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Related video: MP who made Rayner complaint unable to explain what offence he thinks she committedSign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailDowning Street has ruled out making concessions on its Safety of Rwanda Bill as more parliamentary ping pong looms.Peers on Tuesday voted to amend the legislation for a third time, further prolonging parliamentary wrangling over the law intended to clear the way for asylum-seekers who cross the Channel in small boats to be deported to Rwanda.The government had been reportedly considering concessions, including exemptions for Afghans who assisted British forces, but the prime minister’s official spokesman ruled out any such move.Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer accused “billionaires” Rishi Sunak and Tory peer Lord Ashcroft of “smearing a working class woman”, his deputy, Angela Rayner.The pair have criticised Ms Rayner over the sale of her former council house, suggesting she may have failed to pay capital gains tax or given false information.Earlier it was reported that the police probe was looking at several allegations including tax relating to the sale.Also at Prime Minister’s Questions, Rishi Sunak refused to rule out cuts to the NHS and state pensions to fund a £46bn national insurance giveaway.Show latest update 1713365455MPs reject bid to ensure Rwanda Bill follows human-rights lawsMPs have voted by 306 to 240, a majority of 66, to reject a Lords amendment that sought to ensure the Safety of Rwanda Bill had “due regard” for international and key domestic laws, including human rights and modern slavery legislation.Jane Dalton17 April 2024 15:501713365154No 10 refuses to consider more Rwanda Bill concessionsDowning Street has ruled out making concessions on its Safety of Rwanda Bill as MPs and peers prepare for another round of parliamentary ping pong.Peers have voted for a third time to amend the legislation that will allow asylum-seekers crossing the Channel in small boats to be deported to Rwanda.The government had been reported to be considering making some concessions to ensure the Bill’s passage, including on exemptions for Afghan nationals who assisted British forces.But the Prime Minister’s official spokesman ruled out any such move, telling reporters: “We are not considering concessions. We believe the Bill as it stands is the right Bill and the quickest way to get flights off the ground.”MPs are therefore likely to reject the Lords’ amendments once again, before sending the legislation back to the Upper House later on Wednesday.It will then be up to peers to decide whether to press their changes further, with Labour saying it would back two amendments proposed by the Lords.A party spokesman said Labour would “continue to take the position that we have so far”, including by supporting proposals to exempt Afghans who helped UK troops.There is potential for further debate on the Bill until late on Wednesday night as the legislation passes between Parliament’s two houses if agreement is not reached.Jane Dalton17 April 2024 15:451713364941Watch: Tory minister says she will not be reading Liz Truss’s new bookTory minister says she will not be reading Liz Truss’s new bookJane Dalton17 April 2024 15:421713357014Ex-Tory minister slams ‘hypocritical’ focus on Angela Rayner’s tax affairs as police probe multiple claimsNick Boles, who was an MP for nine years, slammed the scrutiny over the sale of Ms Rayner’s former council home and whether she avoided paying the right tax or had correctly registered at the right address.Full report: Matt Mathers17 April 2024 13:301713355655‘Shout a bit louder so none of us can hear’: MPs in row over Rayner house sale live on airTwo MPs became embroiled in a row over the investigation into Angela Rayner and the sale of her former home live on air after PMQs.James Daly, the Conservative Party deputy chairman, was asked by senior Labour MP Chris Bryant what offences he thought Ms Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, had committed.Greater Manchester Police launched an investigation after Mr Daly contacted them with concerns about how the force had initially responded after it emerged that Ms Rayner had not paid capital gains tax on the sale of the property.When asked by the Labour MP what he thought Ms Rayner had done, Mr Daly said “the matter is with Greater Manchester Police – they’ve confirmed” before being interrupted by Mr Bryant.“Shout a bit louder so none of us can hear,” Mr Daly then told Mr Bryant. “Unlike Chris, who shouts and makes all sorts of public allegations, what I want to do is – an allegation has been made to the police, the police are investigating that allegation – lets give them the time and opportunity to do that”.It is the second time this week Mr Daly has refused to say what offences he thought Ms Rayner had committed. Read more below: Matt Mathers17 April 2024 13:071713355231Watch: Sunak takes aim at Rayner’s ‘tax affairs’ during fiery exchange over Liz Truss’s book at PMQs More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA former Tory minister has joined high profile figures to come out in defence of deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner as police investigating claims about her former living arrangements say they are considering multiple allegations.Nick Boles, who was an MP for nine years, slammed the scrutiny over the sale of Ms Rayner’s former council home and whether she avoided paying the right tax or had correctly registered at the right address.“The Conservative attack on Angela Rayner is one of the most grotesque spectacles of hypocrisy I have ever witnessed,” he said while former Conservative MP Matthew Parris condemned what he called “the hounding” of the Labour MP, dubbing it “outrageous: brutal, snobbish and completely out of proportion to any mistake she may (or may not) have made”.Former chief prosecutor Nazir Afzal also said that “based on whats in the public domain”, the crown prosecutor would take no action against Ms Rayner. Their comments come as Greater Manchester police chief Stephen Watson suggested there were multiple allegations which may extend beyond her housing arrangements.The GMP had previously announced they were investigating the Labour deputy leader over the sale of her council house in Stockport and whether she broke electoral law by giving false information of her address during the 2010s.During an appearance on BBC Radio Manchester, Mr Watson said: “All I would say in line with what we’ve put out publicly is there are a number of assertions knocking about, I don’t need to tell people that.Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable Stephen Watson made the remarks on BBC Radio Manchester (James Speakman/PA) 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 faces Sir Keir Starmer in Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday 17 April.The House of Commons returned from Easter recess this week, with the government’s flagship Rwanda policy, smoking ban and Iran’s attack on Israel high on the agenda.Mr Sunak’s proposal to ban young people from ever being able to legally smoke tobacco cleared its first Commons hurdle yesterday, despite a swathe of Conservatives objecting to it in a blow to his authority.MPs voted 383 to 67, majority 316, to give the Tobacco and Vapes Bill a second reading.Meanwhile, ministers are confident deportation flights to Rwanda will take off this spring, despite the legislation underpinning the plan remaining in parliamentary deadlock.Treasury minister Laura Trott said there were “many definitions of spring” when pressed about a timeline for getting planes off the runway.The Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill returns to the Commons on Wednesday, after the House of Lords again pressed demands for revisions, prolonging the parliamentary wrangling.MPs are likely to reject these changes, meaning the legislation will be sent back to the Lords again.The legislation seeks to clear the way to send asylum seekers who cross the Channel in small boats on a one-way flight to Kigali, but it will only receive royal assent and become law once agreement between parliament’s two houses is reached. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailIsrael is “making the decision to act” in response to Saturday’s attack by Iran, the Foreign Secretary has said on a visit to the country for talks with its leaders.Lord Cameron called on Tel Avivto respond in a way that will do ‘as little to escalate this” as possible. He travelled to Israel late on Tuesday to discuss its response to the barrage of drones and missiles. The UK and other countries have led calls for restraint in retaliation. Rishi Sunak delivered a similar message to Mr Netanyahu in a phone call on Tuesday, saying it was “time for calm heads to prevail”.However, speaking to broadcasters in Jerusalem on Wednesday, the Foreign Secretary said Israel appeared to be preparing to act.He said: “It is right to have made our views clear about what should happen next, but it is clear the Israelis are making the decision to act.”We hope they do so in a way that does as little to escalate this as possible and in a way that, as I said yesterday, is smart as well as tough.”Lord Cameron is expected to hold meetings with senior Israeli figures, including Mr Netanayahu and visit the West Bank. He will then head to a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in Italy.Lord Cameron said he hoped the meeting would result in more “co-ordinated sanctions” against Iran, saying a ” clear and unequivocal message” had to be sent to Tehran. The UK has already sanctioned several Iranians along with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).But ministers have rejected calls from MPs to proscribe the IRGC as a terrorist organisation, warning it jeopardise Britain’s ability to engage diplomatically with Iran.The UK helped defend Israel when Iran launched around 350 drones and missiles at Israel on Saturday. British jets shot down a number of the drones.The attack came after Iran blamed Israel for the targeting of a diplomatic compound in Syria earlier this month.Israel’s government has said the attack “will be met with a response”. Separately, foreign office minister David Rutley said the government was “pushing as hard as it can” to get more aid into Gaza.He told the Commons the humanitarian situation was “dire”. The Iran attack had not changed “our focus on ensuring Israel meets its commitments to enable at least 500 aid trucks a day to enter Gaza,” he said. “We are pushing as hard as we can to get aid to Palestinian civilians and as this House knows we have been urging Israel at the highest levels to take immediate action on the bottlenecks holding up humanitarian relief.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailBritain is set to ban the next generation from ever being able to smoke after Rishi Sunak proposal cleared its first House of Commons hurdle. The legislation would make it illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone born after January 1 2009, with the aim of creating a “smoke-free” generation.MPs voted 383 to 67, majority 316, to give the Tobacco and Vapes Bill a second reading.The prime minister relied on Labour votes to see off opponents on his own benches, led by the former PM Liz Truss. Conservative MPs were given a free vote on the Bill, meaning those who voted against the Government’s position will not face punishment.This allowed serving ministers, including Business Secretary and future Tory leadership hopeful Kemi Badenoch, to publicly reveal they would vote to reject the Bill. She said it undermines the principle of equality under the law by treating adults differently even if they were born just a day apart.MPs tipped as future Tory leadership candidates, including former immigration minister Robert Jenrick and former home secretary Suella Braverman, also voted against the ban, alongside several serving ministers, while leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt abstained.Use the searchable table below to see how you local MP voted on the historic bill. In the end, 57 Tory MPs defied Mr Sunak’s call and voted against the ban, while more than 100 did not vote.Tory MPs voting against the bill were joined by 7 DUP MPs, Reform Party MP Lee Anderson, and Workers Party of Britain MP George Galloway.Some 178 Conservatives supported the bill, according to the division list, alongside 160 Labour MPs, 31 SNP MPs, 5 Liberal Democrats, 3 Plaid Cymru MPs, 2 independents, and the Alliance Party’s Stephen Farry.Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting confirmed Labour’s “wholehearted” support to the Bill, and added his party is “only too happy to defend the Health Secretary against the siren voices of big tobacco” gathered on the Tory benches.Health Secretary Victoria Atkins said she understood colleagues’ concerns about freedom of choice, and conceded Conservatives were “not in the habit of banning things”, but warned the Commons there was “no liberty in addiction”.“Nicotine robs people of their freedom to choose. The vast majority of smokers start when they are young, and three-quarters say that if they could turn back the clock they would not have started,” she added. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is at the forefront of European Union citizens’ minds, with defense and security seen as key campaign issues ahead of the June elections, according to a study published Wednesday. At national level, the EU’s defense and security is mentioned first in nine countries, in contrast with sentiments five years ago when the last EU Parliament elections were held.“The EU’s defense and security was far from a prominent topic in 2019, before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022,,” the latest edition of the EU Parliament’s Eurobarometer said.The report, a collection of opinion surveys across the 27 EU nations, showed that defense and security — alongside the economy and jobs — now come in third place (31%) behind poverty and social exclusion (33%) and public health (32%). Climate change and the future of Europe follow closely.The Eurobarometer also noted that EU citizens put defense and security as first priorities in reinforcing the EU’s global position, ahead of food security and agriculture.Looking at the next legislative mandate, peace and democracy are considered the main values to defend in the coming years, ahead of the protection of human rights, freedom of speech and thought and the rule of law. Peace is the most valued goal in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland. In the Baltic states, Russia’s belligerence toward Ukraine has led some tp worry that they could be the next target, while Finland’s relationship with Russia has significantly deteriorated due to the Nordic country’s membership in NATO and over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and related sanctions. The report also highlighted a surge of interest in the June 6-9 elections.Some 60% of Europeans said they are interested in the next European elections, an 11-point increase since 2019, and 71% said they are likely to cast a ballot.The majority of respondents said voting is even more important considering the global situation.The survey was carried out between Feb. 7 and March 3 in all 27 EU countries. In total, 26,411 interviews were made. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Inflation in the U.K. fell to its lowest level in two and a half years in March after a further easing in food prices, official figures showed Wednesday.Consumer prices rose by 3.2% in the year to March, down from 3.4% in February, the Office for National Statistics said. That’s the lowest level since September 2021.The fall in the annual rate was not as big as anticipated. Economists had predicted a reading of 3.1% for the month.Inflation is still running higher than the Bank of England’s target of 2% but the direction of the move appears clear. Inflation hit a high above 11% at the end of 2022 in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which led to sharp increases in energy costs.Inflation is set to fall further in April, possibly to below 2%, as a result of sharply lower domestic energy bills, which economists think could prompt rate-setters at the Bank of England to consider a cut in interest rates in the next few months. However, a number of the nine policymakers have warned that the fight against inflation isn’t over yet as they expect prices to start rising again in the second half of the year.The Bank of England, like the U.S. Fed and other central banks around the world, raised interest rates aggressively in late 2021 from near zero to counter price rises first stoked by supply chain issues during the coronavirus pandemic and then by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.Higher interest rates — which cool the economy by making it more expensive to borrow, thereby bearing down on spending — have contributed to bringing down inflation worldwide.Britain’s governing Conservative Party hopes that lower inflation and falling interest rates may trigger a feelgood factor ahead of a general election that has to take place by January 2025. Opinion polls show the main opposition Labour Party way ahead and headed for a big victory over the Conservatives, who have been in power since 2010. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailMillions of people in the UK with physical immigration documents are being invited to switch to an eVisa as the Government aims for a fully digital immigration and border system by 2025, the Home Office has said.From Wednesday April 17, individuals in the UK with physical immigration documents will receive an email from the Home Office, inviting them to create a UK visas and immigration (UKVI) account to access their eVisa.The rollout of digital status is the next stage in the Government’s plan to digitalise the immigration system.Physical documents will be gradually phased out and nearly all visa holders living in the UK will have access to an eVisa by 2025, the Home Office has said.Tom Pursglove, the minister for legal migration and the border, said replacing physical documents, called biometric residence permits, with a digital system “will ensure firm control over who comes here to live, work or study”.Mr Pursglove added: “We’ve already taken really significant steps to digitally transform the border and immigration system, and this wider rollout of eVisas is a key part of that process.“Replacing physical immigration documents with eVisas will ensure firm control over who comes here to live, work or study, strengthening border security and preventing abuse of the immigration system, while delivering cost-savings for UK taxpayers.”The Government hopes the introduction of eVisas will reduce the risk of fraud, loss and abuse of physical documents and strengthen border security.Those who inspect immigration status will be able to conduct one check using an online service and visa customers will be able to access their digital status anywhere and in real time.An eVisa is linked with the holder’s biometric information to protect against identity fraud.Invitations will initially be issued in phases.The process will open to anyone in the UK who holds physical immigration documents in summer 2024.Customers will be able to create a free UKVI account to access their eVisa.Creating an account will not change, impact or remove their current immigration status or their rights in the UK. More