“Lee Anderson has held private talks with the leader of Reform UK, it has been reported, as he publicly threatened to defect and said that Rishi Sunak “made a mistake” in suspending him. The former Tory deputy chairman said that he had “not done anything wrong” in claiming that Sadiq Khan was controlled by Islamists and said that he had been given “phenomenal” private support from Conservative MPs. GB News, where he made his original comments, has reported that Anderson held “one to one” talks on Sunday with Richard Tice, leader of the right-wing populist party founded by Nigel Farage. Many Tory MPs are concerned that if Anderson defects to Reform, it would be the “final nail in the coffin” for the red wall seats in the north of England…” – The Times
>Today:
“Suella Braverman has condemned the ongoing row over Islamophobia in the Tory party as “hysteria” and called on Rishi Sunak to urgently tackle Islamist extremism. The former home secretary is understood to believe that it was an overreaction to strip Lee Anderson, the former Conservative deputy chairman, of the Tory whip over his claims that “Islamists” have “got control” of Sadiq Khan…On Monday night, Mrs Braverman urged Mr Sunak to shift his focus to the “big problem” of “Islamist extremism in the UK”… On Monday, Mr Sunak warned that British democracy was under threat and condemned aggressive efforts to shut down debate over the Israel-Hamas conflict, but refused to describe Mr Anderson’s remarks as Islamophobic or racist.” – The Daily Telegraph
“Conservative MP and former minister Paul Scully has said sorry for labelling parts of London and Birmingham “no-go areas” — but locals branded him “ignorant” for his “damaging” remarks. He apologised after singling out east London’s Tower Hamlets and Birmingham’s Sparkhill for containing a tiny minority who were “abusing” their religion to make others feel uncomfortable. He made the comments while reacting to MP Lee Anderson’s claims that “Islamists” had gained control over London and that mayor Sadiq Khan had given away the city “to his mates”. But Scully, 55, told BBC Radio London that he “put his hands up” for using language he now regretted and said the comments lacked nuance.” – The Times
“The more immediate trial for Sunak is that this kind of eruption is a foretaste of the battle that Tory moderates are readying to wage against a power grab from the right, in the highly likely event of a rousing Conservative defeat. And that makes any decisive fightback on the Prime Minister’s part look doomed: if one ill-informed inflammatory remark by a mouthy backbencher can tie Sunak up in knots in the run-up to a vital March Budget, what hope is there of keeping hold of a settled Conservative message in the heat of election battle? Increasingly, though, the centre and left of the party has clocked that quiet loyalty is pointless – they might as well be in the fight…So jockeying is under way between potential leaders to contest what may well be a “rump election” for a new Tory leader.” – The I
“Rishi Sunak is braced for another byelection after former Tory MP Scott Benton was suspended from the Commons for 35 days over his role in a lobbying sting. MPs approved the suspension of the Blackpool South MP on Tuesday evening without the need for a vote. The length of the suspension means that Benton is now facing a recall petition. If 10% of his constituents sign it, a byelection will be triggered in his seat. It would take the number of byelections held during Sunak’s time as prime minister to 11. Benton, 36, had the Tory whip removed in April 2023 after suggesting to undercover reporters at the Times that he would be willing to break lobbying rules for money. Benton had offered to lobby ministers on behalf of the gambling industry…” – The Guardian
“A farmer has received death threats for protesting against Welsh government agricultural reforms and been branded a “traitor” by Welsh nationalists for meeting the prime minister. Gareth Wyn Jones, 56, will join a protest outside the Senedd on Wednesday against the devolved government’s plans to force farmers to have 10 per cent of their land covered by trees and 10 per cent dedicated to wildlife habitat to receive basic subsidies. The upland farmer and social media personality, whose family has farmed for more than 350 years in Llanfairfechan on the North Wales coast, has been forced to install a security system after police warned him about a recent death threat made against his family for his outspoken views.” – The Times
“Jeremy Hunt, Britain’s chancellor, is struggling to escape a fiscal “headlock” imposed by his official forecasters as he tries to find space for tax cuts and lift pre-Budget gloom among Conservative MPs. Hunt will prioritise personal tax cuts on March 6, but his allies say his room for manoeuvre is limited because of increasingly tight fiscal forecasts produced by the spending watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility. Tory MPs still hope Hunt can spring a surprise by cutting national insurance rates by 2p at a cost of about £10bn, although the chancellor’s aides have insisted this was “impossible at the moment, let alone difficult”. To try to find cash to fund tax cuts Hunt is looking at targeted tax rises… while he hopes to unlock future savings by [raising] public sector productivity.” – The Financial Times
“Young people are “inherently capitalist” and the Conservatives should support their “entrepreneurial ambition” by lowering taxes, a Treasury minister has said ahead of the Budget next week. Bim Afolami…will use a speech on Wednesday to urge the Conservatives to deliver more opportunities for future generations or risk an “existential” challenge at the general election later this year. Mr Afolami is expected to say: “I think many people in politics make the mistake of assuming that our young people are either woke revolutionaries or red-blooded reactionaries. In fact, they are inherently capitalist – they are commercially minded, entrepreneurial and ambitious.” Fewer than one in five 25 to 29-year-olds owned a home of their own in 2020…” – The Daily Telegraph
“The home secretary has told pro-Palestinian demonstrators to stop their regular Gaza protests because they have “made their point” and are putting a “huge pressure” on policing. James Cleverly said the demonstrations, which are now taking place every fortnight in central London, are “not really saying anything new”. In an interview with The Times, Cleverly said it was vital that no MP felt “bullied” into changing their stance on the Israel-Gaza war in light of the protests. “I think the organisers should recognise that they’ve made their point, they’ve made it loudly and they’re not adding to it by repeating themselves,” Cleverly said. The government will consider changing protest rules to require organisations of a demonstration to give police more than the current six days’ notice…” – The Times
“Security guards are to be deployed at events held by MPs as part of a £31 million drive to protect politicians amid increased threats following the Israel-Hamas conflict. MPs at risk will be able to use private security guards for constituency events or surgeries, in an announcement Home Secretary James Cleverly pledged would “safeguard the people, processes and institutions upon which our democracy relies”. Since the Oct 7 attack on Israel, pro-Gaza activists have held demonstrations and been accused of intimidating politicians in an effort to force them to support a ceasefire. The MPs at highest risk will also be able to call on private bodyguards to protect them 24/7 because of the physical threats to their safety.” – The Daily Telegraph
>Today:
“British Home Secretary James Cleverly warned today that the US can no longer live up to the Statue of Liberty’s promise to embrace ‘poor, tired huddled masses’ amid an escalating border crisis that is fast becoming ‘unsustainable’. Speaking at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs in New York City…Cleverly instead advised the Biden administration to deter migrants by helping their native countries to become more livable. ‘We’ve got the Statue of Liberty in the harbor, it was an implicit promise for the poor and dispossessed of the world in times, when people coming to the US for example would come one steam boat at a time. That was manageable, the kind of scale we are seeing at the moment I don’t think we can make the same kind of offer,’ Cleverly said.” – The Daily Mail
“A public spat between the ousted chair of the Post Office and the UK government descended into further mudslinging on Tuesday after he claimed the state-owned company’s boss was under investigation for misconduct. Henry Staunton told MPs that chief executive Nick Read was the main focus of an 80-page HR review by the Post Office and had threatened to resign on no less than four occasions over the matter. Staunton, a City of London veteran who was sacked by business secretary Kemi Badenoch in late January after a little more than a year in the job, had himself been investigated for what he called “politically incorrect” comments… Staunton and Read were appointed after the scandal to rebuild the organisation’s reputation.” – The Financial Times
“The UK’s sacked borders inspector has told MPs he was removed “for doing his job”, as refugee charities told the home secretary that the sacking of David Neal had left the asylum system at risk. Neal, who was fired last week as the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, told a parliamentary committee of “shocking leadership” at the top of the Home Office. He also claimed No 10 had blocked his reappointment before he was dismissed during a Microsoft Teams video call. In a letter…more than 40 refugee charities have told James Cleverly that a failure to appoint a new borders watchdog “creates a vacuum” of independent oversight. Neal was removed amid complaints that the Home Office was delaying the publication…of his inspectorate’s reports.” – The Guardian
“The BBC is “institutionally anti-Semitic” and its reporting of the Israel-Hamas war has contributed to attacks on British Jews, a former attorney general has claimed. Sir Michael Ellis told MPs that the BBC’s senior management had “fundamentally failed” to deal with bias…[He] claimed that “the relentless bias of BBC News coverage has contributed to the record levels of intimidation and attacks on British Jews”... [He] quoted a Survation poll which found that 77 per cent of Jews in Britain believe BBC coverage of the conflict in Gaza is biased… “Dozens of current Jewish employees at the BBC are understood to have filed formal complaints about their concerns over anti-Semitism, describing it as a grim and frightening time to be Jewish at the corporation,” [he] said.” – The Daily Telegraph
“Britain has rejected a French plan to send Nato troops into Ukraine, warning that it would be a “major escalation” in the war. Emmanuel Macron had suggested that several EU and Nato countries were considering deploying soldiers to the battlefield. The French president…said boots on the ground should “not be ruled out” as he urged the West to do “everything needed so Russia cannot win the war”. In parliament on Tuesday, Stéphane Séjourné, France’s foreign minister, stressed that troops could be sent to Ukraine on training missions or to build weapons without breaching a “belligerence threshold”. However, the Kremlin warned that any deployment would “inevitably” lead to all-out war between Russia and Nato.” – The Daily Telegraph
>Today:
“An alleged victim of sexual assault by a Conservative MP has said that the party was more concerned with protecting its reputation than her welfare after it failed to investigate her complaint formally. The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said that she informed party whips about the alleged attack immediately after it happened. The woman said that no internal investigation took placnewse and that her mental health deteriorated, resulting in Conservative Party headquarters paying £15,000 for her to receive treatment at a private hospital. She said that she was upset at the party for failing to investigate the MP and that she believes that its poor handling of misconduct complaints continues to put people at risk.” – The Times
“Britain will need a US ambassador Donald Trump likes if he regains power, not one with a “double first from Oxbridge”, Nigel Farage has said following his Mar-a-Lago meeting with the presidential candidate. The former Brexit Party leader met with Mr Trump at his palatial residence and private club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday. Mr Farage…said it was important that the role went to someone who had a relationship with Mr Trump. He told The Telegraph: “I just think that whoever represents the UK needs to be someone that knows him and can get on with him. So if not me, then someone who fits that bill.” Mr Farage added that career civil servants with a “double first from Oxbridge” were probably not the “right people” for the role.” – The Daily Telegraph
>Today:
“Ed Miliband has insisted a Labour government will be “laser-focused” on decarbonising the UK’s electricity system by 2030, in his first major speech since the party dropped its £28bn a year green investment pledge. Labour’s energy security and net zero secretary, speaking on Tuesday at the International Energy Week conference in London, said his party would also remove a de facto “ban” on new onshore wind farms in England that has been in place since 2015. The comments come after Sir Keir Starmer, Labour leader, dropped his pledge to spend £28bn annually on green infrastructure, raised almost entirely from borrowing, if the party wins the general election expected this year. As energy secretary Miliband said he would seek to accelerate planning decisions…” – The Financial Times