UK Politics

A Conservative minister has resigned over the “lamentable track record”of Boris Johnson’s government in tackling fraud in a multi-billion-pound Covid loan scheme.Senior Tory peer Lord Agnew quit in a shock announcement in the House of Lords on Monday, blasting “arrogance, indolence and ignorance” across government departments.Opposition parties seized on the “damning” remarks, demanding that chancellor Rishi Sunak explain how he will reclaim billions the government had allowed to be “stolen” from taxpayers.Lord Agnew said “schoolboy errors” had been made over the £47bn given out to businesses from the bounce back loan scheme (BBLS) – including the approval of more than 1,000 loans to companies “not even trading when Covid struck”.In his resignation letter to the prime minister, the minister for efficiency at the Treasury and Cabinet Office also condemned the “desperately inadequate” efforts to claw back some of the huge sums lost to fraud.But he said his resignation was in no way linked to the partygate scandal engulfing No 10, blaming Whitehall departments for the failures of the Covid scheme.Lord Agnew said he was “sorry for the inconvenience” it would cause Mr Johnson, but said the PM should be able to expect that “the levers of government were actually connected to delivering services for our citizens”.The department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and National Audit Office estimated last year that there had been up to £5bn of fraud from the BBLS alone during the pandemic.Lord Agnew had been asked to update peers about £4.3bn of loans from BBLS and other Covid schemes – effectively “written off” by the Treasury – which Labour claimed had gone to fraudsters.Although he offered no sums in his scathing statement, Lord Agnew attacked both BEIS and the Treasury. “The oversight by both BEIS and the British Business Bank of the panel lenders of BBLS has been nothing less than woeful,” he said.He added: “They have been ably assisted by the Treasury, who appear to have no knowledge or interest in the consequences of fraud to our economy or society.”Lord Agnew said he had been arguing with Treasury and BEIS officials for two years to raise their game on fraud, claiming a mixture of “arrogance, indolence and ignorance freezes the government machine”.The departing minister encouraged fellow peers to carry on scrutinising the government over the recovery of loans. He was given a round of applause after saying goodbye, and walked out of the chamber.Labour MP Rachel Reeves, shadow chancellor, said Lord Agnew’s resignation speech was “a damning indictment” of the government’s failures on fraud.She said it should be a source of enduring shame to Mr Sunak that the government had allowed taxpayers’ money to end up in the hands of criminals and gangs.The Liberal Democrats’ Treasury spokesperson Christine Jardine said the loss of taxpayers’ money was outrageous, adding that the “the buck stops” with Mr Sunak.“He must explain how he’s going to get back these billions he allowed to be stolen from our schools, hospitals and police forces, and if he can’t, he should resign for someone who will,” said Ms Jardine. HMRC permanent secretary Jim Harra told MPs last week that the £4.3bn figure reported for write-offs from various Covid loan schemes in 2020 and 2021 was not accurate.But he said a significant proportion of the £5.8bn lost to both error and loss would be very difficult to recover.Mr Johnson’s official spokesperson said No 10 was grateful to Lord Agnew for his contribution towards government efficiency.“We’ve always been clear fraud is unacceptable and are taking action against those abusing the system with 150,000 ineligible claims blocked, £500m recovered last year, and the HMRC taxpayer protection task force is expected to recover an additional billion pounds of taxpayers’ money,” he said.Mr Sunak praised Lord Agnew for having served the Treasury with “diligence and commitment” after his resignation – but did not respond to his criticisms. “I want to thank him for his dedicated service and tireless work during the pandemic.”A British Business Bank spokesman said it ensured “key” counter-fraud measures “consistent with the self-certification design of the scheme were in place from the outset”. More

An imam appointed by the government to draw up a definition of Islamophobia says he has received no “meaningful engagement” from ministers in years.Qari Asim MBE was commissioned to lead an official process in 2019, but told The Independent that the work “didn’t really start”, and letters to ministers as recently as last month have gone unanswered.The intervention came as a row over fresh Islamophobia allegations engulfed the Conservative Party, after MP Nusrat Ghani said she was sacked as a minister because of colleagues’ concerns about her “Muslimness”.Mr Asim said the allegations “once again demonstrate the importance of having a definition of Islamophobia” – something that was commissioned in May 2019.The government is to be questioned about the delay, and its wider efforts to tackle anti-Muslim hatred, in the House of Commons on Tuesday.Afzal Khan, a member of the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on British Muslims, will bring a point of order questioning why Boris Johnson has not properly responded to letters on the subject dating back to November 2020.The Labour MP will say: “The shocking and serious allegations made by [Ms Ghani] remind us that this Conservative government continues to ignore the blatant Islamophobia in its own ranks.”Mr Khan said that in November he was formally promised a response to letters asking what the government was doing to better safeguard British Muslims, but he has received nothing.Meanwhile, Mr Asim said he had been given no office, no financial resources, no staff and no terms of reference to draw up a definition that it was hoped would help tackle the issue.“Other than an announcement and conversations [with ministers], there hasn’t been any progress, and that shows a lack of political will to define Islamophobia,” he added.“I’m perplexed over the reasons for lack of engagement when the government time and again say they have zero tolerance to anti-Muslim hatred.”Mr Asim, who is an imam at the Makkah Mosque in Leeds, said several letters to successive communities secretaries had gone unanswered – including two written to Michael Gove in November and December.Boris Johnson apologises for ‘hurt and offence’ caused by Islamophobia in Tory partyMr Gove committed to “the importance of countering anti-Muslim hatred” in the Commons on 1 November, alluding to Mr Asim’s work and a working group set up to tackle anti-Muslim hatred.In a letter sent following his comments, Mr Asim told the communities secretary that nothing had progressed, and asked why. He asked for a meeting but received no reply.“I have set out my plan on how I thought a broad-based consensus can be achieved, but there has been a lack of meaningful engagement,” he added.“Initially I didn’t pursue it during the first year of the pandemic, because I wanted to give the government the space to deal with that, but from the community’s perspective it’s hugely disappointing and undermines trust and confidence in the government. Something needs to happen.”Mr Asim called for the government to publicly recognise that Islamophobia “is a real issue” and move forward with the definition.He said: “Some people don’t like the term Islamophobia because they think that it’s more about protecting the faith itself, but it’s not the case. “The faith has been critiqued since its inception – this is about protecting people and deterring those who target people because of their faith.”The APPG on British Muslims formulated a working definition and called for it to be adopted in 2018, saying the lack of one was allowing Islamophobia to “increase in society to devastating effect”.The Conservative government rejected the proposed definition in May 2019, and announced that it would commission independent experts to draw up a different one.When Mr Asim was appointed that July, the government said it agreed that a formal definition of Islamophobia was needed, but added that “concerns have been raised that the APPG definition could unintentionally undermine freedom of speech, and prevent legitimate criticism of Islamist extremism, or of unacceptable cultural practices”.A report into Islamophobia in the Conservative Party, published last year, found that two-thirds of discriminatory incidents reported to party headquarters over six years were in relation to anti-Muslim discrimination.The review considered cases including a 2018 newspaper column written by Mr Johnson in which he compared Muslim women who wear full-face veils to “letter boxes”, saying such incidents “give an impression to some of a party and leadership insensitive to Muslim communities”.In the year ending March 2021, 45 per cent of all religiously motivated hate crimes recorded by police in England and Wales targeted Muslims, compared to 22 per cent targeting Jewish people.The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities did not answer The Independent’s questions over the reasons for delays to the Islamophobia definition, lack of resources given to Mr Asim, or the absence of responses to his letters.A spokesperson said the department would respond to his correspondence “in due course” and added: “The government is absolutely committed to supporting freedom of religion, and believes faith has an important role in public life. “We take a zero tolerance approach to anti-Muslim hatred in any form and will continue to combat discrimination and intolerance.” More

The head of the Conservative Muslim Forum has called on Boris Johnson to explain whether Nusrat Ghani was sacked for her “Muslimness” – after he ducked questions.Mohamed Sheikh said the prime minister could clear up whether the junior transport minister was dismissed “because of her incompetence” or whether there were “other reasons”.“Why did that happen? I think the prime minister must come out and say why did he sack the minister,” Lord Sheikh said.Asked if the issue “could be simply solved”, he replied: “Absolutely. He needs to be very clear about it. As a prime minister, it’s his privilege. He can bring people on or he can sack people.”The forum chair also demanded clear terms of reference for the Cabinet Office inquiry into the controversy, moments after No 10 was unable to say what those terms will be.“The report must be made public in full. I don’t want a scenario where bits of the report are truncated,” Lord Sheikh told BBC Radio 4. “And if any anyone is found to have behaved badly, that person must be held to account.”No 10 was unable to say whether the full findings of the inquiry will be published and has rebuffed Labour calls for the chief whip, Mark Spencer, to be investigated under the ministerial code.Ms Ghani has alleged that, when she was sacked in 2020, Tory whips told her that her “Muslim woman minister status was making colleagues feel uncomfortable”.Mr Spencer identified himself as the person accused of making the remarks, but said: “These accusations are completely false and I consider them to be defamatory.”Quizzed on a hospital visit, Mr Johnson declined to back Mr Spencer, saying: “We must wait and see what the investigation produces.”He said he was “very glad there’s an investigation taking place now,” – having refused to set one up, nearly two years ago – but claimed: “I can’t say more, really, about it.”Ms Ghani welcomed the announcement, but said she needed to see the terms of reference to have confidence in it.“The terms of reference of the inquiry must include all that was said in Downing Street and by the whip,” the Conservative backbencher argued.The anti-fascism campaign group Hope Not Hate said the Equalities and Human Rights Commission should open an investigation into Islamophobia within the Tory party.“Islamophobia runs right through the Conservative party, from its grassroots activists to its most senior figures. This has real life consequences for Muslim communities in the UK,” said Nick Lowles, the group’s chief executive.Lord Sheikh also hit out at the failure of almost all Conservative MPs – apart from Ms Ghani’s fellow Muslims Sajid Javid and Nadhim Zahawi – to speak out about the controversy.“I feel it’s bit lacking on their part – not to speak out with regard to this serious issue,” he said. More

Boris Johnson today refused to guarantee that the government’s planned National Insurance hike will go ahead in April, fuelling speculation that he may cave in to pressure from his own MPs to ditch the tax rise.The prime minister’s official spokesperson told reporters that Mr Johnson and his cabinet remain committed to the increase of 1.25 per cent in contributions from both employees and employers.But asked eight times during a TV interview whether he could confirm that the NI rise will take place as planned, the PM repeatedly dodged the question, saying only that the government needs to raise money to fund the NHS.Mr Johnson’s comments came as business warned that the so-called health and social care levy will force up prices and cost jobs, as companies are unable to absorb the additional £12bn annual cost.And they followed claims from an unnamed minister who told the Daily that the entire cabinet would support scrapping the hike, which will cost the average worker £255 a year.Former minister David Davis today became the latest prominent Tory to speak out against the rise – which breaches a 2019 Conservative manifesto commitment.He argued it was “economically unwise” because it created a disincentive to work, would penalise employers and “hit the growth of the whole economy”.Leader of the Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg is also understood to have voiced his opposition in cabinet.But the PM’s spokesperson today insisted that Mr Johnson remains committed to the plan, adding: “Cabinet took a collective decision to take this action, to put money into our NHS, to tackle the backlogs, to resolve the long-standing problem of social care and to fund a pay rise for nurses. The cabinet stands behind that decision.”Mr Johnson was decidedly less unequivocal on the issue when asked repeatedly during a hospital visit to guarantee that the levy will go ahead.Asked about his plans for National Insurance, the PM said he wanted to “look at all the ways we can to address the cost of living”.And he added: “What I’m telling people is that if we want ot fund our fantastic NHS we have to pay for it, and this government is determined to do so.”A survey by the Institute of Directors today revealed that almost four in 10 businesses (38 per cent ) expect to raise prices to offset some or all of the cost of the additional employers’ contributions.Around one in five (19%) said they would “employ fewer people” and 15 per cent said they would cut investment.IoD chief economist Kitty Ussher said: “The forthcoming rise in employers’ National Insurance contributions is of real and genuine concern to business leaders, particularly those running small and medium sized businesses that are the growth engine of our economy.“Our data shows that the tax rise is itself inflationary at a time when prices are already rising fast.“Faced with the forthcoming increase in the cost of employing their teams, many businesses are planning to raise prices to offset the cost and/or rein in on their hiring plans.”The PM’s official spokesman said: “This levy is first and foremost to deal with tackling the massive backlog which we have seen caused by this global pandemic.“It then seeks to address the long-standing problem of fixing our social care system, which unfairly penalises a small minority and of course, it also helps fund a pay rise for NHS staff which the public massively want to see.“So this is the right approach to tackle this long-standing problem.”And education secretary Nadhim Zahawi said the country would not be “doing ourselves any favours” by delaying the rise.Mr Zahawi said the impact of the policy would be reviewed but insisted it remains the “right thing to do” in order to solve the social care crisis and to reduce the NHS backlog caused by the coronavirus pandemic.Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Zahawi said: “It is really important to remember that the highest earners … are paying half of that contribution, and 6.1 million of the lowest earners pay nothing.“So it is as progressive as we can make it to deal with a problem that breaks many an individual in their old age.” More

Dominic Cummings has claimed evidence was being kept from Sue Gray’s investigation into drinks parties at No 10 and Whitehall because staff fear it would be seen by Boris Johnson.The former Downing Street adviser also suggested that the fear meant that further evidence – including photos – will keep leaking after the top civil servant publishes her report.“I know others are very worried about handing things to the Cabinet Office because they know the PM will see everything SG collects,” Mr Cummings said in his latest blog post.He wrote: “This inevitably means that evidence, including photos, is not given to her and instead will keep leaking after her report. To stress, this is a consequence of beliefs about the PM’s integrity, not SG’s.”Urging Conservative MPs to commit to ousting Mr Johnson from office, he added: “Other damaging stories will come out until he is gone.”In a warning to Tory backbenchers, Mr Cummings also tweeted: “Expect the parties story to roll on after report cos photos etc will not be given to the Cabinet Office. MPs must scrap [Mr Johnson] if they want the nightmare to end.”Officials working in No 10 have told The Independent that they have held back information from Ms Gray’s investigation into the partygate scandal due to a “culture of fear” surrounding the probe.Three sources said they have not divulged messages and pictures on their phones after a senior member of staff told them to remove anything which could be damaging following the first party revelations.Mr Cummings also made clear that he was not meeting Sue Gray on Monday as reported, but was submitting evidence to her investigation in writing.The former No 10 strategist claimed that speaking to the investigating civil servant in person would give the prime minister and No 10 the chance to spin his account of events.He wrote on his blog: “When SG (Sue Gray) asked to speak to me I emailed to the effect: if we speak the PM will invent nonsense and spin it to the media and you and I will both have problems, let’s keep everything in writing, therefore he cannot invent things I’ve supposedly said to you, there is only a written record, this makes both our lives easier.The PM’s former adviser added: “She agreed. So I have answered questions in writing and will answer further questions in writing if she wants. But I will not speak and therefore provide the PM with more chances to lie and confuse everybody.”Ms Gray is reportedly set to report back to the prime minister later this week before the findings are made public.The Cabinet Office official has been tasked with investigating allegations about gatherings held in 2020 and 2021 while Covid restrictions were in place – including a “bring your own booze” event at No 10 in May 2020.Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner has said the report “must be published in its entirety with all accompanying evidence”.Mr Cummings said he would be doing a question and answer session on his blog after the report is released. More

Nadhim Zahawi says Islamaphobia claims are ‘very serious’.mp4Boris Johnson has claimed he is taking Islamophobia “extremely seriously” after launching a probe into allegations that a minister lost her job because of her religion. Nusrat Ghani, the Tory MP for Wealden, says a government whip told her in 2020 that she was being fired from her role as junior transport minister due to her “Muslimness”. Mark Spencer, the government’s chief whip, denied the suggestion, branding it “defamatory”. On Sunday, it emerged the PM met Ms Ghani two years ago to discuss what happened and encouraged her to submit a formal complaint to the Conservative Party, but she declined. Insisting Mr Johnson should face a grilling, Lib Dem MP Layla Moran accused the PM of “only acting now [because] the issue has surfaced in the media”.Meanwhile, Tory MPs are keenly awaiting senior civil servant Sue Gray’s report into the partygate scandal, expected this week. Ex-Brexit secretary David Davis told the BBC this morning he would wait “three or four days” after its publication before encouraging the PM to resign. Show latest update

1643035272No movement from No 10 on compulsory vaccines for NHSNo 10 has said there are no plans to change the implementation date for mandatory Covid vaccinations for all NHS frontline workers.Asked whether the PM would bow to pressure to scrap the policy, Boris Johnson’s official spokesman said it remained the case that the government “believes mandatory vaccination is the right approach and there are no plans to change the implementation dates for this policy”.He added: “Health and social care workers look after the most vulnerable people in society who would face serious health consequences if exposed to the virus, and obviously having a vaccination is also a way to ensure fewer staff absences, so a way to further help tackle some of the backlogs we’ve seen caused by staff absences when vaccinations weren’t available.”It comes amid calls from some NHS workers themselves, as well as various Tory MPs, for the move to be reconsidered so health workers don’t lose their jobs. But, stressing the importance of these worker’s lives, the PM’s spokesman said: “We wouldn’t want to see a single member of NHS staff lost because they weren’t willing to get the vaccination that has been proven to be safe around the world.”Sam Hancock24 January 2022 14:411643034504Watch: PM says travel testing to be scrapped for vaccinated UK arrivalsBoris Johnson says all travel testing will be scrapped for vaccinated UK arrivalsSam Hancock24 January 2022 14:281643033661Cabinet’s propriety and ethics team to lead Ghani probeLet’s stick with the Ghani inquiry for now. No 10 has said the Cabinet Office’s propriety and ethics team will carry out the investigation into claims of Islamophobia made by ex-minster Nusrat Ghani.The PM’s official spokesman said the inquiry had been launched “because of the seriousness of these allegations”.He explained: “She did speak to the prime minister back in 2020 and was encouraged to use the process through the Conservative Party.“She’s made clear over the weekend that she felt it was not the right process and in light of that, that’s why we’ve started the Cabinet Office investigation, and obviously the prime minister spoke to her last night.”The spokesman said he was not aware of whether Ms Ghani had made clear in 2020 that she did not think the Conservative Party complaints process was appropriate for her concerns.Sam Hancock24 January 2022 14:141643033268PM distanced from comments made about Ghani by one of his MPsThe PM’s staff has distanced him from remarks made by Tory MP Michael Fabricant on Sunday, regarding Nusrat Ghani’s allegations about why she was fired from a ministerial role.Mr Fabricant, the MP for Lichfield, told LBC Radio over the weekend that Ms Ghani was not somebody who “is obviously a Muslim”, and that it therefore “does seem rather a lame excuse to me that she was sacked because of that”.Asked about the claims on Monday, though, Boris Johnson’s official spokesman said: “The PM would not agree with the idea that someone’s religion determines what someone looks like.”Sam Hancock24 January 2022 14:071643032012Cummings claims Downing St staff keeping evidence from Sue GrayDominic Cummings has claimed evidence was being kept from Sue Gray’s investigation into drinks parties at No 10 and Whitehall because staff fear it would be seen by Boris Johnson.The former Downing Street adviser also suggested that the fear meant that further evidence – including photos – will keep leaking after the top civil servant publishes her report, reports Adam Forrest. In a warning to Tory backbenchers, Mr Cummings also tweeted: “Expect the parties story to roll on after report cos photos etc will not be given to the Cabinet Office. MPs must scrap [Mr Johnson] if they want the nightmare to end.”Sam Hancock24 January 2022 13:461643031830No 10 giving as little info about Ghani inquiry as possibleAs our deputy political editor Rob Merrick reports:Sam Hancock24 January 2022 13:431643030200Watch: PM refuses to discuss chief whip’s future amid Islamophobia claims As I mentioned earlier, the PM has been silent on whether chief whip Mark Spencer could lose his job over claims of Islamophobia within the Conservative party. Here’s the clip from earlier today:Boris Johnson refuses to say if chief whip will keep jobRory Sullivan24 January 2022 13:161643030046Cummings submitted evidence to partygate inquiry ‘in writing’ Boris Johnson’s former adviser Dominic Cummings has refused to meet the partygate investigator Sue Gray in person, saying it is better if their communication is all in writing. Explaining the decision on his blog, Mr Cummings wrote: “When SG (Sue Gray) asked to speak to me I emailed to the effect: if we speak the PM will invent nonsense and spin it to the media and you and I will both have problems, let’s keep everything in writing, therefore he cannot invent things I’ve supposedly said to you, there is only a written record, this makes both our lives easier.“She agreed. So I have answered questions in writing and will answer further questions in writing if she wants.“But I will not speak and therefore provide the PM with more chances to lie and confuse everybody.”His words come as the prime minister continues to face calls to resign over a series of lockdown-breaching parties at Downing Street. Rory Sullivan24 January 2022 13:141643028879National insurance rising going ahead, says PMThe government will go ahead with an unpopular national insurance hike later this year, the prime minister has said.This comes despite opposition from senior Tories like former minister David Davis, who say the proposed1.25 per cent jump will make the cost-of-living crisis worse. On a trip to Milton Keynes, Boris Johnson said the rise was necessary to fund the NHS properly. “What I’m telling people is, if you want to fund our fantastic NHS, we have to pay for it – and this government is determined to do so,” he said. Rory Sullivan24 January 2022 12:541643028288Boris Johnson warns Russia invasion of Ukraine would be ‘painful, violent, bloody business’Invading Ukraine would be a “painful, violent and bloody business” , Boris Johnson has warned Russian president Vladimir Putin. The British prime minister urged the Kremlin, which has amassed more than 100,000 troops along its border with Ukraine, not to attack its neighbour. Mr Johnson said: “The intelligence is very clear that there are 60 Russian battle groups on the borders of Ukraine, the plan for a lightning war that could take out Kyiv is one that everybody can see.“We need to make it very clear to the Kremlin, to Russia, that that would be a disastrous step.”Rory Sullivan24 January 2022 12:44 More

Boris Johnson has refused to say his chief whip Mark Spencer will survive in his job, after No 10 was rocked by the claim that a minister was sacked because of her “Muslimness”.The prime minister ducked the question – as he also declined to answer further questions about the inquiry he has ordered into Nusrat Ghani’s bombshell allegation.Asked about Mr Spencer’s future, Mr Johnson said only: “This is something I take personally extremely seriously….we must wait and see what the investigation produces.”The prime minister also refused to guarantee April’s National Insurance rise will go ahead as planned – amid a Tory revolt – even as his spokesman insisted it would.”What I’m telling people is, if you want to fund our fantastic NHS, we have to pay for it – and this government is determined to do so,” he said, without confirming that would still come from NI.Mr Johnson, interviewed on a hospital visit, tried desperately to turn the conversation to plans to tackle the NHS patient backlog, rather than the twin scandals of Ms Ghani’s allegation and No 10 parties.Earlier, he was forced to order a Cabinet Office inquiry into the former minister’s treatment – almost two years after telling her to pursue a formal complaint with the party instead.Ms Ghani says she told the prime minister at the time that this was “very clearly not appropriate for something that happened on government business”.Labour has attacked the Cabinet Office probe as inadequate – calling for an investigation into whether Mr Spencer breached the ministerial code – while the Liberal Democrats want him to be questioned personally.No terms of reference have been set out, nor a timeline for how the investigation will be carried out and it is unclear whether the conclusions will be published.Mr Johnson, speaking in Milton Keynes, insisted: “We take these allegations extremely seriously, I took them very seriously when they were raised with me 18 months ago.”He said he was “very glad there’s an investigation taking place now,” but claimed: “I can’t say more, really, about it.”Ms Ghani has alleged that, when she was sacked in 2020, Tory whips told her that her “Muslim woman minister status was making colleagues feel uncomfortable”.Mr Spencer has identified himself as the person accused of making the remarks, but said: “These accusations are completely false and I consider them to be defamatory. I have never used those words attributed to me.”The prime minister is also facing a front-on challenge to the National Insurance rise – which he has argued is essential to rescuing the NHS and, in future, the social care crisis.David Davis has joined Robert Jenrick as the second former cabinet minister to call for it to be axed, after Jacob Rees-Mogg mounted a protest from within the cabinet.Mr Johnson was asked repeatedly, on Sky News, to say it would go ahead, but refused, saying only: “Listen to what I’m saying: We’ve got to put that money in. We’ve got to make that investment in our NHS.” More

Boris Johnson has warned Russian president Vladimir Putin that invading Ukraine would lead to a “painful, violent and bloody business”.The prime minister said the intelligence around the situation was “gloomy” but war was not inevitable – urging Russia to pull back from a “disastrous step”.Mr Johnson said Ukraine would “fight” if invaded, comparing the potential combat to the decades-long Chechen–Russian conflict. “It’s very important that people in Russia understand that this could be a new Chechnya.”Speaking to reporters as the Foreign Office pulled some British embassy staff out of Ukraine capital Kyiv, he said: “We do think it prudent to make some changes now.”The prime minister added: “The intelligence is very clear that there are 60 Russian battle groups on the borders of Ukraine, the plan for a lightning war that could take out Kyiv is one that everybody can see.”Mr Johnson added: “We need to make it very clear to the Kremlin, to Russia, that that would be a disastrous step.”Some British embassy staff and their dependants are being pulled out of Kyiv in response to the mounting Russian threat to Ukraine.The Foreign Office confirmed the move after the US ordered the families of all American personnel at the US Embassy to leave the country in response the the risk of an invasion.Russian forces have massed at the border with Ukraine and intense diplomatic activity has failed to ease tensions.The prime minister said he would speak to fellow western leaders later on Monday, and claimed the UK was “leading” on the west’s package of economic sanctions against Russia should they invade.“We need to get over the message that invading Ukraine, from a Russian perspective, is going to painful, violent and bloody business,” Mr Johnson warned.He said: “I’ve been the Ukraine several times, I know the people of that country a bit. My judgement is that they will fight. And really, that is not the way the world should be going. I hope they understand that in the Kremlin.”Mr Johnson added: “But it’s the job of the UK to make sure our friends and partners around the world, particularly in Europe, also understand that, and we get ready a tough enough package of sanctions.”It follows foreign secretary Liz Truss’s accusation that Mr Putin of plotting to install a pro-Moscow leader as head of the Ukrainian government.The Foreign Office took the unusual step of naming former Ukrainian MP Yevhen Murayev as a potential Kremlin candidate to take over in Kyiv – a claim dismissed as provocative “nonsense” by Moscow. More