Civil Servants have just been told that the Home Office is creating a new “Europe Hub” in the government’s latest push for closer ties with the EU. The unit will sit within the International Strategy, Engagement and Devolution Directorate and “will have responsibility for ensuring that our strategic approach to this work is coherent, working collaboratively across the Department.” The strategic approach being – give up Brexit freedoms to cosy up to the Commission…
Home Office Permanent Secretary and arch-pen-pusher Matthew Rycroft pours adulation on the new unit:
“With shared global challenges in areas such as irregular migration, a strong UK-EU alliance is vital. This work is critical to the Home Secretary’s priorities for the Department on border security, safer streets and our national security.”
Dan Hobbs, Director General of the Migration and Borders Group, will lead the new unit after Starmer’s visit to Brussels this month paved the way for saccharine relations between Starmer and Von der Leyen. Expect the hard graft of Labour’s rejoin efforts to be done in this unit…
Speaking to Sky News off the back of Rachel Reeves’ Air Passenger Duty hike, Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary said:
“Labour is dependent on those Red Wall seats, and yet every move she makes poisons economic growth and damages the UK’s recovery… it’s the Chancellor who stumbles from policy misstep to policy misstep… I think her policy decisions are incredibly stupid.”