Shadow home secretary Chris Philp has been leading the NIMBY charge in his capacity as a local MP by boasting about his campaigns to block more homes. Tory traditions…
Badenoch has issued repeated calls for more homes to be built and the Tory party leader said in the Times just last month: “Politically, government is increasingly powerless in the face of legal challenges. Last week I spoke about the tangle of domestic and international rules that block us building new homes and infrastructure.” Plus her own MPs…
Philp was tweeting to his Croydon South constituents over the weekend about “recent local planning victories” which all oppose the conversion of 60s homes into larger-occupancy residences. Most of the applications are entirely innocent…
Some specific decisions Philp has been opposing for months. The shadow home secretary frequently posts his ‘victories’ on Instagram and his website…
More housing makes housing cheaper. The average age at which voters switch to Tory is now 63. Staying full NIMBY is unsustainable…
The ugly new security fence slapped up outside the House of Lords has triggered fury from all corners. As Guido revealed, industry insiders say the planning process was “highly irregular.” Tory peer Michael Dobbs has blasted the towering metal eyesore as “dangerous,” warning it “cuts off sightlines” to potential attackers…
Naturally, Guido’s FOI Unit swung into action to discover just how much taxpayers were fleeced for this monstrosity. The House of Lords confirmed they do hold the figures – but are refusing to disclose them on so-called prevention of crime and national security grounds:
“However, we consider that information relating to the cost of the fence, including a breakdown as requested, is exempt under sections 31(1)(a) (prevention and detection of crime) and 24(1) (safeguarding national security) of the FOIA, as disclosure of this information would provide significant detail of security measures on the Parliamentary Estate.”
Guido’s not asking for the blueprints – just the bill. This comes after the farce of the Lords’ £9.6 million broken door. What exactly are they hiding?
Immigration has shot back to the top of the political agenda – YouGov’s latest poll shows 53% of Britons now see it as the number one issue. That’s the highest figure since June 2016. Brexit-era levels…
Meanwhile, small boat crossings are up 48% in just the first half of this year, and 1.26 million migrants are claiming benefits – the majority of whom are not working at all. It’ll take more than a measly migrant deal with France for Starmer to get a grip on this…
Labour’s red tape expansion continues with the government’s attempt in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill to force all councillors to undertake mandatory training if they serve on planning committees. But who is the highest force in the land on planning? Rayner herself, and as she often boasts, she left school without much training…
Now a neat amendment from Lord Fuller would require Labour’s big wigs at Westminster to go through the same training they are trying to impose on everyone else: “this amendment would require civil servants and Ministers of the Crown to complete equivalent training to that required for local planning authorities and mayoral authorities”. Seems fair. She’d also get a “valid certificate of completion” if she passed…
UK DOGE has been keeping tabs on councils bumping up taxes while splashing the cash on questionable pet projects. Essex County Council – which raised council tax by 3.75% this year – is no exception…
The council also employs a “Climate Tsar” – Peter Schwier – on a comfortable £55,127 allowance. He oversees efforts to “encourage action to mitigate climate change” within staff teams and push the council “towards becoming carbon neutral as soon as possible”. Supporting this eco remit, the council has allocated £293,000 for its “Environment Strategy” and a further £443,000 for “Green Infrastructure”. For £55,127, you could:
- Fill 765 potholes.
- Buy 3,062 24-hour Army ration packs.
- Hire three teaching assistants.
The council taxpayer may have a view on which should be prioritised. UK DOGE recommends costs are cut here…
Things are hotting up in the Downing Street vs OBR skirmish as the watchdog’s chairman hits back at Labour briefings today. A showdown coming down the track…
Chairman Richard Hughes told the Commons Treasury Committee:
“I don’t really accept the characterisation that it was changes in our forecast that forced the Government to make any particular sort of policy decision. Back in March, the Government decided to make £5 billion worth of welfare savings. They had £10 billion worth of headroom against their fiscal rule. They could have settled for five.”
Hughes added that the decision and its reversal were “an entirely political choice.” It’s not the OBR who makes the fiscal rules…
That slaps back at Reeves who said that she was forced to make the welfare cuts thanks to her ‘iron-clad’ fiscal rules before reversing them entirely anyway. Cueing tax rises at the October Omnishambles budget…
Hughes also countered Starmer’s April attack at the Liaison Committee in which the PM complained that the OBR didn’t cost Labour employment support plans:
“There were no specifics. They couldn’t tell us who was going to benefit from this programme, which groups, what kind of support they were going to get. There was no policy for us to score in our forecast.”
Starmer has let it be known that he is increasingly impatient with the watchdog. It was his and Reeves’ decision to empower it massively as soon as they were elected…
Speaking at his speech on how to achieve “progressive capitalism” Wes Streeting fired a dig and Andy Burnham:
“Bond markets are not bond villains and fiscal rules matter.”
