Reform councillor defects to Tories after party’s policies left him ‘uncomfortable’

A Reform UK councillor has defected to the Conservatives, saying he became uncomfortable in Nigel Farage’s party.James Buchan, who sits in the borough of Dartford in Kent, said he had struggled with the idea of facing his relatives while a member of a party whose anti-immigration policies spread fear.“I stood for election with the sole aim of working for my community and getting things done for local families. Having had the opportunity to see Reform from the inside, I’ve concluded that the party doesn’t really have the experience or ambition to do that,” he said.Buchan said he wanted to be able to “look my family in the eye and say, ‘that’s not who I am’” after Nigel Farage’s party announced plans to end indefinite leave to remain status

Ex-Tory member sues party over suspension for criticising Israel

A former Conservative member, whose grandfather was the archbishop of Jerusalem, is suing the party after he was suspended for making critical remarks about the state of Israel.Bruce MacInnes was told by Tory party officials that his “repeated allegation that Israel is committing genocide in Palestine” constituted “allegedly antisemitic”, “discriminatory” and “insensitive and highly offensive” language, which resulted in his suspension from the party last year.MacInnes, who says he did not initially know about the disciplinary proceedings despite the party claiming they had emailed him, is bringing legal action against the party for £30,000 in the high court for breach of contract and discrimination based on belief.The row has raised questions over freedom of speech within the party and has drawn criticism from former foreign minister Sir Alan Duncan who described the party’s treatment of MacInnes as “McCarthysim built on ignorance”.A member since 2018, MacInnes had often shared his views on the political situation in the Middle East on a WhatsApp group with other members

Bridget Phillipson ‘ready to take on unions’ over year 8 reading tests

Bridget Phillipson has said she is ready to take on the unions in a battle over compulsory reading tests for 13-year-olds and more extracurricular activities for all children to prevent them becoming “stuck in a doom loop of detachment” from school.The education secretary said that teaching unions, who have argued the tests were “unnecessary and distracting”, should “really think carefully” about whether they could justify standing in the way of tackling the “shocking outcomes” that exist for many working-class children.In an interview with the Guardian, in which she said her deputy leadership campaign was “just the beginning” of her efforts to help secure Labour a second term, Phillipson warned that one in four children overall, and one in three disadvantaged children, don’t meet required literacy standards.In response to the curriculum and assessment review published next week, there will be a new mandatory reading test for year 8 pupils in an attempt to tackle underachievement by working-class children. Schools will also be expected to informally assess writing and maths

UK politics: Worries about immigration are ‘manufactured panic’ says charity as poll shows issue not a local concern – as it happened

Concern about immigration is a “manufactured panic”, a campaign group has said after polling suggested only a quarter of people think it is an important issue locally.As PA Media reports, a YouGov poll found only 26% of people said immigration and asylum was one of the three most important issues facing their community. This was half the 52% who said it was one of the biggest issues facing the country as a whole.These figures have been set out in a report published by the Best of Britain campaign group. It also shows that, while immigration comes second in the list of issues that people say matter nationally, it is only seventh in the list when people are asked about what matters in the places where they live

Keir Starmer keeps Trumps’ silver necklace gift – for a price

Keir Starmer has paid to keep a personalised silver necklace given to him by Donald and Melania Trump, transparency records show.The necklace was the only gift Starmer chose to keep after he hosted the US president for a historic second state visit in September.The Trumps also gave the prime minister a golf club and a set of silver cufflinks, both personalised, but these were retained by the Cabinet Office. A pair of cowboy boots, given to Starmer’s wife, Victoria, by the Trumps has also been held by the department.Under government rules, ministers cannot keep official gifts worth more than £140 unless they pay the difference between £140 and the gift’s value

‘Young Tories are fed up’: the students switching to Reform in big numbers

Last year’s freshers’ fair was a dismal time for Newcastle University’s Conservative society, with just six new students showing any interest in joining at the start of the autumn term.But this year’s event brought dozens of students showing up with renewed enthusiasm – after the Tory students merged with the Reform UK students, shrugging off a rebuke from Conservative party headquarters to do so.“Interest increased tenfold. I think we Conservatives were just becoming a bit irrelevant,” said Henry Bateson, a one-time Conservative student who switched to Reform UK and is now president of Newcastle’s merged Conservative and Reform UK society.Recent opinion polls suggest nearly half of Tory members would support a merger with Reform into a single party