Sir Keir Starmer has hailed the “significant” arrest of an alleged supplier of small boats used to cross the Channel. Elsewhere, Chancellor Rachel Reeves is laying out big reforms to the pensions market.
Thursday 14 November 2024 19:36, UK
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Have we seen a relaunch by Sir Keir Starmer this week? Our chief political correspondent Jon Craig thinks so.
He says “Trumpian themes” of border security and the economy are starting to emerge in government messaging.
Pointing to the prime minister’s welcoming of the arrest connected to the supply of small boats, Jon says: “Here we have Sir Keir trying to own the battle against small boats.”
And on the same day, Jon has noticed “the chancellor’s talking about economic growth”.
“The same issues Trump has talked about.”
Immigration and the economy are widely seen as the issues which took the president-elect to victory against Kamala Harris.
Jon says some insiders are suggesting the Trump victory is “a blessing in disguise” for Labour, as “they might get back to the core issues of the economy and immigration”.
“And perhaps chuck out some of that wokery, as critics call it,” says Jon.
He adds Labour’s five missions they campaigned on during the election appear to have gone – and notes they had never really been clear, even for Labour MPs, some of whom “really struggled” to explain what they were.
Our second guest on Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge is here to talk about the chancellor’s speech in the City tonight.
Ex-boss of the British Bankers’ Association Angela Knight is hoping to see her loosen regulation on banks to make the UK economy more competitive with other countries.
Referring to regulation put in place after the 2008 financial crash, she says: “Our banks now have to hold much capital than any other bank in other countries – and you can’t hold the capital and lend at the same time.
“If we want growth, you need to get a balance for how much you need for stability and how much you can lend.”
Ms Knight says nobody should “walk away from the fact we had a very difficult time during the banking crisis”, and acknowledges “some of the actions of banks were wrong”.
But she says the crash happened in other countries too, and they have recovered more strongly than the UK – partly due to the degree of regulation upon British banks.
“Because something was wrong then, and actions were taken to put it right, doesn’t mean you then make rules tighter and tighter,” she says – because that only makes the economy weaker.
Home Office minister Angela Eagle has insisted the Labour government can take credit for the arrest of a man suspected of supplying small boats for Channel crossings.
She told the Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge that since coming into office the government has “reset international relations” and put more money and funding into dealing with cross border co-operation.
It was put to her that this was a long-running investigation by crime agencies, and ministers are taking credit for something they aren’t responsible for.
Ms Eagle said: “I think that’s unfair, if you look at what we have done since we got into government, we’ve paid a lot of attention to this, put more money into strengthening our presence with Europol who were very involved in issuing this notice which led to the arrest.
“We’ve got personal relations now…that is beginning to bear fruit.”
Our weeknight politics show Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge is live now on Sky News.
The fast-paced programme dissects the inner workings of Westminster, with interviews, insight, and analysis – bringing you, the audience, into the corridors of power.
We’re joined by Home Office minister Angela Eagle and ex-boss of the British Bankers’ Association Angela Knight.
On the panel are Labour MP Mike Tapp and former Conservative adviser James Starkie.
Watch live on Sky News, in the stream below, and follow live updates here in the Politics Hub.
Watch Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge from Monday to Thursday on Sky channel 501, Virgin channel 602, Freeview channel 233, on the Sky News website and app or on YouTube.
As just reported by our business and economics correspondent Paul Kelso, Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey is urging the government to “rebuild relations” with the EU as he offers a frank assessment of the UK’s economic status.
Mr Bailey is speaking in the City of London at Mansion House, the scene of a major speech by the chancellor on Thursday night.
It’s an annual event and marks Rachel Reeves’s first go at it, and thus the first time for a female chancellor.
But what has Mr Bailey got to say?
He’s warning UK’s growth potential is “not a good story”, and describes the labour market as “running against us” due to the country’s ageing population.
He says investment was “particularly weak by G7 standards”.
All of that will likely go down quite well with the chancellor given the narrative she’s been telling since the budget – that the economy’s been left in a rotten state and more investment is needed.
But he’s far more frank about Brexit than any ministers have been.
He believes leaving the EU has slowed the UK’s potential for growth, and the government should “welcome opportunities to rebuild relations”.
Will Labour bite?
By Paul Kelso, business and economics correspondent
When Gordon Brown delivered his first Mansion House speech as chancellor, he caused a stir by doing so in a lounge suit, rather than the white tie and tails demanded by convention.
Some 27 years later, Rachel Reeves is the first chancellor who would have not drawn a second glance had they addressed the City establishment in a dress.
Bucking convention
As the first woman in the 800-year history of her office, Ms Reeves’s tenure will be littered with reminders of her significance, but few as symbolic as at a dinner that is a fixture of the financial calendar.
Her host at Mansion House, asset manager Alastair King, is the 694th man out of 696 Lord Mayors of London.
The other guest speaker, Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey, leads an institution that is yet to be entrusted to a woman.
Reeves’s speech indicated she wants to lean away from convention in policy as well as in person.
By committing to tilting financial regulation in favour of growth rather than risk-aversion, she is going against the grain of the post-financial crash environment.
“This sector is the crown jewel in our economy,” she told the audience, including many who will have been central players in the 2007-08 collapse.
Sending a message that they will be less tightly-bound in future is not natural territory for a Labour chancellor.
Her motivation may be more practical than political. A tax-and-spend budget that hit business harder than forewarned has put her economic program on notice, and she badly needs the growth elements to deliver.
Watch: Budget explained in 60 seconds
Her plans to consolidate local authority pension schemes so they might match the investing power of their Canadian and Australian counterparts is part of the same theme.
Infrastructure investment is central to Reeves’s plan and these steps, universally welcomed, could unlock the private sector funding required to make it happen.
Some home truths – with a blunt take on Brexit
If the jury is out in a business financial community absorbing £25bn in tax rises, she had welcome support from Bailey, who delivered some home truths about the economic inheritance in plainer language than central bankers sometimes manage.
Britain’s growth potential, he said, “is not a good story”, and he described the labour market as “running against us” in the face of an ageing population.
With investment levels “particularly weak by G7 standards”, he thanked the chancellor for the pension reforms intended to unlock capital investment.
He was frank about Brexit too, more so than the chancellor has dared. While studiously offering no view on the central issue, Bailey said leaving the EU had slowed the UK’s potential for growth, and that the government should “welcome opportunities to rebuild relations”.
There was a more coded warning too about the risks of protectionism, perhaps more likely with Donald Trump in the White House: “Amid threats to economic security, let’s please remember the importance of openness.”
All that will have been welcome listening to Reeves. Already a groundbreaking chancellor, aiming for a political and economic legacy that extends beyond her gender and the dress code.
Watch: Will UK be spared Trump’s tariffs?
By Tom Parmenter, national correspondent
The government has pledged to do more to help families in “utter despair” over soaring baby formula milk prices.
The plight of parents struggling to feed their babies and “foraging” for infant milk online was raised in parliament after the Competition and Markets Authority called for a shake-up of the market last week.
Health minister Stephen Kinnock told the House of Commons: “I understand many families are struggling to meet the cost of feeding their baby, and the government are committed to helping families most in need to access support.
“We are committed to addressing the concerns raised by the CMA so that the infant formula market delivers the better outcomes that parents deserve.”
Prices have risen by 25% in recent years, despite some small reductions and two new “low cost” brands launching.
The CMA highlighted how this tightly regulated market is not working for the parents who rely on it.
Strict rules mean companies cannot promote infant formula, including price reductions or deals, so as not to discourage breastfeeding. The CMA said this has led to limited incentive to compete on price.
We’ve got hold of some eye-catching stats from the Foreign Office this afternoon – which will likely induce a bit of rage in anyone who’s ever been hit with a parking fine.
As of the end of June, foreign diplomats working in the UK racked up almost £1.5m in unpaid parking fines.
Saudi Arabia’s were the biggest culprits, totalling £196,630.
And when it comes to not paying London’s congestion charge, the figures are even worse.
More than £152m is now owed across the board, spanning from the charge’s introduction in 2003 until the end of September this year, with the US embassy leading the way at more than £15m.
It refuses to pay because it views the charge as a tax, which diplomatic missions are exempt from.
Foreign Office in ‘regular contact’ with embassies
Others in the red are Japan at £10.4m and China at £9.3m.
Embassies also aren’t paying their dues in business rates – the Chinese top that list with more than £646,000 outstanding.
The Foreign Office says officials are in “regular contact” with embassies and international organisations to “press for payment of outstanding debt and fines”.
The prime minister has been able to claim a decent victory in his bid to “smash the gangs” today, while the chancellor is set to make a big announcement during a major speech in the City.
Here are the main things you need to know:
Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge will be live tonight from 7pm.
We’re joined by Home Office minister Angela Eagle and ex-boss of the British Bankers’ Association Angela Knight.
On the panel are Labour MP Mike Tapp and former Conservative adviser James Starkie.
People entitled to diplomatic immunity in the UK allegedly committed nine “serious and significant offences” last year, it’s been revealed.
Diplomatic immunity is a form of legal protection awarded to diplomats to allow them to avoid the force of the law in their host countries.
Foreign Office minister Catherine West detailed the alleged offences in parliament earlier, and they included:
Given around 26,500 people in the UK are entitled to diplomatic immunity, Ms West said the number of alleged serious offences was “proportionately low”.
But she insisted her department “does not tolerate foreign diplomats or dependents breaking the law”.
When police or other law enforcement agencies bring allegations to the Foreign Office’s attention, the relevant foreign government or organisation are asked to waive immunity to facilitate further investigation.
Ms West added: “For the most serious offences, and when a relevant waiver has not been granted, we request the immediate withdrawal of the diplomat or dependent.”
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