UK

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe new chancellor of a Scottish university, who describes herself as an “accidental trailblazer”, has said she will fulfil the role for the common good.Anne-Marie Imafidon has spent her career helping young women break into the largely male-dominated science, technology, engineering and maths (Stem).Recognised around the world for founding Stemettes, a social enterprise which encourages girls and young women to enter the field, Dr Imafidon will be officially installed as chancellor of Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) on July 2.She will be replacing singer and campaigner Annie Lennox, the university’s previous chancellor.The chancellor pictured outside of Glasgow Caledonian University. (GCU/PA)As Scotland’s largest modern university, GCU promotes women’s participation in Stem through its outreach programmes, mentoring, and by offering scholarships for women in engineering, and has also received awards for its commitment to gender equality.Originally from London, Dr Imafidon, 33, has worked on a wide range of Stem projects, including writing books on the industry, hosting podcasts and appearing on television shows, and Stemettes has reached around 60,000 young women.Ahead of her installation as chancellor, she said she is “really excited” to be working with GCU, and that she plans to be a “chancellor for the common good” – a key value held by the university.She said: “I actually set up quite a number of different businesses before I started Stemettes as an organisation and ran a networking events company at one point with my friends.”It was her early experiences of various forms of discrimination that led her to help make Stem industries a more accepting space for women.She said: “There are lots of things that were different about me that never really seemed to crop up in conversations or as we were building databases or whatever else.“It’s always been an interesting one to kind of reflect on being in that minority and something that, at times, is also a shrinking minority in technical spaces.“Stem has always been something I’ve enjoyed doing,  as a hobby as well as a career, and it’s only as I’ve got older and been more perceptive.“It’s interesting to reflect on being in that minority and something that, at times, is also a shrinking minority in technical spaces.The new chancellor met with GCU students earlier this year. (Peter Devlin/GCU/PA)“I’ve looked up and looked around in those rooms and noticed there’s something off about me being one of the only women in this space. I’ve ended up being an accidental trailblazer, recognising there’s a problem and wanting to do something about it. I’ve been driven and motivated, and also fortunate, to have an impact on changing the situation.“Starting Stemettes was a response to me noticing that I was one of very few women in the room. There’s a knock-on impact not just for individuals stepping into male-dominated tech spaces, but also for the economy at large.“I started Stemettes with the realisation that, if I ever have children, I don’t want them to reflect on the fact that their mum is one of the only ones left in a space that’s driving so much of what’s going on in the world.“If I have any girls, I don’t want them to feel like this is not something they should be a part of. The innovation we have now is hindered by not having women and girls at least around the table.“We’re building a lot of technology that’s ending up harming not only women and girls, but all of society, creating more problems than it’s solving with each technological advance.”She added: “I actually set up quite a number of different businesses before I started Stemettes as an organisation.“I ran a networking events company at one point with my friends, and my best friend and I, for a very, very short period, ran a dating company as well.“At GCU we have a big focus on entrepreneurship as well and the opportunities that that creates for folks when they embark on that journey.The Chancellor with Cara Nicole Edgar, a 4th year BEng (Hons) Computer Aided Mechanical Engineering student. (Peter Devlin/GCU/PA)“Starting Stemettes was actually a response to me noticing that I was one of very few in the room, but also that there’s a knock-on impact not just for individuals that would be stepping into male-dominated tech spaces, but also the economy at large.“I started Stemettes in that realisation that while I don’t have children, if I do I don’t want them to reflect on the fact that their mum is one of the only ones left in a space that’s driving so much of what’s going on in the world.“If I have any girls I don’t want them to feel like this is not something they should be a part of, and also any of the innovation that we have now by not having women and girls at least around that table.“We’re building a lot of technology that’s ending up harming not only women and girls, but all of society and is creating more problems that it’s solving with each technological advance.”Dr Imafidon will be installed as GCU chancellor at the Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow on Tuesday, as part of three days of graduations ceremonies for the university’s students. 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Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA black journalist was removed from a Reform UK rally by security guards saying they “didn’t know” why he was not allowed to attend the event.Femi Oluwole, 34, was turned away from Nigel Farage’s “biggest campaign rally” in Birmingham on Sunday despite showing security his press card.In footage, a security guard can be heard saying: “Unfortunately sir, you’ve been told you cannot come into the venue today.”When Mr Oluwole asked why, he said: “I don’t know. They’ve just told us you’re not allowed into the venue. I’ve been told you can’t come in.” Two security guards then physically escorted Mr Oluwole from the building.Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaking at his party’s rally in Birmingham on Sunday More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email A former Tory cabinet minister has accused Rishi Sunak of helping to ensure a large Labour victory as the Tory blame game escalates before even a single vote has been cast.John Redwood hit out at what he called the ‘One Nation leadership’ of his party. He said that together with Nigel Farage’s Reform, if they polls are correct, they will “visit on us” a Labour government “that may have a lower vote share than Labour led by Jeremy Corbyn… but have a large majority of MPs giving it a lot of potential power.” However, that would only hold if Labour “can keep its party together”, he added.Sir John Redwood More

Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UKSign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Sunday dismissed suggestions that his party was headed to defeat in the July 4 general election, using one of his final televised appearances to defend the Conservatives’ record on the economy.Sunak told the BBC that he believed he’d still be in power by the end of the week, despite opinion polls that have found the Conservatives trailing far behind the opposition Labour Party of Keir Starmer.“I’m fighting very hard,” Sunak said. “And I think people are waking up to the real danger of what a Labour government means.”While he acknowledged that the last few years “had been difficult for everyone,’’ Sunak declared it was “completely and utterly wrong” to suggest that Britain’s place in the world has diminished since Brexit.“It’s entirely wrong, this kind of declinist narrative that people have of the U.K. I wholeheartedly reject,” he said. “It (the U.K.) is a better place to live than it was in 2010.’’After 14 years of Conservative-led governments, many voters blame the party for Britain’s cost-of-living crisis, long waiting lists for health care, high levels of immigration and the dislocations caused by Britain’s departure from the European Union.Sunak, who became prime minister in October 2022, has tried to silence his critics by arguing that his policies have begun to solve those problems and warning that Starmer, the Labour leader, would raise taxes if his party wins the election. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailTikTok suspended the livestream of a Reform UK rally for around half an hour on Sunday, the social media platform has confirmed.The “temporary suspension” of the stream on Reform UK leader Nigel Farage’s account was due to a “moderation error”, a spokesperson for the site said.His access to TikTok’s “Live” feature has since been restored.Mr Farage addressed thousands of Reform UK supporters at Birmingham’s National Exhibition Centre on Sunday afternoon, along with other members of the party.People complained that the livestream cut out as Reform UK politician Ann Widdecombe addressed the crowd.Ann Widdecombe speaking during a Reform UK General Election campaign launch (Lucy North/PA) More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Long-serving Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte urged his country to support Ukraine and international cooperation in his final address to his compatriots Sunday, as an inward-looking new government is set to take over the Netherlands in two days.“It is crucial that our country is embedded in the European Union and NATO. Together we are stronger than alone. Especially now,” the 57-year-old Rutte said from his office in The Hague. After leading the country for 14 years, he will take his experience with consensus-building to Brussels, where he will take over as NATO’s new secretary-general later this year.He stressed the need to continue support for Ukraine, “for peace there and security here.” The new government, expected to take office on Tuesday, has pledged to maintain assistance. But far-right populist Geert Wilders, whose party won the largest block of seats in last year’s election, has expressed pro-Russia views and Kremlin backers cheered his victory at the polls. Rutte described the MH17 tragedy in 2014 as “perhaps the most drastic and emotional event” during his tenure. The passenger jet was shot down over eastern Ukraine as it traveled from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, killing all 298 passengers and crew, including 196 Dutch citizens.A Dutch court convicted two Russians and a pro-Moscow Ukrainian in 2022 of involvement in the downing of the Boeing 777. Known for cycling to meetings and his dedication to politics, Rutte highlighted his country’s positive attributes. “There is no war here, you can be who you are, we are prosperous,” he said in the 12-minute speech. He acknowledged that there had been low points during his tenure, including a child benefits scandal that wrongly labeled thousands of parents as fraudsters.Wearing a white shirt with several of the top buttons undone, Rutte said that his time in office had added some “gray hairs and wrinkles” to his appearance. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailAs you drive into Clacton there are scores of pro-Farage Reform posters asking people to “save Britain” in what is becoming a struggle for the soul of right-of-centre politics.Only as you travel out to the more genteel areas of the constituency, like Frinton, do they give way to “I stand with Giles” boards. But Giles Watling, the Tory MP defending his Clacton seat, may be the only Conservative candidate in this election with a wide coalition of support across the country willing him to win.In the wake of the Channel 4 News expose of the Reform Clacton team and the racist comments by one of the canvassers Andrew Parker, Watling received a telephone call from Tony Blair’s former spin doctor Alastair Campbell, in normal circumstances no lover of Tories.Giles Watling is defending his Clacton seat for the Tories More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailCandidates can turn up just about anywhere on the campaign trail, but several families were shocked when Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg walked into their children’s first holy communion. Sir Jacob had permission to appear with his family and a film crew for a mass at St Joseph and St Teresa Church in Somerset earlier this month, but while a sign had been put up, the families of some dozen children said they did not know he would be in attendance.Parents, including Gideon Davey, whose 10-year-old daughter Ottilie received her first holy communion, initially believed the film crew was there on behalf of the church.“This spiritual and deeply personal occasion will forever be stained by a selfish and self-promoting stunt,” he said.The reason for the film crew accompanying the Conservative candidate for North East Somerset and Hanham has been kept under wraps. Earlier this month it emerged Mr Rees-Mogg was in talks with Discovery+ over a fly-on-the-wall documentary. Gideon Davey with his daughter after she received her First Holy Communion during a church service attended by Jacob Rees-Mogg and his film crew More