Angela Rayner replaced self-isolating Starmer at this week’s PMQs and put on a fiery performance – even Boris agreed:
“I don’t want to cause any further dissension on the benches opposite, but I think we all agree she has about a gigawatt more energy, Mr. Speaker, than the right honourable gentleman her friend Keir Starmer.”
Breaking news from the Information Commissioner who’s just fined Unite the Union £45,000 for making tens of thousands of calls to telephone numbers registered with the TPS service. They say their advice was either “ignored or not acted upon”.
Unite was reported to the commissioner in January 2020 after complaints were made about unsolicited direct marketing calls, despite being registered with the Telephone Preference Service, a free opt out service enabling individuals to no longer receive unsolicited sales or marketing calls. In total 27 complaints were made against the union.
In total they found 57,665 calls made to TPs registered numbers, out of a total 726,853 calls made that connected. Guido’s sure Unite will have no problem finding £45,000 down the back of their sofa…
Read the report below:
According to election experts John Curtice, Stephen Fisher and Patrick English, the Brexit Party may have significantly cut the scale of Boris’s 2019 victory by standing candidates in the election. By modelling the behaviour of Labour Leavers elsewhere, they argue that in the absence of a Brexit party candidate, 70% would likely have turned to the Tories and 30% would have stuck with Labour, potentially winning the Tories 25 more seats. It is an interesting contention – if you accept the premise. Arguably we saw this in play during the Hartlepool by-election…
Though the Brexit Party may have unintentionally helped Labour, Farage unilaterally chose not to field candidates in seats with incumbent Tory MPs, resulting in Iain Duncan Smith and Dominic Raab clinging on where they otherwise wouldn’t have. Curtice, Fisher and English’s book, The British General Election of 2019, was published yesterday.
The monthly ConservativeHome members panel is out with, as usual, interesting news about the Tory grassroots’ feelings towards members of the cabinet. Liz Truss remains in No. 1 spot, however is now followed by Lord Frost, up six points no doubt thanks to our impending war with France.
Rishi and Kwarteng have taken big hits thanks to the budget and energy crisis respectively. Golden boy Rishi is now languishing in 12th place on 45.5%, behind the likes of Gove, Coffey, Rees-Mogg, Dorries and Anne-Marie Trevelyan, whose first full month as trade secretary has seen her rise from 10th place to 4th.
Kwarteng has dropped from 42.1% approval last month to 32.6% this month.
Boris remains 5th-lowest regarded on just 19.7%.
Guido spots Sharma has also taken bottom spot, down from 4th-lowest last month, with just 5.8% approval. Clearly the Tory grassroots aren’t warming to his COP summit.
Grant Shapps will be happy, rising from the least popular cabinet member last month at 5.8% to 21.4% today. Despite his personal demotion, Raab’s attack on the human rights act has played well with the grassroots following his Afghanistan performance, boosting up from 22.3% in September to 41% now. Until next month…
It looks like fireworks are set to arrive in Parliament two days early this year, after Tory MPs, Whips and No. 10 announced a surprise assault on the existing MPs’ Standards Committee; arguing it’s “biased against Tories and Brexiteers”, with rulings becoming inconsistent. The standing order battle comes as Tory MPs attempt to block the Standards Committee’s 30-day suspension recommendation of Owen Paterson following a lobbying investigation.
While one amendment (B) to the motion this afternoon merely calls for Paterson’s suspension to be scrapped on compassionate grounds – following the suicide of his wife – Amendment A, published in full this morning, calls for a tearing up the whole Standards Committee system as it currently stands. The amendment is backed by at least 59 MPs…
The amendment sets out proposals for a new Standards Committee structure, involving eight backbench MPs in proportional make-up of the parties – four Conservative, three Labour and one SNP – with John Whittingdale as chair being given the deciding vote. The opposition parties are accusing the government of attempting to mark their own homework. Jon Ashworth has noted on Twitter “A fish rots from the head down”…
Guido is not convinced this is a good idea at all. Ten years after the expenses scandal, MPs are set on the neutralising of the checks on MPs’ misbehaviour. IPSA and the Standards Commissioner are slowly yet surely undergoing regulatory recapture by MPs. It will end badly…
On the Today Programme, Sir Bernard Jenkin – a backer of Amendment A – argues “We have had a bad system for years and years. This is an opportunity to fix it. We are not letting Owen Paterson off the hook.” Guido is more sympathetic to the suspension being suspended on exceptional compassionate grounds. In the end this row may all be for nothing – Sir Lindsay has to pick the amendment first…
Read the amendment and list of signatories in full:
