“Rishi Sunak has agreed a plan with Tory defence hawks to increase the UK’s military spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030. During a visit to Poland – where he unveiled a £500m package of military support for Ukraine – the Prime Minister promised a boost to the UK defence industry to put it “on a war footing”. Before the trip he personally rang several former defence ministers to get them to support his policy announcement, i understands. These included former defence secretary Ben Wallace, who has previously warned the UK Armed Forces have been “hollowed out” by underfunding, and James Heappey, who quit as Armed Forces minister last month, partly in protest over defence spending.” – The I
“The deaths of five migrants while trying to reach the UK in a small boat underscores why the Rwanda scheme is needed, Rishi Sunak has said. French officials said that three men, a woman and a seven-year-old girl died after an unprecedented number of migrants were crammed into a dinghy whose engine stopped working after it collided with a sand bank shortly after leaving a beach in northern France. There were 112 people were on board; 49 were taken back ashore but 58 refused to return to France even after the five deaths, instead continuing towards British waters. An estimated 300 migrants crossed the Channel in small boats on Tuesday after a week of no crossings, which would take the total for this year to more than 6,500.” – The Times
>Today:
“Rishi Sunak has refused to rule out a July general election, repeating his intention to call a vote in the second half of the year. The Prime Minister, travelling to Poland on Tuesday to announce a defence spending boost and a military aid package for Ukraine, told reporters: “All I’m going to say is the same thing I say every time. “As I said, I think it was in the first week of January, my working assumption is an election in the second half of the year.” Many Westminster analysts see October or November as the favoured period…The latest possible date for a ballot is Jan 28 next year. But a disastrous set of local election results next month could force Mr Sunak’s hand, either by bringing a challenge to his leadership or by persuading him that an earlier polling day could be better…” – The Daily Telegraph
“Britain’s new national security adviser will have a military background for the first time, with the appointment of a former special forces officer. The prime minister praised General Gwyn Jenkins’s “distinguished career” in the military and in government, but the former head of the Special Boat Service has faced allegations of failing to act over claims about the unlawful killing of detainees in Afghanistan. BBC Panorama claimed last year that Jenkins was given a report of a conversation in which SAS soldiers claimed to have killed handcuffed prisoners in Afghanistan but locked the evidence in a safe for four years instead of referring it to military police. Claims that the SAS unlawfully killed dozens of detainees in Afghanistan in 2011 are the subject of an inquiry…” – The Times
“Jeremy Hunt may be unable to cut taxes again before the general election after Britain’s borrowing figures took a turn for the worse, economists have warned. The Chancellor is hoping to cut employee national insurance contributions by another 2p in an Autumn Statement held in September, if the general election is called for October or November as is widely expected. Mr Hunt is also said to be weighing up a cut to stamp duty. Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that the Government borrowed £120.7bn last year – less than the previous year, but £6.6bn more than the Budget watchdog had forecast. The Treasury took in lower tax receipts than expected following persistent weakness in income growth for the highest earners.” – The I
“The former Labour minister and crossbench peer Frank Field has died aged 81…A statement from Lord Field’s family, issued by his parliamentary office, said: “Frank Field (Rt Hon Lord Field of Birkenhead, CH) has died at the age of 81 following a period of illness. “Frank was director of the Child Poverty Action Group between 1969 and 1979, and the member of parliament for Birkenhead between 1979 and 2019.”…He served as welfare reform minister in Tony Blair’s first government…and went on to chair the work and pensions select committee. He later resigned the Labour whip in protest at antisemitism and “nastiness” in the party under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership. The veteran politician was made a member of the order of the companions of honour in 2021…” – The Guardian
“Labour has revealed plans to set up a national police savings body to buy police cars, IT equipment, forensic services and other kit to pay for 13,000 extra neighbourhood police officers. The move is designed to tackle huge disparities between police forces on the cost of vital equipment. Figures revealed in freedom of information requests submitted by Labour have found that the cost of patrol vehicles ranged from £12,500 for Staffordshire police to £22,361 in Cheshire. The cost of a high-performance vehicle in Merseyside was £55,000 — double the £27,000 paid by Lancashire. A standard police baton ranged from £20 in Leicestershire to more than £120 in Northamptonshire… There are similar variations for other types of policing equipment and services…” – The Times
“Labour has dropped a pledge to make St George’s Day a bank holiday if it wins the next general election. The party had promised under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership to give workers a day off on April 23 to celebrate Britain’s “tradition of fairness, inclusivity and social justice”. It also advocated for nationwide public holidays on St David’s Day on March 1, St Patrick’s Day on March 17 and St Andrew’s Day on Nov 30. But a Labour source confirmed on Tuesday that the promise had been dropped as part of Sir Keir Starmer’s commitment to “start from scratch” and abandon Mr Corbyn’s pledges across several policy areas. Earlier this week, Sir Keir declared patriotism “a force for good” and said his party must not flinch at flying the flag of St George…” – The Daily Telegraph
>Yesterday: