“Boris Johnson will today urge all Nato members to increase their defence budgets to help fight Vladimir Putin’s Russia amid a row about Britain’s own broken spending promises. The PM said “all allies need to dig deep” in the decade ahead and increase the two per cent of GDP military spending target for members of the alliance. But he has been warned the UK risks missing the level by 2025, and serving top brass have branded cuts to the Army “perverse” following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. In an eve of summit embarrassment, PM Mr Johnson was forced to admit that he has torn up a flagship manifesto pledge to increase spending on the Armed Forces by 0.5 per cent above inflation every year.” – The Sun
Other News:
>Today:
>Yesterday:
“The UK defence secretary has urged the Treasury to stop banking the “peace dividend” and increase the military’s budget, as the head of the British army warned that Europe was facing a “1937 moment”. Ben Wallace’s comments were made as Britain prepared to send more artillery, helicopters and air defence systems to Estonia, where UK forces are on the Nato front line of any possible Russian attack against the Baltic states. The defence secretary wants long-term investment in Britain’s military but claimed the issue “doesn’t get into that political top three or four that motivate chancellors and prime ministers of the day”” – The Financial Times
“Liz Truss has suggested that the UK should provide military aid to Taiwan. The Foreign Secretary made the surprising remarks while giving evidence to a Commons committee yesterday. Britain currently has no defence or diplomatic ties with Taiwan, which it is feared could be invaded by China, with Beijing increasingly hostile towards Taipei. Officially the UK position has been to seek a ‘peaceful resolution’ between the countries. If embarked upon, Miss Truss’s plan would probably enrage the Chinese and leave Britain even shorter on military equipment. Appearing before the foreign affairs committee yesterday, Miss Truss said: ‘There is always a tendency, and we’ve seen this prior to the Ukraine war, of wishful thinking, to hope more bad things won’t happen and to wait until it is too late.”” – The Daily Mail
“Rishi Sunak is cooling on the idea of a windfall tax on electricity generators, with the UK chancellor increasingly likely to use broader reforms to electricity markets to prevent excess profits in the industry, senior government figures have said. The chancellor announced in May that the Treasury was examining “appropriate steps” to ensure that the electricity generation sector contributed to a £15bn support package for households hit with rising bills. Officials had briefed that electricity companies could be hit with a windfall tax — similar to one already imposed on UK oil and gas producers — that would raise £3bn-£4bn.” – The Financial Times
>Today:
“Sport chiefs were yesterday urged by the Government to stop transgender athletes from competing against women. Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries told a summit of governing bodies it was ‘inherently unfair’ for women and teenage girls to be pitted against biological males. Meanwhile, the BBC defied pro-trans lobbyists who are demanding the sacking of Sharron Davies as a presenter of the Commonwealth Games this summer. The former Olympic swimmer has led a high-profile campaign to get transgender athletes banned from women’s sport.” – The Daily Mail
“Jacob Rees-Mogg said keeping spending under control “doesn’t necessarily mean tax increases – indeed it could mean tax cuts”… But the Brexit Minister, who is known to hold strident low-tax beliefs, said Britain could learn some lessons from freedom-loving US President Ronald Reagan. He said the holy trinity needed to wrestle down inflation was higher interest rates, less government spending and cutting back on waste. Mr Rees-Mogg told Tory grassroots bible ConHome: “This means keeping control of public expenditure. “This doesn’t necessarily mean tax increases, indeed it could mean tax cuts.”” – The Sun
“The Conservative Party is putting plans in place to hold a snap general election if Sir Keir Starmer is forced to resign as Labour leader, it has been claimed. Both Sir Keir and his deputy Angela Rayner have promised to resign if they are fined by police for drinking beer in an MP’s office in Durham in April 2021. At the time, a ban on any indoor mixing of households was in place. and Durham Police have since issued questionnaires as part of their investigation into whether the gathering broke the law. Sir Keir has vowed that he will not stand in any subsequent leadership contest if he is found to have breached Covid regulations.” – The Daily Mail
“Conservative MPs considering joining Labour have only months to do so or they will not be able to stand for the party at the next election. Amid renewed rumours that Tories unhappy with Boris Johnson’s leadership might cross the floor, Labour sources pointed out that they were making rapid progress selecting candidates in target seats, including many in the red wall…There is scepticism among senior Labour figures that any MPs are likely to follow Christian Wakeford, who joined their party in January having been elected as a Conservative for Bury South in 2019, beating the Labour candidate by 402 votes.” – The Times
>Yesterday:
“A leading Conservative rebel has launched an attempt to force Boris Johnson to seek permission from parliament before using powers in the Northern Ireland protocol bill. Sir Bob Neill, the chair of the justice committee, tabled an amendment on Tuesday that would require “parliamentary approval for bringing into force any provisions” of the legislation, which would unilaterally rip up Brexit arrangements for Northern Ireland at the risk of a trade war with the EU. Neill’s proposal would effectively introduce a “meaningful vote” for MPs before Johnson could use powers in the bill, which has caused controversy because of allegations it would break international law.” – The Guardian
>Today:
“A Tory MP today said today he doesn’t agree women have ‘an absolute right to bodily autonomy’ in a debate over the American abortion ban. Danny Kruger added that British MPs should not ‘lecture’ the US over the democratic process, which has sparked mass protests across the nation… The decision to overturn the landmark Roe v Wade ruling is expected to lead to abortion bans in roughly half of US states. Mr Kruger, who represents the constituency of Devizes in Wiltshire, told the Commons this afternoon he would ‘probably disagree’ with other MPs about the US Supreme Court decision.’” – The Daily Mail
“ I believe it’s our job, as Conservatives, to now roll up our sleeves and stop the self-indulgence and bickering. There’s an ongoing debate about whether the by-election results are down to mid-term blues… There’s not been much reporting of the latest polls. Maybe that’s because this weekend we were just three points behind — not the 12 points behind we were in 2013. Back then we had UKIP snapping at our heels, whereas now that Brexit is effectively done there is no Right-wing party to speak of. Instead, we find ourselves the governing party less than half that far behind, even after all that’s happened — and despite the fact we are in the midst of a cost-of-living crunch more difficult than any time in a generation.” – The Daily Mail
>Today:
“You know that story about the Johnsons wanting to put a treehouse in the garden of No 10? I don’t think it was for the kids. It was for Boris. You can imagine him up there, away from his troubles, with a big stack of Beanos and a sign that reads “No girlz allowed”…Partygate is going nowhere; MPs are about to put him on trial; and on Tuesday Simon Case, the Cabinet Secretary, faced the constitutional committee (not an easy job when you work for the naughtiest boy in the school). Case, who looks like the head prefect all grown up, initially walked a clever line between disclosure and secrecy, but fell foul of John McDonnell, a man whose interrogation technique couldn’t be more terrifying if he wore a balaclava.” – The Daily Telegraph
“The Metropolitan Police has been put in special measures by the policing watchdog after it highlighted systemic problems including scandals and a failure to log 69,000 crimes. Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services cited “substantial and persistent concerns” about performance including failures to stamp out corruption and properly investigate crime. Matt Parr, the watchdog’s inspector for London, said the abduction, rape and murder last year of Sarah Everard by a serving officer and repeated misconduct scandals had a “chilling effect on public trust and confidence”.” – The Times
>Yesterday:
“Keir Starmer disowned Jeremy Corbyn’s manifesto for the last election yesterday and said he was ‘starting from scratch’ on policy. It risked infuriating Labour Left-wingers – and appeared to contradict his earlier support for Mr Corbyn’s policies. When Sir Keir was running for the Labour leadership, he described the 2017 manifesto as Labour’s ‘foundational document’ and praised its ‘radicalism’. Sir Keir promised during the 2020 Labour leadership election to abolish tuition fees if he became prime minister – but yesterday he suggested that the Covid pandemic meant he might break the pledge.” – The Daily Mail
“Nicola Sturgeon moved a step closer in her push for Scottish independence today by referring herself to the Supreme Court in an attempt to force a second vote next year. Scotland’s first minister admitted that a referendum which was not legally binding would be shunned by the international community so she instructed the lord advocate, the senior Scottish law officer, to seek a legal ruling from the highest court in the United Kingdom. If the court rules the vote illegal, the SNP would go on to fight the next UK general election on the single question: should Scotland be an independent country? ” – The Times
News in Brief: