Trump on the Chagos deal: “I don’t support it, I think it’s terrible.” Dead…
The full comment:
“I don’t support it. I think it’s terrible. It was a terrible deal. They [Mauritius] all of a sudden say they have ownership. Somebody has ownership that never showed up before after decades and centuries. I think it’s ridiculous.
No, we were talking about that, and [the islands are] strategically very important. Very important. You know, we had to send our b2 bombers…back home to Missouri, as opposed to flying for a short period of time.
It’s amazing how strategic it is, and I think the prime minister is going to be looking at it.”
Burnham replied: “Yes”…
Watch along…
Lisa Nandy appears to be struggling to get her policy priorities to the top of the pile in Burnham’s government. After being disappointed in the reshuffle…
A briefing to the Telegraph on the eve of Burnham’s entry to government:
“It is understood that Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, is pushing for the National Lottery to be among the companies nationalised, amid concerns about the current operator’s performance.”
And this month, in a response to a Parliamentary question from Tory Mike Wood, DCMS said:
“DCMS has no plans to make changes to the 4th National Lottery Licence.
In line with the approach taken for preparing for previous licences, planning for future operations will be considered at an appropriate time, in accordance with public procurement policy and best practice.”
Louie French, shadow culture minister, said:
“The PM’s socialist promises are colliding with the reality of government. The result is a Prime Minister backpedalling on his own pledges.”
Trying to work out what “public control” actually means seems to be boggling Burnham’s apparatchiks…
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If you missed last week’s show, you can watch it below…
Join Adam Cherry, Ross Kempsell, Max Young, and special guests tomorrow. You don’t want to miss it…
The Home Office has claimed today that it holds no usable data on violence against women and girls committed by asylum seekers or illegal migrants. Head in sand…
Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities Joy Morrissey asked what assessment had been made of the prevalence of VAWG among crimes committed by people in the UK without legal immigration status. Home Office minister Sarah Jones offered no figures at all and said “asylum seekers are clearly advised of the expectations the Home Office and accommodation providers have for them to behave responsibly while they are accommodated in Home Office properties and not to engage in any form of criminal or anti-social activity.” Curious wording…
Asked whether the age profile of female victims of crimes allegedly committed by asylum seekers differs from that of victims of comparable offences by the wider population, the department said flatly that it “has not made an assessment” before adding the non-sequitur that “All criminal offences are investigated by the police and prosecuted independently where appropriate.” Ask the police – we don’t know!
Asked to estimate how many women and girls have been victims of violence or sexual offences allegedly committed by small boat arrivals in each of the last five years, Jones said the Home Office “does not centrally hold data that would enable an estimate to be made of the number of women and girls who have been victims of sexual offences allegedly committed by people who entered the UK illegally by small boat.” Blind…
Asked what immigration status data is collected on alleged perpetrators, the answer was that “Immigration Enforcement records immigration status information for individuals referred to it by the police for operational purposes“. That “does not represent all alleged perpetrators of violence against women and girls and is not routinely collated by VAWG offence type or the age of the victim“. And there are “currently no plans to publish the data in this format.” Remember – Labour has pledged to halve violence against women and girls within a decade…
Strange times – Ed Davey at his main conference speech has promised to raise the tax-free personal allowance to £15,000. Deja vu?
Raising the threshold from £12,570 to £15,000 is Jenrick’s flagship policy announced at party conference. Though Davey says it will be funded by “growth” from a “bold new partnership with Europe.” Talk about not having the figures straight…
Davey also promised to raise the higher rate to £56,000. Jenrick said:
“Sir Ed is welcome to steal our policies, but his plan to pay for it is almost as silly as his photo stunts. At this rate, the Lib Dems’ fantasy economics would make Liz Truss blush.
The socks-and-sandals brigade would have to make the same choices we will: Cut the benefits bill, end net zero handouts, and slash foreign aid. But they refuse because they are incapable of putting the British people first.”
Now that would be a fun coalition…
Asked by Lobby hacks about his past comments on Trump (“any UK politician who gave Trump the time of day should be ashamed right now”) Burnham was blithe:
“Politicians say things throughout their career, but now the important thing is to focus on the moment you are in.”
Were it so easy…