Election 1) Sunak unveils eye-catching commitment to revive national service at 18
“Rishi Sunak has vowed to bring back National Service for 18-year-olds to create a “renewed sense of pride in our country” in his first major policy announcement of the election campaign. Under the mandatory scheme, school leavers will have to either enrol on a 12-month military placement or spend one weekend each month volunteering in their community. Unveiling the National Service scheme, Mr Sunak said it was aimed at instilling a “shared sense of purpose” in youngsters in the face of forces which were “trying to divide our society”. – Sunday Telegraph
- Tories want mandatory National Service at 18 – Sunday Times
- PM vows to reintroduce UK national service in first major campaign policy – FT
- Bring back national service says Sunak – Observer
- National service to be restored promises Sunak – Mail on Sunday
- Tories will bring back national service – Sun on Sunday
- Sunak ‘very happy’ for his own daughters to do national service – Mail on Sunday
- PM’s election bombshell – Sunday Express
- Is Sunak’s national service idea inspired by his own schooling? – Mail on Sunday
- You can’t afford another gaffe, senior Tories tell Sunak – Sunday Telegraph
- Labour accuse Sunak of ‘hiding away in his mansion’ – Sunday Telegraph
- How Sunak’s early election backfired on the PM – Observer
- If Johnson led Tories ‘Labour’s lead cut by 114 seats’ – Mail on Sunday
- Johnson will be abroad for most of election campaign – Sunday Telegraph
- Mordaunt accused of boycotting election meeting – Mail on Sunday
- Frost blocked from standing – Sunday Express
- Where the general election will be won and lost – Sunday Times
Comment
Election 2) Cleverly: National service will pull us together
“We have made progress after the shocks of the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The economy is stabilised and back to growth, but young Brits are growing up in a more uncertain, more unstable world than previous generations. Over 15 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds are not in education or employment. One in four young people wouldn’t consider being friends with someone who supports a political party they don’t like. We must urgently reverse the trends of disengagement and division.” – Sun on Sunday
- Inheritance tax against Tory values, says Hunt – Sunday Telegraph
- Hunt jokes vote Labour as Lib Dems chase top Tories – FT
- Tactical voting threat to Tories as Lib Dems target 90 seats – Sunday Times
Labour 1) Starmer’s plan to let 16-year-olds vote would ‘fix’ elections for Labour, Tory MPs warn
“Keir Starmer’s plan to give 16-year-olds the right to vote would ‘rig’ the electoral system against the Conservatives for years to come, Tories have claimed. The Labour leader is reportedly planning to lower the voting age in his first year in government if he wins the General Election in July. It would give the right to vote to more than 1.5 million people under the age of 18, and become the largest change to the electoral system since the voting age was cut from 21 to 18 in 1969.” – Mail on Sunday
- Labour saved from ‘summer vacuum’ but Tories hope to exploit weak spots – Observer
- Corbyn stands against Labour – FT
- Labour councillor backs Corbyn – Sun on Sunday
- Reeves slams ‘desperate and reckless’ Sunak over £64bn tax pledges – Observer
- Scottish Labour taking ‘nothing for granted’ as SNP support crumbles – Observer
- Who is Starmer really? – Observer
- Rayner’s council house scandal to be settled before election – Sunday Express
- Private school bill for two children could hit £1.2m under Labour – Sunday Times
Comment
Labour 2) Cooper to launch new border squad within first 100 days of office
“Yvette Cooper today vows to launch a Border Security Command squad within the first 100 days of a Labour government, as she tells people smuggling gangs: “We are coming for you.” The Shadow Home Secretary said she will bring the “full force of the law crashing down” on criminals behind the deadly small boats crisis. In her first sit down newspaper interview since the snap election was dramatically called, Ms Cooper insisted Labour can now be trusted with Britain’s borders.” – Sun on Sunday
Labour 3) Hannan: Voters know they will regret supporting Labour, but they’re going to do it anyway
“If the opinion polls are right, Starmer will win a huge majority, but little of the benefit of the doubt, the readiness to forgive, that usually accompanies a big win. In a scenario that might have come straight from Very British Problems, people are putting Labour in office knowing that they will almost immediately regret it. Sunak is right to try to make the contest presidential. He knows that, the more Starmer is forced to declare his position, the more Labour’s all-things-to-all-men coalition will splinter. Hence his attempt to have as many head-to-head debates as possible; and hence Starmer’s reluctance.” – Sunday Telegraph
Gove: The most powerful Tory never to have been prime minister
“Michael Gove was the enigma who had as many ups and downs as 14 years of Tory Government, and his decision to stand down ends the career of arguably the most powerful MP of this century never to have been prime minister. Twice a loser in Conservative leadership elections, he nevertheless had the ability to make or break the careers of others and was perhaps the only great reformer the Conservatives have produced since they returned to power in 2010. In Westminster, he will be remembered above all for stabbing Boris Johnson in the back and ending his 2016 leadership bid in one of the most remarkable political betrayals of modern times.” – Sunday Telegraph
- And Gove decides leave means leave – FT
- Leadsom and Gove join pre-election exodus – FT
- Gove warning on housing crisis – Sun on Sunday
Comment
>Today:
ToryDiary: This campaign must be the nadir of government by bunker
Gas bills could rise by £1,000 to pay for wind power
“Gas bills are projected to rise by around £1,000 to pay for wind power under official plans currently being considered by the Energy Secretary. Claire Coutinho received a report earlier this year that suggested moving some or all green levies from household electricity bills to gas bills, or shifting them into general taxation. Both proposals, presented by officials at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), have been put forward amid concerns that the weight of green levies on household costs is stifling progress on net zero. But they could prove controversial because of the likely costs to households relying on gas, as well as it being seen as fairer to apply levies to electricity bills.” – Sunday Telegraph
News in Brief
