‘Should be sacked!’ Ben Habib livid at museum bosses over Margaret Thatcher ‘villain’ label: ‘Attacking our history’

Ben Habib has demanded the sacking of museum bosses overseeing the “villain” labelling of Margaret Thatcher.

London’s Victoria and Albert Museum sparked furore by placing the former Prime Minister alongside Adolf Hitler and Osama Bin Laden in an exhibition on British humour.

She was named as a “contemporary villain” in the exhibit which displays a range of satirical Punch and Judy puppets.

But the display was no laughing matter for Habib, who demanded museum bosses face the sack.

“As trivial as this might seem, this is part of an attack on the United Kingdom”, he said on GB News.

“Margaret Thatcher was a democratically elected leader, the longest serving Prime Minister since World War Two.

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“She has set many records, she broke the grip that the far left had on our economy, liberated society, put aspiration first ahead of dependency.

“She’s someone, whether you agree with her legacy or not, should be regarded as a great, British historical figure.

“But they attack her and in doing it, they’re attacking our history. They’re attacking those people who we should hold in high regard.

“Whoever made this decision, collectively the board, should be sacked. They’re not at liberty to vilify Margaret Thatcher.”

Journalist Judith Da Silva defended the museum, arguing the display has been “taken out of context”.

“It’s misguided politicisation of something that is not political at all”, she said.

“The exhibit we’re talking about is talking about the evolution of humour, and they’re using Punch and Judy and also references to the puppetry show Spitting Image.

“In the narrative, there is always a villain, it began as the devil, but over the course of time, based on different iterations in different locations, the villain is depicted differently.”

She continued: “It’s not saying the museum has an opinion on Thatcher and is endorsing that opinion for other people to join them, it’s talking about the evolution of humour and different kinds of depiction.”

The museum told GB News: "The V&A is always open to feedback from our visitors. In response to some concerns around a caption in the Punch and Judy case of our Laughing Matters display - telling the story of British satire and comedy - we will review the relevant label text and update the wording if necessary."

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Barack Obama is in the country and nobody knows why...

Barack Obama arrived at Downing Street this afternoon for a surprise meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

The former US president smiled and waved at reporters as he entered No10 shortly after 3pm.

An hour later, Obama reappeared following the undisclosed private meeting.

The purpose of the meeting was not disclosed to the media, but a Whitehall source told GB News that Obama met with the Prime Minister for an "informal meeting with the PM whilst he’s in town".

It is the first time Obama has met Sunak.

The last time the Democrat visited Downing Street was eight years ago in 2016.

A Downing Street spokesperson insisted the visit was an "informal courtesy drop in".

They added: "President Obama’s team made contact and obviously the prime minister was very happy to to meet with him and discuss the work of the Obama Foundation."

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The Barack Obama Foundation is a nonprofit organisation focused on social mobility which he founded in 2014.

He said "I’m tempted!" when asked about his opinion on the state of Russian democracy by the media before getting into a Range Rover car with Jane D Hartley, the US ambassador to the UK.

In 2016, he met with then prime minister David Cameron at No10 for talks ahead of the Brexit vote.

At the time, he issued a warning that the UK would be at the "back of the queue" for US trade deals if it left the European Union.

The two leaders held a joint news conference at the Foreign Office, with Obama saying the US "wants Britain’s influence to grow - including within Europe".

It comes as Sunak faces intense speculation about a plot to replace him as Prime Minister before the general election.

Obama served two terms in the White House from 2009 to 2017 before he was succeeded by Republican Donald Trump.

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What happens now the Rwanda bill is back in the Commons following defeats in the Lords?

Rishi Sunak's flagship Rwanda bill is back in the Commons today, where the government is poised to reject all the amendments tabled by critics in the House of Lords.

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The Week... Rishi Sunak faces down his party

Two of Westminster's best-connected journalists, Sky News' Sam Coates and Politico's Jack Blanchard, guide you through their top predictions for the next seven days in British politics.

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Vladimir Putin re-elected as Russian President with exit poll claiming he won 87.97% of vote

Vladimir Putin has won Russia's presidential election, with an exit poll claiming he won 87.97 per cent of the vote.

An exit poll by the Russian Public Opinion Research Centre (VCIOM) showed the landslide results for the 71-year-old on Sunday.

Polls have just closed in the westernmost region of Kaliningrad.

The results mean that Putin has been elected to another six year term as Russian President. The results have been met with backlash from the international community.

A White House National Security Council spokesperson said: "The elections are obviously not free nor fair given how Mr. Putin has imprisoned political opponents and prevented others from running against him."

A UK Foreign Office spokesperson said: "By illegally holding elections on Ukrainian territory, Russia demonstrates that it is not interested in finding a path to peace. The UK will continue to provide humanitarian, economic and military aid to Ukrainians defending their democracy."

Ukrainian President Zelensky said: "These days, the Russian dictator is simulating another election. It is clear to everyone in the world that this figure, as it has already often happened in the course of history, is simply sick for power and is doing everything to rule forever."

"There is no legitimacy in this imitation of elections and there cannot be. This person should be on trial in The Hague. That's what we have to ensure."

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A spokesperson for Germany's Foreign Ministry said: "The pseudo-election in Russia is neither free nor fair, the result will surprise nobody. Putin's rule is authoritarian, he relies on censorship, repression & violence.

"The 'election' in the occupied territories of Ukraine are null and void & another breach of international law."

Supporters of Putin's most prominent opponent Alexei Navalny, who died in an Arctic prison last month, had called on Russians to come out at a "Noon against Putin" protest to show their dissent against a leader they cast as a corrupt autocrat.

Navalny's widow, Yulia, appeared at the Russian embassy in Berlin to cheers and chants of "Yulia, Yulia".

There was an increase in the flow of voters, especially younger people, at noon at polling stations in Moscow, St Petersburg and Yekaterinburg, with queues of several hundred people and even thousands.

Some said they were protesting, though there were few outward signs to distinguish them from ordinary voters.

As noon arrived across Asia and Europe, crowds hundreds strong gathered at polling stations at Russian diplomatic missions.

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Council tax hike for MILLIONS under plans proposed in pamphlet by Rachel Reeves

Millions of Britons would see their council tax hiked up under plans previously advocated by Labour's Rachel Reeves.

The Shadow Chancellor wrote a pamphlet in 2018 which endorsed a "re-evaluation and revision" of existing council tax bands, which were set in 1991.

The Labour frontbencher has repeatedly ruled out tax rises under a Labour Government.

However, changes to council tax bands would not be a universal tax increase. While tax would likely rise for many some households would see a drop in payments.

According to the Sunday Telegraph, a revision of the banding could cost four million households £1,200 a year.

Reeves said at the time: "Council tax, based on 1991 valuations, is at the very least long overdue a re-evaluation and revision of existing bands – a power which could be devolved to local government to match local needs.

"We should also consider the case for its overhaul and replacement with a property tax, levied on property owners."

A Labour spokesman has since said there are "no plans" for a revaluation in the first term of a Government run by Sir Keir Starmer, but would not rule it out completely.

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Reeves is not the only person on the Labour frontbench to have previously advocated for council tax reform.

Starmer’s shadow local government minister, Jim McMahon, has also previously backed the move.

"We should look back and recognise that there has been a collective failure on council tax revaluation and the need to modernise," he said in 2020.

"Governments duck this because it is not popular, but we now have a system that is very unfair."

A Labour spokesman said: "The ideas in this pamphlet are not policy and will not feature in our manifesto.

"We have been clear that we want taxes to be lower for working people.

"Our plans to close tax loopholes and create a fairer tax system proved to be so common sense that the Tory government copied them in the Spring Budget.

"The only threat to the UK economy is five more years of Tory economic vandalism that has left working people worse off with higher bills, rising mortgages and the country in recession."

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Sunak 'will still be leader' at next general election - as rumours of plot to oust him dismissed

Rishi Sunak will lead the Tories into the next general election, the transport secretary insisted amid reports of a plot to oust the PM.

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I have voted Conservative for 50 years, but never again, unless they start to show Thatcher-like leadership, says Howard Cox

The Conservative Party had it all back in 2019. It was served up to them on an electoral plate, an 80-seat majority on the promise they’d seamlessly deliver Brexit.

Traditional Labour voters in red wall seats were happy to lend their vote to the blue rosette because their time-honoured choice at the ballot box, led by Jeremy Corbyn, seemed to be betraying their patriotic love of the Queen and country.

They felt that a promising future under Boris Johnson was now to be one of prosperity, pride, and real sovereignty.

It did not take long to realise though, that those blonde scruffy-haired Tory manifesto pledges, were to end up as pure Enid Blyton fiction.

Here is one example. The Prime Minister promised not to raise income tax, VAT, or National Insurance. That was at the heart of the Conservative Party’s 2019 General Election campaign.

Boris Johnson espoused that his plans would mean “low tax for people… working people” and insisted it would remain in place for five years.

But in April 2022 he ripped that up, raising National Insurance by 1.6 points – the equivalent of a 10 per cent rise overall.

Since then, we have seen more and more manifesto promises ignored, and many policies not even mentioned in their election manifesto being introduced without any public consultation.

And so, the nation’s decline in self-esteem has grown almost exponentially. Yes, through an unpredicted pandemic, and indeed a very unfortunate period dominated by poor medical advice and bungling political management.

The conventional Tory image of strong financial management, a smaller state, and controlling our borders has now been smashed into oblivion.

You really could not make this up. Since 2019 we have been governed by backstabbing politicians and cronyism - the appointment of friends and associates to positions of authority - without proper regard to their qualifications or ability.

The use of inept careerist special advisors, and dishonest self-interested ministers that have driven any chance of economic growth, and national pride into the gutter.

What worries me most, however, is the palpable advance in dishonesty that is flowing through Whitehall.

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There is one clear pattern too. Since 2010, five Tory Prime Ministers have shown their inability to listen to the people once they get possession of the keys to Number 10.

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak did show some fiscal gut, to ensure businesses and families remained afloat during the pandemic.

But Rishi’s needlessly too high-spending solution to avoid a national, financial and social catastrophe has now become the new norm. There are too many working from home and not wanting to work at all.

Money seems to be available at the drop of a hat, but not targeted at incentivising consumer spending. Instead, it’s wasted on those ambassadors of wokery who shout the loudest.

One good move that did take place in the last Cabinet reshuffle was the promotion of Esther McVey to the Minister of Common Sense.

14 years of Tory failure and economic mismanagement have seen taxes at a 70-year high.

And to show how out of touch with reality this Government truly is: the Chancellor opened his Budget statement last week by announcing the allocation of £1million towards a war memorial honouring Muslim soldiers who died in the First and Second World Wars.

Hardly the first Budget priority in a cost-of-living crisis, and why so expensive? The Winston Churchill Memorial cost just £30,000.

Jeremy Hunt’s statement was pure political opportunism, wanting to appease a minority sector of highly vocal angry UK-based Islamists. An issue that dominates MPs disproportionately, way too much.

In the meantime, our defence spending remains way too low to help us counter the current unstable state of security across the globe.

There is, of course, the escalating cost of housing the huge influx of immigrants, the HS2 exorbitant wastage debacle, and the trillion-pound drive to meet a Net Zero fantasy target.

All of these and so much more chronic Tory incompetence means Mrs Graham in Stoke-on-Trent North will feel more than betrayed, she has been conned. Her vote was truly wasted.

It’s often said that the Conservative Party’s greatest strength is the ability to reinvent itself. But this is a party that is truly in terminal decline.

I have voted Conservative for 50 years, but never again, unless they start to show Thatcher-like leadership, tax-cutting sense, real cajónes and above all, start telling the truth.

But then there is of course the fluky Labour Party awaiting dumbstruck in the wings, to be crowned as the nation’s alleged political saviours.

Don’t believe it! It will be even worse under the other political buttock cheek of inept governance.

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Shapps abandoned Ukraine port visit over Russian missile threat

Grant Shapps was forced to abandon a visit to a port city in Ukraine after British intelligence warned of a credible missile threat from Russia.

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Tory MP Tobias Ellwood 'it is important as a nation that we decide what is right and what is wrong' on extremism

Tobias Ellwood fears a whole generation of people will be put off entering politics - unless the issue of MP safety is taken more seriously.

Mr Ellwood’s home was targeted by protestors last week, in scenes which led to police having to be called.

Reflecting on what happened during an interview with Camilla Tominey on GBNews he said this morning (SUNDAY): “It was very surprising on a number of accounts. You don't expect this sort of behaviour in today's day and age and we need to make sure it does not become the norm of the MPs. I expect a bit rough and tumble. I expect criticism publicly and so forth. But when it comes to your house, you would hope that there will be a line drawn on what is acceptable behaviour.

“I'm very grateful to the Security Minister and the Policing Minister, to ask the police to look at the current laws to see whether they need to be improved. Because, otherwise, it's not just the impact on families and so forth. It's also the next generation of parliamentarians, the people that would like to step forward into public life. More people will be put off by wanting to become an MP if we don't recognise there are standards of behaviour in which demonstrations are allowed to operate.”

On the death of Alexei Navalny, Mr Ellwood told Camilla Tominey: “We simply now need to recognise how fragmented our world is becoming. And we need to recognise what President Putin is doing is a great example of crushing opposition to any criticism in his own country.

“The big debate here is how do we manage a world that's becoming ever more contested, more fragmented? What is the West doing about it? If we don't provide Ukraine, the necessary assets for the military equipment that they need to actually take back their territory, then Putin will not stop there. We need to make clear that Europe is at war right now. And it will continue and get worse unless we put this fire out.”

Meanwhile, Mr Ellwood has urged Tory colleagues thinking of turning again to Boris Johnson to change course.

He told Camilla Tominey: “We've moved on from that. He's not even an MP. So it's actually a bit of a distraction as to where we need to go. A General Election is only months away. If he comes back in my goodness, how disturbing that will be for the Conservative Party to then have another turn of the wheel, another selection process?

“Really, I think we need to recognise why he departed and why he had to go in the manner that he did. Let's back the current Prime Minister.”

And on the idea the Tories might benefit from a deal with Reform he added: “This is gifting space to Labour and to the centre ground. It is a false strategy, it really really is.”

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Funding hundreds of thousands of young people to languish on benefits in some of Britain’s poorest towns and cities is hardly levelling up - analysis by Olivia Utley

Britain’s worklessness problem has never looked so bleak. An eye-watering 2.74 million people are now out of work due to long-term sickness and that number shows no sign of shrinking any time soon.

In fact, some 4,000 people are being signed off every single day with 70 per cent deemed unsuitable for work in the forseeable future.

And in some towns and cities the problem is particularly acute: 22 per cent of people in Inverclyde and Middlesbrough, 24 per cent of people in Hartlepool and over a quarter of people in Blackpool are not working.

And what is incapacitating them? Surprisingly, perhaps, the answer isn’t physical disability: an astonishing 873,000 claimants last year were suffering from “mental and behavioural disorders”.

This is a double whammy for the British taxpayer. Total GB welfare spending is forecast to be 10.2 per cent of GDP and 22.6 per cent of the total amount the government spends in 2023 to 2024 – over three times what’s being spent on defence.

And of course, in places where one fifth of working age adults are out of work, growing the economy is all but impossible.

For as long as this crisis persists, Rishi Sunak stands no chance of achieving the five goals he set himself when he became Prime Minister – and ordinary working Brits will continue to feel the effects of the cost of living crisis in all its horror.

Of course, plenty of the nearly one million people who have been signed off for work for poor mental health may genuinely be completely unable to work.

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But funding hundreds of thousands of young people to languish on benefits in some of Britain’s poorest towns and cities is hardly levelling up.

In November 2023, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride unveiled what they dubbed their Back to Work Plan – “a package of employment focused support that will help people stay healthy, get off benefits and move into work”.

But as yet, we are not seeing the effects. A sound principle in politics is to “follow the money”.

Is it perhaps time for Jeremy Hunt and Mel Stride to confront head-on the uncomfortable possibility that with the bill for mental health benefits sky-rocketing, and thousands of people being signed off each day, perhaps not every claimant is quite as incapacitated as they purport to be?

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Nigel Farage FUMES at extremism law used to SILENCE normal Brits who call out elite 'BETRAYAL'

Nigel Farage has slammed the new definition of extremism definition.

Speaking on GBNews the former Brexit Party leader said: “The law is the law and what the police ought to do is enforce the law. Part of the anger of many of us is they're simply not doing that and when they do, they misapply it.

"Twenty five years ago when I was first elected to the European Parliament, particularly leaving the European Union, I was literally met officially with the Foreign Office who thought I was something akin to a terrorist - had this definition been in place then, I very much doubt the electoral commission would have allowed me to stand as a candidate.

“It's all about interpretation. And the worry is, this is now open to abuse and the Tories have been terrible on the rise of woke, once Labour gets in, we could all be banned.

“I think the government are not sure what to do because had the definition seemed to be aimed at Islamists, they would have been accused of prejudice and wouldn’t have recovered. The new definition can be interpreted by how the government and civil servants of the day choose to interpret it. I'd like to see the whole thing scrapped. Let's go back to the law.”

The new definition comes in the wake of the Prime Minister's promise to crack down on extremism and hatred. Michael Gove said a surge in extremism in the wake of the war in Israel and Gaza poses a "real risk" to Britain.

WATCH CLIP ABOVE FOR MORE

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Truss 'furious' after MPs accused of blocking transgender reform bill

A controversial proposal to ban transgender women from female-only spaces will not be debated after both Tory and Labour MPs were accused of filibustering a bill drawn up by Liz Truss.

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Holly Valance: I’m voting Reform UK at the general election and I want Nigel Farage to lead the party

Holly Valance, the former Neighbours actress and popstar, has revealed that she will vote for Reform UK at the next general election and called for Nigel Farage to lead the party.

Valance, a model who acted in smash Hollywood films, also forecast that Reform UK could replace the Conservatives as the main party in opposition to Labour.

Valance emerged as a surprise supporter of right-of-centre policies when she accompanied her property tycoon husband Nick Candy to a Popular Conservativism event last month.

Speaking to Chopper's Political Podcast, Valance disclosed that she would vote Reform UK at the general election.

Asked by GB News Political Editor Christopher Hope, aka Chopper, if she were a backer of the Tories or Reform, she said: "Last time I voted Conservatives. Next time I'll be voting Reform."

Valance backed the decision by former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson to defect to the party.

"Lee's moved from Labour to the Conservatives and now to Reform. It's really weird because there was this Reform party in Canada in 1993 that ditched the Tories in Canada as well, or got rid of the blew them to smithereens, which is probably what's going to happen here.

"It's not that I think that we're necessarily going to have a Reform government.

"I support anybody that sticks to what they believe in and doesn't isn't a turncoat, doesn't do a million flip flops and U-turns."

Longer term Valance wanted Nigel Farage, the former Brexit Party leader, to take over as leader of Reform UK. "I just want Nigel to pull his finger out and head Reform," she said.

Valance said she backed former Cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg to be PM because "he sticks to the things that he believes and he doesn't waver".

"I think he's got an incredible understanding of law and how things work and history. And I think that's so valuable."

Valance said that her multi-millionaire husband Nick Candy was not planning to vote Labour as had previously been reported after his remarks to a podcast.

"It was just a miscommunication with the way he structured the sentence in that he said, 'Labour is going to get in and it's time for a change. It wasn't Labour is getting in and I'm voting for them'." She added: "I would assume yes. I think he's a Tory."

Listen to the full conversation between Holly Valance and Christopher Hope on Chopper's Political Podcast from 6am on Friday on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts

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Rishi Sunak rules out general election on 2 May

Rishi Sunak has ruled out holding a general election on 2 May following speculation the prime minister could choose to go to the polls early.

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Rayner wants Abbott back in parliamentary Labour Party as she tells of MP's 'awful' abuse

Angela Rayner says she would "like to see" Diane Abbott back in the parliamentary Labour Party following the row over comments a Tory donor allegedly made about her.

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Lee Anderson teases significant campaign after joining Reform UK: ‘We’ve given our country away!’

Lee Anderson has told Martin Daubney he is preparing for a "significant campaign" after defecting from the Conservatives to Reform UK.

Speaking to GB News, Anderson said: "I can't give too much away at the moment, Martin, but there will be a significant campaign. I'm in the Red Wall. I'm a typical Red Wall seat. I think that's the sort of demographics will be going for people in this country.

"People are banging on about my parents all the time, and it's just people of their generation. They're actually fed up. They've seen the changes over the years in this country. They see massive mass immigration, which has affected all our public services.

"Has affected our very social fabric, our way of life, and people feel let down. They feel like I've said it before, we've given our country away, we've given it away. And actually in some parts of the country, we've given it away to to groups of people who just don't like us."

WATCH ABOVE.

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Johnson like 'absent football manager' as pandemic hit, says Welsh leader

The first minister of Wales has said Boris Johnson was like the "absent manager" of a football team in the early days of the pandemic.

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