UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA Labour MP has apologised for an “outburst” after he was heard swearing in the Commons chamber.Clive Lewis could be heard loudly saying “s***” before he walked out of the room, as MPs voted on the Government’s Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill.But the Norwich South MP later said it happened after he received a message which “caused me some consternation and surprise” and was not directed at any particular individual.Deputy Speaker Sir Roger Gale had told the chamber: “I’m informed that a Member swore at one of the doorkeepers this evening who on my instructions lock the doors.“If that person is identified the consequences will be very severe.”MPs have a time limit to vote during a division and doorkeepers are instructed to lock the doors to the voting lobby once this elapses.But Mr Lewis later made a point of order to say: “I’d like to put on record if I could my apologies to the chamber, to members and members of staff, for an earlier outburst I had.“If I could very quickly explain, I received a message which caused me some consternation and surprise to which I made an outburst in general at no-one specifically.“If I could do it again I’d probably have said something like ‘my giddy aunt’, rather what did come out of my mouth, and for that I apologise.“But just to clear the air and put on record the fact that it was directed at no-one in particular.”Sir Roger replied: “I appreciate the honourable gentleman’s candour in identifying himself and the fullness of the nature of his apology, which is accepted.” More

Former US president Barack Obama met with Rishi Sunak in a “courtesy visit” to Downing Street on Monday 18 March.Mr Obama spent around an hour inside the No 10 study with the prime minister.He joked he was “tempted” to discuss the state of Russian democracy when members of the media asked him to stop as he left with the US ambassador to the UK, Jane D Hartley, just after 4pm.It is understood Mr Sunak and Mr Obama discussed a range of subjects, including artificial intelligence, in a largely one-on-one meeting. More

A Labour MP has compared the cost of the government’s Rwanda scheme to Virgin Galactic “sending six people to space” during a debate in the House of Commons.Neil Coyle urged the Tories to “rethink” the bill ahead of another vote on Monday 18 March, in which Rishi Sunak will seek to reverse the defeats from the House of Lords.“Is the minister aware that Virgin Galactic can send six people into space for less than this government wants to spend sending one person to Rwanda?” Mr Coyle asked illegal migration minister Michael Tomlinson.“Is it not time to rethink this absurd policy and extortionate cost?” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailMPs have been shown a Scottish-made “unicorn” satellite as they heard from companies in the country’s space sector.Tom Walkinshaw, CEO of the Glasgow-based satellite manufacturer Alba Orbital, brought one of his company’s Unicorn-2 products to the House of Commons to show members of the Scottish Affairs Committee.The company specialises in making “picosatellites” which weigh less than one kilogram.It has launched 41 of them so far, including 15 Unicorns built in Glasgow, with the rest being from partners around the world.The company was started by Mr Walkinshaw from his bedroom and has grown rapidly, recently raising money through the Y Combinator venture capital process which has linked some of the US’s largest technology companies with investors.Along with Steve Greenland of Craft Prospect Ltd, Mr Walkinshaw gave evidence to the Scottish Affairs Committee on Monday as part of its inquiry into the Scottish space sector.Showing the Unicorn-2 to the committee at the start of the hearing, Mr Walkinshaw said it had been “fun” taking it past the Commons’ security.Committee convener Pete Wishart said: “It’s probably the first time a satellite has ever been produced at a Westminster select committee.“So congratulations, a trailblazer in that regard.”The Unicorn-2 is named after Scotland’s national animal and can feature a camera for Earth observation missions and pop-out solar panels, with the Alba Orbital founder saying “it’s a fully functional little satellite that does everything a bigger satellite can do, but in a smaller form factor”.However, larger satellite are able to use cameras with higher definition, he said.Discussing how the Scottish space sector received support from governments, Mr Walkinshaw said the burden of audit requirements from the European Space Agency was one of the reasons they were forced to go to the US for venture capital funding.Alba Orbital carries out its satellite licencing process in Germany, he said, describing the UK’s regulatory system for satellites as “out of date”. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailBarack Obama has visited Downing Street for a surprise meeting at No 10 with Rishi Sunak. The former US president – who served in the White House between 2009 and 2017 – waved at reporters outside before he entered the prime minister’s residence for a previously undisclosed private meeting at 3pm. A Downing Street spokesperson insisted the visit was an “informal courtesy drop in” as part of the former president’s visit to London.They added: “President Obama’s team made contact and obviously the prime minister was very happy to to meet with him and discuss the work of the Obama Foundation.”Mr Obama left No 10 after around an hour following a meeting with Mr Sunak.The former US president said “I’m tempted” when asked questions by the media as he re-emerged and got into a Range Rover car with Jane D Hartley, the US ambassador to the UK, just after 4pm.Former US president Barack Obama leaves following a meeting at 10 Downing Street, LondonThe Barack Obama Foundation is a nonprofit organisation focused on social mobility that was founded by the former president back in 2014.The last time Mr Obama visited Downing Street was eight years ago in 2016.The former president met with then prime minister David Cameron at Number 10 for talks ahead of the Brexit vote.He warned the UK would be at the “back of the queue” for US trade deals if it left the European Union.The two leaders also held a joint news conference at the Foreign Office. Mr Obama said the US “wants Britain’s influence to grow – including within Europe”.The talks come as Mr Sunak said he has “confidence for the future: as he battles to shore up his position as prime minister following rumours that his party is looking to replace him ahead of a general election.Mr Sunak’s failure to turn around the Tories’ opinion poll deficit has fuelled speculation about Conservative MPs considering replacing him with Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt in an attempt to avoid a general election disaster.Business secretary Kemi Badenoch told plotters seeking to oust the prime minister to “stop messing around” and end the “Westminster psychodrama”.Ms Badenoch suggested “one or two MPs” are behind the Westminster rumours and they should not be allowed to “dominate the news narrative”.She told BBC Breakfast: “I’m sure if Penny was here, she would be distancing herself from those comments.”Ms Mordaunt has not publicly commented on reports about a bid to elevate her to the Tory leadership, but a source close to her rejected them as “nonsense”. More

London mayor Sadiq Khan has claimed London is a “safer city” than Berlin, Madrid and Paris but admits he does not want to be “complacent” as he launched his bid for a third term in office.Citing research from University College London, Mr Khan claimed that the capital was safer than most major cities in Europe and the United States despite recent ONS figures suggesting knife crime had risen.“Both as a member of parliament and as the mayor I have met too many victims of crime,” he admitted on Monday 18 March.Mr Khan added that Londoners have the “opportunity” to vote in a Labour government and mayor to “work together” this year. More

Barack Obama arrived at Downing Street on Monday, 18 March, for an undisclosed private meeting.The former US president, who served in the White House from 2009 to 2017, smiled and waved at members of the press before he entered Rishi Sunak’s residence just after 3pm.The reason for his visit was not immediately confirmed at the time of reporting.Mr Obama’s London trip came after he met the Belgian royal family over the weekend at their official residence, the Palace of Laeken. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWatch as Rishi Sunak set out the Conservatives’ pledge to create up to 20,000 more apprenticeships in a speech on Monday, 18 March.The prime minister detailed plans the government says will fully fund training for young people and cut red tape for small businesses.Mr Sunak’s reforms “will unlock a tidal wave of opportunity”, he said.The announcement was made at a conference for small firms in Warwickshire.Under the plans, the government will pay the full cost of apprenticeships for under-21-year-olds in small businesses from 1 April in a move aimed at reducing burdens for employers and providing more professional training places for young people.It comes as Mr Sunak’s premiership faces a threat from a chaotic plot of backbench Tory MPs who want to replace him with Penny Mordaunt before the general election.Politicians from across the party are said to have met and held talks about “coronating” the leader of the House of Commons as prime minister in what would be the Tories’ sixth PM since the 2010 general election. More