UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Pakistan on Saturday hit back at criticism over the conduct of its parliamentary elections, which were held amid sporadic militant attacks and an unprecedented stoppage of all mobile phone services. The strongly worded reaction from the Foreign Ministry insisted the vote was peaceful and successful. The U.S. State Department said that Thursday’s vote was held under undue restrictions on freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly. The European Union has also said it regrets the lack of a level playing field due to the inability of some political actors to contest the elections. The ministry said it was surprised by “the negative tone of some of these statements, which neither take into account the complexity of the electoral process, nor acknowledge the free and enthusiastic exercise of the right to vote by tens of millions of Pakistanis”. It said such statements “ignore the undeniable fact that Pakistan has held general elections, peacefully and successfully, while dealing with serious security threats resulting primarily from foreign sponsored terrorism.” It said there was no nationwide internet shutdown and “only mobile services were suspended for the day to avoid terrorist incidents on polling day.” In Thursday’s vote, no political party gained a simple majority and independent candidates backed by imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan took a lead in the vote count. It forced Khan’s main rival, three-time premier Nawaz Sharif, to announce plans to try to form a coalition government. Khan was disqualified from running because of criminal convictions. Candidates backed by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party won 100 out of the 266 seats up for grabs in the National Assembly. Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League party captured 71 seats. Also Saturday, the leader of a political party was wounded and two police officers killed in a clash in the country’s northwest. The violence broke out in North Waziristan when Mohsin Dawar and his supporters tried to march toward an army facility while protesting delays in announcing the election result, police official Zahid Khan said. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak’s income topped £2m last year as UK voters struggled with the cost of living crisis. The prime minister also paid more than half a million pounds in UK tax.Mr Sunak’s financial affairs have come under intense scrutiny since The Independent revealed his wife Akshata Murty held “non-dom” tax status to avoid UK tax on foreign income.She later renounced the controversial status, but it subsequently emerged that Mr Sunak had also held a US green card and filed tax returns in America while he was chancellor.A summary of his tax affairs shows he paid £508,308 in tax in the financial year 2022-23.He made nearly £1.8m through capital gains – up from £1.6m in 2021-22 – as well as £293,407 in other interest and dividends.All his investment income and capital gains came from a US-based investment fund listed as a blind trust, which he benefits form but does not manage.He also earned his £139,477 salary, a figure that pales in comparison with his investment income.Sunak has revealed his tax returnsRather than a full tax return, No 10 published “a summary” of Mr Sunak’s UK taxable income, capital gains and tax paid over the last tax year as reported to HM Revenue & Customs, prepared by accountancy service Evelyn Partners.The figures were revealed at the end of a difficult week for the prime minister, with more potential misery set to come with two crunch by-elections next week. Mr Sunak was criticised for betting £1,000 on Monday that he would deport asylum seekers to Rwanda and has come under fire in recent days for making a trans jibe while the mother of murdered trans teenager Brianna Ghey was in parliament. Last year Downing Street revealed the prime minister had raked in more than £4.7m and paid more than £1m in tax, giving him an effective tax rate of 22 per cent. He paid a further $51,648 in US taxes over the same period, as the US charges non-residents for tax due on dividends.The publication came months after he first pledged to publish his tax return. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailKeir Starmer’s wife asked “who the f**k does he think he is?” after their first meeting, the Labour leader has revealed. A former solicitor, Vic, as he calls her, did not take lightly to her future husband grilling her on the accuracy of some documents. When they had finished speaking, over the phone, he overheard her say to a colleague: “Who the f**k does he think he is?”“You might think, ‘Not the best of starts,’ but it was absolutely classic Vic,” he told Vogue magazine. “Very sassy, very down to earth, no nonsense from anyone, including from me.”In a wide-ranging interview the man who would be the UK’s next prime minister said his experience working on death row cases had made him tough enough to be do the top job. “My answer to that is: ‘Look, if you’ve sat in a cell with someone and had to make the decision about their case which could result in them living or dying, then you’ve had to take some tough decisions,’” he said. He also said he and wife “share” the housework, although he admitted: “Vic would say she does the majority of it.” When it comes to childcare, they had “the usual juggling as a family, particularly when our kids were very young”, he said, adding: “This is a massive issue for many families. Childcare is very expensive.” The interview was carried out before this week’s U-turn on plans to spend £28 billion on green investments. Sir Keir Starmer has insisted Labour is being “straight” with voters amid criticism over the decision to ditch the key pledge. MPs on the left of the party, as well as environmental groups, trade union allies and energy industry figures have expressed disappointment at the move. More