UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is celebrating after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor.Tusk declared victory in the second round of the country’s local elections late Sunday and listed the many cities where candidates backed by his Civic Coalition won, among them Krakow, Poznan, Wroclaw and Rzeszow.It puts the pro-European Union centrist Civic Coalition in a favorable position as the country looks next to elections to the European Parliament on June 9. “I think we won the second round. We won’t stop!” Tusk wrote on social platform X.Mayors were chosen in a total of 748 cities and towns where no single candidate won at least 50% of the vote during the first round on April 7.Candidates for Tusk’s party also recaptured cities where they had not held power for many years, including Zielona Gora, Legnica and Torun. The local and regional elections were viewed as a test for Tusk’s pro-European Union government four months after it took power at the national level. Sunday’s second round strengthened the Tusk government’s leverage in the cities, which should facilitate cooperation on development projects and allotment of EU funds. Tusk’s allies also won in some places in the first round two weeks ago, including in Warsaw where incumbent Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski was an easy victor. In the first round, the main opposition party, the right-wing Law and Justice, prevailed on the level of regional assemblies in the country’s 16 provinces, where it took 34.3% of the votes, while Tusks’ Civic Coalition got 30.6%. Law and Justice governed on the national level from 2015-23. Tusk’s socially liberal Civic Coalition traditionally has strong support in cities, while Law and Justice has a more solid base in conservative rural areas, particularly in eastern Poland.Civic Coalition is the largest group in a three-party coalition that governs Poland. The coalition is pro-European Union but otherwise spans a wide ideological spectrum with left-wing politicians in the Left party as well as conservatives in the Third Way. More

Suella Braverman and Mishal Husain clashed during a BBC Radio 4 interview listeners branded a “car-crash” as the MP admitted she had not seen the full video in which an antisemitism campaigner was described as “openly Jewish” by the Metropolitan Police.The pair discussed footage in which Gideon Falter was threatened with arrest and told his presence was “antagonising” protesters yards away in London.Ms Braverman called for Met commissioner Sir Mark Rowley to resign after the exchange.When Ms Husain proposed that Ms Braverman’s comments were based on “incomplete information,” the politician responded: “I’m basing what I’m saying on six months of information… The police have chosen a side.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailLord David Cameron has heralded a “new era” in relations between Britain and Central Asia on a visit to the region amid concerns about trade sanctions on Russia being side-stepped in neighbouring countries.The Foreign Secretary is travelling across Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia in a diplomatic bid to boost trade, security and environmental ties with the UK.He will warn Central Asia is “at the epicentre of some of the biggest challenges we face” as he announces a series of measures aimed at supporting its “hard-won sovereignty”.In a meeting with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon at the Palace of the Nation in Dushanbe on Monday, Lord Cameron said there was “more we can do” to co-operate on key areas like business, climate change and counter-terrorism.“I’m delighted to be the first foreign secretary to visit your country. I’m only sorry that it’s taken so long for one to come,” he told President Rahmon.“We want to signal a new era in relations between Britain and all of the Central Asia republics, starting here in Tajikistan.“Overall we’re here to say ‘let’s make the partnership bigger, let’s do more things together’.”( More

Suella Braverman has called for Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley to resign after an officer referred to antisemitism campaigner Gideon Falter as “openly Jewish,” threatened him with arrest, and said his presence was “antagonising” protesters.The force initially apologised for the incident, but then apologised for its apology after suggesting opponents of pro-Palestine marches “must know that their presence is provocative”.Speaking to Good Morning Britain on Monday, 22 April: “These marches have reached a threshold whereby they are unmanageable… and hateful to a large degree.“Sir Mark… I think he should go. The home secretary, the prime minister need to show leadership here.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWet wipes containing plastic are finally set to be banned across the UK as ministers warn a ‘step change’ is needed to protect the country’s rivers. The long-awaited announcement comes after a campaign against the products which have been blamed for hundreds of thousands of blockages in the UK sewer system costing millions of pounds a year. Manufacturers have also come under fire discarded wipes increasingly littering Britain’s beaches.Under plans to be set out by the environment secretary Steve Barclay it will become illegal to sell or supply wet wipes which contain plastic.But Labour said the move did not go far enough and called for there also to be a full ban on the manufacture of plastic wet wipes.Mr Barclay said the move would be a “step change… to protect our waterways from pollution.” But shadow environment secretary Steve Reed accused ministers of breaking their pledge. He said: “Plastic wet wipes clog up our sewers, kill wildlife and lead to sewage backing up into people’s homes.”The Conservatives have broken their promises to act and are too weak to ban them outright.”Labour also accused the Tories of a lengthy delay after the party first promised to ban wet wipes in 2018, as part of a wider crackdown on plastics.The ban follows a consultation late last year, which showed overwhelming public support for the move.A previous consultation, in 2021, also found more than 90% of people were in favour of a ban.Some businesses such as Boots, Aldi and Tesco have already moved to ban wet wipes containing plastics from their stores.Steve Ager, from Boots, said: “We are pleased to see the government now taking action as a ban on all wet wipes containing plastic will have a much bigger impact than retailers taking action alone.”We all have a collective responsibility to protect the environment and support a healthy planet.”Campaigners urged ministers to go further than bans on single items.Jane Martin, chief executive of environmental organisation City To Sea, said: “It’s a positive step forward to see the government take definitive action on banning this pollutant, but action must not end there.”The Government should now look to tackle all single-use plastic products through further bans and mandated reuse and refill targets.”Legislation is expected before MPs break up for their summer break in July. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailMayor of London Sadiq Khan has pledged to make the River Thames “swimmable” within a decade as he plans to transform the capital’s waterways.The former Labour cabinet minister branded the river a “national embarrassment” as his own analysis published this year revealed a nearly five-fold rise in the duration of sewage spills in London in 2023.Acknowledging the huge challenge facing the capital yet undeterred from his “moonshot plan”, Mr Khan told The Sunday Times: “We won’t do this overnight. It will take us a few years to do – but the great thing is there’s an appetite from Londoners and campaigners.”His announcement echoes a proposal by the Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo to reopen the Seine to swimmers to create an Olympic legacy for the city. The river is currently being cleaned so swimming events for the 2024 games later this year will be able to happen in its waters.The opening of London’s new £5 billion 16-mile “super sewer” this summer is bringing environmentalists hope the state of the Thames is set to improve. The Tideway Tunnel will join 34 storm overflow drains as well as divert sewage to an east London treatment works, consequently reducing the amount of waste being pumped into the river, according to engineers.Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has pledged to make the River Thames ‘swimmable’ within a decade as he plans to transform the capital’s waterways More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email A British lawmaker who allegedly used campaign funds to pay off people who were holding him hostage said Sunday that he wouldn’t seek reelection after the governing Conservative Party found his behavior fell below the standard expected of members of Parliament.Mark Menzies’ downfall is the latest in a series of scandals to hit the Conservatives, undermining support for a party that has been in power for the past 14 years as it prepares for a general election later this year.The Times of London recently reported that Menzies called a 78-year-old aide at 3 a.m. in December asking for funds to pay off “bad people” who had locked him in an apartment and were demanding money for his release. Menzies’ office manager ultimately paid 6,500 pounds ($8,100) from her personal bank account, which was reimbursed from funds donated by political backers, the newspaper said.Menzies, who denies the allegations, has represented the seat of Fylde in northwest England since 2010.“Due to the pressures on myself and my elderly mother, I have decided to resign from the Conservative Party and will not stand at the forthcoming general election,” he said. “This has been a very difficult week for me, and I request that my family’s privacy is respected.”Menzies’ announcement came after the Conservatives announced the findings of an internal investigation into the matter.The inquiry concluded that the payment had been authorized by two members of a local donors group that sits outside the Conservative Party, and therefore Menzies hadn’t misused party funds. “However, we do believe that there has been a pattern of behavior that falls below the standards expected of MPs and individuals looking after donations to local campaign funds which lie outside the direct jurisdiction of the Conservative Party,” the party said.The opposition Labour Party has called for a police investigation into the matter. The Conservatives said they would share information with police if they decide to investigate.The Conservatives have been in power since 2010, but they are trailing in opinion polls amid crumbling public services, high prices that are squeezing consumers and the corrosive effect of ethics scandals.Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who led the party to a landslide victory in 2019, resigned from the House of Commons after an investigation found that he deliberately misled Parliament about parties held at his Downing Street offices during lockdowns imposed to control the spread of COVID-19.Other scandals include a lawmaker who was caught looking at porn in the House of Commons, another who reportedly offered to lobby on behalf of gambling firms and another alleged to have drunkenly groped strangers at a private club in London.But ethical questions are also being asked of opposition politicians as the country prepares for an election that must be called by the end of this year.Conservatives accuse Labour’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, of dodging taxes on the sale of a house sale years ago by falsely claiming it was her primary residence. Police say they are investigating. Rayner denies wrongdoing and hasn’t been suspended by her party. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailAn MP alleged to have made a call to a 78-year-old aide asking for help because he had been locked up by “bad people” demanding money has announced he will stand down as an MP at the next election.Mark Menzies, 52 , reportedly also spent thousands of pounds given by donors on medical expenses. The Conservatives had already suspended Mr Menzies over allegations he misused campaign funds.The party also announced that it had completed its investigation and “cannot conclude” there has been a misuse of Conservative Party funds. However, this appeared to be because the money was in a fund that “sits outside the remit” of the party and its local association. In a statement, Mr Menzies said: “It has been an enormous privilege representing the people of Fylde since 2010, but due to the pressures on myself and my elderly mother, I have decided to resign from the Conservative Party and will not stand at the forthcoming general election.“This has been a very difficult week for me and I request that my family’s privacy is respected.”The Ayrshire-born Tory MP for Fylde, Lancashire will continue to be a sitting MP on full salary until the next election.Mr Menzies won his seat at the 2010 general election after unsuccessfully standing for two seats in Glasgow and Yorkshire. He was considered to be on David Cameron’s so-called “A-List” of top tier parliamentary candidates.In 2014 Mr Menzies resigned as a ministerial aide to then international development minister Alan Duncan after a report he had paid a Brazilian male escort for sex.In December the MP, who is one of Rishi Sunak’s trade envoys, rang his former campaign manager claiming he was locked in a flat and needed £5,000 as a matter of “life and death”.The sum, which rose to £6,500, was eventually paid by his office manager from her personal bank account and subsequently reimbursed from funds raised from donors in an account named Fylde Westminster Group, it is alleged.In an earlier statement to The Times, Mr Menzies said: “I strongly dispute the allegations put to me. I have fully complied with all the rules for declarations. As there is an investigation ongoing I will not be commenting further.”This is a breaking news story… More to follow… More