UK Politics

A group of migrants huddles beside a small, smoky fire inside an abandoned building in northern Serbia, the last moments of warmth before they set out into the driving snow toward the razor wire, cameras and sensors of Hungary s electrified border fence.A few hours later, they return, their efforts to cross through Hungary and toward Western Europe thwarted by the three-meter (10-foot) fence and heavy Hungarian police patrols which, after intercepting them, escorted them back across the border into Serbia. “I’m going to Austria I’m going to Germany I’m going to the Netherlands,” says Muhtar Ahmad, a 26-year-old from Aleppo, Syria, who is squatting with around 35 other migrants in the makeshift camp outside the Serbian village of Majdan, a mile (less than two kilometers) from the Hungarian border.“I’m not staying in Hungary. What’s the problem?”As migrants from Syria, Afghanistan and other countries embark on the last stretch of their long journeys toward Europe’s wealthier nations, their efforts to cross irregularly into the European Union through Hungary — and the country’s contentious practice of returning them to Serbia when they are caught — have made them part of a political campaign with which Hungary’s nationalist leader hopes to win an upcoming general election.Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who polls suggest will face his closest election in more than a decade in April, is campaigning on a strict anti-immigration platform and is keen to use the prospect of a wave of migrants amassing at Hungary’s border as a means to mobilize his conservative voter base.“Just this year we stopped and detained … more than 100,000 people,” Orban claimed at a rare appearance before journalists in December. “If the Hungarian fence had not stood there, more than 100,000 more illegal migrants would be now first in Austria, then in Germany.”One of the most outspoken opponents of immigration in Europe, Orban has said that migration threatens to replace the continent’s Christian culture, and that illegal migrants are responsible for bringing infections like COVID-19 variants into his country.”We do not want to be an immigrant country,” Orban said during an interview with state radio this week.As the April 3 election approaches, he has portrayed current migration pressures as higher than in 2015, when hundreds of thousands of refugees came into the EU fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and elsewhere, and when he ordered the construction of the country’s border barrier.But figures released by Serbian officials and the EU’s border and coast guard agency suggest that far fewer individuals are attempting to enter Hungary than the right-wing leader claims.“It’s a little bit bigger number than, let’s say, two years ago, but these are not big numbers. It’s a small rise,” said Nemanja Matejic, chief officer at a migrant reception center in the northern Serbian city of Subotica, of the current level of migrants along Hungary’s border. While Hungarian police put the number of migrants intercepted by Hungarian authorities at more than 122,000, data from EU border agency Frontex showed that there were 60,540 illegal border crossing attempts last year on the Western Balkan migration route, which includes the Hungary-Serbia border. What’s more, since most migrants are making repeated attempts to cross, the number of individuals involved is far smaller still.Serbia’s Commissariat for Refugees and Migration reports that there are 4,276 migrants residing in reception centers in Serbia and another 1,000 sleeping rough. Frontex has noted that the majority of Western Balkan crossings “can be traced back to people who have been in the region for some time and who repeatedly try to reach their target country in the EU.” Hikmad Serat, 20, from Nangarhar province, Afghanistan, took shelter in a remote abandoned building near the Serbian border town of Horgos this month as a cold snap brought temperatures to -10 C (14 F.)Serat said he has been in Serbia for 15 months, and has lost count of the number of times he has crossed into Hungary and been returned by police. “Many times I try, 100 times, more than 100 times … Every time, police arrest me and deport back to Serbia,” Serat said. This practice — where police deny migrants the right to apply for asylum and escort them back across national borders — is known as a “pushback.” It has been declared unlawful by the EU’s top court, and is in violation of international asylum treaties.Matejic, the chief of the reception center, said that migrants making dozens of crossing attempts is “typical.”“Sometimes a guy tries one time and goes, he has luck … Sometimes they try over 50 times … They try and try again,” he said. Many migrants have reported abuse by police after they leave Serbian territory for Hungary, or for Croatia or Romania. This includes having mobile phones destroyed or stolen, being made to sit or kneel in the snow for hours and receiving beatings — allegations which are very difficult to independently confirm.Romanian police didn’t respond to questions from The Associated Press. But Hungary’s National Police Headquarters wrote in an email that they “strongly reject unsubstantiated allegations” of abuse of migrants. Yet Matejic said 150 cases of broken limbs were recorded by the Subotica reception center in 2019.“Sometimes they break their phones, the police. Sometimes they take their money. Sometimes they break their legs. It’s a different experience for everybody,” Matejic said. Orban has asked the EU to reimburse Hungary for at least half of the costs related to building, maintaining and patrolling its border fence, which he has said have amounted to 590 billion Hungarian forints ($1.9 billion) over the past six years. Ever at odds with the EU’s more liberal member states, he has also threatened to “open up a corridor along which migrants can march up to Austria, Germany and Sweden and whoever needs them.” Despite the dangers, Faris al-Ibrahimi, a Moroccan migrant in the Subotica reception center who intends to travel on to Spain, said he was undeterred after being pushed back 27 times by Hungarian police. “I’m still going to try. I will not give up now … I will try until I succeed,” he said. “It’s an adventure. We cross, we go, they catch us, we come back, we go again. It’s like a game for us.”___Follow AP’s global migration coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/migration More

A Tory MP has claimed she was told her Muslim faith was “making colleagues feel uncomfortable” after asking why she was sacked as a minister. Nusrat Ghani told The Sunday Times she asked a party whip about the decision and was told her religion was discussed at a Downing Street meeting. The former transport minister also said she was told there were concerns she was not doing enough to defend the Tories against allegations of Islamaphobia. It comes as the conduct of whips is under intense scrutiny over accusations of intimidation and blackmail.Earlier this week, a Tory MP claimed colleagues were receiving threats to “withdraw investments”, while an MP who defected to Labour claimed plans for a new school in his constituency had been threatened if he voted against the government.Ms Ghani said she spoke to party whips after losing her ministerial role in February 2020 and “asked what the thinking was behind the decision to fire me and what the mood music was when my name was mentioned in No 10 concerning the reshuffle”. She said: “I was told that at the reshuffle meeting in Downing Street that ‘Muslimness’ was raised as an ‘issue’, that my ‘Muslim woman minister’ status was making colleagues uncomfortable and that there were concerns ‘that I wasn’t loyal to the party as I didn’t do enough to defend the party against Islamophobia allegations’.”She told the newspaper it was like “being punched in the stomach” and made her feel “humiliated and powerless”. Her claims brought immediate condemnation from Conservative MPs and opposition parties alike, with demands for an inquiry.The situation escalated further on Saturday evening, when chief whip Mark Spencer said that he was the individual who spoke to Ms Ghani, although he strongly denied using the words claimed.“To ensure other Whips are not drawn into this matter, I am identifying myself as the person Nusrat Ghani MP has made claims about this evening,” he said in a statement posted on Twitter.“These accusations are completely false and I consider them to be defamatory. I have never used those words attributed to me.”Anneliese Dodds, the chair of the Labour party, said the claims were “extremely serious” and called for an urgent investigation into what happened. “This is just the latest allegation in a long list of appalling behaviour at the centre of government that the prime minister appears willing to overlook,” she said. William Wragg, the Tory MP who accused ministers of threatening colleagues considering trying to oust Boris Johnson earlier this week, called Ms Ghani “very brave to speak out”. Meanwhile, Tory minister Nadhim Zahawi said there was “no place for Islamaphobia or any form of racism” in the Conservative party after his colleague’s allegations. “This has to be investigated properly and racism routed out,” he said.A spokesperson for the Tory whips’ office called Ms Ghani’s allegations “categorically untrue”. “Ministerial roles are appointed on merit and rewards for hard work,” they said. “The Conservative party does not tolerate any form of racism or discrimination.”Earlier this year, a report on Islamaphobia in the Conservative party rejected claims of institutional racism.However, it was critical of the Tories’ complaints process. It also found the party recorded more than 1,400 complaints over 727 incidents of alleged discrimination between 2015 and 2020, with two thirds of these concerning anti-Muslim discrimination.The Conservative party and the Cabinet Office have been approached for comment by The Independent. More

An inquiry into allegations of parties at Downing Street may have unearthed details of at least one gathering in the prime minister’s flat, according to reports. Sue Gray, the senior civil servant conducting the investigation, is reported to have received evidence of visits involving close friends of Carrie Johnson during lockdown. Her inquiry is expected to be released this week. There are allegations that a number of parties were held in No 10 while Covid restrictions were in place, including two events on the evening before Prince Philip’s funeral. However, the inquiry has now been widened to look into socialising at the prime minister’s Downing Street flat, the Sunday Times reported. Ms Gray has discovered evidence that Ms Johnson welcomed two friends – both civil servants but not working at No 10 at the time – into her residence on several occasions during lockdown, according to the newspaper.The visits were reportedly explained as being work-related. Meanwhile, The Observer similarly reported that Ms Gray may have discovered details of another gathering at No 10, with rumours, it claimed, circulating in government this may have involved the PM’s flat and friends of his wife. The newspaper also reported that Ms Gray, who is investigating at least nine Downing Street gatherings, has been granted access to security data showing staff movements in and out of the building – including information from swipecards. On Saturday, Labour called on the prime minister to ensure the Partygate report is “published in its entirety”. It came after reports suggested some evidence – such as communications – could be withheld. No 10 has been approached for comment by The Independent. More

There’s a gaping hole in British politics, says Tony Blair. And, fresh from being handed a knighthood, he’s keen to fill it. Fifteen years since leaving No 10, the former prime minister has a fresh fire in his belly about frontline British politics – and is looking to the next election.To do so, he’s looking to wield his influence on his former party and beyond.But as Westminster and Fleet Street follow each twist and turn of the Partygate scandal engulfing Boris Johnson’s government, it is not the moral vacuum he wants to address, but the dearth of policies that are fit for the future.Partygate may have forced a shift in politics – “I think the country is genuinely dismayed” – but in the outcry lie the seeds of something much bigger, and more important. There’s no stopping it for the Tories, or Labour, “whatever happens to Boris Johnson or whatever the outcome of inquiries into the party business”. More

The Labour Party must capitalise on the defection of a red wall Tory MP by laying claim to the centre ground, Sir Tony Blair has told The Independent.Christian Wakeford, the MP for Bury South, crossed the floor this week, adding to Boris Johnson’s woes as he remains mired in the Partygate scandal.The former prime minister said the moment had a “bigger significance” than the Partygate row and Sir Keir Starmer should use the moment to win over those who voted Conservative in 2019.He said: “It does show that there’s a group of people who maybe backed the Tories for the first time who are having second thoughts.“At the minimum, you’re trying to persuade people who voted for Boris Johnson to vote for you. Right? There’s no point in treating them as if they’re dyed-in-the-wool members of the left because they’re obviously not. “Their single biggest worry about Labour will always be, ‘How safe is it for us to switch?’ That doesn’t mean to say they don’t want big change, but they want change where they know in advance what they’re getting, and what they’re not getting.”Labour has opened up a double-digit lead in the polls in recent weeks, and is 11 points ahead in red wall seats. On joining Labour, Mr Wakeford – who had a 402-vote majority when he took Bury South for the Conservatives – said that Labour was ready to be a government “this country can be proud of, and not embarrassed by”.Sir Keir said Mr Wakeford would receive a “warm welcome” from his new party, though there was criticism of the new arrival from the left – including from a Labour MSP – over his voting record as a Tory.Sir Tony said that Labour was now a “much more acceptable proposition” since Sir Keir took over from Jeremy Corbyn, adding that the party had “turned a corner” at September’s party conference by moving to the centre. “I think the far left suffered a major defeat, really,” he said.In a speech this week on the long-term challenges facing Britain he said that without a plan Britain faced a return to the decline of the 1970s.He said Labour must focus on filling two large policy gaps – technology and climate – to win voters over at the ballot box for the first time since his final election campaign. He said: “It depends on having the ability to say to them we understand the future and we’re going to make it work for you. “Make sure we can get through this climate transition in a way that’s good for you, that doesn’t harm you. Because if you’re in your thirties now you’ll be in your forties soon, and raising a family. And we’re going to create a successful economy because we understand the strengths of the country. “We understand that technology is changing everything and we’re going to harness it. So we’re going to make you more prosperous, better off, better paid jobs, because we get the future, and the other side don’t.” More

Labour has vowed to fix the “broken system” which has allowed water companies to cut the sums spent on keeping rivers clean from raw sewage while paying out huge dividends to shareholders.Households in England have paid out up to £138 a year over the past decade to cover the cost of dividends at the country’s biggest water providers, according to Labour analysis of the firms’ financial figures.Sir Keir Starmer’s party also highlighted research showing that the firms cut investment in the wastewater and sewage network by more than £520m since the 1990s.Jim McMahon, shadow environment secretary, told The Independent: “The system is clearly broken and the government is refusing to listen to Labour’s calls for higher fines for water companies … as well as a proper plan for reducing raw sewage being discharged.”The Labour MP added: “Labour’s contract with the British people for prosperity, security and respect will see an end to sewage dumping to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas.”It comes as outrage builds over river pollution – after it emerged this week that more than two billion litres of raw sewage was dumped in the River Thames over a two-day period.Thames Water admitted that an “unacceptable” amount of sewage had flowed into the river from its Mogden wastewater treatment works during a 48-hour period in October 2020.Investment in the wastewater and sewage network among the biggest operators in England and Wales has been cut from £2.9bn a year in the 1990s to £2.4bn, according to recently published figures.The data on critical investment came from regulator Ofwat, obtained through freedom of information requests by the Windrush Against Sewage Pollution group.Anti-pollution campaigners claim that companies have been using the illegal dumping of untreated sewage as a way of avoiding proper investment in their networks.Water companies were responsible for nearly 400,000 sewage dumping events in 2020 alone, according to the Environment Agency.Labour pointed to research from the University of Greenwich which shows almost £19bn was paid out in dividends to shareholders in the nine major water companies operating in England between 2010 and 2021.The study found that the dividends increased the cost to consumers by between £32 and £138 a year during the period, depending on the company.However, Water UK, the representative body for the water companies, said the University of Greenwich report “builds on work that has previously been discredited, with water companies’ accounts misread, and the dividend numbers quoted for some companies simply wrong, and massively overstated”.Labour called for tougher laws, fines and greater parliamentary scrutiny of what the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Ofwat and the Environment Agency are doing to address the sewage problem.“A Labour government will toughen up laws on polluting by reviewing legislation on enforcement and sanction, introducing penalties for under-reporting of incidents,” Mr McMahon wrote in an article for The Independent.“Labour is committed to holding water bosses to account, putting in place clear legal requirements to reduce raw sewage discharging into our land, rivers and coastline, and we will ensure the hard-earned money paid to water companies is directed to investment in our creaking network.”Water UK said bills have, in real terms, remained around the same level for more than a decade “and have actually fallen in both the last two years”.A spokesperson added: “However, we recognise the need for accelerated investment in our sector, which is why we are pushing the government to instruct the regulator, Ofwat, to authorise schemes that meet government’s environment targets, including ending all ecological harm from overflows, ensuring resilient water supplies, and meeting our ambitious 2030 net zero target.”A Defra spokesperson said the government “won’t hesitate to take enforcement action against water companies failing to reduce pollution”, adding: “We have also been repeatedly clear that we want to see water companies spending far more on better infrastructure, and far less on payouts.” More

A majority of voters believe MPs who switch allegiances and join a different political party should resign their seat and contest a by-election, according to a new survey.The finding comes just days after the former Conservative MP Christian Wakeford defected to Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party and called on Boris Johnson to resign in dramatic scenes moments before prime minister’s questions.In a scathing assessment of Mr Johnson’s leadership, the Bury South MP, who was elected in 2019, lashed out the “disgraceful” conduct of his former party over allegations of Covid rule-busting parties in No 10.Immediately after his defection, however, it was highlighted that Mr Wakeford had previously pledged his support for a backbench bill, which called for any MP who switched parties to face a recall petition.Labour has since resisted calls from Tory cabinet ministers and left-wing member in their own ranks to hold a by-election, with the shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves instead saying she would welcome a general election.But the online survey by YouGov found 63 per cent of those asked believed an MP should fight a by-election if they switch to another party. Just 17 per cent said they should continue to serve their term until the next general election and over 20 per cent of the 5,505 of respondents replied “don’t know”.Bury South, a parliamentary constituency that has elected Labour MPs since 1997, was one of many seats that switched to the Conservatives at the 2019 general election when Mr Johnson won the biggest Tory majority in decades.Since the defection of Mr Wakeford, who won the seat two years ago with a slim majority of just over 400 votes, Tory activists and MPs have already begun canvassing. The leader of the local Conservative party posted on social media at the weekend: “The campaign to return a Conservative MP for Bury South has started.”Earlier this week the left-wing group Momentum — set up during Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party — highlighted Mr Wakeford’s voting record and insisted he should be “booted out” of the party and a by-election be called immediately.The former shadow chancellor John McDonnell told The Independent he had “always held the view that when a person elected on one party ticket changes party that person has a democratic responsibility to go back to the people who elected him or her”.The senior Labour MP also described the defection of Mr Wakeford — just over 10 minutes before prime minister’s questions — as a “political stunt” on Times Radio and raised questions over his previous votes in Parliament.“Looking at some of his past statements and his voting record, to be honest I don’t see him as a Labour MP and I was brought up a Roman Catholic, so I’m a great believe in the power of conversion, but on this one it strained even my belief in the conversion,” he added.But speaking on Thursday, the Labour frontbencher Ms Reeves said she did not think there needed to be a by-election in Bury South, adding: “You’ll remember in the last Parliament many Labour MPs left the Labour Party, some of them joined other parties, some of them created their own parties. I didn’t call then for there to be by-elections and I won’t call for a by-election now.”“I would say to the government, if you want a by-election in Bury South, let’s have a by-election in every constituency, it’s called a general election, and let’s see what the country think about the direction the Tories are taking this country in,” the shadow chancellor added. More

A British politician who accuses the government of blackmailing opponents of Prime Minister Boris Johnson says he will take his allegations to the police.William Wragg, a lawmaker from the governing Conservative Party said legislators calling for a challenge to Johnson’s leadership have faced “intimidation” that amounted to “blackmail.” He alleged that rebellious lawmakers had been threatened with a loss of public funding for their constituencies and had had embarrassing stories about them leaked to the press.Johnson has said he’s “seen no evidence” to support Wragg’s claims.Wragg told Saturday’s Daily Telegraph newspaper that he would meet police early next week to discuss his claims of bullying and intimidation.“I stand by what I have said. No amount of gaslighting will change that,” he told the newspaper.London’s Metropolitan Police force said that “should a criminal offense be reported … it would be considered.”The prime minister is facing a political crisis over allegations that he and staff held lockdown-flouting parties while Britain was under coronavirus restrictions.A handful of Conservative lawmakers, including Wragg, have called for him to resign, while others are awaiting a report by Sue Gray, a senior civil servant appointed to investigate the “partygate” claims. Her findings are expected to be published next week.Wragg’s allegations have cast a light on the shadowy world of whips — lawmakers tasked with maintaining party discipline and ensuring their colleagues back the government in key votes.They use subtle and not-so-subtle pressure, and have sometimes been accused of crossing a line and using threats.Christian Wakeford a lawmaker who defected from the Conservatives to the opposition Labour Party on Wednesday, said he was told he would not get a new high school for his constituency “if I did not vote in one particular way.”Other Conservative lawmakers said they had never been threatened by whips.Labour lawmaker Chris Bryant, who heads the House of Commons standards committee, said the claims were reminiscent of U.S.-style “pork barrel politics,” and should not become part of the British system.“We are meant to operate as MPs without fear or favor,” he said. “The allocation of taxpayer funding to constituencies should be according to need, not according to the need to keep the prime minister in his job.” More