UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe chief executive of GB News has defended employing serving politicians as presenters, insisting he wants to recruit more MPs of other parties to join the fray. Angelos Frangopoulos, appearing in front of the House of Lords communications and digital committee hearing on Tuesday, said the channel has been trying to encourage MPs of other parties to join them.Questioned on the lack of political diversity among GB News presenters, Mr Frangopoulos said: “This is not by design, we would love to have a wide range of MPs on our channel in the same way that stations like LBC do, etc. We’ve had discussions with political parties, some say ‘well, we’re not encouraging our MPs to take second jobs.’”Among the lineup is Reform Party leader Richard Tice; former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson, who has recently defected to Reform UK; and Conservative MP Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg.Former Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, former Conservative MP Michael Portillo and former Labour MP Gloria De Piero are also among its on-screen presenters.Angelos Frangopoulos is a former Sky News Arabia journalist and is now CEO of GB News “It’s purely because we’re yet to find someone who will say yes,” he added.The channel has come under fire from communications regulator Ofcom after it found that five episodes of GB News programmes presented by Tory MPs were found have broken broadcasting rules.Two episodes of Jacob Rees-Mogg’s State Of The Nation, two of Friday Morning With Esther And Phil, and one of Saturday Morning With Esther And Phil, broadcast during May and June 2023, broke due impartiality rules, Ofcom said.It comes six months after the regulator found an episode of GB News’s The Live Desk, aired in July 2023, broke the same rules.Ofcom said: “We found that host politicians acted as newsreaders, news interviewers or news reporters in sequences which clearly constituted news – including reporting breaking news events – without exceptional justification.Serving politicians Esther McVey and Phillip Davies were two politicians named in the Ofcom ruling against GB News “News was, therefore, not presented with due impartiality.”Ofcom added that politicians played a “partial role in society”, and news content presented by them was “likely to be viewed by audiences in light of that perceived bias”.“In our view, the use of politicians to present the news risks undermining the integrity and credibility of regulated broadcast news,” it added.The channel was also recently rapped by Ofcom after it ruled misogynistic comments made by actor Laurence Fox about a female journalist had broken broadcasting rules that protect “viewers from offensive content”.The communications regulator has warned that further breaches by GB News could result in a statutory sanction, which range from an order not to reuse the offending content, to revoking a broadcaster’s licence.Mr Frangopoulos told peers that his channel had received 50 inquiries from Ofcom over the past three years and said the channel had cooperated with each one.He also argued that audiences have “different expectations” for impartiality from different channels and that GB News is part of the “ecosystem” of news and he maintained that “our brand has trust”. More

Education secretary Gillian Keegan refused to say if China is a threat to national security a day after two individuals and a company linked to the Chinese state were sanctioned over attacks on the Electoral Commission between 2021 and 2022.The same company also carried out “reconnaissance” activity against UK parliamentary accounts in a separate campaign in 2021, Oliver Dowden told the House of Commons on Monday.British intelligence services believe Chinese spies are likely to use details stolen by hacking the elections watchdog to target dissidents and critics of Xi Jinping’s government in the UK.”I don’t want you to put words into my mouth… I’m not a diplomatic expert,” Ms Keegan told Nick Ferrari on LBC. More

Rishi Sunak laughed off a reference to Liz Truss’s “deep state” comments during a grilling by the Commons Liaison Committee on Tuesday, 26 March.During a speech at a CPAC, a conservative conference in the US, the prime minister’s predecessor blamed the “deep state” for “sabotaging” her controversial tax-cutting plans from Kwasi Kwarteng’s disastrous mini-budget.When asked if there is a “deep state” and if he is part of it, Mr Sunak joked: “Probably a question for [Ms Truss].“But I probably wouldn’t tell you if I was Will, would I? And we wouldn’t tell anyone else either, would we?” he added. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe UK’s approach to China is “more robust” than most of its allies, the Prime Minister has insisted following demands for a tougher line on Beijing.At one of his regular grillings by select committee chairs, Rishi Sunak was challenged on the Government’s reluctance to act on a number of Chinese-owned companies such as Bytedance, which owns TikTok.He rejected the suggestion from Liam Byrne, Labour MP and chairman of the Commons Business and Trade Committee, that while other nations acted to protect themselves against China, the UK was merely “thinking about it”.Mr Sunak told the Commons Liaison Committee: “Our approach to China is undoubtedly more robust than, I’d say, most of our allies.”He pointed to European countries not removing Huawei equipment from their telecommunications networks, not placing similar restrictions on exports of sensitive technology to China and said the UK’s foreign investment regime was the most recently implemented and therefore the most robust, among other examples.He added: “I am entirely confident that our approach to dealing with the risk that China poses is very much in line with our allies and in most cases goes further in protecting ourselves.”Mr Byrne, who has raised concerns about the influence of Chinese-owned businesses such as Bytedance, replied: “It clearly doesn’t.”The Prime Minister’s defence of the UK’s China policy comes after the Government blamed Beijing for “malicious” cyber attacks on parliamentarians and the Electoral Commission, sanctioning some of those involved.Backbench Conservatives, however, criticised the Government’s actions, saying it had not gone far enough, while others renewed their calls for China to be labelled a “threat”.Education Secretary Gillian Keegan told Times Radio on Tuesday morning that China was “obviously a security threat”, but Downing Street has been keen to play down the possibility that the Government could change its language on the country, which it currently calls as an “epoch-defining challenge”.The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “There isn’t a mechanism under UK law or indeed in our G7 or Five Eyes countries that has a designation process like that.”Cabinet tensions have reportedly surfaced over the issue, with some ministers pushing for tougher action on Beijing while others are resistant over concerns it could harm economic and trade relations.Tuesday also saw the charge d’affairs at the Chinese embassy attend the Foreign Office following a formal summons to account for his country’s actions.The Foreign Office said it had set out an “unequivocal condemnation” of “malicious cyber activity” by organisations affiliated to Beijing, saying it “would not tolerate such threatening activity, and would continue to take strong action with partners across the globe to respond”.The attribution of the cyber attacks to the APT31 hacking group, believed to be under the control of the Chinese Ministry of State Security, was part of a coordinated effort with the UK’s allies, including the US and New Zealand.US authorities announced sanctions against the same front company and individuals as the UK, and also said it had charged seven individuals with computer misuse and fraud offences.New Zealand alleged hackers linked to the Chinese government launched a state-sponsored operation that targeted the country’s parliament in 2021 but said it lacked the legal powers to impose sanctions.The Chinese government has strongly denied that it has carried out, supported or encouraged cyber attacks on the UK, describing the claims as “completely fabricated and malicious slanders”.A spokesman for China’s embassy in London said: “China has always firmly fought all forms of cyber attacks according to law.“China does not encourage, support or condone cyber attacks.“At the same time, we oppose the politicisation of cyber security issues and the baseless denigration of other countries without factual evidence.“We urge the relevant parties to stop spreading false information and stop their self-staged, anti-China political farce.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailFuneral directors need to subject themselves to voluntary checks in order to ensure the public trust them, ministers have heard.Labour MP Emma Hardy called on the Government to introduce a regulator of funeral directors, following a major police investigation in her Hull West and Hessle constituency.Justice Minister Mike Freer said he is soon to meet funeral company trade bodies to discuss voluntary regulation, and told MPs he believes a “comprehensive review” of the law around cremation is needed.Legacy Independent Funeral Directors has been under investigation after police recovered 35 bodies, as well as suspected human ashes, at its site in Hessle Road in Hull.More than 1,500 calls have been made to police by previous Legacy Independent Funeral Directors customers since the probe began, Humberside Police have said.Police previously arrested a 46-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman on suspicion of prevention of a lawful and decent burial, fraud by false representation and fraud by abuse of position.The pair have been released on bail pending further inquiries.Labour MP Emma Hardy (PA)In the Commons, Ms Hardy said she is “utterly committed to regulating this industry and never again allowing that appalling, heartbreaking situation to be repeated”.She added: “I wondered if (the minister) could speak a little bit more about timeframes and whether he agrees that, in the meantime, before statutory regulation comes in, if we could encourage all funeral directors to subject themselves to the voluntary regulation provided by one of the trade bodies instead, and do everything they can to reassure the public that not all funeral directors are like the appalling situation that we have had in my constituency?”Justice minister Mr Freer said he is working alongside communities minister Simon Hoare on the initial response to the incident in Hull.He added: “The call for evidence on where we go on regulation will commence in the next few months. Where it goes, of course, we have to wait for public consultation.“What I am doing is meeting this afternoon with the two major trade bodies to see how they can assist on voluntary inspections to ensure that what we have seen has come out of this terrible incident – which nobody would have thought could have possibly would have occurred, is quite horrific – is that we get this right so that people do have confidence in the vast majority of funeral directors who are entirely respectable and treat the deceased with the respect and with the care that they expect.”Mr Freer earlier told the Commons that regulations on cremation have been “updated when needed” in the past, adding: “In light of developments since then, I believe a more comprehensive review is needed, and that is why the Law Commission have therefore agreed to consider the law governing cremation as part of their burial, cremation and new funerary methods project.“That has already commenced and we await their findings with interest.” More

A Labour MP who bet £10 with Kay Burley that there would be a May general election called Rishi Sunak a “chicken” as he paid up.Jonathan Ashworth returned to Sky News less than three weeks after making the wager, presenting Ms Burley a cheque after the prime minister ruled out an early vote.“Rishi Sunak chickened out, he’s running scared of the British people,” the shadow paymaster general said.“We still need that election, he should name the date but I am going to have to pay up.”Mr Ashworth laughed off “doubling down” on a June election at the end of the interview. More

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailTwo years and £370m later, the Rwanda plan launched by Priti Patel and Boris Johnson remains stuck in parliamentary purgatory, facing a comstant barrage of amendments and counter-amendments from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the House of Lords.In the latest setback from Mr Sunak, peers voted on 20 March that the government’s bill should have “due regard” for international law, and that the UK’s treaty with Rwanda should be fully implemented before flights start. With so much back-and-forth on the Rwanda scheme, we want to know if you think the plans are the best way to tackle the challenges faced by the UK asylum system.And even if the scheme was eventually implemented, is shipping asylum seekers off to Kigali the best way to deal with the small boat crisis?It has been previously reported that Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is considering “detailed plans” for a so-called offshoring scheme, as he seeks to deter Tory attacks on Labour’s alternative to the Rwanda plan.The plan would see migrants having asylum claims processed overseas, with successful applicants allowed to come to the UK. But would you back this move?Meanwhile, the Institute for Public Policy Research has also set out an alternative proposal to the Government’s “impractical” and “costly” Rwanda scheme, including launching a unique refugee visa, particularly for Afghans, allowing them to apply for temporary leave to enter the UK via embassies in other countries, diminishing the need for Channel crossings.Alongside this, the IPPR called for renewed collaboration with European nations to tackle jointly people smuggling, resolve immigration statuses in northern France, and develop mutual agreements on processing asylum claims.Share your thoughts by adding them in the comments – we’ll highlight the most insightful ones as they come in.All you have to do is sign up and register your details – then you can then take part in the discussion. You can also sign up by clicking ‘log in’ on the top right-hand corner of the screen.Make sure you adhere to our community guidelines, which can be found here. For a full guide on how to comment click here.Join the conversation with other Independent readers below. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe UK and the United States have accused China of a global campaign of “malicious” cyber attacks in an unprecedented joint operation to reveal Beijing’s espionage.Britain has publicly blamed China for targeting the Electoral Commission watchdog and for being behind a campaign of online “reconnaissance” aimed at the email accounts of MPs and peers.Chinese spies are likely to use the stolen details to target dissidents and critics of Xi Jinping’s government in the UK, British intelligence services believe.US officials said the APT31 hacking group spent more than a decade targeting the sensitive data of politicians, journalists, academics, dissidents and American companies.The “prolific global hacking operation”, backed by the Chinese government, sought to “repress critics of the Chinese regime, compromise government institutions, and steal trade secrets,” US deputy attorney general Lisa Monaco said.The hackers sent more than 10,000 “malicious” emails to the targets to gain access to personal information, US prosecutors said, adding the criminals threatened to “undermine democracies and threaten our national security”.The US charged seven of the alleged Chinese hackers on Monday.The UK said Beijing-linked hackers were behind the attack on the Electoral Commission which exposed the personal data of 40 million voters, as well as 43 individuals including MPs and peers.A front company, Wuhan Xiaoruizhi Science and Technology Company, and two individuals, Zhao Guangzong and Ni Gaobin, linked to the APT31 hacking group were sanctioned in response to the hacks.However, some of the MPs targeted by Beijing said the response did not go far enough.They urged the Government to toughen its stance on China by labelling it a “threat” to national security rather than an “epoch-defining challenge”, and to put China in the “enhanced” tier under the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme.Conservative former minister Tim Loughton told Sky News: “We’re going to sanction two people, two pretty lowly officials, and one private company, which employs 50 people. That is just not good enough.”Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden, who announced the measures in a Commons statement, appeared to suggest China could soon be declared a “threat”.He told MPs that “we are currently in the process of collective Government agreement” over the matter, and that “clearly the conduct I have described today will have a very strong bearing on the decision that we make”.Cabinet tensions have reportedly surfaced over the issue, with some ministers pushing for tougher action on Beijing while others are resistant over concerns it could harm economic and trade relations.Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron said the actions were “completely unacceptable” and he had raised the issue with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.The Chinese ambassador has also been summoned to the Foreign Office to account for his country’s actions.The Electoral Commission attack was identified in October 2022 but the hackers had been able to access the commission’s systems containing the details of tens of millions of voters for more than a year by that point.The registers held at the time of the cyber attack include the name and address of anyone in the UK who was registered to vote between 2014 and 2022, as well as the names of those registered as overseas voters.The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), part of GCHQ, said it was likely that Chinese state-affiliated hackers stole emails and data from the electoral register.This, in combination with other data sources, was highly likely to have been used by Beijing’s intelligence services for large-scale espionage and transnational repression of perceived dissidents and critics based in the UK.There is no suggestion the hack had any impact on the largely paper-based UK electoral system.Mr Dowden insisted the local elections in May and the general election later this year would be safe from Chinese cyber attacks.He told the PA news agency: “Yes, I can guarantee that our electoral processes will be safe and secure.”The UK acted with support from allies in the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing partnership, which also includes the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, in identifying the Chinese-linked cyber campaigns.The Chinese government strongly denied that it had carried out, supported or encouraged cyber attacks on the UK, describing the claims as “completely fabricated and malicious slanders”.A spokesperson for China’s embassy in London said: “China has always firmly fought all forms of cyber attacks according to law.“China does not encourage, support or condone cyber attacks.“At the same time, we oppose the politicisation of cyber security issues and the baseless denigration of other countries without factual evidence.“We urge the relevant parties to stop spreading false information and stop their self-staged, anti-China political farce.” More