I can't spend all my time worrying about regicide
Speaking to the Financial Times in the week she reshuffled her top team, Mrs Badenoch played down the idea of threats to her leadership.
'I can't spend all my time worrying about regicide, I would lose my mind,' she said.
She added: 'I'm so thick-skinned to the point where I don't even notice if people are trying to create harm.
'That's extremely useful in this job.'
The New Statesman reported that many Tory MPs who backed Mrs Badenoch in the leadership contest have privately turned on her, and believe her core team of advisers are 'lightweights and sycophants'.
Faltering Conservatives may seek to trigger a vote of confidence in their leader in November, once a grace period protecting her from such a move ends, the magazine said.
Sir James Cleverly and Kemi Badenoch during a visit to a housing development in north-west London (Lucy North/PA)
Asked about suggestions that Tory MPs were already plotting a coup, Mrs Badenoch told the PA news agency on Wednesday: 'I would say that if nobody put their name to it, then I'm not paying any attention to it.'
Among the changes announced as part of Mrs Badenoch's reshuffle this week was the return of Sir James Cleverly to the front bench as shadow housing secretary.
In his first full day in the job, Sir James accused the Prime Minister of being more interested in finding accommodation for asylum seekers than 'hardworking young people'.
He said he was 'furious' when the Prime Minister 'blithely' said there are 'plenty of houses' around the UK for asylum seekers.
Sir Keir Starmer insisted there was 'lots of housing available' to accommodate rising numbers of homeless people and asylum seekers when he was questioned by senior MPs earlier this week.
Sir James told Times Radio: 'I was furious, I genuinely couldn't believe he said this, when the Prime Minister was at the Liaison Committee and blithely said, 'Oh, there are plenty of houses around the UK for asylum seekers'.'
Sir James also said he understands the frustrations of local people when asked about demonstrations outside hotels believed to be housing asylum seekers.
There has been a series of protests outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, since an asylum seeker was charged with sexual assault.
His new role makes him the opposition counterpart to Angela Rayner in her housing, communities and local government brief, but not in her deputy prime minister post.
Ms Rayner said on Tuesday that immigration was among issues having a 'profound impact on society' as she updated the Cabinet on her work on social cohesion.
Mrs Badenoch made a series of further changes to the junior ranks of her shadow cabinet on Wednesday, completing her reshuffle.
Among the appointments was the return of Stockton West MP Matt Vickers to the job of deputy chairman of the Tory party.
Mr Vickers was in the job for two years from summer 2022, but resigned last August to back Robert Jenrick in the leadership election.
He also retains his job as a shadow home office minister.
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The Herald Scotland
40 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
Does anyone believe Starmer will grow a spine like Macron has?
Doug Maughan, Dunblane. In the name of God, go There have been many disturbing and distressing scenes in Gaza showing the effects of the profound upheaval on the people endeavouring to eke out an existence there. One would have to have a heart of stone not to be moved by these scenes, particularly those involving women and children. A scene which particularly moved me recently was of a young mother, ill in bed in hospital, saying goodbye to her young daughter, who had already been made ready for her funeral. I am reminded of the words of Oliver Cromwell to the Rump Parliament and later used by Leo Amery to Neville Chamberlain: "In the name of God go." Today I would direct these words to all those responsible for the inhumanity and cruelty being inflicted upon the ill-used people of Gaza. Ian W Thomson, Lenzie. • Just last week, we heard about the gargantuan efforts of mostly working-class musicians, led by the incredibly tenacious Bob Geldof to help people, thousands of miles away, who were starving. All it took was a broadcast by Michael Buerk to make Bob spring into action. With the undoubted help of Midge Ure, they saved thousands of lives. We found out recently that even the normally hard-hearted Tory government contributed. Today, we know that people are being deliberately starved by a so-called democracy by the name of Israel. The governments of the world, with a few exceptions, are allowing this to happen. Shame on them. It is being left, once again, to the people to point out how very wrong this is. Be in no doubt, these are crimes against God and humanity. Jane Porteous, Kinross. The West is complicit In your recent article '[[Israel]] strikes kill at least 20 in [[Gaza]] as Lammy threatens more sanctions' (The Herald, July 23) the Foreign Secretary is quoted as saying he is 'appalled and sickened by [[Israel]]'s actions in [[Gaza]]'. I suggest that Israel's actions with regard to its treatment of the Palestinians will go down in history as an extreme example of the inhumanity of which we as a species are capable. Being halfway through the third decade of the 21st century, we apparently have made little progress in our 'moral evolution'. I wish to pass on some sentences from an article by Rabbi Noa Sattath, Executive Director of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel which I read in the liberal/left Israeli newspaper Haaretz (July 22): 'Israelis forget that human beings live in Gaza. If people aren't human beings, they can be starved, beaten and raped. We need to extricate ourselves from the moral abyss into which we have tumbled.' I suggest that the 'we' referred to in the immediately previous paragraph is not just the Israeli government but those countries in the West which have aided and abetted Benjamim Netanyahu in his genocide. One way of our making reparations to the Palestinians would be for the UK to take the lead in working towards the implementation of the two-state solution. John Milne, Uddingston. Read more letters Other dates to remember Disturbingly, much of our media continue to imply that the current conflict in Gaza had its origin on October 7, 2023. Along with "9/11" the date is a shorthand for attacks in which Americans and Israelis died. I challenge you to tell me what September 16 or April 13 or April 9 represent. Significantly, few of your readers will know but it is your duty to remind them of these dates. On April 9, 1948 the Palestinian village of Deir Yassin was attacked by the Irgun and other Zionist terrorists and 107 civilians killed. The rest were driven out in this early attempt at ethnic cleansing. On September 16, 1982 the refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila in Lebanon were attacked by Lebanese fascists, assisted by Israeli forces and between 1,500 and 2,000 men, women and children were massacred. On April 13, 1996 Israeli aircraft attacked a village in South Lebanon, Mansouri, after ordering the inhabitants to evacuate. The volunteer ambulance driver packed his own family and his neighbours into the ambulance to flee. The ambulance was rocketed, with the death of all it occupants except the driver. I could go on. The list is endless. So you see that this horror did not begin on October 7, 2023 and, for the Palestinians, it continues and is likely to do so until they are eliminated. Our press could do the right thing and commemorate these anniversaries. unless it is only the lives of Americans and Israelis that matter. I beg you to do so. David Currie, Tarland. But why Troon? Feeling sympathy for the poor residents of Prestwick and Turnberry, we didn't expect that The Donald's visit to Ayrshire would bother us. We were wrong. Our usual walk through Troon this morning (July 25), past Donald Crescent incidentally, was blocked by police, who have set up camp at the local high school, necessitating a detour round its perimeter. Is nowhere immune to the disruption he causes? David Bruce, Troon. 1,000 years? So what? I agree that "we must focus on nuclear" (Letters, July 24) because the closer we look, the more obvious it is to see what a dangerous pig in a poke it is. Your correspondent Peter Wright claims that discarded turbine blades cannot be sent to landfill – and in the next line, tells us that in the USA they are buried. He states that we are a clever species who will be able to reduce the half-life of toxic nuclear waste but he believes that we are incapable of ever recycling turbine blades. He, rightly, points out that concrete bases for turbines produce a lot of CO2 but omits to highlight the megatons of concrete required to build a nuclear power station and even more for waste storage. He tells us that Hitachi is experimenting with a reactor that might be able to reduce the half-life of nuclear waste from 30,000 years to a mere 1,000. I wonder if he can name an institute, government, empire or supervisory body that has ever survived that long, or more importantly, one in the future that could monitor the safe storage for that length of time and even less likely, one to provide that service for the waste we have already produced, with a 30,000 year half-life. David Hay, Minard. A truly sad loss I was truly saddened to hear of the passing of Sir Jamie McGrigor ("Tributes to 'kind and dedicated' former Tory MSP McGrigor who has died at 75", The Herald, July 23). Jamie devoted so much of his life to public service – first as an MSP and later as a councillor for Argyll and Bute. But more than his titles or years of service, it was the way he carried himself that left a lasting impression on so many of us. Thoughtful, kind, and principled, Jamie was someone who brought both wisdom and compassion to everything he did. I had the real honour of working alongside him on Argyll and Bute Council. He was never interested in attention or praise – he simply got on with the job and always kept the people he served at the heart of every decision. In a world where politics can often feel cynical or performative, Jamie was the real thing: steady, sincere, and deeply committed to making life better for others. He will be missed – not just as a public figure, but as a colleague and a good man. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, his friends, and all those across our community who had the privilege of knowing him. Rest in peace, Sir Jamie. Thank you for your service. Councillor Alastair Redman, Kintyre and the Islands ward, Islay. It's economics, not misogyny The lack of common sense, relativity and any basic understanding of how sponsors choose to invest their cash creates a spurious argument about gender injustice ("Fresh funding boost to resolve gender 'injustice' in Scottish golf", The Herald, July 24). All sports sponsorship is based on the value of brand exposure via the media and TV in particular. The whole assessment is based on viewing figures. Gender has nothing to with it. Indeed, the separation of male and female sports is, in itself, based on the belief that female sportswoman would struggle very badly to survive in any male version of a sport. Women's golf has made huge strides forward in the past 20 years, as has women's football. However, I headed along to Irvine this morning (July 24) to play at my course and passed by Dundonald Golf Club at around 9.30am. The Women's Scottish Open is being held there today. No traffic jams, no police directing traffic. Consider that compared to the men's event at the Renaissance Club recently. This is why TV put so much more cash into men's golf. It's economics, not misogyny. It's like trying to say the SPFL teams should be getting the same as English Premier League teams. It's just not possible. In order for women's golf or football to continue to grow it's essential that more women start to actually attend the tournaments and matches. If there were 20k people a day at the Women's Scottish Open then it wouldn't take long for TV to pump more cash in. The big objective for the leaders of women's sports is to increase attendances steadily over the next five years. That's common sense. John Gilligan, Ayr. Charlotte Laffar of England at the Women's Scottish Open at Dundonald Links (Image: PA) Pronoun problems This obsession amongst the vocal minority about which incorrect pronoun they must be referred to, in order to keep their thin skins intact, is becoming ridiculous. As previous contributors have noted, all grammatical sense sometimes goes out of the window. Remember Sam Smith and his aspiration to be a "fisherthem"? That suggests that those he would class as binary would be a "fisherhim" or "fisherher". (I shan't apologise for using the words "his" and "he" in the preceding sentences. To my mind, I'm not misgendering him. He's misgendering himself. In fact, the word "misgender" exists in neither my Chambers nor Oxford dictionaries). Brian Johnston, Torrance. Delayed reaction With the plight of the victims of the infected blood and Post Office scandals being recently highlighted once again, I have to, in my 79th year, agree that you are never past learning. MoD: it actually stands for Masters of Delay. The wretched Establishment at its best. Andrew Liddell, Banknock.
Spectator
an hour ago
- Spectator
Lawfare is the SAS's most dangerous enemy
It might at first glance appear odd that this deeply unpopular government is determined to repeal the Northern Ireland Legacy and Reconciliation Act. Britain's armed forces are one of the last institutions of which the nation is overwhelmingly proud. Why pursue its veterans at the risk of making itself even more unpopular? 'We want to be recruiting into the Armed Forces and we have a government who are about to reopen lawfare against our veterans,' remarked shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge. 'It is crazy.' The government say that they will repeal the Act, which was passed by the Tories in 2023, because it is incompatible with human rights legislation. Their other reasoning is that it is opposed by some of Northern Ireland's political parties as well as relatives of IRA terrorists. One of those relatives is the sister of an IRA terrorist who was killed by the SAS at Loughgall in 1987 along with seven other members of a cell that was en route to attack a remote police station. She and other relatives of the dead terrorists met Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn earlier this year and received a 'reassurance' that a legacy inquest will proceed. The Loughgall ambush was referenced by David Davis during last week's parliamentary debate about the intention to repeal the Legacy Act. The Conservative MP (a former SAS reservist) said that Sinn Féin were trying to portray themselves as victims and the British army as villains. 'That is why battles such as Coagh, Clonoe and, very likely soon, Loughgall feature so large in the demands for inquiries and the prosecution of long-retired, innocent British soldiers,' said David. 'All three of those actions were humiliating defeats for the IRA.' All three battles involved the SAS and, according to another Tory, Mark Francois, the possibility of future prosecutions is 'having an adverse effect on morale in the special forces community'. It is unlikely that will much bother the left. In May this year, Richard Williams, who commanded 22 SAS from 2005 to 2008, wrote a piece for this magazine entitled 'The BBC's War on the SAS'. It was a defence of the regiment against allegations of war crimes in Afghanistan. But the 'war' on the SAS isn't just being waged by elements within the BBC; it is part of a wider attack from a British left that has long loathed the regiment. This animosity stretches back to July 1945. Winston Churchill could in many ways be regarded as the founding father of Britain's special forces. It was his idea to raise the commandos in 1940, and he was an enthusiastic supporter of the SAS when they were formed the following year. His son, Randolph, served for a brief spell in the SAS in 1942 and was a friend of David Stirling, the founder of the regiment. When Churchill lost the 1945 general election, the SAS lost their principal backer. Within weeks they were disbanded, despite the best efforts of Stirling and other senior officers to persuade Clement Attlee's government that the SAS had a role to play in the post-war period. There were several reasons for the regiment's abolition: Attlee's naive belief that the future would be largely peaceful, the government's disapproval of the SAS's irregular nature and the fact that many of its senior officers were upper-class conservatives. Three of them, Lord George Jellicoe, Carol Mather and Stephen Hastings, would have distinguished post-war careers in the Tory party. Although the SAS were reformed as a regular regiment in 1952 – the year after Churchill had returned to power – David Stirling never forgave the Labour government for what he regarded as an act of betrayal. His grievance returned when Harold Wilson was elected PM in 1964, and by the time of his second administration in 1974 Stirling was convinced that Socialism was a clear and present danger to Britain. That year he formed an organisation called GB75, what he told the Times was a core of 'apprehensive patriots' ready to defend Britain against the 'chaos' of hard-left trade unionists and other activists. There was uproar among the Labour party and its media supporters. Stirling was accused of raising a 'private army', described by Defence Secretary Roy Mason as 'near-fascist'. Stirling retorted: Our motivation is to reinforce parliamentary authority in the country whereas Mr Mason is associated with a political party, the left-wing of which can be genuinely stated to be thoroughly undemocratic. GB75 was disbanded but the left-wing press had Stirling and the SAS in their sights. The smear campaign against them reached its height in 1978 and 1979, a time when the regiment was fighting a bloody war with the IRA. Time Out magazine, then a radical left publication, described the SAS as 'Pedigree Dogs of War' and accused them of being guns for hire. In March 1979 Major General Peter de la Billiere, Director of the SAS, took the unprecedented step of writing to the Daily Telegraph to defend the regiment. He was 'disturbed' at their media portrayal, 'as if it were some secret undercover organisation'. This is how the SAS is still regarded by some on the British left, whether politicians, journalists or lawyers. As Richard Williams wrote in these pages, 'the SAS is under fire' but not from terrorists or insurgents. Their adversary is 'lawfare' and it might be their most dangerous enemy yet.
South Wales Argus
4 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
Trump expected to hit the golf course on first day in Scotland
Mr Trump drew crowds to Prestwick Airport on Friday evening as Air Force One touched down ahead of a four-day visit that will also take him to the club his family owns in Aberdeenshire. With a meeting scheduled with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer understood to be making the trip north on Monday, Mr Trump – a well-known golf enthusiast – appears to be free to play the vaunted Turnberry course on Saturday. The president is expected to leave Scotland on Tuesday (Jane Barlow/PA) But elsewhere, Scots will be protesting against the visit. The Stop Trump Coalition has announced demonstrations in Edinburgh – near the American consulate in the Scottish capital – and another in Aberdeen in the days before his visit there. As he landed in Ayrshire on Friday, the president took questions from journalists, telling Europe to 'get your act together' on immigration, which he said was 'killing' the continent. He also praised Sir Keir, who he described as a 'good man', who is 'slightly more liberal than I am'. US President Donald Trump's motorcade on the A77 in Maybole, South Ayrshire (Robert Perry/PA) Saturday will be the first real test of Police Scotland during the visit as it looks to control the demonstrations in Aberdeen and Edinburgh, as well as any which spring up near to the president's course. The force has asked for support from others around the UK to bolster officer numbers, with both organisations representing senior officers and the rank-and-file claiming there is likely to be an impact on policing across the country for the duration of the visit. First Minister John Swinney – who is also set to meet with the president during his time in Scotland – has urged Scots to protest 'peacefully and within the law'.
