Archive for: Political Database

Today’s political headlines include May’s Brexit plans compared to the first circle of hell, rogue landlords exploiting loopholes, three MPs quit committee over bullying scandal and annual spending needs to increase £31bn to meet austerity promise. 

May’s Brexit plans compared to ‘first circle of hell’ at Cabinet meeting
The Times claims that leaked Cabinet papers show that Theresa May’s Brexit plan could lead to a ‘long-running’ multiyear implementation period with an ‘annual decision point’ to review its extension. Various ministers raised concerns at yesterday’s Cabinet meeting, including Attorney General Geoffrey Cox who compared the plans to Dante’s ‘first circle of hell’. The Financial Times adds that the ‘stormy’ meeting greeted plans to charter ships to import food and medicines in a no-deal Brexit scenario with ‘disbelief’ and that the Cabinet will now discuss Brexit preparations on a weekly basis. The Sun says that Cabinet Office Minister David Lidington called for more compromises, adding that he was the only attendee to have been an MP when Black Wednesday happened and that ‘level of chaos’ could not be repeated. May will address the 1922 Committee of backbench Tories this evening.

Rogue landlords exploit loopholes to continue renting out properties
An investigation by The Guardian and ITV has found that convicted landlords who have been found unsuitable to rent out property are exploiting legal loopholes in order to continue to do so. Additionally, the investigation reveals that more than six months after its launch by the Government, no entries have been made to the rogue landlord database and the Government has admitted that the public won’t be able to find out if any are.

Three MPs quit committee chaired by Bercow over bullying scandal
The Guardian reports that three Conservative MPs have resigned from a committee on representation and inclusion chaired by Commons Speaker John Bercow because of a failure to tackle bullying at Westminster. The House of Commons Commission meets today to respond to the independent report on the scandal, with sources claiming that House of Commons Leader Andrea Leadsom will call for a robust response.

Annual spending needs £31bn increase to meet end to austerity promise
The Financial Times carries details of a new Resolution Foundation report that warns that the Chancellor needs to increase annual spending by £31bn by 2022-3 in order to deliver the Prime Minister’s promised end to austerity. It says that doing this would only be consistent with the Government’s pledge to lower debt as a proportion of GDP if taxes were increased.

Prime Minister faces revolt over abortion and same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland
The Sun reports that Theresa May is facing a revolt over Northern Ireland. Yesterday five ministers voted for a bill tabled by Labour backbencher Diana Johnson to modernise abortion law, while a ‘slew’ of Conservative MPs have backed a separate cross-party amendment to legislation on Northern Ireland today which loosens laws on abortion and same-sex marriage.

Cable calls for halt to Universal Credit rollout
Writing in the Daily Mirror, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable calls for the rollout of Universal Credit to be halted because it is a ‘slow-motion disaster’ which will impoverish tens of thousands of families. He backs the theory behind the policy and claims that it could be ‘salvaged’ if ‘major reforms’ are implemented.

European Court of Justice to be ‘ultimate arbiter’ in post-Brexit disputes
In an exclusive, The Sun reports that British negotiators have conceded that the European Court of Justice will be the ‘ultimate arbiter’ of disputes about European law after Brexit. However, EU negotiators are still waiting for their British counterparts to provide a technical explanation of how this will be implemented via a joint committee system.

Security minister turns down meeting with peer amid fears about Russian lobbying
The Times reveals that Security Minister Ben Wallace turned down a meeting with the Conservative peer Lord Barker of Battle, who wanted to discuss sanctions on Russia, amid concerns about Russian lobbying. Lord Barker is the chairman of the Russian energy firm En+ which has been subject to sanctions since the Salisbury attack, along with its majority owner Oleg Deripaska, an ally of Vladimir Putin.

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Today’s political headlines include May’s rejection of the Northern Ireland only backstop, Hammond’s £13bn windfall, the call to end prosecution of veterans and fake news disappointment. 

May rejects Northern Ireland only backstop
The Times reports that Theresa May has rejected the EU’s calls for a Northern Ireland only backstop, which relieves some pressure from backbench Brexiteers but increases the risk of a no-deal Brexit. She called on the EU to agree to either an extended transition period or a UK-wide customs deal, either of which must end ‘well before’ June 2022. Former Brexit minister Steve Baker withdrew amendments he had proposed to legislation on Northern Ireland, while former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson joined the ‘Stand Up 4 Brexit’ group.

Hammond to get £13bn windfall
The Financial Times says that Philip Hammond will receive a £13bn annual ‘windfall’ in the Budget as a result of the Office for Budget Responsibility underestimating the strength of tax receipts, helping to meet spending commitments to the NHS and to social housing. Given the threat of rebellion from backbench Tories, the paper expects the Chancellor to save major tax changes until next year when the UK has left the EU.

Cross-party letter calls for end to prosecution of veterans
In an exclusive, the Daily Express claims that over a third of Conservative MPs and peers from several parties have signed an open letter calling for an end to the prosecution of military veterans over incidents which happened up to fifty years ago. The letter brands this ‘legal assault’ a ‘national disgrace’ and calls for a ‘statute of limitations’ to be introduced.

Committee chair unhappy over response to ‘fake news’ report
The BBC reports that Damian Collins, Chair of the Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee has said that he is ‘disappointed’ by the Government’s response to the committee’s report on ‘fake news’. Just three of the report’s 42 recommendations have been accepted by the Government, with some such as a levy on social media firms and limits on political donations completely rejected.

Committee calls for stronger action against sexual images
The Guardian says that a new report by the Commons Women and Equalities Committee advocates stronger measures against sending unsolicited sexual images and public viewing of pornography, including a new law to criminalise non-consensual creation and distribution of sexual images and new requirements for train operators, licensees and universities.

Scrutinising Brexit legislation changes an ‘impossible task’, report warns
According to The Times, a new report by the Hansard Society warns that if the Government does not increase the pace of its release of new legislation for when the UK leaves the EU, Parliament will face an ‘impossible task’ in scrutinising them. Of the estimated 800-1,000 statutory instruments which will be required, only 71 have been put to Parliament, with just two having completed the scrutiny process.

Hunt dismisses calls for Saudi arms sales boycott
The Mirror reports that Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has rejected calls for a boycott of arms sales to Saudi Arabia following the death of Jamal Khashoggi. He admitted that the country’s claims about the death were ‘not credible’ and said that if the reports about the death were proved correct, the UK ‘will act accordingly’.

MPs call on Hammond to abandon beer duty tax rise
The Sun says that 54 Conservative MPs have now signed a letter to the Chancellor organised by Nigel Evans that calls on him to scrap a planned 3.5% in beer duty. They warn that the measure would lead to the closure of pubs with the loss of 3,000 jobs and that the industry makes ‘an extremely positive overall contribution to society’.

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Today’s political headlines include the Tory MPs united in criticism of May’s Brexit plans, EU leaders are prepared to help May sell deal to Parliament, calls for petrol and diesel cars to be banned by 2032 and the 13 MPs accepting pver £100,000 of gifts and trips from Saudis. 

Tory MPs united in criticism of May’s Brexit plans
The Times claims that Theresa May’s concessions in Brussels have annoyed all wings of her party, leaving her ‘facing the most perilous week of her premiership’. It says David Davis has rung ministers to call for a change of plan, while Remain-backing Tories such as Nick Boles and Anna Soubry have also criticised May’s approach. The Sun adds that the proposed extension to the transition period was backed by the inner Brexit cabinet last week on the condition that it was at most three to six months long, while a meeting of Brexiteer cabinet ministers accepted it on Monday. The Daily Telegraph reports that Scottish Secretary David Mundell has told Theresa May that he could not accept an extended transition period.

EU leaders prepared to help May sell deal to Parliament
According to The Guardian, EU leaders are to help Theresa May to build a ‘coalition of the reasonable’ in Parliament to avoid a no-deal Brexit. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that ‘all avenues’ to find a deal should be followed, while European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker apparently told leaders that May needed ‘help’ to sell a deal to MPs.

Committee calls for new petrol and diesel cars to be banned by 2032
The Financial Times has details of a new report by the Commons Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee which calls on the Government to ban sales of almost all new petrol and diesel cars by 2032, claiming that the Government’s current 2040 target was ‘vague’ and ‘unambitious’. The committee claims that this will help the UK meet climate targets and develop technology it could export.

MPs accept over £100,000 from Saudis this year
In an exclusive, the Daily Mail reveals that British politicians have accepted £106,418 in gifts trips and other benefits from the Saudi Arabian regime so far this year – three times higher than the equivalent figure for 2016. Eight Tory and five Labour MPs have been on trips to the country, with the Conservative Leo Docherty describing them as ‘working visits that take time and effort to a serious purpose’.

Mercer claims he ‘wouldn’t vote’ if he wasn’t an MP
The Times reports on an interview of Tory backbencher Johnny Mercer in which he claims that he ‘wouldn’t vote’ in an election, there was ‘absolutely no chance’ that he would stand for Parliament if he was asked to now as he was ‘not comfortable’ that his values were the same as those of his party, and that the Government is a ‘shit show’.

Mordaunt speech interrupted by protester
The Guardian says that International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt was interrupted by a protester who invaded the stage during a speech to a conference on sexual abuse in the aid sector. The whistle-blower Alexia Pepper De Caires accused Mordaunt and her department of trying ‘to control women who are speaking out in this sector’.

Petraeus warns prosecuting veterans risks damaging military
The Daily Mail reports that General David Petraeus, the former head of the US military, used a speech at the thinktank Policy Exchange to warn that prosecuting military veterans could put the relationship between the British and American armed forces ‘at risk’ and leave the UK’s military capabilities ‘greatly diminished’.

MPs accept over £2m of free overseas trips
BBC analysis shows MPs have accepted over £2m of free overseas trips in the last two years, over half being funded by foreign governments. The most common destination was Israel and the Palestinian territories and nine of the ten biggest recipients were Conservative MPs.

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Today’s political headlines include May’s call for the EU to give ground on negotiations, the UK to fund list of suspected aid charity predators, Barnier and Fox suggest extending the Brexit transition and the UK’s debt to the EU still £36bn after a no deal scenario. 

Theresa May to call on EU to ‘give ground’ in negotiations
The BBC says that Theresa May is to urge EU leaders to ‘give ground’ on the Brexit backstop when she addresses them before a dinner later today. The Guardian adds that at a meeting of her Cabinet yesterday Theresa May told ministers to ‘stand firm’ but a number of ministers, including Geoffrey Cox, Michael Gove and Jeremy Hunt, expressed concern about the backstop and the status of Northern Ireland, with Chief Whip Julian Smith warning that an indefinite backstop would not pass through the Commons.

UK to fund list of suspected aid charity predators
The Times reports that the International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt is to announce that the UK will use £2m of aid spending to launch a global register of suspected sexual predators in the aid industry. The new Soteria programme will work from hubs in Africa and Asia, allowing NGOs to vet employees.

Barnier and Fox suggest extending Brexit transition
According to the Financial Times, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has said that he would be prepared to extend the transition period by a further year if the UK accepted a ‘two-tier’ Irish backstop. Separately, The Times reports that International Trade Secretary Liam Fox has suggested extending the transition period for a ‘few more months’ in order agree a free trade deal and avoid needing to implement the backstop.

UK would still owe EU up to £36bn even if no trade deal is agreed, Hammond says
The Daily Telegraph claims that Chancellor Philip Hammond told the Cabinet that the UK would have to pay the EU up to £36bn even if it fails to agree a trade deal. Legal advice suggests that the UK is only likely to save £6-9bn if there is no trade deal, as the UK would be unlikely to persuade international arbitrators that it no longer had to pay the remainder.

MPs accused of politicising bullying inquiry
The Guardian says that MPs have accused each other of politicising the inquiry into bullying in Parliament amid calls for Speaker John Bercow to quit. He has indicated that he will remain in post until next summer, with Labour’s Emily Thornberry saying that it was ‘not the time’ for a change and Margaret Beckett claiming that ‘the constitutional future of this country’, in the form of Brexit legislation, ‘trumps bad behaviour’.

Hunt calls on Johnson to back May
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt calls on his predecessor Boris Johnson and Brexiteer cabinet ministers to back Theresa May ‘to the hilt’, warning that if they don’t ‘the danger is that Brexit will be derailed altogether’. He urged EU leaders not to repeat the ‘mistake’ of the pre-referendum negotiations with David Cameron.

Lib Dems say multinationals should publish tax returns
The Financial Times reports that the Liberal Democrats are calling for multinational companies to be forced to publish their tax returns in order to tackle tax avoidance. Leader Sir Vince Cable claimed that the move would ‘shame’ firms into paying more tax and would make the UK ‘a world leader in tax transparency’.

MPs call for children to be taught how to behave around dogs
The BBC has details of a new report by the Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee that claims that there needs to be more education for children on how to behave around dogs in order to avoid injury. It also calls for a review of the causes of dog aggression and training for owners whose dogs misbehave.

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Today’s political headlines include May’s refusal to back the draft Brexit deal, the Government’s loneliness strategy, police infiltration in the SWP and Hancock’s controversial claims he has not received any letters about Universal Credit. 

May refuses to back draft Brexit deal as ministers start implementing no-deal plans
The Daily Telegraph claims that Theresa May refused to back a draft Brexit deal that had been negotiated by UK and EU officials yesterday because she worried that the Cabinet would not support it. Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab headed to Brussels for an unscheduled meeting at which he set out the UK’s concerns, with all talks now suspended until a summit of EU leaders on Wednesday. The Times adds that ministers have now been told to start implementing plans for a no-deal Brexit, while The Guardian says that the ‘pizza group’ of pro-Brexit Cabinet members convened by Andrea Leadsom will meet tonight to discuss May’s proposed deal, with backbenchers suggesting that they should now quit the Government.

Government launches loneliness strategy
The Daily Mail reports that Theresa May is launching the Government’s loneliness strategy, encouraging GPs to refer lonely people to activities such as dancing and cookery classes, walking clubs and art groups. Other parts of the strategy include £1.8m for community cafes and gardens and getting postal workers to check on lonely people during their rounds.

24 police officers infiltrated SWP
In an exclusive, The Guardian reveals that the police used 24 undercover officers to infiltrate the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) between 1970 and 2007, four of whom deceived women into sexual relationships. The paper and the Undercover Research Group have compiled a database of groups infiltrated by the police since 1968, showing that the SWP accounts for one-third of the cases identified. Only three far-right groups are listed.

Hancock claim not to have received any letters about Universal Credit contradicted
The Daily Mirror reports that despite Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock claiming that he had received ‘no letters at all’ about Universal Credit, he was actually sent an email on the subject by a constituent just three days before. Separately, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon warns in the paper that Universal Credit is ‘not fit for purpose’.

Hammond’s ability to raise taxes limited
The Financial Times says that a number of factors are limiting Philip Hammond’s ability to raise taxes at the budget: opposition amongst Tory MPs to changes to pension tax relief, Eurosceptic and DUP protests about the Government’s Brexit strategy, and Theresa May’s claim at the party conference that the end of austerity was ‘in sight’.

Russians targeting British spies
According to the Daily Mirror, the Foreign Office has warned that Russian spies are trying to make former MI6 officers and diplomats turn traitor. A memo claims that ‘Russian services regard both current and former members of the service as high-priority targets’ and warns them that ‘close relations’ might be threatened.

Former ministers should be held to account for decisions, thinktank says
The Daily Telegraph says that the thinktank the Institute for Government has recommended that former ministers should be required to appear before parliamentary committees in order to give evidence on mistakes made while they were in office and that civil servants should regularly produce feasibility and risk assessments for major projects.

Leasehold reform to be consulted on
The Financial Times carries details of the Government proposed leasehold reforms, on which a consultation will be launched today. Under the proposals, annual ground rents on new leasehold properties will be capped at £10 and the sale of most new houses as leasehold will be banned, with exemptions for shared ownership and community-led schemes.

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Today’s political headlines include the DUP’s threat to withdraw support from Government, May to launch plans for ethnicity pay gap reporting, Home Office guidelines may have been breached and Major compares Universal Credit to the poll tax. 

DUP threatens to withdraw support from Government over Brexit plan
The Daily Telegraph says that Theresa May will today ask her Brexit ‘war cabinet’ to agree a plan under which the UK would stay in a customs union with the EU until a permanent trade deal is agreed, with UK and EU negotiators having agreed to an all-UK backstop in principle. However, the DUP has described this plan, under which Northern Ireland would remain in the single market for goods, as a ‘sell out’ and is threatening to vote against the Budget later this month, abstaining from a vote on the Agriculture Bill last night to show that it is serious. The Times adds that Brexiteer ministers including Penny Mordaunt, Esther McVey and Liam Fox will not be at the meeting, leaving some of them unhappy.

May to launch plans for ethnicity pay gap reporting
The BBC reports that Theresa May is to announce plans today to force companies to reveal their ethnicity pay gap, a comparison between the pay received by employees form ethnic minorities and their white counterparts. She will also launch a Race at Work Charter, committing firms to increasing recruitment and progression of ethnic minority employees.

Home Office guidelines on migrant detention may have been breached
The Guardian has published an investigation into migrants held in detention centres, finding that over half of its sample were either suicidal, seriously ill or victims of torture, with almost 56% defined as being an ‘adult at risk’. People in this category should only be held in extreme cases, so the paper suggests that Home Office guidelines have been breached.

Major compares Universal Credit to the poll tax
Speaking to the BBC, former Prime Minister Sir John Major has criticised the Government’s Universal Credit policy, warning that it risked encountering the same issues as the poll tax. While he described the theory behind the policy as ‘entirely logical’ he cautioned that it was being brought in ‘too soon and in the wrong circumstances’.

Corbyn to announce plans to teach children about UK’s role in slavery and colonialism
According to the Daily Mail, Jeremy Corbyn is to announce plans to teach about the UK’s role in slavery and colonialism in schools today, claiming that the Windrush scandal shows that this is ‘more important now than ever’. The paper adds that Education Secretary Damian Hinds will use a speech today to attack Labour’s plans for a ‘common rule book’, to abandon free schools and freeze the academies programme.

25 high-priority no-deal Brexit plans in trouble
The Times reports that 25 of the less than 100 high-priority no-deal Government workstreams are in trouble, with 13 ‘off-track’. Sir Amyas Morse, the head of the National Audit Office, warned that the Government had left business in a ‘very difficult position’ and said it was ‘not implausible’ that flights between the EU and the UK could be grounded.

Blair concerned about services sector after Brexit, following new research
The Financial Times says that Tony Blair has expressed concern about the future of the UK’s services sector post-Brexit, following the release of new research by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research showing that if the UK traded with the EU on World Trade Organization terms, the lost trade would reduce the size of the economy by 2.1% by 2030.

Pro-remain Tories to form group to rival Rees-Mogg’s Eurosceptics
The Guardian claims that a group of up to 30 remain-backing Conservative MPs are planning to form a movement to rival Jacob Rees-Mogg’s European Research Group and vote down Theresa May’s Brexit deal if she moves towards a Canada-style model, with a number of the MPs hoping that this will lead to a second referendum.

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Today’s political headlines include Brexiteers warnings that the UK must not stay in EU customs arrangements after 2022, the Government is attempting to bring Labour MPs on side to back Brexit, McDonnell calls for an end to Universal Credit and pension tax relief to be cut to fund NHS spending boost. 

Brexiteers warn that the UK must not stay in EU customs arrangements after 2022
The Times claims that Brexiteers, including Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, are now warning Theresa May that, while they are prepared to give her room for manoeuvre in the Brexit talks, she must not keep the UK in the EU’s customs arrangements beyond the next election in 2022. However the EU has insisted that the proposals cannot be time-limited. Some Leavers have suggested that they will use the budget to put pressure on May.

Government tries to get Labour MPs to back Brexit deal
According to The Daily Telegraph, Government whips have held talks with up to 25 Labour MPs in a bid to persuade them to vote through the Government’s Brexit deal, nullifying opposition from Eurosceptic backbenchers. However, this has infuriated the Conservative Eurosceptics, some of whom are now threatening to vote against parts of the budget, with the European Research Group meeting tomorrow to set out plans for a ‘guerrilla campaign’.

McDonnell calls for end to Universal Credit
As the BBC reports, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell used various interviews over the weekend to claim that Universal Credit ‘will have to go’ as it is not ‘providing the safety net that people expect when they need support’ and is ‘just not sustainable’. He also said that Labour was considering reducing the length of the working week.

Pension tax relief to be cut to fund NHS spending boost
The Daily Telegraph says that it expects Philip Hammond to use the budget to cut pension tax relief in order to pay for the NHS’s £20bn funding boost. Steve Webb, the former Lib Dem pensions minister who now works for Royal London, warned that the move is ‘no way to run pensions’ as the ‘people who will be affected are being prudent, making their own provision for retirement – which the Government repeatedly tells us they want us to do’.

Japan would welcome UK to Trans-Pacific Partnership
Interviewed by the Financial Times, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said that his country would welcome the UK to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal ‘with open arms’. He warned against a ‘disorderly Brexit’ and said that while the UK would no longer be a gateway to Europe after Brexit, it was still ‘equipped with global strength’.

Hammond considers reward for landlords who sell to tenants
The Guardian claims that Philip Hammond is considering using the budget to bring in a so-called ‘good landlord’ tax break. This would reward those who sell properties to existing tenants. The plan has been thought up by the thinktank Onward, which proposes that landlords should not pay capital gains tax if a property is sold to tenants who have occupied the property for three years or longer, funded by curtailing other buy-to-let tax benefits.

Field claims Government always knew impact of Universal Credit
The Sun says that Frank Field, Chair of the Commons Work and Pensions Committee, has claimed that the Government always knew that the rollout of Universal Credit would leave some families up to £200 a month worse off. He told the paper that ‘The frailest shoulders have borne most of the budget deficit reduction strategy “successes”’.

Haldane appointed to chair new Industrial Strategy Council
The Financial Times reports that Andy Haldane, the Bank of England’s Chief Economist, is to be appointed as the chair of the new Industrial Strategy Council. The body will hold the Government to account and improve the implementation of the policy, which aims to improve the UK’s poor productivity.

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Today’s political headlines include Hunt’s warning of further sanctions against Russia, Varadkar’s call for new border plans, the EASA has turned down the CAA’s request for an aviation plan and Food bank usage up 52% in Universal Credit areas. 

Hunt warns of further sanctions against Russia as new plot is revealed
The Times reports that Western countries joined forces yesterday to expose a Russian GRU unit which tried to hack the Office for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons a month after the Salisbury attack. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt warned that the ‘hard evidence’ would lead to further sanctions against the country.

Varadkar calls for new border plans to be published quickly
The Guardian reports remarks made by the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar in Brussels yesterday, in which he called on the UK to publish the revised plan for the border ‘as soon as possible’ so that a deal could be reached by November. European Council President Donald Tusk criticised Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt’s ‘unwise and insulting’ comparison of the EU and the USSR, and claimed that the EU was willing to offer a ‘Canada-plus-plus-plus deal’.

European agency turned down UK’s request for joint no-deal aviation plan
Correspondence seen by the BBC shows that the Civil Aviation Authority tried to reach a joint no-deal transition plan with the European Aviation Safety Agency but was turned down in July. EASA told the BBC that ‘discussion about technical details would not be useful since the framework for which we need to prepare is not known.’

Food bank usage up 52% in areas where Universal Credit rolled out
The Financial Times warns that research by the Trussell Trust shows that use of food bank increases by 52% over twelve months in areas where Universal Credit has been rolled out, compared to 13% in areas where it hasn’t. The benefit is due to be rolled out to 2.1m further families between 2019 and 2023.

Ending austerity could cost £20bn
The Times says that the Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned that the cost of ending austerity, as promised by Theresa May in her conference speech, will be £20bn if it includes an increase in public sector wages. Downing Street and the Treasury have not explained what the Prime Minister meant in her speech.

Wealthy move assets out of UK owing to Corbyn fears
According to the Financial Times, which has spoken to a number of wealth managers, many of the UK’s ‘super-rich’ are moving assets out of the country or even planning to emigrate, because of the prospect of a Government led by Jeremy Corbyn. One wealth manager told the paper that ‘most people are much more worried about Corbyn than Brexit.

No-deal Brexit leaves a million workers exposed to pay cuts and job losses
The Sun carries details of new research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, which warns that a no-deal Brexit would leave almost a million blue collar workers in industries such as car-manufacturing and chemicals ‘highly exposed’ to job losses and pay cuts, with the biggest pain felt in the Midlands and Northern Ireland.

McDonnell joins McStrike
The Daily Mail reports that Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell joined striking workers from firms including McDonald’s, TGI Fridays, Wetherspoons, Uber and Deliveroo at a protest in Leicester Square yesterday. The workers are calling for a minimum wage of £10 an hour and the end of ‘precarious’ contracts.

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Today’s Conservative Party Conference headlines include May’s Conference speech, but being cross at Boris, DUP could topple the Government, and NHS must embrace technology. 

May insists a bright future lies ahead
The Times is reporting ahead of Theresa May’s speech today, in which she will tell her Party that the ‘best days lie ahead’ for Britain. May will seek to unite the Conservatives ahead of a crucial period in the Brexit negotiations, with the European Commission set to formally respond to the outlined Chequers proposal next week.

May ‘cross’ at Boris speech
In an interview give to the BBC, May expressed her frustration at comments made by former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who yesterday gave a speech to over a thousand people at the conference. May’s irritation centred on Johnson’s remarks regarding Northern Ireland, which she said reneged on Britain’s guarantee to Northern Ireland.

DUP could topple Conservative government
The Guardian is reporting that DUP leader in the Commons Nigel Dodds has reiterated the party’s belief in no border being imposed in the Irish sea. Dodds threatened to vote down May’s deal if it resulted in checks imposed between Northern Ireland and Britain, saying they would not support a Prime Minister that detached Northern Ireland from Britain.

NHS must embrace technology
The Telegraph has reported on comments made by Secretary of State for Health Matt Hancock at a fringe event, in which he encouraged the sector to adopt technological innovations and follow the lead of driverless cars. Hancock said the NHS would suffer if it waited any longer in introducing new technology.

EU figures angry with May’s immigration plan
The Guardian has picked up on opposition to the Prime Minister’s post-Brexit plan amongst senior EU politicians, with leader of the EPP group Manfred Weber and the EU’s Brexit coordinator Guy Verhofstadt both expressing concerns. May set out her vision to end free movement and low-skilled migration once the UK leaves, with EU figures calling for a united front against attempts to pick-off benefits of membership.

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Today’s Conservative Party Conference headlines include Philip Hammond’s remarks that Boris is unfit to be PM, May’s Chequers compromise, the Conservatives have lost their way and Hunt’s opinion that the EU is a prison.  

Boris is unfit to be PM
The Daily Mail reports on remarks made by the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, in which he said that Boris Johnson is unfit to be Prime Minister. Hammond has also said that Johnson’s greatest achievement is his Boris bikes. Hammond criticised the lack of detail Johnson provides in his suggestions and said he does not know how his own proposals work.

May to compromise on Chequers
The Sun reports that Theresa May could be willing to compromise on her Chequers plan. At a national convention meeting it is rumoured that May has admitted she may not be able to keep all aspects of her plan. This comes after the PM has faced stiff opposition to her proposals from those in her party.

Conservatives have lost their way
The BBC report on remarks made by Conservative donor, Michael Spencer, who is concerned about the party losing its way. In an interview Spencer did not endorse Theresa May saying that her future depends on her ability to deliver Brexit.

Hunt compares EU to ‘prison’ of Soviet Union
Sky report on a speech made by Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt to the conference where he compared the EU to the Soviet Union. He said the EU was set up to promote and protect the values of freedom and not prevent people from leaving. Hunt also called on the party to unite so it can appeal to the entire country.

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