Newslinks for Sunday 11th December 2022 | Conservative Home

Sunak puts Brexit bill ‘on ice’ as hopes rise of EU deal

“Rishi Sunak has put the Northern Ireland Brexit protocol bill on ice until the new year after private talks with Brussels paved the way for a new deal by February. Senior officials say the bill will not be returned to the Lords this year, giving negotiators time to thrash out new trade rules for a St Valentine’s Day agreement. The bill is designed to give Britain the right to unilaterally suspend aspects of the protocol, including excessive border checks, if there is no deal with Brussels. But even Lord Caine, the minister in charge of pushing the bill through the Lords, has privately raised questions about whether it may break international law. Caine said he did not recognise the remarks attributed to him. Any delay to the bill will make the European Research Group…suspicious…” – The Sunday Times

• Truly dreadful stuff from Secretary of State for Northern Ireland – Arlene Foster, Sunday Express

>Today:

Small boats 1) He is planning to ‘seize control’ of the Channel migrants crisis as Red Wall MPs are ‘losing patience’

“Rishi Sunak is planning to ‘seize control’ of the Channel migrants crisis by announcing a crackdown this week on the Albanian people-traffickers linked to the majority of cases. Whitehall sources said the Prime Minister was ‘looking at all options’ to fast-track the return of Albanians who come to the UK, including the use of the Albanian police to check criminal records. It comes as the Prime Minister is under mounting pressure from Red Wall Tory MPs to tackle the issue. Tory MP Lee Anderson tells today’s Mail on Sunday that his Nottinghamshire constituents are ‘losing patience’ with the Government… In what appears to be a veiled threat to leave the Tories, Mr Anderson adds: ‘My party can be a force for good in this great country, but it isn’t yet choosing to be.” – The Mail on Sunday

• Asylum seekers in hotels ‘could be recruited by extremist groups’ – The Sunday Telegraph
• Britain has always been a tolerant country that has looked after refugees. Yet today our warmth and generosity are being abused by the criminal gangs trafficking people to our shores – Lee Anderson, The Mail on Sunday

Small boats 2) Braverman ‘prepares to announce’ a ‘crackdown’ on Albanian immigration ‘within days’

“Suella Braverman is preparing to announce a crackdown on Albanian immigrants within days. It comes as shock stats show a staggering 12,000 Albanians have still not had their asylum claims processed after being in Britain for six months. Rishi Sunak has told Tory MPs in private that fixing Britain’s broken borders is his “number one priority”. He has been holed up in No10 working with the Home Secretary on a top secret plan to get tough on Channel boat migrants. One senior government insider told The Sun on Sunday: “We want to say something soon – before Christmas.” A full package of measures to crack down on Channel boats, slash the ballooning hotel bill for asylum seekers and send back bogus claimants is expected in the New Year.” – The Sun on Sunday

Hunt ‘faces Tory rebellion’ over £7 billion government spending ‘on ‘woke’ projects’…

“MPs have written to the Chancellor to demand that ministers cut spending on equality and diversity measures and grants to charities and quangos in order to reduce taxes. Their letter criticises Mr Hunt’s decision to “tax the British public at levels not seen since the end of the Second World War”, and to “spend more public money in 2023 and 2024 than at any point since the mid-1970s”. It comes ahead of the publication of a new report by the Conservative Way Forward group on Monday, which will claim that £7 billion of public money is spent on “politically motivated and divisive activities” each year. The group’s research is based on an audit of government accounts and Freedom of Information requests to 6,000 public bodies…” – The Sunday Telegraph

…as the Chancellor is warned his ‘tourist tax’ on foreign visitors could ‘spark the loss’ of more than 100,000 jobs

“A controversial ‘tourist tax’ on foreign visitors imposed by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt could mean the loss of more than 100,000 jobs, according to an in-depth analysis shown to the Government. The levy could also mean that Britain forfeits up to £6 billion in tourist spending to other countries, particularly in Europe where overseas travellers are offered tax incentives to spend in shops. Bosses at Harrods and Selfridges have joined a chorus of business leaders demanding a review of Mr Hunt’s decision to scrap VAT-free shopping for international visitors. They say it puts London at a serious disadvantage to rival cities, including Paris and Madrid which are said to be targeting visitors from outside the European Union…by promoting the incentive at airports and shopping destinations.” – The Mail on Sunday

Strikes 1) Barclay says NHS strikes ‘pose a significant risk to patients’ as up to 100,000 nurses ‘prepare to walk out’ this week

“Steve Barclay today warns NHS strikes pose “significant risk” to patients. The Health Secretary said he was “deeply concerned” about the impact of walkouts by nurses and ambulance crews on the sick. They are his toughest comments yet and come as Brits prepare to be hit by the biggest wave of crippling strikes since the early 1980s. Up to 100,000 nurses will walk out this Thursday and the following Tuesday in their first ever national strike. Ambulance crews will down tools next week. And rail workers, posties, and border force staff are all staging rolling strikes…Yet dozens of… Labour MPs are preparing to join the picket lines… The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) are striking over pay after demanding inflation-busting pay rise of 19 per cent.” – The Sun on Sunday

• Britain’s ‘new lockdown’: strikes bring the country to a standstill – The Sunday Times
• Strike action to shut down most of UK rail network next week – The Financial Times
• How long can the unions afford to go on strike? – The Sunday Times
• The only thing NHS strikes will serve up this Christmas is untold misery to millions needing vital care – Editorial, The Sun on Sunday
• A lesson from Mrs Thatcher on how to tame the unions and inflation – Editorial, The Mail on Sunday
• The outlook is not so gloomy, so the strikes can be resolved – Editorial, The Sunday Times
• My ‘deep concerns’ about the ‘risk’ of NHS strikes to patients – Steve Barclay, The Sun on Sunday
• Politicians used to have a vision to save the NHS. You won’t hear them being so bold today – Robert Colville, The Sunday Times
• Sunak has vowed to act tough to end the winter of discontent. But does anyone really believe him? – Dan Hodges, The Mail on Sunday
• No driver, no conductor, no timetable, no plan – Ed Conway, The Sunday Times
• It’s time to stand up to the union bullies, Sunak – Tony Parsons, The Sun on Sunday
• Militant trade unions are in for a shock if they think we’ll tolerate 70s chaos – Janet Daley, The Sunday Telegraph

Strikes 2) Labour joins ‘bullyboy’ Health Secretary in war against ‘hostile’ health unions

“Labour’s shadow health secretary has joined ‘bullyboy’ Steve Barclay in hitting out at ‘hostile’ health unions as he promised to take on ‘vested interests’ to reform the NHS. Wes Streeting targeted the BMA trade union, which represents doctors and medical students, as he urged his party colleagues to see the NHS as a ‘service not a shrine’. It follows Health Secretary Steve Barclay who slammed NHS unions on Saturday night after he allegedly failed to agree to negotiations on pay which could have seen a pause to strikes and saved 15,000 operations from being cancelled. The Royal College of Nursing had offered to ‘press pause’ on planned strike action if Mr Barclay agrees to negotiate properly on pay, amid fears that the winter walkouts will cripple an already struggling NHS.” – The Mail on Sunday

• Streeting says NHS must ‘reform or die’ – The Sunday Telegraph
• Health unions ‘offer to pause’ NHS strikes if the Government joins pay talks – The Observer
• Tell union leaders not to coordinate strikes, Tories ‘urge’ Starmer – The Sunday Telegraph
• NHS patients to be sent to private hospitals for treatment as nurses strike – The Sunday Telegraph
• Starmer must get touch with militant unions causing misery for millions if he wants to be Prime Minister – Ian Austin, The Sun on Sunday

Ministers ‘hold out’ against proposal on reporting hospitality in new MPs’ code

“Rishi Sunak’s government is expected to accept most of a proposed new code of conduct for MPs after the Owen Paterson scandal but has rejected the idea that ministers should declare more details about free hospitality from lobbyists and companies. MPs will debate the proposals put forward by the standards committee on Monday, with Penny Mordaunt, the leader of the House of Commons, likely to accept 18 of the 20 recommendations. Key measures include tightening the rules on lobbying to stop MPs providing paid parliamentary advice, consultancy or strategy. However… the government is holding out against a proposal to ask ministers to register with parliament any hospitality provided by third parties worth more than £300 within 28 days…” – The Guardian

Truss ‘still thinks Trussonomics was right’ and she is ‘selling her message in America’…

“If Liz Truss had still been prime minister she would have been in Montreal this week, attending Cop15 — the international summit to preserve biodiversity. The less glamorous cousin of Cop27 — the climate change summit — is not usually attended by world leaders. But Truss had been planning to call in favours with Emmanuel Macron and Justin Trudeau to up the world leader count…Instead, Truss was last week pictured on Twitter sitting alone in a coffee shop in Washington, where she attended the IDU Forum, a summit of global conservatives. She was invited by Stephen Harper, a former prime minister of Canada. There were no Truss speeches or formal engagements, just a series of networking meetings with others, some of whom have also been ejected from office.” – The Sunday Times

• ‘I haven’t lost the war’ she reportedly claims, as she turns to the United States – Sunday Express

…as Kwarteng admits he ‘got carried away’ writing his mini-Budget

“Kwasi Kwarteng has admitted he and Liz Truss “got carried away” when they wrote the disastrous mini-budget that led to both of them leaving their jobs just weeks after they entered Downing Street. Kwarteng announced a raft of tax cuts without any reduction in spending in September, which led to the pound crashing against the dollar, pension funds nearly collapsing, a £65bn Bank of England bailout, soaring mortgage costs, and the cost of government borrowing increasing. He also said he would remove the cap on bankers’ bonuses. The MP for Spelthorne, who was sacked by Truss after 38 days, has now said that the then prime minister and her team had lost perspective on the budget and its political or financial consequences.” – The Guardian

Cruddas backing new Tory movement aiming to ‘take back control’ of the party

A billionaire Conservative donor is backing a new movement so grassroots Tories can “take back control” of the party following the ousting of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. The move by Lord Cruddas comes after Tory MPs put Rishi Sunak in No 10 without a ballot of ordinary members. The new Conservative Democratic Organisation has already been compared to Momentum – the Labour group that helped Left-wingers secure their grip on the party during the Jeremy Corbyn years. According to the campaign, rank-and-file Tories feel they are held in “utter contempt by party leaders” and that “their views count for nothing”. The CDO will fight for a raft of reforms to “restore democracy” in the party and steer it “back to the centre-right”.” – Sunday Express

Frost ‘could stand’ as a Conservative MP at the next election…’ahead of a possible leadership bid’

“Former Brexit Minister Lord Frost is considering standing as a Conservative candidate at the next General Election – ahead of a possible leadership bid if the Tories lose to Sir Keir Starmer. Friends of the peer who dramatically quit last year – criticising restrictions to try to contain Covid – say that he has alerted Tory headquarters to his interest in becoming an MP. A source said: ‘If he does stand, it will be because he thinks he has a chance to lead the party at some point.’ A Friend added: ‘Frosty has indicated his interest in standing next time and had a couple of conversations with people in the party. He will consider whether it is a runner in the New Year. When he quit a year ago, he cited concern over the ‘direction of travel’ under Boris Johnson…” – The Mail on Sunday

Hancock ‘plans new career in serious documentaries’

“Matt Hancock is planning a series of “serious documentaries” on assisted dying and dyslexia in his life after public office, The Telegraph understands. Allies of the former health secretary said he believes he should put his public platform to good use and educate the public about political issues after his appearances on reality TV shows. Mr Hancock last week announced that he plans to stand down from Parliament at the next election, telling Rishi Sunak he had “discovered a whole world of possibilities” outside Westminster, including “new ways … to communicate with people of all ages and from all backgrounds”. He is understood to have received offers from major broadcasters and is considering a new career as a documentary presenter.” – The Sunday Telegraph

The Bank of England ‘set to spoil the festive mood’ with another interest rate rise

“Bank of England officials are expected to take their foot off the accelerator when they meet this week to decide by how much the cost of borrowing should increase. The prospect of a year-long recession that will hit living standards, cut business investment and damage the long-term productive capacity of the British economy might have made them think twice about any increase at all, but the betting in the financial markets is that a 0.5-percentage-point rise on Thursday looks certain. At the central bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting last month, interest rates were pushed up by 0.75 percentage points to 3%, so this week’s rise will probably rate as a more modest twist of the knife for mortgage holders.” – The Observer

Daniel Hannan: First Gordon Brown broke the constitution – now he wants to see it burn

“Gordon Brown is as constant and unchanging as a slab of Grampian granite. Whatever the problem, his solution is always the same: more regulators, more politicians, more money. His proposals for constitutional reform (which we should take seriously, since the latest poll shows Labour 27 points ahead) are a rehash of the reforms he oversaw in the late 1990s. In essence, he wants politics professionalised, formalised and invigilated. That approach was not exactly a roaring success the first time around. Paying councillors did not improve the quality of local government. Scottish devolution did not, as George Robertson had promised in 1995, “kill nationalism stone dead”. Outside regulators did not make MPs more honest…Yet, undeterred, Brown proposes more of the same.” – The Sunday Telegraph

• Abandoning the reform agenda to Labour – Editorial, The Sunday Telegraph
• Starmer huffs and puffs for the centre ground, but he isn’t going to find many voters there – Rod Liddle, The Sunday Times

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