UK politics live: Boris Johnson dismissed Barnard Castle row as ‘lefty journalists angry over Brexit’
Boris Johnson reveals blazing row with former adviser Dominic Cummings in new autobiography
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Boris Johnson has revealed how he dismissed warnings over Dominic Cummings and the Barnard Castle row as “lefty journalists angry over Brexit”.
In his new book ‘Unleashed’, the former prime minister explained why he refused to sack his then political adviser despite his infamous trip during the peak of the pandemic.
When a friend advised him to sack his then chief of staff, Johnson wrote he retorted: “The whole thing is a put up job. It’s just a load of lefty journalists who want payback for Brexit.”
He claimed Cummings then showed a lack of gratitude for his efforts to defend him over potentially breaking lockdown rules with the trip to Barnard Castle in 2020, which led him using Partygate as a form of revenge.
Mr Johnson also branded Mr Cummings “weird” and compared him to a “homicidal robot”.
The revelations come as Mr Johnson had his prime-time interview with the BBC cancelled after presenter Laura Kuenssberg accidentally sent the former PM her briefing notes.
Meanwhile, the Labour government has agreed a deal to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius to secure the future of a secretive military base in the Pacific Ocean.
Cleverly refuses to disown Truss tax chaos three times
Tory leadership contender James Cleverly refused three times to disown the economic chaos which took place under Liz Truss’ leadership after his plan to scrap stamp duty on house sales was likened to policies introduced by the former prime minister.
The pledge, which he said would cost £10 billion, was compared in a radio interview to the disastrous tax cuts introduced by Ms Truss’ government.
Mishal Hussain, host of BBC Radio 4 Today claimed the move was “the kind of thing” the former prime minister - who resigned just 49 days after taking office - had done.
You can read the full story below:
Cleverly refuses to disown Truss tax chaos three times
The Tory leadership contender declined to distance himself from Liz Truss’ disastrous economic policies
Councils warn Chancellor of widespread bankruptcies without funding boost
Councils say they are “staring down the barrel” financially, as new analysis suggests they will be limited to being “little more than care services” by the end of this Parliament without a boost to resources.
In another dire warning of the perilous state of local government finances, the study found that without extra funding, ministers will have to “radically rethink” councils’ statutory responsibilities, to prevent potentially six in ten county and unitary authorities in rural areas declaring bankruptcy by 2028.
Ministers have repeatedly warned of difficult choices because of a £22 billion black hole they say officials have discovered in the public finances, leading to concerns that Chancellor Rachel Reeves could stick with spending plans which would provide limited relief for under-pressure councils when she delivers her Budget on 30 October.
In its submission to the Budget and Spending Review, the County Councils Network (CCN) cited analysis showing all local authorities in England combined would experience a cumulative £54 billion funding shortfall over the five-year period of this Parliament, based on current projections.
For the 37 CCN councils, which serve nearly half of the population, the funding gap amounted to £20.3 billion.
The huge shortfall was identified as being largely driven by rising demand and costs in just three service areas: adult social care, children’s services and home-to-school transport for children with special education needs and disabilities (Send).
Together these services were found to account for 83 per cent of the total increase in projected costs by 2030.
Some savers charged at least £11,000 to withdraw cash from Lifetime Isas
The government is being urged to scrap Lifetime Isa penalties for first-time buyers in the autumn Budget as it emerged some savers are being charged at least £11,000 to withdraw their cash.
Lifetime Isas (Lisas) help people to save for their first home – if the property costs £450,000 or less – or their retirement.
Withdrawing cash for any other reason, unless someone is terminally ill, can trigger a penalty. Savers face a charge of 25% for making an unauthorised withdrawal.
Data obtained from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and published by money app Plum showed that in the tax year 2022-23 the average of the top 25 penalties paid for unauthorised withdrawals was £11,000.
The average of the top 25 withdrawals made was £44,000. Figures were rounded to the nearest £1,000.
Data released to Plum by HMRC under Freedom of Information (FOI) rules showed that in 2022-23 15,977 savers had to hand back £1,000 or more in penalties.
Some 6,139 savers were hit with penalties of £2,000-plus, while 851 were hit with penalties of £5,000-plus.
Half Tory members want party to merge with Reform, poll for Liz Truss’s thinktank reveals
A new survey commissioned by a rightwing thinktank has suggested that 53 per cent of Conservative Party members would support a merger with Reform UK.
A huge 70 per cent said they would want a closer relationship with Nigel Farage’s party, the survey showed.
The poll, which was conducted between September 23 and 27, spoke to 470 Tory members by the rightwing Popular Conservatism (PopCon) organisation, which founded by disgraced former prime minister Liz Truss.
Read the full article here:
Half Tory members want to merge with Reform, poll for Liz Truss’s thinktank reveals
The claims by the rightwing thinktank come as Jacob Rees-Mogg calls for the Tories to strike an electoral pact with Reform
Watch: Robert Jenrick admits his daughter’s middle name is ‘Thatcher’
Exclusive: Rishi Sunak draws inspiration from Blair as he plans to stay involved in UK politics with his own team
Read the full report from our political editor David Maddox:
Sunak will not move to California as he plans Blair-style role in British politics
Exclusive: Friends of Rishi Sunak have revealed he will not be quitting politics to move to California but plans to stay involved with British politics
Starmer says he wants ‘to make Brexit work’ with ‘positive’ UK-EU relationship
Sir Keir Starmer promised a “pragmatic, sensible” approach to the UK-EU relationship in order to “make Brexit work” as he held talks in Brussels.
The Prime Minister met European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, saying he was determined to put the relationship with Brussels on a “stable, positive footing”.
Sir Keir is pushing for a better trading relationship and greater co-operation on defence and security measures as part of a drive to “reset” UK-EU ties.
He said: “I firmly believe that the British public want to return to pragmatic, sensible leadership when it comes to dealing with our closest neighbours, to make Brexit work and to deliver in their interests, to find ways to boost economic growth, strengthen our security and tackle shared challenges like irregular migration and climate change.”
He added that “in dangerous times we have a duty to work together to preserve stability and security”, referring to the crisis in the Middle East and the war in Ukraine.
Sir Keir said: “We are determined to put this relationship back on a stable, positive footing that I think we all want to see.”
Ms von der Leyen said the various arrangements put in place since the Brexit vote, including the Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA) needed to be fully implemented.
She said: “We have a set of solid agreements in place. We should explore the scope for more co-operation, while we focus on the full and faithful implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement, the Windsor Framework and the TCA.”
UK and EU to work ‘at pace’ on strengthening economic and security co-operation
The UK and European Union will work to strengthen co-operation on the economy and security as Sir Keir Starmer promised to “make Brexit work”.
The Prime Minister met European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen for talks in Brussels, with Sir Keir promising to offer “pragmatic, sensible leadership” as he pushed for a reset in the UK-EU relationship after the turbulent Tory years.
A joint statement after the talks said the two had agreed to meet again this autumn, with a plan for regular EU-UK summits at leader level beginning in early 2025.
“They agreed a stable, positive and forward-looking relationship was in their mutual interests and provided the basis for long-term co-operation,” the statement said.
“They agreed to take forward this agenda of strengthened co-operation at pace over the coming months, starting with defining together the areas in which strengthened co-operation would be mutually beneficial, such as the economy, energy, security and resilience, in full respect of their internal procedures and institutional prerogatives.”
Speaking in Brussels, Sir Keir said: “I firmly believe that the British public want to return to pragmatic, sensible leadership when it comes to dealing with our closest neighbours, to make Brexit work and to deliver in their interests, to find ways to boost economic growth, strengthen our security and tackle shared challenges like irregular migration and climate change.”
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