Wes Streeting plans to resign and mount leadership challenge, allies say
Allies of Wes Streeting have said he is preparing to stand down as health secretary amid deep frustration with Keir Starmer’s leadership, and could mount a formal challenge for the leadership as early as Thursday,Downing Street insiders had suggested Streeting did not yet have the required support from 81 MPs, which is needed to formally launch a leadership bid, after the prime minister issued a “put up or shut up” ultimatum to his cabinet,A source close to the health secretary told the Guardian on Wednesday that he was planning to resign on Thursday and launch a leadership bid,The idea that Starmer had seen off a putsch was “laughable”, they added,“No-one has the numbers till the bell is struck, even canvassing isn’t real, people need certainty before they write their name down.
But he thinks he’s got the numbers,” they said.A second MP, also close to the Streeting camp, said they had been involved in discussions about getting the requisite numbers he would need to trigger a contest, and had begun ringing round MPs.Two other MPs said they had been called by allies of Streeting on Tuesday evening to tell them: “He’s going for it.” One said they were unsure if the health secretary had sufficient backing to go through with the plan.Streeting held brief talks with Starmer in Downing Street on Wednesday morning, but the health secretary’s spokesperson said he was not planning to comment afterwards in order not to distract from the king’s speech.
Another MP, a close ally of Starmer, said the prime minister had always believed Streeting would not win the party and that he would fight any challenge – despite intense pressure from MPs who have publicly called for him to go.One cabinet ally of the prime minister told the Guardian: “Personally I’d throw him in the river but luckily Keir Starmer is a calm and patient person.”Earlier on Wednesday, Zubir Ahmed, a close ally of Streeting who quit as a minister on Tuesday, renewed calls for the prime minister to resign, saying his authority had “irretrievably ebbed away”.
Nissan ponders building cars for Chinese rivals at Sunderland plant
Nissan’s chief executive has confirmed he would consider building cars for other manufacturers at the UK’s largest car factory in Sunderland, amid talks with China’s Chery.Ivan Espinosa said Nissan was “looking at options” for Sunderland and its 6,000 workers as the struggling Japanese carmaker on Wednesday reported steep losses for the year to March.Nissan announced last week it was closing one of its two production lines at Sunderland, in north-east England, because of faltering demand for its vehicles. However, it has held talks to produce vehicles on behalf of Chery, according to industry sources. Chery is pushing aggressively into the UK and Europe with its Chery, Jaecoo and Omoda brands
Global oil inventories falling at record pace amid Iran war; UK bond recovery fizzles out as Streeting ‘prepares challenges’ – business live
Global oil stocks are being run down at a record pace as supply losses mount due to the ongoing Iran war, the International Energy Agency has warned.In its latest outlook report, the IEA reports that global oil inventories fell by 129 million barrels in March, and by a further 117 million barrels in April, as countries dipped into their reserves to cover the shortfall following the Middle East conflict.The IEA, which ordered the largest release of government oil reserves in its history in mid-March, reports:double quotation markMore than ten weeks after the war in the Middle East began, mounting supply losses from the Strait of Hormuz are depleting global oil inventories at a record pace.The IEA also forecasts weaker demand this year, as the jump in prices for crude oil and refined products leads to demand destruction.World oil demand is forecast to contract by 420,000 barrels per day this year, to 104m bpd, which is 1
Datacentres using 6% of electricity supply in UK and US, research says
Datacentres are consuming 6% of electricity in the UK and US, with the growing strain of AI on energy supplies prompting community resistance, according to research.The proportion of electricity used by vast warehouses stacked with microchips to power AI and the internet has risen 15% worldwide in the past two years as annual global investment in datacentres approaches $1tn (£740bn) – nearly 1% of the global economy, according to the International Data Center Association (IDCA).The figures come amid energy shortages in the UK and datacentre developers reporting waits of several years for national grid connections. The IDCA said rising power usage globally was “sparking societal and political concerns” and called on tech companies to become more transparent about their plans for new datacentres to tackle “community frustration”.The Guardian this week reported that developers working for Google significantly misstated how much carbon two proposed AI datacentres would contribute to the UK’s total emissions
Nvidia’s Jensen Huang joins other US bosses on Trump trip to China
The billionaire chief executive of the chipmaker Nvidia, Jensen Huang, has joined Donald Trump’s China delegation after a reported last-minute invitation, highlighting the US’s AI and tech ambitions.Huang will join a roster of US bosses including the Tesla chief executive and X owner, Elon Musk, the Apple chief executive, Tim Cook, and Goldman Sachs’s David Solomon at Trump’s 36-hour meeting with the Chinese president, Xi Jinping.The high-stakes summit is the first overseas trip for Trump since the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran in late February. The summit is expected to cover topics including that conflict, tariffs and China’s relationship with Taiwan.Huang was not on the initial list of business delegates, according to reports
England v New Zealand: second women’s ODI delayed by rain – live
Good news: we’re going to have an inspection at 1.15pm BST. The worry? The forecast means we’re probably down for further interruptions.The first men’s Test of the summer starts on 4 June, but we’ve already got the squad. Zak Crawley has lost his place and I’m assuming it’ll be Emilio Gay to open alongside Ben Duckett
Gay, Rew and Baker called up to England Test squad and Robinson in from cold
Emilio Gay, James Rew and Sonny Baker are the three uncapped players in a 15-man England squad for the first Test against New Zealand next month. Ollie Robinson returns to the setup after a two-year absence.As part of the wash-up from the Ashes, England have a new selector in Marcus North – now confirmed – and vowed to pay more attention to county form. Gay, averaging 92 under North at Durham this season, and Rew, 22 years old and having already scored 12 centuries for Somerset, fit the bill in this regard.Which of the pair makes the final XI for the first Test – which begins at Lord’s on 4 June – remains to be seen with the only obvious vacancy in the top seven at opener
World’s No 1 disabled golfer Kipp Popert: ‘The best need to play for a living. The sport has stopped’
Racing need not fear Green party ‘conversation’ but must continue efforts on horse welfare
From the Pocket: Voss coached the way he played and his brutal football failed Carlton
Jason Collins, NBA's first out gay player, dies aged 47 of brain tumor
Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke dies at 29: ‘He was the gentlest soul’
Ruby Tui: ‘I’m going for France – the game needs someone to stop England’