UK Politics

Senior Conservative Party officials have ordered the party’s North Shropshire by-election candidate not to speak to media amid concerns he knows so little about the area, insiders say.Birmingham barrister Neil Shastri-Hurst has been parachuted in to fight the safe seat after its previous MP Owen Paterson resigned amid a sleaze scandal.But local party members reckon the new man has so little understanding of the rural issues faced in the sprawling agricultural constituency that he has been told to avoid press interviews for fear he will damage his own campaign.He has done almost no media appearances since he was selected as the Tories’ candidate on 13 November. Requests to speak him have been ignored by both Dr Shastri-Hurst himself and Matthew Follows, the party’s regional press officer for the West Midlands.“He’s a nice bloke and will no doubt be a quick learner if he’s elected but it’s embarrassing that a Tory in North Shropshire is essentially hiding away,” one local party member told The Independent.“They’re not letting him speak because they know that any journalist worth their salt would expose his lack of understanding within about three questions.”The revelation comes amid growing consternation among regional Tories that the lawyer was selected in the first place.Mark Whittle, the Conservative deputy mayor of Market Drayton, has quit the party in protest, while campaigners said Dr Shastri-Hurst’s unfamiliarity with the area was being repeatedly brought up on the doorstep by voters feeling taken for granted.Although he has taken part in a number of hustings, some Tories fear his soundbites have appeared too generalised to impress.He is also said to have appeared nervous around animals at a livestock market, while his early campaign calls to reopen the long-closed Gobowen to Oswestry railway line have suggested a fundamental lack of knowledge about the constituency’s geography. The A5 bypass now runs across the old line meaning that reopening the two-mile stretch of line would require a tunnel costing hundreds of millions of pounds.“I took him around Market Drayton a couple of days after he was selected and he knew absolutely zilch about the area,” said Mr Whittle. “In a city, I’m sure he’d be a fine MP but, here in the sticks, as you’d call it, he hasn’t a clue.”Ben Wood, the Labour candidate from Oswestry, said: “If the Conservative Party are trying to impose a candidate with no real local connection, they should at least have the decency not to lock him up for the duration of the campaign. Yet again, this is the Tories taking the people of North Shropshire for granted.”It is not the first time the party has stopped by-election candidates speaking to the media. In both the Hartlepool and Batley and Spen by-elections this year, they used a similar playbook.In Hartlepool, the tactic worked with Jill Mortimer romping to victory. In Batley and Spen, it did not. Despite being expected to take the seat from Labour, Ryan Stephenson lost out to Kim Leadbeater.Dr Shastri-Hurst – a trained surgeon – did not respond to request for comment.Mr Follows called the claims “absolute rubbish” and added: “He is doing multiple election hustings, including one organised by the BBC, and he is out speaking to people in North Shropshire every day.” More

Boris Johnson’s new Covid rules mean shoppers could remove their masks in supermarkets so long as they walk around the store singing.Under the prime minister’s plan B measures compulsory face coverings will be extended to most indoor venues from Friday – including cinemas, theatres and places of worship.Mr Johnson said that there was an exemption for singing, mainly aimed at places of worship where a mask should be worn during the service but could be removed to sing hymns.But government officials confirmed on Thursday this singing exemption would also be applicable to other indoor settings.Asked whether a shopper could remove their mask in Tesco to sing, it was confirmed it would be within the rules – though officials stressed there needed to be a “reasonable excuse”.Downing Street has said it would be “hard to justify” shoppers having a “reasonable excuse” to remove their masks to sing in supermarkets under the new plan B rules.“We were absolutely clear there is a reasonable excuse required for someone who is seeking to do that,” Mr Johnson’s official spokesman said.“Whilst it wouldn’t be for me to say, I think it would be hard to justify. These rules are set to be balanced and proportionate, we’ve seen how the public are responsible … and we’re confident they will continue to be so.”The exemption is another example of how the new measures appear to have some striking idiosyncrasies. Under plan B people are being told to work from home if they can from next week – but Mr Johnson said it was still possible for employees to attend Christmas parties.Some have pointed out that guidance would not stop colleagues gathering at a pub to do their jobs.Officials confirmed there was nothing within the rules to stop colleagues meeting at a pub to work, with the focus being on reducing the transmission risk from the commute and within the workplace.It would be up to employers and employees to decide how to interpret the new guidance. But the advice is that if a worker does not need to go into the office, they should work from home, in order to slow the spread of the omicron variant.The PM’s official spokesman said: “Obviously, we have, sadly, been in this position before and employers and employee … have demonstrated that they’re able to work together and come up with an agreement recognising both business need and also the needs of individuals and personal life circumstances.” More

The Conservative Party has a reputation for ruthlessly disposing of its leaders when they have become surplus to requirements and are no longer viewed as electoral assets: i.e they can’t win a parliamentary majority.Even former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, who is considered one of the party’s greatest-ever leaders, winning three landslide elections in the 70s and 80s, was ousted in 1990 amid concerns over her politically toxic poll tax among other issues.Conversations about Tory succession – and who might lead the troops into the next battle – are constant within the party and have been taking place long before recent scandals sent Boris Johnson’s approval ratings and poll lead tumbling.For the early part of the current prime minister’s tenure in No 10 Downing Street, it was perceived wisdom in Westminster that Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, would be next to ascend the Tory throne.Assured performances by the Richmond and North Yorkshire MP while delivering his first Budget to MPs in the Commons, and the competence he displayed in delivering furlough, eat out to help out and other pandemic schemes, saw Mr Sunak’s popularity surge and the chancellor quickly became the darling of the party’s grassroots.While Mr Sunak’s star has since fallen slightly over recent tax hikes, he is still the favourite of some bookies to become the next occupant of No 10. But who else is in the running?Lizz Truss, who has undergone somewhat of an epiphany over Brexit, has recently seen her approval ratings soar, with a Conservative Home poll published last month ranking her top among cabinet ministers. The survey is viewed as a good barometer of grassroots support and is keenly watched by those in government.Ms Truss’s Twitter feed in 2016 was home to disparaging comments about the Leave campaign’s economic arguments in the run-up to the referendum. “Leave cannot name one country we would get a better trade deal with if we left the EU,” one dated 21 June 2016 says.But a sudden change of heart after the Brexit result, and unwavering support for the PM, saw Ms Truss get promoted to international trade secretary, with one No 10 official saying she “did a brilliant job” in the role and “had been a fantastic representative for the UK around the world.”The free-market Conservative, who talks tough on “woke” Britain, was subsequently promoted to foreign secretary in the PM’s September reshuffle. The 3 November ConHome poll put Ms Truss’s approval rating at +85.6 – more than 10 points higher than second-placed de-facto Brexit minister, Lord Frost.Anne-Marie Trevelyan, the current international trade secretary, and Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, also ranked in the top five of the survey but neither has been strongly linked to the Tory leadership role.Michael Gove, the new levelling up and housing secretary and Jeremy Hunt, the former health secretary and current chair of the Commons health committee, are invariably linked with the top job. Although both are viewed in Tory circles as competent and capable of successfully overseeing a brief, they have had tilts at the leadership and failed.Mr Gove famously stabbed the PM in the back during the 2016 contest, which was subsequently won by Theresa May. He announced his own campaign for the leadership while running Mr Johnson’s operation and was banished to the backbenches by Ms May for his very public act of disloyalty.Reflecting on the move while speaking in the Commons in October this year, Mr Gove described it as “political suicide”. “But as the former member for Kensington and Chelsea Sir Malcolm Rifkind pointed out, one of the things about committing political suicide is that you always live to regret it,” he jokingly added. That betrayal is unlikely to be forgotten in any future contest.Since losing to Mr Johnson in the 2019 contest Mr Hunt has played a smart game, being loyal through the pandemic while also offering constructive criticism. He repeatedly plays down speculation that he could once again throw his hat into the ring but you wouldn’t rule out another run.What do the punters think?”Following the calamitous week that Boris Johnson has had, we have seen plenty of action on the Betfair Exchange’s next prime minister market,” Betfair spokesman Sam Rosbottom tells The Independent.”Rishi Sunak is the 11/4 favourite take over at Number 10 after Johnson, while Liz Truss has been the biggest mover in the market. The foreign secretary has been backed in from 33/1 earlier in the year to 11/2 now.”Betfair says, over the past few days, the odds on Mr Johnson leaving his job by the end of 2021 have shortened from 149/1 to as low as 15/1. Mr Johnson leaving no 10 in 2022 is proving to be a popular choice too, the firm said, with the odds being slashed from 21/1 to 7/5 in the past seven days.Next Conservative leader after Boris JohnsonRishi Sunak 13/5Liz Truss 5/1Michael Gove 15/2Jeremy Hunt 11/1Sajid Javid 19/1Tom Tugendhat 22/1Ben Wallace 23/1Boris Johnson exit date2021 – 17/1 (was 149/1)2022 7/52023 7/22024 8/5 More

Over the past 10 days, Boris Johnson has faced the most hostile set of headlines since becoming prime minister, starting with the Daily Mirror on 1 December: “Boris Party Broke Covid Rules.” The story wouldn’t go away, because the prime minister was unable to provide a satisfactory account of a “gathering for work purposes” in Downing Street on 18 December last year, which sounded very much like a Christmas party, which was against the rules at the time. And then on Tuesday ITV News published a leaked video of a practice news conference on 22 December last year, in which Allegra Stratton, who was then the prime minister’s spokesperson, proved unable to answer questions about a party that had happened four days earlier. At Prime Minister’s Questions in the Commons on Wednesday, Johnson said he shared people’s anger at the video, and apologised for the impression it gave off his staff “seeming to make light of lockdown measures”. He said he had asked Simon Case, the cabinet secretary, to investigate exactly what happened, but he continued to insist that he had been assured that no party had taken place and that any gatherings in Downing Street were within the rules. This was followed by Stratton’s tearful resignation – from her job as spokesperson for Alok Sharma, president of the climate change summit. She had moved to that post after Johnson decided not to go ahead with televised briefings, partly on account of the rehearsal in the leaked video in which she had said in response to the question about a party, “What’s the answer?” Instant opinion polls have shown that the public think that the apparent breach of coronavirus rules a year ago “does matter”, that the prime minister should resign (although a majority is likely to say that at most times), and that their likelihood of voting Conservative has fallen. Meanwhile the prime minister is asking the country to follow new rules designed to slow the spread of the new variant of the virus, although as usual he had to be flanked by Professor Chris Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s scientific advisers, in a tacit admission that people wouldn’t necessarily obey instructions if they came from a politician. If you have a question about the current state of this government, submit it now, or when I join you live at 1pm on Friday 10 December for an “Ask Me Anything” event.To get involved all you have to do is register to submit your question in the comments below.If you’re not already a member, click “sign up” in the comments box to leave your question. Don’t worry if you can’t see your question – they may be hidden until I join the conversation to answer them. Then join us live on this page at 1pm as I tackle as many questions as I can. More

The Conservative party broke electoral laws over the controversial funding of Boris Johnson’s flat refurbishment, the Electoral Commission has ruled.“Our investigation into the Conservative Party found that the laws around the reporting and recording of donations were not followed,” said Louise Edwards, director of regulation – announcing a £17,800 fine.The verdict brings allegations of sleaze against the prime minister back centre-stage, as he is dogged by allegations of misleading the public over last year’s No 10 Christmas parties.For months, Mr Johnson and other ministers refused to confirm that the Tory party, and then a major donor, originally funded the lavish redecoration.An investigation was launched over whether the law was broken through a failure to properly declare that a gift or loan had been received for the works.In its ruling, the Commission makes clear that the Conservatives were negligent in failing to “fully report a donation of £67,801.72 from Huntswood Associates Limited in October 2020”.Its report says the gift included £52,801.72 connected to the costs of refurbishment to 11 Downing Street – but it was “not reported as required” in the party’s quarter 4 2020 donation report.The reference that was made in financial records to the payment of £52,801.72 made by the party for the refurbishment was “not accurate”.It was recorded as a “blind trust loan”, but, the Commission found, was not a loan and the proposed trust to fund the refurbishments had not been formed.In damning comments, Ms Edwards added: “We know that voters have concerns about the transparency of funding of political parties.“Reporting requirements are in place so that the public can see where money is coming from, inaccurate reporting risks undermining trust in the system.“The party’s decisions and actions reflected serious failings in its compliance systems.“As a large and well-resourced political party that employs compliance and finance experts, and that has substantial sums of money going through its accounts, the Conservative Party should have sufficiently robust systems in place to meet its legal reporting requirements.”The ruling increases the likelihood of a potentially hugely-damaging investigation by the parliamentary commissioner for standards into the flat controversy.Earlier this year, Dominic Cummings alleged Mr Johnson’s “plans to have donors secretly pay for the renovation were unethical, foolish, possibly illegal and almost certainly broke the rules on proper disclosure of political donations”.However, he was cleared of breaking the ministerial code by Christopher Geidt, his hand-picked adviser on standards – who concluded he had merely been “unwise”.The government has been widely criticised for failing to beef up the punishments the Commission is able to impose to a recommended maximum fine of £500,000.The limit is £20,00 for an offence. The party has been fined £16,250 for failing to accurately report the donation from Huntswood Associates and a further £1,550 for “contravening the requirement to keep proper accounting records”. More

A Conservative MP has repeatedly refused to say whether he still had confidence in Boris Johnson to lead the country in an awkward interview full of lengthy silences.Chris Green, MP for Bolton West, suggested the prime minister had only imposed plan B restrictions to distract from the furore over last year’s Christmas parties at Downing Street.Asked on BBC Radio Manchester if he still had confidence in Mr Johnson, the red wall Tory MP paused for six second before saying: “I’m very concerned about what the prime minister is doing.”Challenged again over whether he still had confidence in him, Mr Green paused for another five seconds – before saying the government would find it difficult to pass Covid rules in the Commons.Asked once again whether he still had confidence in the PM, the Tory backbencher paused for eight seconds, before admitting: “I think the silence does speak volumes.”The red wall Tory is among dozens of backbenchers to have shared their anger over the return of work from home guidance, Covid passports for venues and extension of mandatory mask-wearing to theatres and cinemas.Mr Green also attacked Mr Johnson over the failure to provide clear answers to festive gatherings held at Downing Street in the run-up to last Christmas while strict curbs on mixing were still in place. “It was almost coincidental in its attempt to remove awkward front-page stories about the prime minister’s house parties,” the MP said – adding that it was “logical conclusion” to assume it was deliberate distraction.“At the dispatch box he said there was no parties,” said Mr Green. “It was very clear there were a series of parties in Downing Street under the prime minister’s nose. So there are a huge number of questions – I think this is pretty perturbing.”Leading Tory backbencher Andrew Mitchell told BBC Politics Live that if Mr Johnson minister was found to have misled parliament over the gatherings “would indeed have to resign” – though he added: “I’m sure Boris would not have allowed himself to be put in that position.”Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said Mr Johnson should resign if he was found to have known about the Christmas party and misled parliament, while former Tory minister Tracey Crouch said she was “fuming” over the festive events at Downing Street.The mounting Tory backlash over new Covid restrictions also saw the chairman of the South Basildon Conservatives resign live on BBC Essex on Thursday.“I’m actually going to leave the party over this – I cannot moral defend a party that I consider to be moving a very tyrannical direction,” said Charlie Sansom.Tory MP William Wragg has accused the PM of using Covid plan B curbs as a “diversionary tactic” from the party scandal, while vice chair of the 1922 Committee Sir Charles Walker said the government was now likely find it “almost impossible” to introduce any new Covid rules due to the saga. More

The Conservative Party has a reputation for ruthlessly disposing of its leaders when they have become surplus to requirements and are no longer viewed as electoral assets: i.e they can’t win a parliamentary majority.Even former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, who is considered one of the party’s greatest-ever leaders, winning three landslide elections in the 70s and 80s, was ousted in 1990 amid concerns over her politically toxic poll tax among other issues.Conversations about Tory succession – and who might lead the troops into the next battle – are constant within the party and have been taking place long before recent scandals sent Boris Johnson’s approval ratings and poll lead tumbling.For the early part of the current prime minister’s tenure in No 10 Downing Street, it was perceived wisdom in Westminster that Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, would be next to ascend the Tory throne.Assured performances by the Richmond and North Yorkshire MP while delivering his first Budget to MPs in the Commons, and the competence he displayed in delivering furlough, eat out to help out and other pandemic schemes, saw Mr Sunak’s popularity surge and the chancellor quickly became the darling of the party’s grassroots.But while Mr Sunak’s star has since fallen slightly over recent tax hikes, he is still the favourite of some bookies to become the next occupant of No 10. But who else is in the running?Lizz Truss, who has undergone somewhat of an epiphany over Brexit, has recently seen her approval ratings soar, with a Conservative Home poll published last month ranking her top among cabinet ministers. The survey is viewed as a good barometer of grassroots support and is keenly watched by those in government.Ms Truss’s Twitter feed in 2016 was home to disparaging comments about the Leave campaign’s economic arguments in the run-up to the referendum. “Leave cannot name one country we would get a better trade deal with if we left the EU,” one dated 21 June 2016 says.But a sudden change of heart after the Brexit result, and unwavering support for the PM, saw Ms Truss get promoted to international trade secretary, with one No 10 official saying she “did a brilliant job” in the role and “had been a fantastic representative for the UK around the world.”The free-market Conservative, who talks tough on “woke” Britain, was subsequently promoted to foreign secretary in the PM’s September reshuffle. The 3 November ConHome poll put Ms Truss’s approval rating at +85.6 – more than 10 points higher than second-placed de-facto Brexit minister, Lord Frost.Anne-Marie Trevelyan, the current international trade secretary, and Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, also ranked in the top five of the survey but neither has been strongly linked to the Tory leadership role.Michael Gove, the new levelling up and housing secretary and Jeremy Hunt, the former health secretary and current chair of the Commons health committee, are invariably linked with the top job. But while both are viewed in Tory circles as competent and capable of successfully overseeing a brief, they have had tilts at the leadership and failed.Mr Gove famously stabbed the PM in the back during the 2016 contest, which was subsequently won by Theresa May. He announced his own campaign for the leadership while running Mr Johnson’s operation and was banished to the backbenches by Ms May for his very public act of disloyalty.Speaking in the Commons in October this year and reflecting on the move, Mr Gove described it as “political suicide”. “But as the former member for Kensington and Chelsea Sir Malcolm Rifkind pointed out, one of the things about committing political suicide is that you always live to regret it,” he said. That betrayal is unlikely to be forgotten in any future contest.Since losing to Mr Johnson in the 2019 contest Mr Hunt has played a smart game, being loyal through the pandemic while also offering constructive criticism. He repeatedly plays down speculation that he could once again throw his hat into the ring but you wouldn’t rule out another run.What do the punters think?”Following the calamitous week that Boris Johnson has had, we have seen plenty of action on the Betfair Exchange’s next prime minister market,” Betfair spokesman Sam Rosbottom tells The Independent.”Rishi Sunak is the 11/4 favourite take over at Number 10 after Johnson, while Liz Truss has been the biggest mover in the market. The foreign secretary has been backed in from 33/1 earlier in the year to 11/2 now.”Betfair says, over the past few days, the odds on Mr Johnson leaving his job by the end of 2021 have shortened from 149/1 to as low as 15/1. Mr Johnson leaving no 10 in 2022 is proving to be a popular choice too, the firm said, with the odds being slashed from 21/1 to 7/5 in the past seven days.Next Conservative leader after Boris JohnsonRishi Sunak 13/5Liz Truss 5/1Michael Gove 15/2Jeremy Hunt 11/1Sajid Javid 19/1Tom Tugendhat 22/1Ben Wallace 23/1Boris Johnson exit date2021 – 17/1 (was 149/1)2022 7/52023 7/22024 8/5 More

Prime minister Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie have announced the birth of “a healthy baby girl” at a London hospital early on Thursday.In a statement, a spokesperson for the couple said: “The prime minister and Mrs Johnson are delighted to announce the birth of a healthy baby girl at a London hospital earlier today.“Both mother and daughter are doing very well. The couple would like to thank the brilliant NHS maternity team for all their care and support.”The baby is the couple’s second child together, following the birth of Wilfred – now 19 months old – in April 2020.Downing Street said that Mr Johnson will “take some time to be with his family” over the coming days and weeks, but will balance this with his responsibilities as prime minster, so will not be staying away from work entirely as would normally be expected during paternity leave.Carrie has referred to her as her “rainbow baby” – a term used to describe a child born after a miscarriage, stillbirth or neo-natal death.In a post on Instagram in July, four months into her pregnancy, she said: “At the beginning of the year, I had a miscarriage which left me heartbroken.“I feel incredibly blessed to be pregnant again but I’ve also felt like a bag of nerves.“Fertility issues can be really hard for many people, particularly when on platforms like Instagram it can look like everything is only ever going well.“I found it a real comfort to hear from people who had also experienced loss so I hope that in some very small way sharing this might help others too.”Carrie, 33, is the 57-year-old PM’s third wife, after the couple married in May this year at a secret ceremony at Westminster Cathedral.Mr Johnson has four adult children – Lara, Milo, Cassia and Theodore – with his second wife Marina Wheeler, as well as a daughter resulting from an affair with arts consultant Helen MacIntyre.There has long been speculation about another child, as Mr Johnson consistently refused to reveal the total number of his offspring.But in a TV interview during a visit to the US in May this year, he said that he had six children – now increased to seven with today’s birth.The PM claimed then to be a hands-on father and said he was “changing a lot of nappies”.Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer was one of the first to congratulate the couple, tweeting: “Congratulations to Carrie and Boris Johnson on the birth of their daughter. Wishing your family health and happiness.” More