Archive for: Political Database

Today’s political headlines includes Boris ordered to court over Brexit campaign, review of post-18 education and funding published and Corbyn pledges Labour will back referendum on any Brexit deal.

Boris ordered to court over Brexit campaign
The Daily Mirror leads on Boris Johnson being ordered to appear in court over claims he lied during the EU referendum campaign. Johnson, who said the UK gave the EU £350m a week has been accused of misconduct in public office. His lawyers have called the private prosecution ‘politically motivated’ and ‘a stunt’.

Review of post-18 education and funding is published
The Daily Telegraph reports on the findings of the Augar review, a new report into further education. The review calls for the current cap on university tuition fees in England to be reduced from £9,250 to £7,500 a year. The paper claims May is aiming to create a ‘domestic legacy’, before she steps down in July, and says it is likely her successor will follow through with the plans, in the aim of winning over younger voters.

Corbyn pledges Labour will back referendum on any Brexit deal
The Guardian has published a story Jeremy Corbyn’s promise that Labour will back a second referendum on any Brexit deal put before Parliament. Corbyn, who is today on a visit to Dublin to meet with Irish taoiseach Leo Varadkar, said his party would ‘do whatever is necessary to stop a disastrous no-deal outcome’.

Government has spent £97m on Brexit advisers
The Guardian reports that according to a leaked National Audit Office draft report, the UK Government has spent £97m of public money on private consultants to advise on Brexit, including no-deal planning. The report criticises Government departments for failing to comply to transparency standards. The paper warns the costs could reach £240m by 2020.

Esther McVey sets out her vision for leadership
The Daily Express has published an article written by Conservative leadership candidate Esther McVey on her vision for the UK. McVey says that a decade of police cuts has ‘broken’ the relationship between the Tories and police officers and that she wants funding for a new police covenant. She also says that more money needs to be spent on education.

EU market regulator scraps plans for no-deal block on UK stocks
The Financial Times reports that the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has dropped plans to prevent EU banks and investors from trading some of the UK’s largest listed companies in London in the event of a no-deal Brexit. ESMA had identified around more than 6,000 stocks, including Vodafone and BP, that EU investors would have to trade on European exchanges if the UK were to leave the single market without a deal.

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Today’s political headlines includes Brexiteer leadership candidates embrace no-deal, Corbyn increasing support for a second referendum and Hunt warns that the Tories risk ‘political suicide’ if they attempt a no-deal Brexit.

Brexiteer leadership candidates embrace no-deal
The Times says that Tory leadership hopefuls ‘have embraced a no-deal Brexit’ in order to tackle the threat posed by Nigel Farage. Dominic Raab called on the party to show ‘unflinching resolve’ to leave the EU, even if there wasn’t a deal, while Esther McVey said that cross-party agreement was ‘not possible’. They have been joined by other candidates, including Boris Johnson and Andrea Leadsom.

Corbyn increases support for second referendum
The Guardian says that Jeremy Corbyn has promised to back a referendum on any Brexit deal, following Labour’s losses in the European elections. He said that he was ‘listening very carefully’ to both sides, would prefer a general election, but that any Brexit deal would need ‘to be put to a public vote’. Labour sources said that this was a change in his position, with pressure coming from allies such as John McDonnell, as well as Tom Watson, the deputy leader, who has backed calls for a special conference or an all-member ballot on the issue.

Hunt warns that Tories risk ‘political suicide’ if they attempt a no-deal Brexit
Writing in The Daily Telegraph, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt says that if the Conservatives attempt to carry out a no-deal Brexit, they will commit ‘political suicide’. The leadership contender argues that trying to do so would lead to a general election, the potential ‘extinction’ of his party, and the UK’s ‘first Marxist prime minister’.

Javid says he’s standing, as he ends charges to call 101
The Daily Telegraph says that Home Secretary Sajid Javid has formally declared that he will contest the Conservative Party leadership election, promising to be ‘always straight’ with voters and to ‘do my best’ for the UK as it had ‘done so much for me’. The paper adds that he will today announce the abolition of charges to call 101, which results in victims paying to report a crime.

Gove to promise EU nationals free citizenship
The Guardian says that Tory leadership candidate Michael Gove will promise the 3 million EU nationals in the UK free citizenship if he becomes prime minister. Alberto Costa, who has been championing citizens’ rights, said that Gove had ‘fully agreed to adopt my proposals’ and will ‘announce that it was wrong to put EU citizens on the negotiation table’.

More prisoners to be allowed out on day release
The Daily Telegraph reports that more offenders in open prisons will be allowed day release to do paid work in the community, as long as they pass a risk assessment by the governor. The Ministry of Justice says day release reduces reoffending. Justice Secretary David Gauke urged ‘businesses to join this movement and help ex-offenders turn their backs on crime’.

Northern Ireland’s Alliance Party elects MEP for first time
The Financial Times reports that the cross-community Alliance Party of Northern Ireland won its first European seat, taking the second of three in the region alongside the DUP and Sinn Féin. Party leader and newly-elected MEP Naomi Long said that  this was ‘a vote to have a “people’s vote”’. The seat she won was previously held by the Ulster Unionist Party.

Malthouse says that he is the change the public want to see
Housing Minister Kit Malthouse has used an article in The Sun to declare that he is standing to be leader of the Conservatives, revealing polling which shows that 56% of the public don’t want any of the Cabinet to replace Theresa May. He argues that this shows ‘a yearning for change’ and that he is ‘the new face’, and ‘from a new and talented generation’.

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Today’s political headlines includes The Times’ claim that May will resign tomorrow, cabinet ministers angered by second referendum offer and the postponement of the no-deal debate, and Greg Clark’s plans to rescue British Steel. 

May to resign tomorrow
The Times claims that Theresa May will announce her resignation tomorrow, having seen off an attempt to force her to resign last night. She is instead expected to confirm her departure after meeting Sir Graham Brady, Chair of the 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPs on Friday. The leader of the House of Commons, Andrea Leadsom, resigned last night, claiming that May’s approach did not ‘deliver on the referendum result’. Some Cabinet ministers believe that May’s offer on a second referendum went further than agreed.

Cabinet ministers concerned about second referendum offer
The Daily Telegraph has seen the clause on a second referendum in the proposed Withdrawal Agreement Bill, which would provide for a legally binding amendment on holding such a vote to be voted on by MPs. One Cabinet minister told the paper that the bill was a ‘complete disaster’; another said it was a ‘catastrophe’.

Cabinet ministers angered as no-deal debate postponed
In an exclusive, The Sun says Cabinet ministers have been angered by Theresa May’s decision to postpone a debate on no-deal until after the parliamentary recess. She argued that a no-deal Brexit would threaten the future of the UK and increase its vulnerability to terrorists, despite a plea for more contingency planning from Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay.

Greg Clark draws up plan to rescue British Steel
According to the Financial Times, Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Secretary Greg Clark has created a rescue plan for British Steel, which entered insolvency yesterday. Under the plan the Government would act as a cornerstone investor alongside a private consortium. He has requested legal advice on whether it is compatible with state aid rules.

Allen threatened to resign in row over endorsing Lib Dems
The Guardian reports that Change UK leader Heidi Allen has told Channel 4 that she threatened to resign over an argument within the party about endorsing voting tactically for the Liberal Democrats in regions outside London and the South East. While Sarah Wollaston reportedly also agreed with this strategy, others did not.

Extra cash for teachers in deprived areas
The Times says the Government will give maths and physics teachers an extra £2000 to work in deprived and remote areas to tackle problems with recruiting and retaining teachers. The new move will be announced by Schools Minister Nick Gibb today, as part of a pilot. He said that the Government wanted ‘to continue to attract the brightest and best graduates’.

Senior soldier intervenes in debate over prosecuting veterans
The Daily Mail says that the most senior non-officer in the British Army, Warrant Officer Class One Glenn Haughton has intervened in the debate over prosecutions of veterans, saying that soldiers should be protected from ‘harassment’ and wanted to defend the UK ‘without fear of potential investigations in the years that follow’.

Ofcom rules could constrain reporting of political crisis
The Daily Telegraph says Ofcom rules about reporting during elections will restrain broadcasters’ reporting on the ongoing political crisis. Under the rules, ‘discussion and analysis of election and referendum issues must finish’ when polls open. A source said if Theresa May resigned today, broadcasters must ‘cover it in a way that didn’t sway the vote’.

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Today’s political headlines includes MPs to vote on Brexit Bill in June, police raise concerns about Islamophobia definition proposal, British Steel requests Government support and Russ urges Tories to stay in the centre. 

MPs to vote on EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill in June
The BBC reports that the Government has confirmed that MPs will vote on the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill in the first week of June, even if it has been unable to reach a deal with Labour. Government sources said that if the bill is voted down, it would not try and pass May’s deal a fifth time, leaving a no-deal Brexit or revocation of Article 50 as the only possible outcomes. Number 10 described talks between Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn yesterday as ‘useful and constructive’, but Labour said Corbyn had expressed concern about the Government’s ‘credibility’.

Police raise concerns about Islamophobia definition proposal
The Times reports that Martin Hewitt, the Chairman of the National Police Chiefs’ Council has said that creating an official definition of Islamophobia, as proposed by backbench MPs and peers, would harm anti-terrorism efforts. A backbench debate on the topic is to be held in Parliament tomorrow, proposed by Labour’s Wes Streeting and Change UK’s Anna Soubry.

British Steel requests Government support
The Guardian says that British Steel, which owns the steelworks in Scunthorpe, is seeking urgent funding from the Government, claiming that the lack of agreement over Brexit has caused orders to dry up. It is in talks with its lenders about a £75m rescue package, but this is thought to be at risk of collapse without Government participation.

Rudd urges Tories to stay in the centre, as Truss attacks ‘anti-success attitude’
The Daily Mail says that the Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd used a talk to the thinktank Onward to urge the Tories not to abandon the centre for the ‘politics of grievance and outrage’, while Liz Truss, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, will today tell business leaders that she is ‘worried that an insidious notion is being allowed to infect Britain that wealth is something that is never deserved’, branding this an ‘anti-success attitude’.

May to warn of online extremism
The Times reports that Theresa May will today reveal that a Neo-Nazi discussion website has received 80,000 responses from the UK. She will today address a summit on tackling terrorists’ use of the internet, held in Paris, and call on leaders to be ‘ambitious and steadfast’. The Daily Telegraph adds that she will call on other countries to follow the UK’s lead and establish a legal duty of care to protect people from online harms.

Labour to nationalise energy networks at below market value
The Financial Times says that a new paper to be published by the Labour Party tomorrow will reveal that it plans to nationalise energy network companies at below their market value because of ‘asset stripping since privatisation’, as well as state subsidies and pension deficits. The paper will claim that ‘the status quo is no longer tenable’ and that the move is needed to tackle ‘gaming and profiteering’

Mordaunt announces troops will be protected from prosecution
The Sun reports that the new Defence Secretary Penny Mordaunt will today announce new laws to prevent former military personnel from being charged after ten years, unless there is significant new evidence. Consultation on the proposals, which will not cover troops who served in Northern Ireland, will start this week.

Councils warn benefits freeze is causing homelessness
The Daily Mirror carries the findings of the Homelessness Monitor survey, produced by Crisis and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. It says that 9 out of 10 councils believe the benefit freeze and the rollout of Universal Credit will increase homelessness. Local Housing Allowance has not been increased since 2016, with one council describing this as a ‘huge factor’, while the report also warns of ‘widespread’ Universal Credit errors.

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Today’s political headlines includes Cabinet ministers to urge May to abandon talks with Labour, Starmer doubts Parliament would approve a cross-party deal with no referendum, Treasury confirms world’s first plastic tax and councils to be required to give domestic abuse victims safe accommodation. 

Cabinet ministers to urge May to abandon talks with Labour
The Times says that Cabinet ministers are pressuring Theresa May to abandon the Government’s talks with Labour over Brexit. Instead, ministers who favour reaching a deal with the EU will tomorrow ask the Prime Minister to outline a timetable for indicative votes by MPs to take place after the European elections and resist attempts to increase no-deal planning. Chancellor Philip Hammond reportedly told colleagues that the idea that an acceptable deal could emerge from the talks was a ‘false premise’.

Starmer doubts Parliament would approve a cross-party deal with no referendum
Shadow Brexit Secretary Keir Starmer has told The Guardian that he doubts that a cross-party Brexit deal would pass through Parliament without a confirmatory referendum being included, but claimed that only Labour could deliver such a referendum. He said that the Government had ‘not really’ shown willingness to change its red lines, adding that if Theresa May set a date for her resignation this would undermine the talks and that ‘it would be wrong’ for the talks to continue for much longer if progress seemed unattainable.

Treasury confirms world’s first plastic tax
The Daily Mail is celebrating a ‘major victory’ for its ‘Turn the Tide on Plastic’ campaign, after the Treasury confirmed that it is going ahead with plans for the world’s first plastic tax, which will affect manufacturers who don’t use at least 30% recycled content in their plastic. This will also boost the recycling industry, by increasing demand. Treasury Secretary Robert Jenrick said that less than half of plastic is recycled and ‘we can’t go on like this’.

Councils to be required to give domestic abuse victims safe accommodation
The Sun says that Theresa May will announce today that all councils will be legally required to give safe accommodation to domestic abuse victims, ending the present ‘postcode lottery’ of provision. The paper hails the news as a victory for its ‘Give Me Shelter’ campaign and carries an article by May, in which she vows that ‘whoever you are, wherever you live and whatever the abuse you face, you will have access to the services you need to be safe.’

European drivers buy twice as many electric cars as British drivers
The Times claims that a new report by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association shows that drivers in other European countries bought twice as many electric cars as those in the UK, as the Government made significant cuts to its grants for the vehicles. The Department for Transport said that the UK was at the ‘forefront’ of green cars.

Tory MPs angered by party’s own election leaflets
The Daily Telegraph reports that Conservative MPs have been angered by a leaflet produced by the party ahead of the European elections, which encourages recipients to lobby Brexiteer MPs to back Theresa May’s Brexit deal in order to stop the elections from going ahead. Priti Patel described the leaflet, and associated website, as an ‘outrage’.

Cashless society will affect elderly and poor
The Financial Times carries details of a new report by the Commons Treasury Committee, which warns the UK risks ‘inadvertently becoming a cashless society’ unless the Government takes action, leaving people, such as the elderly and those on low incomes, vulnerable. The committee says the Government should be prepared to force banks to keep branches open.

Food businesses pledge to cut waste
The Daily Telegraph says that some of the UK largest food businesses are to pledge to halve food waste by 2030 at a symposium hosted by Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Michael Gove today. Participating firms include Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose and Nestle.

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Today’s political headlines includes Brexit talks unlikely to conclude early, the watchdog that tried to suppress details of MPs’ credit cards, defence space strategy leaked and a UKIP EU election candidate investigated over rape threat. 

Early conclusion of Brexit talks unlikely as May given deadline to set resignation roadmap
The Financial Times says that the chances of a cross-party deal on Brexit being reached soon have faded, with talks ending without a ‘firm conclusion’. A Labour figure told the paper that the talks had been ‘robust’. Cabinet Office Minister David Lidington admitted that the UK would take part in the European elections and suggested that the Government now aimed to agree a deal by the summer recess, which would imply Brexit occurring on 1 August. The Daily Telegraph adds that at a meeting yesterday Sir Graham Brady, Chair of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs, gave Theresa May until 4pm today – when the committee next meets – to lay out a ‘roadmap’ for her resignation as Prime Minister.

Watchdog tried to suppress details of MPs’ credit card suspensions
The Daily Telegraph reports that the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority tried to prevent the revelation that 377 MPs, including nine Cabinet ministers and Jeremy Corbyn have had their official credit cards suspended after breaking rules on expenses. However, the watchdog’s decision was overturned following a review by the former High Court judge Sir Robert Owen, who is a member of its board.

Defence space strategy leaked
The Times has obtained a copy of the UK’s first defence space strategy, which identifies ten key risks to British satellites and proposes new methods of protecting them, including a greater role for Defence Intelligence, a new National Space Operations Centre and a constellation of small satellites run by the RAF to help with intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

UKIP European election candidate investigated over rape threat
The Guardian reports that Carl Benjamin, a UKIP candidate for the South West in the European elections better known online as Sargon of Akkad, is under investigation by police over a YouTube clip in which he made comments about raping the Labour MP Jess Phillips.

High streets must shrink, Brokenshire says
In an exclusive, The Sun reports that James Brokenshire, the Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary, has said that high streets would need to shrink in order to survive, with former shops becoming housing. He also said that there was a limit to what the Government could do, but that ‘councils have an important role to play’.

‘Incoherent’ climate change aid policy criticised by MPs
The Times carries details of a new report by the Commons International Development Committee which criticises the Government’s ‘incoherent’ aid policy for spending £4.9bn on projects to tackle climate change in developing countries, while simultaneously spending £4.8bn on schemes which produce carbon emissions.

Home Office to scrap asylum target
The Guardian reports that the Home Office is to scrap its target of processing most asylum claims within six months, causing consternation amongst human rights lawyers, who warned that the number of vulnerable asylum seekers facing delays might become even worse and that the Home Office would be likely to face more legal challenges.

Pensioners could oust Tory MPs over free TV licence cuts
The Daily Mirror says that research unveiled by Labour today shows that pensioners, set to lose their free TV licences, could oust enough Tory MPs to ensure that the Government loses its majority. MPs will today participate in a debate aimed at saving the benefit, the cost of which is due to be transferred to the BBC, which has suggested scrapping it.

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Today’s political headlines includes Conservatives and Labour suffer local election losses, smaller parties make gains amid Brexit dissatisfaction, May warned that Williamson could take revenge and violent crime rates in London fall. 

Conservatives and Labour suffer local election losses
The BBC reports on the results from yesterday’s local elections, in which the two main parties suffered losses across the UK. With over 250 elections taking place in councils across England and Northern Ireland, voters are said to have voiced their concerns over Brexit by rejecting the two parties. While results are still coming in, the Conservatives have so far lost 440 council seats, though their potential losses could reach 800 seats once results are finalised. It has been suggested that a north-south divide has been reflected in the polls, with most Conservative losses in the south and Labour losing more council seats in the north.

Lib Dems, Independents and Greens capitalise on Brexit dissatisfaction
The Guardian reports on the positive performance by the Lib Dems, who have gained 300 seats so far and taken control of councils such as Bath and North East Somerset, as well as Cotswolds district council. Commenting on the results, Lib Dem leader Vince Cable said voters no longer had confidence in the Conservatives, but had also expressed frustration at Labours indecisiveness over Brexit. Candidates from smaller parties and Independents have also performed well across the country, though UKIP failed to make any significant gains despite The Brexit Party not choosing to stand.

May warned that Williamson could take revenge
The Daily Telegraph reports that Theresa May faces pressure to allow a police investigation into the Huawei scandal. Former Defence Secretary Williamson was sacked earlier this week after he was accused of leaking documents about giving Huawei a role in the UK’s 5G network, however, Number 10 later revealed that no crime had been committed. The Times claims that Theresa May has been warned that Williamson will ‘have his revenge’ and could make a statement in Parliament.

Violent crime rates in London fall
The Guardian features a story on the fall in the number of violent crime incidents in London. Met Police Commissioner Cressida Dick has attributed the drop to an increase in officers and stop and search. Dick, comparing 2018-19 with the previous year, said the number of homicides were down 25% to 122, and knife injuries suffered by those under 25 were down 15% to 1,768.

Boris blocked from Scottish Tory conference
The Telegraph is reporting that Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson has prevented Boris Johnson from appearing at this weeks’ conference north of the border. Continuing her hostility towards Johnson, Davidson has rejected an apparent approach by the potential future Conservative leader who will instead visit Aberdeen next week for a campaign fundraiser for Aberdeen South MP Ross Thomson.

Deputy Speaker calls for more cats
Speaking to The Times, Deputy Speaker Lindsay Hoyle has suggested that cats could be brought into the Houses of Parliament to solve the ever-growing problem of mice. It has been suggested that the emptying of Parliament over Easter recess encouraged a resurgence in the numbers of rodents, with Hoyle saying ‘it is time we got some parliamentary cats’.

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Today’s political headlines includes ministers fearing May will ‘cave in’ to Labour, Corbyn faces down second referendum advocates, May’s dinner with Russian oligarch’s wide and Corbyn to urge MPs to declare a climate emergency. 

Ministers fear May will ‘cave in’ to Labour over Brexit
According to The Daily Telegraph, Eurosceptic ministers fear that Theresa May is ‘preparing to cave in to’ Labour’s Brexit demands and agree a post-Brexit customs union with the EU, with May indicating that she wants talks finished by the middle of next week. At yesterday’s Cabinet meeting, Michael Gove said that an ‘unpalatable’ deal with Labour was better than no Brexit, while Chief Whip Julian Smith said that ministers needed to ‘get real’.

Corbyn faces down second referendum advocates
The Guardian says that Jeremy Corbyn has ‘faced down’ a challenge by second referendum advocates, including Labour’s deputy leader Tom Watson. At a meeting yesterday, the party’s National Executive Committee decided that its European election manifesto would be ‘fully in line’ with its existing Brexit policy of an alternative plan for Brexit, with a public vote only if the Government’s deal isn’t changed and a general election doesn’t happen.

May’s dinner with Russian oligarch’s wife
The Daily Mail reveals that Lubov Chernukhin, the wife of a Russian oligarch, had dinner with Theresa May and six other female ministers after paying £135,000 for the privilege at the Conservative Party’s Black and White Ball. The meal was revealed after the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Liz Truss posted a photo of the gathering in Instagram. A source told the paper ‘it was bit like Cabinet at the start, very polite, but then a fair amount of wine was drunk and then it became a very relaxed and talkative dinner.’

Corbyn to urge MPs to declare climate emergency
The Daily Mirror reports that Jeremy Corbyn will today urge MPs to do their ‘historic duty’ by calling the world’s first climate emergency, forcing a vote to demand the Government to act on climate change ‘with commensurate urgency’. Yesterday, Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Michael Gove said he was ‘open to a higher level of ambition’.

Corbyn wrote foreword to antisemitic book
The Times says Jeremy Corbyn wrote the foreword to a book arguing that Jews controlled the banks and the press. The book, a reissue of JA Hobson’s Imperialism: A Study, first published in 1902, came out in 2011 before he became Labour leader. In the foreword, Corbyn said it was a ‘great tome’ with ‘brilliant, and very controversial at the time’ analysis.

Hancock says people shouldn’t have to sell their home to fund their care
The Daily Telegraph reports that Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock has told a House of Lords committee that people shouldn’t have to sell their home to pay for social care, saying that ensuring ‘that the home is in the means test under all circumstances’ would extend ‘one of the injustices’ of the current system. Care Minister Caroline Dinenage separately said that she had found the delays to the social care green paper ‘frustrating’, telling the paper that a draft had been ready since December.

Social mobility has stagnated, commission warns
The Financial Times says that the Government’s Social Mobility Commission’s State of the Nation report warns that class privilege is still entrenched in the UK, with the ability to gain higher pay and social position having stagnated since 2014. It blames Government policies for the lack of progress, including schools funding cuts and disadvantaged young people being less likely to undertake apprenticeships or relocate to other regions.

Trump unlikely to address Parliament
The Times reports that Donald Trump is unlikely to address Parliament during his visit next month in order to avoid embarrassing the Queen. She would have to formally request permission for him to address Parliament from the Speakers of both houses, but Commons Speaker John Bercow is opposed to such a speech taking place.

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Today’s political headlines includes the fracking chief quitting, Home Office asylum unit criticised, Hunt warns of Huawei risks, May looks for legislation to avoid Queen’s Speech. 

Fracking chief quits, claiming Government has imposed a ‘de facto ban’
The Times reports that the Government’s shale gas commissioner Natascha Engel has quit after seven months in the role. She claimed that the Government had ‘instituted a de facto ban’ on fracking by shying away from reviewing a rule which means that operations must be suspended whenever a tremor above 0.5 magnitude is recorded. She said that climate activism, such as that of Greta Thunberg, ‘will hustle politicians into making bad decisions’, while ‘Brexit paralysis’ was also to blame for a temporary rule becoming permanent.

Home Office asylum unit criticised
The Guardian reveals that whistleblowers from a Home Office unit known as the Dublin Cessation Team, which determines which EU member states should determine an asylum-seeker’s claim, have claimed that its ‘overworked, under-skilled, bullied and highly stressed DCT caseworkers’ are frequently making mistakes causing individuals to be held in unlawful detention. A range of other allegations have also been made, including long delays and targets incentivising applications to be rejected.

Hunt warns of Huawei risks
The Daily Telegraph says that Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned that Huawei has a legal obligation to cooperate with Chinese’s intelligence services. He said it was ‘right to have a degree of caution about the role of large Chinese companies’ and rejected the idea that the UK was being influenced by the USA as ‘absolute nonsense’. He added that he was happy to hand over his phone – and that of his special advisor – to the ongoing leak inquiry.

May looks for legislation to avoid Queen’s Speech
The Times says that Theresa May is looking for legislation to justify delaying the Queen’s Speech until the autumn. A list produced by Downing Street includes changes to tax for sporting testimonials and increasing sentences for animal cruelty, with other proposals including legislation on domestic abuse, tenants’ rights and restoring Parliament.

Damian Green publishes social care proposals
The Daily Mail carries details of a new report on social care by Theresa May’s former deputy, Damian Green for the Centre for Policy Studies. His plans would deliver a basic state-funded level of social care, which recipients could upgrade using savings, and would be funded by a lump sum on retirement, a surcharge on National Insurance for over-50s or a tax on the winter fuel allowance.

Damian Hinds blames social media firms for fuelling eating disorders
In an exclusive, The Sun reports that Education Secretary Damian Hinds has blamed social media firms for fuelling teenage eating disorders by disseminating ‘dangerous ideas of perfection’. He will be meeting executives from Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat today and says they ‘get serious about their responsibility to young people’.

Tories set to lose 800 councillors
The Guardian reports Conservative election analyst Lord Hayward believes that his party is on course to lose around 500 seats to the Liberal Democrats and a further 300 to Labour in this week’s local elections. He attributed this to the failure to deliver a Brexit deal, adding that he also expected ‘disenchantment’ with the main parties to reduce turnout.

Government advisors to recommend stricter greenhouse gas targets
The Daily Telegraph reports that the Climate Change Committee, which advises the Government, will recommend on Thursday that the Government should axe its target to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050, instead saying that it should aim to have eradicated or offset all greenhouse gases by then. Policy suggestions include reducing red meat consumption, planting more trees and building new onshore wind turbines.

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Today’s political headlines includes Gove’s guilt, Huawei’s help, Brexit latest and Trump’s visit.

Gove admits ‘guilt’ after teenager climate change campaigner’s speech
The Times reports on yesterday’s speech to Parliament by the 16-year-old Swedish climate change campaigner Greta Thunberg. Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Michael Gove said she made him feel ‘guilt’ because ‘we have not done nearly enough to deal with the problem’, but Thunberg accused the Government of ‘creative accounting’ and criticised its support for fracking, North Sea oil and gas, airport expansion and climate change.

Huawei to help build new 5G network despite security concerns
The Daily Telegraph says Theresa May has agreed that Huawei can be involved in the UK’s new 5G network following a meeting of the National Security Council, at which ministers including Sajid Javid, Jeremy Hunt, Gavin Williamson, Liam Fox and Penny Mordaunt raised concerns about the firm. The paper says the decision ‘is likely to anger’ the USA, which banned Huawei from Government networks and has pressed the UK to follow suit.

Labour says Government is failing to offer changes in Brexit talks
The Guardian reports that Labour has accused Theresa May of not offering any substantive changes to the Brexit deal in cross-party talks, and refusing to accept alterations to the political declaration. Instead, ministers suggested redrafting the withdrawal act implementation bill and modifying other planned bills. According to The Daily Telegraph, Cabinet ministers have told May to end the talks ‘immediately’ and focus on persuading the DUP to back the deal instead. Meanwhile, a meeting of the executive of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs didn’t reach a conclusion on changing leadership challenge rules yesterday, but will meet again today.

Clash over Trump visit
The Times says the Speakers of the two Houses of Parliament disagree over whether Donald Trump should address parliamentarians during his visit in June. Lords Speaker Lord Fowler said that there was a ‘strong case’ as it would be the anniversary of the D-day landings, but Commons Speaker John Bercow has suggested the honour should be earned. Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry said that hosting the visit would be a waste of taxpayers’ money.

Javid under pressure to act over language test scandal
The Guardian says Home Secretary Sajid Javid is under pressure to act over an immigration scandal, which MP Mike Gapes has warned is ‘a bigger scandal than Windrush in terms of the number of individuals removed form the country’. It involves around 34,000 foreign students whose visas have been cancelled or curtailed and over 1000 who have been forcibly removed after being accused of cheating in English language tests with no right of appeal.

Rachel Johnson to stand as Change UK candidate
The Daily Telegraph reports that Change UK have selected Rachel Johnson, the sister of the Conservative MPs Boris and Jo Johnson, as one of its candidates for the European elections. She said she has ‘entered politics to spend more time with my family’. Other candidates include former BBC presenter Gavin Esler and former Conservative and Labour MPs. One candidate, Ali Sadjady, has had to step down after inappropriate tweets were discovered.

Farage unveils more Brexit Party candidates as Widdecombe defects
The Sun says Nigel Farage said yesterday that his Brexit Party will target voters in Labour heartlands during the European elections and unveiled more candidates, including a former Royal Marine, a millionaire, a former Communist, a former charity boss and a former nurse. The Daily Express adds that ex-Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe will stand for the party.

Universal Credit to hit ‘the persistently poor the hardest’
The Daily Mirror says that Institute for Fiscal Studies research on Universal Credit shows it will leave at least 1.9m people worse off by at least £1000 a year, hitting ‘the persistently poor the hardest’. The Department for Work and Pensions said the study ‘wrongly assumes that everyone was claiming their full benefit entitlement under the old system’.

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