Archive for: Blog Posts

Today’s political headlines includes Corbyn’s promise to abolish SATs, Corbyn’s warning, Tory chairs plotting against May and Burgon regrets his Zionism remarks. 

Corbyn promises to abolish SATs
The Times says that Jeremy Corbyn has promised to abolish the SATs exams sat by primary school children in a bid to tackle the ‘extreme pressure’ on teachers and pupils. They would be replaced by a more flexible system, which Labour will consult on over the summer. However, the Conservatives have said that this would be a ‘retrograde’ move which would ‘keep parents in the dark’.

Corbyn warns that Government inflexibility is stalling Brexit talks
The Guardian reports that Jeremy Corbyn has said that talks over Brexit between Labour and the Government are stalling because of the Government’s plans for deregulation and a trade deal with the USA after Brexit. He said he didn’t want a ‘deregulated, low-tax society’ and hinted that he would rather hold binding Indicative votes in the Commons.

Tory chairs plot no confidence vote in May
The Daily Telegraph claims chairs of local Conservative associations are circulating a petition asking the party’s National Convention to call an emergency general meeting at which a vote of no confidence in Theresa May would be held. The party is obliged to hold the meeting if over 65 chairs sign the petition; between 40 and 50 are believed to have done so. Such a vote would not force May to resign, but it would put pressure on her.

Burgon regrets Zionism remarks
The Guardian says that the Shadow Justice Secretary Richard Burgon has expressed regret after a video of him saying ‘Zionism is the enemy of peace’ emerged. He had previously denied making such a remark, but when the evidence emerged said that ‘it is now clear that I did and I regret doing so’. The Jewish Leadership Council called for a ‘full apology’.

Javid reviews disclosure of criminal records
The Daily Telegraph reports that Home Secretary Sajid Javid is reviewing the rule which means that anyone with more than one criminal conviction will automatically have them disclosed to prospective employers for the rest of their lives. He wants to give juvenile criminals a second chance, but victims’ rights groups have raised concerns.

Electoral Commission approves Change UK’s application
The Times reports that the Electoral Commission has approved a request from The Independent Group of breakaway MPs to register a new political party under the name of Change UK ahead of next month’s European elections. However, the new party’s proposed logo has been rejected as it was ‘likely to mislead voters’.

Candidate in Tory video accused of selling fake wine
The Daily Mirror says that Gurch Singh, a council candidate in Theresa May’s constituency who appeared in the Conservatives’ most recent election broadcast ran a shop which had additional conditions placed on its licence after it was found to be stocking counterfeit wine and selling alcohol to under-age children. Singh said that the wine came from a reputable supplier and that the only proof of the sales to children came from an anonymous complaint.

Westminster at risk of Notre Dame style fire
The Sun reports that Labour MP Chris Bryant has warned that the Palace of Westminster could be ravaged by fire if a further two year delay to restoration work goes ahead. Under the revised plans work would not start until 2028. Bryant said ‘Parliament has become a potential death trap of catastrophic proportions because we have allowed years of neglect.’

Up to date with education policy? What about Brexit? Crime? Change UK? You need Vuelio Political Services.  

Today’s political headlines includes thousands applying to be Change UK MEP candidates, Tories worrying about leadership contest, Javid’s close brush with a life of crime and climate change protesters closing down parts of London. 

Over 3,000 people want to be Change UK MEP candidates
According to The Times, over 3,000 people have applied to stand as candidates for Change UK at the European elections. Its MPs are working through the applications and will pick candidates from a shortlist of 100 at the weekend. Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has admitted that the elections will be ‘disastrous’ for the Conservatives, with the paper adding that they have yet to make various key campaign decisions.

Tories worry about leadership contest
The Sun reveals that ‘senior Tories’ are worried that their party is being infiltrated by Brexit activists hoping to influence the elections for its new leader. Membership has grown by 30,000 over the last year, reaching a total of over 150,000 – the highest in at least seven years. Some of this has been attributed to a recruitment drive, but others are thought to be both former UKIP members and remainers, who want to vote in a leadership contest.

Javid says he could have embarked on life of crime
The Daily Telegraph reports that Home Secretary Sajid Javid admitted in a speech yesterday that he could have entered a life of crime, having been brought up on ‘the most dangerous street in Britain’, and that he was worried about the safety of his children, staying ‘up late at night waiting to hear the key turning in the door’. He said that the Government needed to change its ‘mindset’ to ‘stop the violence before it begins’.

Climate change protesters close roads in capital
The Financial Times reports that Extinction Rebellion, the environmental activist group, shut down four roads in London yesterday, including Waterloo Bridge and Oxford Circus, as part of its bid to draw attention to climate change. It said it would try to keep the roads blockade for ‘as long as possible’, unless the Government would agree to talks. It wants a climate emergency to be declared, zero greenhouse emissions by 2025 and a citizen’s assembly to discuss climate issues.

Government under pressure to end Brexit talks
The Guardian claims that the Government is feeling under pressure to end its talks over Brexit with Labour and move on to its alternative, finding a compromise in the Commons through a series of votes or amendments to the withdrawal bill. Theresa May’s former advisor Nikki da Costa suggested that doing this before the European elections would need ‘a level of legislative aggression’ this Government had not displayed so far.

German foreign minister warns Brexit won’t be delayed after October
Germany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has used an interview with the Financial Times to warn that Brexit will not be delayed after October, saying that ‘they will have to decide what they want’ as ‘you cannot drag out Brexit for a decade’. He added that a further extension might be interpreted as a ‘signal that they plan to stay in the EU after all’.

Corbyn defends Begum’s right to legal aid
The Guardian says that Jeremy Corbyn has defended Shamima Begum’s right to legal aid. Begum, who left the UK to join ISIS, may be applying for the funding to challenge the Government’s decision to strip her of her British citizenship in the courts. Corbyn said ‘she has legal rights, just like anybody else does’ and being represented in court was ‘a fundamental point in any democratic society.’

Labour suspends council candidate for sharing antisemitic conspiracy theories
The Daily Telegraph says that Labour has suspended a council candidate in Brighton and Hove after the paper revealed that she had posted ‘highly offensive’ conspiracy theories about the Rothschilds and Israel online. The party refused to comment on the case, while the candidate, Alexandrina Braithwaite, said she was ‘sorry for the offence I have caused.’

Are you in the loop? Make sure you don’t miss anything with Vuelio Political Services.  

Today’s political headlines includes short notice evictions to be banned, Leadership contenders want May to stay for months, Hammond mocks Brexiteer leadership campaigners and progress unlikely in Brexit talks. 

Short notice evictions to be banned
The Guardian says that housing campaigners have backed Government plans to ban ‘no-fault evictions’, with a consultation on abolishing ‘section 21 evictions’ which allow landlords to evict tenants at short notice and with no good reason. The Government says that this is one of the main causes of family homelessness, and Theresa May said the change ‘will not only protect tenants from unethical behaviour, but also give them the long-term certainty and the peace of mind they deserve.’ The news was welcomed by Shelter but the Residential Landlords Association warned that it could result in fewer homes being available to rent.

Leadership contenders want May to stay for months
According to The Times, Cabinet contenders for the leadership want Theresa May to stay in place until the first stage of Brexit is completed, even if this takes until the end of the year. They fear that a summer leadership content would aid those, such as Boris Johnson and Dominic Raab, who want to reopen the Brexit deal. However, former leader Iain Duncan Smith yesterday called on May to step down by the end of June.

Hammond mocks Brexiteer leadership campaigners
The Daily Telegraph says Chancellor Philip Hammond used a speech in Washington to mock Brexiteer candidates in the last Conservative leadership election, saying Boris Johnson and Michael Gove formed an ‘unintended suicide pact’ while Andrea Leadsom had a ‘private suicide pact’. He also joked he was the only Tory MP not running for leader and that if a no-deal Brexit had happened he would have been visiting as the ‘designated survivor’.

Progress unlikely in Brexit talks unless red line shifts
The Guardian has been told by ‘sources close to the talks’ between Labour and the Government over Brexit that further advances are unlikely unless the Government’s red line over a customs union with the EU moves. Cabinet Office Minister David Lidington said ‘there is going to have to be movement on both sides’. Three working groups are to be established next week, covering security, environmental protection and consumers’ and workers’ rights.

Corbyn links youth service cuts to crime
The Daily Mirror reveals that Jeremy Corbyn will use a visit to an educational activity centre in Yorkshire to claim that the Conservatives have cut council spending in youth services by 70% since 2010. He will warn that ‘these cuts are creating the conditions in which crime can thrive’ and pledge to legislate ‘to guarantee quality youth services’.

NHS giving doctors cash to avoid early retirements
The Financial Times says that there is a ‘growing staffing crisis’ in the NHS, with the service topping-up doctors’ salaries with cash to help them avoid higher taxes as a result of stricter pension rules which have led many staff to take early retirement or to reduce the hours they are working. The paper warns that this ‘threatens to undermine the multibillion-pound funding injection’ announced by Theresa May last year.

Javid to make ‘veiled leadership pitch’
The Daily Telegraph reports that Home Secretary Sajid Javid is to make a speech on crime today, which it describes as a ‘veiled leadership pitch’. He will say that ‘we cannot afford to leave anyone behind’ and advocate a ‘public health’ approach to tackling knife crime, coordinating teachers, medical professionals and other branches of Government.

Lammy criticised over ‘Nazi’ remarks
The Times says that Labour MP David Lammy has been criticised after he compared Conservative Brexiteers to Nazis yesterday, saying that they should not be ‘appeased’. He said the ‘BBC should not allow this extreme hard-right fascism to flourish’, but Conservative MP Conor Burns suggested that Lammy had ‘lost it’.

Domestic policy is back on the agenda, stay up to date with what matters to you – get Vuelio Political Services.  

Today’s political headlines includes the Brexit delay, the latest plot to oust May, a brand new MP expenses scandal and Scruton sacked over ‘unacceptable comments’. 

UK given Brexit delay until October
As The Guardian reports, last night European leaders agreed to delay Brexit until 31 October, giving the UK an option to leave earlier if the deal is approved by Parliament. The EU will review the UK’s behaviour at a summit in June, with European Council President Donald Tusk suggesting that a further extension could be granted if necessary. French President Emmanuel Macron advocated a shorter extension, but settled for a compromise after other leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who advocated a delay until December, said this would not allow the impasse in the UK to be resolved.

Conservative MPs plot to oust May
The Daily Telegraph claims that Conservative MPs are ‘plotting’ to get rid of Theresa May by changing rules which mean that she cannot be ousted until a year after the last confidence vote, attempting to gain 10,000 members’ signatures to support the change. The executive of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs yesterday discussed moving against May after next month’s local and European elections. According to The Guardian, Theresa May will try to remain as Prime Minister during the delay to Brexit and continue to try to get her Brexit deal through Parliament.

16 MPs claim taxpayers money for London homes while renting their own out
The Daily Mirror reveals that 16 MPs, including International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, are claiming money to rent homes in London, while also letting properties in the city. While this is not a breach of parliamentary rules, the Defend Council Housing campaign said that the news was ‘scandalous’ and the ‘gravy train’ needed to be ended.

Scruton sacked over ‘unacceptable comments’
The Times reports that Sir Roger Scruton has been sacked as a housing adviser to the Government after making ‘unacceptable comments’ about Islamophobia, antisemitism, George Soros, the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, and China in an interview with the New Stateman. Labour is calling on the Government to remove his knighthood.

Senior Tories urge Brexiteer ministers to stay in post
The Sun claims that senior Tories have told Brexit-supporting ministers not to resign over cross-party talks with Labour or a possible second referendum in order to keep a ‘balance of power’ with pro-EU ministers, citing the example of the appointment of Amber Rudd following the resignation of Esther McVey, and to avoid a Jeremy Corbyn-led government.

Wright says online rules won’t affect press freedom
The Daily Mail reports that Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Jeremy Wright has used a letter to the Society of Editors to promise that the proposals in the new Online Harms White Paper would not affect ‘journalistic or editorial content’, with safeguards introduced to protect the role of the press.

Minister should oversee Parliament refurbishment, Spelman says
The Times says that Dame Caroline Spelman, chair of the committee on the restoration of Parliament, has said that a minister should be appointed to oversee this, suggesting Andrea Leadsom as a possible candidate. She warned that if this did not happen, there could be repeats of last week’s incident which saw the Commons suspended after a leak.

Government criticised over response to childcare and Universal Credit inquiry
The Sun says that members of the Commons Work and Pensions Committee have criticised the Government’s response to their inquiry into childcare and Universal Credit as ‘skimpy and disappointing’, demanding they look again at the ideas they suggested to help parents return to work, accusing it of ‘dismissing the serious problems that are plaguing parents’.

Rumours that Brexit has been further delayed because everyone enjoys reading the Vuelio Brexit Briefing are unsubstantiated. Sign up to our political updates here. 

Today’s political headlines includes Labour expecting to hold further Brexit talks with the Government, tech firms to face new regulation, Johnson’s thoughts on Brexit latest and the majority who want a strong leader. 

Labour expects to hold further Brexit talks with Government
The BBC reports that Labour has said it is expecting to hold further talks to find a Brexit compromise with the Government, as peers continue considering a bill put forward by Yvette Cooper which would force Theresa May to request a Brexit extension, rather than accepting a no-deal Brexit. Solicitor General Robert Buckland said the likely outcome of talks was ‘something approximating a customs arrangement or customs union’. The Financial Times says French President Emmanuel Macron is demanding ‘tough political conditions’ on any Brexit extension, including guarantees that the UK will not disrupt the EU’s business.

Tech firms to face new regulation as Wright says industry has ‘reached a turning point’
Writing in The Sun, Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Jeremy Wright says that he used a face-to-face meeting with Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg to warn him that the UK had ‘reached a turning point’ over the social media firm’s failure to tackle harmful content, with new laws the ‘only option’. The Online Harms White Paper, published today, will contain new measures to make firms responsible for protecting their users, with senior management at risk of prosecution, and companies potentially being banned from the UK.

Johnson says May shouldn’t ‘surrender’ to Corbyn over customs union
Writing in The Daily Telegraph, Boris Johnson insists that Conservative MPs won’t let Theresa May ‘surrender’ to Jeremy Corbyn, insisting that agreeing to a customs union with the EU ‘cannot, must not and will not happen.’ The paper adds that May has given ‘the clearest signal yet’ that she will agree a customs union, saying that a cross-party deal is needed and would require ‘compromise on both sides’.

Over half the population want a ‘strong leader’
The Times reports that new research by the Hansard Society finds that over half the population wants a ‘strong leader willing to break the rules’, with nearly-three quarters agreeing that the country’s governance needed ‘quite a lot’ or ‘a great deal’ of improvement. Ruth Fox, the society’s director said that this ‘would challenge core tenets of our democracy’ and was ‘a potentially toxic recipe for the future of British politics’.

Jewish Labour Movement says it has no confidence in Corbyn
The Guardian reports that the Jewish Labour Movement has voted for a motion of no confidence in Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party which claimed that the party was ‘institutionally antisemitic’. Separately, the party has denied a story in The Sunday Times criticising its handling of complaints about antisemitism.

No Afghan translators have arrived in the UK despite Williamson’s promise
The Daily Mail reveals that despite Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson’s pledge last June to allow 50 Afghan interpreters who had helped British troops to settle in the UK with their families, none have yet arrived despite increasing danger in their home country. So far just one interpreter has been given permission to come to the UK, and will arrive within weeks.

Brexit confusion could cause problems for EU tenants
The Guardian says that the Residential Landlords Association has warned that confusion over Brexit will cause problems for tenants from the EU, criticising the Government for not giving clear guidance about the settled status scheme. Landlords face fines of up to £5000 if they are found to be renting a property to an illegal immigrant.

Rudd plays down Johnson alliance rumours
According to The Times, Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd has been playing down suggestions that she will back Boris Johnson’s campaign for the Conservative leadership in a ‘Bamber’ alliance, which would see her become Chancellor and unite the remain and leave strands of the party.

Tech regulation could change social media as we know it. Don’t let politics get the best of you, stay ahead with Vuelio Political Services.