in the UK and will be partly overseen by researchers from Oxford and Cambridge universities.It will see workers at the companies involved given one extra paid day off a week, with no loss of earnings. It is set to last for an initial six months, but could be extended if it is considered a success.Previous pilots in other countries have shown that a four-day week can improve productivity and wellbeing, and make it easier for companies to recruit and retain staff. Organisations that have signed up to take part range from software companies to a fish and chip shop – a spread of industries that it is hoped will give researchers a wide range of data.The pilot was established by not-for-profit 4 Day Week Global, in partnership with think tank Autonomy, and the 4 Day Week UK Campaign. Academics from Oxford, Cambridge, and Boston College will oversee the results.Companies involved so far include mobile games developer Hutch, Yo Telecom, Pressure Drop Brewing, and Platten’s Fish and Chips. Other firms include marketing agencies Trio Media and Adzooma, car parts company Eurowagens and cleaning product supplier NeatClean.Outcomes First Group, a specialist education provider based in Bolton, is also set to take part. David Leatherbarrow, the company’s CEO said the firm was encouraged to join in by previous research showing the change could improve employees’ wellbeing and productivity at the same time.“Our teams operate 24/7, working exceptionally hard to go above and beyond for the vulnerable children and adults we educate and care for,” he said.”As a gold standard employer ranked in the UK’s Best Workplaces for Wellbeing 2022, the wellbeing of our teams is always front of mind. “Research has shown that a four-day week can boost productivity and happiness as well as improve recruitment and retention. We look forward to seeing the impact of the trial as we continue to support our teams to achieve a work-life balance.”4 Day Week Global founder Andrew Barnes said the pilot was “laying the foundation for the future of work”, while Kyle Lewis, co-director of Autonomy, said: “The interest in the UK pilot is a clear indication that organisations across a variety of sectors are ready to adapt to the future of work. “Among the real strengths of this pilot are how it embraces organisations of all sizes and models with a hugely diverse range of products and services, from hospitality to digital animation and everything in between.”He added: “This first-phase trial will connect businesses with training and mentoring support from international experts who have previously implemented similar programmes.”The pilot programme is still open to new applications and its organisers say they have received dozens more expressions of interest on top of the 30 firms which have already signed up.The Independent reported last year that the world’s largest working hours reduction pilot, in Iceland, had been deemed by researchers to be an “overwhelming success”.There, unions in the country are following up the trial by negotiating agreements that cut hours on a permanent basis. More than 1 per cent of the country’s workforce took part in the original trial, which which cut the working week to 35-36 hours with no reduction in overall pay. More

Boris Johnson’s government cannot force P&O Ferries to reinstate 800 sacked workers, a minister has admitted, as he called on the company to return £10m in furlough cash.Defence minister James Heappey said it would be “right” for the firm to hand back money claimed during the Covid pandemic – and suggested the government was looking at ways to reclaim it.“It certainly feels to me that it would be the right thing to do for P&O to hand that money back,” the minister told Times Radio. “I’m sure that colleagues at the Treasury and Department for Transport will be looking into it.”Labour said the company “mustn’t be allowed” to get away with sacking staff without notice – calling for the government to suspend contracts with P&O Ferries’ owner and “claw back” the furlough money.Mr Heappey said the company had behaved “disgracefully” but said the government was powerless to stop the ferry operator replacing the 800 workers with cheaper agency staff.Asked if there was nothing the government could do, the Armed Forces minister told the BBC: “I think that is the reality …. Ultimately, it’s not something the government could have stopped P&O from doing.”Grilled on calls for the government to reclaim the furlough money, Mr Heappey told Sky News: “It’s exactly the sort of thing that if I were the Treasury I would be asking for.”The ferry operator, owned by Dubai-based logistics giant DP World, sparked outrage on Thursday when 800 workers were sacked immediately – with no notice – to be replaced by cheaper labour.The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) is seeking legal advice to challenge the mass sacking. Security guards boarded ships with handcuffs to remove fired crew, it was claimed.Karl Turner, Labour MP for East Hull, said P&O Ferries had received around £10m when around 1,100 workers were furloughed, and demanded the government get the money back.“All of that money, that £10m for furlough in the pandemic, should be clawed back,” the Labour MP told LBC. “Any money that the British taxpayer provided to that business should be taken back from them.”Labour has called on Mr Johnson to suspend the contracts and licences of P&O Ferries owner DP World until the mass sacking row is resolved, and for DP World to be removed from the government’s Transport Advisory Group.Writing to the prime minister, Labour’s shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh MP said he must also “claw back” furlough money, as well as banning firms from “firing and rehiring” staff on cheaper, agency contracts.“British seafarers do not need meaningless platitudes – they need action,” said Ms Haigh. “The government must now stand up for loyal workers in Britain being undermined by overseas billionaires.”On the “fire and rehire” practice, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer added: “I just wish the government had done what we said and strengthened employment rights so they couldn’t do this kind of thing. The government said it was going to deal with this sort of situation. It hasn’t done it.”But Mr Heappey defended the government’s decision to reject a bill aimed at stopping “fire and rehire” – though he suggested ministers may wish to look at the issue again.The minister told the BBC: “While the practise of fire and rehire is clearly despicable, and something the government has been clear it disagrees [with], the scope of the bill was too broad and would have been unreasonable and actually damaged the employment market.”Mr Heappey added: “But I know that my colleagues in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy are looking at how we do clamp down on this sort of thing.”Senior Conservative MP Huw Merriman, chair of transport select committee, also urged the government to try to block P&O’s “appalling” decision, suggesting that minister could look at “emergency legislation” to stop it.Cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg said the way P&O have behaved was “very damaging, very foolish and very improper” and risked “undermining” capitalism.He told the Tory party’s spring conference: “I believe in a Labour market which is flexible but employers have duties to behave well and properly and considerately to their employees and P&O failed in that.”Mr Rees-Mogg added: “P&O ought to be very careful in behaving this way because it risks undermining the capitalism and free markets which are essential to our prosperity.”A series of demonstrations will be held on Friday against P&O’s decision to sack 800 seafarers, with the RMT union calling for wider public support for demonstrations in Dover, Liverpool and Hull. More

Defence secretary Ben Wallace expressed his anger with British officials over a hoax call from an imposter claiming to be the Ukrainian prime minister, a fellow minister has said.Armed Forces minister James Heappey said Mr Wallace “can issue a good b******ing” following the apparent breach of security the government has blamed on Russia.Asked about Mr Wallace and the fake call on LBC, Mr Heappey said: “He was pretty cross. He was, I think, embarrassed that it had happened, and he’s asked some pretty tough questions of the department about how it happened.”The minister added: “He can dish out a good b******ing when he needs to.”Russia has been accused of “dirty tricks” and a cross-Whitehall security inquiry has been launched after home secretary Priti Patel and Mr Wallace were targeted.The alarm was raised by Mr Wallace after he became suspicious during a 10-minute video call on Thursday, with the defence secretary publicly accusing Russia of being behind it.The defence secretary said it was a “desperate attempt” but “no amount of Russian disinformation, distortion and dirty tricks” could distract from the human rights abuses carried out during the invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin’s forces.Ms Patel said she had also been targeted. “This also happened to me earlier this week. Pathetic attempt at such difficult times to divide us. We stand with Ukraine.”Mr Wallace’s Microsoft Teams video call was set up after an email, purportedly from an aide at the Ukrainian embassy, was sent to a government department and then forwarded to the Ministry of Defence (MoD), The Independent understands.Mr Heappey said the discussion was “bland” and the defence secretary did not disclose anything sensitive – despite questions about British military plans.“Ben is a guy that understands threat very well. He was acutely aware he was on Microsoft Teams call, and therefore he would not ever disclose any sensitive details on a platform that can be very easily intercepted,” he told Sky News.Mr Heappey added: “When the caller started to asked pointed questions about our intentions militarily in the region … he became suspicious and terminated the call.”Meanwhile, Mr Heappey said that Russia’s war in Ukraine was “not going well at all”, but added: “Any idea that the military combat will bring itself to a combination soon is that is overly optimistic.”The defence minister said the West may have a role to play in brokering a peace deal but it was up to the Ukrainians to decide what terms they could accept.“This can’t go indefinitely,” he told Sky News. “Those are decisions entirely for president Zelensky and his government. It is not for the West to trade away Ukrainian sovereignty.”Mr Heappey said Putin bears ultimate “culpability” for any war crimes being committed by his forces in Ukraine – but warned that the entire Russian military chain of command would be held responsible for their actions.“The evidence being gathered points very much towards war crimes being committed in Ukraine,” he told Sky News following the deadly strike on a theatre in the city of Mariupol.He added: “It is not just Putin who ends up being responsible for war crimes as and when the evidence is gathered and people are held to account. Every single person in the military chain of command cannot just hide behind the line they are only following orders.”The Armed Forces minister also said the latest missile strike by Russia in western Ukraine was a cause for concern, after an aircraft maintenance plant close to Lviv airport was reportedly hit in the strike early on Friday. More

The UK would suffer a £70bn economic hit and be plunged into a recession if Europe banned Russian oil and gas imports immediately, Rishi Sunak has warned privately.Boris Johnson has been urging EU allies to follow the UK’s own planned boycott on Moscow’s oil – and potentially gas – exports, to punish its invasion of Ukraine. But The Independent has learned the chancellor fears the devastating impact on the UK economy if the EU acted now, underlining Europe’s collective reliance on Russia for its energy needs.Mr Sunak told fellow ministers at a cabinet meeting that it would swipe up to £75bn from the UK economy “straight away” – the equivalent to about 3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), a source close to the discussions revealed.That in turn would send the UK into recession in 2022, at a time when households are already facing the worst cost of living crisis in decades, sparked by rising inflation and soaring fuel and food bills.It lays bare how – despite Mr Johnson’s call for countries to end their “addiction” to Russian hydrocarbons – there is some private relief in London that there is no all-out EU embargo.There is pressure in mainland Europe for the EU to go further, which saw more than 100 MEPs sign a letter calling for Brussels to impose a ban immediately.Mr Sunak told the cabinet last week that the move would lead to recessions across European countries, as well as in the UK.As he flew to Saudi Arabia this week – to try to persuade the kingdom to turn on the oil taps – Mr Johnson likened Vladimir Putin to a drug dealer, urging European countries to “get ourselves off that addiction”.And he blamed that dependence for Putin’s deadly assault on Ukraine, saying: “That is why he feels able to bomb maternity hospitals. That is why he is emboldened enough to launch indiscriminate assaults on fleeing families.”The UK announced last week that it will end Russian oil imports by the end of the year, while “exploring options” to end gas imports as well.In a co-ordinated series of moves, the US went further, announcing a ban on both oil and gas to deal “another powerful blow to Putin’s war machine”, Joe Biden said.The EU plans to slash consumption of Russian natural gas by two thirds this year, while aiming for a complete break with its biggest energy supplier before 2030.The task is much tougher for the EU, which depends on Russia for 40 per cent of its gas and around a quarter of its oil – compared with the UK’s 4 per cent and 8 per cent respectively.Indeed, there have been fears that the Kremlin might turn off the supplies itself, in retaliation for western sanctions and the weapons sent to stiffen Ukraine’s resistance.Instead, Russia is earning hundreds of millions of dollars a day from its oil and gas exports, undermining the sanctions and financing the war.Germany has frozen the approval process for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which is designed to double the flow of Russian gas.But the European Central Bank estimated that a 10 per cent drop in gas supplies would cut 0.7 per cent off GDP in the eurozone and said the fall “could be greater”.A Treasury spokesperson said: “We continue to monitor the impacts that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is having on the cost of living here, so we keep our approach under review.” More

It is uncertain whether Brexit free trade agreements negotiated by Boris Johnson’s government will provide any “actual economic benefits”, an influential committee of MPs has warned.In a scathing report released on Friday the Public Accounts Committee said the department of international trade had been too secretive and not kept parliament properly informed about what it was doing.And the cross-party committee warned there was a risk consumer standards could slip because of the deals – with possible “trade-offs across different policy areas, such as agriculture, the environment and human rights”.Tory MP Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, who deputy chairs the committee, said the department for international trade was “really struggling to point to tangible wins for British business, consumers or our own agriculture sector” from its programme of negotiations.The committee’s report warns: “There is a lack of clarity about how the department will measure whether it is achieving benefits from its programme of trade negotiations so that parliament can hold it to account for its progress.”The department currently publishes the impact assessments it makes prior to trade agreements being implemented, but the department has not set any associated targets. “There is no guarantee that the agreements will deliver actual economic benefits unless the department provides vital support to help businesses use the agreements, particularly for smaller businesses wanting to export worldwide.”Trade economists have consistently warned that the benefits of free trade agreements with other countries are being oversold by the government.One analysis conducted by the University of Sussex UK Trade Policy Observatory last year found that all the trade deals signed by the government so far since Brexit were worth 178 times less than the expect hit from leaving the EU single market.But the government says the agreements could have more unknown benefits in the future.Deputy committee chair Sir Geoffrey said the department for international trade “seems to have forgotten that its first and core duty is to deliver for UK consumers, business and our environment”.He said the department’s aim should be “to create deals that will deliver real economic benefits while offering the choice of food, goods and services at the standards and prices they expect and have long enjoyed”.”The PAC has previously expressed concerns that our consumer protection system is unable to deal with the new arrangements, and recent reports of tax fraud and modern slavery breaches cast doubt on capability in other critical parts of the trade system,” he said. “The department needs to communicate what benefits we might expect from this brave new world we’ve entered and what trade-offs we face.”He concluded: “DIT is constrained by the deliberations and choices of our biggest trading partners – this is a problem of its own making, and for it to fix: families struggling out of the pandemic and into a massive cost-of-living crisis must not be the ones to pay.”The trade department has faced repeated ridicule in recent years as deal after deal is projected by the government’s own economists to have tiny economic benefits.An elusive deal with the US was expected to have just a 0.16 per cent boost to gross domestic product (GDP) over the next 15 years, while deals with Australia and New Zealand are expected to produce gains of close to zero.But ministers are keen to pursue the deals so they can point to a benefit of leaving the European Union customs union.The PAC’s findings were endorsed by the chair of another committee, Angus Brendan MacNeil, who heads the International Trade Committe. He said there was “now clear agreement across the House of Commons that the Government is not being transparent about the deals it is signing and that it needs to allow greater parliamentary scrutiny”. He added: “Treating MPs as add-ons at the end of the process is simply not good enough. Today’s report also underlines the need for the Department for International Trade to produce the broader trade strategy we have been calling for, rather than simply engage in ad hoc negotiations. Doing so will allow us to see where it has been successful, what trade-offs it has made, and where its negotiations have not been up to scratch.”A spokesperson for the Department for International Trade said: “Getting a good deal for consumers and businesses is at the heart of our trade strategy. We have already secured over £770bn of trade deals with 70 countries plus the EU, while continuing to attract inward investment and boost our world-class exports.“Last year we launched our landmark Export Strategy so more businesses can seize new opportunities in the world’s fastest growing markets and bring prosperity to every corner of the country.“We take parliamentary scrutiny of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) very seriously and have made enhanced commitments to scrutiny and transparency at every stage of negotiations, going far beyond our statutory requirements.” More

The government is facing calls to intervene in the “national scandal” of 800 P&O Ferries workers being sacked for cheaper agency staff.It comes after the ferry operator, bought by Dubai-based logistics giant DP World in 2019, provoked fury as it insisted the decision to cut jobs was “very difficult” but necessary for the survival of the business.Many of those fired were reportedly told the news on a pre-recorded video, and were refusing to leave ships on Thursday, leading to security guards with handcuffs deployed to remove them.During an emergency Commons statement, the company faced universal condemnation, with MPs describing the action as “shabby” and “disgraceful” while comparing the situation to Victoria-era practices.Transport minister Robert Courts also hit out the action of P&O Ferries, telling MPs he made his anger “crystal clear” to the management of the company during a call on Thursday.He said he would be discussing the situation with unions, adding: “I am extremely concerned and frankly angry at the way workers have been treated by P&O.”But he also described the move as “fundamentally a commercial decision for the company” and repeatedly ducked calls from MPs for the government to directly intervene.Sir John Hayes – a former Conservative transport minister – suggested the government should “recover any monies” granted to the ferry company through the furlough scheme during the pandemic.And Huw Merriman, the Conservative MP who chairs the Transport Select Committee, suggested the government should try to prevent P&O Ferries’s decision to sack employees from being carried out.He later said on the BBC’s PM programme: “All levers should be pulled including emergency legislation if needed.”In response, Mr Courts described the situation as “fast-moving” and said he would commit to working will all government departments to “consider what relationships we have we with” the company.However, he again reiterated that “commercial matters for a company are primarily a matter for them within the constraints of employment law, which of course in this country is high and there are standards that we expect to be respected and upheld”.Describing the situation as a “national scandal”, the shadow transport secretary, Louise Haigh, also told MPs: “It is a betrayal of the workers that kept this country stocked throughout the pandemic.”“There are images circulating of what we are told are handcuff-trained security, some wearing balaclavas marching British crew off their ships,” she said.“This is not a corporate restructure, it is not the way to go about business. It is beneath contempt – the action of thugs.”Frances O’Grady, the general secretary of the Trade Union Congress, also urged ministers to intervene, as she described the P&O’s actor as “reprehensible and unlawful”.She said: “When an employer lays off more than 100 staff at once they must consult workers and unions in advance. And they are required to notify the secretary of state in writing in advance too. The government must urgently explain what they knew and when.“If P&O breached the law they must suffer severe consequences – with ministers increasing the legal penalties if necessary. If one employer gets away with this, every worker is at risk.” More