As the PM’s fate lay in doubt, Labour MPs plotted the party’s future direction
Less than a mile from the select committee room in Portcullis House where Olly Robbins held the prime minister’s future in his hands, Labour MPs were publicly workshopping how the party might look under new leadership,It came in the guise of the Good Growth Foundation’s conference, but felt like a Labour leadership beauty parade on Pall Mall,The former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner was a last-minute addition to the programme but the most talked-about guest,Rayner in her speech was dismissive of the scandal occupying Westminster over Peter Mandelson, urging the government to refocus on everyday hardships,The Iran war – and the impending economic shock – would require government intervention.
“Ordinary people fear they will once again pay the price,” she said.“That is why this crisis calls for bold action.Help with people’s everyday housing, transport, energy and water costs.”Addressing panels at the national growth debate, Labour MPs dismissed the platform that propelled Keir Starmer to power less than two years ago, attacking his growth “mission” for lacking clear purpose, including questioning the dominance of the fiscal rules, the growth “mission” without a clear purpose, and the pledges not to raise income tax or national insurance.Louise Haigh, a former transport secretary, said the government had “mistaken rules for responsibility and until we change that, we will struggle to deliver renewal”.
She dismissed what she viewed as the media portrayal of Labour MPs as “unruly and irresponsible” when making demands for bolder proposals from government – including for welfare reform.“We are united in both our diagnosis and the prescription for the economy,” she said.The government should urgently revisit the way the Office of Budget Responsibility assessed policy, she said, as well as “the obsession with fiscal headroom over all other measures of economic health”.She added: “We have been guilty of treating the fiscal rules as the objective, rather than designing our fiscal strategy and economic strategy to achieve our objectives.”Haigh called for an overhaul of the tax system to reform “outdated and regressive” property taxes and address disparities between employment and wealth, including profits made by large corporations.
“Our tax system is on the side of the billionaire owners of those companies while our neighbours who work in them feel abandoned and squeezed by the systems we govern,” she said,“We need to ask ourselves the most simple question anyone involved in politics should,Whose side are we on?”Chris Curtis, whose centrist Labour Growth Group has formed an alliance with Haigh’s soft-left Tribune group to push for bolder economic reforms, criticised the “Ming vase” approach of the 2024 election,He said the strategy, by which Labour sought not to spook markets or the public, including with a pledge not to raise taxes, was deeply flawed and “had not won us a single vote”,The MP for Milton Keynes North said that it had instead equated to not “saying anything meaningful”.
He added: “You came up with phrases like, ‘we need to have an honest conversation about immigration’,No conversation then followed,“We said things like ‘skills were important’,Nobody ever engaged in the policy discussion – the moment somebody did, people were worried that comes with trade-offs,”Ed Miliband’s speech – in which he announced steps to de-link electricity and gas prices – was a full-throated defence of the net zero and green agenda that once had sceptics at the heart of No 10.
The policy victory was not his only deviation from Downing Street.Earlier, the energy secretary had been even more candid in the TV studios, revealing he and David Lammy, the justice secretary, discussed concerns that the appointment of Mandelson could “blow up”.His slot at the debate had previously been allocated to the health secretary, Wes Streeting, who dropped out because of a diary clash.The presence of another apparent leadership contender might have furthered uncomfortable tongue-wagging about manoeuvres.Miliband said he would not “turn off the taps” in terms of North Sea oil but warned more drilling licences would not solve any of the UK’s energy issues.
“I will not betray the future generations of this country,” he said, saying adding that Westminster “massively overestimates the net zero backlash” in the country.“Hope is the biggest thing that matters,” he said.Rayner was at pains to praise her “friend” Miliband in her speech.It was left to the prime minister’s chief secretary, Darren Jones, to question the viability of the government taking a bolder approach.“If there were easy answers we would have taken them,” he said.
Bill banning people born after 2008 from buying tobacco clears UK parliament
A bill banning anyone born after 2008 from buying tobacco in the UK has completed its progress through parliament in a move that ministers hope will create a “smoke-free generation”.Under the tobacco and vapes bill anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 will never be able to be legally sold tobacco across the UK, in an effort to save lives and reduce the burden on the NHS.The bill will become legislation when it receives royal assent next week. Its long journey through both houses of parliament began when it was introduced on 5 November 2024 and ended on Tuesday, when the House of Lords approved amendments made by MPs in House of Commons.Ministers hope it will end the sale of tobacco products altogether over time and break the cycle of addiction and the disadvantages associated with tobacco
Man admits rape and religiously aggravated assault after court confrontation
A man who racially abused a Sikh woman as he raped her has pleaded guilty to the assault after being confronted in court by a member of the public.John Ashby pleaded guilty to rape, religiously aggravated assault, intentional strangulation, and robbery of the woman at her home in Walsall.Ashby initially pleaded not guilty but unexpectedly changed his pleas after he was sworn at by a member of the public in Birmingham crown court.The 32-year-old, of no fixed abode, asked to see his barrister and changed his pleas about an hour after being sworn at and told to “sort your shit out” by a member of public who approached the dock.The victim, who is in her 20s, was due to give evidence on Tuesday
Gut microbiome can reveal risk of Parkinson’s, scientists say
Changes to microbes that live in the gut can identify people at greater risk of Parkinson’s disease long before symptoms develop, according to work that also raises hopes for new therapies.Researchers discovered signature changes in the gut microbiome that are more pronounced in people with a genetic risk for Parkinson’s and even more stark in those diagnosed with the disease.The signature could help doctors spot patients at risk of Parkinson’s years before they display clear symptoms and suggests that healthier diets and treatments that reshape the microbiome might prevent or delay the disease.Prof Anthony Schapira, the head of clinical and movement neurosciences at University College London and lead investigator on the study, said it was the first time a microbial signature in Parkinson’s patients had been seen in people with a genetic susceptibility but had yet to develop symptoms. The signature appears to become stronger as the disease progresses
Trustpilot hosts reviews of illegal casinos, raising concern among MPs
Trustpilot, the reviews website that offers to “find a company you can trust”, is hosting ratings of illegal casinos, raising concerns in Westminster about the potential risks posed to consumers.Unlicensed casino operators linked to financial harm, addiction and even suicide have flooded the UK market in recent years, often targeting people who are trying to limit their gambling by “self-excluding” from licensed operators.Despite this, Trustpilot hosts reviews of some of the largest unlicensed sites, exposed in a recent investigation into the illegal Santeda casino network by the Guardian and Investigate Europe, as if they were legitimate businesses.Analysis by the Guardian found reviews for brands including Santeda’s MyStake, Velobet and Goldenbet, which do not have a licence from the Gambling Commission.Offering gambling services without a licence from the regulator is a criminal offence
‘It’s soul-destroying’: struggle to house vulnerable children can leave breaking law as only option
The sinking feeling is familiar now, says Anna*. It’s Friday, the clock is ticking, and there is a vulnerable child in her care for whom – despite hitting the phones for days – she cannot find a place. Once the foster carers have been exhausted, and the registered private children’s homes begged, there is nothing for it but to look elsewhere.“It always seems to be on a Friday that you are struggling to place a child,” says the social worker. “They need somewhere safe tonight
The fight against medical misogyny has a long way to go | Letters
I welcome the relaunched women’s health strategy (Streeting relaunches women’s health strategy to tackle ‘medical misogyny’, 14 April) but with caution. The system appears responsive, but the root causes in health inequality outcomes remain untouched.It names urgent issues many women have long experienced: navigating the gynaecology referral queue that would stretch over 191 miles (if waiting in person), medical gaslighting, delayed diagnoses and systemic bias.However, Wes Streeting’s tenacity on centering all women’s “voices”, and ensuring that no woman is left fighting to be heard isn’t convincing, particularly when women of colour have been crying out loud for years, with little to no change in our reproductive health outcomes.Many of us know what that feels like: seeing a GP about severe period pain and trying to explain how it disrupts our life
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‘I’ll key your car’: ChatGPT can become abusive when fed real-life arguments, study finds