Prisoners 1) Government defends early release scheme despite sexual assault charge
“The government has defended the early release of prisoners after it emerged a former inmate allegedly sexually assaulted a woman on the same day he was freed. Amari Ward, 31, was released on Tuesday as part of the policy, which aims to ease prison overcrowding. He appeared at Croydon Magistrates’ Court on Thursday charged with sexual assault and is due to attend Maidstone Crown Court next month. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said the early release scheme was necessary because it had “inherited prisons in crisis and on the brink of collapse”. Reoffenders would be punished, it added.” – BBC
- Labour was 24 hours from telling police: no more arrests – Sunday Times
Prisoners 2) Hannan: This dangerous scheme will come back to haunt the Government
“Every crime will now trigger memories of freed convicts spraying champagne and promising to vote Labour. The BBC might not replay the footage, but voters will in their minds. Seventeen hundred inmates were returned to the streets last week. One man, according to court documents, committed a sexual assault on the day of his release. Another 1,700 will be let out on Tuesday, and tens of thousands more by the end of next year… Almost the first thing that Starmer said on becoming Prime Minister was that he would have to release convicts to ease overcrowding. If he had wanted to, he could have ordered the construction of new prisons and told governors to convert common spaces to accommodation or double up more cells. Given the speed with which we built the Nightingale hospitals in the early stages of the pandemic, we could surely have thrown up temporary structures while pushing ahead with something more permanent.” – Daniel Hannan, Sunday Telegraph
Starmer breached rules over wife’s clothes bought by Lord Alli
“The prime minister breached parliamentary rules by failing to declare that a multimillionaire businessman and party donor bought high-end clothes for his wife, Victoria. Sir Keir Starmer faces an investigation after neglecting to disclose that Lord Alli, a Labour peer, covered the cost of a personal shopper, clothes and alterations for Lady Starmer. Alli, the former chairman of the online fashion retailer Asos, whose wealth is estimated at £200 million, is Starmer’s biggest personal donor.” – Sunday Times
- Sir Keir Starmer has become a national laughing stock – Camilla Tominey, Sunday Telegraph
- This was Starmer’s worst week yet – Dan Hodges, Mail on Sunday
- Labour’s landslide election win “was down to a fragile coalition of voters” – The Observer
Labour plans to retreat from 2030 petrol car ban
“Ministers are planning to back away from a total ban on the sale of new petrol-powered cars by allowing hybrid vehicles to remain on the market until 2035. In its election manifesto, Labour vowed to scrap the sale of “new cars with internal combustion engines” by 2030 as part of efforts to reach net zero. The language suggested that new hybrids – such as Nissan’s best-selling Qashqai which uses a petrol or diesel engine in conjunction with a battery – would be covered by the ban. But amid growing reluctance among drivers to buy electric vehicles and concerns about range, resale value and the availability of charging points, as well as lobbying from the manufacturing industry, the Government is now expected to make clear that hybrids will still be sold for an extra five years after “pure” petrol and diesel cars.” – Sunday Telegraph
Conservative leadership election 1) Truss should have cut spending, says Jenrick
“Having got this far in the contest by majoring on immigration and the ECHR, Mr Jenrick is keen to set out his vision for the economy, and if your name is Liz Truss, you might want to stop reading at this point. “Truss set back the low tax economic growth agenda in this country for a decade,” he says. “She was right that we’ve been trapped in a 25-year period of low growth and high taxes. It’s just that she went about it the wrong way and frankly [an] unconservative way. The fundamental mistake of the mini budget was to abandon fiscal conservatism. The tax cuts were relatively modest and not the problem in and of themselves. The issue was they were accompanied by a £100 billion splurge on day-to-day spending when borrowing costs were rising worldwide. The tax cuts should have been accompanied by spending cuts to the day-to-day budget – and there is plenty of fat within the British state to trim.” He points out that in 2015, under David (now Lord) Cameron, the civil service employed the full-time equivalent of 392,000 people, which grew because of the demands of Brexit and Covid and currently stands at 513,000.” – Sunday Telegraph
>Today: ToryDiary: Could Reform UK overtake the Conservatives?
Conservative leadership election 2) Cleverly: The welfare budget has spiralled out of control
“The reality is we are going to have to reduce the size of the state and be honest about the need to limit government spending. The welfare budget, for example, has spiralled out of control so that we are an international outlier. Since Covid-19, the number of working-age people economically inactive due to long-term sickness has increased by 700,000 to more than 2.8 million people, equivalent to one in every 15 working age person. This hasn’t happened in the rest of Europe, so we have quite literally become the sick man of Europe again. We need to do far more to get these people back into work — and paying tax to boost the economy. The welfare state was always meant to be a safety net, not a way of life. But over the past 30 years, total health expenditure in the UK has risen from below 6 per cent to over 11 per cent of GDP and is set to rise further.” – James Cleverly, Sunday Telegraph
- I’ve been too diffident about my achievements – Cleverly – BBC
Conservative leadership election 3) Will there be a TV debate?
“The frontrunner in the Conservative leadership contest has urged his rivals not to hide from scrutiny as the party prepares for a showdown at its annual conference. Robert Jenrick, who came first in the second round of voting, is calling for the remaining candidates to take part in a live TV debate. He is also lobbying for them to each give a 45-minute speech at the gathering in Birmingham later this month, which in his case would be a without-notes effort in the manner of David Cameron’s successful pitch in 2005. The current compromise is for two days of ‘fireside chats’, a question-and-answer session with delegates and a 20-minute speech on the final day of the conference. Kemi Badenoch, runner-up in the second round of voting and the favourite among party members, is accused by rival camps of wanting to restrict the speeches to ten minutes and of blocking a TV debate – both of which she denies.” – Mail on Sunday
- To serve up the best leader, let them be grilled – Leader, Mail on Sunday
Former Conservative Defence Secretaries urge the Government to allow Ukraine to fire our missiles, even without US backing
“Five former defence secretaries and an ex-prime minister have urged Sir Keir Starmer to allow Ukraine to use its long-range Storm Shadow missiles to strike inside Russia — even without US backing. Grant Shapps, Ben Wallace, Gavin Williamson, Penny Mordaunt, Liam Fox and Boris Johnson warned the prime minister that any further delay would embolden President Putin.” – Sunday Times
- Starmer vows UK and US are ‘strategically aligned’ against Putin – Mail on Sunday
- Alarm in UK and US over possible Iran-Russia nuclear deal – The Observer
- Boris Johnson warns that every day’s delay is costing lives – Mail on Sunday
- Idea that Putin may have traded nuclear secrets with Iran in deal for missiles is chilling – Leader, The Sun on Sunday
- Are Russia and Ukraine edging towards an endgame? Mark Urban, Sunday Times
England “could be banned from their own Euros,” warns Uefa
“England could be banned from the first Euros it has hosted in a generation if Sir Keir Starmer moves ahead with existing plans for a men’s football regulator, Uefa has warned ministers. Theodore Theodoridis, general secretary of Uefa, the governing body, wrote to Lisa Nandy, the culture secretary, this month saying that there should be “no government interference in the running of football”. According to a leaked copy of the letter, Theodoridis cautioned against plans outlined in the King’s Speech to give the new regulator broad powers to oversee clubs in England’s top five leagues. He said the game’s independence was a “fundamental requirement.” – Sunday Times
PM will use Italy’s success in cracking down on Mafia as a blueprint to beat small boat crisis
“Sir Keir Starmer will use Italy’s success in cracking down on the Mafia as a blueprint to take on the people-smuggling mobs. The PM will fly to Rome tomorrow and hold crunch talks on the small boats crisis with Italian leader Giorgia Meloni. He will use the summit to announce he has appointed a boss to lead his new UK Border Security Command. Believed to be a former military man, he will have the unenviable task of trying to get a grip of the Channel boats problem costing taxpayers billions of pounds a year.” – The Sun on Sunday
- I regret my party’s Stop The Boats slogan, says Lord Kirkhope – BBC
- Starmer opens the door to Albania immigration scheme to replace Rwanda – Sunday Telegraph
- Cleverly attacks the Government for not having a plan – Sunday Express
NHS 1) Davey calls for more NHS funding
“Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey is urging the Labour government to “invest more in the NHS or accept continued decline”. Sir Ed is calling for a “budget for the NHS” in October, with more investment in hospitals and training doctors, nurses and dentists. The party says the NHS needs £3.7bn a year extra in day-to-day spending, and a further £1.1bn a year for investment. The NHS and social care are the main focuses of the party’s autumn conference in Brighton.” – BBC
- Brexit truce as pro-EU Lib Dems focus on long game – BBC
- Lib Dems are ‘rather vulgar’, says Farage as activists prepare to sing ‘B——s to Brexit’ – Sunday Telegraph
- What are the Lib Dems for now? – Sunday Times
- Vow to end NHS ‘cover up culture’ following Lucy Letby killings – Sunday Express
- Make honesty for patients the first step in NHS recovery plan – Leader, Sunday Times
NHS 2) Colvile: The problem with nannying is that it doesn’t work
“Nannying isn’t only a Labour thing…The problem is that such measures not only put people’s backs up but can also prove ineffective. Christopher Snowdon of the Institute of Economic Affairs has chronicled (among other issues) the desperate attempts by the SNP to present its introduction of minimum alcohol pricing in Scotland as a triumph, even as alcohol-related deaths have risen to a 15-year high. There’s also the weird way in which many public-health activists seem to regard technological or market-driven solutions as cheating. For example, ministers have promised to tackle “the scourge of vaping”. But all the evidence tells us that vaping is vastly less harmful than smoking: the really urgent problem is that too many smokers don’t actually realise that. Likewise, new drugs such as Ozempic are having a practically supernatural impact not just on people’s weight but — as a growing body of evidence suggests — on heart disease, liver and kidney problems and possibly even dementia. Yet those who view food companies as merchants of death tend to resent any reliance on the pharma companies, too.” – Robert Colvile, Sunday Times
Charities demand meeting with Ministers over disabled pensioners losing winter fuel payments
“Groups representing disabled people are demanding urgent meetings with ministers after it was revealed that 1.6 million pensioners with disabilities will lose their winter fuel payments because of government cuts. The figures were released by the Department for Work and Pensions on Friday evening, in answer to a freedom of information request, despite the government having said it had done no official impact assessment on the policy. The internal DWP analysis also suggested that nine in 10 pensioners aged between 66 and 79, and eight out of 10 over-80s would lose their allowance. Since those over 80 receive a higher payment – £300 as opposed to £200 – they would take the greatest financial hit, the document said.” – The Observer
- Labour MPs ‘shocked’ at no full winter fuel assessment – BBC
- After winter fuel row Reeves prepares for war on welfare – Sunday Times
- Threats to increase council tax for millions branded a ‘tax on widows’ – Sunday Express
Brady: Hunt joined demand for Truss to go just after she made him Chancellor
“Sitting with a mug of black coffee at the flat, I reached for my mobile phone to call Number 10, but as I picked up my phone, it rang. ‘The PM would like to see you; what time can you be here? Come to the back entrance.’ I went to catch the bus and while I stood at the stop, I took a call from Jeremy Hunt and was on the phone as I boarded and took my seat. ‘Graham, I think you are seeing the PM this morning. She knows that she will have to go but I’m worried that she thinks she can promise to go in six months and that won’t work – she must go right away. Anything that you can do to persuade her would be really important. Thank you.’ “- Sir Graham Brady, Serialised from Kingmaker: Secrets, Lies, and the Truth about Five Prime Ministers , Sunday Telegraph
Other political news
- British Army investigates impact of Labour’s private school VAT raid on military families – Sunday Telegraph
- Gin and whisky makers say the last Government’s 10.1 per cent duty increase “spectacularly backfired” with a £300million drop in tax receipts – The Sun on Sunday
- New building safety minister banqueted with Grenfell boss – Sunday Times
- EU flags confiscated from concert-goers at Last Night of the Proms – Sunday Telegraph
- Green Party hit with £90,000 bill after discrimination case – BBC
- Dependence on China is putting British values at risk in higher education, says Lord Patten – Sunday Telegraph
- Man behind Wales’ 20mph limit admits mistakes – BBC
- Taylor Swift’s endorsement backfires on Kamala Harris – Sunday Telegraph
- Nurseries in England say new rules have reduced care to ‘crowd control’ – The Observer
- Two thirds of businesses think Labour reforms will damage British competitiveness – Sunday Telegraph
- Labour-backing Iceland boss issues warning to Chancellor Rachel Reeves ahead of tax-hiking Budget – The Sun on Sunday
- Infrastructure quangos face abolition after HS2 debacle – Sunday Telegraph
News in brief
- How gender ideology corrupts rape crisis centres – Julie Bindel, The Spectator
- Without good managers, no reform will save the NHS – Tim Knox, CapX
- Starmer is a bad man who identifies as good – Julie Burchill, Spiked
- Is Donald Trump the new Hillary Clinton? – Sam Bidwell, The Critic
- Factionalism and distrust stalk Downing Street – Tom McTague, Unherd
