“The head of the Conservative’s parliamentary group has said rank-and-file Tory members should not have the ability to pick the party leader while it is in power. Sir Graham Brady, who heads the 1922 Committee, has said that MPs, rather than grassroots members, should be the ones to pick the successor to Conservative prime ministers who are booted while in office. The 56-year-old reportedly said it is ‘crazy’ that ordinary members could choose the next Prime Minister when it was MPs themselves who decide whether leaders are kept in place by no-confidence votes. Sir Graham said the current leadership process – which sees MPs reduce the field of leadership candidates down to two before grassroot members make the final choice – is a ‘mistake’.” – Daily Mail
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>Yesterday: Laura Evans in Local Government: Here is my plan for Greater Manchester
“Rishi Sunak is expected to announce curbs on foreign student visas amid fears that the route is being used as a back door into claiming asylum. The prime minister is expected to restrict access to the graduate visa route, which currently allows students to remain in the UK for up to two years after finishing their studies without the requirement to get a job… Options understood to be under consideration include reducing the time a foreign graduate can stay in the UK without a skilled job to either six or 12 months. Suella Braverman, the former home secretary, and Robert Jenrick, the former immigration minister, had pushed to scrap the graduate visa route altogether, something that is being considered by James Cleverly, the home secretary.” – The Times
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“Rishi Sunak has stuck two fingers up to Ireland’s demands to take back illegal migrants who have crossed into the country. Dublin has made furious claims that asylum seekers fearing removal to Rwanda have been surging across the Irish border. But Downing Street today shot down suggestions that migrants be returned – unless France also lets Britain send small boat migrants back across the Channel. Mr Sunak’s spokesman said: “Even if Ireland wants to pass legislation, it is up to the UK government to decide who we do and don’t accept into the country. Clearly we aren’t going to start accepting returns from the EU, just as the EU doesn’t accept asylum returns from the UK to France.” Ireland has claimed that 80 per cent of its illegal migrant arrivals are those coming across the border from Northern Ireland fleeing potential deportation to Rwanda.” – The Sun
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“The Home Office has admitted it is unable to locate thousands of migrants it intends to deport to Rwanda as it prepares to detain the first individuals this week. A document quietly slipped out by the department states that more than 5,700 migrants had been identified for removal. However, only 2,145 of them “continue to report to the Home Office and can be located for detention,” the document said. The Home Office has insisted that the remaining 3,557 have not necessarily absconded but are not subject to reporting restrictions, which means they cannot be located for detention. Sources in the department accepted that there was a significant risk that they would abscond following the implementation of the Rwanda deportation scheme.” – The Times
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“There are those who seek to undermine our work to secure our borders. Pressure groups, organised campaigns, and even the Labour Party itself are determined for us to fail. And we know they will try to put any number of obstacles in our way to take us back to square one. They are desperate to know every detail of our plans for one reason and one reason only – to stop them. Sir Keir has admitted that he will scrap our Rwanda scheme even once the deterrent effect is working. But we have been preparing for this fight. Our enforcement teams have been running simulation exercises and testing our readiness. We have been training our best caseworkers. Making high quality decisions is our first defence against spurious legal challenges and delaying tactics.” – The Sun
“Ministers on Monday set out plans for sweeping reforms of benefits claimed by millions of people with long-term disabilities and health conditions, as part of a drive to cut the government’s spiralling welfare bill. Mel Stride, work and pensions secretary, said it was time for “an adult, grown-up conversation” to make the disability benefits system more sustainable, following a surge in claims linked to mental health that would otherwise send the total bill to £28bn by 2029 — double its pre-Covid level. The nature and understanding of disability and ill health in Britain had “changed profoundly” since 2013, when the Conservative-led government introduced the system of “personal independence payments” to help people facing higher living costs as a result of their condition, he told the House of Commons later.” – FT
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“Jeremy Hunt has promised more tax cuts are on the way as he delivered a rallying cry to boost Tory election hopes. The Chancellor said it’s the government’s “absolute priority” to bring down the tax burden for millions of families. His upbeat message comes as Rishi Sunak faces one of the most difficult weeks of his premiership, with Conservative rebels plotting to oust him after the local elections on Thursday. The Prime Minister has announced a series of policies, including on welfare, Rwanda and defence spending in an attempt to shore up his position… In a politically charged interview the Chancellor also warned that Labour couldn’t be trusted with the economy and they have been “forced” to back pensioners.” – Daily Express
>Yesterday: Michael Gove MP in Comment: We need to make anew the case against Labour’s lazy drift back to socialism
“Hamas is standing in the way of a “very generous” ceasefire agreement with Israel in which kidnapped hostages could be released in return for a 40-day truce in the Gaza Strip, according to Britain’s foreign secretary. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Saudi Arabia, Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton said the proposal for a truce could also include the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for those captured and taken to Gaza during the October 7 attacks. The Palestinian militant group has been given “a very generous offer of a sustained 40 days’ ceasefire, the release of potentially thousands of Palestinian prisoners, in return for the release of these hostages,” Cameron said.” – The Times
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>Yesterday: ToryDiary: Soft power latest: British Member of Parliament detained and deported from Djibouti
“Britain is not “teeming with granny killers”, a former Conservative cabinet minister has said, as he argued for legalisation of assisted dying. Kit Malthouse was among a host of senior MPs to argue for a change in the law to allow terminally ill people to end their lives, but others warned this would be a slippery slope that would end in the culling of the old. At a packed Westminster Hall, MPs from across the political spectrum took part in an impassioned debate on legalising assisted dying in what is likely to form the prelude to a vote in the next parliament on changing the law… Siobhan Baillie, the Conservative MP for Stroud, cried as she read out a constituent’s letter about the death of his mother.” – The Times
>Yesterday: Parliament: Who is Poulter trying to kid?
“Sadiq Khan faces humiliation as Londoners say they feel the least safe and loneliest than anywhere else in the UK. The 10 constituencies in Britain where people are most likely to say they don’t feel safe are all in the capital and all Labour, according to a report from the Belonging Forum, using results from an Opinium survey. This compares to rural constituencies in the UK which dominate the top 10 of those deemed “safe”. All but one are Conservative seats, the report shows. Seats in London where people said they felt unsafe, according to the report, are: West Ham, Barking, East Ham, Hayes and Harlington, Peckham, Poplar and Limehouse, Erith and Thamesmead, Dagenham and Rainham, Bethnal Green and Stepney as well as the new constituency of Stratford and Bow.” – Daily Express
>Today: Nikita Malik in Comment: Tackling serious violence must be top priority for the next Mayor of London
“Scottish National party grandee John Swinney has emerged as the early frontrunner for first minister to replace Humza Yousaf as the nationalist administration seeks to restore stability to Holyrood. Swinney, who has extensive government experience, has said he is actively considering standing after receiving many messages from colleagues urging him to run, despite having previously indicated his desire to step back from frontline politics to focus on his family. The 60-year-old former deputy first minister could face a challenge from ex-finance secretary Kate Forbes, who came second to Yousaf in last year’s leadership campaign following former first minister Nicola Sturgeon’s departure.” – FT
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>Today: ToryDiary: Whither devolution?
>Yesterday: Video: ‘Who could ask for a better country to lead than Scotland?’ Yousaf quits as First Minister