Rosie Duffield slates Labour ‘sleaze and nepotism’ as Badenoch warns of Tory ‘stitch-up’ – UK politics live
Keir Starmer refuses to apologise to pensioners over winter fuel payment cuts
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MP Rosie Duffield has resigned the Labour whip, accusing the prime minister of “hypocrisy” and pursuing “cruel and unnecessary” policies.
In a resignation letter, Ms Duffield attacked Sir Keir Starmer’s decision to keep the two-child benefit cap and means-test winter fuel payments.
In her resignation letter, she wrote: “The sleaze, nepotism and apparent avarice are off the scale.”
Ms Duffield, who will sit as an independent, also slated Sir Keir’s acceptance of more than £100,000 of freebies including clothes.
Earlier, Kemi Badenoch warned that Tory members will be “very angry” if MPs take part in a “stitch-up” to lend votes to other candidates to keep her out of the top two in the leadership contest.
Allies of Ms Badenoch claim she is the victim of a “dirty tricks” campaign, with Robert Jenrick in effect lending votes to James Cleverly, which the former has strongly denied.
Asked whether she believed Mr Jenrick was taking this approach, she told The Times: “I think that may be happening. But what else is happening is that there is tactical voting.”
Key Points
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Senior minister defends Labour after Rosie Duffield’s resignation
Following Canterbury MP Rosie Duffield’s resignation from the Labour Party, senior minister and Sir Keir Starmer ally Pat McFadden has expressed regret over her departure.
He told Sky News: “I regret that Rosie’s made this decision. It’s probably not a secret that she’s been unhappy for some time.”
When pressed on Ms Duffield’s claim that she is “ashamed” of the party, McFadden said: “Well, I’m not ashamed of the party. You know, we’ve got a new Labour government. We’ve got a big agenda ahead of us.”
Salma Ouaguira29 September 2024 08:21
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Tory leadership candidates make pitch ahead of party conference
Conservative leadership hopefuls are making pitches to the membership ahead of the party’s conference getting under way.
The first conference since their election defeat in July begins in Birmingham on Sunday – and Robert Jenrick, Tom Tugendhat, Kemi Badenoch and James Cleverly will be vying for support in the contest.
Candidates have touched on subjects from tax to immigration and the party’s future in a series of interviews and op-eds.
Ahead of several days of events, opening the conference in Sunday afternoon, the interim chair of the Tories, Richard Fuller, will tell the membership that he is “profoundly sorry” for the election loss.
The leadership candidates hoping to succeed Rishi Sunak will all have an opportunity to address the conference – which will run until Wednesday – and their campaigns will be lobbying MPs before parliamentarians pick the final two on 10 October.
Members will choose between those two, with the result declared on 2 November.
Salma Ouaguira29 September 2024 08:20
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Coming up: Tory leadership contenders make pitch on Sky News
All four Tory leadership candidates will shortly appear on Sky News to make their pitch to members.
Live from the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham, contenders Kemi Badenoch, James Cleverly, Tom Tugendhat and Robert Jenrick will make their case for the leadership.
Stay tuned for insights and analysis from each of the hopefuls.
Robert Jenrick, Conservative Party MP And leadership candidate gestures as he arrives at the annual Conservative Party conference with his wife Michal Berkner in Birmingham (REUTERS)
Salma Ouaguira29 September 2024 08:15
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Rosie Duffield’s resignation letter in full
Rosie Duffield has quit as a Labour MP, criticising leader Sir Keir Starmer’s plan to scrap winter fuel payments for millions of pensioners and also his decision to retain the two-child benefit cap for parents.
In a three-page letter, published in the Sunday Times, she also slammed his treatment of fellow MP Diane Abbot, as well as his “managerial style and technocratic approach.”
She plans to sit as an independent MP. Below is her letter in full.
Salma Ouaguira29 September 2024 08:10
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Not all cultures are ‘equally valid’, says Badenoch
Not all cultures are “equally valid” when it comes to immigration, and failing to recognise that is “naive”, Kemi Badenoch has said.
The Tory leadership candidate said that most politicians have avoided in discussing immigration in terms of culture over economics, but explained it is “more than cuisine or clothes” but also “customs which may be at odds with British values”.
In an article for The Telegraph, she said: “We cannot be naïve and assume immigrants will automatically abandon ancestral ethnic hostilities at the border, or that all cultures are equally valid. They are not.
“I am struck, for example, by the number of recent immigrants to the UK who hate Israel. That sentiment has no place here.”
Speaking of her own background, which saw her spend much of her childhood in Nigeria before returning to the UK aged 16, she said that today’s immigrants are able to maintain constant contact with their relatives in other countries.
“Their feet may be in the UK, but their heads and hearts are still back in their country of origin. We need an integration strategy that takes this into account,” she said.
Holly Evans29 September 2024 07:51
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‘Would be better’ if Tory MPs selected leader, says Lord Hague
Former Conservative leader Lord Hague has said that it “would be better” if the party’s leadership was decided by MPs, rather than the membership.
Tory members are preparing to select a new leader after Rishi Sunak announced he was standing down following the party’s General election defeat in the summer.
Kemi Badenoch, Robert Jenrick, James Cleverly and Tom Tugendhat are all vying for the party leadership, and will get a chance to address the party’s membership at the conference in Birmingham which gets under way on Sunday.
Lord Hague said MPs have to be ‘very careful’ in who they support for the Tory leadership race (PA) (PA Wire)
Speaking to the BBC’s Westminster Hour, Lord Hague – who led the party after its defeat in 1997 – said that membership had “become so small”.
Asked about the membership making the final decision on who will be party leader, Lord Hague told the Radio 4 programme: “That’s my fault, I introduced these rules. But now we can see the world has changed, political parties are smaller.
“It would be better if the decision was in the hands of Members of Parliament because the party membership has become so small.”
However, he said that MPs “still play a very big role” so “they have to be very careful who they support in case they give the impression to the members that they’re happy with someone they’re not really happy with”.
Holly Evans29 September 2024 07:34
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Boris Johnson claims Covid originated in lab, in sudden U-turn in his views
Former prime minister Boris Johnson has said he believes the Covid pandemic was caused by a leak from a laboratory in China, and did not originate in unsanitary conditions in a Wuhan market.
He joins Donald Trump in dismissing evidence suggesting that the virus was transmitted “zoonotically” from infected animals.
The US former president insisted that coronavirus emerged from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
Read the full article here:
Holly Evans29 September 2024 07:19
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Is the Tory conference worth paying attention to this year?
Dazed, confused, but with more than a hint of defiance (foolish or otherwise), the Conservatives meet for their party conference in Birmingham with some important business to transact.
The official theme is “Review and Rebuild”, which sounds about right. Given their fratricidal tendencies, however, and the spectral presence of Boris Johnson through the medium of his memoir Unleashed, it could easily descend into acrimony. The Tories may not be too relevant right now, but it will be entertaining…
Read the full article here:
Holly Evans29 September 2024 07:00
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The Tories are adrift in the political wilderness – can they ever recover?
True, it’s good news for the Tories if voters think the parties are “all the same” – one likely result of the recent controversy. It will be harder for Labour to play the sleaze card against the Tories at the next election.
All politicians struggle to resist schadenfreude. Yet the biggest mistake the Tories could make would be to assume Labour is doomed to be a one-term government. I recall such Tory complacency in 1997 after Labour’s previous landslide; the Tories lost the following two elections.
Read the full article here:
Holly Evans29 September 2024 06:00
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Security ramps up ahead of Tory conference in Birmingham
Security measures have been ramped up around Birmingham city centre as the Conservative Party Conference gets under way.
The annual conference is an opportunity for the four candidates in the Tory leadership race to convince members to pledge their support. Robert Jenrick, Kemi Badenoch, James Cleverly and Tom Tugendhat are all hoping to take over from Rishi Sunak, with MPs due to vote for the final two after they return to parliament.
Armed police and high-visibility patrols are visible around the International Convention Centre (ICC), with access to roads around the centre blocked until Friday, 4 October.
Access to Broad Street, Great Charles Street, Street, Sandpits, Parade, Clement Street, St Vincent Street, Sheepcote Street and Oozells Way will be restricted so those travelling in via bus or tram are being encouraged to allow more time for journeys.
Bus services affected include 9, 12, 12A, 13, 13A, 126, X8, X10, 23 and 24.
Holly Evans29 September 2024 05:00
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/Keir-Starmer-badenoch-tory-labour-latest-news-b2620602.html