Energy minister quits to focus on constituency

An energy minister has announced he is standing down from his government role to focus on local issues in a further blow to Rishi Sunak.

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‘Ruthless!’ Rishi Sunak warned against unleashing ‘dangerous turf war’ as critics rail against cigarette ban

Rishi Sunak has been warned against unleashing a “dangerous turf war” in the UK, with critics citing events Down Under as a possible consequence.

Experts believe a cornershop crime wave could reach Britain if the Prime Minister pushes ahead with his plans to prohibit tobacco for people born after 2009.

Australia’s smoking laws are pretty similar to those enforced in the UK, with controls over packaging and graphics.

However, Canberra’s attempts to push prices up to around AU$50 have made the illicit market even more rife.

The figure is almost double the cost for a packet of cigarettes in the UK, which is well above the retail price in mainland Europe.

Victoria in Australia is witnessing illegal gangs battle to gain control of the illicit tobacco market.

Police were forced to investigate 27 fires linked to the illegal tobacco trade over a seven-month period.

The illicit market has also grown exponentially, soaring to around AU$5billion.

Theo Foukkare, CEO of the Australian Association of Convenience Stores said: “These crime groups are in the midst of a dangerous turf war as they try to gain ultimate control over the vape and illicit tobacco black market.

“Tobacconists are being firebombed on a weekly basis. In Victoria alone, there have now been more than 50 firebombings of retail stores in the last 12 months.

“They target any store that will not sell their black market product.

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“These groups make huge, tax-free money from selling black market products and the penalties they face are pretty minimal, so there is a lot to gain and very little consequence.

“It is quite scary how ruthless they are. The safety of entire communities is being put at risk.”

The Australian Border Force released its annual report last year showing the number and value of tobacco seizures has surged across the country since tighter restrictions were introduced.

ABF seized more than 2,000 tonnes of tobacco in 2022/23, the report confirmed.

The amount seized constituted an increase on the 1,600 tonnes recovered the previous year.

Foukkare claimed: “There is very limited enforcement. Police in Australia just aren’t resourced enough to take on the fight, especially when you look at the other types of crime they’re fighting every single day.”

“Legitimate convenience store owners are terrified. They’re being threatened by shady characters that they will be firebombed if they don’t agree to sell black market vapes and tobacco. They’re worried for the safety of their staff, their families, their customers and their communities.”

He added: “If the Australian experience is anything to go by, I would be extremely surprised if a black market war did not explode across the UK. Learn from the Australian Government’s mistakes. Prohibition has never worked and is pushing Australians right into the arms of the black market.

“Australia used to be a world leader in tobacco control but over recent years the number of Aussies who are quitting smoking has flatlined. Aussies aren’t quitting tobacco - they’re just buying the illegal, tax-free black market products that are widely available here. The black market is booming and crime groups are the only ones who are benefiting in Australia.”

Sunak is hoping to introduce strict measures to curb smoking, claiming tobacco is proving detrimental to the health of Britain.

The Prime Minister proposed preventing anyone who is turning 15 this year, or younger, from ever being able to legally buy tobacco products.

The plans are supported by an overwhelming majority of Britons, with almost three-in-four Conservative voters also backing the measures.

However, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson voiced his concern about the “nuts” measures while speaking at an event in Canada.

He said: “We are, on the whole, in favour of freedom and it is that single Anglo-Saxon idea of freedom that I think unites conservatives, or should unite conservatives.

“And when I look at some of the things that we are doing now, or that are being done in the name of conservatism, I think they are absolutely nuts.”

The ex-Prime Minister added: “When the party of Winston Churchill wants to ban cigars, donnez-moi un break as they say in Quebec, it's just mad.”

Sunak’s predecessor Liz Truss has also been critical of the plan, claiming it is “profoundly unconservative”.

There have even been reports the Prime Minister could face a rebellion of around 100 MPs when the legislation is brought to the House of Commons next week.

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The investigation into Angela Rayner hinges on one thing

As with most political scandals, the heat in the Angela Rayner housing row is less about the (alleged) crime and more about the (alleged) cover-up.

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Joe Biden caught LYING as he repeats untrue story about going to college

Joe Biden has been caught lying about his family’s history in a blunder which derailed his longshot bid for the White House in 1988.

Biden, 81, made the claim during a speech in the swing state of Wisconsin on Monday.

The Badger State, which voted for Donald Trump in 2016, backed Biden by just 20,682 four years ago.

It will prove vital for both contenders to gun for ahead of polling day on November 5.

Biden was in Wisconsin to discuss his latest student loan handout, adding: “I, like an awful lot of people in this audience, was the first in my family to go to college, and watch my dad struggle to help me get there.”

The 46th President, who has run for the White House on three separate occasions, made a similar claim during his disastrous 1988 bid.

Biden suspended his campaign just a few months in after being accused of plagiarising a speech delivered by former Labour leader Neil Kinnock.

Kinnock said: “Why am I the first Kinnock in a thousand generations to be able to get to university?

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“Why is Glenys the first woman in her family in a thousand generations to be able to get to university? Was it because all our predecessors were thick?”

Echoing Kinnock’s remarks, Biden told delegates: “I started thinking as I was coming over here, why is it that Joe Biden is the first in his family ever to go to a university?

“Why is it that my wife who is sitting out there in the audience is the first in her family to ever go to college?

“Is it because our fathers and mothers were not bright?

“Is it because I'm the first Biden in a thousand generations to get a college and a graduate degree that I was smarter than the rest?”

Social media users were keen to point out the issue with Biden’s statement.

Conservative influencer Greg Price said: “Joe Biden just said in a speech in Wisconsin ‘I, like an awful lot of people in this audience, was the first in my family to go to college.’

“That is a lie. One of the reasons we know it's a lie is because Biden has bragged several times in the past about how his grandfather played college football.”

Price subsequently shared a post from the RNC Research X account pointing out how The New York Times caught Biden making the same two contrary claims in 1987.

The article claimed: “Mr Biden had said he was the 'first in his family ever to go to university.' In fact, Mr Biden said today, 'there are Finnegans, my mother’s family, that went to college.'”

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Statue unveiled in honour of murdered MP

A statue of murdered MP Sir David Amess has been unveiled on Southend seafront in a ceremony attended by his family.

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Tories warned 10 MPs will defect to Reform UK if Nigel Farage takes over as leader

Ten Conservative MPs could defect to Reform UK if Nigel Farage comes out of retirement to lead the party, one of his biggest former financial backers has warned.

Arron Banks, who famously donated £1million to the UK Independence Party in 2014 when Farage was leader, also said that there were donors with "multiples" of £10million prepared to bankroll the Reform party if Farage took a front of house role at the party.

Speaking to GB News' Chopper's Political Podcast, Banks said if Farage were to become leader of Reform UK and fight the next election "10 Tory MPs will walk across the thing straight away.

"That's part of his calculus. MPs are in contact with him daily about this kind of thing. If he does come back, it will be on the back of something fairly spectacular."

Banks said that he knew of "at least three or four names" of Conservative MPs who might defect to Reform UK.

He said that Reform's 15-point showing in the polls was supported by "the hope factor that Nigel's coming back".

Potential donors to Reform UK were ready to give "multiples of £10million" if Farage took over the party, he said.

"This is the perfect storm for Nigel to come back into, but I do think at the stage he's genuinely undecided," he said, adding: "He is like a moth to the flame. He won't be able to resist this. I just can't see it."

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Farage forecast that currently the Conservatives are facing an "extinction-level" event at the general election, and could fade away like the Liberal party.

"This is where Reform is interesting. I think the Tories are facing extinction-level events like the Liberal Party did when the Labour Party came into existence. They can be wiped out at the next general election.

"And if they fall below 100 seats, then... you probably know the history of the Liberal Party better than me but I don’t think it happened in one go."

The Conservatives did not have "a divine right to Government", he said adding: "I think, actually, the Conservative Party as it currently exists is going to be wiped out.

"And I think if Nigel does it, he's done a great service to the country and maybe something new and better can come forward in its place."

Turning to Brexit, Banks, who ran one of the campaigns that won the referendum to take the UK out of the European Union, said politicians had to grow up and run the country better.

"Brexit requires politicians to be more grown up and to actually run the country better.

"Now you take a country like Switzerland, it's very well run. It's outside the EU, alright maybe associated with that. It’s down to the lack of political governance.

"So I think my criticism against the Conservative Party is as much incompetence that has been displayed over the last 14 years rather than 'Brexit did this, Brexit did that'."

Earlier this year Banks paid for a survey which found that Farage could beat a Conservative candidate by 10 points if he stood to become a Reform UK MP in the Essex constituency of Clacton.

The poll by Survation found that the former Ukip and Brexit Party leader would pick up 37 per cent of the vote compared to 27 per cent for the Conservative incumbent if he stood as a Reform candidate

Farage, a full-time GB News presenter, told friends including Banks at his 60th birthday party last week that he was torn between staying at GB News presenter, running to be a Reform UK MP at the next election or campaigning for Donald Trump to return to the White House.

"I could throw it all away, start again, throw myself back into the frontline of British politics. These are all options," he said, adding: "I am beginning to form in my mind what I think the right thing to do is. And I will say what I am going to do over the course of the next few weeks."

Listen to Chopper's Political Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or watch it on YouTube or GB News' website from 6am on Friday, April 12.

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The United Kingdom’s benefits system is losing billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money to fraud, says Jacob Rees-Mogg

The United Kingdom’s benefits system is losing billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money to fraud.

Five Bulgarian nationals have pleaded guilty to defrauding the British taxpayer of more than £50 million.

The five were members of an organised crime gang which filed thousands of Universal Credit claims between 2016 and 2021.

Thankfully, they are all now facing years in prison in what is one of Britain’s biggest cases of benefit fraud.

But this case points to much broader problems with our benefits system.

Although the problem of fraud itself is important, the Department of Work and Pensions estimated that the taxpayer was defrauded of about £7 billion in the financial year to 2023.

But just for some context, if we were to eliminate this fraud this would save the taxpayer enough money to abolish inheritance tax in its entirety.

But the problems with our benefits system go beyond fraud.

The deeper problem is simply how many people are out of work.

There are currently 5.6 million working age adults on out of work benefits.

The majority of them are claiming Universal Credit - about 3.8 million people.

The other major component is those claiming incapacity benefits - of whom there are about 2.4 million people.

The Universal Credit was intended to ensure that work always pays but swathes of the country are economically inactive and claiming this benefit.

For example, around a fifth of working age adults are on out-of-work benefits in Manchester, Glasgow, Liverpool and Birmingham, while in Blackpool it’s as much as a quarter.

This undermines the whole purpose of the Universal Credit

As regards incapacity benefits, the 2.4 million is expected to rise to 3.4 million by the end of the decade.

While claims are up by 630,000 since before the pandemic, partly because of big increase in those suffering from mental health issues.

Welfare is costing the taxpayer £260 billion a year and this is growing.

It is about 20% of all public spending and falls on rich and poor taxpayers alike.

It is not incentivising people to work and risks becoming a lifestyle choice paid for others.

Reform is essential and fraud, though important, is a relatively small percentage of the total problem.

Ultimately only if we get these costs down can we afford to cut taxes, unleash Britain’s latent growth and innovation and increase the size of the pie for everyone.

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Home Office accused of 'celebrating failure' as it vows to close 150 asylum hotels by May

The Home Office has promised to close 150 migrant hotels by May after figures showed aid spending on asylum seekers in the UK rose to £4.3bn in 2023.

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No.10 ‘looks absolutely stupid’ after sexting scandal, rages Nigel Farage: ‘Can’t get anything right!’

No.10 'looks absolutely stupid' after a sexting scandal involving Tory MP William Wragg, according to Nigel Farage.

Wragg quit days after admitting to giving out the personal phone number of fellow MPs.

He will now sit as an independent in the House of Commons.

WATCH NIGEL GIVE HIS REACTION ABOVE

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William Wragg quits Tories amid sexting scandal

William Wragg has given up the Conservative whip - and can no longer sit as an MP for the party - just days after he admitted to giving out his colleagues' personal phone numbers in a 'sexting scam'.

A Tory whips spokesperson said today: "Following Will Wragg's decision to step back from his roles on the Public Accounts and 1922 Committees, he has also notified the Chief Whip that he is voluntarily relinquishing the Conservative Whip."

Wragg had resigned from his roles as vice-chairman of the 1922 Committee of Conservative Party backbenchers and leader of the Commons' Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee yesterday after details of his involvement in the scam came to light.

Last week, he had told the Times that he had leaked colleagues' personal numbers after he sent explicit images of himself - which left him "scared" the recipient of the images "had compromising things" on him.

The colleagues, which included a number of MPs, their staff members and one political journalist, were subsequently targeted by a "spear-phishing" scam which saw them receive flirtatious messages and explicit images from someone calling themselves either "Charlie" or "Abi".

Tory MP Luke Evans revealed that he was one of the politicians targeted in the scam, and claimed that he was the first MP to flag it to relevant authorities.

Wragg, MP for Hazel Grove, said: "They had compromising things on me. They wouldn’t leave me alone. They would ask for people.

"I gave them some numbers, not all of them. I told him to stop. He’s manipulated me and now I’ve hurt other people.

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"I got chatting to a guy on an app and we exchanged pictures. We were meant to meet up for drinks, but then didn’t.

"Then he started asking for numbers of people. I was worried because he had stuff on me. He gave me a WhatsApp number, which doesn’t work now."

Scotland Yard has launched an investigation into reports of the "honeytrap" after the publishing of Wragg's colleagues' details raised security concerns.

Leicestershire Police confirmed it is investigating a report of malicious communications after a number of unsolicited messages were sent to a Leicestershire MP last month.

His apology had prompted mixed reactions from senior political figures; while Chancellor Jeremy Hunt called it "courageous and fulsome", Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden called Wragg's behaviour "foolish".

Reform UK's deputy leader Ben Habib reacted to the news on social media, saying: "William Wragg should have [been] sacked. Not given the privilege to resign.

"He exposed his genitals to a stranger on an app then sold his colleagues down the drain to cover himself."

While a "senior Tory" told Sky News: "Rishi is so weak, Wragg decided he'd have to fire himself instead."

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Tory MP at centre of Westminster sexting scandal quits parliamentary party

William Wragg, who shared other politicians' personal numbers as part of a honeytrap sexting scam, has "voluntarily" given up the Conservative whip - meaning he will now sit as an independent MP in the Commons.

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Angela Rayner's tax affairs: a smear or a real trust problem for Labour?

The details of this row, now rumbling on for over a month, are familiar - but the pressure is escalating.

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‘Genuinely terrifying’: Nigel Farage ‘disturbed’ by shock poll exposing British Muslim attitudes: '32% want Sharia law!'

Nigel Farage says a new poll that found almost a third of British Muslims think Sharia law is ‘desirable’ left him ‘disturbed’.

The survey, carried out by polling firm JL Partners, found 32 per cent of 1,000 British Muslims think the religious law’s implementation is ‘desirable’.

The GB News star was also shocked by 15 per cent admitting they have a “very positive” view of terrorist organisation Hamas, as well as another 14 per cent saying they had a “quite positive” view of the group.

“The one I found perhaps most worrying of all is 32 per cent of British Muslims want to see Sharia law implemented”, he said.

“I find this genuinely terrifying. The Muslim population in Britain is four million today.

“By 2050, it’s projected to be over ten million. Are we to have a huge group of millions of people living in our midst that not only don’t share our values, but also want to impose their values on us?

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“That’s what I’m disturbed by.”

The Henry Jackson Society think tank found that almost 40 per cent of university-educated Muslims between the ages 18-24 believed Hamas did not commit atrocities on October 7.

The poll found that 13 per cent of Muslims asked had a “very negative” view of Hamas, while 11 per cent had a “quite negative” view of the group.

Asked about how desirable it was for homosexuality to be outlawed, 17 per cent said it was “very desirable” while 10 per cent said it was “somewhat desirable”.

Meanwhile, 18 per cent said it was “very undesirable” and 10 per cent said it was “somewhat undesirable”.

A Government spokesperson said: "We have recently set out a series of measures which will promote social cohesion and counter religious hatred.

"Our plan will tackle division in our communities and ensure that we are protecting our democratic freedoms across the country."

Pro-Palestine demonstrations that have taken place across Britain since the October 7 atrocities have been comprised of large numbers of British Muslims.

They are taking a stand against Israel’s response to Hamas’s terror, with Gaza’s health ministry reporting at least 33,207 Palestinians have been killed and 75,993 others have been wounded in the country’s military offensive.

Hamas’s massacre saw 1,200 civilians killed and a further 235 taken hostage from southern Israel.

Divisions have spilled out onto the streets of Britain with reports of vandalism and violence during mass protests in London.

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Police arrest 12 people involved in Israel arms embargo protest at Labour HQ

Twelve people have been arrested in connection with a demonstration that saw the Labour Party's headquarters daubed in red paint.

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Hidden cost of Labour’s social care plans laid bare as experts warn of funding gap worth BILLIONS

Labour's plan for social care, which involves handing unions stronger powers to negotiate pay, could cost billions of pounds, despite no money being put towards the policy.

Sir Keir Starmer has committed to having a fair pay agreement in the social care sector, something which would be achieved through collective bargaining between trade unions and social care providers.

It is hoped the policy would boost pay and, as a result, decrease reliance on foreign workers to fill gaps.

But, despite pledging a "fully funded manifesto", Labour has so far failed to guarantee any extra funding for the plan.

Ben Zaranko, a senior research economist at the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) claimed that an increase of a pound per hour on frontline care worker salaries would cost the Treasury between £1 billion to £1.5 billion a year in extra funding.

He told the Telegraph: "A couple of pounds an hour more within a couple of years feels completely conceivable.

"That could be a cost of three, four, five billion pounds. That feels like a real possibility."

Meanwhile, Nadra Ahmed, chair of the National Care Association, said more central funding would be needed.

She warned: “Talks with the unions are only likely to lead to an increase in wages.”

While she told the Telegraph she is in full support of higher pay for care workers, she urged Labour to accept that more funding will be required.

She added: "We can all promise the Earth. It is about deliverability."

But Labour's shadow minister for employment rights and protections, Justin Madders, said: "The recruitment and retention crisis in adult social care is a key driver of the crisis currently facing our NHS, and this is only set to get worse unless action is taken to fix this broken sector.

“A fair pay agreement for the sector will help to end the race to the bottom in adult social care.”

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The policy is part of Labour's New Deal for Working People, with Angela Rayner last year pledging a "cast iron commitment" to push through an employment rights bill within 100 days of entering office if the party wins the next election.

The agreement would include protections against unfair dismissal, a ban on zero-hour contracts, more flexible working and an end to fire and rehire.

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UK has 'duty' to support Israel, minister says - as row rolls on over arms sales

The UK has a "duty" to support Israel "in her hour of need" despite the killing of three British aid workers in Gaza, a government minister has said.

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Tories forced to hastily delete social media advert after breaching Royal protocol and baffling Britons

The Conservative Party was forced to hastily delete a social campaign poster after it was met with criticism and confusion, as well as accusations of breaching Royal protocol.

The advert, which declared Britain to be the second most powerful country in the world, featured a collage of images which attempted to represent Britain's "soft power".

But it was quickly pointed out that not all of the images featured were actually British, including a Swiss-owned container ship and a US fighter ship.

Watchers also pointed out that the England football team, pictured in the advert, has not won a trophy in years. The image featured in the advert was taken before a recent defeat by Brazil.

The campaign image also attracted controversy as a result of a breach of royal protocol. The Tory Party used a picture of the King, despite protocol dictating that the Royal Family remain politically neutral.

Meanwhile, the image of Rishi Sunak was seen to be ill-placed given he is suffering from record low approval ratings.

It was also pointed out that the advert didn't feature a single woman. SNP MP John Nicolson said: "Apparently there are no women in the ‘second most powerful country in the world'".

After the post was taken down, he added: "Was the King annoyed being used in this way?"

Yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden said he had "no idea" why the advert was removed, telling Sky he would "commend the sentiment" behind it.

The advert's claim that Britain is the second most powerful country in the world was based on the Global Soft Power Index 2024, a survey conducted by the consulting firm Brand Finance.

It ranked the UK as the second most powerful country in the world behind the US.

The latest campaign blunder comes just weeks after the Tories were forced to awkwardly delete an attack ad on Sadiq Khan because it showed footage of New York rather than London.

The caption on the advert, posted on X in support of Susan Hall's campaign, claimed "London under Labour has become a crime capital of the world".

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But part of the advert showed clips of people rushing through New York's Penn Station after false reports of gunfire in 2017.

It was pointed out on social media that the video featured the US, after which point it was taken down. A new advert was reposted with the clips of Penn Station cut out.

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Israel has made 'big mistakes' in Gaza conflict, says Dowden

Oliver Dowden has accused Israel of making "big mistakes" during the conflict in Gaza and insisted the UK government is "holding them to a very high standard".

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