PMQs live: Starmer urges women to report inappropriate behaviour amid Gregg Wallace questions
Comes as influential report warns UK interest rates will fall by less than expected over next two years after autumn Budget
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Your support makes all the difference.Women who make reports of inappropriate behaviour must have “confidence that they will be taken seriously”, Sir Keir Starmer has said, as allegations against Gregg Wallace continue to grow.
The prime minister said politicians should be ready to put in place “mechanisms” that would instil that confidence, after a Labour MP asked him about “women of a certain age”, reflecting comments for which the MasterChef presenter has since apologised.
Wallace faces multiple complaints of inappropriate behaviour, originally from 13 people across a range of shows over a 17-year period, and has stepped away from the cooking programme.
Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch has mocked Sir Keir Starmer over former transport secretary Louise Haigh’s resignation, which came after admitted misleading the police a decade ago.
The Tory leader told the Commons the country “needs conviction politicians, not politicians with convictions”.
“He can try and change the topic as much as he likes but the public are watching. He owes them an explanation”, she said.
Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of obfuscating over Louise Haigh’s resignation, after Badenoch demanded he provide the House of Commons with an explanation over the incident.
Fears Labour could hand money to countries guilty of human rights abuses
There are growing fears that the government is preparing to greenlight the continued provision of financial assistance to countries that have overseen appalling human rights abuses, despite previously being extremely critical of the policy.
It comes as a review into human rights abuses overseas is seemingly turning into a rubber-stamping process with no consultation of major campaign groups having yet taken place.
The government’s review of the UK’s Overseas Security and Justice Assistance guidance (OSJA), which was launched by the previous Tory administration, is designed to prevent UK assistance from contributing to human rights abuses abroad.
Read the full article here:
Fears Labour could hand cash to countries guilty of human rights abuses
Exclusive: Labour risks rubber stamping the last government’s ‘deeply flawed human rights policy’ despite heavy criticism of the approach
Britain’s entire Army would be destroyed in six months to a year in a major war, minister warns
Britain’s entire Army would be destroyed in “six months to a year” in a major war, a defence minister has warned.
Al Carns, the veterans minister, said the extremely high casualty rate currently being suffered by Russian forces in Ukraine - around 1,500 soldiers a day – highlighted the importance of rebuilding the UK’s reserves.
His warning comes just weeks after the defence secretary said that Britain’s armed forces were so depleted that the country is not ready to fend off an invasion.
Britain’s entire Army would be destroyed in ‘six months to a year’ in a major war
Al Carns, the veterans minister, issues warning over the state of the armed forces, weeks after the defence secretary warned Britain could not fight off an invasion
Will Keir Starmer return the Elgin marbles?
The Elgin marbles, now officially known as the Parthenon marbles, are in the news yet again.
Government sources have been briefing that there have been high-level discussions with the Greek government about a possible return to their country of origin, ie Greece.
The Greek prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has arrived in London for talks with Keir Starmer. No doubt the disputed antiquities will crop up; no doubt there will be squeals of outrage if there’s any hint that they’ll be leaving the British Museum. It’s a tricky one for the prime minister...
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Will Keir Starmer return the Elgin marbles?
They’ve been a political hot potato for decades but with discussions underway between the British and Greek governments, Sean O’Grady asks whether the Labour leader will get serious about returning the sculptures or opt for a quiet life at home while frustrating a foreign power
Trump’s tariff plan would hit UK trade as hard as Brexit, think tank warns
Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs could hit UK trade with the US as badly as Brexit affected trade with the EU, a leading think tank has warned, as campaigners call for Sir Keir Starmer to protect the UK by urgently rebuilding ties with Europe.
The president-elect has threatened to impose tariffs of between 10 and 20 per cent on all imports to the US when he returns to the White House, with experts warning of a tit-for-tat global trade war that would fuel another spike in inflation.
And, in a bombshell report published today, the Resolution Foundation said the impact of Trump’s plans would hit UK firms as hard as the trade barriers that came into place after Brexit.
Read the full report by our politics team, Archie Mitchell and David Maddox:
Trump’s tariff plan would hit UK trade as hard as Brexit, think tank warns
The Resolution Foundation said small firms have seen their exports to the EU fall by a third, with 20,000 companies having stopped exporting to the continent altogether since Brexit
From Jess Phillips to Keir Starmer: What politicians have said about Gregg Wallace
Jess Phillips has become the latest high profile politician to come out and condemn Gregg Wallace, saying the MasterChef host “missed the perfect opportunity to say nothing”.
The often outspoken Home Office minister was reserved in her criticism, and stressed that she supported the BBC’s decision not to take the cooking show off air while he is investigated.
But her pointed comment about Mr Wallace’s comments, after he said complaints against him were coming from “a handful of middle-class women of a certain age”, make her one of many Westminster figures speaking out.
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From Jess Phillips to Keir Starmer: What politicians have said about Gregg Wallace
Labour peer Harriet Harman said Mr Wallace’s remarks were ‘offensive and downright rude’
Lib Dems call for working farms to be exempt from inheritance tax
The Liberal Democrats have called for working farms to be exempt from the Government’s inheritance tax plans.
The party’s spokesman for environment, food and rural affairs, Tim Farron said: “Could the Government have looked at a working farm qualification exemption, so those people would never have to pay this?
“And you would potentially look, who knows, at allowing those people who are not active farmers for them to be under the HMRC microscope instead? And that would be something that is far preferable to what we have got.”
He added: “In amongst all this, farmers are struggling, often with their mental health. The isolation you feel when you are farming, and you have farmed a valley, let’s say, for generations and your family have, and you might be the one who ends up losing the family farm, it’s utterly, utterly devastating.”
Mr Farron also argued that the previous government and the current Government have “brought together agricultural policies that actively disincentivise the production of food, that is criminal and it is foolish”.
Careful, Sir Keir – you’re in danger of ‘resetting’ yourself up to fail
When Keir Starmer unveils his “plan for change” tomorrow, he will insist he is totally committed to public sector reform.
But his announcement of “measurable milestones” in six policy areas – living standards, the NHS, housebuilding, education, crime, and green energy – has already provoked an intense debate inside the cabinet.
Some ministers worry the new targets will make it harder to achieve the reforms that will be needed when the government cannot afford to throw money at the many problems in public services.
They fear that chasing the new targets – to avoid headlines about them being missed – will drain so much of the government’s energy and money that it will leave little space for reform.
Read the full article here:
Careful, Sir Keir – you’re in danger of ‘resetting’ yourself up to fail
By ditching his push for growth in favour of cutting NHS waiting lists and crime figures at all costs, the PM could be running into trouble ahead, says Andrew Grice
Labour MP says he would vote against farmers inheritance tax
A Labour MP has said he would vote against the Government’s proposed inheritance tax changes for farmers in their current form, as he suggested amendments need to be made.
Markus Campbell-Savours (Penrith and Solway) told the Commons: “I’ve spent the last few weeks speaking with farmers in Penrith and Solway, trying to understand the full impact of the inheritance tax proposals knowing that I have months left to engage Defra and the Treasury and seek important amendments.
“And, let me be clear, if today was the real vote I would vote against the Government’s plans.
“I’m no rebel, I’m a moderate. But during the election I read what I thought were assurances from my party that we had no plans to introduce changes to APR (agricultural property relief). On this basis I reassured farmers in my constituency that we would not. Now, I’m simply not prepared to break my word.
“I’m told that there is no Labour MP in the country with as many farms as I have in Penrith and Solway and I hope my colleagues will understand my feelings on this.
Starmer welcomes Emir of Qatar to Downing Street
Sir Keir Starmer has welcomed the Emir of Qatar to Downing Street, saying it was “a real privilege” to host him.
After praising the “strong partnership” between the UK and Qatar, Sir Keir said there was “so much more that we can do together”.
The Prime Minister added: “Thank you for your vital role in difficult issues in the Middle East, where we really value your leadership.”
The Emir extended his thanks to the King for hosting him on his state visit, and said he had enjoyed a visit to Sandhurst earlier on Wednesday.
Turning to the Middle East, he said: “We will be talking about some details about how to go forward and how to put an end to this crisis.”
The two men then viewed the 1971 Treaty of Friendship between the UK and Qatar before continuing their discussions.
MP urges law change to stop Sikhs and Jews being ‘invisible’ to policymakers
A law change is needed to prevent Sikhs and Jewish people continuing to be “invisible” to policymakers, MPs have heard.
Labour’s Preet Kaur Gill proposed a Bill to address a “fundamental absurdity in the fight against discrimination and inequality” by requiring ethnicity data on Sikhs and Jews to be collected.
The MP for Birmingham Edgbaston wants public bodies which collect data about ethnicity for the purpose of delivering public services to include specific “Sikh” and “Jewish” categories as options for a person’s ethnic group.
Ms Gill noted religious data is collected by public bodies but said this is “poor, patchy and incomplete” and is “never used” to make decisions on delivering services.
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