Labour defends welcoming rightwing Tory MP Natalie Elphicke into party – UK politics live
Dover MP hit out at ‘broken promises of Rishi Sunak’s tired and chaotic government’ as she defected to Labour moments before PMQs
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Ms Elphicke has defected hitting out at the “broken promises of Rishi Sunak’s tired and chaotic Government”.
The Dover MP astonishingly crossed the floor in the Commons just moments before Prime Minister’s Questions.
She said in a statement: “I have carefully considered this decision. The change has been dramatic and cannot be ignored.
“For me key deciding factors have been housing and the safety and security of our borders.”
The move has been hit at from all sides, with MPs slamming Sir Keir Starmer for welcoming the right wing politician with open arms and Tory members branding the decision “idiotic”.
Despite ferocious criticism, Labour has defended Ms Elphicke and said it is “happy” to have the Tory MP on board.
In a new humiliating blow for Rishi, Ms Elphickle joins Dr Dan Poulter and Christian Wakeford in joining the opposition.
The walk-out was took place during the first face off since last week’s local election results, where Sir Keir Starmer hit out at the Conservatives for losing nearly 500 council seats in last week’s elections.
Audio of Reeves saying Elphicke can ‘f**k off’ resurfaces after defection
An audio clip of Rachel Reeves appearing to say Natalie Elphicke can “f**k off” for criticising Marcus Rashford after he missed a penalty for England has resurfaced after the Dover MP defected to Labour.
Ms Elphicke had criticised England footballer and social campaigner Marcus Rashford in 2020 after his crucial penalty miss at the Euro 2020 final, messaging colleagues: “They lost – would it be ungenerous to say Rashford should have spent more time perfecting his game and less time playing politics.”
In the audio clip, Ms Reeves can be heard paraphrasing Ms Elphicke’s comments before saying she could “f**k off”.
Labour backlash over Natalie Elphicke’s defection
Natalie Elphicke has caused a stir after crossing the floor to take a seat alongside Keir Starmer during today’s fiery PMQs.
But not everyone has welcomed the former Conservative MP for Dover and Deal with open arms.
Frustrated Labour supporters took to social media to vent out their disappointment.
Labour ‘safe heaven’ for Tories
National Executive Committee member for Labour Mish Rahman has slammed the party for accepting Natalie Elphicke.
He questioned the former Tory member’s stand on Rwanda and said it is a “new low” for Starmer.
Tory minister sorry for e-gate airport chaos
MP Tom Pursglove has apologised to passengers for Tuesday’s glitch that saw long queues and delays across UK airports.
He said the incident was caused by “technical issues within the Home Office network” after a cyber attack was ruled out.
Mr Pursglove said: “The relevant teams quickly swung into action, and a technical response was underway within six minutes. Once the fault was identified, officials worked closely with partners to rectify the problem and restore service.
“At this stage, I can assure the House and the wider public that all security checks were maintained throughout. Border security was not compromised at any point and there is no indication of malicious cyber activity. Police access to operational systems was unaffected.
“I sincerely apologise for the disruption that occurred. I can assure the House that the Home Secretary and I will be unswerving in our determination to ensure that every possible lesson is learned, to ensure that this does not happen again.”
Kate Osamor gets Labour whip back
The MP for Edmonton was suspended after posting a message on Holocaust Memorial Day referring to other genocides.
After a huge wave of criticism, she tweeted an apology “for any offense caused” by her references.
The Labour party has now readmitted Osamor with the condition she engages with the local Jewish community.
A spokesperson said: “Kate Osamor’s original actions and non-apology were disgraceful and smeared the memory of all those who died in the Holocaust and subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Darfur, Rwanda and Bosnia, as commemorated by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust. It is right that, as we understand, she has received a formal written warning from the Labour Party.
“The onus is now on her to engage with her local Jewish community in Enfield and the wider community, properly. Given her previous record and comments in this area, this will require a sincere and honest approach. Until and unless this happens, the jury is still out.”
Labour defends taking Tory MP Natalie Elphickle on board
Sir Keir Starmer is standing still behind the right wing MP Natalie Elphicke, despite the huge backlash from Labour members.
A Labour spokesperson told The Guardian: “It’s a sign of the progress that we’ve made that people recognise that on some of the key challenges facing the country, the Tories have failed.
“And here is someone who is willing to make the significant step of switching across to Keir Starmer’s changed Labour party, and that’s something we’re very happy to see.
“All of those issues have been dealt with previously, both in parliament and in public.
“Natalie can speak to her own remarks on that and she has spoken extensively about that case, and I don’t have anything to add to what she has said on that subject.”
UK should have been ‘ahead of the US’, ex-national security adviser says
A former UK national security adviser has criticised Rishi Sunak for failing to suspend arms sales to Israel after the US paused a shipment of bombs overnight.
Lord Ricketts said it was a pity Britain had not taken a stand and should have been “ahead of the US” on the decision.
UK should have been ‘ahead of US’ in suspending arms sales to Israel
Lord Ricketts said it was ‘a pity the government could not have taken a stand on this’
Who is Natalie Elphicke - and why did she defect from Tories to Labour?
Tory MP Natalie Elphicke has defected from the party to Labour, heavily criticising the prime minister and her former party.
The MP for Dover hit out at the “broken promises of Rishi Sunak’s tired and chaotic Government” in a statement issued moments before Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday. She then crossed the floor in the Commons to sit on the Labour benches for the first time.
Who is Natalie Elphicke - and why did she defect from Tories to Labour?
The Dover MP becomes the third Conservative to defect to the opposition
Natalie Elphicke ‘nothing to do’ with Labour values, John McDonnell says
The veteran Labour MP said he was left in “shocked” after Sir Keir Starmer welcomed the right wing MP into the party.
In a fresh wave of backlash, Mr McDonnell said the move could bring negative implications due to previous comments Ms Elphicke made on key political issues.
Speaking to LBC, he said: “It certainly is a stunt that damages the Tories, there’s no doubt about that, but it also has implications for the Labour Party as well, because of the views that Natalie Elphicke has expressed in the past, and some of which I don’t think the party should be associated with.
“Attacks on migrants, the support for the Rwanda scheme which Labour has opposed. Other things like can you remember when Rashford missed that penalty in the Euro matches and then she basically condemned him for playing politics, his campaign for free school meals, I thought that to be honest, has nothing to do with Labour values.”
Tory MP reveals Elphicke ‘despises’ what Labour stands for
Natalie Elphicke is facing more backlash from former party colleagues after her astonishing defection.
Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick has weighted in saying the Dover MP previously slammed the party she is now backing.
He told Radio 4: “She’s joined a party which stands for all the things that she despises. I can’t count the number of times I’ve discussed with her in the past how concerned and fearful she would be of a Labour government and their open borders policy.”
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