Checked out: Jenrick’s migrant hotel record haunts his rightwing bid for attention
Robert Jenrick had been migration minister for just a few days in 2022 when he gave a broadcast interview that could easily have been given by a minister in the current government,“Suella Braverman [the former home secretary] and her predecessor, Priti Patel, were procuring more hotels,” he told Sky News,“What I have done in my short tenure is ramp that up and procure even more,Because November, historically, has been one of the highest months of the year for migrants illegally crossing the Channel,”He went on to add: “I would never demonise people coming to this country in pursuit of a better life.
And I understand and appreciate our obligation to refugees.”It was a very different Jenrick who showed up in Epping last weekend at the site of prolonged protests outside the Bell hotel, which houses asylum seekers.“Great to be with peaceful, patriotic protesters in Epping today,” he posted on X.“People are right to be fed up of illegal migration.And the crime and billions being wasted because of it.
”Jenrick’s inflammatory visit to Epping, where he was pictured close to a well-known far-right activist, showed why he is – in some ways – one of the most effective members of the shadow cabinet, but also the political risks of his sometimes controversial public appearances.Supporters argue that no one else in the shadow cabinet is so adept at seizing the political initiative.They point to his much-discussed recent social media videos, including one of him accosting fare dodgers on the London underground, as evidence of his success.And they add his appearance in Epping, where not even the Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has sought to go, shows he is one of a small number of Conservatives able to outmanoeuvre his populist rightwing opponents.“It’s incredibly difficult for us to get attention right now,” said one Conservative MP.
“If all of the shadow cabinet were doing what Jenrick is doing, that would be great.”Another said: “There’s much noise around Reform right now.Any noise from a Tory perspective is good.”Others, however, are accusing him of rank hypocrisy.In an unusual personal attack on a Conservative politician, Reform published a series of X posts accusing him of having “boasted” about opening more asylum hotels while in government.
Meanwhile, several Conservatives say they are uneasy about Jenrick’s tactics and accuse him of being more interested in lining up a leadership bid than helping his party.“It is hard to take him seriously,” said one Tory MP.“The reservation is that he’s not Nigel Farage, and he will never be Nigel Farage.”Another said: “The challenge for leadership hopefuls like Jenrick is that he presided over an immigration policy that increased the use of hotels, which is why Reform are now focusing their attacks on him.“We also have the likes of [fellow Conservative MPs] Danny Kruger, Nick Timothy and Katie Lam who advised successive prime ministers and home secretaries now behaving as though they are clean of the past and have the answers.
It doesn’t fool anyone,”Jenrick’s difficulty in being taken seriously as a rightwing agitator, after years in government as a supporter of Rishi Sunak, mirrors the wider challenge facing the party in shaking off the legacy of 14 years in power,Sign up to First EditionOur morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what’s happening and why it mattersafter newsletter promotionRecord levels of legal migration, and tens of thousands of small boat crossings a year, have left the Conservatives as the least trusted party on immigration,Many of the party’s own MPs are concerned about exactly this,A recent Conservative social media post criticising the “freebies and perks” given to asylum seekers arriving in the UK was met with scorn by many of its own MPs.
On a leaked Tory WhatsApp chat, MP Lewis Cocking said: “This makes us look silly as we gave them all this too, which is why we are in the mess we are in today.”Rob Ford, professor of political science at Manchester University, said: “Going big on the issue makes sense on the surface in that salience of it is high and Labour’s poll figures are bad too.“But it is and always has been Farage’s core issue.So their recent behaviour is very much ‘Nigel is right, don’t vote for him.’“Jenrick showing up at that hotel may work as a campaign image for the coming Tory leadership contest but it also makes it more likely that whoever wins that contest takes over a ship headed rapidly to the seabed.
”Some say that by attacking asylum seekers so aggressively, the party risks emboldening the far right and undermining the entire idea of granting asylum.A recent study published in the British Journal of Political Science found attacks by mainstream politicians on migration were far more powerful in changing public attitudes towards migrants than ones from the hard-right.The researchers found that “statements by mainstream politicians lead to more norm-erosion than similar statements by radical-right politicians”.Those concerns are shared by some anti-racism campaigners.Lewis Nielsen, a spokesperson for Stand Up to Racism, recently said: “Jenrick is fanning the flames of the far right by chasing Reform UK votes.
He’s giving confidence to known fascists.”None of this troubles those close to Jenrick, however, who believe that even being pictured at the same rally as a former British National Party strategist can be turned to their advantage.“At this stage in the game, controversy is good,” said one Jenrick ally.“Making controversy on a point where we are saying what the public want us to say is more than a net benefit – much more.”
Royal Mail still missing delivery targets after sale to Czech tycoon Křetínský
Royal Mail missed its targets by delivering nearly a quarter of first class mail late in the first update since its parent company was bought by a Czech billionaire, figures show.The company said on Friday it had delivered 75.9% of first class mail within one working day of collection in the three months to 29 June, up from 74.2% the previous quarter but well behind the 93% target set by the regulator, Ofcom.Its performance on second class was “broadly stable”, with 89
Fed chair Jerome Powell signals interest rate cuts amid Trump attacks
The Federal Reserve is gearing up to resume cuts to interest rates, its chair, Jerome Powell, has signaled, as he warned that Donald Trump’s tariffs and immigration crackdown had roiled the global economy and hit the US workforce.For months, Powell has ignored demands from the president to cut interest rates and defied Trump’s calls to resign. But as the president ramps up his extraordinary attack on the Fed’s independence, Powell suggested on Friday that central bank officials are considering a rate cut.“With policy in restrictive territory, the baseline outlook and the shifting balance of risks may warrant adjusting our policy stance,” Powell said in a closely scrutinized speech at a Jackson Hole symposium in Wyoming on Friday, highlighting a “challenging” dichotomy of risks: that Trump’s tariffs might increase inflation, while his immigration policies knock the US labor market.Wall Street rose sharply after the address, with the benchmark S&P 500 gaining 1
Wes Streeting’s row with pharma firms grows as they reject NHS drug pricing offer
A row between Wes Streeting and pharmaceutical companies has intensified after drugmakers rejected the health secretary’s latest offer on NHS drug pricing.The two sides failed to reach agreement by a midday deadline on Friday, meaning the mechanism under which the health service claws back some of the money it pays for medicines will continue at a rate the industry said was “unsustainable” and could ultimately disadvantage patients.At the heart of the dispute is the voluntary scheme for branded medicines pricing, access and growth (VPAG), under which pharma companies agree the amount of revenues from drug sales to the NHS they have to pay back.The two sides have been in acrimonious negotiations for months after the government raised the rate last December unexpectedly to almost 23% for 2025 for newer medicines.It is understood that Streeting had made an ultimatum that if the industry did not accept his latest “generous” offer on pricing then the arrangement would continue unamended and on Friday that scenario came to pass
‘Hopelessly insolvent’: how ‘saviour of steel’ Sanjeev Gupta’s global empire unravelled
A disparate collection of steelworks in Australia, the UK, Romania and the Czech Republic at the start of the year had two things in common: they were part of the metals empire of Sanjeev Gupta, and they had fallen silent.The idling plants were emblematic of the tycoon’s struggles. Born in India before starting a commodities trading business at university, Gupta was once nicknamed the “saviour of steel” for his plans to turn around struggling plants. Yet things looked very different this week, as he finally lost control of one of his key UK businesses.London’s high court ruled on Thursday that Speciality Steel UK (SSUK), a key operating subsidiary, should enter compulsory liquidation as it was “hopelessly insolvent”, with debts of several hundred million pounds but only £650,000 in its account
Government to cover pay and pensions at collapsed South Yorkshire steelworks
Workers at the UK’s third-largest steelworks, in South Yorkshire, have been assured that they will receive their pay for August as well as unpaid pension contributions after a government-appointed special manager took over the collapsed company.Liberty Steel’s main British business, Speciality Steel UK (SSUK), was put into administration on Thursday afternoon after a high court judge ruled that it was insolvent and that its owner, the metals tycoon Sanjeev Gupta, had no prospects of repaying debts of several hundred million pounds.The judge approved an application by the government’s official receiver, a representative tasked with winding up insolvent companies, to appoint special managers from the advisory company Teneo. A Teneo senior managing director was in court on Thursday, and made contact with Liberty Steel executives immediately after the hearing.Concerned union leaders representing SSUK’s 1,450 workers met the special managers last night, seeking assurances particularly on pay and pensions, as well as on when operations could restart at sites including Rotherham and Stocksbridge in South Yorkshire, after a year without work
OnlyFans owner paid $701m in dividends as platform readies for potential sale
The owner of OnlyFans was paid $701m (£523m) in dividends last year as the subscription service best known for offering adult content positions itself for a potential multibillion-dollar sale.The payment to Leonid Radvinsky, the Ukrainian-American entrepreneur behind the streaming platform, adds to the more than $1bn in dividends he has already received from the business as he profits from connecting porn stars and celebrities more directly with their audiences.OnlyFans accounts show it paid $497m in dividends to its parent, Fenix International, which is owned by Radvinsky, in 2024, up from $472m in its 2023 financial year. The business paid a further $204m to its owner in five tranches over the course of December to April.The UK-based company reported revenue of $1
Federal Reserve set to cut interest rates – but still Trump won’t be happy
Wall Street jumps after US Fed’s Powell signals possible rate cut – as it happened
Trump says Intel has agreed to give US government a 10% stake
Elon Musk and X reach tentative settlement with laid-off Twitter staff
Ethical Diamond shines bright to hand William Buick a first success in the Ebor
Amy Cokayne calls for England to be ‘more clinical’ despite USA thrashing