Guido has got hold of a copy of the delegate pack for Labour’s much-touted International Investment Summit next week. It’s a swanky affair…
Delegates are warmly welcomed to the event “jointly hosted by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer KCB KC MP,” Rachel Reeves, and Jonathan Reynolds. Sorry Ange, no space for the “Deputy Prime Minister” here…
On Sunday night it’s a pre-summit reception hosted by Reynolds at Lancaster House, “one of the UK’s most magnificent venues, steeped in political history with its fabulous Louis 14th style interiors and beautiful art collection.” A taxpayer-funded official photographer will be roving to get snaps…
At the summit itself actress Adjoa Andoh will be the compère to tell delegates when it’s time to have lunch, head to breakout sessions, or reconvene to listen to Rachel Reeves’ keynote address. Presumably she’ll also wake them up once it’s over…
Pretty much every major Labour politician will be there including regional mayors – apart from Tory mayor Ben Houchen, who’s the only one not on the list. Even John Swinney’s copped an invite…
Anyone hoping for a good time should be warned “no alcohol will be served during the day.” There will be a designated smoking area though. One rule for them…
Labour have gone to great lengths to design an entire private-access swish website for the event where delegates can upload their LinkedIn accounts and select breakout sessions. After afternoon activities everyone will decamp to an evening reception. The government helpfully reassures delegates that journalists “will be easily recognisable by yellow lanyards” and “will not have access to the parts of the programme that are closed.” Wouldn’t want the media coverage promoting UK investment or anything like that…
Read the full document below:
Continue reading “Leaked: Labour ‘International Investment Summit’ Handbook”
Left-wing commentators continue to bask in the glory of Starmer and Lammy handing away the British Indian Ocean Territory. The Guardian sneers that “Suddenly, All MPs Know Where the Chagos Islands Are and What’s Best for Them”…
While Lammy prepares to head to China next week for ‘reset’ talks no doubt made chummier by the handover, environmental campaigners are aghast at the UK’s decision. Most people aren’t aware of how important the Chagos Islands are for the environment:
After years of campaigning, scientists managed to have the British government institute a protected zone of 250,000 square miles in which no fishing would be permitted. The Mauritian government has been trying for many years to destroy the UK’s progress in protecting Chagos biodiversity. In the last decade it has launched numerous legal challenges in international courts to have the protected area removed. The Mauritians were counselled by – you guessed it – Mauritius’ chief legal adviser Philippe Sands KC. Starmer’s close mate…
Mauritius, which does not care about the environment, now has control over Chagos and has announced its intention to settle Mauritians – not Chagossians – on the isolated islands. Meanwhile, over half of Mauritian lagoons are now dead and octopus and reef fish numbers have dropped by 75% in the last few decades. The Mauritians will doubtless be rubbing their hands with glee now they can go plundering Chagos too…
A spokesman from the Friends of the British Overseas Territories charity tells Guido:
“What makes the Chagos Islands so unique and important is the complete absence of economic activity and limited human presence. Any change to this would have disastrous effects on the environment. The UK Government were elected just months ago on a manifesto which had no mention of handing over British territory, but did commit to ‘deliver for nature’. Sadly, the Government now seem eager to give away the largest jewel in the UK’s environmental crown, to a country which clearly cannot be trusted to take care of it.”
Dark days for Gaia…
Rachel Reeves has received a blunt wake-up call from former economic secretary Andrew Griffith and former minister for investment Dominic Johnson ahead of the Autumn Statement. They’ve slammed Labour for “talking down” the economy, which has scared off investors, with business investment plummeting from +24 in July to -6, the steepest drop since the pandemic. As they astutely put it: “no one buys shares in a company whose CEO and CFO do nothing but whine.”
Griffith and Johnson also pushed Labour to embrace the post-Brexit landscape, championing the benefits of the CPTPP and the UK’s strategic role amid the swirling uncertainties in Europe and the US. Despite Starmer’s flirtations with the EU, Labour should be “selling” the fact the UK has the power to craft its own laws and trade agreements…
The duo issues a stark warning against Labour’s tax-the-rich agenda, particularly their plans targeting non-doms, as Treasury briefings suggest such measures could end up costing the Exchequer more than they bring in. Instead, they encourage Labour to leverage its connections within the unions and public sector to champion reforms in pensions, urban development, driverless transport, and NHS data sharing. Policies the Tories weren’t able to implement…
Finally they suggest it might be time for Labour to sideline “Red Ed“. The pair point out that Labour’s green policies are pushing up energy costs for manufacturers and driving away investment. With £8 billion already pumped into GB Energy to keep him “busy”, Miliband would be better occupied with offshore wind projects instead…
Labour would be wise to heed the advice of these Tory investment supremos…
Zelensky has arrived in Downing Street on his first stop of a Europe-wide tour. He gets a hug from Starmer. NATO secretary general Mark Rutte is also there for his first visit to the UK in the new gig…
There’s no word from No 10 on whether Storm Shadow missiles will be discussed – only reassurances that Britain’s support for Ukraine is “iron-clad.“ Seeing as the point of Zelensky’s tour is to drum up support for more weapons, you’d hope it would be…
The McIavelli’s popped into work early – probably to finish setting up his new desk. They’re calling him the new Dom…
The row over Taylor Swift’s concert freebies has been hilariously extended for another day. Labour was forced to defend lobbying the police for a motorcade for Swift while accepting freebie tickets from her record label…
The optics weren’t as bad as they could have been yesterday seeing as everyone clarified that Home Secretary Yvette Cooper hadn’t taken freebie tickets to the concert – of the two, only Sadiq Khan had. Sky News’ Sam Coates reported last night that Ed Balls had though – and brought his wife along…
Now it’s clear that both Khan and Cooper received free premium tickets and pressed security services to do Swift a favour. Cooper didn’t declare them at the time as they fell under the threshold, though she now has. Was probably worth fessing up to when the first story broke…
Jonathan Reynolds is up on Good Morning Britain soon to answer an interviewer’s questions. Guido can think of just the man for the job…
UPDATE: Nandy yesterday, of course, was briefed that Cooper “didn’t attend the concerts.” Top quality briefing that…
Former leader of the SNP in Westminster Ian Blackford told Times Radio why he believes Nicola Sturgeon’s claim that she spent no time in the kitchen and therefore didn’t see any of her husband’s purchases:
“She doesn’t have a passion for cooking.”