Conservatives 1) Tugendhat, Jenrick, and Cleverly launch bids for the Tory leadership
“Tom Tugendhat, Robert Jenrick and James Cleverly have all put themselves forward to be the next Tory leader as the battle to decide who will head the party officially began. Nominations opened on Wednesday night and all three are understood to have submitted their nomination papers. The contest appeared to take an early tilt to the right, with Tugendhat, the shadow security minister, suggesting he would be willing to leave the European Convention on Human Rights if it could not be reformed to benefit Britain. Tugendhat, who is considered a moderate, denied that his change of tone on the matter was political opportunism…Cleverly…said the Conservative Party needed to expand its base of support…Jenrick announced his candidacy on Thursday morning.” – The Times
- Tugendhat mocked after leadership slogan spells out rude word – The Daily Telegraph
- Former security minister’s slogan altered after eagle-eyed social media users spot scatological shorthand – The Guardian
- Cleverly: ‘Tories exist to govern – we’re not a cult’ – The Times
- Jenrick to run for Tory leadership – The Daily Telegraph
- The former immigration minister became the third MP to declare his candidacy – The Financial Times
- Home Jenrick was ‘radicalised’ by the Home Office to become a Tory leader contender – The I
- The Tory ECHR row misses the point: the UK is choked by laws all of its own – Fraser Nelson, The Daily Telegraph
- Expect a Tory leadership race mired in bitter and personal fights – Stephen Bush, The Financial Times
>Today:
Conservatives 2) Stride announces he is running for Tory leadership
“Mel Stride has announced his candidacy to replace Rishi Sunak as Tory leader. The shadow work and pensions secretary told BBC Breakfast: “I’m fully nominated. I was nominated yesterday morning and my candidacy has gone forward.” He becomes the fourth person to confirm that they are standing, joining Tom Tugendhat, James Cleverly and Robert Jenrick, with more people expected to join the race before the deadline on Monday next week. Mr Stride said the Conservative Party had “substantially lost the trust of the British people” as well as its “reputation for competence”… Mel Stride said he had been prepared to “lead the charge” when his party was struggling…[He] was one of the Cabinet ministers who appeared most regularly on broadcast rounds during the campaign.” – The Daily Telegraph
- Grassroots Tories want ‘unity’ leader – but expect election losses until the 2030s – The I
- Patel is the only one who can take fight to Labour and the Liberal Democrats – Kevin Foster and Tom Pursglove, Daily Express
Pylons are the price of lower bills, Starmer tells rural Britain…
“Rural areas and their new Labour MPs will have to accept electricity pylons running through their areas, Sir Keir Starmer said as he laid out plans for a state-owned renewable energy company. The prime minister promised energy bills would start falling in this parliament with the construction of thousands of offshore wind farms through the Great British Energy company. The electricity produced will be carried by undersea cables which typically come ashore on the east coast before being connected to urban centres via overhead pylons. Construction of pylons in western Wales and East Anglia has prompted opposition from local groups, including in Waveney Valley, now represented by Adrian Ramsay, the Green co-leader.” – The Times
- Paying the price for Great British Energy – Editorial, The Daily Telegraph
- Launching GB Energy, Sir Starmer? Better stand in another factory – Tom Peck, The Times
- All hail Great British Energy, presented by Wallace and Gromit – Madeline Grant, The Daily Telegraph
- I fear Starmer and Miliband are creating a taxpayer-funded white elephant that will decimate our energy security – Alex Brummer, The Daily Mail
- Labour is treating our beautiful UK countryside like a building site – we must stop it – Greg Smith, Daily Express
>Yesterday:
…as he is expected to drop Britain’s case against Netanyahu arrest warrant
“Sir Keir Starmer is expected to drop British objections to the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant proceedings against Binyamin Netanyahu and could publish legal advice on arms sales in a diplomatic reversal that would open a significant rift with Israel. The prime minister will abandon a British legal challenge to the ICC’s case against Netanyahu, according to reports, a move that would in effect endorse the court’s decision to pursue the Israeli prime minister for war crimes in Gaza. In May, Karim Khan, the ICC’s chief prosecutor, applied for arrest warrants targeting Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defence minister. . The ICC also opened arrest warrant proceedings against the Hamas leaders…” – The Times
- Starmer forces left to mull life beyond Labour – Patrick Maguire, The Times
- Tackling poverty will be the litmus test of Labour’s appetite for change – John McTernan, The Financial Times
- Socialist Britain has a new official language – but it’s about as easy as most of us to understand as Swahili – Quentin Letts, The Daily Mail
Reeves ‘set to disclose’ £20 billion shortfall in government funding plans
“Rachel Reeves is expected to reveal a near-£20bn hole in the public finances as the government accuses the Conservatives of what it says is a “failure” to properly run the government finances. On Monday the chancellor will outline the results of an audit of shortfalls in funding plans that is expected to pave the way for tax increases this year. The figure of about £20bn, which could change as work continues, represents an annual gulf between revenues and funding commitments in areas such as asylum and public sector pay. “This is beginning to lift the lid on exactly what they did,” said a Labour source. “On Monday, the British public are finally going to see the true scale of the damage the Conservatives have done to the public finances,” the source said.” – The Financial Times
- The Chancellor plots a tax raid, as she is expected to blame pressures on the NHS, prisons, and schools for funding gap – The Daily Telegraph
- She is warned against a new pension tax that would hit 7 million people – The I
- Britain is back, and the world wants a piece – Emma Duncan, The Times
Health watchdog ‘not fit for purpose’, says Streeting
“The health watchdog has been branded “not fit for purpose”, after a landmark review left Wes Streeting “stunned” by the extent of its failings. The Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) inspectors were found to be so inexperienced some had never even been in a hospital before they inspected one. The watchdog is supposed to inspect hospitals, GP surgeries and care homes, give them a rating, and raise the alarm if services are failing. But the review, which has now been handed to Mr Streeting, found thousands of sites have never been checked. In total, one in five of all locations have never had a rating, while the last inspection at some hospitals was more than a decade ago. It raises the prospect that some hospitals may be even worse than thought.” – The Daily Telegraph
- Health Secretary’s comments follow finding the Care Quality Commission struggling to identify performance issues in hospitals and care homes – The Guardian
- Hospitals have gone unchecked for up to 10 years – The Times
- Yes, the NHS is broken, but Labour will turn it around – Wes Streeting, The Daily Mail
UK ‘considers’ long-range missiles to counter Putin’s nuclear threat
“Britain is considering developing long-range missiles that can take out President Putin’s nuclear weapons launched from inside Russia as fears mount in Europe that he may be prepared to use them. The UK has signalled it will work with Germany to build a weapon with a range of about 2,000 miles, diplomatic sources disclosed. Allies envisage the weapon being able to travel from as far as Berlin to Moscow in the event that Putin decides to launch tactical nuclear weapons. John Healey, the defence secretary, is understood to have discussed the project with his German counterpart in Berlin on Wednesday. He was there as part of a 48-hour diplomatic tour around Europe to bolster co-operation between the UK and its allies and push his “Nato-first” defence strategy.” – The Times
- Western missiles supplied to Kyiv can strike targets deep inside Russia from where attacks are launched – Editorial, The Times
Labour to close loopholes allowing MPs to have second jobs advising on parliament
“MPs will be banned from taking second jobs advising companies on how to lobby the Government, Labour has announced. Lucy Powell, the Commons leader, said the existing rules contain “loopholes allowing a member to use their privileged position and knowledge for personal gain”. Under current rules, MPs cannot provide advice on influencing the work of parliament in return for money. But there are exemptions, allowing MPs to provide more general advice on public policy and current affairs. Ms Powell said the new rules, which will come into force in three months’ time, would get rid of these exemptions. However, doctors and nurses will continue to be able to practise to keep their qualifications up to date…” – The Daily Telegraph
- MPs will still be allowed to keep their lucrative television jobs – but face a ban from taking on lobbying and adviser positions under Labour crackdown – The Daily Mail
Assisted dying bill to be introduced into the House of Lords
“Keir Starmer is under pressure to fulfil a promise to allow a parliamentary vote on legalising assisted dying as a bill is to be introduced into the House of Lords on Friday. Lord Falconer, who was lord chancellor in Tony Blair’s government, will propose a private member’s bill to allow assisted dying for terminally ill adults after coming second in a ballot of peers last week. In March, Starmer said he was in favour of changing the law. He promised Esther Rantzen, the television presenter who has terminal cancer and is campaigning for assisted dying, that if he became prime minister he would ensure parliamentary time to debate the issue and allow a free vote. He repeated the pledge after winning the general election.” – The Guardian
Protests break out for second night in Manchester after Burnham calls for calm
“Protests have broken out for a second night in Manchester after a police officer was filmed apparently stamping on a man’s head. Andy Burnham, the city’s mayor, earlier called for calm after the Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officer involved in the incident at Manchester Airport was suspended. The Labour mayor warned protesters not to exploit the row for “political purposes”. “I would ask for calm because what I can assure people is that the right and proper steps have been taken in the right way,” he said. On Thursday evening, hundreds attended a demonstration outside Mr Burnham’s office in a demonstration organised by Stand Up To Racism…In central Manchester, some demonstrators blocked trams, standing in front of the tracks…” – The Daily Telegraph
- Don’t politicise police stamp, says mayor – The Times
- Manchester arrests row threatens ‘mob rule’ warns political violence tsar – The Daily Telegraph
- Labour councillor resigns after child sexual assault charge – The Times
- Policing Britian is fast becoming impossible – Rory Geoghegan, The Daily Telegraph
Afghan inquiry judge backs down on Mercer jail threat
“Johnny Mercer, the former veterans minister, no longer faces the threat of jail despite refusing to hand over the names of special forces whistleblowers who passed him information that could be relevant to an inquiry into unlawful killings in Afghanistan. Lord Justice Sir Charles Haddon-Cave, the inquiry’s chairman, appeared to back down over the issue on Thursday, with a spokeswoman for the public inquiry saying that the order compelling him to hand the names over would not be taken any further “for the time being”… Haddon-Cave previously told Mercer he potentially faced a prison sentence if he did not comply with an order compelling him to hand the names over. The order was implemented after Mercer repeatedly refused to hand over names…” – The Times
Lib Dems push for extra parliamentary rights to reflect jump in number of MPs
“The Liberal Democrats are pressing to clinch extra debate days and other parliamentary rights from the Conservatives, arguing that a reallocation is due following their record election result and the Tories slumping to become the smallest official opposition in recent times. Sir Ed Davey’s party is set to petition both the parliamentary authorities and the government to reallocate various Commons rights and responsibilities that by convention are extended to the main opposition party. At the general election earlier this month, the Tories plummeted to just 121 MPs, their worst-ever defeat. The Lib Dems, by contrast, won 72 seats, their highest-ever number of MPs. While the Conservatives are titled the official opposition party, they represent just over half…of opposition seats…” – The Financial Times
News in Brief:
- Are we really experiencing more ‘extreme’ weather? – Ross Clark, The Spectator
- Sunak is a defeated millennial – Travis Aaroe, UnHerd
- Setting ourselves on fire – Laurie Wastell, The Critic
- The great big GB Energy swindle – Callum McGoldrick, CapX
- HS2. Why, why not, and what now? – Tom Forth, Tom Forth’s Blog
