David Lammy has done an interview with a medium-popularity influencer to complain about diversity in the judiciary. To advertise the new “Judicial and Legal Diversity Board“…
In a video with influencer Freddie Fraser, the ‘DPM’ was asked: “Can you help explain why people of colour should want to work in the judicial system?” He replied:
“I think if you look at our legal profession now, it is actually tremendously diverse, but people aren’t quite making their way into the judiciary and beyond. So, there’s a lot we got to do to crack at. We have now made huge progress on gender, but diversity is not yet where it needs to be. It’s important that we recognize the progress that has been made, but there’s more to do.”
At the end Lammy was asked what the judiciary should look like in ten years. He said: “I want it to look more like the country.” Judicial retention suffered after 2015 pension changes which were reversed seven years later…
The Judicial Attitudes Survey 2024 suggested there are 1,117 salaried judges that could potentially leave by 2029 (combining mandatory retirements, early-leavers, and the undecided) out of roughly 2,000 salaried judges. Maybe focus on hiring good judges rather than ranting about diversity…
Wes Streeting has accused Reform of acting in a way that has “echoes of the 1930s” with regard to Henry Nowak’s murder. It was always going to happen…
Streeting told a LabourList drinks reception in the Commons last night:
“We have seen it in the last 24 hours, the way in which [Reform] have sought to weaponise an absolutely heinous crime and situation…
To weaponise it against their political opponents, and to stoke rage, and to incite rage is really dangerous, and it’s not too dramatic to say this has echoes of the 1930s.
We have to take this seriously when you have political propaganda that weaponises the words of the Leader of the Opposition, bends and twists them out of context to suggest that a black woman leading the Conservative Party doesn’t think that white lives matter, that is a moment for all of us, especially those who are not Conservative, to speak up and challenge and call this out.”
On the 24th April after reports that there were “warm messages” between Mandelson and Chief Secretary to the PM Darren Jones, the minister denied it on broadcast. Speaking to Laura Kuenssberg he said:
“No, I was asked what was going on in Downing Street… This was the week that I had just arrived as Chief Secretary. I don’t think I even had an office at the time. And I replied along the lines of I don’t know what’s happening. I’m not in the room. I’m sorry it all seems so difficult. And that was the exchange that I think has been referred to in piece… I wouldn’t say it was warm and I didn’t know what was taking place.”
That message was: “You’ve been doing such a great job, and you worked wonders with Trump. I’m so sorry about today.” What counts as ‘warm’ in the Jones household?
Government sources say that Mandelson has been incensed by Jones’ leadership briefings and statements on the WhatsApps and decided to blow him up this week. In case co-conspirators thought the saga was close to over…
Bridget Phillipson has spun the Labour manifesto pledge to hire 6,500 extra teachers into something else entirely. Because teacher numbers are actually falling…
The Education Secretary has tweeted about new teacher numbers:
“Latest stats show we’re over 70% of the way to our target to recruit 6,500 teachers in the places they’re needed most.
We have 4,654 more teachers in those schools and colleges compared to 2024.”
The 4,654 is an inflated composite because the government’s own release credits only 3,000 secondary and special teachers to the pledge. The number only reaches 4,654 by adding in further education from a separate workforce dataset…
Overall FTE teachers are down 1,900 from 2024 and the total workforce is down 1,500. Secondary teachers actually fell by 500 in the last year, despite being one of the sectors she claims growth in…
UPDATE: There is now a row over whether Further Education teachers count. The Tories point out that the government’s “mission” release on the manifesto pledge indicated schools only were in scope:
“Our first step for the opportunity mission is recruiting 6,500 extra teachers, focussing on subjects with shortages and areas with the biggest recruitment challenges. This will be critical to children’s success in school. But to access excellent teaching, and free teachers to teach the whole class, children must start school ready to learn.
Delivering our next steps in giving children the best start in life will require accessible, integrated baby and early childhood services to build the foundations for future success.”
A Labour source insists colleges have been in the language since at least last year and hits back:
“It’s unsurprising the Tories want to erase FE teachers from the picture – it’s this disdain for technical education that contributed to the NEETs explosion on their watch. We’ve always said our pledge focuses on shortage subjects, including the vocational skills the Tories neglected.”
Top line: There are fewer teachers in schools…
Keir Starmer has now attacked Elon Musk for apparently trying to “whip up division” in Britain over Henry Nowak’s murder. He said the Brits need to “assert who we are” as “reasonable, tolerant people”…
Starmer is on a trip to meet mayors apart from Andy Burnham and said: “We need to also assert who we are as a country, because Musk, again, has been interfering in our politics in the last few days, trying to whip up division – that is not who we are in Britain. In Britain, we are reasonable, tolerant people.” On the substance – the police’s conduct – he could only say that “there are questions that need to be answered” and that the Independent Office for Police Conduct should be given space to “get on with their job” in its investigation. The easiest get-out in the book…
He added: “I think it’s right that there may need to be changes and we shouldn’t shy away from that.” Compare and contrast to the hysteria after the death of George Floyd…
Starmer also backed Labour MP Jess Asato, who is suing Musk’s xAI in the High Court. Asato alleges that Grok users created non-consensual fake sexualised images of her and argues xAI breached data protection and misuse of private information laws by allowing the images to be generated. The case is a test of whether liability attaches to the AI maker or users…
British construction output fell at its fastest pace in six years in May, according to new statistics. Spades far from the ground…
The headline S&P PMI dropped to 38.2 from 39.7 in April, the seventeenth straight month below the neutral 50 mark, indicating shrinkage. Outside the pandemic, this is the steepest contraction since March 2009. Residential activity was the worst-performing segment – firms blamed unfavourable market conditions and elevated borrowing costs…
New orders also fell at the fastest rate in six year. Some firms explicitly cited domestic political uncertainty as hitting demand – thanks Andy…
Lucy Powell told Sky News that the Ed Miliband-Russell Brand interview happened in part because the ‘social media age’ had not begun by 2015:
“Look, I mean, he approached the Labour Party, he approached the campaign team, and we’re in very different times now. We weren’t in the social media age at the time – where you could maybe search things up and see allegations about somebody at the time. and as I say, if there was any suggestion at all, we were dealing with someone who was a known sexual predator at the time, then, of course, you know, no one would have done that. But as I say, he was a well known public figure. Lots of people from Hollywood to the BBC to many others gave this person a very, very powerful platform. And we didn’t know at the time, unfortunately. It was a different era.”