“The Bank of England on Thursday raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.5 per cent, and warned it would not hit its inflation target until 2025. A seven to two majority on the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee took rates to the highest level since 2008, as the BoE admitted it had underestimated the strength and persistence of food price rises. Instead of inflation falling below its 2 per cent target within a year, which the BoE had forecast, the central bank now thinks it will only hit the goal at the start of 2025, after the latest date of the next general election. The BoE expects consumer price inflation to fall from the current level of 10.1 per cent to 5.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2023, instead of its previous forecast of 3.9 per cent.” – The Financial Times
“Plans to abolish the “feudal” leasehold system have been watered down by Rishi Sunak in his second U-turn within two days. Michael Gove, the Levelling Up Secretary, had committed to put an end to the “outdated” property model across England and Wales. But the pledge will be left out of legislation later this year because such large-scale reform cannot be completed before the next election. The Government will instead focus on quicker fixes, such as bringing in a cap on ground rents and making it easier for leaseholders to buy the freehold of their home. The slimmed down reforms came a day after Downing Street prompted Brexiteer fury by ditching a long-planned bonfire of EU laws.” – The Daily Telegraph
>Today:
“Kemi Badenoch has accused Conservative Brexiteers of “talking not doing” as she robustly defended plans to scale back the government’s bonfire of Brussels rules and regulations. In a forthright attack on Eurosceptic MPs, including her predecessor Jacob Rees-Mogg, the business secretary told TalkTV that while they were good at making “a lot of noise” they were “not the ones who have to do the doing”. She insisted she was taking a “pragmatic middle-ground” by refusing demands to scrap all EU laws on the UK statute book by the end of the year. “It is delightful to see the Labour front bench and the ERG [European Research Group of Brexiteer MPs] on the same side,” Badenoch said… Badenoch rebutted claims that she was overseeing a U-turn…” – The Times
>Today:
“The Treasury will be able to slash the basic rate of income tax by 2p if Britons who left jobs during the pandemic return to work, a Cabinet minister has declared. Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary, who is responsible for overseeing the Government’s drive to boost employment numbers, said there were still 400,000 fewer workers than before Covid. A 2p cut in the basic rate of income tax would mean a fall from 20 per cent to 18 per cent. The decision is ultimately in the hands of the Treasury and Number 10. The tax burden in the UK remains on course to hit its highest point since the years after the Second World War, despite 13 years of successive Conservative governments since 2010.” – The Daily Telegraph
“Net migration is on track to be as high as one million, analysis suggests ahead of the release of official figures this month. Ministers are braced for net migration, the number entering the UK minus those leaving, to hit a record high, surpassing the previous peak of 504,000 set in the year to June 2022. Analysis by migration experts suggest the figure could be as high as 997,000 when the official figures are published in two weeks’ time. The Home Office fears it could hit one million this year. The surge is fuelled by a continued sharp increase in non-EU migrants entering the UK to study, work or escape conflict or oppression. The rise in non-EU migrants has more than compensated for the slump in EU nationals, after Brexit saw the end of freedom of movement…” – The Daily Telegraph
“Britain has delivered multiple Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine, UK defence secretary Ben Wallace has announced, boosting Kyiv’s defensive capability as it prepares to launch a counter-offensive against Russian forces. Wallace told MPs on Thursday that the decision to donate the “long-range, conventional-only, precision-strike capability” was a “proportionate” response to Moscow’s escalation of its war in Ukraine. The UK is the first country to send long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine…Highlighting that Russian air strikes had deliberately targeted civilian and critical national infrastructure in the country, Wallace said: “Russia must recognise that their actions alone have led to such systems being provided to Ukraine.” Kyiv welcomed the UK’s…delivery.” – The Financial Times
“Transport Secretary, Mark Harper, has insisted that TransPennine Express will be returned to the private sector and that nationalisation is just a temporary measure. A source close to the minister dismissed suggestions that the Government had decided to nationalise because of the Conservatives’ heavy losses at last week’s local elections. Speculation that the defeat had prompted ministers to try to shore up Red Wall seats by bringing the service under government control was “absolute nonsense”, the source said. Mr Harper said the decision had been driven by “continuous cancellations” and consistently poor performance. He said he was acting in the interests of passengers but warned that the move was not a “silver bullet” and that the service might not improve overnight.” – The I
“Liz Truss’s planned trip to Taiwan next week has triggered a Conservative party row, as a senior Tory accused the former prime minister of attempting to stay relevant by engaging in “the worst kind of Instagram diplomacy”. Alicia Kearns, the chairman of the Commons foreign affairs committee, claimed Ms Truss’s visit to the island was merely “performative, not substantive”. Ms Truss’s team hit back by pointing out that she was invited by the Taiwanese government, who would be “better placed” to know what was in the interests of their people than the MP for Rutland and Melton. They accused Ms Kearns of “petty political attacks” and called on her to apologise for her remarks. But it is understood the committee chairman has no plans to retract her claims.” – The Daily Telegraph
“Boris Johnson nearly sent Rishi Sunak a sweary video after his resignation, his ex-spin doctor has claimed. The former PM was so furious when his Chancellor quit that he almost fired off a video using the c-bomb. Guto Harri, who advised Mr Johnson last year, called the resignation last summer “the greatest betrayal”. He said: “Rishi walked out. Didn’t even tell Boris. “Boris found a little video on the internet — he sent it to me and said, ‘Thinking of sending this to Rishi’.” Sources close to the ex-PM dismissed the reports as “simply inaccurate”. Mr Sunak and then-Health Secretary Sajid Javid started an avalanche of ministers who quit last year – finally leading to BoJo’s eventual resignation.” – The Sun
“Stay-at-home mothers should get tax breaks to raise their children, a rising star Tory MP has said. Miriam Cates admitted she cried when the Government announced its “unconservative” plans to help only working mothers with the costs of their childcare. Ms Cates, who has made her name campaigning on internet safety and the rights of women, also said that the Tory party had to stop defining itself by the values of Thatcherism, saying they were “not really Conservative”. The comments from Ms Cates, a mother of three who was elected as Conservative MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge in 2019, are set to reignite a debate in the Conservative Party about whether it needs to develop more family-friendly policies.” – The Daily Telegraph
“Voting for the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) in next week’s Northern Ireland local elections will force Rishi Sunak to make changes to his Brexit deal and pave the way for a return to Stormont, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said. The party’s leader told the Prime Minister to get back into the negotiating room with Brussels and bring forward legislation to protect the province’s place in the UK to end the “unfinished business” of the Windsor Framework. He called on divided unionists to rally round ahead of the council elections on May 18 and give the DUP, which has maintained a 15-month boycott of the Northern Ireland Assembly over the Brexit deal, the strongest mandate possible… The Windsor Framework….reduces the number of border checks…” – The Daily Telegraph
“A Labour MP reported one of her party’s frontbenchers to police for allegedly sexually assaulting her, it has emerged. The MP contacted the Metropolitan Police in March and spoke to party whips. However, she later told officers that she did not want the investigation to continue. The incident is alleged to have taken place following a summer party in London…The MP she complained about remains a shadow minister. A Met spokesman said: “In March 2023, police received a report that a woman was sexually assaulted by a man in London in July 2021. At the victim’s request the incident will not now be investigated.”… Separately, a senior Labour adviser who was allowed to keep his job despite a complaint of sexual harassment being upheld has resigned.” – The Times
>Yesterday:
“The SNP’s treasurer when a luxury camper van was bought by the party did not know about the purchase, it has emerged. Sources close to Douglas Chapman, who was the SNP treasurer for around six months, have briefed that he was kept in the dark about the acquisition of the motorhome, which has been seized by police. Colin Beattie, the MSP who was treasurer before and after Mr Chapman’s brief tenure, has also denied knowing about the vehicle at the time it was bought, saying he became aware of its existence through the party’s 2021 accounts. SNP sources have briefed that the vehicle was intended to be used as a “battle bus” at the 2021 Holyrood elections and was needed due to possible Covid restrictions.” – The Daily Telegraph