Latest news with #LindsayHoyle
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
IN PICTURES: University of Greater Manchester students celebrate
Students across Bolton have been celebrating their amazing achievements as graduation week continues in full swing. Graduates and their friends and families gathered for three ceremonies in the Albert Halls in Bolton's magnificent town hall building. A number of notable figures were also awarded honorary degrees and doctorates to celebrate their fantastic achievements. Former Bolton mayor, Cllr Andy Morgan, received his honorary doctorate from the university on Thursday July 17. Cllr Morgan, said he was 'deeply honoured' after he was awarded an honorary doctorate, in front of graduands from the University's Greater Manchester Business School and Greater Manchester School of Law. READ MORE: Pink Floyd star made Honorary Doctor at Bolton graduations HIV charity boss's University of Greater Manchester honour University of Greater Manchester 2025 graduation pictures Cllr Morgan, now deputy mayor, was made Doctor of University (DUniv) in recognition of his outstanding contribution to services to the University and the community. After he was presented with his doctorate by Assistant Vice Chancellor Caroline Cowburn, Cllr Morgan told students and their families at the graduation ceremony in Bolton Town Hall's Albert Halls: 'This is a moment I never could have imagined when my journey began." Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle said he was "very proud" as he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Greater Manchester. Sir Lindsay received a Doctor of Laws (Hon LLD) in recognition of his outstanding contribution to Law and the Community. He was presented with the honour by the University's Pro Chancellor Rasha Said in front of graduands from the University's Greater Manchester Business School and the Greater Manchester School of Law. As well as Cllr Morgan, Nick Mason, who has been drummer for the legendary rockers, Pink Floyd since 1965, was given the honour of Doctor of Arts (Hon DArts) at the University of Greater Manchester, formerly Bolton. This was in recognition of his outstanding contribution to entertainment and local sport. Nick is also part of Football Ventures (Whites) Limited, the consortium that saved Bolton Wanderers from potential liquidation in August 2019.
Sky News
5 days ago
- Politics
- Sky News
Sir Lindsay Hoyle should have made ministers tell MPs about Afghan data leak, says Harriet Harman
Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle knew about Afghan data leak and should have made ministers tell MPs, Dame Harriet Harman has claimed. Speaking to Beth Rigby on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast, the Labour peer said the Speaker - whose job she ran for in 2019 - should have asked for a key select committee to be made aware. A spokesperson for the Speaker said he was "himself under a super-injunction" and so "would have been under severe legal restrictions". A massive data breach by the British military that was only made public this week exposed the personal information of close to 20,000 Afghan individuals, endangering them and their families. Successive governments tried to keep the leak secret with a super-injunction, meaning the UK only informed everyone affected on Tuesday - three-and-a-half years after their data was compromised. The breach occurred in February 2022, when Boris Johnson was prime minister, but was only discovered by the British military in August 2023. A super-injunction, which prevented the reporting of the mistake, was imposed in September of that year. The previous Conservative government set-up a secret scheme in 2023 - which can only now be revealed - to relocate Afghan nationals impacted by the data breach but who were not eligible for an existing programme to relocate and assist individuals who had worked for the British government in Afghanistan. Some 6,900 Afghans - comprising 1,500 people named on the list as well as their dependents - are being relocated to the UK as part of this programme. Dame Harriet said: "The Speaker was warned, 'If somebody's going to say something which breaches this injunction, will you please shut them up straight away if an MP does this', and he agreed to do that. "But what he should have done at the time is he should have said, but parliamentary accountability is important. I'm the Speaker. I'm going to stand up for parliamentary accountability. And you must tell the Intelligence and Security Committee and allow them to hold you to account. "What's happened now is now that this is out in the open, the Intelligence and Security Committee is going to look at everything. So, it will be able to see all the papers from the MoD [Ministry of Defence]." Pressed on whether she meant the Speaker had failed to do his job, Dame Harriet replied: "Yes, and it's a bit invidious for me to be saying that because, of course, at that time, Lindsay Hoyle was elected a speaker, I myself ran to be speaker, and the House chose him rather than me. "So it's a bit bad to make this proposal to somebody who actually won an election you didn't win. But actually, if you think about the Speaker's role to stand up for parliament, to make sure that government is properly scrutinised, when you've got a committee there, which is security cleared to the highest level, appointed by the prime minister, and whose job is exactly to do this." A spokesperson for the Speaker said: "As has been made clear, Mr Speaker was himself under a super-injunction, and so would have been under severe legal restrictions regarding speaking about this. "He would have had no awareness which organisations or individuals were and were not already aware of this matter. "The injunction could not constrain proceedings in parliament and between being served with the injunction in September 2023 and the 2024 general election, Mr Speaker granted four Urgent Questions on matters relating to Afghan refugees and resettlement schemes. "Furthermore, as set out in the Justice and Security Act 2013, the Speaker has no powers to refer matters to the Intelligence and Security Committee."
Sky News
5 days ago
- Politics
- Sky News
Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle knew about Afghan data leak, claims Harriet Harman
Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle knew about Afghan data leak and should have made ministers tell MPs, Dame Harriet Harman has claimed. Speaking to Beth Rigby on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast, the Labour peer said the Speaker - whose job she ran for in 2019 - should have asked for a key select committee to be made aware. A spokesperson for the Speaker said he was "himself under a super injunction" and so "would have been under severe legal restrictions". A massive data breach by the British military that was only made public this week exposed the personal information of close to 20,000 Afghan individuals, endangering them and their families. Successive governments tried to keep the leak secret with a superinjunction, meaning the UK only informed everyone affected on Tuesday - three-and-a-half years after their data was compromised. The breach occurred in February 2022, when Boris Johnson was prime minister, but was only discovered by the British military in August 2023. A superinjunction which prevented the reporting of the mistake, was imposed in September of that year. The previous Conservative government set up a secret scheme in 2023 - which can only now be revealed - to relocate Afghan nationals impacted by the data breach but who were not eligible for an existing programme to relocate and assist individuals who had worked for the British government in Afghanistan. Some 6,900 Afghans - comprising 1,500 people named on the list as well as their dependents - are being relocated to the UK as part of this programme. Dame Harriet said: "The Speaker was warned, 'If somebody's going to say something which breaches this injunction, will you please shut them up straight away if an MP does this', and he agreed to do that. "But what he should have done at the time is he should have said but parliamentary accountability is important. I'm the Speaker. I'm going to stand up for parliamentary accountability. And you must tell the Intelligence and Security Committee and allow them to hold you to account. "What's happened now is now that this is out in the open, the Intelligence and Security Committee is going to look at everything. So, it will be able to see all the papers from the MoD [Ministry of Defence]." Pressed on whether she meant the Speaker had failed to do his job, Dame Harriet replied: "Yes, and it's a bit invidious for me to be saying that because, of course, at that time, Lindsay Hoyle was elected a speaker, I myself ran to be speaker, and the House chose him rather than me. "So it's a bit bad to make this proposal to somebody who actually won an election you didn't win. But actually, if you think about the Speaker's role to stand up for parliament, to make sure that government is properly scrutinised, when you've got a committee there, which is security cleared to the highest level, appointed by the prime minister, and whose job is exactly to do this." A spokesperson for the Speaker said: "As has been made clear, Mr Speaker was himself under a super injunction, and so would have been under severe legal restrictions regarding speaking about this. "He would have had no awareness which organisations or individuals were and were not already aware of this matter. "The injunction could not constrain proceedings in parliament and between being served with the injunction in September 2023 and the 2024 general election, Mr Speaker granted four Urgent Questions on matters relating to Afghan refugees and resettlement schemes. "Furthermore, as set out in the Justice and Security Act 2013, the Speaker has no powers to refer matters to the Intelligence and Security Committee."
Express Tribune
6 days ago
- Politics
- Express Tribune
'Serious questions' over UK secret Afghan relocations: PM
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer attends a press conference during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa on October 26, 2024. PHOTO: REUTERS Ministers in the UK's last Conservative government have "serious questions to answer" over a secret resettlement plan for thousands of Afghans after a data breach endangered their lives, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Wednesday. Parliamentary Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said the affair raised significant constitutional issues" after it emerged that the previous government had obtained a court order banning media coverage and preventing any scrutiny by parliament. Thousands of Afghans who worked with the UK and their families have been brought to Britain under the programme following the leak. But the 2022 breach and the resettlement plan to protect those involved from potential repercussions only came to light on Tuesday after a court super-gag was lifted. Defence Minister John Healey told parliament a UK official had accidentally leaked a spreadsheet containing the names and details of almost 19,000 Afghans who had asked to be relocated to Britain. It happened in February 2022, just six months after Taliban fighters seized Kabul, he said. In parliament Wednesday, Starmer said his government supported the principle of fulfilling "our obligations to Afghans who served alongside British forces" in the post 9/11 conflict in the South Asian country. Healey had "set out the full extent of the failings that we inherited: a major data breach, a superinjunction, a secret route that has already cost hundreds of millions of pounds", he added.
Observer
6 days ago
- Politics
- Observer
‘Serious questions' over UK secret Afghan relocations: PM
London: Ministers in the UK's last Conservative government have 'serious questions to answer' over a secret resettlement plan for thousands of Afghans after a data breach endangered their lives, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Wednesday. Parliamentary Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said the affair raised significant constitutional issues' after it emerged that the previous government had obtained a court order banning media coverage and preventing any scrutiny by parliament. Thousands of Afghans who worked with the UK and their families have been brought to Britain under the programme following the leak. But the 2022 breach and the resettlement plan to protect those involved from potential repercussions only came to light on Tuesday after a court super-gag was lifted. Defence Minister John Healey told parliament a UK official had accidentally leaked a spreadsheet containing the names and details of almost 19,000 Afghans who had asked to be relocated to Britain. It happened in February 2022, just six months after Taliban fighters seized Kabul, he said. In parliament on Wednesday, Starmer said his government supported the principle of fulfilling 'our obligations to Afghans who served alongside British forces' in the post 9/11 conflict in the South Asian country. Healey had 'set out the full extent of the failings that we inherited: a major data breach, a superinjunction, a secret route that has already cost hundreds of millions of pounds', he added. 'Ministers who served under the party opposite have serious questions to answer about how this was ever allowed to happen,' he said. The nearly two-year-long court ban secured by the previous government prevented any media reporting of the leak. In addition, parliament was not briefed and there was no public knowledge of the resettlement plan and the costs involved. Speaker of Parliament Lindsay Hoyle, who is responsible for the proper administration of the House of Commons, also commented on the affair. 'This episode raises significant constitutional issues. I have therefore asked the clerks to consider whether any lessons need to be learned from this case,' he told lawmakers. Under the Conservatives the secret programme was put in place in April 2024 to help those 'judged to be at the highest risk of reprisals by the Taliban', Healey said told parliament. Some 900 Afghans and 3,600 family members have now been brought to Britain or are in transit under the programme known as the Afghan Response Route, at a cost of around £400 million ($535 million). Applications from 600 more people have also been accepted, bringing the estimated total cost of the scheme to £850 million. They are among some 36,000 Afghans accepted by Britain under different schemes since the August 2021 fall of Kabul. Former defence minister Ben Wallace said he stood by his decision to seek secrecy from the court in August 2023 and rejected claims of a 'cover-up'. — AFP
