Inside Politics: Cabinet clashes on cost of living response

Ministers clash as Boris Johnson calls on them to come up with ways to tackles cost of living crisis, writes Matt Mathers

(PA)

Boris Johnson faces his final Prime Minister’s Questions of the parliamentary session today, where Keir Starmer is likely to go in hard on the government’s response – or lack thereof – to the cost of living crisis. Rising prices were the focus of yesterday’s cabinet meeting, which ended with little agreement between ministers on what measures could be introduced to ease the squeeze on families across the country. Reports this morning say Russia has cut off gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria.

Inside the bubble

Politics commentator Andrew Grice on what to look out for today:

Prime minister’s questions is scheduled to be last of this session; Parliament will be prorogued soon ahead of the Queen’s Speech on 10 May. However tempted Keir Starmer might be to punch the Partygate bruise again, he may respond to internal Labour grumbling by raising the cost-of-living crisis ahead of next week’s local elections.

MPs will be asked to overturn House of Lords amendments to the Nationality and Borders Bill and Elections Bill. Liz Truss will make a speech on how the UK is building a “network of liberty” around the world at the lord mayor’s banquet at the Mansion House, traditionally a big date in the foreign secretary’s diary.

Coming up:

– Shadow justice secretary Steve Reed on Times Radio Breakfast at 8.35am

– Deputy PM and justice secretary Dominic Raab on talkTV at 8.50am

Daily Briefing

• $1M QUESTION: How do you solve the cost of living crisis without spending more money? That was the million dollar question Boris Johnson tasked his ministers with answering at Tuesday morning’s cabinet meeting. Biennial MoTs, tax cuts and axing green levies were some of the suggestions put forward, while the prime minister himself was said to be keen on relaxing regulations on childcare to ease costs for parents. The proposals won’t be discussed for weeks and ministers are split on the way forward, with Kwasi Kwarteng and Jacob Rees-Mogg again locking horns on the cost of green policy. The PM and Rishi Sunak say, for now, there is no new money to fund cost of living ideas. But with Britons already feeling the pinch and the energy price cap set to rise again in October, it looks increasingly like the chancellor may be left with no other option than to open his cheque book later in the year.

• UKRAINE UPDATE: Concerns about gas supply and cost have been heightened this morning with the news that Russia has cut off Poland and Bulgaria for refusing to pay their bills in roubles amid the war in Ukraine. Kyiv said the move is the start of the Kremlin’s “blackmail” of its allies. Europe gas surged following the reports, with Benchmark Dutch Futures at one point soaring to as high as 24 per cent to 127.50 euros per megawatt-hour, the highest level since 1 April. In other updates, Ukraine has accused Russian special services of carrying out a series of attacks in a pro-Russian breakaway region of Moldova. We’ll have all the latest from Ukraine on our liveblog.

• RAYNER ROW: The row over an article about Angela Rayner widely condemned as sexist enters its fourth day as the Mail on Sunday’s editor announces that he will not attend a meeting with the Commons speaker to discuss the report. In a letter responding to the Lindsay Hoyle, published in today’s Mail, David Dillon writes: “The Mail on Sunday deplores sexism and misogyny in all its forms. However journalists must be free to report what they are told by MPs about conversations which take place in the House of Commons, however unpalatable some may find them.” We’ll have all the latest politics action on our liveblog.

• FOOD PRICE HIKE: Brexit has caused a six per cent increase in Britain’s food prices, according to new evidence showing the impact of the UK’s departure from the EU. Economists found that greater trade barriers on imports from the bloc has had a “clear and robust” impact on food prices, as hard-pressed families struggle to cope with the cost of living crisis. Grocery bills have risen most sharply for food products more reliant on imports from the EU, the study by the LSE Centre for Economic Performance revealed.

• POOR NIGE: Spare a thought for Nigel Farage, the former Brexit and UKIP party leader, who complained on Twitter that nobody follows him anymore. Just a day after he was accused of trying to sabotage an interview between Piers Morgan and Donald Trump, Farage whinged on the social media platform: “For years I would gain 30,000 new Twitter followers per month and most tweets would get 5,000+ retweets. Now I’ve had zero growth for 18 months & engagement is at an all-time low. It’s the same for thousands of others.” He had been responding to the news that Elon Musk had bought the tech giant. Perhaps Farage is no longer relevant now that Brexit is “done”?

The Independent has a proud history of campaigning for the rights of the most vulnerable, and we first ran our Refugees Welcome campaign during the war in Syria in 2015. Now, as we renew our campaign and launch this petition in the wake of the unfolding Ukrainian crisis, we are calling on the government to go further and faster to ensure help is delivered. To find out more about our Refugees Welcome campaign, click here. To sign the petition click here. If you would like to donate then please click here for our GoFundMe page.

On the record

“I’m not going to rule anything out. It is about delivering value for money and and getting costs down. If you go on holiday with your family, it can cost hundreds of pounds to get new passports. You deserve to have a cheaper, faster service.”

PM threatens to privatise Passport Office.

From the Twitterati

“Given the PM lived at Downing Street it’s v unlikely he’d be guilty of either offence – so p’haps not surprising he didn’t receive a questionnaire. He appears to have been saved by a loophole which closed soon after when offences were created for gatherings in private places.”

Daily Mirror politics editor Pippa Crerar on Partygate.

Essential reading

• John Rentoul, The Independent: Will the cost of living crisis win it for Keir Starmer? Don’t bank on it
• Adam Forrest, The Independent: Can Boris Johnson ease the cost of living crisis without spending money?
• Harriet Williamson, The Independent: I knew the cost of living crisis was coming – but I didn’t expect it to bite so quickly for me
• Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic: Ukraine and the words that lead to mass murder