“Rishi Sunak suffered the first electoral defeat of his premiership after Labour held on to its Chester seat…with an increased majority. Samantha Dixon, who served as a councillor for Cheshire West and Chester, gained 17,309 votes in Thursday’s by-election. She received 61.2 per cent of the vote and increased the party’s majority from 6,164 in the 2019 general election to 10,974. Liz Wardlaw, the Conservative candidate and NHS nurse, received 6,335 votes as the Tory vote share dropped from 38.3 per cent to 22.4 per cent. The Liberal Democrats’ Rob Herd came third with 2,368 votes. The by-election, which attracted a voter turnout of 41.2 per cent, marked the first electoral test for Sunak following his appointment as prime minister in October.” – The Financial Times
>Today:
“Rishi Sunak has said that racism must be “confronted” wherever it occurs, as the fallout from the royal racism row threatened to overshadow the second day of the Prince and Princess of Wales’s trip to the US. The Prime Minister declined to comment specifically on the incident, which caused Lady Susan Hussey, Queen Elizabeth II’s longest-service lady in waiting, to resign after a black, British-born domestic violence campaigner alleged the 83-year-old had…asked her where she was “really” from during a palace reception. However, he said that the job of tackling racism was “never done”, adding: “And that’s why whenever we see it we must confront it.” The racism row emerged just as the Prince and Princess of Wales embarked on their first overseas trip…” – The Daily Telegraph
“Calls to bring back VAT-free shopping for international tourists intensified yesterday amid fears that the UK is losing out to European rivals. Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, deputy chairman of the Commons public accounts committee, argued that the problem was harming the economy. His warning came hard on the heels of luxury handbag firm Mulberry saying it may be forced to shut its flagship Bond Street store as wealthy overseas visitors stay away. VAT-free shopping allows tourists to claim back 20 per cent on their purchases. It was first axed by then-chancellor Rishi Sunak when the UK left the EU. Kwasi Kwarteng tried to reintroduce it in his ‘mini-Budget’, but new chancellor Jeremy Hunt reversed the plan claiming it would save the Treasury £2billion a year.” – The Daily Mail
“A free speech law designed to prevent universities from cancelling controversial speakers has been watered down, The Telegraph can reveal. The Government has made concessions to universities over new powers it had drawn up to enable academics and students to sue institutions for breaching their free speech rights. It has tabled amendments that would require academics and students to only seek compensation in the courts as a last resort, after first pursuing complaints through the procedures of the relevant university and the higher education regulator. Claimants would also have to prove they had suffered a loss. It follows lobbying by Tory peers, who argued that the law would cause universities to face huge costs.” – The Daily Telegraph
>Today:
“Defence Secretary Ben Wallace says the Army has been “neglected” for at least twenty years – ahead of a looming budget battle with the Treasury. The Cabinet Minister admits the Ukraine invasion has exposed the UK’s military flaws and it’s time to play “catch-up” as he looks to upgrade vital artillery equipment. Wallace, who secured a £24 billion spending boost in 2020, previously said he’s taking decisions “budget by budget” given the harsh economic situation. The comments will pile more pressure on Downing Street with Wallace wanting to see defence spending to reach 3 per cent of national income by 2030… He highlighted a replacement programme for the AS90 self-propelled artillery used by the Army which was first deployed in 1993.” – The Sun
“Michael Gove has been urged to green light the new coal mine in Cumbria to ease Britain’s reliance on China. The Levelling Up Secretary is expected to give the go-ahead to reopen the mine next week after months of postponing the decision to avoid embarrassing Rishi Sunak at COP27. The new coking pit is vital to producing more domestic steel in the UK and will create hundreds of jobs. Tory MP Mark Jenkinson told The Sun: “As Britain still needs coking coal for the foreseeable future to make our world-leading steel, it should come from here, not imported thousands of miles away – which will only increase our carbon footprint any further.” Fresh analysis by the Green Alliance says it could produce the same emissions as putting 200,000 more cars on UK roads.” – The Sun
“Ministers have called on Britain’s biggest rail union to be “altruistic” and suspend strike action over Christmas and new year amid warnings that it will cost the economy more than £1.7 billion. The RMT union is planning eight days of strikes before Christmas and after the new year as part of the longest and most damaging period of industrial action since the 1980s. The strikes will lead to widespread disruption on what are traditionally some of the busiest days for pubs, restaurants and shops… Huw Merriman, the rail minister, said yesterday that the strikes could “break” businesses that have already endured two years of disastrous festive periods because of the coronavirus pandemic. He urged the RMT to show the “spirit of compromise” and reach a deal…” – The Times
“The City of London minister has insisted Brexit is bringing benefits for UK financial services, saying a government overhaul of EU-era regulation of the insurance industry would unlock investment in the British economy. Andrew Griffith highlighted how the insurance sector had said the government’s planned changes to the Solvency II regulation could result in the industry investing £100bn in the economy…“What we are doing here is unlocking a big opportunity,” he said. Boris Johnson, who as prime minister oversaw the UK’s Brexit trade deal with the EU, has admitted it did not go as far as Britain would have liked on financial services…City businesses have been disappointed by delay in the two sides finalising new arrangements on market access.” – The Financial Times
“The number of trainee teachers has plummeted to “catastrophic” levels, particularly in physics, figures show. The government has missed its own target for recruiting school teachers by almost a third, leading critics to blame real-terms pay cuts in education. Bursaries in some key areas were reduced when application numbers rose temporarily during the pandemic. Only 17 per cent of the targeted number of trainee physics teachers were recruited in this academic year, according to the figures published yesterday by the Department for Education (DfE). There were 29 per cent fewer new entrants to postgraduate initial teacher training courses than needed this year. The number recruited across all subjects and stages of school was 71 per cent of the target…” – The Times
“Boris Johnson has told his local Tory party he wants to stand again to be their MP at the next election. The former PM has repeatedly insisted he wants to stay in politics despite being booted out earlier this summer – which could pave the way for another future leadership bid…But he can still pull out ahead of the poll…Boris told locals earlier this week that kicking him out had been a “mistake” and suggesting he could run again for the top job in future. Richard Mills, the chairman of his local association, said yesterday: “Uxbridge and South Ruislip Conservative Association fully support Boris Johnson as our local MP and candidate at any future election… At least a dozen Tories have said they will quit the Commons instead when the next election comes.” – The Sun
“Boris Johnson is facing off against Leonardo DiCaprio in a row over Sadiq Khan’s decision to target motorists by expanding the London Ultra-low emission zone (Ulez). In a letter to the Telegraph, the former Prime Minister and a group of Conservative MPs criticise a “smash and grab raid on drivers” by the London mayor following his decision to expand a low-emission zone across all of Greater London. The charge will mean thousands of drivers will have to pay £12.50 a day because their vehicles do not meet minimum pollution standards. The intervention pits Mr Johnson against Mr DiCaprio, the star of films such as Titanic, Catch Me if You Can and The Beach. The Hollywood A-lister took to social media to lavish praise on Mr Khan for expanding Ulez…” – The Daily Telegraph
“Matt Hancock says that he tried to stop a “bonkers” plan to release prisoners during the Covid lockdown in the first instalment of his pandemic diaries. The former health secretary is promising an inside account of the internal government battles during what he called the most fast-moving and intense crisis “in human history”. After criticism from colleagues for abandoning Westminster to appear on I’m a Celebrity. . . Get Me Out of Here!, Hancock is preparing to settle scores with former political rivals including Dominic Cummings, who repeatedly tried to get him sacked. He is also expected to talk about how he fell “deeply” in love with his former aide Gina Coladangelo, resulting in his forced resignation when he breached his own Covid rules…” – The Times
“Ministers and civil servants face being made to sign a legally binding commitment to abide by Whitehall sleaze rules when they leave office under proposals being drawn up by the government. As part of the plan, senior figures could lose part of their pension or severance payment if they fail to get permission for any jobs they take on within two years of leaving their post. The move is designed to strengthen ethical standards in government after a series of controversies, including the Greensill lobbying scandal involving David Cameron. At present ministers and senior officials are expected to consult the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) before taking on any external role outside government within two years of leaving office.” – The Times
“Ian Blackford, a close ally of Scotland first minister Nicola Sturgeon, announced on Thursday he was stepping down as Scottish National party leader at Westminster, in a move that highlighted internal divisions over efforts to secure an independence referendum. Blackford’s decision not to seek re-election as head of the SNP group of MPs at Westminster came just over a week after the Supreme Court in London ruled Sturgeon did not have authority to hold a referendum without the UK government’s agreement. Sturgeon…has said she will now use the next UK general election as a “de facto” referendum, which has fuelled concern among some of her MPs that they could lose their seats if the poll turns into a single issue vote.” – The Financial Times
“Nicola Sturgeon has dismissed calls to suspend her radical overhaul to gender laws in Scotland and branded warnings from a United Nations human rights expert as “not well founded”. The First Minister was challenged in Holyrood on Wednesday over her refusal to delay the legislation until MSPs had a chance to examine a damning report from Reem Alsalem, a UN special rapporteur on violence against women and girls. The report warns the Gender Recognition Reform Bill “opens the door” to predatory males abusing women in single sex-spaces. However the SNP leader defiantly claimed Ms Alsaslem’s concerns are “not well founded” and stressed she has taken the safety of women and girls “more seriously than any other issue” in her political career.” – The Daily Telegraph
>Yesterday: