UK Politics

Young Labour activists have been rebuked by their party after attacking Keir Starmer for “backing Nato aggression” over the Ukraine crisis.The Labour leader has been condemned for “celebrating” closer cooperation by the 30-country strong alliance while “attacking Stop The War and other pro-peace activists”.“Nato’s acts of aggression both historical and present are a threat to all of our safety,” the party’s youth wing has claimed, in a series of tweets.“Stoking up tension, macho posturing & trying to ‘outdo’ the Tories on hawkish foreign policy will only lead to further devastation, loss of life and displacement of people across the world.”Young Labour – which all members under 26 join automatically – goes on to “offer solidarity with those organising against this, including members of Stop the War”.But David Lammy, Labour’s shadow foreign secretary, condemned the “lazy knee-jerk” anti-Americanism of the group, as Russia threatens a wider invasion of Ukraine.He pointed to the “historical connection” between Labour and the military alliance, saying: “We were instrumental in setting up Nato.“I think this lazy knee-jerk reaction that everything that comes from America is bad and somehow Russia is the underdog – we reject it.”Mr Lammy, speaking on BBC Radio 4, laughed at the suggestion that “someone who is just out of university speaks on behalf of the Labour party”.“They don’t speak on behalf the party – I speak on behalf of the party in relation to foreign policy.”The Young Labour tweets also read: “Labour has too often been on the wrong side of international issues.“Young Labour calls on the leadership to stop backing Nato aggression, call wholeheartedly for peace, commit to constructive engagement with activists and deliver international policy around peace and cooperation.”A group of 13 Labour MPs has signed a Stop The War statement condemning “the British government’s aggressive posturing” over the Ukraine crisis.They include former leader Jeremy Corbyn and his former frontbenchers Diane Abbott, John McDonnell, Richard Burgon and Ian Lavery.The Stop the War Coalition, launched to oppose US military action in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, says it stands against what it describes as Britain’s “disastrous addiction to war”.Earlier this month, Sir Keir attacked his predecessor as leader, insisting “nobody wants war” and dismissing the idea that the group contains “benign voices for peace”.“At first glance, some on the left may be sympathetic to those siren voices who condemn Nato,” he wrote.“But to condemn Nato is to condemn the guarantee of democracy and security it brings, and which our allies in eastern and central Europe are relying on, as the sabre-rattling from Moscow grows ever louder.” More

UK businesses have paid out a record £4.5bn in customs duties over the past year, as the extra bureaucracy imposed by Brexit “begins to bite”.The costly new duties slapped on British firms increased 64 per cent in the year leading up to January 2022, new research has found.The huge hike follows new customs controls on exports, which came into force at the start of last year following the UK’s exit from the EU single market and customs union.Figures compiled by accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young show that the five months leading up to 31 January 2022 were the highest individual months for customs duties ever seen in the UK.The analysts also warned that the sums could soar further this year, after new custom controls on imports were imposed at the start of last month and “rules of origin” requirements became even stricter.From 1 January, Boris Johnson’s government introduced a requirement that importers show a declaration in respect of the origin of goods at the point of entry.If a firm cannot provide all the paperwork showing the origin of their product, they may be liable to pay the full rate of customs duty, and could even face penalties.“Over the past year, customs duties have been a hugely significant additional cost for many businesses,” said Michelle Dale, senior manager at UHY Hacker Young – who said the post-Brexit increase was “really biting”.She added: “The cost of tariffs and extra paperwork is causing serious difficulties for many businesses, who are already struggling to stay profitable in the face of mounting pandemic-induced costs.”Business groups have warned that many firms importing and exporting goods between the UK and the EU will be questioning whether their business models are still viable.MPs and peers on the cross-party UK Trade and Business Commission have called on the government to relaunch the financial support fund for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) hit by post-Brexit red tape – a scheme that closed in June.It comes as logistics chiefs urged the government to start building more lorry parks near Dover or face “complete gridlock” around the port, as post-Brexit checks continue to cause delays.Desperate drivers caught in four-hour queues near Dover have been forced to “s*** in the bushes” and throw bottles of urine out of the window, The Independent has been told.The government has asked National Highways to identify new sites for lorries. But ministers have not yet committed to building an extra park – despite a promise by chancellor Rishi Sunak in the autumn Budget to spend £32.5m on driver facilities. More

Boris Johnson’s government has bowed to pressure and asked media regulator Ofcom to review the broadcast licence of the Russia-backed RT channel.Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer called on the government to tackle the “Putin propaganda” put out by the state-controlled channel, formerly known as Russia Today.The prime minister revealed at PMQs on Wednesday that culture secretary Nadine Dorries had now “asked Ofcom to review that matter” – though he also cited the importance of “free speech”.Mr Johnson said: “We live in a country that believes in free speech. I think it’s important we leave it up to Ofcom, rather than politicians, to decide which media organisations to ban – that’s what Russia does.”However, Ms Dorries’ letter to Ofcom, shared at PMQs began, took a quite different tack. The culture secretary urged the regulator to take “timely and transparent” action against RT.The culture secretary said the channel was “demonstrably part of Russia’s global disinformation campaign” – saying it was “essential” that the UK limits Russia’s “ability to spread propaganda at home”.“I have concerns that broadcasters such as RT, whom Ofcom have found to have repeatedly breached the Broadcasting Code in the past, will also look to spread harmful disinformation about the ongoing crisis in Ukraine,” Ms Dorries said in her letter to Ofcom chief Melanie Dawes.Ofcom has said that – given the seriousness of events in Ukraine – it was ready to act “as a priority” if concerns were raised about the accuracy or impartiality of any broadcaster.In 2019, Ofcom fined RT £200,000 for its failure to observe “due impartiality” in seven news and current affairs programmes, including its coverage of the war in Syria and the Salisbury nerve agent attack.Sir Keir told the Commons on Wednesday that RT was president Vladimir Putin’s “personal propaganda tool” and said he could see “no reason why it should be allowed to keep broadcasting in this country”.Mr Johnson made at jibe about Alex Salmond’s work with RT after SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford attacked the government over the “sewer of dirty Russian money has been allowed to run through London for years”.The prime minister responded: “His indignation is a bit much coming from somebody, whose very own Alex Salmond is a leading presenter, as a far as I know, on Russia Today.”Lib Dem MP Jamie Stone asked Mr Johnson whether he agreed it was “an absolute disgrace” that Mr Salmond “sees fit to broadcast his half-baked views week after week” on RT.The former Scottish first minister is no longer in the SNP, having formed the Alba Party last year. He has faced criticism for continued to broadcast his The Alex Salmond Show on RT.Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Wednesday it was “unthinkable” that her predecessor still has a show on RT, as she also urged Ofcom to examine the channel.The SNP leader told STV News: “I’m appalled at Alex Salmond’s continued involvement with RT,” adding: “It’s a matter for Ofcom, but … I would certainly encourage Ofcom to look at that very, very seriously and closely indeed.”Ms Sturgeon went on to say that no SNP MPs or MSPs should appear on the broadcaster.A spokesperson for Ofcom told The Independent: “All licensees must observe Ofcom’s rules, including due accuracy and due impartiality. If broadcasters break those rules, we will not hesitate to step in.The watchdog added: “Given the seriousness of the Ukraine crisis, we will examine complaints about any broadcaster’s news coverage of this issue as a priority.”Anna Belkina, RT’s deputy editor-in-chief, said UK politicians “are now openly and brazenly interfering in institutions they have long touted as supposedly independent and wholly free from political pressure, exposing their self-proclaimed commitment to such values as free speech and regulatory independence as nothing but a sham”. More

Britain is ready to impose further sanctions on Russia even if Vladimir Putin makes no further incursions into Ukraine, The Independent understands.It is now regarded as inconceivable that the first tranche of measures announced on Tuesday will be the limit of UK action targeting the Russian president and his inner circle.And oligarchs resident in the UK could be among the targets of a new round of sanctions which Boris Johnson has promised will be “much, much tougher” than Tuesday’s list, which drew criticism for being under-powered.Foreign secretary Liz Truss this morning said that “nothing is off the table” if Putin makes further aggressive moves against Ukraine.But The Independent understands that even maintaining the existing Russian military presence in the breakaway Ukrainian regions will be regarded as sufficient trigger for further and more wide-ranging measures.UK officials are in constant contact with US and EU counterparts to discuss a co-ordinated programme of escalation of actions if the Russian president does not pull his troops out and wind down the crisis – a development of which there is no expectation in Whitehall.The government has come under fire for focusing yesterday’s measures on financial institutions and oligarchs with little presence in the UK, with Labour renewing calls for the implementation of the recommendations of the 2020 Russia Report to clamp down on illicit finance.And it has emerged that sanctions against members of the Duma lower house of the Russian parliament, announced on Tuesday, cannot be imposed for weeks to come, because of the need to pass secondary legislation at Westminster.No timetable has been set for further sanctions and ministers have refused to give advance notice of exactly which individuals and entities will be targeted.But a Western official said: “It includes a set of measures targeting the Russian financial and banking sector, and also looking at areas such as high tech exports to Russia – significantly curtailing those.“Also sanctioning a much wider range of oligarchs close to the Kremlin and other entities – companies, banks – in the defence sector, the energy sector and elsewhere of strategic significance to the Russian state. “So we’re very clear we won’t hesitate to go further if Russia chooses to escalate the situation further.”Ms Truss today said the UK has a “long list” of people complicit in the actions of the Russian leadership who the government is willing to “turn up the heat” on unless Moscow pulls back its forces.Asked the government was willing to impose sanctions on Tory donors, the foreign secretary told Sky News: “We are very clear that nothing is off the table, in terms of who we’re targeting … I don’t rule out anything.” More

The government is to launch a study of the economic benefits of reintroducing imperial units of measurement, to quantify a supposed advantage of Brexit.Ministers provoked mockery from opposition politicians with the “ludicrous” move, which will be overseen by the business department this year.In 2019, Boris Johnson pledged to usher in a new “era of generosity and tolerance towards traditional measurements” and suggested that measuring in pounds and ounces was “ancient liberty”.This month he appointed Jacob Rees-Mogg as “minister for Brexit opportunities” in order to examine how Britain can benefit from leaving the EU.Imperial-only labelling fell out of business use when Britain joined the European common market in the early 1970s, but some people who remember the esoteric counting system remain attached to it.Imperial’s alternative system of measuring weights and volume of products was used more or less exclusively in Britain – though the US maintains a parallel system with similar names but different measurements.As opposed to the metric system of weight, in which 1,000 grams are equivalent to one kilogram, the imperial system says there are 14 pounds in a stone and 16 ounces in a pound.For liquid, there are 20 fluid ounces in a pint and 160 fluid ounces in a gallon, instead of metric’s 1,000 millilitres in a litre.While the measurements have largely been out of use for some 60 years, they are believed by politicians to be beloved of some older voters, and so occasionally become a political issue. In reality, Britain operates a mixed system, with businesses using metric weights and measures, while imperial miles are used on roadsigns and pints used in pubs.Paul Scully, a Tory business minister, said reintroducing imperial labelling would be “an important step in taking back control” and that a planned “assessment of the economic impact on business will be carried out in due course”.But the Liberal Democrat business spokesperson Sarah Olney accused the government of “wasting taxpayer money” and said there were more important things to worry about.“The fact the government is undertaking a study into this shows just how out of touch they are,” she told The Independent.“It’s ludicrous that they think this will help businesses after they hit them with a national insurance rise and have done nothing to help with their soaring energy bills.“Ministers must explain how reverting to a system not used in nearly 60 years will help businesses attract new customers, and how imperial units will be of any help to companies looking to trade with the rest of the world – when the vast majority of countries use the metric system.“Instead of wasting taxpayer money on looking to bring back imperial measurements, the government should be focusing on the real issues affecting businesses, like the miles of queues at our ports and the reams of red tape thrown up by Boris Johnson’s shambolic EU trade deal.”Mr Scully said: “We are reviewing the EU ban on the use of imperial units for markings so that businesses have more choice over the measures they use.“This is an important step in taking back control of our national rules, and we will consult to ensure that we have the best evidence available on which to make changes. “An assessment of the economic impact on businesses will be carried out in due course.” More

UK’s prime minister has announced that it will hit five Russian banks and three wealthy individuals with sanctions over the crisis in Ukraine.The move is part of Britain’s “first barrage” of punitive measures ahead of a feared full-scale invasion by Moscow.Boris Johnson told the Commons on Tuesday that immediate sanctions would be deployed against the Russian banks Rossiya, IS Bank, General Bank, Promsvyazbank and the Black Sea Bank, as well as three “very high net wealth individuals”.But who exactly are the targets? Here’s what you need to know:PromsvyazbankThe bank was founded by brothers Dmitry and Alexei Ananyev but was seized by Russian authorities in 2017 and the brothers were accused of fraud.Interpol later found that found the prosecution of the brothers was politically motivated.According to UK Government sources, Promsvyazbank now services 70% of state contracts signed by Russia’s defence ministry and is a “pivotal bank” for the country’s military-industrial complex.In the early 2010s, the bank briefly flirted with listing on the London Stock Exchange.Bank RossiyaTracing its roots back to the early 1990s before the USSR fell, Rossiya Bank is favoured by the wealthy and powerful, according to Government sources.One of the top 20 banks in the country, it has been blacklisted for years and was put on US sanctions lists after the annexation of Crimea in 2014.The move forced the bank to draw back into Russia and according to the Moscow Times it became the first big bank to start opening branches in Crimea.According to the US Treasury, which sanctioned the bank in 2014, it is “the personal bank for senior officials of the Russian Federation” including Putin’s inner circle.It has supported the integration of Crimea into Russia, the UK Government said and “offers support to military activities and the formation of major transport links and cards that allow the public to travel easily around the peninsula”.IS BankThe bank has nine branches in Russia according to its website, but its “business development is directly tied to the annexation of Crimea”, according to the UK Government.It was designated by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control, which runs the country’s sanctions, in 2017 for “operating in Crimea”.Black Sea Bank for Development and ReconstructionAdded to the same US sanctions list in 2017 that IS Bank was on, the Black Sea Bank also operates in Crimea.It was “created immediately after the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014” and has “consolidated Crimea into the Russian Federation through the financial system”, according to the UK GovernmentAccording to its website, its biggest markets are Russia and Turkey and it also does a lot of business in Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece.General BankLike IS Bank and Black Sea Bank, General Bank, or Genbank, was sanctioned by the US years ago for its involvement in Crimea.“Targeting these entities for operating in the Crimea region of Ukraine underscores the United States’ commitment to opposing Russia’s occupation and attempted annexation of Crimea,” the US said at the time.It is the biggest of the three small banks sanctioned by the UK on Tuesday, the 92nd largest in Russia, Reuters reported, citing data from financial marketplace Banki.ru.Gennady TimchenkoRussia’s sixth richest man according to Government sources, Forbes lists Mr Timchenko’s net worth as 23.9 billion dollars (£17.6 billion).He is a major shareholder in Bank Rossiya which “is a key stakeholder in the National Media Group which supports Russian policy which is destabilising Ukraine”, the Government said.He was sanctioned by the US in 2014 and is reportedly close to Russian president Vladimir Putin.Boris RotenbergAnother wealthy Russian who has been under US sanctions since 2014, Mr Rotenberg co-owns SMP Bank with his brother Arkady, who is already sanctioned by the UK.The UK Government said that SMP is a “Russian Government affiliated entity” and that Rotenberg has “close personal ties” to Vladimir Putin.Forbes reported that his personal fortune is 1.2 billion dollars (£890 million) and that he has so far evaded US sanctions because he has Finnish citizenship.Igor RotenbergThe son of Arkady, Igor has “close familial ties” to the Russian president, according to the UK Government.He has been on the US sanctions list since 2018, and has a net worth of 1.1 billion dollars (£810 million), according to Forbes. More

Foreign secretary Liz Truss said it is up to regulator Ofcom to decide what kind of content the Russia-backed RT network continues to broadcast in the UK, following calls for a crackdown.Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has called on the government to tackle the “propaganda” put out by the state-controlled channel, formerly known as Russia Today.Responding, Ms Truss attacked the channel for disseminating “fake news” on behalf of the Kremlin – and suggested that Ofcom should “look” at what it broadcasts.“I think it’s certainly true that it is spouting propaganda on behalf of the Kremlin. One of the things the Kremlin does is use disinformation to try and sow discord in the West – and Russia Today is clearly part of that,” she told Sky News.Challenged on what action should be taken, Ms Truss added: “It is an independent decision of Ofcom about licensing broadcasters.”In more pointed remarks on Times Radio, the foreign secretary said: “I’m of the view Russia Today broadcasts propaganda and fake news on a regular basis, and is effectively an arm of the Russian state, and I’m sure Ofcom is looking at that.”Ofcom has said that – given the seriousness of events in Ukraine – it was ready to act “as a priority” if concerns were raised about the accuracy or impartiality of any broadcaster.A spokesperson for the watchdog told The Independent: “All licensees must observe Ofcom’s rules, including due accuracy and due impartiality. If broadcasters break those rules, we will not hesitate to step in.“Given the seriousness of the Ukraine crisis, we will examine complaints about any broadcaster’s news coverage of this issue as a priority.”In 2019, Ofcom fined RT £200,000 for its failure to observe “due impartiality” in seven news and current affairs programmes, including its coverage of the war in Syria and the Salisbury nerve agent attack.Sir Keir told the Commons on Tuesday that Russian president Vladimir Putin’s “campaign of misinformation” should be tackled – including moves to prevent RT from “broadcasting its propaganda around the world”.In response, RT deputy editor-in-chief Anna Belkina said it was “always a joy to see Western and particularly British politicians finally drop their hypocritical disguise in favour of open interference”.Meanwhile, Ms Truss refused to rule out imposing sanctions on Conservative donors. She told Sky News: “We are very clear that nothing is off the table, in terms of who we’re targeting … I don’t rule out anything.”The foreign secretary also said it would be “completely wrong” for Uefa to allow the Champions League final to still be held in Russian city of St Petersburg in June.Asked on BBC Breakfast if English teams should boycott the event, she said it was a “matter for the teams”, but added that she would not want to be part of the match if she were a player. More

Government has risked and lost “unacceptable” billions due to fraud and error in key Covid support schemes, a new report warns.In a blistering assessment, the chair of the Public Accounts Committee said the mistakes, waste, and openings for fraudsters “will all end up robbing current and future taxpayers of billions of pounds”.MPs on the committee said there was a lack of preparedness and “weakness” in systems — concluding the total cost of government losses remained “uncertain”.But they said: “It has clearly exposed the taxpayer to substantial, long-term financial risks and ‘large amounts’ — now running into many billions of pounds — of taxpayers’ money will be lost to fraud and error”.The committee highlighted that the Covid job retention scheme — which paid the wages of those furloughed during the crisis — alone is estimated to lose £5.3 billion to fraud and error.They added: “The estimated loss to fraud and error across all Covid-19 response measures is not known but is expected to be at least £15 billion across the scheme and loans implemented by HM Revenue & Customs, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy”.According to a National Audit Office from September, the full cost for the lifetime of the government’s Covid-19 measures will reach around £370 billion.The PAC added the Treasury should state what it has learned from the Covid response and what it is doing to collect lessons across government departments. It should also find out how much money has been lost in error and to fraudsters, how much of this will be recovered and how much it will cost to recover it.Chair of the committee, Meg Hillier, added: “As the PAC has made clear across a series of reports on the costs of Covid, lack of preparedness and planning, combined with weaknesses in existing systems across government, have led to an unacceptable level of mistakes, waste, loss and openings for fraudsters which will all end up robbing current and future taxpayers of billions of pounds.”The Labour MP added: “It is essential that for as long as we will be paying the costs of Covid-19, which is at least the next 20 years just in some of the loan repayment terms, the Treasury and all of Government continue to account specifically for what it has spent in response to the pandemic.“Government must be held accountable in this way to all the future taxpayers who will be paying for this response.“Crucially this must ensure lessons are learned for when the next big crisis hits — be it climate, health or financial.”A Treasury spokesperson said: “We reject the claims made in this report. No fraudulent payments have been written off and the Taxpayer Protection Taskforce is expected to recover up to £1bn from fraudulent or incorrect payments.“Our COVID support schemes were rolled out at a time of national crisis, protecting millions of jobs and businesses when they needed it most.“Thanks to the speed and scale of our intervention, the economy is back to pre-pandemic levels and growing at the fastest rate in the G7. The cost of inaction could have had a catastrophic impact on jobs and livelihoods.” More