As local elections loom, are the Conservatives missing Boris Johnson?

Is Boris Johnson's style of politics still alive and well in parts of the country?

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/VWuCi1M

Starmer promises mental health reforms as he welcomes Tory defector

Sir Keir Starmer will vow to "inject resource and reform" into mental health services as he welcomes the latest addition to his party.

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/jJ7Vq1g

The Tories are expecting a pounding at the local elections - but could that mean Labour have the harder job?

Thursday's local elections have been pencilled in as a day of peril for Rishi Sunak for so long, it's hard to remember when Tory turbulence - and maybe even a leadership challenge - was not expected after 2 May.

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/y16KGVc

Sunak does not rule out July general election - but insists 'there'll be a clear choice' when it comes

Rishi Sunak has failed to rule out holding a general election in July, as speculation remains rife over the timing of the national vote.

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/YaohKT1

Sunak does not rule out July general election

Rishi Sunak has failed to rule out holding a general election in July, as speculation remains rife over the timing of the national vote.

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/XxuCahp

Sunak needs to learn voters aren't always governed by the logic of the computer

I've known Rishi Sunak slightly for almost a decade, having first met him after he penned a thoughtful, comprehensive, well-received report on Britain's minority communities, which I'd say is still the best of its kind.

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/QL3sClZ

Venice becomes first city to introduce 'tourist tax' in an effort to control crowds

Venice has become the world's first city to introduce a payment system for tourists.

Signs were set up outside the train station and near an entry footbridge warning visitors they had to pay the new €5 charge before diving into Venice's narrow alleyways.

However, the fee has received a backlash from some residents who said they didn't want to live in a theme park.

Reservations are meant to be made online but there is also a booth on hand for those who don't have smartphones. Although there are no turnstiles at the city gateways, inspectors will be making random checks and issuing fines of between 50 and 300 euros to anyone who has failed to register.

The city councillor responsible for tourism and social cohesion Simone Venturini said the scheme would help Venice find "a new balance" between residents and day-trippers, but hundreds of local protesters saw things differently.

Giovanni Andrea Martini, a member of an opposition group in the Town Hall who joined the residents' protests, called it "a sad day because Venice is becoming a museum, a theme park."

Around 20 million people visited Venice last year, a city official said, with roughly half of them staying overnight in hotels or holiday lets - an influx which dwarfs the resident population currently put at around 49,000.

People with hotel reservations and visitors aged under 14 do not need to pay the entry fee, but still need to register beforehand. Residents, students and workers are exempt.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS

• Rageh Omaar breaks silence after ITV newsreader sparks concern with 'unwell' appearance
• Tory MP in surprise defection as he joins LABOUR - 'Can no longer look people in the eye'
• Two men arrested at pro-Palestine march including one holding ‘swastika placard’

Resident Cristina Romieri said: "We are against this measure because it will do nothing to stop over-tourism.

"Moreover, it is such a complex regulation with so many exceptions that it will also be difficult to enforce it."

Venice narrowly escaped being placed on UNESCO's "World Heritage in Danger" list last year partly because the UN body decided the city was addressing concerns that its delicate ecosystem risked being overwhelmed by mass tourism.

Besides introducing the entry charge, the city has also banned large cruise ships from sailing into the Venetian lagoon and has announced new limits on the size of tourist groups.

Italian tourists arriving earlier this week said imposing another charge on visitors was unfair.

Gabriella Pappada, who came from Lecce in southern Italy, said: "I consider Venice to be the most beautiful city in the world and so to deprive a person on a low budget of the opportunity to come here for an hour or two to enjoy this city is surely a shame for these tourists."

from GB News https://ift.tt/DQN4gGI

Law firm suing the Home Office to let migrants bring families to Britain was given nearly £1m in taxpayer cash

The government has given almost £1 million to a law firm which is suing the Home Office for stopping migrants bringing their families to the UK, GB News can reveal.

In the last two years Duncan Lewis solicitors received £890,552 in taxpayer grants, research from the Centre for Migration Control (CMC) found.

The firm is involved in legal action to prevent the government from implementing stricter immigration controls.

Duncan Lewis solicitors are representing Migrants at Work, a pro-migrant charity, in its recent legal action to stop the government from disbarring migrants on the health and social care visa from bringing dependants to Britain.

Migrants at Work claim that the new rules, which came into effect last month, are discriminatory and will force people to choose between coming to the UK to work in the care sector and staying in their home country with their family.

Robert Bates, the Director of Research at the CMC, told GB News: “Our findings show that the government may be trying to talk-the-talk, but in reality it is propping up an industrial complex of left wing lawyers, funnelling taxpayers’ money to line the pockets of those who want to keep Britain’s borders wide open.”

“Even the meagre offerings put forward by this government look set to flounder. Its plans for illegal migration are superficial and designed solely for nice sounding press releases. Their plans to reduce legal migration will do nothing to bring net migration down from the hundreds of thousands.”

“The Centre for Migration Control will be launching a new project next month, revealing the extent to which the government has been subsidising the work of these activist law firms like Duncan Lewis. Unless there is a blanket ban on these kinds of grants, any attempts to clamp down on mass migration, or illegal channel crossings, will flounder as a result of pernicious lawfare in the immigration courts.”

Duncan Lewis received government grants as a part of the Department for Work and Pensions’ Kickstart Scheme which is aimed at helping companies hire young people.

In 2022 net migration into Britain hit a record high at 745,000.

Jeremy Bloom, a lawyer at Duncan Lewis, told The Guardian: “We haven’t seen any evidence that the Home Office has properly considered the impact that this will have on people coming to the UK on health and social care visas, on the vulnerable individuals who need access to social care, or on the wider system of social care.”

He continued: “The secretary of state is clear that a full impact assessment was not carried out prior to the introduction of the policy, which raises very serious concerns about whether he has complied with the public sector equality duty.”

More than 120,000 dependants accompanied 100,000 care workers in the year ending September 2023.

A government spokesperson described these numbers as “unsustainable” and explained this “is why reforms are now in place restricting care workers from bringing dependants with them”.

Richard Tice, leader of the Reform Party, said: “It’s outrageous that a lefty law firm is taking taxpayer money while suing the government to maintain mass migration.”

“Ministers should not be providing grants to law firms; this is an abuse of taxpayers’ cash.”

“The government was elected on a manifesto promise to get migration down and instead it chooses to fund law firms that are working actively against this policy.”

“We must get migration down and control our borders, unfortunately this will never be achieved under this Conservative government.”

A DWP spokesperson said: "The Kickstart scheme, which ran from 2020 until 2022, was designed to support young people in extraordinary circumstances as the country came out of the pandemic. The scheme is closed, and no longer provides funding to Duncan Lewis or any other organisation."

from GB News https://ift.tt/aDE1usq

'Karma is a b***h!' JK Rowling blasts Humza Yousaf as First Minister faces confidence threat

Harry Potter JK Rowling has blasted SNP leader Humza Yousaf as the First Minister faces a fresh confidence threat.

Yousaf, who only replaced Nicola Sturgeon in Bute House last March, could soon face the boot after ripping up his power-sharing deal with the Scottish Green Party.

Rowling, 58, took to social media to share her thoughts about Alba MSP Ash Regan having the final say in Yousaf’s future.

She said: “The idea that Humza Yousaf's political fate may now lie in the hands of Ash Regan, the woman who left the SNP in disgust at its plans for gender self-ID, reminds me ‘They say Karma’s a b***h but I hear she’s a terf.”

Regan, who wrote to Yousaf this morning, is requesting the First Minister takes a more hardline stance on Scottish independene and gender to receive her support.

The pair were at loggerheads shortly after going up for the SNP leadership race last year.

Yousaf called Regan "no great loss" after she quit the SNP.

The Scottish First Minister is facing a no confidence vote after Holyrood’s Tory leader Douglas Ross pushed ahead with the move yesterday.

Ross said: “I can confirm today that on behalf of the Scottish Conservatives I am lodging a vote of no confidence in Humza Yousaf.

"He is a failed First Minister. He has focused on the wrong priorities for Scotland.

“He has governed in the SNP’s interest and not in Scotland’s interest. He is unfit for office. Shouldn’t this be the end of the road for this weak First Minister?”

Scottish Labour and the Scottish Liberal Democrats have agreed to back the motion.

Patrick Harvie later confirmed alongside Slater that Green Party MSPs will oppose Yousaf staying on as First Minister.

The current situation leaves 63 SNP MSPs likely to support Yousaf, with 64 opposition MSPs poised to vote against.

Voting against Yousaf in next week's no confidence motion would prove enough for opposition MSPs to defeat the Glasgow Pollok MSP.

However, Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone, formerly a Green MSP, would be required to cast the deciding vote if Regan lent her support to Yousaf.

from GB News https://ift.tt/N6Irgod

King Charles announcement sparks reaction from British politicians: ‘It's brilliant news’

King Charles’ announcement has numerous sparked reactions from British politicians.

The monarch released a statement confirming that he will be returning to public-facing duties as he continues to receive cancer treatment.

The palace issued a new photograph of King Charles and Queen Camilla alongside the statement ahead of the first anniversary of the Coronation.

Politicians rushed to voice their support for the King after hearing Charles was “progressing” well enough to return to his duties.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak commented on the Royal Family’s post: “Brilliant news to end the week!”

Sir Keir Starmer also voiced his support for Charles and wished the King and the Princess of Wales “the best” as they receive cancer treatment.

The leader of the Labour Party said: “Delighted to see His Majesty looking so well, and returning to public duties.

“On behalf of the Labour Party, I wish him and the Princess of Wales the best, as they continue their recovery with the support of their families.”

Brilliant news to end the week! https://t.co/icGXxS0TUB

— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) April 26, 2024

The King plans to resume his public duties on Tuesday by visiting a cancer treatment centre with Queen Camilla.

In late June, he will also host a state visit from the Emperor and Empress of Japan, including a speech at a Buckingham Palace banquet.

Security Minister Tom Tugendhat voiced his support, stating: “Fantastic news. God save the King!”

Additionally, Douglass Ross, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives, said he was “looking forward to seeing His Majesty return to public duties” and Claire Coutinho, the Energy Secretary, said that it was “wonderful news.”

LATEST ROYAL NEWS:

• Harry's deportation case sparks furious response from Nancy Pelosi with swipe at Donald Trump
• Prince Harry appears to snub King Charles during new video appearance
• William brings home 'therapeutic' present for Kate amid cancer treatment

Members of the British public also voiced their relief following the announcement on social media and thanked the King for the “lovely update.”

One supporter said: “Absolutely wonderful news and beautiful picture.”

The King hopes to continue with key appointments in the royal calendar including Trooping the Colour, the 80th anniversary of D-Day and the Royal Ascot.

However, the palace emphasised that “nothing can be confirmed or guaranteed at this stage.”

from GB News https://ift.tt/5jkqaAc

Brexit-backer Kemi Badenoch slams Remainer David Cameron for 'dereliction of duty' over 2016 referendum

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch has slammed Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron by accusing him of a “dereliction of duty” over the 2016 Brexit referendum.

Badenoch, who supported Brexit, criticised her now-Cabinet colleague for not planning for an outcome in which a majority of Britons would vote to cut ties with the Brussels bloc.

The former Prime Minister ended up losing, with Leave receiving 52 per cent and Remain languishing behind on 48 per cent.

Cameron resigned from Number 10 and the House of Commons but was spectacularly brought back as Foreign Secretary last November.

Badenoch, who became the MP for Saffron Walden in 2017, reportedly told the CBI: “One of the most disappointing things was becoming an MP a year later and finding out there had been no plans made about how this was going to happen. I think that was the real dereliction of duty.

“If you're offering people Leave vs Remain you need to do your work, not just do the work for the option you want to win.”

During the 2016 referendum, Cameron was forced to address why civil servants were banned from giving advice to Eurosceptic Ministers.

He said: “The Government's position is that we will be better off in a reformed European Union.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:

• Harry's deportation case sparks furious response from Nancy Pelosi with swipe at Donald Trump
• Sadiq Khan apologies after suggesting Chief Rabbi's Gaza ceasefire criticism was due to his Muslim-sounding name
• Macron in peril as Marine Le Pen's party polls FAR AHEAD of French President's in shock poll

“Ministers are free to part from that position and campaign in a personal capacity, that is, I think, a very important statement, it's right in terms of how we go about it, but it does not mean the Government is neutral, it doesn't mean the civil service is neutral, the Government has a policy from which people can depart.”

Badenoch is seen as a potential leadership contender should Rishi Sunak face the chop before or after the next general election.

Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt and ex-Home Secretary Suella Braverman, both Brexiteers, have also been identified as Tory leadership hopefuls.

Lord Cameron was this week forced to deny he suggested Britain’s departure from the European Union was to blame for an asylum returns deal with France being off the table.

He had claimed a cross-Channel pact "not possible" because of the situation the UK is currently in.

However, clarifying his position, the Foreign Secretary said: “The situation we’re in is that the Dublin Convention no longer exists whether you’re in the EU or out of the EU.

“The problem is it’s not possible to have that returns deal with France, that’s why we have looked at innovative solutions.”

The Dublin Regulation is being replaced as countries struggle with the scale of migration and are reluctant to accept transfers.

from GB News https://ift.tt/Orptxc3

'Nailbiting!' Shock poll puts Biden on course for White House win as Trump faces back-to-back defeats

Joe Biden is on course to return to the White House in America’s knife-edge election, a shock new poll has revealed.

Biden, 81, is marginally ahead of Donald Trump in both the electoral college and popular vote.

The 46th President registered 43 per cent support, handing him 287 electoral college votes.

Trump is polled to trail by just one point but falls short of receiving enough electoral college votes to enter the White House.

The 77-year-old was given 251 electoral college votes, with Trump unable to overturn Biden’s 2020 lead in Arizona, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

However, Trump was less than half-a-point behind his Oval Office successor across the three swing states.

Victory for the 45th President in Pennsylvania would prove enough for him to become just the second Commander-in-Chief to serve non-consecutive terms in the White House.

Stack Data Strategy poll, which was seen by The Daily Mail, suggested election day is now on a “knife edge”.

Joe Bedell, head of Stack Data Strategy, said: “The 2024 election cycle is truly on a knife edge.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:

• WATCH: Joe Biden in embarrassing blunder as he reads teleprompter word for word
• Joe Biden in new excruciating gaffe as he embarrassingly struggles with autocue
• Latest Biden gaffe sees US President admit 'we can't be trusted'

“According to our in-depth research, President Biden is currently on course to cling on in the White House.

“But this is only by the narrowest of margins: only a percentage point in some states.

“The Midwest states that took Donald Trump to victory in 2016 are sticking with Biden for now, but it is effectively a toss-up in many of these key battlegrounds – there is everything to play for and every vote will count.

“The race for Congress is just as tight with the Republicans currently set to regain the Senate and retain control of the House. This is going to be a truly nail-biting contest.”

Biden appears to have turned around his fortunes since Stack Data Strategy’s November survey found he was leading in the popular vote and trailing in the electoral college.

Trump won the 2016 election even though he was languishing behind Hillary Clinton in the popular vote.

George W Bush was the only Republican nominee to obtain more votes than their Democratic rival in any election held since 1992.

Biden’s position is being bolstered by the 46th President making gains with older, white, rural, suburban and lower-educated groups.

However, the 81-year-old continues to struggle with 18 to 24-year-olds.

Stack Data Strategy interviewed 7,793 US registered voters online between March 27 and April 10.

from GB News https://ift.tt/wzy6JjK

WATCH: Joe Biden in embarrassing blunder as he reads teleprompter word for word

Joe Biden was caught making another public blunder when he read out a prompt to “pause” from a teleprompter.

The President, 81, had been speaking at a trade union event in Washington when he struggled with reading from the autocue.

READ THE FULL STORY

from GB News https://ift.tt/3M7dYaf

Labour is ready for a fight over rail - but do the sums add up?

Today's rail plan by Labour is a landmark moment. 

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/vNal051

Labour promises publicly owned rail - as Tories slam 'unfunded nationalisation'

Labour will promise to deliver the biggest shake-up to rail "in a generation" by establishing the long-delayed Great British Railways (GBR) organisation and bringing routes back into public ownership.

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/pYRtBET

Rishi Sunak's 'big announcements' establish 'dividing line' with Labour and put pressure on Europe to step up - analysis by Katherine Forster

“We will do whatever it takes to keep our countries safe”.

The words of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak this afternoon in Berlin, standing next to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

Today Berlin and Scholz. Yesterday Poland, the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Polish PM Donald Tusk.

But the same central message: “The world is at a more dangerous point than at any point since the end of the Cold War”. Today Sunak said we are at “an inflexion point”.

So big announcements. Yesterday’s pledge to increase UK defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030.

A show of solidarity with the head of Nato at a military base near Warsaw.

Today, a defence agreement with Germany to collaborate on artillery systems.

The Prime Minister says it will bring hundreds of jobs to the UK.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:

• Rishi Sunak pins his future on a triple policy splurge to wrongfoot Labour - analysis by Christopher Hope
• Britons will be able to use NHS algorithm to sign themselves off sick
• Sunak puts UK on 'war footing' as he announces HUGE increase in defence spending

And, following his meetings this morning with German business leaders, an announcement of £8billion in investment by German businesses into the UK.

Sunak says he is putting UK defence “on a war footing”. Our defence industry already supports 1 in 70 UK jobs.

More funding and more money funnelled into research and development can only benefit our economy.

And the Prime Minister urges other countries to step up.

He stressed that the UK and Germany are the leading defence spenders in Europe, and the largest military supporters of Ukraine.

Yesterday’s announcement of an extra £500 million for Ukraine takes the total in UK military and humanitarian aid to £12billion.

Only 11 NATO members currently spend the supposed minimum of two per cent national income on defence.

In raising UK spending from the current 2.3 per cent to 2.5 per cent, Sunak is setting an example he wants others to follow.

But of course this is expensive. The Government claims the extra £75 billion will not be funded by increased borrowing or debt.

It talks of using money saved from cutting 70,000 civil service jobs.

The Institute For Fiscal Studies though, suggests cuts to public services will be needed. Or possible tax cuts axed.

The Prime Minister was upbeat on the plane. He told us it’s a choice he believes is right, and it’s taken time to get to this point.

It won’t be universally popular. But it’s popular with his party and likely to be so with many voters too. And it’s given the Conservatives another useful dividing line with Labour.

Labour have said they’d like to get spending to 2.5 per cent when circumstances allow. And pledged to hold a defence and security review if they come to power.

And of course they likely will do, unless the polls shift massively. So, difficult choices for them.

Ultimately though, Sunak and Jens Stoltenberg stress that defence spending is largely to prevent war. A message is being sent too, to autocratic regimes in Russia, Iran, China and North Korea.

For so long the West has enjoyed a peace dividend. Those days are gone. But as Stoltenberg said: “Nato exists to prevent war.” The price of safety in a dangerous world seems to be billions more for defence. Sunak response is “so be it”.

from GB News https://ift.tt/blMchV7

WATCH: Liam Halligan opens up about his friendship with politician, Frank Field

GB News reporter Liam Halligan opened up about his friend Frank Field after it was revealed that the former MP passed away.

Speaking on GB News Halligan said: "We became friends and I was drawn to him because he was a man of principle. He was somebody very much of Labour values.

"He set up the Child Poverty Action Group. He set up the low-pay unit for really important institutions in this country. But he didn't always believe in left-wing roots to achieve those Labour outcomes, more help for the poor.

"So when it came to benefits, you can sum up Frank Field's attitude in a phrase that he coined, but which many others have since used 'Give people a hand up, not a handout.'"

Lord Field spent 40 years as MP for Birkenhead and was a leading voice on welfare reform for much of his career.

He was a minister under Tony Blair and joined the House of Lords in 2020.

WATCH THE CLIP ABOVE FOR MORE

from GB News https://ift.tt/sdcVXW8

Sunak will take the defence wins in Europe - but returns to tricky local elections for the Tories

This was a trip with two aims: to refocus the world's attention on Ukraine and announce a big boost in defence spending - with an eye, of course, on national security, but also on the general election.   

from Political News - International and UK Politics | Sky News https://ift.tt/qHZyhF1