Inside Politics: Biden refuses to budge on evacuation date and Covid inquiry in Scotland

President warns of extremist threat if troops remain into September and Sturgeon says inquiry will start by end of year, writes Matt Mathers

(Getty Images)

Joe Biden has confirmed US troops will withdraw from Afghanistan by 31 August. Elsewhere, Nicola Sturgeon has announced a public inquiry into her handling of the Covid pandemic and Extinction Rebellion is to hold more protests in London.

Inside the bubble

Our political commentator Andrew Grice on what to look out for today:

Boris Johnson and his ministers will turn their attention to trying to win support among the United Nations Security Council’s permanent members for a resolution on Afghanistan following yesterday’s virtual session of G7 leaders.

The Department for the Environment will outline plans to release beavers into the wild in England and make it an offence to kill, capture or harm them.

The Office for National Statistics will publish a study on how working from home in the pandemic has affected older workers’ retirement plans.

Coming up:

-Foreign secretary Dominic Raab on BBC Radio 4 Today at 8.10am

- Shadow defence secretary John Healey on Times Radio Breakfast at 8.35am

Daily Briefing

JOE SAYS NO: Joe Biden has confirmed he will not extend the US deadline for evacuation flights out of Kabul. Defying pleas from Boris Johnson and other world leaders at the G7 summit, the president confirmed troops will leave by 31 August, with British forces set to follow as a result. Reports in this morning’s Guardian and Times suggest that the last UK plane getting civilians out could leave in as little as 36 hours, so soldiers themselves have a chance to leave. Defending his decision in a press conference last night, Biden said “every day we’re on the ground is another day we know that ISIS... is seeking to target the airport and attack both US and allied forces and innocent civilians.” The move is being viewed by some critics as a win for the Taliban, whose leaders earlier this week warned there will be “consequences” if the deadline was not met.

HANDS TIED: Reacting to Biden’s decision, Johnson essentially said his hands were tied as he vowed to get “thousands more” Afghans and British citizens out of Kabul before the deadline expires. He also called on the Taliban leadership to ensure the safety of those making their way to the airport. “The number one condition that we are insisting upon is safe passage beyond the 31st, beyond this initial phase, for those who want to leave Afghanistan,” the PM said.

BO JO’S WOES: But some opposition and Tory MPs are furious at the UK’s handling of the crisis and what they described as Johnson’s failure to convince Biden to extend the deadline. Tobias Ellwood, the Tory MP, military veteran and chair of the Commons defence committee, described Tuesday’s developments as a “very dark day indeed”. Lisa Nandy, Labour’s shadow foreign secretary, was far more scathing and said it was a shameful moment for the UK government, adding: “The prime minister has failed to persuade President Biden to agree to an extension to evacuation efforts and the painful reality is that people will be left behind – that’s appalling and unconscionable. With 18 months to prepare for this, we are left with a desperate scramble, with heroic soldiers and diplomats on the ground trying to move mountains while the clock keeps ticking.”

TALIBAN TIGHTENS GRIP: Despite the PM’s pleas, there are increasing reports that the militants are banning Afghan citizens from travelling to Kabul airport. The crisis continues to dominate most of the front pages today, which focus in on the race to evacuate thousands before 31 August. In other updates, Britain is working to keep an airport open beyond the deadline date to help more people escape, Sky News reports. It says Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, told MPs that the government wants to see a functioning airport after the troops’ departure, appearing to suggest commercial flights might be able to take people out of the country in future. “If we want to do this in a more managed way and really take the steep angle off the cliff edge, what we really could do with, is the Taliban being able to run a functional airport in Kabul,” he said.

COVID INQUIRY: Nicola Sturgeon has announced a public inquiry into her handling of the Covid pandemic. The first minister, widely regarded as a shrewd political operator, has been praised for Scotland’s response to the crisis and is likely to win further plaudits for holding an inquiry months before Johnson has pledged to do so. She may well have stolen a march on the PM, whose decision to hold off an investigation until 2022 was branded “political manoeuvring” by critics. “The need for cooperation with other governments is not in my view a reason to delay the establishment of our own inquiry,” Sturgeon said announcing the move.

BLOW FOR STARMER: In a blow to Keir Starmer’s leadership of the Labour, hard-left figure Sharon Graham is set to win a surprise victory and become the next general secretary of Unite, the union which remains the party’s biggest funder. Graham – backed by the Socialist Workers Party and the Socialist Party – is on course to take the contest, union sources have said. Her team is now “confident” of winning the election over Steve Turner, the candidate favoured by outgoing leader Len McCluskey, and Gerard Coyne – the candidate sympathetic to Starmer’s leadership.

CLIMATE PROTESTS: Extinction Rebellion activists take to the streets again today to bring attention to the climate crisis. The campaign group is expected to hold a protest outside the Brazilian embassy in London to highlight the plight of the country’s indigenous people, who are increasingly at threat from the continued destruction of the Amazon rainforest. Yesterday another 40 activists were arrested during protests in the capital.

On the record

“We will go on right up until the last moment that we can. But you have heard what the President of the United States has had to say, you have heard what the Taliban have said. I think you have got to understand the context in which we’re doing this, we’re confident we can get thousands more out. But the situation at the airport is not getting any better, there are public order issues, it’s harrowing scenes for those who are trying to get out, and it’s tough for our military as well.”

Johnson after Biden confirms he’s sticking to 31 August withdrawal date.

From the Twitterati

“After 20 years, potentially trillions (!) of dollars, so much life- Western power in Afghanistan to do something as simple as get out the people who helped us has come down to a choice the Taliban will make.”

BBC Newsnight policy editor Lewis Goodall following meeting of G7 leaders.

Essential reading

• Vince Cable, The Independent: The UK should be taking the lead over the Afghan refugee crisis
• Marie Le Conte, The Independent: Was this the point of the Jess Brammar witch hunt all along?
• Niko Vorobyov, The Independent: So what if XR protesters are hypocrites – stop being petty and think big
• Daniel Finkelstein, The Times: Keir Starmer is diligent but lacks the Blair factor