Good morning. Yesterday Richard Holden, the Conservative social gathering chair, plonked himself on the ethical excessive floor yesterday, issuing an announcement attacking Keir Starmer for ignoring the “severe ethics scandal” round Angela Rayner. He’s wanting reasonably much less principled as we speak within the gentle of extraordinary allegations within the Occasions about Mark Menzies MP.
Our write-up of the story is right here. Based on Billy Kenber within the Occasions, CCHQ (which suggests Holden) knew in regards to the Menzies allegations greater than three months in the past, however didn’t droop him till the Occasions printed his story. Menzies says he strongly disputes the allegations made within the story.
Grant Shapps, the defence secretary, was on media spherical duties for the federal government this morning. He mentioned that there ought to be a correct investigation into the allegations, however the Menzies gave the impression of “probably any individual who’s fairly troubled”. It isn’t clear if the story will transfer on a lot as we speak, and for authorized causes there’s a restrict to how a lot we will say, and so the story gained’t characteristic a lot within the weblog as we speak. If folks begin commenting on it straight BTL, feedback could get closed.
In his interviews, Shapps was additionally requested in regards to the authorities’s Rwanda coverage. The federal government had been hoping to get its Rwanda invoice onto the statute e book this week however final evening the Lords voted once more to insert two safeguards opposed by the Commons and, as an alternative of getting MPs to vote once more on the invoice as we speak, ministers have postponed the following debate till subsequent week.
In his Occasions Radio interview, Shapps claimed that this confirmed Labour didn’t need the invoice to cross, and that it wished small boat arrivals to proceed. He mentioned:
Labour have as soon as once more locked the flexibility for parliament to cross this regulation. Labour don’t appear to have a solution [to the small boat problem], they don’t appear to need it [the Rwanda policy] to occur. It’s straight at Keir Starmer’s door in the event that they don’t go [ie, if asylum seekers are not send to Rwanda].
Labour sources say they do anticipate the invoice to turn out to be regulation, and that it may have turn out to be regulation this week if ministers had scheduled extra “ping pong” debates final evening or as we speak.
In his interviews Shapps additionally confirmed that RAF planes may very well be used for deportation flights to Rwanda.
As PA Media stories, it’s understood RAF Voyager plane may very well be deployed after the Residence Workplace failed to search out an airline that will constitution the flights. Downing Avenue has drawn up plans to order the Ministry of Defence to repurpose a minimum of one of many leased plane for this, in line with The Occasions.
Requested about this on Sky Information this morning, Shapps mentioned:
We’ll do no matter we have to do to be sure that we will get these flights off, whether or not they’re constitution flights or other forms of flights.
Right here is the agenda for the day.
9.30am: Lucy Frazer, the tradition secretary, takes questions on the Commons.
10.15am: Kemi Badenoch, the enterprise secretary, speaks on the CityUK convention in London.
11.30am: Downing Avenue holds a foyer briefing.
11.30am: Oliver Dowden, the deputy prime minister, offers a speech at Chatham Home.
12pm: Humza Yousaf, Scotland’s first minister, takes questions from MSPs at Holyrood.
Afternoon: William Wragg, the MP who just lately resigned the Tory whip after admitting divulging colleagues’ telephone numbers to a stranger threatening him on WhatsApp, is because of communicate within the Commons, opening a backbench debate on entry to redress schemes.
Afternoon: Màiri McAllan, the Scottish authorities’s local weather minister, is because of make an announcement to MSPs ditching a greenhouse fuel goal for 2030.
Additionally, Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves and Ed Miliband are doing a go to as we speak within the north-east of England to advertise Labour’s plans for investments in ports. And David Cameron, the overseas secretary, is a the G7 overseas ministers’ summit on the Italian island of Capri.
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