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      ‘I fled Africa to safety in the UK – Starmer’s migrant crackdown means I could be sent back’

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      A refugee who escaped political persecution in Africa to safety in the UK fears he could be sent back to his home country under Labour’s new migrant crackdown.Shams Moussa has described controversial plans to reform the asylum system, which could see refugees returned to their home nation if they are later deemed safe, as “deeply worrying”. The 48-year-old, who met King Charles at a humanitarian reception at Buckingham Palace two years ago, has also accused Labour politicians of “scapegoating migrants” while failing to take responsibility for asylum claims.On Monday, home secretary Shabana Mahmood unveiled her proposed overhaul of the asylum system, claiming that the UK’s generosity had made it an attractive destination for those seeking sanctuary compared to other European nations. Describing the current system as “out of control”, she said she planned to reduce the number of people arriving illegally in Britain and ramp up removals of those with no right to be in the UK. The proposals, which have faced backlash from some Labour figures, include cutting the time refugees are initially granted to stay in the UK, from five years to 30 months, which could only be renewed if it is not safe for them to return to their home country. Refugees would also have to spend 20 years in the UK before being allowed to apply for settled status, up from five years. Shams Moussa with his invitation to meet King Charles at Buckingham Palace in 2023 – he said Charles sympathised with his situation More

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      MP opens up on ‘dark cloud’ after almost losing wife in candid mental health admission

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      If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offer support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.Luke Charters, Labour MP for York Outer, made a candid mental health admission during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) to mark International Men’s Day.Speaking about his own challenges in the House of Commons on Wednesday (19 November), Mr Charters opened up on a “dark cloud” settling over him after almost losing his wife during the birth of his first child.Thanking him for his honesty, Sir Keir Starmer highlighted his government’s new men’s health strategy “to tackle challenges that disproportionately affect men”. More

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      Why interest rates are likely to be cut after the Budget

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      The small drop in the inflation rate – from 3.8 per cent to 3.6 per cent – announced on Wednesday morning is the latest indication that a fourth interest rate cut of the year is expected before the end of 2025.The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee voted to hold rates at 4 per cent at the start of November, but there is one final vote to come in 2025 – on 18 December.While the BoE governor Andrew Bailey spoke of wanting to see more data before committing to further cuts, the confirmation that inflation has eased slightly is the latest, and biggest, indicator that a rates cut is required to get the economy moving once more.There is one more major event on the horizon before the vote: Rachel Reeves’ Budget. But expectations are for this to be similarly disinflationary, meaning a rates cut appears almost a certainty.Data showing a stagnant economyAfter two months at 3.8 per cent – September’s data was lower than the 4 per cent expected – we’ve now seen inflation drop back to the level last seen in June, confirming analysts’ expectations that inflation has peaked. One slight concern will be over food prices, which are rising again after a one-month drop. The Food and Drink Federation noted that “manufacturers are paying nearly 40 per cent more for ingredients and energy than they were in January 2020”, explaining the huge uptick in prices. But the wider inflationary picture points to a rates cut.It’s not just inflation that the BoE look to though, and elsewhere the signs also show that a kickstart is needed.The housing market has been far from firing on all cylinders, with many industry experts noting that buyers and sellers alike are holding off for more certainty around any tax implications, given the past few months has seen everything from reports over a Mansion Tax to the Conservatives claiming they would eliminate stamp duty altogether – a move backed by Kirstie Allsopp.More recently, economic data showed the UK’s GDP growth slowing to just 0.1 per cent across the past three months, with production output in particular dropping.Factor in job vacancies falling to the lowest level of the year and the rate of unemployment hitting 5 per cent for the first time since Covid and it’s clear that businesses are no longer investing to the levels required, just as much as people are not moving or spending as much as needed.Get a free fractional share worth up to £100.Capital at risk.Terms and conditions apply.Go to websiteADVERTISEMENTGet a free fractional share worth up to £100.Capital at risk.Terms and conditions apply.Go to websiteADVERTISEMENTBudget details are keyGiven the factors highlighted above, it would have been unsurprising had the BoE pre-empted some of that most recent data by cutting rates on 6 November. Indeed, they almost did – the vote was split 6-5, with governor Bailey casting the deciding vote to stick rather than twist.Perhaps the biggest reason behind that apparent caution was the Budget, and the lack of clarity over what to expect.That said, tax rises on individuals and more costs for businesses are generally disinflationary.“The upcoming Budget is likely to involve measures specifically designed to push down on inflation in things like energy prices, while the overall degree of fiscal consolidation is also likely to weigh on growth and inflation in the medium term,” explained Luke Bartholomew, an economist at Aberdeen.As noted though, it’s not totally clear what’s coming and any surprises could still have the opposite effect.( More

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      Defence secretary’s three-word warning to Putin after lasers directed at RAF pilots

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      Defence secretary John Healey issued a stern warning to Vladimir Putin, after he said the Russian spy ship Yantar, operating on the edge of UK waters, directed lasers at pilots of surveillance RAF aircraft monitoring its activities.Mr Healey told a press conference on Wednesday (19 November) that the ship, designed for gathering intelligence and mapping crucial undersea cables, is loitering off the northern coast of Scotland, having entered wider UK waters over the last few weeks. A Royal Navy frigate and RAF P-8 planes were deployed to monitor and track the vessel, during which the Yantar directed lasers at RAF pilots, he added.In a message to the Russian leader, Mr Healey said: “We see you. We know what you are doing.” More

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      Reform UK leader Nigel Farage showed racist and antisemitic behaviour at school, claim ex-pupils

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      People who were at school with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage claim he displayed offensive behaviour as a boy, including giving Nazi salutes and making racial slurs.The Clacton MP, who could potentially be the UK’s next prime minister, as his party leads in opinion polls, emphatically denies allegations in The Guardian that he used racist or antisemitic insults as a teenager.He suggested that the paper was attempting to smear Reform. One former contemporary at Dulwich College in south London told The Guardian he felt humiliated by the antisemitic words of a 13-year-old Mr Farage, who allegedly also urged pupils of overseas heritage to “go home”.Peter Ettedgui, now an award-winning director and producer, told the paper: “He would sidle up to me and growl: ‘Hitler was right,’ or ‘Gas them,’ sometimes adding a long hiss to simulate the sound of the gas showers.” The Clacton MP denies allegations in The Guardian that he used racist or antisemitic insults as a teenager More

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      Watch live: Starmer faces final pre-Budget PMQs after inflation falls

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      Sir Keir Starmer is set to face his final Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) opposite Kemi Badenoch ahead of Labour’s highly anticipated Budget next week.It comes as inflation fell to 3.6 per cent in October, in a boost to Rachel Reeves.The chancellor has vowed to cut the cost of living before she delivers her autumn Budget on 26 November. “It’s welcome that inflation has fallen… But I recognise that inflation, the cost of living, is still a big burden on families right across the country,” she noted.“And that’s why in the Budget next week, I’ll be taking targeted action to bring down inflation to address the cost of living”, she added.The PM and the chancellor have faced fierce scrutiny ahead of the Budget, with a raft of tax rises expected.Ms Reeves has been urged to tax the rich; she is widely expected to raise taxes to fill a multibillion-pound gap in her spending plans, but is reported to have ruled out a manifesto-busting income tax hike.Opposition politicians, think tanks and campaign groups have urged Ms Reeves to focus her plans on the wealthiest instead of pursuing broad-based tax rises.Green Party leader Zack Polanski said Ms Reeves’ statement “must be a cost-of-living Budget to slash people’s bills and make our country affordable again”.In a letter to the Chancellor, Mr Polanski and other leading Greens called for a wealth tax along with changes to capital gains tax to bring it in line with income tax. More

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      Mapped: Where mansion tax could hit as Reeves looks at raising council tax rates

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      Labour’s autumn Budget is fast approaching, with dozens of potential measures floated in the build up to the major fiscal event.Chancellor Rachel Reeves may need to identify at least £22bn in new funds at the event as weak growth forecasts limit the government’s financial flexibility the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) recently found.Economists have scrutinised how property is taxed as Ms Reeves considers her options for 26 November, with many pointing to ways more revenue could be raised from people’s homes. Ministers have insisted that any tax rises should be focused on those with the most wealth, as living standards in the UK continue to drop.One of the ways Treasury is understood to be looking to achieve this is through a new levy on high-value properties, which some have called a ‘mansion tax’.Different versions of how the tax could work have been floated, both with the potential to raise considerable sums for the exchequer.Most recently, the chancellor is understood to be considering a major overhaul to the council tax system, which would concentrate on higher-value homes.This would see all 2.4 million properties in the highest tax bands in England undergo revaluation, and an increase to the rate of the 310,000 most expensive properties (valued at over £1.5 million).The plan would raise around £600 million a year, per The Times, and result in a bill of an extra £2,000 a year for high-value home owners.David Fell from the estate agency Hamptons said: “I think the government is saying that the current council tax bandings are going to be used as a guide, but they are not enough on their own to value homes accurately. It sounds like it is looking to revalue about 2.4 million homes, with a new levy imposed on about 300,000 worth £1.5 million or more.”However, a simpler proposal also thought to be under consideration is to introduce a levy on owners of properties worth at least £2 million, with an annual charge of one per cent of the amount over that threshold. This would mean a £10,000 yearly fee for homeowners with a property worth £3 million, for instance.There are around 150,000 homes that fall into this price range, according to data from estate agent Knight Frank, the vast majority falling within London and the South East.Tom Bill, head of UK residential research at Knight Frank, said: “Thirteen years since the Liberal Democrats first proposed a Mansion Tax on properties over £2 million, the Treasury is reportedly considering the same plan.“Even the proposed threshold is identical, which tells you everything you need to know about house price inflation since 2012. Average values in prime central London have fallen by 8 per cent over the period.” More

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      French police to use nets to stop small boat migrants crossing Channel

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      French police will use large nets to stop small boats crossing the English Channel – despite warnings that such tactics could lead to deaths.France has been under mounting pressure from the UK to intercept migrant vessels at sea amid growing public anger over illegal migration, as Labour ramps up its efforts to deter people from making the crossings in a fresh crackdown.Emmanuel Macron’s government announced in July that it would change its maritime laws to allow for interceptions, but the plans have been delayed amid concerns that it could put lives at risk.However, it has now emerged that several French law enforcement officers have been equipped with so-called “arresting nets” up to 30m wide since the spring. A source familiar with the matter said they can be used in the “fight against illegal immigration”, as well as for tackling drug trafficking.Two sources from the French Ministry of the Interior told investigative newsroom Lighthouse and French newspaper Le Monde that nets will be used to carry out interceptions of small boats. One explained that five or six teams would patrol the coastline to intercept the boats, each with a maritime gendarmerie vessel to undertake the manoeuvres, and a French Navy vessel in case assistance is needed.A training manual from a company that supplied these nets, seen by Lighthouse Reports and Le Monde, states they allow one or more boats to be “neutralised simultaneously” by blocking their propellers.A view of small boats and outboard motors used by people thought to be migrants to cross the Channel from France at a warehouse facility in Dover, Kent More