STORY
Chris Webb has won the Blackpool South by-election for the Labour Party, securing a 26.3% swing from the Conservative Party who won the seat at the 2019 General Election. The by-election was caused by the resignation of disgraced Scott Benton who was found guilty of a “very serious breach” of Parliamentary rules. Chris Webb won the seat with 10,825 votes with David Jones from the Conservatives securing 3,218 votes and Mark Butcher from Reform securing 3,101 votes.
STORY
Humza Yousaf has resigned as the leader of the SNP and as Scottish First Minister after ending a power sharing coalition with the Green Party. He apologised for “under-estimating” the hurt that he caused by bringing the power sharing coalition to an end, but said that it was a huge honour to have led Scotland.
STORY
Dan Poulter, the MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, has announced that he has defected from the Conservative Party to the Labour Party in a damaging move to the Prime Minister. Poulter, who also announced his intention to stand down at the General Election, said:
“I found it increasingly difficult to look my NHS colleagues in the eye, my patients in the eye, and my constituents in the eye with good conscience.”
Keir Starmer, the Leader of the Labour Party, said:
“It’s time to end the Conservative chaos, turn the page and get Britain’s future back.”
Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, has yet to respond.
STORY
Mark Menzies, the MP for Fylde, has been suspended from the Conservative Party following allegations of the misuse of money and inappropriate behaviour. He is also accused of asking a volunteer for money in order to pay people who had threatened to harm the MP. Menzies denied the allegations and the Conservative Party have said that they have launched an investigation. Menzies had represented the constituency since 2010 and was acting as a Government trade envoy to Colombia, Chile, Peru and Argentina, although he was suspended from this position earlier today.
Menzies said in a statement:
“I strongly dispute the allegations put to me. I have fully complied with all the rules for declarations. As there is an investigation ongoing I will not be commenting further.”
Keir Starmer, the Leader of the Opposition, called on the Prime Minister to launch a police investigation into the allegations.
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The Government had suggested that under-funding in the road network has led to £8.3 billion needing to be transferred from the rail infra-structure investment, saying car owners may now save “£440 on vehicle repairs” due to the number of potholes. Mark Harper, the Transport Secretary, said:
“We’re on the side of drivers, which is why this government is getting on with delivering our plan to invest an additional £8.3 billion in the biggest ever funding increase for local road improvements, made possible by reallocated HS2 funding.”
Andy Street, the Conservative Mayor of the West Midlands, said that the HS2 cutback was challenging from the region and said earlier in the year that “to do nothing is not an option”. Street said following the announcement that HS2 would be scrapped that:
“HS2 was about uniting the nation by building a transport spine connecting its major cities, a totemic project linking and levelling up communities at the same time. It was about delivering for the Northern Powerhouse and creating a more balanced national economy. It was about thinking big, showing ambition and building something for future generations.”
STORY
David Smith, the former Managing Director of the Post Office, has apologised for saying that the imprisonment of Seema Mistra, an innocent victim of the Project Horizon scandal, was “brilliant news”. Smith, answering questions at the Horizon IT inquiry made an allegation that Paula Vennells told him that the IT system was “tamper proof”. Smith also accepted responsibility for not reflecting on the growing scandal “in the way that I have should have done”. Smith almost admitting under questioning that he was not aware of important information reaching him and he couldn’t explain why that was.
The Post Office Horizon scandal is widely considered one of the UK’s largest miscarriages of justice. Horizon, an accounting system installed in Post Offices branches starting in 1999, displayed significant errors which led to shortfalls in accounts, for which subpostmasters were held personally liable. The Post Office aggressively pursued these subpostmasters, resulting in prosecutions, bankruptcy, imprisonment, and even suicides. Despite subpostmasters’ claims that the system was flawed, the Post Office maintained Horizon was robust. It took years of legal battles before the courts determined Horizon was riddled with bugs with the scandal leading to the establishment of the independent Horizon Inquiry.
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A spokesperson for the US President has said that Joe Biden is “outraged” by the Israeli strike on aid workers, confirming that the massacre by Israel had killed a citizen of the United States. The shock attack has led to global condemnation of the Israeli Government, but Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israel Prime Minister, defended the massacre saying that although the incident was regretful, it was part of war. Biden reminded Israel that “humanitarian workers should be protected” and demanded an explanation from the country into the incident.
STORY
The Canadian Foreign minister, Melanie Joly, has added to international condemnation of Israel following the country’s massacre of seven aid workers who were trying to give emergency aid to the people of Gaza. In a statement, she confirmed that a Canadian citizen had been killed, saying:
“Strikes on humanitarian personnel are completely unacceptable. International humanitarian law must be respected”. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, had said earlier in the day that such massacres were part of war, but he said that he regretted the attack.
STORY
The UK Government has summoned the Israeli Ambassador to the UK to attend the Foreign Office to offer an explanation of the country’s massacre of seven aid workers in Gaza, including three British citizens. Facing with international condemnation, the Israeli Government said that they would investigate the matter, but the country’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was happened during wars. Andrew Mitchell, the Foreign Office Minister, said in a statement:
“Today, I summoned the Ambassador of the Israeli Embassy in London to the Foreign Office”, adding “I have requested a quick and transparent investigation, shared with the international community, and with full accountability.”
STORY
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, has defended the country amidst international condemnation after the killing of seven aid workers in Gaza. The seven individuals were aid workers for the World Central Kitchen team who were trying to get urgent aid to residents of the Gaza Strip with the charity saying that they had made their whereabouts known to Israeli authorities.
Netanyahu said in a statement:
“It happens in war, we check it to the end, we are in contact with the governments, and we will do everything so that this thing does not happen again.”
A spokesperson for the President of the United States said in a statement that he was “heartbroken and deeply troubled by the strike”, whilst the Polish Government said it was asking urgently for an explanation as to why a Pole was killed.
David Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, said in a statement:
“The news of the airstrike that killed World Central Kitchen (WCK) aid workers in Gaza is deeply distressing. These were people who were working to deliver life-saving aid to those who desperately need it. It is essential that humanitarian workers are protected and able to carry out their work. We have called on Israel to immediately investigate and provide a full, transparent explanation of what happened.”
Numerous other international leaders, including the Australian Prime Minister and the European Union Foreign Affairs Minister have called on Israel to provide an explanation for the killings.