UK politics live: Starmer clashes with Diane Abbott as she says there is ‘nothing moral’ about £5bn benefit cuts

Kemi Badenoch has become a “climate defeatist” Downing Street has said.

Asked whether the Prime Minister believed net zero would boost living standards across the UK, his press secretary said: “Absolutely… net zero is an opportunity to be seized.

“It’s good for the economy, good for UK businesses, jobs, apprenticeships and growth.

“The leader of the Opposition has become a climate defeatist.”

For context,

• Yesterday, Kemi Badenoch said she will task shadow ministers with finding “achievable solutions” to delivering cheap, clean energy after declaring that reaching net zero by 2050 is “impossible”.
• The Conservative leader said it was time to “get real” about the target during a speech to launch the party’s policy renewal process in London.
• She said that net zero by 2050 cannot be achieved without “a significant drop in our living standards, or worse, by bankrupting us.”

The number of 16 to 34-year-olds in the UK with a work-limiting mental health condition is estimated to have more than doubled from 416,086 in 2015 to 949,469 in 2024.

By contrast, the number of 35 to 49-year-olds with this condition has risen 45% over the same period, from 409,618 to 594,829, while the number for 50 to 64-year-olds has risen 64% from 339,750 to 558,157, figures from the Department for Work & Pensions show.

The number of 16 to 34-year-olds with a work-limiting condition due to autism and learning difficulties is estimated to have more than trebled, from 150,121 in 2015 to 511,734 in 2024.

The figure has more than doubled for both 35 to 49-year-olds (from 39,664 to 85,066) and 50 to 64-year-olds (15,240 to 36,718).

Vladimir Putin's refusal to accept an immediate ceasefire without conditions is “disappointing”, Downing Street has said.

The prime minister's official spokesperson told reporters: “We obviously welcome President Trump’s efforts to secure a ceasefire in this space, but it is also disappointing that Putin has not agreed to a full-on, immediate ceasefire without conditions, as Ukraine has done.”

Reform MP Lee Anderson drew a wave of laughter from MPs as he claimed to come to the Commons every week “to ask sensible questions”.

He then proceeded to ask the prime minister what he called “a very simple question on behalf of all the net zero sceptics”, asking: “If we became net zero tomorrow, by how much would it reduce the Earth’s temperature by?”

According to the Royal Society, even if greenhouse gas emissions were to suddenly stop, the Earth’s surface temperature would require thousands of years to cool and return to the level in the pre-industrial era. But leading scientists say that reaching net zero is the only way to stop potentially catastrophic further warming in the years to come.

Sir Keir Starmer hit out at Nigel Farage during PMQs, saying he “can't even lead a party that fits in the back of a taxi”, reports our political correspondent Millie Cooke.

Our Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin reports:

The proportion of the UK workforce who are economically inactive because of sickness is projected to rise from 5.4% in the pre-pandemic year of 2019 to 8.0% in 2030, new figures show.

People are classed as economically inactive if they are of working age (16 to 64 years old) and not in employment but not currently looking for work.

The figures are projections, not forecasts or predictions, as they have been modelled on trends over the past five years.

They have been published by the Department for Work & Pensions using data from the Annual Population Survey, Labour Force Survey and the latest Office for National Statistics population projections.

The number of people in the UK workforce who are economically inactive because of sickness is projected to rise from 2.25 million in 2019 to 3.62 million in 2030 – a jump of 61%.

However, over the same period the proportion of the workforce economically inactive for all other reasons – including study, care or early retirement – is projected to fall, from 15.3% to 12.1%.

Helen Barnard, director of policy, research and impact at Trussell, said: “We’re deeply concerned by the cuts announced to disability payments today. People at food banks have told us they are terrified of how they might survive.

“We welcome the positive proposals from the Department for Work and Pensions to boost the basic rate to Universal Credit and invest in employment support.

“However, we fear these steps will be undermined by a Treasury drive to make short-term savings. Huge cuts risk pushing more disabled people to the doors of food banks, and will have devastating consequences for us all.

“The UK government was elected on manifesto pledges to end the need for emergency food parcels. This isn’t what people voted for.

“Disabled people are already three times more likely to face hunger, and three quarters of people at food banks are disabled or live with someone who is. Our social security system should be rooted in justice and compassion, able to be there for us all, especially when we need it most.

“This isn’t a done deal. With at least a year before any cuts come into force, there’s still time for the Prime Minister and Chancellor to rethink and make good on today’s promise to restore trust and fairness in the social security system.”

My colleague Albert Toth reports: