
Starmer and Macron agree 'one in, one out' small boat migrants return deal
On the third and final day of the Anglo-French summit in the UK, the British prime minister and French president announced a trial of the scheme that will allow small boat migrants to be sent back to France.
In return, Britain would accept the same number of asylum seekers - who try to come to the UK by a safe route - as those who are returned to France.
Speaking next to Emmanuel Macron, Sir Keir Starmer said it would come into force in a matter of "weeks".
He says: "Migrants arriving via small boat will be detained and returned to France in short order.
"In exchange for every return, a different individual will be allowed to come here via a safe route - controlled and legal - subject to strict security checks, and only open to those who have not tried to enter the UK illegally."
Sir Kier said this is a "pilot", with reports suggesting that just 50 people per week will be sent to France back across the Channel.
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Daily Mail
10 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Crystal Palace set to launch bombshell challenge to UEFA over contact with Nottingham Forest - over alleged DOUBLE STANDARDS being applied against them
Crystal Palace are expected to demand full disclosure of what they believe are bombshell emails and texts between UEFA and Nottingham Forest – which they believe could 'prove' double standards have been applied over their European demotion. Eagles officials are of the firm view that correspondence exists between the two potentially showing that Forest, unlike Palace, were allowed to extend the March 1 deadline to comply with UEFA's rules on multi-club ownership. To widespread outrage, FA Cup winners Palace were last week demoted from the Europa League to the Europa Conference because they had not taken action to solve issues related to former major shareholder John Textor and his ownership of the French club Lyon by March 1. However, they are convinced that Forest, who have been 'promoted' from the Conference League to take their slot, were given additional time by UEFA. Mail Sport understands that Palace, who will appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), will now demand UEFA hand over documents between themselves and Forest on the matter. The view would be that such documents, if they exist, should be presented to a CAS panel, and could potentially result in Palace's reinstatement to the Europa League. Eagles bosses also believe Forest have written to UEFA to express their expectation that Palace should be demoted. The development comes after it emerged that the European Club Association, which effectively runs European football with UEFA, had emailed its member sides to tell them that the March 1 deadline was not sacrosanct. In the email, the existence of which was first reported by the Telegraph, the ECA inform their clubs that UEFA would allow until May 31 for those at-risk to resolve any outstanding issues. Palace believe Hugo Hamon, Head of Finance Strategy and Operations at the ECA, advised those affected on how to set up a 'blind trust' to essentially navigate the rules. Palace say that the only communication from UEFA was sent to a generic email address, and that no reminders were provided. They are not a member of the ECA and so would not have received the additional guidance from the ECA about the deadline. While Forest are not an ECA member, Olympiakos, who are also owned by Evangelos Marinakis, are. It is also understood that UEFA sent communication around the deadline, which was brought forward for last season, to the correct email address but that it was not subsequently acted upon. In late April, beyond the original deadline, Marinakis diluted his control of Forest when it looked by both they and Olympiakos could qualify for the Champions League. As it transpired, such a move was not necessary as Forest faded to end the season in seventh. Textor's company, Eagle Football Holdings, held a 43 per cent stake in Palace, which at the time was more than any other entity. It also owns Lyon, who also qualified for the Europa League. Rules state that two clubs owned, to a certain threshold of influence, by the same person or entity cannot compete in the same competition. In this instance, because Lyon finished higher in their domestic league than Palace, they took the spot. They accused UEFA of being 'morally bankrupt' and called on them to overturn their ruling It is understood that all options, including legal action, remain on the table for Palace, who are currently digesting the written reasons for their demotion which was handed down by UEFA's Club Financial Control Body. CAS have the power to fast-track cases. The draw for the Conference League play-off round, at which stage Palace would enter, is on August 4. When Textor took his stake in Palace, he did not hold shares in any other club. He has now sold Eagle Football Holdings share in the club to US businessman Woody Johnson. Palace say he was never in a position of influence at Selhurst Park and that no intelligence was shared between Palace and any of the other clubs in the group. There is a hope that Palace chairman Steve Parish's relationship with UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin may come in handy. Parish flew to UEFA HQ to meet with Ceferin during the Super League crisis when many of Europe's top clubs attempted to set up a breakaway league. Both were united on that subject and Parish has previously expressed his admiration for how Ceferin handled the situation. The Football Association has written to UEFA to outline its support for Palace's case, while a group of Liberal Democrat MPs have asked culture secretary Lisa Nandy to intervene in what they have branded a 'disgraceful' decision by UEFA. Earlier this week, hundreds of Palace supporters marched to Selhurst Park in a protest organised by ultras fan group the Holmesdale Fanatics. They called the decision 'a terrible injustice for both our club and the game of football as a whole'.


The Guardian
10 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Angela Rayner tells Labour to ‘step up' and make case for being in power
Angela Rayner has urged Labour colleagues to 'step up' and make the case for why the party should be in power as the government attempts to draw a line under a tumultuous first year in office and shift towards a more upbeat approach. The deputy prime minister urged Labour MPs to focus on the party's achievements over the last 12 months rather than always thinking about failures, adding they should all be 'message carriers' for what had been done well. But she said there were big challenges ahead, with changes in areas such as infrastructure investment and planning taking years to bear fruit. 'These things take time to lead in. That's the challenge with politics. Everybody wants something mañana. It's like, gotta have it immediately.' In an interview with the Guardian as MPs prepared to break for the summer recess, Rayner also said she was unafraid of Nigel Farage, that tough action against rebellious Labour MPs was 'justified' and that fixing the 'awful' Send system for children was an urgent priority. She added that it was a 'moral mission' for Labour to bring down child poverty, she would feel personally wounded if the government did not hit its 1.5m new homes target and that it was determined to 'break the doom loop' of low economic growth and high taxes suffered for years. However, speaking in her office in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Rayner made clear that she expected her colleagues, from Keir Starmer down, to do a better job of arguing for what they believed in. 'We all have to step up and make that case. It's the job of all of us in the wider Labour movement,' she said, citing achievements such as falling NHS waiting lists, funding increases for housing and rising wages. 'I often go to Labour fundraisers and joke that the Tories will do 4% of their manifesto, and then go on about that 4% as if they've delivered the whole lot. In our Labour movement, we'll do 96% of it, but we'll go on about the 4% that we never managed to achieve. 'It's a mindset that we have … We're always thinking about what we didn't get, as opposed to all the huge achievements that we're making. Our whole movement is message carriers. And if we're not going to talk about these huge achievements, then who is?' Labour has characterised Reform UK as its main opposition at the next election, even though it has just four MPs. Rayner said they had to be 'held to account' for making 'wild promises' to the public they would not be able to deliver on, calling Farage a 'snake oil salesman'. 'Politics can make a real difference to people's lives, but it takes time to change, to bring about that fundamental change that people are so desperate to see. That's what this Labour government is doing,' she said. 'It's not short-termism on the back of a fag packet, on some billboard. It's actually the fundamental reforms that will get Britain back on track … instead of people feeling at the moment like everything is broken and nothing can be fixed.' Rayner defended the decision to strip the Labour whip from four 'persistent' rebel MPs, even though No 10 had said it would try to improve relations with backbenchers after they forced it into a major U-turn over welfare cuts. 'I think it's justified. If you're constantly organising against your Labour government then that's a whipping issue for the chief whip, and that's as old as time,' she said. But she acknowledged the government had to find ways of giving MPs 'opportunities to air concerns' and be part of the collective decision-making process. Labour MPs are concerned that ministers will approach plans for children's special educational needs and disabilities (Send) in the same way as they did changes to welfare, which were presented as a cost-saving move. But Rayner, who has two children who have been through the Send process, said the system was 'awful' for parents and had to be fixed, adding that she knew the government needed to bring families, schools, and MPs with them on the difficult path to reform. Her own department has an additional interest because councils, which provide much of the support, were granted two further years until March 2028 to keep Send deficits off their books, giving them a strict deadline. 'Can we do it in the time? We have to, because so many young people are being let down at the moment, because the system is not catching people's needs early on. That system is awful for parents. 'I was in the system for a long time … Parents who are trapped in it are constantly, for years, fighting to get their child support that they need. We've got to fix this. Often we're spending huge sums of money and we're still not delivering the outcomes for those young people.' Labour MPs are also desperate for the government to deliver on its pledge to tackle child poverty, with Starmer understood to be keen to lift the two-child benefit cap if affordable, although that has been made harder because of the welfare U-turn. Rayner said it was a 'moral mission' and 'absolutely critical' for a Labour government to bring down child poverty but, despite experts suggesting scrapping the cap would be the most cost-effective way to do so, she added there was 'no single lever' to address problem. She has announced a near doubling of government spending on affordable housing in England, up to £40bn of grants over 10 years, and bringing its target to build 1.5m new homes by 2029 closer. She said she would feel wounded if the target was not hit, even though experts say it will be extremely difficult. 'I would be wounded, even though it is a real stretch target. Everyone says it's really difficult to get there, but I'm determined to,' she said. Just months after Rayner urged Rachel Reeves to consider a series of wealth tax rises, underscoring unease over the chancellor's tight spending plans, she said the country needed to get out of the 'doom loop' of low growth and high taxes it had seen under the Tories. While she refused to be drawn on whether it was inevitable that taxes would have to rise this autumn, when asked about her leaked memo to the chancellor, she said the country 'can't continue' as it is. 'I think we will get there. But we can't continue on this doom loop of, you know, low, low growth and high taxes, we have to find a way through this,' she added, highlighting capital investment and trade deals which both supported the economy. 'That's how you grow the economy in the long run, and where people feel better off as a result of it. That's the turnaround that we're doing that the previous government didn't do, and why we've been in this constant doom loop.' Before Donald Trump's second state visit to the UK this autumn Rayner, who had previously called the US president 'a buffoon' who had 'no place in the White House', said she respected the mandate of elected politicians but was prepared to 'challenge respectfully'. And just a week after Unite the trade union voted to suspend her membership and rethink its ties with the Labour party over the Birmingham bin strikes, Rayner said that while she was proud of her own trade union roots she answered to working people and her constituents. 'That's my test. Not what a general secretary says.'


BreakingNews.ie
10 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Dismay after statue of Mary Ann McCracken damaged
Dismay has been expressed after a statue of social activist and campaigner Mary Ann McCracken was damaged. A panel on the base of the statue in the grounds of Belfast City Council was discovered to have been removed on Friday morning, however, it is not known when the damage was caused. Advertisement A Belfast City Council spokesperson said they are aware of the damage and have reported it to police. Damage to part of a base of a statue of Mary Ann McCracken at Belfast City Hall is being investigated (Rebecca Black/PA) 'This will be looked into and replaced as soon as possible,' they said. The statue was unveiled on International Women's Day in March 2024 to recognise Ms McCracken's contribution to the city. Born in the Northern Ireland capital in 1770, Ms McCracken was part of the revival of the Irish language and a supporter of the United Irishmen movement. Advertisement She also worked to help those in poverty, particularly women and children, and campaigned against slavery. Sinn Féin councillor Ronan McLaughlin described the damage to the statue as 'disgraceful', and said it is understood the section removed was written in Irish. 'Even more concerning is that the damage appears to have been aimed specifically at the section inscribed as Gaeilge,' he said. 'This statue stands proudly at City Hall in memory of a remarkable anti-slavery campaigner and Irish republican. Advertisement 'I have spoken with council officials and called for a full investigation into the damage. I have also asked that the matter be referred to the PSNI. 'Those responsible must be held accountable for their actions to ensure this intolerant behaviour is not repeated. People taking photos during the unveiling of the statue in March 2024 (Liam McBurney/PA) 'Sinn Fein is calling for repairs to be carried out as quickly as possible so the statue can continue to be enjoyed by locals and visitors alike.' Belfast SDLP councillor Gary McKeown also condemned the damage. Advertisement 'The vandalism of the Mary Ann McCracken statue is disgusting and will appall people right across Belfast and beyond,' he said. 'It's really important that this is fully investigated and I have spoken to the council to ask that the signage is fixed as soon as possible. 'Belfast has an embarrassingly low number of statues dedicated to women, so the unveiling of this one in the grounds of City Hall last year was particularly welcome and I was delighted to be in attendance. 'This makes it all the more shocking that it appears that someone has attacked it. It's also notable that it was an Irish language inspection on the statue that was targeted, showing even more intolerance. Advertisement 'Mary Ann was an inspirational figure whose contribution to our city still resonates to this day, particularly around her work as a social reformer and opponent of slavery. The principles she stood for remain relevant two centuries later.' Alliance councillor Michael Long said he was disgusted by the damage to the statue. 'Mary Ann McCracken represents everything that is good about the shared history of our city. I was delighted when my proposal for the statue was backed by all parties four years ago, as she speaks to the ideals we all should live up to,' he said. 'Statues such as those of Mary Ann showcase the new, diverse Belfast by looking back to those who took stands and laid the foundations for the freedoms we enjoy today. It makes me despair how anyone could damage a memorial dedicated to someone held in such high regard by so many people. 'I appeal to anyone who has information on this incident to contact police with it immediately.' A PSNI spokesperson said: 'Police received a report at around 12.55pm on Friday, July 18 of suspected criminal damage to a statue in the Donegall Square North area of Belfast. 'Inquiries are ongoing and anyone with any information is asked to contact police on the 101 number, quoting reference 687 of 18/07/25.'