Latest news with #Conservatives'
Scotsman
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Scotsman
Why return of James Cleverly is huge news for Tories' fightback against Reform
Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Last month, pollsters YouGov published the results of their first 'multilevel regression and post-stratification' poll since the general election. A statistical modelling technique that combines a large poll – in this case of 11,500 people – with census data and other sources of information, it is designed to produce a more comprehensive picture of the nation's views than ordinary surveys. Its findings suggested the Conservatives – long claimed to be the world's most successful political party – are effectively facing extinction as a serious political force. The poll found Reform UK would win 271 seats, Labour would get 178 and the Liberal Democrats 81 if a general election was held then. The Tories, who just six years ago won 365 seats, would be reduced to 46 MPs. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad This is the scale of the challenge facing party leader Kemi Badenoch. In this endeavour, she must realise that repeatedly agreeing with Reform has been driving the Conservatives' decline and they need to start campaigning against Nigel Farage and co with all their might. James Cleverly failed in his bid to become party leader but is now back on the Conservative front bench (Picture: Carl Court) | Getty Images 'Complete nonsense' So the news that former Home Secretary James Cleverly is to return to the Tories' frontbench as Housing Secretary is welcome, as he is one of the few heavyweight figures willing and able to take on Reform. Appearing at the Institute For Public Policy Research think tank last week, he dismissed calls to 'smash the system' and replace the civil service with an 'anti-woke, right-wing' alternative as 'complete nonsense', saying: 'It's excuse-making and it's weak.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He also urged his party to reject climate change 'luddites' – a favourite Reform slogan is 'net stupid zero' – and warned Farage's new army of councillors in England would soon suffer from scrutiny of their actions in government. READ MORE: How Labour rebels will put Nigel Farage in Downing Street If the Tories continue to chase Reform, only oblivion awaits. The party needs strong, sensible voices capable of standing up for true Conservative values like ensuring a strong economy, law and order, and the preservation of institutions, including the civil service.
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Kemi Badenoch's 'panic button' reshuffle with return of top Tory to frontline
Former Cabinet Minister James Cleverly returns to frontline politics as Tory leader Kemi Badenoch shakes-up her top team in a desperate attempt to revive her party's gloomy fortunes Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has been accused of hitting the "panic button" with a reshuffle of her top team. The Conservative chief, who has been struggling to revive her party's gloomy fortunes, brought gaffe-prone Sir James Cleverly back into the fold. The former Foreign Secretary, who stood against Ms Badenoch in last year's Tory leadership contest, will now be Shadow Housing Secretary. His return to frontline politics means he will now face Deputy PM Angela Rayner, who is also Housing Secretary, in the Commons. In 2023, The Mirror reported the ex-Cabinet minister joked about giving his wife a date-rape drug - just hours after announcing a crackdown on the growing epidemic of drinks spiking. The top Tory told female guests at a No10 reception that 'a little bit of Rohypnol in her drink every night' was 'not really illegal if it's only a little bit'. A spokesman for the ex-Home Secretary said at the time: "In what was always understood as a private conversation, James, the Home Secretary tackling spiking, made what was clearly meant to be an ironic joke - for which he apologises." In the autumn of 2022 Sir James suggested getting rid of ex-PM Liz Truss would be a "disastrously bad idea". She announced her resignation seven days later. The following year the ex-minister- a key face in recent Tory governments - also said he could not remember if he ever described the Conservatives' flagship Rwanda deportation scheme as "batsh**". And the same year it was claimed he described a Labour MP's constituency as a "sh**hole". A source close to the then-Home Secretary denied the claim at the time. They added: "James made a comment. He called Alex Cunningham a sh** MP. He apologises for unparliamentary language. As was made would never criticise Stockton." Among other appointments on Tuesday the Tory MP Kevin Hollinrake, who held the housing brief, became chairman of the Conservative Party. Ex-chairman Nigel Huddleston was appointed Shadow Culture Secretary. A Labour source told The Mirror: 'After initially claiming her Shadow Cabinet would be in place until the next election, Kemi Badenoch has already hit the panic button." The Tory leader can shuffle as many deckchairs as she likes, but it'll still be the same old faces that were responsible for 14 years of failure. They crashed the economy and ran public services into the ground.' The Lib Dems added: 'Kemi Badenoch has appointed the very man who said that replacing Liz Truss as Prime Minister would be a terrible idea. It's like appointing an iceberg apologist to a role steering the Titanic. "The public won't forgive this group of failed former Conservative ministers for the damage they did to our economy and NHS." On Tuesday the Tory MP Ed Argar also quit as Shadow Health Secretary, citing a "health scare". Ms Badenoch said she was "saddened" that Mr Argar feels "unable to continue" in his position, but agreed "that you must put your health first". In a letter to the party leader dated July 9, Mr Argar said: "I had a health scare earlier this summer and remain grateful to the doctors and hospital staff who looked after me." He added: "I have been well looked after, but have also listened to what the doctors said to me, and have listened to my family, and have concluded that lightening my front-bench workload over the coming months, in order to complete my recovery and fully restore my health in that period, is the sensible approach." Mr Argar was replaced by Stuart Andrew, who previously held the culture brief.
Western Telegraph
2 days ago
- Politics
- Western Telegraph
Call from Senedd members over final say on farming support
Samuel Kurtz, the Conservatives' shadow rural affairs secretary, led a debate on the protest-plagued proposals for the sustainable farming scheme (SFS) on July 16. He said: 'Today, we're simply asking that this Senedd be given the opportunity to vote: a final, binding vote on the sustainable farming scheme before it is implemented. We all remember last year's protests. We know the strength of feeling across the country. 'A scheme of this scale, affecting over 80% of Wales' land, must carry democratic legitimacy. Let us vote. Let the elected members of this chamber, from every corner of Wales and from every party, have their say.' The former journalist, who is from a farming family, warned of a 'cliff-edge' in the transition from the basic payment scheme (BPS), which is set to fall by 40 per cent, to the SFS. He said: "If you don't join the SFS, you forfeit your BPS. If you do join the SFS, you forfeit your BPS entitlements. There's no going back… for you and your business. Is it any wonder anxiety is soaring? Is it any surprise that our farmers' mental health is deteriorating?' Labour's Lesley Griffiths, a former rural affairs minister, was extremely disappointed to see Welsh ministers cut a target of 43,000 hectares of new woodland by more than 60 per cent, with plans for 10 per cent tree cover on every farm ditched. Peter Fox, a Tory council leader-turned Senedd member, said he was planning to retire as a farmer having 'just about had enough', with the new SFS 'still laden with bureaucracy'. 'Most farmers just want to farm,' he said. 'They want to produce food and they want to look after their farm… but the priority in this SFS is clearly no longer food production.' Labour's Lee Waters warned the debate around farming has been dragged into 'culture wars', with divisions heightened by political debate. Deputy first minister Huw Irranca-Davies said Senedd members would get an opportunity to vote on regulations related to payment rates underpinning the scheme in the autumn. In the final vote before the Welsh Parliament breaks for summer recess, Senedd members voted narrowly, 22-20, against the opposition motion
South Wales Argus
4 days ago
- Politics
- South Wales Argus
Call from Senedd members over final say on farming support
Samuel Kurtz, the Conservatives' shadow rural affairs secretary, led a debate on the protest-plagued proposals for the sustainable farming scheme (SFS) on July 16. He said: 'Today, we're simply asking that this Senedd be given the opportunity to vote: a final, binding vote on the sustainable farming scheme before it is implemented. We all remember last year's protests. We know the strength of feeling across the country. 'A scheme of this scale, affecting over 80% of Wales' land, must carry democratic legitimacy. Let us vote. Let the elected members of this chamber, from every corner of Wales and from every party, have their say.' The former journalist, who is from a farming family, warned of a 'cliff-edge' in the transition from the basic payment scheme (BPS), which is set to fall by 40 per cent, to the SFS. He said: "If you don't join the SFS, you forfeit your BPS. If you do join the SFS, you forfeit your BPS entitlements. There's no going back… for you and your business. Is it any wonder anxiety is soaring? Is it any surprise that our farmers' mental health is deteriorating?' Labour's Lesley Griffiths, a former rural affairs minister, was extremely disappointed to see Welsh ministers cut a target of 43,000 hectares of new woodland by more than 60 per cent, with plans for 10 per cent tree cover on every farm ditched. Peter Fox, a Tory council leader-turned Senedd member, said he was planning to retire as a farmer having 'just about had enough', with the new SFS 'still laden with bureaucracy'. 'Most farmers just want to farm,' he said. 'They want to produce food and they want to look after their farm… but the priority in this SFS is clearly no longer food production.' Labour's Lee Waters warned the debate around farming has been dragged into 'culture wars', with divisions heightened by political debate. Deputy first minister Huw Irranca-Davies said Senedd members would get an opportunity to vote on regulations related to payment rates underpinning the scheme in the autumn. In the final vote before the Welsh Parliament breaks for summer recess, Senedd members voted narrowly, 22-20, against the opposition motion
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Dog left unable to eat after being poisoned by polluted river - 'I thought I'd lose her'
"I just want rivers to go back to how they used to be," said Jane Angel, whose dog Tess was poisoned with from her local river A woman whose pet dog caught from a polluted river says she wishes Britain's waterways could go back to how they used to be. Environment Secretary Steve Reed is set to pledge a 50% reduction in sewage pollution in the next five years, ahead of what's expected to be a scathing report into the UK's water industry on Monday. A recent study by the Consumer Council for Water found complaints are on the rise, with around half (53%) of households feeling that what they are being charged is unfair. Jane Angel, 59, from Monmouthshire, told this newspaper her pet dog, Tess - a six-year-old Sprollie - was poisoned with after playing in her local river last month. 'Tess went down to the river Monnow as she usually does - she loves the water, had a drink and a swim,' she said. 'However, later that evening she was being violently sick everywhere and had diarrhoea. The vet confirmed it was E. coli poisoning from the river. 'Tess had to be on antibiotics for three weeks. She wouldn't eat or drink anything, I was worried sick that I was going to lose her.' Jane said she hadn't taken Tess back to the river since, and instead lets her play in a paddling pool in her garden. 'Tess supports me with my mental health and I wouldn't know what to do without her - she's my life,' she added. Ms Angel said she'd heard of four or five other dogs who had also become ill after playing in the river - yet no warning had been issued about the state of the water. She worries that children and holidaymakers visiting with caravans are at risk. 'I just want rivers to go back to how they used to be. I've lived in Monmouthshire all my life and it's never been like this. We used to be able to swim and paddle - but we can't anymore. I'm now worried about kids and other dogs that still go in the rivers." Catherine Fookes, the MP for Monmouthshire said: "The fact that Jane's dog became so incredibly ill is shocking. It's a damning reflection of the Conservatives' failure to protect and clean up our rivers. Fifteen years of underinvestment and inaction have led to this. 'I'm so relieved that Tess has fully recovered. I will continue to support Jane and keep pushing to deliver the changes we need in the water industry - so that people in Monmouthshire, and our beloved dogs, can once again swim in our rivers." In another scandal, residents of Hastings were offered no compensation after a major pipe burst over the May 2024 bank holiday weekend, leaving almost 30,000 without water for up to five days. It was only after local Labour MP Helena Dollimore quizzed Laurence Godsen, CEO of Southern Water, about the outage that the firm reversed the decision and paid residents £50 for every 12 hours they were without water. Nikki, from St Leonards on sea, East Sussex, and her family were forced to move out of their home for over 6 months after sewage water flooded their home due to a failure in Southern Water's mains. The incident caused huge disruption to her and her family, and the home had to be gutted and renovated before they could move back in. Tom Hayes, the Labour MP for Bournemouth East said: 'Water is our most important resource, yet there is unlikely to be any clean water left unless the water companies stop paying themselves huge bonuses and concentrate instead on actually investing to sort out sewage in the sea.'
