Inside Politics: Nazanin arrives back in the UK
Aid worker and fellow British-Iranian national, Anoosheh Ashoori, touch down on UK soil after years of hell detained in Iran, writes Matt Mathers
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s nightmare is finally over. After six years of detention in Iran, she and fellow British-Iranian national Anoosheh Ashoori are back in the UK. “The first thing she always wanted to do was for me to make her a cup of tea,” Nazanin’s husband Richard said, in a moment of light relief following what has been a hellish period for him and the couple’s daughter, Gabriella. It was interesting to note the praise received by Liz Truss, the foreign secretary, for her role in securing the aid worker’s release, which came not just from colleagues from within her own party (Jeremy Hunt among them) but also opposition MPs, particularly Labour’s Tulip Siddiq, Nazanin’s local MP. “I’ve dealt with three prime ministers and five foreign secretaries…finally when I came to a woman who was foreign secretary…[she] actually did something,” she said.
Despite regularly topping popularity polls among the Tory faithful, Truss is often dismissed as lightweight by commentators in the media and never really considered a true contender for the Tory leadership. But her work on Nazanin’s case, and her stint as international trade secretary – when she brokered scores of trade deals – show she is someone who at least can get a job done, unlike Gavin Williamson, for example, who was recently rewarded with a knighthood for failing in education and defence. Siddiq, the MP for Hampstead and Kilburn and a shadow Treasury minister, campaigned tirelessly (as did husband Richard, who at one point went on hunger strike) for the release of her constituent. Her praise of Truss and the pair’s coming together for the greater good was a rare moment of bipartisanship in Westminster, the likes of which we need to see more of in our politics.
Inside the bubble
Commons action gets underway at 9.30am with transport questions, followed by the weekly business statement from Mark Spencer, leader of the house. Later, the education select committee publishes a report on the government’s Covid catch up programme. Following that there is backbench business on the Irish diaspora in Britain, the introduction of paid miscarriage leave and the potential merits of reforming educational assessments.
Coming up:
– Shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell on Sky News Breakfast at 8.05am
– Europe minister James Cleverly on ITV GMB at 8.30am
Daily Briefing
- MUM’S HOME!: Nazanin and Anoosheh touched down on British soil just after 1am this morning when their plane landed at RAF Brize Norton, in Oxfordshire. The families of the pair shed tears as their loved ones came home following years of long and cruel separation caused by their detention in Iran. Both were jailed on spying charges, which they have always vehemently denied. Social media footage shared by Anoosheh’s daughter, Elika, showed Gabriella, 7, asking “is that mummy?” and again shouting “mummy” as her mother walked down the plane’s stairs. Richard shook Anoosheh’s hand, as Gabriella appeared to run towards her mother, who was out of shot. She then carried the little girl in her arms as they were surrounded by other family members. Anoosheh was then reunited with his family, who were in tears as they embraced. Nazanin then appeared and hugged and kissed her daughter and members of Anoosheh’s family. The release of Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Mr Ashoori follows months of intensive diplomatic negotiations between London and Tehran, including the eventual payment of an outstanding £400m debt owed by Britain to the regime. “It’s been very emotional, but also a really happy moment for the families, and I’m pleased to say that both Nazanin and Anoosheh are in good spirits and they’re safe and well back here in Britain,” foreign secretary Truss said. Sharing a photo of Nazanin’s family on Twitter, Labour MP Siddiq said: “This picture makes me so happy and so proud of all three of my brave constituents. Thank you everyone for your constant support for this incredible family.”
- BRUTAL BOMBING: There is no let-up in Vladimir Putin’s brutal and indiscriminate bombing campaign in Ukraine, with Russian forces accused of destroying a theatre where hundreds of civilians had been sheltering in the besieged city of Mariupol. Some reports claimed that more than 1,000 people were seeking shelter in the building, although the number of casualties remains unknown. Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukraine president, accused the Kremlin of deliberately targeting the shelter, which images appear to show had “children” written in Russian outside it. Joe Biden, the US president, called Mr Putin a “war criminal” and announced the United States would send an additional $800m (£600m) in military aid to Ukraine, including more anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons and drones. According to the Financial Times, both sides are exploring a neutrality plan in peace talks, some of the details of which include Russia agreeing to a cease fire and withdrawing; Ukraine agreeing to “neutrality” outside Nato; Kyiv keeping its army but not hosting foreign bases; Russian getting legal status in Ukraine. Analysts, however, fear that Putin will keep his troops in Ukraine until he can be convinced that he can achieve victory in the war. We’ll have all the latest updates on our liveblog.
- CAP EMPTY: As Inside Politics predicted yesterday, Boris Johnson has come back from his trip to the Gulf States with his cap empty and no public agreement from either Saudi Arabia or the UAE to ramp up oil production as the west looks to wean itself off Russian supplies amid the Ukraine crisis, which is driving up fuel prices. Asked whether he had secured assurances that the oil-rich Gulf state would turn on the taps, he could say only that it was a decision for them. “I think there’s certainly an understanding that there’s an interest for Saudi Arabia – for all oil-producing and exporting countries – in making sure that the global economy is not damaged by the current spikes, that we don’t get the kind of inflation that we saw in the 1970s, we don’t see the stagflation,” he said. “So it was a very productive conversation.” Understanding is perhaps the only word the prime minister could use following his meetings, and one suspects leaders in both Saudi Arabia and the UAE may have a completely different comprehension of how the talks went.
- ‘SOURCE OF SHAME’: Although the UK has in recent days taken a more compassionate approach to Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war, the government’s response to handling the crisis still falls far short of what many of our European neighbours are doing. And the Trades Unions Congress (TUC) yesterday went as far as to brand Johnson’s response a “source of shame”. In a letter to the prime minister, TUC general secretary France O’Grady said the government had “fallen short of the humanity, common decency and urgent action that ordinary working people in Britain expect” in responding to the millions of Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion in recent weeks and called for visa-free travel for all those fleeing the conflict. The Home Office was approached for comment.
- RACE ACTION PLAN: The government has set out an action plan to tackle inequality based on recommendations from a commission that concluded there was no systemic racism in Britain. The Inclusion Britain strategy, published on Wednesday evening, was developed in response to a controversial report by the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities (CRED) last year.Lack of opportunity should not be seen “solely through the prism of ethnic minority disadvantage”, said equalities minister Kemi Badenoch in an introduction to the 97-page plan which aims to “counter the pessimism that often prevails in debates about race in the UK”.
The Independent has a proud history of campaigning for the rights of the most vulnerable, and we first ran our Refugees Welcome campaign during the war in Syria in 2015. Now, as we renew our campaign and launch this petition in the wake of the unfolding Ukrainian crisis, we are calling on the government to go further and faster to ensure help is delivered. To find out more about our Refugees Welcome campaign, click here. To sign the petition click here. If you would like to donate then please click here for our GoFundMe page.
On the record
“I think you’d need to talk to the Saudis about that. But I think there was an understanding of the need to ensure stability in global oil markets and gas markets.”
Johnson fails to get public commitment from Saudis to increase oil production.
From the Twitterati
“It’s extraordinary to think that in the ultra-connected world of 2022 most Russian citizens still have no idea about the atrocious war crimes being committed by their government.”
FT chief politics commentator Jim Pickard on Ukraine war.
Essential reading
- Andrew Grice, The Independent: The Tories are blaming everyone but themselves over the refugee crisis
- Holly Baxter, The Independent: Zelensky’s address to Congress was direct and disturbing
- Katy Balls, The Spectator: How the Foreign Office secured Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s release
- Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic: America needs a better plan to fight autocracy
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