UK Politics

A Conservative transport minister has prompted ridicule after suggesting that people worried about the latest rise in train fares should buy a railcard.In response to a parliamentary question about this month’s record 3.8 per cent rise Wendy Morton said passengers could use the cards which “offer discounts against most rail fares”.But campaigners branded the comments “remarkably out of touch” and “ludicrous” and pointed out that most people could not use railcards as they are restricted to certain groups and journeys. This year’s 3.8 per cent fare rise is the fastest in nearly a decade, and follows a 2.6 per cent rise pushed through by the government in 2021.Ministers say the increase is lower than it could be because inflation has risen further since the increase was agreed – but the change will still see season ticket prices increase by nearly £200 on some popular routes.The government pegs fares to RPI inflation, meaning that cost of living increases elsewhere in the economy result in the cost of rail travel also rising.Asked by shadow rail minister Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi about the fare rise’s impact on passenger numbers transport minister Ms Morton said:”Whilst the change will affect each passenger slightly differently, we have a number of railcards in place that offer discounts against most rail fares.”She added: “We have saved a generation of passengers at least a third off their fares through the 16-17 and 26-30 ‘millennial’ railcard and went even further in November 2020 by extending these savings to former servicemen and women through a new Veterans Railcard.”We have protected passengers by delaying these fare rises by two months and, even then, opting for a figure well below current inflation rates.”Labour shadow minister Mr Dhesi told The Independent: “The implication that railcards remedy ever-increasing rail fares is remarkably out of touch, even for this Conservative government. Railcards are certainly not available to everyone and should not be relied upon to ensure passengers can afford a train ticket.”The cost of living crisis is taking larger and larger chunks out of hard-working people’s wages. So, instead of cutting services and raising fares, Government should focus on investing in our network to make it more affordable, reliable and frequent.”Railcards are available for people aged 16-30, pensioners, people with disabilities, armed forces veterans and those travelling as couples agreed in advance. But even where available the cards, which generally cost £30 a year, only give a third off certain journeys. The 16-30 railcard, for instance, one of the most common, has a £12 minimum fare on journeys made before 10am on weekdays – making it largely useless for commuters.Sarah Olney, the Liberal Democrats’ transport spokesperson said: “The Government is totally out of touch with commuters, who are facing soaring ticket prices but reduced services.“The suggestion that everyone struggling with rising rail costs should simply get a railcard is ludicrous, particularly because they don’t discount travel at peak times or reduce the cost of season tickets.“Ministers must cancel the imminent rise in fares and issue a five year freeze – to protect families who rely on our rail network.”Alice Ridley from Campaign for Better Transport said: “Unfortunately most people don’t qualify for a railcard so the fare rise will hit people’s pockets when they can least afford it and will do nothing to encourage people to choose the train and leave their cars at home, something we all need to be doing more of if we want to tackle climate change and boost the economy.” More

Boris Johnson’s government is now investigating yachts linked to Russian oligarchs currently moored in the UK, the transport secretary has said.Grant Shapps told MPs they were now blocked from leaving, and revealed that 10 Moscow-linked ships had been turned away as part of a ban on Russian vessels in British waters.The cabinet minister said investigations into a “small number” of luxury yachts was part of ongoing action to “clamp down on Russian interests in the UK”.He told the Commons: “We have detained private jets that we believe are owned by or connected to Putin’s cronies.”Mr Shapps added: “I can confirm that we’re investigating a small number of yachts moored in this country we suspect are also linked to Russian oligarchs. I have taken steps to ensure that are unable to depart and investigations are ongoing.”The transport secretary added: “I can reveal ten Russian-linked ships have been turned away or redirected on their course, and eight ships or their companies had severed their Russian ties.”Mr Shapps also congratulated members of the Unite union for refusing to unload Russian oil at Stanlow in Cheshire. “It came after I wrote to all the ports and asked them not to allow in Russian ships and Russian-connected ships.”The transport secretary added: “This country is the only country in the world to have a Russian-connected ban on our ports and we look forward to other countries joining our lead.”The government had faced criticism for being too slow to impose individual sanctions on Russian oligarchs linked to Vladimir Putin’s regime – and freeze assets such as yachts and private jets – since the invasion of Ukraine.Last week Mr Shapps used new aviation sanctions to impound a private jet in Hampshire, as government officials try to establish the plane’s links to a Russian oligarch.The minister said: “There is one such aircraft on the ground at the moment at Farnborough that I’ve essentially impounded whilst we carry out further investigations.”Meanwhile, Mr Shapps said his officials will be having “urgent discussions” with P&O Ferries on Thursday, as he expressed concern at the immediate suspension of sailings.The Independent earlier revealed that P&O Ferries had sent its ferries back to port, pausing services in preparation for “a company announcement” later on Thursday.Labour’s shadow transport minister Mike Kane asked Mr Shapps about potential jobs losses amid reports that staff could be replaced with foreign labour. “We don’t want those crews replaced by foreign cheap labour,” he said.“I am concerned with this news which is breaking on P&O Ferries,” Mr Shapps told the Commons. “I understand they have temporarily paused their operations and that’s causing disruption at the short straits – Calais-Dover – as well as some other ports.”The minister added: “We’ll be taking steps later today – including ensuring that my officials will be having urgent discussions with P&O about the situation, particularly of concern for their workers.”Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle said he would allow an “emergency statement” from the government on the matter later on Thursday if needed.The Independent has a proud history of campaigning for the rights of the most vulnerable, and we first ran our Refugees Welcome campaign during the war in Syria in 2015. Now, as we renew our campaign and launch this petition in the wake of the unfolding Ukrainian crisis, we are calling on the government to go further and faster to ensure help is delivered.To find out more about our Refugees Welcome campaign, click here. To sign the petition click here.  If you would like to donate then please click here for our GoFundMe page. More

The government has vowed to stop Russian oligarchs “abusing” the courts to silence critics with a series of reforms to protect free speech.Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised to tackle what he described as the “chilling effect” of a “new kind of lawfare” being used by the super-rich who can afford to threaten legal action against journalists trying to expose wrongdoing.Justice secretary Dominic Raab, who confirmed earlier this month he would be bringing forward the proposals, said the government was “taking action” to end the “bullying and protect our free press”.The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said wealthy “corrupt elites” and powerful corporations had been “put on notice by the Government” as it set out plans to speed up changes to rules on so-called Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs).It comes after Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer called on the Prime Minister to fast-track new laws to stop Russian oligarchs using their vast wealth and SLAPPs to avoid sanctions and criticism through the courts.Mr Johnson said: “The ability of a free press to hold the powerful to account is fundamental to our democracy and as a former journalist I am determined we must never allow criticism to be silenced.“For the oligarchs and super-rich who can afford these sky-high costs the threat of legal action has become a new kind of lawfare. We must put a stop to its chilling effect.”Mr Raab said: “The government will not tolerate Russian oligarchs and other corrupt elites abusing British courts to muzzle those who shine a light on their wrongdoing.“We’re taking action to put an end to this bullying and protect our free press.”Court checks and tougher laws could be brought in to curb the use of the “controversial” lawsuits which “typically involve wealthy people or large businesses using the threat of endless legal action and associated costs to pressure their opponents under defamation and privacy laws.”The tactic is “increasingly being used to intimidate journalists, authors and campaigners to stifle legitimate criticism and prevent the publication of critical stories and books”, the MoJ said.The government has launched a consultation on the plans – which could include updating defamation laws to strengthen the public interest defence available to protect those who publish private information from being sued if it was done for the public good.

For too long the super-rich have got away with abusing the law to bully journalists and undermine media freedomMichelle Stanistreet, National Union of JournalistsMinisters, who want to bring in changes as soon as possible, are also considering capping the costs claimants can recover to try to stop people “weaponising the high cost of litigation to stifle free speech”.They may also be required to prove “actual malice” by a defendant in libel claims as part of a bid to “deter spurious claims”.Other measures could see courts able to throw out claims seen to be using such tactics early on in proceedings and impose bans, called Civil Restraint Orders, to prevent people from bringing repeated legal challenges.The move follows news the High Court dismissed a libel claim brought by Kazakh mining giant Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation (ENRC) against Financial Times journalist Tom Burgis about passages in his book Kleptopia: How Dirty Money Is Conquering The World.Often the purpose of SLAPPs is to “suppress publications without a case ever coming to court and being reported” so ministers will be “assessing the evidence to understand how widespread the problem is before deciding the best course of action”, the MoJ said.Unions, industry groups and lawyers welcomed the plans.Michelle Stanistreet, general secretary of the National Union of Journalists, said: “For too long the super-rich have got away with abusing the law to bully journalists and undermine media freedom.”Dawn Alford, executive director of the Society of Editors, said: “It is essential that laws are strengthened and practical deterrents are put in place to ensure that journalists – as well as campaigners, academics and authors – are able to fulfil their role in keeping the public informed without fear of intimidation or harassment.”Law Society of England and Wales president I. Stephanie Boyce described the use of SLAPPs as “controversial”, adding: “It is in the public interest that our justice system works for all people regardless of their means and produces fair outcomes.” More

Boris Johnson’s government has ditched plans to limit MPs’ earnings from second jobs in a major rethink over the issue which sparked a sleaze scandal at Westminster.Ministers previously said they backed “reasonable” limits on earnings outside parliament following the Owen Paterson lobbying scandal and outrage over fellow Tory Geoffrey Cox making almost £1m from legal work in the past year.But the government has now rejected the idea of imposing time limits on outside work as “impractical”, and said a cap on the amount earned would unfairly stop MPs doing jobs which do not bring “undue influence”.In a submission to the Commons standards committee – currently consulting on new rules for second jobs – the government revealed that it did not want to see any such limits.No 10 chief of staff Steve Barclay and Commons leader Mark Spencer said: “It is the government’s initial view that the imposition of fixed constraints such as time limits on the amount of time that members can spend on outside work would be impractical.”They added: “The imposition of time limits would not necessarily serve to address recent concerns over paid advocacy and the primary duty of MPs to serve their constituents.”On the amount MPs’ can earn, Mr Barclay and Mr Spencer told the committee: “In respect of a cap on earnings from outside work to impose such a limit could serve to prohibit activities which do not bring undue influence to bear on the political system.”The senior ministers added: “Earnings from activities such as writing books for example, would not preclude members from meeting their principal duty to their constituents.”It is a sharp contrast to remarks made by ministers in the wake of the Paterson lobbying scandal in October and November.Deputy prime minister Dominic Raab said the plan to restrict second jobs “within reasonable limits” could see a cap place on earnings.And trade minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan suggested that imposing a limit of between 10 and 20 hours a week on second jobs would be reasonable.Despite ministers’ proposals about firm limits on either hours or earnings, Downing Street backed away from plans to control earnings in late November.The prime minister’s official spokesperson said Mr Johnson was “not putting forward a set of proposals for parliament to follow” and changes would need to be agreed on a cross-party basis.Mr Barclay and Mr Spencer said the government does still support reforms to restrict the type of second jobs MPs are allowed to take as part of a crackdown on lobbying – but did not offer any suggestions as to what prohibited work should be.The committee on standards, chaired by Labour MP Chris Bryant, has said that MPs should be banned from “paid parliamentary advice, consultancy, or strategy services” as part of its proposals for a change in the code of conduct.Mr Bryant’s committee has also raised the possibility of limits on outside earnings and the time MPs should be allowed to spend on second jobs, but has conceded that this would need cross-party backing.Labour said it backed a ban on directorships and paid consultancy, and said MPs must get the chance to vote on measures put forward by the standards committee to “toughen up the system”.Thangam Debbonaire, Labour’s shadow Commons Leader, claimed Mr Johnson had “repeatedly allowed his own MPs to put their own private business interests ahead of their constituents”.She added: “He can’t just row back on his promises to tighten up the rules on second jobs just because he is in a spot of bother with his backbenchers.”Several Conservative MPs have responded to the committee by rubbishing proposals to limit to second jobs.In his own submission, Tory backbencher Craig Whittaker described some of the committee’s ideas as “just plain ridiculous” and “barking mad”. More

The UK government’s £400m debt repayment to Iran has been “ring-fenced” for humanitarian aid and will not fund terrorism, Foreign Office minister James Cleverly has said.The release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori from Iranian detention follows months of intensive diplomatic negotiations between London and Tehran – including the eventual payment of an outstanding debt owed by Britain to the regime.Mr Cleverly said British negotiators had made sure that the money would be spent on “significant and meaningful” humanitarian work – saying it had been the only way to comply with international sanctions.“We owed this debt, we accepted that debt. Obviously, the sanctions position made it incredibly difficult – you cannot just write a cheque,” the minister told Sky News.Mr Cleverly added: “The details of how we have done it have to remain confidential – but it has taken a huge amount of work to come up with a method of ensuring that money is for humanitarian purposes and that it conforms to the sanctions regime.”He also told Times Radio: “This has been ring-fenced for humanitarian purposes. Because of international money laundering laws, because of UK money laundering laws, we had to make sure that wouldn’t be money that would be used for terrorism.”Asked whether he could be confident the settlement would not be used to buy arms, Mr Cleverly replied: “We have taken every precaution to make sure this is used exclusively for humanitarian requirements.”Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Mr Ashoori touched down on British soil at just after 1am on Thursday, as Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe hugged and kissed her young daughter and Mr Ashoori’s family sobbed.Asked why it took so long to secure the homecoming, and whether the debt issue could have been resolved sooner, Mr Cleverly said the prisoner release was “incredibly complicated” – and was not necessarily connected to the £400m payment.Challenged by Sky News host Kay Burley on whether the debt payment was essentially “ransom” money, the minister said: “We have always made it clear that it is not linked … What connections the Iranians make is up to them.”Asked about Mr Johnson’s now notorious remarks from 2017 – in which he incorrectly stated that Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe had been “teaching people journalism” – Mr Cleverly insisted that his comments “made no difference”.The minister defended the PM and said the Iranian regime was the “sole party responsible for the suffering these people have endured over the years … I have absolutely no doubt these comments made no difference.”Mr Cleverly also rejected a claim made by Nazanin’s husband Richard Ratcliffe – who conducted hunger strikes – that she would not have been released if he had followed Foreign Office advice to stay quiet.“My admiration for Richard is boundless. I disagree with him on this point,” said the minister. All experience tells us that the less visible, the less high profile, often the easier it is [to secure release]. Obviously the situation around Nazanin was high profile … But our advice is there for a reason.” More

Labour attempts to compare Russia to Saudi Arabia are “ridiculously distasteful”, Foreign Office minister James Cleverly has said as he sought to defend Boris Johnson’s visit to the kingdom.Sir Keir Starmer has accused Mr Johnson of “going cap in hand from dictator to dictator,” after the prime minister went to the Gulf in search of alternatives to Russian energy supplies.The PM failed to secure commitments from the Saudis to step oil production on Wednesday on a visit overshadowed by the announcement of three further executions.But Mr Cleverly insisted the trip was “absolutely the right thing to do” in a bid to alleviate the energy crisis – and praised the “liberalisation” in the Saudis’ treatment of women in recent years.The minister told the BBC: “Equating any country with the behaviour of Vladimir Putin is ridiculously distasteful. We need to recognise that Saudi is an incredibly influential country in the region, it is a significant oil and gas producer.”Grilled on the Saudis’ human rights record on Sky News, Mr Cleverly said: “We do have, regularly, very frank conversations with them about this. It is a very influential country in the region and the world. But we do not hold back when we have these conversations with the Saudis, and others.”The Foreign Office minister told host Kay Burley: “There has been a huge liberalisation in the lives of women in Saudi Arabia. The liberalisation of the role of women has been pacey.”Sir Keir accused the government of a “slapdash” approach to energy supply on Wednesday. The Labour leader added: “Going cap in hand from dictator to dictator is not an energy strategy”.Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner accused the prime minister of going on a “begging mission”, and claimed the government was relying on “another murderous dictator to keep the lights on”.But Mr Cleverly rejected the criticism and insisted that it was important to “recognise changes have been made” in Saudi Arabia, adding: “We’d like them to go further, we’d like them to go faster.”He added: “But ultimately it was absolutely the right thing to do for the prime minister try to alleviate some of the pressure that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has puts on oil and gas markets.”The prime minister said he raised human rights with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the United Arab Emirates’ Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed during his meetings.Mr Johnson also said he had obtained an “understanding” from the Saudis that instability in world markets from a spike in energy prices from the Ukraine war was not in their interests.But asked whether he had secured assurances that the oil-rich Gulf state would turn on the taps, Mr Johnson could say only that it was a decision for them.Mr Cleverly said only that he “hoped” the Saudis would still increase production. “I haven’t had a full debrief from the trip,” he told the BBC.The minister added: “Obviously, the Saudis will need to go through whatever internal processes they have and probably talk to their partners in OPEC.”Meanwhile, No 10 has refused to deny that Mr Johnson uses WhatsApp to communicate with Mohammed bin Salman.Asked if it is correct that the PM has kept open his WhatsApp link, his spokesman claimed “security matters” prevented him from answering. More

A crackdown to stop Russian oligarchs using the UK legal system to “muzzle” critics is being promised by the government, after criticism of years of delay.Dominic Raab is setting out proposals to tackle so-called Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) – high-cost legal claims to threaten and silence journalists and activists.The move follows criticism that Vladimir Putin’s “rich cronies” are using UK courts to prevent exposure of their activities by targeting opponents with crippling costs.A Commons inquiry heard this week how the system is “stacked in favour of deep-pocketed” oligarchs, who employ leading London law firms.The criticism came from Catherine Belton, the author of the book Putin’s People, who faced five legal cases, including one brought by Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich.“It’s the chilling effect of the costs,” she told MPs, adding: “The way the system has been constructed is that the system is so lengthy that it will end up costing your publisher more than £1m, sometimes £2m.The journalist Tom Burgis faced a libel claim brought by a Kazakh-owned mining firm for his book Kleptopia: How Dirty Money is Conquering the world, although the High Court dismissed it.Now Mr Raab, the deputy prime minister and justice secretary, will set out a series of options for change:* Strengthening the ‘public interest defence’ in the 2013 Defamation Act 2013 – to protect publishers of private information from being sued if it was for the public good.* Capping the costs that claimants can recover – to stop the super-rich, including Russian oligarchs, from ‘weaponising’ the high cost of litigation to stifle free speech.* Introducing a specific requirement for claimants to prove ‘actual malice’ by a defendant in libel cases – to deter spurious claims.* Enabling courts to throw out claims earlier in proceedings and impose Civil Restraint Orders – to prevent people from bringing repeated legal challenges.Mr Raab said: “The government will not tolerate Russian oligarchs and other corrupt elites abusing British courts to muzzle those who shine a light on their wrongdoing.“We’re taking action to put an end to this bullying and protect our free press.”The move was welcomed by the National Union of Journalists, which said it would “consider the detail of these plans”.They should “level the playing field and ensure journalists and media outlets no longer have to face prohibitive costs and deliberate intimidation by wealthy litigants with the deepest of pockets,” said Michelle Stanistreet, its general secretary.“For too long the super-rich have got away with abusing the law to bully journalists and undermine media freedom.”The Ministry of Justice said it would “establish how widespread the problem is before deciding the best course of action”, from the options set out. More