“Britain’s families are set for a punishing increase in bills this winter after Ofgem confirmed an 80 per cent rise in the energy price cap, sending the average household’s yearly bill from £1,971 to £3,549 from October. The cap announced today will come into effect for around 24million households in England, Scotland and Wales on default energy tariffs on October 1, and will remain in place until December 31, when it will be adjusted again. Ofgem’s chief executive Jonathan Brearley warned of the hardship energy prices will cause this winter and urged the incoming prime minister ‘to provide an additional and urgent response to continued surging energy prices’.” – The Daily Mail
“Liz Truss accepts that the energy crisis will define her premiership if she wins the Conservative leadership contest and held talks with allies this week about a significant package of support. Ofgem, the energy regulator, is expected to announce this morning that the energy price cap will rise from £1,971 to about £3,500, significantly more than previously forecast. The price rise takes effect from October 1. Ministers were told yesterday that the rise, driven by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, would leave millions of people facing destitution and unable to heat their homes or cook food. The Times has been told that Truss held talks with Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secretary and her prospective chancellor, and other senior members of her team about her plans.” – The Times
“Liz Truss today pledges ‘immediate support’ to help the hardest hit families with soaring power bills if she becomes prime minister and said she plans to hold an emergency budget within days of arriving at No 10. The price cap is expected to be raised to more than £3,500 per household today – almost treble the figure a year ago. Analysts say bills could rise by a further £1,000 in January, with more pain in April as Vladimir Putin ‘weaponises’ his gas resources. But writing in the Daily Mail, Miss Truss says she would use an emergency budget next month to ‘ensure support is on its way to get through these tough times’…The Foreign Secretary argued it was not ‘right’ to announce the full plan before the contest is over or she has seen all the analysis being prepared in Whitehall.” – The Daily Mail
“A £100bn energy industry plan to freeze household bills to protect households from surging energy prices is likely to be rejected by the next prime minister, officials believe, although it was not ruled out by Liz Truss. Conservative leadership hopeful Rishi Sunak said he was “nervous” and “sceptical” about a price freeze… But a well-placed Whitehall source suggested it was unlikely as both leadership contenders appear to favour support targeted at the most vulnerable… The idea for the Government to guarantee loans to energy companies to allow them to keep bills frozen at just under £2,000 while firms buy the gas required for the next two years was floated in a meeting with the Business Secretary” – The I
“Boris Johnson sought to shore up support for Ukraine as he urged the US, French and German leaders to “stay strong” against Russia’s invasion in a “punchy” call this week, sources told i. The outgoing Prime Minister, who has played a leading international role in supporting Ukraine, urged Joe Biden, Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz not to let Western unity slip, despite Russia’s invasion putting extreme pressure on energy bills this winter. On Wednesday, Mr Johnson made his third trip to capital Kyiv since Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine six months ago as he seeks to burnish what allies believe will form an important part of his legacy.” – The I
“ Liz Truss is considering plans to trigger “Article 16” proceedings against the EU over the Northern Ireland protocol within days of entering Downing Street if she succeeds Boris Johnson as prime minister next month, according to several government insiders. The UK and Brussels are locked in a fractious legal stand-off over implementing the deal covering post-Brexit trading arrangements in Northern Ireland, which has soured EU-UK relations since it came into force in January 2021.Officials close to Truss have consulted legal and trade experts over the plans in recent weeks. Allies said triggering Article 16 would provide a stop-gap while the legislation to unilaterally rewrite the Northern Ireland protocol passes through the Commons…” – The Financial Times
“Liz Truss tonight insisted schools should never have been shut as part of ‘draconian’ Covid restrictions – as she vowed never to impose a lockdown if she becomes prime minister next month. The Foreign Secretary revealed how she questioned the Coronavirus measures brought in from March 2020 and acknowledged, in retrospect, how the Government ‘did too much’ in shutting down the country. Speaking at the latest hustings event in the Tory leadership race, Ms Truss told Conservative Party members in Norwich that pupils should have been allowed to stay in their classrooms throughout the pandemic. Her comments come after Rishi Sunak… used a magazine interview to criticise the way Government decisions were made on Covid policy.” – The Daily Mail
“Liz Truss said last night the “jury’s out” on whether President Macron was a friend or foe and that she would judge him by his “deeds not words”. The foreign secretary and frontrunner to be the Tory leader adopted a frosty tone about the French president during hustings hosted by TalkTV. Rishi Sunak, the former chancellor and Truss’s rival for the party leadership, described Macron as a friend during a quick-fire round of questions. Britain’s relationship with France will play a significant role in attempts to resolve the Northern Ireland protocol dispute and the cross-Channel migration problem… Truss said later, however, that she would prefer France to run the Sizewell nuclear power plant than China, although a “home-grown” operator would be best.” – The Times
“Rishi Sunak has finally promised to back Liz Truss if she becomes PM – and vowed to stay in frontline politics. Despite previously blasting his rival’s flagship plan for tax cuts as a “moral failure”, the ex-Chancellor said he would “always support a Conservative government”. His scathing attacks on the Foreign Secretary throughout the contest had fuelled fears he and his sulking supporters could block her mini-Budget. But last night Mr Sunak insisted: “Of course I’m going to support a Conservative government. “I believe very strongly in the Conservative Party, and I want it to do well, and I will always, whether as a minister or as a backbencher, always support a Conservative government because I believe that’s the best thing for this country.” – The Sun
“Secret plans have been drawn up for the Queen to appoint the new Prime Minister at Balmoral instead of Buckingham Palace in a historic first. The 96-year-old monarch is suffering with her mobility and has been advised to stay put for the September 6 ceremony with Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak. The new Prime Minister will make a 1,000-mile round trip to see the Queen at Balmoral for a historic ceremony to seal the transition of power. Her Majesty, who has been suffering mobility problems, is no longer expected to interrupt her holiday when Tory voters elect Boris Johnson’s replacement for No10. Plans are now under way for Mr Johnson to be joined by either Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss and travel to see the Queen on Tuesday, September 6.”- The Sun
“The party has confirmed 8,700 Tory party members have signed a petition organised by the ConservativePost website and Lord Cruddas, the former party treasurer, demanding a veto on whether to accept Mr Johnson’s resignation. The figure is short of the 10,000 threshold that could force the party to act under its constitution. It means that if a further 1,300 validated members sign the petition, the party will have to look at changing its constitution and allow a ballot on whether to accept Mr Johnson’s resignation. This would potentially throw the existing leadership election into chaos, as any ballot will almost certainly take place after the winner has been announced a week on Monday.” – The Daily Telegraph
>Today:
“The Home Office is making plans for a new deportation flight to Rwanda months after the first attempt was blocked, it emerged today. A number of newly arrived asylum seekers staying in hotels have received letters from the government telling them their asylum claims have been deemed ‘inadmissible’ for consideration in the UK. The letters went on to say tell the asylum seekers the government intends to send them to Rwanda to have their claims processed there. They have 14 days to raise objections over their forced removal to the east African country… The first flight was set to leave for the East African nation on June 14 but was grounded after a series of legal challenges.” – The Daily Mail
“The health secretary was forced to defend the Conservative Party’s record in office yesterday after an angry member of the public accused ministers of doing “bugger all” to reduce ambulance waiting times. Steve Barclay was giving an interview outside Moorfields Eye Hospital in north London when the woman confronted him. She said patients were dying as they waited for ambulances. “Are you going to do anything about the ambulances waiting, and the people dying?” she asked. Barclay was unable to answer the woman, who criticised the Conservative Party’s record in government. “Don’t you think 12 years is long enough? Twelve years — you’ve done bugger all about it. People have died, and all you’ve done is nothing,” she said.” – The Times
“Civil servants have been slammed for reportedly attending a ‘Queer Leadership’ conference on taxpayers’ cash – against the wishes of the Government’s top lawyer. Boris Johnson’s gung-ho Attorney General Suella Braverman launched a fightback against the ‘diversity industry’ earlier this month and demanded that Whitehall ‘cut the wokeness’. But it has emerged that civil servants from her own department attended the £500-a-day diversity training in May. Civil servants have been slammed for reportedly attending a ‘Queer Leadership’ conference on taxpayers’ cash – against the wishes of the Government’s top lawyer. “ – The Daily Mail
“First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is to officially open the Scottish Government’s Nordic Office on Friday. The new office in the Danish capital Copenhagen is expected to increase visibility for Scotland across the region, and will create new economic and trading opportunities, according to the Scottish Government. Ms Sturgeon will undertake a range of trade, investment and policy engagements during her visit, and will look to discuss shared ambitions and the potential for closer collaboration. She is expected to attend a roundtable with business and energy leaders at State of Green to explore how Scotland and the Nordic regions can co-operate on accelerating decarbonisation, and will meet Denmark’s foreign minister Jeppe Kofod.” – The Scotsman
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