Home News

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailA defiant House of Lords has refused to cave to ministers and sent Rishi Sunak’s flagship Rwanda plan back to the Commons – with two key demands. Peers voted on Wednesday night in favour of an amendment to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill that would exempt Afghan heroes who supported UK troops overseas from being deported.They also insisted on a monitoring committee to assess whether Rwanda is safe before the government sends asylum seekers there. MPs have refused to make concessions to their plan to deport asylum seekers to the east African country, with Downing Street insisting the bill is “the right way forward”.But members of the Lords refused to back down, meaning that the bill will return to the Commons again – most likely on Monday. MPs are expected to vote down the changes again, forcing it back to the Lords. Rishi Sunak has promised to send asylum seekers to Rwanda this spring More

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailTory MPs have again rejected a plan to stop Afghan heroes who supported British troops from being deported to Rwanda. Parliamentarians on Monday night overturned multiple amendments to the Safety of Rwanda Bill by the House of Lords, including one that would have exempted anyone who supported British armed forces in a meaningful way from being deported to Rwanda. MPs voted 312 to 253, majority 59, to reject Lords amendment 10B, which sought to exempt agents, allies and employees of the UK overseas from being removed to Rwanda. The exemption included people eligible for entry to the UK under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) and the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS).The Bill will return to the Lords on Tuesday for further scrutiny.The Lords and the Commons have been debating the Rwanda Bill, with the legislation going back and forth between the houses as peers try and force the government to make changes to the proposed legislation. Mr Sunak’s government is using the Safety of Rwanda Bill to try and prevent any legal challenges by asylum seekers to their deportation. More

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailAfter the most disastrous stint in Downing Street in living memory, Liz Truss is preparing to release her memoir.She will argue she was ousted by the establishment and make a play for the ideological heart of the Tory Party.The collapse of her project, known as “Trussonomics”, dealt a hammer blow to the Tory party’s long-held reputation for fiscal responsibility and careful economic planning.Former prime minister Liz Truss sat alongside her former friend and chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng More

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailThe Reform UK Party has said it is “mortified” after sacking an election candidate – who had died after being selected.Officials dropped Tommy Cawkwell for being “inactive” when he failed to respond to phone calls and emails.The right-wing party, founded by Nigel Farage as the Brexit Party, said it had dropped the York Central candidate, alongside about 50 others who had planned to stand at the next general election.When Reform UK first sacked him, a spokesman said: “We need candidates who are active to give people the candidates they deserve”, adding: “We can’t afford to have people doing nothing in an election year.”The reason given was that incorrect reports had emerged that his candidacy had been withdrawn for “inappropriate” social media messages.In fact, Mr Cawkwell, who was a former RNLI volunteer, had died after being selected.Party chiefs said they were “mortified” for not knowing he had died.A spokesperson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “The simple fact is that we have removed upwards of 50 candidates for complete inactivity, and I know those who had been removed for disciplinary measures.“Mr Cawkwell was clearly not one of those.“Sadly I was unaware that he had died and I made an assumption based on the knowledge I possessed.“I am mortified that my lack of care has caused his family pain, and I can only apologise profusely for my mistake.“I do not know how to get hold of the family. If I did, I would apologise in person.”The party has ditched seven candidates for the forthcoming election following complaints about their social media posts.Leader Richard Tice has warned his candidates not to use social media after drinking alcohol, to avoid posting “inappropriate” comments.The party has also drawn criticism over some of its other candidates, including a convicted animal abuser and a fortune-teller who sold spells for £200 online.Mr Tice has previously said the party wanted to stand against every Conservative MP at the next election.A poll six months ago suggested Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives were losing more of their 2019 voters to Reform UK than to Labour.The Reform spokesman told The Mirror: “The process, if we have not heard from a candidate in a while, we try and get in touch, a number of phone calls and emails are made, then if no response a final email is sent suggesting that the candidate does not respond then they will be removed.“Reform was not aware that Mr Cawkwell had passed away, as this happened in an interregnum between Yorkshire area managers. So with no response being made he was removed.” More

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailEmbattled MP William Wragg accidentally allowed his WiFi password to be made public when he was photographed for a newspaper.The now-independent politician, who resigned the Conservative whip on Tuesday after admitting giving colleagues’ phone numbers to a suspected scammer, posed for a photo published in The Observer – with a note of the password scribbled on Commons-headed notepaper and pinned to a board behind him.Viewers were able to easily read the password over his shoulder in the picture.It was not immediately clear when the photograph was taken, but social media users said Mr Wragg should immediately change the password.The MP for Hazel Grove in Greater Manchester is now sitting as an independent More

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailRwanda’s state-owned airline has turned down a proposal to transport asylum seekers to Kigali as part of Rishi Sunak’s controversial flagship scheme to cut immigration.RwandAir, which is owned by the Rwandan government, was approached last year about being part of Mr Sunak’s plan but turned down the opportunity due to fears about reputational harm.A Home Office insider told the Financial Times: “RwandAir said ‘No’ because of the potential damage to their brand.”Mr Sunak has made stopping small boats crossing the Channel one of his core promises to voters but it has been mired in legal difficulties, leading to severe delays in implementing the policy.The Supreme Court ruled against it last year and nobody has yet been sent to Rwanda. Mr Sunak hosted Rwandan president Paul Kagame in Downing Street on Tuesday. A spokesman said: “Both leaders looked forward to flights departing to Rwanda in the spring.”Last week, Mr Sunak said he would be willing to defy orders from the European Court of Human Rights if necessary to implement his Rwanda plan.The meeting took place as Freedom from Torture launched a campaign to pressure carrier AirTanker – which the charity says is in talks to be part of the scheme – to rule themselves out of Mr Sunak’s plan.AirTanker operates the UK’s fleet of aerial refuelling craft, which are also used as passenger aeroplanes. In a post on its website, the charity said: “Right now, it’s being reported that the airline AirTanker are in talks with the government to fly refugees to Rwanda as part of their cruel cash for humans scheme.“This government’s Rwanda scheme flies in the face of international law, the UK Supreme Court and common human decency. It’s cruel, and it’s wrong. We see the terror it’s inflicting on survivors of torture every day in our therapy rooms.“In 2022, AirTanker ruled themselves out of being part of this scheme. It’s time for them to do the right thing again.”The revelation comes just days after reports that properties earmarked for migrants deported from the UK have instead been sold to local buyers in Rwanda.Of the 163 affordable homes on the Bwiza Riverside estate, 70 per cent have been sold, meaning there is only space for a few dozen migrants, the Times reported.The prices of the properties funded as part of a public-private partnership between the Kigali government and ADHI Corporate Group range between £14,000 and £27,000.A manager at the estate said the homes had been sold to “private people who want to live in them”.Labour demanded “urgent clarity” on the Rwanda scheme “farce” following the Times report, calling on the Prime Minister to address it directly while the Commons is away on Easter recess.“Now it seems there will be even less capacity to house those that are removed. The Tories’ so-called plan is unravelling by the day and taxpayers are footing the bill. It’s time for change,” shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock said.According to the latest Home Office figures, 82 migrants were detected crossing the English Channel in small boats on Monday, taking the total so far this year to 5,517.AirTanker has been contacted for comment. More

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailSenior MP William Wragg has resigned the Conservative whip after he admitted giving politicians’ phone numbers to a suspected scammer.The party’s whips office said he was “voluntarily relinquishing the Conservative whip” after he had already stepped back from his roles as vice-chair of the backbench 1922 Committee and chair of the commons public administration and constitutional affairs committee.The Hazel Grove MP had previously announced his intention to leave parliament at the next election and will now sit as an independent.Mr Wragg admitted last week that he had given colleagues’ phone numbers to someone on a dating app amid fears that intimate images of himself would be leaked after he was targeted in a parliamentary sexting scam.Scotland Yard has said it is investigating reports of the so-called “honey trap” scam after it was suggested that at least 12 men in political circles received unsolicited messages, raising security concerns.The investigation is not thought to involve the security services.The unknown scammer is said to have used the aliases “Charlie” and “Abi” while sending flirtatious messages to coax MPs into sending explicit pictures.Mr Wragg said he was sorry for his “weakness” in responding, an apology which was praised as “courageous and fulsome” by chancellor Jeremy Hunt.But pressure has mounted in recent days amid concerns over parliamentary security, with critics from across the political divide questioning Mr Wragg’s behaviour. More

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailA minister has warned people should not arrested just because they smell amid a mounting backlash over a fiercely criticised piece of legislation which criminalises homelessness.Draft legislation for the Criminal Justice Bill seeks to criminalise “nuisance rough sleeping”, stating this includes anyone who has slept rough, is “intending to sleep rough”, or “gives the appearance” of sleeping rough and causes a nuisance while doing so.The definition of so-called “nuisance” even includes “excessive smells”. Offenders can be hit with a month in prison or fines of up to £2,500 if convicted.Education Secretary Gillian Keegan told Sky News on Tuesday she would back government policy but warned people “should not be arrested just if they smell”.She added: “I haven’t looked at that detail of it, but I guess the word is ‘excessive’, and I don’t know what they mean by that.”Her comments come as over 40 Conservative MPs are expected to rebel against elements of the controversial legislation that criminalise “nuisance” rough sleepers.It comes after leading housing charities recently told The Independent they fear measures criminalising homelessness in the Criminal Justice Bill could hit women hardest.The new legislation, expected to become law before the general election, includes vague ill-defined measures that mean sleeping in doorways or hidden spots could be defined as nuisance behaviour and therefore criminalised. Campaigners are fearful women could be worst hit due to the fact they often seek out hidden spots to protect themselves from sexual violence, harassment and other dangers when sleeping on the streets.A former rough sleeper recently told The Independent about her experience of being homeless on and off from the age of 16 until her forties as she branded the bill a “Dickensian” piece of legislation.“It’s a disgrace,” the now 54-year-old said. “If the government thinks the way to end homelessness is to outlaw it, then they are not facing the issue of homelessness. To say, ‘you look homeless, so I’m going to arrest you’ – that is leaving the police with an untold amount of power to just arrest anybody that they like.”Former home secretary Suella Braverman – who provoked criticism when she referred to rough sleeping as a “lifestyle choice” – introduced the legislation to parliament.Senior government sources say the bill has been put on hold while ministers consult with MPs from both the left and right of the Tory Party who have raised fears about the proposals, The Times reports.Bob Blackman, a Tory MP for Harrow East, has tabled measures to ensure the government meets its initial pledge to repeal the 1824 Vagrancy Act.The Criminal Justice Bill has been branded as “the Vagrancy Act 2.0 on steroids” by senior Lib Dem MP Layla Moran – in reference to the intensely criticised 200-year-old piece of legislation.While parliament voted to repeal the Vagrancy Act in February 2022, this has not yet come into force, and the advent of the Criminal Justice Bill signifies a U-turn from the government given the draconian measures included in the legislation. More