Lib Dems hold Woking seats after MP leaves council role
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BBC News
11 hours ago
- BBC News
Home Office pauses asylum hotel plans in Spelthorne
Government plans to exclusively house male asylum seekers at a hotel have been paused. It comes as Surrey Police put a dispersal order in place in Stanwell, which allows officers to remove individuals who are causing or likely to cause disorder or crime. The force said it took the step following reports of criminal damage and anti-social behaviour after 100 people protested outside The Stanwell Hotel on Thursday. Spelthorne Borough Council (SBC) says families, including vulnerable women and children, seeking asylum are currently staying at the hotel. 'Integrating well' SBC leader Joanne Sexton had warned that a Home Office proposal to house men at the hotel was causing concern in the local community. She added it would also mean that the families - who she said were "integrating well and building community ties" - would be relocated. Ms Sexton welcomed the "temporary pause" by the government, which met with SBC on Friday. But she said she was "still concerned about the potential consequences of the proposed changes and the impact they will have". The Home Office has said it is fixing a "broken system" and that the security of local communities around hotels was always a "paramount concern". "From over 400 asylum hotels open in summer 2023, costing almost £9m a day, there are now less than 210," it added."We want them all closed by the end of this Parliament."Asylum seekers in hotels fell by almost 6,000 in the first three months of 2025 - down 15% from December, according to the Home Office. More talks planned The Surrey Police dispersal order, in place until 21:29 BST on Saturday, covers Town Lane, Trinity Close, St. Mary's Crescent, Village Park and Lauser Park."We respect the right to peaceful protest and will facilitate this wherever possible where it is safe to do so," said Surrey Police. "However, criminal offences and public disorder will not be tolerated."We will take robust action against anyone who commits a criminal offence," the force added. An SBC meeting is due to take place on 7 August to discuss the matter further.
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Daily Mail
Sister of Scots October 7 victim slams Lib Dem MP for 'demeaning' Israeli captives
The sister of a Scot killed by Hamas has hit out at a Scots MP after he described hostages being held by Hamas as the terror group's 'bargaining power'. Laura Schosloff, whose brother Bernard Cowan was killed in the October 7 atrocity, said the language used by Liberal Democrat Angus MacDonald was 'demeaning' as it treated them more like 'tools' than the human beings they are. Her reaction comes as Mr MacDonald's party faced growing pressure to suspend him over his remarks. The outcry came after the MP was asked by a constituent on social media site Facebook if he would ask Hamas to release remaining hostages, and replied: 'If they release the hostages then Israel will completely obliterate any of Palestine left, it's the only bargaining power they have left.' Reacting to his choice of words, Ms Schosloff said: 'I think it's demeaning to refer to the hostages as a bargaining tool. Hostages are people. It's not like you are going to buy a house and bargaining for money. 'They are people with families and children and people are grieving them because they don't know if they are alive or dead. 'They are not just tools. They might have children, wives, brothers, sisters, mums and dads. 'I think he should be criticised for saying that.' Mr Cowan, 57, had moved to Israel from Glasgow. He was murdered in his home near the Gaza border in the Hamas onslaught that claimed more than 1,200 lives. Mr MacDonald has now admitted he was wrong to defend the terrorist group for holding innocent Israelis hostage. He said his words 'did not properly reflect what I intended to convey' and insisted he would never defend or justify the 'abhorrent holding of hostages' by Hamas. But Mr MacDonald, who represents Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire, still stopped short of providing a full apology to the families of those held by Hamas. In a statement issued last night as he faced growing condemnation for the comments, Mr MacDonald said: 'I was trying to reflect the widely accepted view that Hamas is very regrettably using the hostages as leverage against Israel, but I accept that my choice of words did not properly reflect what I intended to convey. 'I would never defend or justify the abhorrent holding of hostages by Hamas. 'Just today, I have signed a letter to the Prime Minister calling on the Government to put additional pressure on Hamas to release the remaining hostages, as well as to totally disarm and disband. 'That's an absolutely vital condition needed for securing a long-term and sustainable peace - alongside the Israeli Government reopening all aid supply routes to Gaza and ending its devastating military campaign which is creating only more suffering for Palestinians.' Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton yesterday faced growing calls to suspend the MP. Jamie Halcro Johnston, the Conservative MSP for the Highlands and Islands region, yesterday wrote to Mr Cole-Hamilton to urge him to suspend Mr MacDonald, who was elected in last year's general election for the 'abhorrent social media comments'. The Campaign Against Antisemitism also branded the remarks as 'vile moral bankruptcy' and called for him to be suspended pending a full investigation, while Sammy Stein, of the Glasgow Friends of Israel group, branded the remarks 'despicable'. In his letter, Mr Halcro Johnston said: 'Mr MacDonald's description of the hostages as 'bargaining power', and his insinuation that, if Hamas terrorists released them, Israel would 'obliterate Palestine', are not only naïve but grossly offensive to the hostages and their families. To any reasonable person, his comments are completely beyond the pale. 'Several organisations representing Scotland's Jewish community have rightly expressed their outrage at these disgusting remarks, with the Campaign Against Antisemitism describing them as dehumanising, morally bankrupt, and playing into the hands of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. They have called on you to suspend Angus MacDonald MP pending a full investigation. 'While Angus MacDonald should offer an unconditional apology for what he said, I believe that you, as Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, have a duty to condemn his horrific remarks, apologise to Scotland's Jewish community and to suspend Mr MacDonald while a full investigation is conducted by your party.' In its initial statement, the Scottish Lib Dems said he 'wasn't defending or justifying hostage taking'.
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Lib Dems call for cap on SEND school profits
Private providers of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) schooling should have their profits capped to stop "shameless profiteering," the Liberal Democrats have commissioned by the party has found some firms make tens of millions of pounds annually, with profit margins exceeding 20%.The party's education spokesperson Munira Wilson said profits should be capped at 8% to stop money meant for SEND children going "into the pockets of shareholders".Responding to the research, the government said Labour were requiring schools to focus on "improving children's outcomes - not excessive profit-making". House of Commons Library analysis commissioned by the Lib Dems found several leading providers of SEND education, some backed by offshore private equity firms, have seen their profits surge in recent provider reportedly made over £44m in profit on annual turnover of £208m, and saw a 60% jump in profits in just two made £20.9m in profit from £194.2m in turnover - a profit margin of 10.8%.Wilson argued profits are made "off the backs of disabled children" and at a time local councils face financial described the situation as "an absolute scandal" and accused private equity-backed firms of exploiting the shortage of SEND education provision"Children with special educational needs deserve the best possible support, and should not be viewed as cash cows for vulture firms," she implemented, firms exceeding the 8% margin could face sanctions, including returning excess profits to local authorities, the Lib Dems proposed cap would mirror "similar measures" floated by Education Secretary Bridget Philipson in November to cap profits for companies that run children's homes in Lid Dems insist the cap would not reduce competition or worsen access to special school places. Instead, it would be accompanied by efforts to expand state-run specialist provision, according to the party - including support for councils to build their own schools and the rapid rollout of 66 new special free schools currently in development. Ministers are considering a major shake-up of the SEND system, with details due to be set out in a Schools White Paper later this year.A Department for Education spokesperson said: "The system we've inherited has been failing families of children with SEND for far too long, and it's appalling that some companies are capitalising on this crisis."The government is setting out plans to "requires all schools to be firmly focused on improving children's outcomes - not excessive profit-making," the spokesperson December, the government announced £740m in new funding to support SEND pupils and those needing alternative education, which the spokesperson said encourages "councils to create more specialist places in mainstream schools." Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to keep up with the inner workings of Westminster and beyond.
