Political Headlines – Hunt, NHS, Fox and Corbyn

Today’s Political Headlines include Jeremy Hunt’s call for the EU to copy US sanctions on Russia, NHS trusts warning against a no-deal Brexit, Liam Fox’s pledge to make the UK an exporting superpower and the Corbyn staffer writing the guide to rid Parliament of Israel-supporting MPs. 

Hunt calls for EU to copy US sanctions on Russia
The BBC says that Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt is to use a speech during his trip to the USA to call on the EU to impose further sanctions on Russia, emulating those introduced by the USA. He will warn that there must be a ‘serious price’ for violating international rules of conduct. During the trip, Hunt will meet the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and address the UN Security Council on Islamic terrorism.

NHS trusts warn of no-deal Brexit impact
The Times has obtained a leaked warning by NHS Providers (the association of NHS trusts) to NHS England and NHS Improvement. In a letter, the body’s chief executive Chris Hopson warns of the impact of a no-deal Brexit on the pharmaceutical supply chain, public health, disease control and the workforce. He claims that both other bodies have not planned sufficiently for this scenario and that communication has been poor.

Fox pledges to make UK an ‘exporting superpower’
The BBC reports that International Trade Secretary Liam Fox will claim that the UK can be a ’21st century exporting superpower’ in a speech later today, promising to increase exports from 30% of the country’s GDP to 35%. He will say that the UK needs to ‘set its sights high’.

Corbyn staffer wrote guide to ridding Parliament of Israel-supporting MPs
The Sun reveals that Nicolette Petersen, who has worked for Jeremy Corbyn since 1994, wrote a guide advising people on how to rid Parliament of Israel supporters for the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign. She advised readers to look at the Jewish Chronicle and ‘look at websites that will show you who not to vote for’. Jewish Chronicle Editor Stephen Pollard told The Sun that ‘This isn’t about helping Palestinians. It’s about attacking Jews.’

Umunna to call for ‘national mission’ to combat youth violence
The Guardian says that Labour MP Chuka Umunna is to use a speech in Brixton this evening to call for a ‘paradigm shift’ in the understanding of youth violence, rejecting the ‘populism of left and right’ and calling for a ‘national mission’ to tackle the problem, arguing  that it was necessary to go further than Scotland, which treats it as a public health issue.

Hague warns against changing Tory leadership election rules
Writing in The Daily Telegraph, former Conservative leader Lord Hague warns that his party should not change its rules to give its membership a greater say in choosing the next leader, warning that this could lead to entryism and the party being ‘swamped by new recruits’. He pointed to the example of Labour’s changes to its election rules and warned that party activists are ‘not remotely representative of society at large or even of their voters’.

Over 60,000 left in lurch after mortgage benefit withdrawn
According to The Daily Mirror over 60,000 people have been ‘left in the lurch’ following the abolition of Support for Mortgage Interest. It was replaced by a loan, but over half of those affected turned down this down when they were offered it. Lib Dem MP Stephen Lloyd has written to Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey, asking her to conduct a study into the reasons people are rejecting the loan.

Treasury guidance too ‘negative’ about no-deal Brexit
The Daily Telegraph claims that Chancellor Philip Hammond was forced to amend the Treasury’s technical notices on a no-deal Brexit because they were too similar to ‘Project Fear’. Sources told the paper that the documents were too ‘upbeat’ about EU membership and too ‘negative’ about no-deal, but had now been made ‘more factual’.

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