UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailLiz Truss’ attempt to restart her political career with the launch of a new right-wing Tory faction was hit by chaos – as some of her closest former allies stayed away.The launch event for Popular Conservatism – also known as the PopCons – was rocked by former Truss chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s announcement that he was quitting parliament at the general election.Close Truss associate Sir Simon Clarke was forced out of the event because of his call for Rishi Sunak to be replaced – with Ms Truss keen to avoid looking too disloyal.There was a further blow when Ranil Jayawardena, another key Truss ally and ex-environment minister in her short-lived government, decided to pull out of the event at the last minute.It came as Nigel Farage – a star guest at the PopCons launch – dismissed the new group by insisting Mr Sunak would completely ignore all their ideas.Ms Truss hit out at Mr Sunak’s government for failing to take on “the left-wing extremists” at her launch event speech, attended by allies like Dame Priti Patel, Lee Anderson, and Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg.The former PM – who spent only six weeks at No 10 before announcing her resignation in disgrace – said Britons want to see lower immigration and want illegal immigrants deported, but efforts are “constantly being stymied”.Former PM Liz Truss during the launch of Popular ConservatismShe also hit out at the Sunak government for allowing people to choose their gender and for “pandering to the anti-capitalists”, while ordinary people believe “the wokery that is going on is nonsense”.Ms Truss also claimed the ideology of leftists disguising themselves as environmentalists is about “taking power away from families and giving it to the state”.Using the conspiratorial rhetoric of Donald Trump, she said the left “have been on the march” in government institutions and corporations around the world.As well as talking up a shadowy left-wing cabal, Ms Truss also claimed that Britain was “full of secret Conservatives”, saying there were plenty of people who “agree with us but don’t want to admit it because they think it’s not acceptable at their place of work, at their school”.Ms Truss also said she never got invited to dinner parties. “Too many of our colleagues are looking at what jobs they get when they leave parliament, they want to be popular at London dinner parties … I never get invited to these parties.”But Mr Kwarteng – once Ms Truss’s once-closest friend in politics – overshadowed Monday’s launch event by revealing on X that he will be standing down in his Surrey seat of Spelthorne.The chancellor responsible for the mini-Budget debacle has fallen out with his former boss – saying she was “not wired” to ever be PM and would have “blown up” something even if they had survived the economic disaster caused by their unfunded tax cuts.Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg during the launch of Popular Conservatism Ms Truss’ closest ally Mark Littlewood, the leader of Popular Conservatism, insisted that he was not interested in ousting Mr Sunak – claiming “this isn’t about the leadership of the Conservative party.”The right-wing economist – handed a peerage in the Truss resignation honours – also said it was not about seeking to “replicate or replace” any of the many existing right-wing caucuses of Tory MPs.Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg also launched an attack on “unaccountable” officials and courts, as he sought to draw parallels with the anger of British voters and the protests by farmers in France and Germany.In his headline speech, Sir Jacob said: “The age of Davos man is over, of international cabals and quangos telling hundreds of millions of people how to lead their lives.” He also railed against an “activist judiciary” and an “out-of-touch oligarchy”, as he and other right wingers push to quit the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).Fellow right-winger Lee Anderson used his speech to claim that only “odd weirdos” care about achieving net zero in the battle against climate change.Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, Mhairi Fraser, Lee Anderson and Liz TrussThe Tories’ former deputy chairman – who quit his role because he rebelled on Mr Sunak’s Rwanda bill – claimed net zero “never comes up” the doorstep and urged the PM to ditch green levies.Meanwhile, new right-wing favourite Mhairi Fraser, a prospective Tory candidate, attacked Mr Sunak’s “ludicrous” youth smoking ban and other “nanny state policies”.Mr Farage was largely dismissive of the event – insisting that he was only there to cover it for GB News – as he denied he was interested in joining the Conservative party in future.“I’m not looking to join the Tory party,” said the Reform UK president. “Not at the moment, given what they stand for. And as far as this group’s concerned – I’d rather be part of Reform because that’s the real thing.”Nigel Farage listens to Tory speakers at Popular Conservatism launchMr Farage said none of the PopCons’ ideas will make it into the Tory manifesto, arguing that the party is now “so far away from the centre of gravity of most Conservative voters it is almost untrue”.Other senior Tories at the PopCons launch were staunch Boris Johnson allies and leading Sunak critics like Andrea Jenkyns and Lord David Frost – the peer thought to be behind a push to get rid of the current PM.Other right-wingers in attendance were Truss loyalists Sir Jake Berry, and ex-Truss whip Wendy Morton, and the new Tory deputy chairman Brendan Clarke-Smith.Polling published on Monday suggested Ms Truss is the very least popular politician with the British public, despite her claim to be in touch with “popular” ideas. Her net favourability score is minus 54 per cent, compared with Mr Sunak’s minus 27 per cent, a survey by Savanta found.The mini-Budget debacle masterminded by Ms Truss and Mr Kwarteng saw a collapse in the pound and a spike in interest rates as markets betted against Britain. The staggering episode cost the country £30bn, according to the Resolution Foundation, and saw poor Tory poll ratings plummet further. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSenior Conservative right-winger Lee Anderson has claimed that only “odd weirdos” care about achieving net zero in the battle against climate change.The Tories’ former deputy chairman – who quit his role because he rebelled on Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda bill – urged the PM to ditch green levies.Mr Anderson appeared alongside Liz Truss and Jacob Rees-Mogg at the launch of a new Tory faction called Popular Conservatism – also known as the PopCons.The right-winger said “net zero never comes up” with voters on the doorstep, apart from the “odd weirdo in the corner” who supports the Green Party.Not many of his constituents “lie awake at night worrying about net zero”, the Ashfield MP told the group’s launch, arguing that they care far more about their own fuel bills.Speaking about the need to ditch the green levies which pay for investment in transition away from fossil fuels, Mr Anderson said: “We should have an opt-in, opt-out on our fuel bills.”Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, Mhairi Fraser, Lee Anderson and Liz TrussMr Anderson also joked that both he and right-wing ally Sir Jacob “have one thing in common here – we were both born on estates … His was a country estate, I was born on a council estate.”It came as Mark Littlewood, leader of the Popular Conservatives, insisted that he was not interested in ousting Rishi Sunak – claiming “this isn’t about the leadership of the Conservative party.”The right-wing economist – a key Truss supported who was handed a peerage in her resignation honours – also said it was not about seeking to “replicate or replace” any of the many existing right-wing caucuses of Tory MPs.Railing against the Sunak government and the Whitehall institutions, he said low taxes have proven to be “frustratingly elusive” – attacking bureaucrats who “share the same sort of leftist groupthink”.Mr Rees-Mogg also launched an attack on “unaccountable” institutions and drew parallels with the anger of British voters and the protests by farmers in France and Germany.Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg during the launch of Popular Conservatism And new right-wing favourite Mhairi Fraser, a prospective Tory candidate, attacked Mr Sunak’s “ludicrious” youth smoking ban and other “nanny state policies”.Nigel Farage denied he is seeking to join the Conservative party or the PopCon movement “at the moment” – insisting that he was only there to cover it for GB News.“I’m not looking to join the Tory party, you must be joking,” said the Reform UK president. “Not at the moment, given what they stand for. And as far as this group’s concerned – I’d rather be part of Reform because that’s the real thing.”Mr Farage said none of the ideas that will be discussed at the Popular Conservatism launch will make it into the next Tory manifesto.“Whilst there were some big names like Liz Truss, Jacob Rees-Mogg – I saw Priti Patel coming into the audience earlier – they are a very small minority within the parliamentary Conservative party.”The hard-right populist said the party is now “so far away from the centre of gravity of most Conservative voters, it is almost untrue”.Asked whether he will remain a GB News presenter or stand as a Reform candidate, Mr Farage said: “I’m very happy with life as it is, thank you very much indeed – doesn’t mean I won’t change my mind.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailFormer Conservative chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has announced that he is quitting parliament at the general election later this year.The senior figure in the short-lived Liz Truss government – the minister responsible for the disastrous mini-Budget – will stand down in his “blue wall” Surrey seat of Spelthorne.Mr Kwarteng has been largely unapologetic for the spree of unfunded tax cuts which saw him fired as chancellor only five weeks into the job.He has also lashed out as his former boss and ally – saying Ms Truss was “not wired” to be PM and would have “blown up” something if they had escaped the autumn statement debacle.“It has been an honour to serve the residents of Spelthorne since 2010, and I shall continue to do so for the remainder of my time in parliament,” Mr Kwarteng posted on X, formerly Twitter.The mini-Budget debacle masterminded by Ms Truss and Mr Kwarteng saw a collapse in the pound and a spike in interest rates as markets betted against Britain.The staggering episode cost the country £30bn, according to the Resolution Foundation, and saw poor Tory poll ratings plummet further.Kwasi Kwarteng and Liz Truss were in power at Downing Street for only around six weeksMr Kwarteng revealed last year that he thought his sacking by Ms Truss, only six days before her own exit at the hands of Tory MPs, was “completely insane”.“They’re going to come after you now,” he told her, according to Ben Riley-Smith’s book The Right to Rule. “They’re going to ask you: If you’ve sacked him for doing what you campaigned on, why are you still there?”Told Jeremy Hunt was going to replace him, Mr Kwarteng fumed: “Hunt?! He’s going to reverse everything!” Before leaving he told the PM: “You’ve got three weeks.”It comes as Ms Truss launches yet another Tory faction – Popular Conservativism, dubbed the PopCons in Westminster – at a rally in London on Tuesday.The ex-PM is set to be joined by ex-Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson, former Brexit minister Jacob Rees-Mogg, and Nigel Farage.The PopCons’ leader Mark Littlewood – the right-wing economist handed a peerage in the Truss resignation honours – claimed that the Tories can draw “important lessons” from her very short tenure in No 10.He told Times Radio: “I think the lessons we can draw from her very short time in office are important lessons for Conservatives who want to change Britain, want to see taxes come down.”Liz Truss will launch the new Popular Conservatism movementMr Rees-Mogg will use his speech at the event to rail against an “activist judiciary” and an “out-of-touch oligarchy”, as right wingers push to quit the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).“Popular Conservatism is about restoring this balance and returning power to parliament while taking it away from quangos and a judiciary that has become more political,” the Truss ally will say.Sir Jacob has denied the new group is seeking to oust Rishi Sunak – but the right-winger has said he would like to see Mr Farage join the Conservative party.Mr Rees-Mogg said he was “absolutely delighted” that Mr Farage was coming to cover the event for GB News – claiming the Reform UK party president was “essentially a Conservative”.Polling published on Monday suggested Ms Truss is the very least popular politician with the British public, despite her claim to be in touch with “popular” ideas.Her net favourability score is minus 54 per cent, compared with Mr Sunak’s minus 27 per cent, a survey by Savanta found.Cabinet minister Mel Stride, a loyal Sunak ally, claimed the launch of the PopCons was a sign of the range of opinions within the Tory party.The work and pensions secretary told GB News: “The Conservative party is a very broad church … and I think it’s important that the different parts of the party do come together and ventilate different views.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe mother of murdered teenager Brianna Ghey has said the Online Safety Act does not go far enough in protecting children online and called for “more drastic” action against online harms.Esther Ghey is campaigning for under-16s to be blocked from accessing social media on smartphones and stronger parental controls to flag potentially harmful searches to parents, in the wake of the sentencing of her daughter’s killers.Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe were both 15 when they killed Brianna, 16, with a hunting knife after luring her to Linear Park, Culcheth, a village near Warrington, Cheshire, on February 11 last year.Jenkinson had previously watched videos of torture and murder online.I think that mobile phones have a lot to answer for, and it’s not just in the case of Brianna, it’s in the case of mental health for so many people across the countryEsther Ghey, Brianna Ghey’s motherDame Melanie Dawes, chief executive of communications regulator Ofcom, said she would be happy to meet Ms Ghey to discuss her proposals, and Ms Ghey also said she would welcome the chance to speak to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the issue.Asked what changes she would like to see made in the smartphone industry, Ms Ghey told BBC Breakfast: “We’d like to see mobile phone companies take more responsibility.“I would like to see the law change so that children only have access to children’s mobile phones, and that could look exactly the same as an adult’s mobile phone but without the ability to download social media apps, and there is software available already.“Schools use it and we could link it up to a parent’s phone and if any words are being searched like the words that were searched during the run-up (to Brianna’s murder)… it could be flagged up on a parent’s phone, and then parents are aware of any concerning things that children are looking at.”Ms Ghey said she thought the Online Safety Bill was “a step in the right direction” but would not be enough on its own, adding: “I think that we do need something a little bit more drastic for children.”Asked whether a mobile phone was the cause of what happened to Brianna, Ms Ghey said: “I’m not sure whether it started it all, but it definitely didn’t help. I think that the content that they (her killers) were looking at online, it probably fed what was already there.“I think that mobile phones have a lot to answer for, and it’s not just in the case of Brianna, it’s in the case of mental health for so many people across the country.”My heart goes out to Brianna’s family, and I think what her mum has done over the past few days in getting all these issues really high up the agenda is so importantDame Melanie Dawes, OfcomAn online petition calling for the changes has also been launched.Dame Melanie told BBC Breakfast: “My heart goes out to Brianna’s family, and I think what her mum has done over the past few days in getting all these issues really high up the agenda is so important.”She said Ofcom was using the powers given to it by the Online Safety Act, which passed into law late last year, to “create a safer internet for teenagers”.Under the Online Safety Act, social media platforms can be fined up to 10% of global revenue for failing to protect children from harmful material online.Dame Melanie said Ofcom was currently working with social media firms to get the “detail of these laws” in place, which would take “a year or so”, but that the regulator was moving “very fast” and already seeing changes being introduced by platforms in scope of the new rules ahead of them taking effect.But she said that Ms Ghey’s proposed changes would go “a step further”, adding such a decision would be “ultimately one for our politicians”.Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live on Tuesday morning, Mr Sunak insisted he believed the Online Safety Act was robust enough to protect children online.The Prime Minister said the new law gave Ofcom the power “to actually talk to social media companies and ensure that children aren’t exposed to harmful content online and if social media companies don’t comply with those directives and rules and guidance, they will face very significant fines and penalties”. More