Inside Politics: Boris Johnson ‘blocking windfall tax’

Treasury officials reportedly say No 10 blocking ‘politically unavoidable’ levy on profits of oil and gas giants, writes Matt Mathers

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Rebekah Vardy says she’ll quit the UK for the US due to the furore over her disastrous libel action against Coleen Rooney. Perhaps she could look after Rishi Sunak’s California pad for a while? The chancellor might also feel as though fleeing the country could be a sensible thing to do, as he comes under fire from top Tories over his response to the cost of living crisis.

Inside the bubble

Commons action gets underway with Transport Questions at 9.30am, followed by the weekly parliamentary business statement from Commons, Leader Mark Spencer. After that and any other urgent questions or statements, the PM will lead two general debates: one on transport and the other on NATO and international security - then Tory MP Peter Aldous has an adjournment debate on railway lines in East Suffolk.

Daily Briefing

Unstoppable wind

Stories about the cost of living crisis – and how to deal with it – once again dominate the papers and news websites this morning, following the Bank of England’s “apocalyptic” food price warning earlier this week and the announcement yesterday by the Office for National Statistics that inflation has soared to a 40 year high of 9 per cent.

Rising bills are the number one issue facing voters right now and the fact that the cost of living crisis dominates the front pages for the second day in a row makes it feels as though we are reaching a tipping point. Millions of people across the country have now seen a large chunk of their wages and salaries essentially wiped out overnight for the second time following the lifting of the energy price cap in April.

Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, issued another warning in a speech to the Confederation of British Industry last night about how “tough” the next few months are going to get. He vowed to cut taxes for businesses who invest in “capital, innovation and training” - but not until the autumn Budget. Sunak also talked about support for the most vulnerable, suggesting that any more help could come by expanding existing schemes such as the warm homes discount and the winter fuel payment.

He was silent on the idea of a windfall tax, which Boris Johnson, the prime minister, again refused to rule out during Prime Minister’s Questions, while repeating warnings that he thought it is a bad idea. The policy appears to be causing splits right throughout the Tory Party – and tensions right at the top of government have exploded out into the open this morning, with Treasury officials briefing The Times that it is No 10 opposing the levy, which they believe is now “politically unavoidable” but are being blocked by the prime minister’s advisers.

During PMQs, Keir Starmer told the PM to stop the “hokey cokey” and back a windfall tax. Johnson will, at some point, have to come out as either for or against it. The Treasury briefing today against No 10 makes Johnson’s holding position increasingly untenable.

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Sound legal advice?

The row over Brexit’s Northern Ireland protocol has slipped down the news agenda somewhat but is still bubbling away in the background.

Following threats to “tear up” the post-Brexit trading arrangements, Liz Truss, the foreign secretary, went to the Commons on Tuesday to set out a plan for the plan ( legislation is coming “within weeks”) to unilaterally override parts of the deal.

Out on the broadcast round yesterday, Truss again insisted that the move is entirely legal under international law, as per advice from Suella Braverman, the attorney general.

So the government is confident enough to have published said legal advice? Not quite. “We are very clear that that [the legislation] is legal under international law, and we will publish a legal statement,” Truss told BBC Radio 4 Today.

When will you publish it? “Very shortly”.

Today’s cartoon (Dave Brown / The Independent)

On the record

“There is no measure any government could take, no law we could pass, that can make these global forces disappear overnight. The next few months will be tough.”

Sunak on cost of living crisis.

From the Twitterati

“Nobody knows what is going on.”

Sky News politics deputy editor Sam Coates says the government is directionless on how to help people with rising bills.

Essential reading

• Hannah Fearn, The Independent: Porn, sexual assault, rape – Westminster’s dangerous underbelly is finally exposed
• Salma Shah, The Independent: Hear me out – a £20m townhouse for diplomats is taxpayers’ money well spent
• Andrew Marr, The New Statesman: The Palace of Westminster is falling down, just like our political system
• Freddy Gray, The Spectator: Is the MAGA saga coming to an end?

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