Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are tied to each other now
First came an unscheduled public appearance alongside Sir Keir Starmer to launch the NHS's ten-year plan in a very public show of unity. The prime minister embraced her, praised her for doing a 'fantastic' job and made it clear she was going nowhere.
Then she faced the cameras. 'People saw I was upset, but that was yesterday,' she said. 'Today's a new day and I'm just cracking on with the job.'
Her explanation was simple — she was having a bad day. While refusing to elaborate on the precise nature of the 'personal issues' that led to her tears in the Commons, she insisted that they were nothing to do with her professional life.
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The Guardian
5 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Rachel Reeves says she cannot rule out autumn tax rises after ‘damaging' week
Rachel Reeves has said it is impossible for her to rule out tax rises in the autumn budget and insisted she never thought about quitting despite a turbulent week for her and the government. In an interview with the Guardian, the chancellor said 'there are costs' to the watering down of the welfare bill and acknowledged it had been a 'damaging' week for Downing Street. The chancellor's tears in the Commons on Wednesday spooked the financial markets and raised questions about her future in the job, but No 10 quickly weighed in behind her, saying she and the prime minister were in lockstep. Reeves said she had never considered resigning her position, despite being the focus of some Labour backbench anger over her handling of the economy, saying: 'I didn't work that hard to then quit.' She said she regretted going into prime minister's questions in tears after a 'tough day in the office' but hoped that people 'could relate' to her distress. 'It was a personal matter but it was in the glare of the camera. And that's unfortunate, but I think people have seen that I'm back in business and back out there,' she said. 'I went to prime minister's questions because I thought that was the right thing to do, because that's where I always am at lunchtime on a Wednesday. You know, in retrospect, I probably wished I hadn't gone in … [on] a tough day in the office. But, you know, it is what it is. But I think most people can relate to that – that they've had tough days.' Her challenging moment in parliament came in the same week that a backbench rebellion forced the government to drop key welfare cuts, which leaves Reeves with a £5bn black hole to fill in the country's finances. 'It's been damaging,' she admitted. 'I'm not going to deny that, but I think where we are now, with a review led by Stephen Timms [a work and pensions minister], who is obviously incredibly respected and has a huge amount of experience, that's the route we're taking now. 'That's the right thing to do. It is important that we listen in government, that we listen to our colleagues and listen to what groups outside are saying as well.' Timms is working with disability groups to reform the personal independent payments (Pip) system, which had been the target of government cuts until the huge backbench rebellion drove the government to drop them. Reeves said the government had learned lessons about bringing MPs and the country along with them in the run-up to what is widely expected to be a difficult budget this autumn ahead. 'As we move into the budget for the autumn, I do want to bring people into those trade-offs,' she said. Asked whether she was prepared to rule out tax rises, she said: 'I'm not going to, because it would be irresponsible for a chancellor to do that. We took the decisions last year to draw a line under unfunded commitments and economic mismanagement. So we'll never have to do something like that again. But there are costs to what happened.' While tax rises could be on the table, Reeves signalled that her fiscal rules would remain and that 'we'll continue to keep that grip on the public finances'. But she stressed the need to accompany this with a strong explanation of how the Treasury's choices fit with Labour values. 'I'm not going to apologise for making sure the numbers add up,' she said. 'But we do need to make sure that we're telling a story, and a Labour story. We did that well in the budget and the spending review, we increased taxes on the wealthiest and businesses. In the budget last year, I made it really clear that priorities in that budget were to protect working people, to invest in the NHS and to start rebuilding Britain.' Some within government and the Labour party have been pushing for either a reconsideration of the fiscal rules or rethinking the remit of the Office for Budget Responsibility, which produces two forecasts and rulings a year on whether the rules have been met. Asked whether she would consider one forecast instead of two, Reeves said: 'We are looking at how the OBR works, but I think it is really important to have those independent economic institutions, because if you start undermining those … and getting rid of the checks and balances on a government, I do think that is risky. But the International Monetary Fund have made some recommendations about how to deliver better fiscal policymaking. And obviously I take those seriously.' The IMF has suggested that while the OBR could still produce two forecasts, it could be possible to only have one annual assessment of whether the chancellor is hitting her fiscal rules. However, government sources suggested that any changes could be more along the lines of more regular exchange of information to reduce last-minute changes like those in the spring statement. Reeves also spoke of her drive to reduce child poverty but she would not be drawn on whether she would lift the two-child benefit cap. Keir Starmer has said the government 'will look at it' but experts have warned it could be more difficult given the hole left by the U-turn on the welfare cuts. The chancellor said she wanted to reduce child poverty but was 'not wedded to any specific policy', adding: 'I think people can see how serious I am about making sure that all good kids get a good start in life by what we did in the spending review just a few weeks ago.'
BBC News
32 minutes ago
- BBC News
Palestine Action to be banned after judge denies temporary block
Palestine Action will be banned from midnight after a judge refused its request to temporarily block the government from proscribing it as a terror Friday, a High Court judge refused the group more time to pursue legal action against the government's decision. The proposed ban, which amends the Terrorism Act 2000, will come into force after being approved by both the House of Commons and House of Lords earlier this means supporting Palestine Action will become a criminal offence, with membership or expressing support for the direct action group punishable by up to 14 years in prison. The move was taken to ban the group after an estimated £7m of damage was caused to planes at RAF Brize Norton last month, in action claimed by Palestine a hearing earlier on Friday, Raza Husain KC, barrister for Palestine Action's co-founder Huda Ammori, told the court banning the group would be "ill-considered" and an "authoritarian abuse" of power."This is the first time in our history that a direct action civil disobedience group, which does not advocate for violence, has been sought to be proscribed as terrorists," he said.
The Independent
33 minutes ago
- The Independent
MPs back plans for ministers to ease pub last orders without Parliament debate
MPs have backed plans to let the Government grant pubs extra time to open during major events, such as European Championship football finals. Under existing rules, Parliament must sign off on plans to ease licensing restrictions at a national level and extend last orders beyond the usual 11pm. But the Licensing Hours Extensions Bill, which has cleared the Commons at third reading, would let ministers effectively bypass a parliamentary debate. MPs could still 'pray against' the Government's decision-making, if they would like a debate or vote. Matt Turmaine said the move would allow ministers to process orders 'without using up valuable parliamentary time'. The Watford MP, speaking in place of Labour MP for Wrexham Andrew Ranger who tabled the Bill, said the move was 'about cutting red tape, red tape that produces unnecessary and time-consuming bureaucracy for the hospitality industry and local authorities for the simple matter of wanting to be able to open earlier or stay open later when occasions of special importance emerge, as they surely do'. Mr Turmaine, a Labour MP, said the Bill would make a 'very simple alteration' to the Licensing Act 2003. 'It is also extremely welcome that there has been broad support and consensus across the House regarding this,' he added. 'Whether that says something about parliamentarians and pints, I could not possibly say.' Mr Turmaine said the existing process, known as the affirmative procedure, 'is problematic when an order needs to be made at short notice'. The Home Office successfully used this procedure last month, when MPs agreed without opposition to let pubs and bars temporarily sell alcohol until 1am, if England or Wales – or both – reach the Uefa Women's Euros semi-finals or finals. Both teams begin their Championship campaign on Saturday when the Lionesses face France and Wales will play the Netherlands. The semi-finals take place on July 22 and 23, with the final on July 27. Mr Turmaine had earlier told MPs: 'The negative procedure has the benefit of allowing licensing extensions to be made in the rare event that they are needed during parliamentary recess or at short notice.' He said: 'Special occasions such as World Cups, European Championships and royal weddings are times that live long in the memory of us all, even if we are enjoying the hospitality so enabled. 'And it is only right that our pubs and hospitality venues are given the opportunity to be a part of that experience when they do occur.' Home Office minister Seema Malhotra described a 'high degree of consensus' across the House, and added: 'I'm pleased to say that the Government fully supports it.' Mr Ranger's Bill was one of five to clear the Commons on Friday, alongside the Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill which would pave the way for a ban on imports of puppies and kittens under six months old, dogs and cats which are more than 42 days pregnant, and dogs and cats which have been mutilated. The Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) Bill would add llamas and alpacas to the list of farm animals which, if attacked by a dog in England and Wales, would see pet owners fined. It would also extend dog attack protections beyond agricultural land to roads and paths, where animals might be herded. Voters in Scotland and Wales edged closer to being able to apply for a proxy or postal vote online for devolved elections, bringing them in line with English electors, after MPs agreed to back the Absent Voting (Elections in Scotland and Wales) Bill. The Space Industry (Indemnities) Bill also cleared the Commons, which would see liability caps in the licences granted by the Civil Aviation Authority for spaceflight. They each face scrutiny in the Lords on later dates.
