Category: News Story

STORY

Scott Benton, the MP for Blackpool South, has resigned from the Commons and denied his constituents the opportunity to vote in a recall petition to remove him from office. Benton was caught in a sting when he offered to leak confidential material for money and also ask Parliamentary questions if he was paid to do so. The disgraced MP was suspended from the Conservative Party for misconduct and he was banned from the House of Commons for 35 days for bringing the institution into disrepute.

In his resignation statement, Benton wrote:

“It’s with a heavy heart that I have written to the Chancellor this morning to tender my resignation as your MP. I’d like to thank the hundreds of residents who have sent supportive messages, cards and letters over the last few months and who have urged me to continue and fight the next election. The support that so many local people have given to me has made it all worthwhile.”

RESOURCES

Speeches by Scott Benton

Resignation Statement

STORY

The Bank of England has left interest rates at 5.25%, but indicated that there will likely be future cuts as the rate of inflation has started to fall. The Bank has a target UK inflation rate of 2% and the latest figures show a fall to 3.4%, significantly lower than over previous months. It’s the first time since September 2021 that none of the members of the MPC, the committee that votes on the level of interest rates, voted for an increase, with eight members this month voting to hold rates and one voting to reduce them.

Andrew Bailey, the Governor of the Bank of England, said in a statement:

“In recent weeks we’ve seen further encouraging signs that inflation is coming down. We’ve held rates again at 5.25% because we need to be sure that inflation will fall back to our 2% target and stay there. We’re not yet at the point where we can cut interest rates, but things are moving in the right direction.”

EXTERNAL RESOURCES

Bank of England

STORY

The Home Office has admitted that they spent £165,000 on a single flight to Rwanda for the Home Secretary, officials and journalists when signing an agreement with the country to deal with UK asylum seekers. Cleverly was the third Home Secretary to visit the country, with his predecessors Suella Braverman and Priti Patel having already gone to the African country. The controversial policy was announced in April 2022 and the Government claims that it will deter asylum seekers from entering the UK, but it has since met legal obstacles and opposition in the House of Lords.

A spokesperson for the Home Office said:

“Stopping the boats is one of our top priorities. The cost of the asylum system could reach up to £11bn a year by 2026, and we make no apologies for pursuing bold solutions like our partnership with Rwanda to stop the boats and save lives.”

RESOURCES

Speeches by James Cleverly

STORY

Vaughan Gething has been elected as the leader of the Labour Party in Wales taking 51.7% of the vote against the 48.3% secured by Jeremy Miles. Gething will replace Mark Drakeford, the previous Welsh Labour leader and First Minister. Keir Starmer, the Leader of the Opposition, said:

“Gething led a hopeful, ambitious Welsh Labour government, in the face of a tired and failed Tory government in Westminster”.

STORY

Lee Anderson, the former Labour councillor and Conservative MP, has defected to Reform UK after losing the Conservative whip. Anderson said “all I want is my country back. This may sound offensive to the liberal elite, but it’s not offensive to my friends, my family, my constituents and some of my donors”. Richard Tice, the leader of Reform UK, said that he expected further defections to the party before the General Election.

STORY

Lee Anderson, the MP for Ashfield, has been suspended from the Conservative Party for comments that he made about Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, “giving away our capital”. The controversial MP has been condemned from across the political spectrum for his comments. A spokesperson for the Conservative Party said in a statement:

“Following his refusal to apologise for comments made yesterday, the chief whip has suspended the Conservative whip from Lee Anderson MP”.

RESOURCES

Speeches by Lee Anderson

STORY

Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker of the House of Commons, has apologised after chaos in the House today over the voting on an amendment on an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Hoyle went against protocol and selected both the labour and Government amendments, causing controversy amongst Conservative MPs.

Hoyle apologised for the confusion, saying:

“I wanted to do the best by every member of the house. “I regret how it’s ended up. It was not my intention. I wanted all to ensure they could express their views. As it was, in particularly the SNP, were unable to vote on their own proposition. It is with my sadness that it ended in this position. It was never my intention. I recognise the strength of feeling of this House and its members. I thought I was doing the right thing. I do take responsibility for my actions.”

The Labour amendment was passed in the Commons following the withdrawal from the Chamber of Conservative and SNP MPs.

STORY

The Guardian newspaper has alleged that Paula Vennells, the former Chief Executive of the Post Office, personally authorised a contract being given to Fujitsu despite being warned internally it could lead to the potential data destruction of those involved in Project Horizon disputes. The newspaper wrote:

“It is understood Vennells agreed to “migrate” the archive to the Fujitsu system, known as Eternus, despite warnings from at least two senior executives in the Post Office that this would make it virtually impossible to investigate branch transactions should a forensic audit be needed into Horizon’s records.”

The Guardian added:

“The latest development raises questions about whether the move to the in-house Fujitsu storage system was purely a cost-cutting exercise or also an act of sabotage.”

Vennells refused to comment to the Guardian.

STORY

The Guardian newspaper has published a serious allegation that “Michelle Mone assured the government that she was not entitled to “any financial benefit whatsoever” from a PPE company, five months before £29m of its profits were transferred into a trust for her benefit”. The disgraced Mone, who has admitted to lying and threatening journalists, is alleged to have e-mailed the Cabinet Office stating:

“In relation to PPE Medpro Limited, I can confirm that I have no conflicts whatsoever in helping the company to achieve orders through the NHS.

I am neither a shareholder of the company nor am I entitled to any financial remuneration or financial benefit whatsoever. You can put this on the record.

My role is to help the NHS deliver on its PPE targets and to ultimately save lives of patients, medical workers and carers.”

Mone is yet to comment on the latest allegations. The Government has said that due to ongoing legal action it can’t comment on the latest allegations.

EXTERNAL NEWS LINKS

Guardian Newspaper

STORY

Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, has today met with Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar at the Parliament Buildings at Stormont.

A spokesperson for the Prime Minister said:

“The Prime Minister turned to the day’s events and thanked the Taoiseach for the Irish Government’s support for the UK Government efforts to see restoration of devolution in Northern Ireland. This had been a challenging time, but patience had proved key to a deal. Now that the institutions were up and running again, he wanted to see all three strands functioning equally well. The sense of relief and optimism from people in Northern Ireland had been very striking and made it all worthwhile.”

RESOURCES

Downing Street Press Release