UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak has rushed to defend his disability benefits crackdown, saying only those with “genuine” claims should be eligible for support.After a massive rise in the number of adults reporting disabilities and claiming help through personal independence payments (Pip), the prime minister said those with “less severe” conditions should be engaged in the world of work.The government Green Paper, published on Monday, proposed a reform of scheme payments through changes to eligibility criteria and assessments, including options to require claimants to get clinical diagnosis and a switch away from cash payments.The number of monthly Pip awards for mental health disorders has doubled since 2019, from 2,200 to 5,300, in line with an increase in overall awards through the benefit scheme to 33,000 a month.The annual cost of the payment system is currently at around £22bn, and is forecast to rise by 50 per cent over the next four years as more people, including those with mental health concerns, qualify for the support. But critics have accused the PM of using mental health as a political culture war ahead of Thursday’s local elections, which are set to see the Tories lose hundreds of seats on local councils.In an interview with ITV’s Robert Peston, Mr Sunak said: “The broad thrust of what we’re trying to do is say, hang on, you can’t be making claims based on unverifiable assertions. There needs to be some objective evidence, perhaps medical, so that we can say you are genuinely someone who’s in need of support.”He added: “What we shouldn’t be doing is medicalising the everyday challenges and anxieties of life, and … if they are less severe, they should be expected to engage in the world of work.”When pressed on the hardship that vulnerable people on low incomes would endure without Pip, he said: “That’s why it’s so important that we stick to our plan that’s easing the burden on the cost of living.”Work and pensions secretary Mel Stride and Rishi Sunak have been pushing reform to Pip More

Stephen Flynn has ruled himself out of the race to replace Humza Yousaf as Scotland’s first minister.Mr Yousaf admitted “politics can be a brutal business” as he announced his resignation just four days after tearing up the powersharing agreement the SNP had with the Scottish Greens.The collapse of that deal had seen him facing two votes of no confidence in the Scottish Parliament.Speaking on Monday evening (29 April), the SNP’s Westminster leader ruled himself out of the race to replace Mr Yousaf.“I won’t be a candidate for leadership,” Mr Flynn told The News Agents podcast, before throwing his support behind John Swinney. More

Rishi Sunak joked he had “seen enough Snickers bars for a while” after being surrounded by confectionary at a warehouse.The prime minister visited a DHL distribution centre at the London Gateway port in Essex on Monday 29 April, when he sat down to chat with staff after being shown around the enormous facility by a young apprentice.“I have to ask, if you’re surrounded by chocolate all day long, does it make you want it more or less?” Mr Sunak asked.“For the first five minutes, I was like ‘God, I really want a Snickers bar or something’. Then by the end of it, I think maybe I’ve seen enough Snickers bars for a while.” More

A Conservative MP made a tearful call in the House of Commons to support those who suffer from anxiety.People suffering from depression or anxiety could lose access to sickness benefits as part of the government’s major welfare reforms.The plans, which will be consulted on over the coming months, also include proposals to “move away from a fixed cash benefit system” meaning people with some conditions will no longer receive regular payments but rather improved access to treatment if their condition does not involve extra costs.“Before I was elected, I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder,” Ruth Edwards told colleagues on Monday 29 April.“I was extremely ill with it and I couldn’t work for several months.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe fact that I would genuinely be an improvement on the last 14 years of Tory government says everything you need to know,” Count Binface tells the Independent.The self-described intergalactic space warrior, who is running for London mayor again after finishing ninth in the 2021 contest, has refused to rule out standing against Rishi Sunak at the next general election.But before then, the independent candidate hopes manifesto pledges include building at least one affordable home and placing a price-cap on croissants strike a chord with voters across the capital.Other flagship policies include renaming London Bridge after Phoebe Waller-Bridge, price capping croissants at £1.10 – 10p more than a previous pledge for £1 pastries – and granting grade one listed status to Claudia Winkleman’s fringe.Mr Binface, who claims to be 5,072 years old, described his pledges as “the best in the business” and that he was “the only candidate with a decent manifesto”.“I love democracy, because it’s so rare in the cosmos, and this important year I want to help celebrate the fact that, in the UK, everybody has the right to stand for election, no matter how idiotic the get-up,” he said.“I’m the only fresh thing on the menu! Nobody else comes close to the suite of policies I’m offering: price-capping croissants at £1.10 – blame Liz and Rishi for the extra 10p –  bringing back Ceefax, replacing the Night Czar with a new Night Mayor, to have headquarters on Elm Street, and much more.”When asked for his opinion on his Tory rival, Susan Hall, the caped politician said: “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”“If I have, it went straight out of one auditory organ and right out of the other one because nobody of that name has had any impact on me whatsoever.”The Count went on to say that incumbent mayor Sadiq Khan had done a “decent job”.He continued: “Unlike the two previous incumbents, Ken Livingstone and Boris ‘The Bombshell’ Johnson, Sadiq Khan is not yet a laughing stock figure – so fair play on that front.”Count Binface poses outside Parliament in London (Aaron Chown/PA) More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailJust days after promising to fight and win a vote of no confidence in his leadership, Humza Yousaf fought back tears as he threw in the towel.His resignation is the latest twist in the chaotic tale of the SNP since the 2019 general election and the 2021 Scottish election.Then, the party was riding high under the leadership of Nicola Sturgeon, whose smooth communication style helped reassure the people of Scotland during the Covid crisis and saw her become a household name across the UK.Humza Yousaf fought back tears as he quit as first minister More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe Reform UK candidate for the 2024 London Mayoral Election has vowed to scrap the Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) and refund all fines. Howard Cox is the founder of Fair Fuel UK, a lobbying group that campaigns to reduce charges on motorists, particularly fuel duty.“As the founder of the FairFuelUK campaign, I am the only Mayoral candidate with a proven track record of making a difference to your lives by helping to reduce your cost of living,” he said.“Since 2011, every driver, business and charity has benefited from paying thousands of pounds less to fill up their motorbikes, cars, vans and trucks – all because of my campaign against fuel duty increases.“No other Mayoral candidate has an equivalent record in successful campaigning, or my detailed knowledge of road user transport – both essential to get London moving again.“I want our city back. I will be strong on crime and take a zero tolerance approach to violent offenders. I will always listen to you, and from day one I will scrap all policies that do not benefit the majority of Londoners.”Speaking at an anti-Ulez protest earlier this year, Mr Cox describe the low-emission scheme as unnecessary. “Good, decent, honest, taxpaying, hardworking people are being impacted by Ulez,” he said. “It’s such a sad thing because we do not need Ulez. Science proves we don’t need it.“Stop picking on the motorists, they’re the commercial heartbeat of the economy.”Mr Cox said that while he has an Ulez compliant vehicle, he had been “bombarded by people like plumbers and sole traders, people like that who can’t afford to change.”Figures released by TfL in October showed around 60,000 vehicle owners a day were paying the charge.A taxi with an advert for Howard Cox More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe Liberal Democrat candidate for London mayor has said his top priority is policing and crime following his own experience of being violently mugged. Rob Blackie had his neck fractured and was fitted with a titanium replacement following the attack and his perpetrators were never caught. Mr Blackie told The Independent he will focus on “fixing” the Met Police and tackle violence against women and girls. “After eight years, Londoners are feeling let down by Sadiq Khan, particularly on crime,” he said. “I see this myself going around London. Every week, I’ll knock on people’s doors. It might be a burglary, might be a car theft, it could be a stabbing nearby.“I am the only candidate with a serious and credible plan to tackle violence against women and girls. It’s time the Mayor had a proper plan too – that’s why I would create a new Mayoral Strategy for Violence Against Women and Girls and set up a new Sexual Offence Unit to drive up the number of sexual offenders caught in the capital.“That’s the thing that drove me to want to stand. Because I thought nobody’s offering particularly serious solutions to that.“I know first-hand from having my neck broken how horrible it is be attacked,  so my top priority is to fix Metropolitan Police.”Rob Blakie Kingston Women’s Hub launching his violence against women and girls plan More