UK

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe Independent’s “crucial” investigation into Nadhim Zahawi has been praised after the former chancellor announced he will stand down at the next election. Mr Zahawi said his mistakes “have been mine” as on Thursday he joined the long list of Tories set to leave parliament. His withdrawal from politics comes a year after he was sacked by Rishi Sunak after an ethics probe found serious breaches of the ministerial code over his tax affairs.The investigation was sparked byThe Independent’s revelation of an HMRC investigation into the MP over his tax affairs. Mr Zahawi tried to stop this publication exposing the investigation by threatening to sue if we published.At the time, the then chancellor repeatedly said he had paid all due taxes and would “one hundred per cent take legal action” if we reported that he had been investigated.However, The Independent ignored his threats and published two reports, detailing how Mr Zahawi had faced inquiries from the Serious Fraud Office, the National Crime Agency and HMRC. The investigation was sparked by The Independent’s revelation of an HMRC investigation into the MP over his tax affairs More

‘Failed’ asylum system offers ‘false hope’ to migrants, Starmer saysSign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailKeir Starmer has unveiled a counter-terror style small boats plan that will “replace gimmicks with graft” by scrapping the Rwanda scheme.He has vowed to partly fund a new “elite” border unit as he set out his plans to stop small boats crossing the Channel.In a speech at Dover, the Labour leader accused the Conservatives of operating a “Travelodge amnesty” by housing asylum-seekers in hotels rather than processing their claims.He was accompanied by new Labour MP Natalie Elphicke, who has slammed the Tories approach on boats just days after defecting from the party. Speaking about her admission, he said the move represents the “mood of the country” as Rishi Sunak is “clinging on by his fingernails” to power.During the press conference, the opposition leader hasn’t ruled out letting Nigel Farage join the Labour Party.It comes after shadow health secretary Wes Streeting  claimed more Tory MPs were considering defecting to Labour because of “division and incompetence” in Rishi Sunak’s government, claiming to have spoken to others “who are wrestling with their future”.Show latest update 1715352894First UK deportation flight ‘to take off in June’The first asylum seekers were originally set to be flown out of the ground in July. But court documents have now revealed that flights could take off in June. Government lawyers said: “In the prime minister’s press conference on 22 April he said the first flight would leave in 10 to 12 weeks. The 10th week after 22 April starts with the week commencing 24 June.“We are instructed that this is the earliest possible date for the first removals and that the decision on the precise date will be based on operational considerations and progress over the coming weeks.”Salma Ouaguira10 May 2024 15:541715352283Let’s recap…If you’re joining us now here’s what you’ve missed:Sir Keir Starmer has outlined a plan to curve small boats crossings and crack down on people smugglers. The Labour leader has promised to totally scrap the Rwanda deportation scheme as it is a “gimmick”.During the press conference in Dover Starmer hasn’t ruled out accepting far-right politician Nigel Farage into the party.The Tories have clapped back at Labour with an MP slamming the plan as “already being done”. Salma Ouaguira10 May 2024 15:441715351683What are the polls saying?The Tories have lost ground after a disastrous local election.Labour is leading the way with 44 points, according to a poll from today.Salma Ouaguira10 May 2024 15:341715351063Refugee Council calls for a ‘fair’ asylum system The Refugee Council, which provides support to asylum seekers, has urged the government to tackle applicants waiting in limbo to be processed. CEO of the Refugee Council Enver Solomon said:“Whoever is in government must focus beyond anything else on running a fair and effective asylum system that actually processes people’s claims. “The current system is in meltdown, with thousands of people shut out of the asylum process and living in indefinite limbo. “Men, women and children from countries such as Afghanistan and Syria with clear protection needs face endless uncertainty, while those whose claims have been refused are not being supported to return to the countries from which they came.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailJames Cleverly has been mocked for appearing to forget his own government’s policy to welcome Syrian asylum seekers.The Home Secretary shared a 2015 article in which Labour’s shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper called for Britain to take in 10,000 refugees from Syria during the 2015 European migrant crisis.After Ms Cooper and Sir Keir Starmer made a major speech on Labour’s asylum policy, Mr Cleverly used the article to suggest she could not be trusted with “stopping the boats”.James Cleverly appeared to forget his past support for the resettlement of Syrian refugees More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailJeremy Hunt has admitted Conservative MPs are “losing their nerve” as they continue to be trounced by Labour in the polls. Westminster was stunned this week with the shock defection of Tory MP Natalie Elphicke to Labour.The move added to Rishi Sunak’s woes just days after he appeared to see off Tory rebels keen to oust him, after bruising devastating local election results. Ben Houchen, the Tory Mayor of the Tees Valley, has also urged Mr Sunak to get a grip of his party as he warned the “public do not vote for parties who are not united”. Asked about both Lord Houchen’s comments and Ms Elphicke’s defection said: “What he (Houchen) said was divided parties don’t win elections and we need to pull together as a Conservative Party.“I think that when you see we are behind in the polls, unfortunately some colleagues do lose their nerve.” He added: “But the vast majority of parliamentary colleagues, they understand a very simple truth which is that people vote for Conservative governments because they trust us to take tough and difficult decisions in the long term interests of the economy. They can see that we have done that.”His comment come as Tory MPs panic over who could be next to defect to Labour. Many admit they were blindsided by Ms Elphicke’s decision to cross the floor, as she has been seen as one of the most right wing on the party’s benches. Her defection came hot on the heels of ex-Tory MP Dan Poulter, who joined Keir Starmer’s team last month. But Westminster is awash with rumours another Tory politician is soon to make the jump. Jeremy Hunt (Kirsty Wigglesworth/PA) More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSir Keir Starmer has refused to rule out letting Nigel Farage into Labour Party, but joked that he would be the last person wanting to join his party.The Labour leader was introduced by former Tory MP Natalie Elphicke ahead of a major speech on immigration just days after her defection.Sir Keir said it is “great to have you” to Ms Elphicke, whose shock decision to cross the floor of the House of Commons sparked fury among Labour MPs.Sir Keir Starmer said Nigel Farage would not More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWatch as Sir Keir Starmer gives a speech on Labour’s small boat policy from Dover on Friday 10 May.Labour will use new counter-terrorism powers to tackle people-smuggling gangs bringing migrants across the Channel, Sir Keir announced.In a speech on the Kent coast, the Labour leader set out his party’s plans to tackle the small boats crisis if it wins the general election.Sir Keir said Labour will “replace gimmicks with graft”, scrapping the government’s Rwanda scheme and using some of the money saved to fund a new “elite Border Security Command” led by a former police, military or intelligence chief.Attacking the government’s approach as “rank incompetence”, he dismissed the Rwanda scheme as being unable to provide an effective deterrent and accused the Conservatives of operating a “Travelodge amnesty” by housing migrants in hotels rather than processing their claims.Sir Keir also stressed his experience as the former head of the Crown Prosecution Service and pledged to make Britain “hostile territory” for people smugglers. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe defection of Natalie Elphicke from the Tories has played a role in boosting Labours poll lead by two points in just a week.According to Techne UK’s weekly tracker poll, shared with The Independent, Labour’s support among those who would vote rose to 45 percent (up 1) while the Tories’s dropped a point to 21 percent giving Sir Keir Starmer a commanding 24-point lead.The survey of 1,638 UK voters was taken in the wake of Dover MP Ms Elphicke crossing the floor from the Tories to Labour with a damning indictment of Rishi Sunak’s government being “divided and incompetent”.Ms Elphicke was particularly unhappy about the government failing to meet Mr Sunak’s pledge of “stopping the boats” of asylum seekers crossing the Channel from France.Elphicke takes her place behind Starmer More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Lithuania is holding a presidential election on Sunday at a time when Russian gains on the battlefield in Ukraine are fueling greater fears across all of Europe about Moscow’s intentions, but particularly in the strategically important Baltic region.The popular incumbent, Gitanas Nausėda, is favored to win another five-year term. But there are eight candidates running in all, making it unlikely that he or any other candidate can win the 50% of the votes needed to win outright on Sunday. In that case, a runoff would be held two weeks later on May 26.The president’s main tasks in Lithuania’s political system are overseeing foreign and security policy, and acting as the supreme commander of the armed forces. Those duties and the nation’s strategic location along NATO’s eastern flank amid a larger geopolitical standoff between Russia and the West add heft to the role despite Lithuania’s relatively small size.There is great concern in Lithuania, and in neighboring Latvia and Estonia, about Russia’s gaining momentum in Ukraine. All three Baltic states declared independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union and took a determined westward course, joining both the European Union and NATO.Nausėda, a moderate conservative who turns 60 a week after Sunday’s election day, has been a strong backer of Ukraine, a position shared across most of the political spectrum. During his time in office, Lithuania has also given refuge to many who have fled an authoritarian crackdown in neighboring Belarus and increased repression in Russia.Nausėda, a former banker who entered politics with his successful presidential run in 2019, is seen as the “safe choice for voters of almost all ideological persuasions,” said Tomas Janeliūnas, an analyst at Vilnius University’s Institute of International Relations and Political Science. Polls show that his main opponents are Ignas Vėgėlė, a populist lawyer, who is in second place according to recent opinion polls, and Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė, who is in third place in the surveys.Not all voters view Nausėda as the safer option.Asta Valanciene, a teacher from Vilnius, said that she would vote for Šimonytė because of the prime minister’s longer experience in politics than newcomer Nausėda.“I would rather give her a chance than witness another five years of this random guy in office. I simply trust professionals,” Valanciene said.A former finance minister, Šimonytė became prime minister in 2020 after a failed presidential run in 2019, with Nausėda winning that election with 66% of the votes in the runoff.Vėgėlė gained popularity among some Lithuanians during the COVID-19 pandemic by harshly criticizing the lockdown and vaccination policies of the current government. A second-place win for Vėgėlė could propel him to a prominent role in national politics before Lithuania’s parliamentary election this fall — and would be a sharp blow to the prime minister, said Rima Urbonaitė, a political analyst at Mykolas Romeris University in Vilnius.“For first place, everything is almost clear, but it’s hard to say who else would get into the second round. Nausėda’s chances of reelection are high. However, this time, second place becomes very significant,” Urbonaitė said.While both Nausėda and Šimonytė are strong advocates of greater military spending and big supporters of Kyiv, several other candidates call aid to Ukraine an invitation for Russia to invade Lithuania.Vėgėlė’s comments on the issue of aid to Ukraine have sometimes been vague, and he has mocked those who advocate increasing defense spending to 4% of gross domestic product, double NATO’s target.A referendum is also on the ballot Sunday. It asks whether the constitution should be amended to allow dual citizenship for hundreds of thousands of Lithuanians living abroad. Lithuanian citizens who adopt another nationality currently must give up their Lithuanian citizenship, creating vulnerabilities for a nation whose population has fallen from 3.5 million in 1990 to 2.8 million today.If it passes, the parliament would be able to amend the 1992 Constitution so people who have acquired Lithuanian citizenship by birth will be able to keep it if they acquire citizenship of another country “friendly to Lithuania.”A similar attempt to change the fundamental law failed in 2019 because turnout was below a required 50% of registered voters to be valid. More