Today’s Political Headlines – 22 March 2018

Today’s Political Headlines include uniting against Russia, Tory party donors revealed as investors of Cambridge Analytica, blue passports being made by a Franco-Dutch firm and the dismantling of the Department for Exiting the European Union. 

May to warn EU summit about Russian threat, with decision on Brexit transition due
The BBC reports that Theresa May is to tell a summit of EU leaders in Brussels to remain united against Russia’s threat to all European democracies. The European Council summit will also decide whether or not to approve the terms of the Brexit transition period unveiled this week, with Spain raising concerns about Gibraltar.

Cambridge Analytica linked to Conservative donors
The Guardian reports that Conservative Party donors are amongst the investors in SCL Group, the parent of controversial firm Cambridge Analytica. Theresa May said yesterday that the Government had no current contracts with the company. The paper adds that Commons Home Affairs Committee Chair Yvette Cooper has called for a full investigation after it emerged that SCL Group had been granted permission to access secret documents by the Ministry of Defence, allowing it to work on two projects.

New blue UK passport to be produced by Franco-Dutch firm
The Daily Telegraph reports that Gemalto, a Franco-Dutch company, is expected to win the contract to produce the new blue UK passport. It undercut other bidders, including the British firm De La Rue, by around £50m. Sir Bill Cash, Chair of the European Scrutiny Committee, described the decision as ‘completely wrong and unnecessary’.

Whitehall discusses the Department for Exiting the European Union’s future
According to the Financial Times, talks about dismantling the Department for Exiting the European Union after March 2019 have begun in Whitehall. The Cabinet Office, Foreign Office, Department for International Trade and Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy are debating which functions they will take over, including talks on UK-EU trade. It is assumed that David Davis will retire from the Cabinet after Brexit happens.

Lords committee says that Government is failing on rural policy
The BBC says that a report by the Lords Committee on the Natural Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act 2006 claims that the Government is failing on rural policy. It suggests that the policy area should be transferred to the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government, and claims that Natural England has become ineffective.

Boris Johnson and Theresa May row over stop-and-search
The Sun claims that Boris Johnson and Theresa May rowed about stop-and-search policy at Cabinet. Sources said that Johnson suggested the police should carry out more checks, but May, who cut the use of stop-and-search when she was Home Secretary because it unfairly targeted young black men, said that the police had all the powers they needed.

Social Mobility Commission needs extra resources, MPs say
The Guardian says that the Commons Education Committee’s report on the Social Mobility Commission (SMC) has called for the Government to give the SMC additional resources and increased powers, to rename it the Social Justice Commission and to appoint a Cabinet Office minister with specific responsibility for social mobility.

Scottish Brexit Bill expected to be referred to the Supreme Court
The Daily Telegraph reports that a row over the SNP’s Brexit Bill is expected to end up in the Supreme Court after it was passed by the Scottish Parliament. Adam Tomkins, a Conservative MSP, challenged the Lord Advocate to refer the bill to the Supreme Court to rule on whether or not it was within the Scottish Parliament’s powers. If he refuses, the paper reports that the UK Government will do so.

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