“Inflation has tumbled to its lowest level in nearly three years in a boost for the Prime Minister and mortgage holders hoping for cuts to interest rates. The consumer prices index dropped sharply in April from 3.2pc to 2.3pc following a record decline in typical energy bills last month, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The drop takes the pace of price growth to its lowest level since July 2021 but was slightly higher than analyst forecasts of a fall to 2.1pc. The decline in the pace of price rises will boost hopes for a summer cut to interest rates, which would provide relief to mortgage holders grappling with the highest borrowing costs in 16 years… The pound rose to a two-month high against the dollar as the decline in inflation was not as steep as predicted.” – The Daily Telegraph
“Rishi Sunak hit out at the International Criminal Court (ICC) as concerns were raised about the impartiality of panel members who advised its pursuit of war crimes against Israel. The prime minister said that the move to declare Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, and Yoav Gallant, its defence minister, as wanted for crimes against humanity, alongside senior leaders of Hamas, as “deeply unhelpful”. Sunak said there was no moral equivalence between Hamas and Israel’s government, and that the attempt by Karim Khan KC, the ICC chief prosecutor, to seek arrest warrants made no difference to getting aid into Gaza and reaching a sustainable ceasefire. Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton, the foreign secretary, echoed Sunak’s concerns…” – The Times
“Rishi Sunak has backed away from radical reform of the graduate visa route, after a fierce cabinet backlash and warnings that driving away foreign students could hit growth and undermine Britain’s universities. The prime minister is set to announce plans to stamp out abuse of the visa system but will confirm that the graduate route…should remain open. Jeremy Hunt, chancellor, Lord David Cameron, foreign secretary, and James Cleverly, home secretary, were among those to express misgivings about any serious attempt to cut legal migration by targeting foreign students. Senior government officials have told the Financial Times that ministers are expected to go along with a more modest package of reforms that were the subject of last-minute Whitehall discussions on Tuesday.”- The Financial Times
“No 10 needs to stop trying to “placate” Rishi Sunak and instead give airtime to more popular colleagues like Kemi Badenoch and Penny Mordaunt, a cabinet minister has said in a private memo. Johnny Mercer, the veterans minister, accused No 10 of behaving as though Sunak were still as popular as when he took office…The minister wrote the memo on his laptop on a train from Exeter St Davids to London Paddington…In the memo, Mercer accused the Downing Street operation of focusing on “placating him [Sunak]/ managing him/ promoting him on social media” while other more popular colleagues were given less prominence. . He highlighted the fact that Badenoch and Mordaunt were routinely significantly more popular than Sunak in polls of Conservative members.” – The Times
“Every household should have an emergency pack of three days’ food and water so they can be self-sufficient in the event of a national crisis, the Deputy Prime Minister will say. On Wednesday, Oliver Dowden will launch a website to advise the public on how to cope with crises from the most likely such as floods and power outages to cyber attacks and potential conflict with a hostile state. Householders will be urged to consider putting together an “emergency kit of items” including enough bottled water and non-perishable food to survive at least three days without leaving home. Battery or wind-up radios and torches, first-aid packs, hand sanitiser and wet wipes for hygiene if the water is off are also recommended.” – The Daily Telegraph
“UK deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden made a secret trip to the United Arab Emirates last week in an attempt to repair a diplomatic relationship that has fallen into its worst state in years. His visit, made before travelling to Saudi Arabia on an official delegation, followed increasing frustration from Emirati officials over comments by British politicians about a blocked UAE-linked bid to buy the Telegraph. The relationship has also been further damaged by a perceived recent United Nations snub. The tensions have come as the UK seeks billions of pounds of fresh investment from the state’s deep-pocketed sovereign wealth funds. Abu Dhabi has been taken aback that UK domestic politics appears to have trumped what the UAE considers an important strategic relationship…” – The Financial Times
“Jeremy Hunt is preparing a pre-election cut in national insurance despite a warning from the International Monetary Fund of a looming £30bn hole in the public finances, Downing Street has indicated. Rishi Sunak’s spokesperson said the government rejected the IMF’s argument that there was no room for a third cut in NI in less than a year and that the Treasury should instead be thinking about tax increases or spending cuts. “I think on that we respectfully disagree with the IMF,” the spokesperson said. “My view is that cutting national insurance, rewarding work, is an important part of growing the economy.” Downing Street was responding to the release of the IMF’s annual health check on the UK in which it said “difficult choices” lay ahead.” – The Guardian
“Police could be handed sweeping powers to restrict protests and encourage the organisers of demonstrations to limit disruptions, under proposals being considered by UK ministers. James Cleverly, home secretary, said he will examine the merits of 41 recommendations made by the government’s independent adviser on tackling political violence in a report published on Tuesday. The report from former Labour MP John Woodcock, who now sits as crossbench peer Lord Walney, draws on work from the past three years. However, the issue of public protests and their policing has become more politically charged since a number of pro-Palestinian marches in London following Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel , and the subsequent conflict in Gaza.” – The Financial Times
“Nato member states need to “wake up” and increase defence spending to 2.5 per cent of gross domestic product, Grant Shapps will say in a speech on Wednesday aimed at preparing Europe for a second Donald Trump presidency. The defence secretary will also call upon other European countries to join the military alliance, saying that there is “no place for neutrality” in a world facing rising threats. It is thought his bullish speech, to be delivered at the London Defence Conference, refers to countries such as Ireland and Austria… Shapps will echo calls by Rishi Sunak and Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton, the foreign secretary, to make 2.5 per cent of GDP the spending target at Nato’s 75th anniversary summit in Washington in July.” – The Times
“Lord Clarke has “questions to address” over his role in the infected blood scandal, a Cabinet minister has said. Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary, said he expected the former health secretary to address the criticism of him from victims of the scandal, who believe he should lose his peerage. Downing Street refused to back the Conservative peer, saying it was “up to individuals” named in the Infected Blood Inquiry report to respond. It has emerged that the Haemophilia Society, many of whose members received infected blood products, warned the House of Lords in 2020 it would be “premature” to bestow a peerage on the former minister before the inquiry reported its findings, but the plea was ignored.” – The Daily Telegraph
>Today:
“Michael Gove has said he is ‘deeply worried’ about the potential impact of the Middle East conflict on the general election. He feared Islamist groups as well as hard-Left and far-Right extremists want to ‘undermine our democracy’. The Communities Secretary also condemned the divisive rhetoric and ‘provocative cries’ heard at the recent local elections, which saw dozens of councillors win after campaigning on the issue of Palestine. It came as the Green Party’s Mothin Ali – who said Hamas should fight back against Israel – repeated at a rally the ‘infamous’ shout of ‘Allahu Akbar’ (‘God is greatest’) he gave after being voted onto Leeds City Council.” – The Daily Mail
“The UK’s border controls should be as strict as grammar school entrance tests, Robert Jenrick has said. The former immigration minister condemned “mass low-skilled migration” for failing to drive Britain’s economic growth, as he called for a system that was “highly selective”. Speaking at an event at The Legatum Institute, a think tank, Mr Jenrick said: “I have tried to argue that the first step in that is to get control over our immigration system and to build something which is highly selective, where we are the grammar school of the Western world.”… It comes after the MP for Newark co-authored a report which urged the Government to introduce caps on legal migration to stop a drain on British infrastructure and public services, that is not offset by economic growth.” – The Daily Telegraph
“Brexit is one of the biggest political decisions we have taken in the postwar era. It is hugely consequential for our economy, trading relationships, security and foreign policy. Yet it seems there will be months of arguments about rainbow lanyards instead. The debate we had about Brexit before the 2019 election was traumatic. Politicians can be forgiven for thinking there is little to be gained from repeating it. The decision to leave the European Union has been made, and it will be some time before we revisit it. But this makes it more, rather than less, important that we engage in a serious discussion about the impact of the choice we made and the adjustments it now requires. The problem is that discussing the consequences of Brexit is not in the interests of either major party.” – The Times
“On Wednesday, Mr Mackinlay will make his first trip back to Westminster in time for PMQs. Mrs Mackinlay and Olivia, their four-year-old daughter who turns five on Thursday, will be watching proudly from the public gallery. Craig Mackinlay is a walking miracle, born of optimism and fighting spirit. As few as half a dozen people a year in the UK who need all four limbs amputated at the same time actually survive. “I am lucky,” says Mr Mackinlay. “I’ve got my knees and my elbows, which makes a big difference.” He can thank Mrs Mackinlay, 44…for that. She had fought to get him to hospital in the first place – paramedics had been reluctant to take him in… He sits on the sofa and cracks jokes about his new disability, most of which can’t be published here.” – The Daily Telegraph
“A Labour government would have to grapple with bankrupt councils, public sector pay pressure and the potential collapse of Thames Water, according to an internal dossier by the party’s chief of staff Sue Gray. Dubbed “Sue’s shit list” by one senior Labour official, it has been drawn up by the former civil servant to identify the most immediate problems Labour would face in office if it wins the election expected this year. Senior Labour officials said that any one of the areas on Gray’s “government risk register” could puncture a honeymoon period for a new administration led by Sir Keir Starmer. By identifying them early, the party hopes to craft arguments that blame the ruling Conservative party, which has been in government for the past 14 years.” – The Financial Times
“Vaughan Gething has refused to hand back £30,000 of controversial donations which will instead go to undisclosed “progressive causes”. The Conservatives have demanded that the Welsh First Minister return £31,600 left over from his successful leadership campaign earlier this year. The Labour Party was due to receive the cash but it has now turned it down after criticism that £200,000 of the total £250,000 raised by Mr Gething was donated by a firm whose owner was previously convicted of environmental offences. Welsh Labour said on Tuesday said the First Minister will instead hand the cash to “wider progressive causes” which have not been named. The Conservatives and Plaid Cymru have called on Mr Gething to return the £200,000 donation…” – The Daily Telegraph
“Labour will declare on Wednesday that every British ambassador should be tasked with delivering “growth and security to the UK economy”, including building secure supply chains to avoid future inflationary shocks. Rachel Reeves, shadow chancellor, and David Lammy, shadow foreign secretary, will promise that if Labour wins the election they will join up economic and foreign policy under the umbrella of “securonomics”.Their intervention is timed to coincide with new inflation data for April, which economists expect to show that prices in April rose by just above the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target…Reeves will argue in a speech at Chatham House that Britain remains vulnerable to imported inflation…” – The Financial Times
“Labour’s plan for new towns looks likely to focus on the Midlands as much as England’s overcrowded south-east, with planners already considering areas near Nottingham, Stafford and Northampton, the Guardian understands. Close to the M1 and M6 motorways, some of the locations have the advantage of being in areas of Labour local political control, giving Keir Starmer’s government a better chance of delivering on its promise to have the first homes built by the end of a first Labour term. One planner involved in early thinking said other potential sites included either side of the Thames estuary, where a new road bridge from Essex to Kent could open in 2031 if approved. On the Essex bank, Labour recently took control of Thurrock council.” – The Guardian
“Anas Sarwar has pledged the Scottish government will stop handing down reams of new laws to landowners if he becomes first minister as they demanded a “reset” in relations. The Scottish Labour leader lamented the SNP’s modus operandi of using “different constant new legislation” to try and solve problems in rural parts of the country. In a speech at the Scottish Land & Estates (SLE) annual conference in Edinburgh, he told the assembled landowners: “The job of government is not to impose on you or to tell you how to run your businesses.” Mr Sarwar instead promised to take a collaborative and strategic approach…His intervention came as delegates to the conference repeatedly expressed concern about a deluge of new legislation going through Holyrood…” – The Daily Telegraph