Tories are ‘gifting’ Runcorn to Reform, Labour says, as Badenoch claims unhealthy native election end result gained’t be all the way down to her – UK politics dwell

Steven Morris is a Guardian reporter overlaying the west of England and Wales.

The future generations commissioner for Wales, Derek Walker, has warned that the nation shouldn’t be on track to satisfy well being, local weather and nature objectives.

Walker is main a future generations motion summit on the Nationwide Museum Cardiff, which marks the tenth anniversary of the Future Generations Act, which was a world first.

He has produced 50 suggestions on local weather and nature, tradition and the Welsh language, the well-being economic system and well being that he says are wanted to guard, assist and make life higher for future generations.

Walker mentioned:

Wales has led the way in which for the previous 10 years with our collective imaginative and prescient for a Cymru that’s defending future generations, however we’re not on track to satisfy our well being, local weather and nature objectives that can get us there.

Future generations will dwell with the implications of each resolution we take to enhance folks’s lives. We’ve to work quick to scale up the nice examples of change, and create extra advantages for everyone as we decarbonise, restore nature, enhance public well being and create native jobs and an economic system that works for folks and planet.

His suggestions embody:

• Extra involvement of individuals in shaping insurance policies and constructing belief, together with by way of motion like a Group Proper to Purchase Act to empower communities to take possession of valued native buildings, land, and group property, similar to theatres and wind farms.

• A protracted-term plan to enhance Wales’ meals safety and guarantee equal entry to native, inexpensive, wholesome and sustainable diets.

Below the Future Generations Act, the commissioner is appointed to problem the Welsh authorities “to make decisions in the best interests of people who aren’t born yet”.

This morning the Occasions has splashed on the information that ministers are planning to increase the suger tax. In their story, Max Kendix and Chris Smyth say:

Milkshakes and lattes are set to be hit by a sugar tax for the primary time as Labour strikes to increase the levy to tons of extra smooth drinks together with Pepsi and Ribena.

Pre-packaged milkshakes and coffees shall be lined by the levy, ministers signalled on Monday, ending an exemption they described as an anomaly. The current legal guidelines have primarily affected fizzy drinks.

In a transfer that goes additional than anticipated, ministers mentioned it was time to be extra formidable on unhealthy drinks, saying that they will even decrease the sugar content material threshold at which the tax applies, catching a few of Britain’s best-known manufacturers and grocery store merchandise which had modified recipes to keep away from the earlier levy.

Tax charges on sugary drinks will even rise 27 per cent over the parliament to make up for a freeze since 2018, ministers confirmed.

Requested about this in her interview on BBC Breakfast, Kemi Badenoch mentioned that she was not eager on the sugar tax anyway, even the unique model launched by her celebration. She mentioned:

I wasn’t a fan of it when this legislation was introduced in. It really first got here in underneath the Conservatives. I believed it was a bit an excessive amount of nanny state.

However now we have a sugar tax already. My fear is that the federal government doesn’t have any plans, didn’t have any technique, and they also’re simply on the lookout for what else they will tax.

Taxing shouldn’t be the way in which to get the economic system rising. Simply merely going again for an increasing number of taxes at a time when companies are closing down, they’re not hiring – Labour has been making the fallacious selections on the economic system throughout the border.

I don’t assume that that is going to make a lot of a further distinction. I believe the legislation of diminishing returns tends to use if you preserve simply doing the identical factor repeatedly and anticipating outsized returns.

With regards to Gaza, I used to be requested yesterday if I may submit the Downing Avenue readout of Keir Starmer’s talks yesterday afternoon with Mohammad Mustafa, prime minister of the Palestinian authority. Right here it’s. A No 10 spokesperson mentioned:

The prime minister started by expressing his honest condolences for the appalling lack of life in Gaza. He mentioned that the UK doesn’t assist the resumption in hostilities, that are in no person’s pursuits. He added that the UK will proceed to press for a return to the ceasefire as a primary step to a long-lasting peace, and reiterated that the return of humanitarian support into Gaza is crucial.

He additionally mentioned that we should not lose sight of the state of affairs within the West Financial institution, the place illegal settlement and violence is of deep concern.

Discussing the Arab Plan for Gaza, the prime minister shared the UK’s assist for the Palestinian authority’s reform programme, which he mentioned is crucial. The leaders agreed {that a} strategic political framework shall be needed as a part of the implementation of a two-state resolution, and that Hamas should have no function in Gaza’s governance.

They each agreed that the UK would proceed to work intently with the Palestinian authority and regional companions to discover a constructive method ahead, and ship lasting peace and safety for Israelis and Palestinians alike.

Kneecap, the Irish language rap group from Belfast, have apologised to the households of murdered MPs David Amess and Jo Cox after footage emerged during which the Irish-language rappers purportedly name for politicians to be killed, Jamie Grierson reviews.

Right here is an extract from the Kneecap assertion, which has been posted on Bluesky.

Allow us to be unequivocal: we don’t, and have by no means, supported Hamas or Hezbollah. We condemn all assaults on civilians, at all times. It’s by no means okay. We all know this greater than anybody, given our nation’s historical past.

We additionally reject any suggestion that we’d search to incite violence towards any MP or particular person. Ever. An extract of footage, intentionally taken out of all context, is now being exploited and weaponised, as if it had been a name to motion.

This distortion shouldn’t be solely absurd – it’s a clear effort to derail the true dialog.

All two million Palestinian folks in Gaza are at present being starved to demise by Israel.

Not less than 20,000 youngsters in Gaza have been killed. The British authorities continues to produce arms to Israel, even after scores of NHS docs warned Keir Starmer in August that youngsters had been being systematically executed with sniper pictures to the top.

Yvette Cooper, the house secretary, was doing a media spherical this morning to debate the international intercourse offenders announcement. Requested in regards to the energy cuts in Spain and Portugal, and whether or not the UK may very well be affected in the identical method, she advised Sky Information the UK has a “continued approach” to “resilience” and “security issues”. She mentioned:

We’ve been wanting, as a part of wider safety evaluations throughout the nation, how we cope with each resilience and in addition totally different sorts of challenges and threats.

A few of which might be the standard safety challenges, a few of which might be the sorts of resilience – issues that we’re speaking about in Spain and Portugal – and we clearly assist them and the governments there within the work that they’re doing.

Good morning. There are two days left till the native elections in England and, conveniently maybe for Labour campaigners, the federal government’s foremost announcement is a few plan to cease intercourse offenders claiming asylum within the UK. Rajeev Syal has the small print right here.

The federal government is saying this now as a result of it’ll change the legislation by way of an modification to the border safety, asylum and immigration invoice, which has already completed its committee stage within the Commons and can quickly get its report stage (the final likelihood for an modification earlier than the invoice goes to the Lords). Immigration coverage shouldn’t be a matter for native authorities, however Labour will nonetheless be hoping that at the moment’s headlines could be at the least marginally useful as folks take into consideration how you can vote.

With the Conservatives anticipated to lose round 500 council seats, in line with one forecast, these needs to be troublesome elections for Kemi Badenoch. However she gained’t be taking it personally, she advised BBC Breakfast this morning in an interview. Requested if a nasty end result could be a vote on her personal “personal popularity as leader”, Badenoch replied:

No, I don’t. We had a historic defeat final yr, and it’s going to take a while for us to get again on monitor. I’m working to rebuild public belief, letting the nation know that the Conservative celebration is underneath new management. However as we noticed with earlier oppositions, it took 14 years, 13 years and 18 years to return again. I’ve solely been chief for six months. It’s going to take some time to repair the issues which we had from final yr.

There’s additionally a byelection on Thursday, in Runcorn and Helsby, the place Labour had a majority of just about 15,000 on the final election. The constituency is counting in a single day, which signifies that on Friday morning, when loads of the native election outcomes gained’t but be in (many councils depend on the Friday, not in a single day, as a result of it’s simpler), the election evening narrative shall be decided largely by the Runcorn end result. Reform UK hope they will win, and that might be a formidable present of power (regardless that events that pull off superb byelection victories don’t usually carry out so effectively at common elections). Given what has occurred to the Westminster expectations thermometer, even a slim Labour win could be a great end result for Keir Starmer.

And the Conservatives? Based on Labour, they’ve given up completely within the seat. That is what Ellie Reeves, Labour’s chair, advised HuffPost UK.

The Tories aren’t doing something. [Tory MP] Esther McVey principally mentioned the Tories ought to sit it out and let Reform win, and we’re seeing that on the bottom.

They’re not doing any work on the bottom in any respect, it appears to be like like they’re simply gifting it to Reform.

Reeves, in fact, has obtained an incentive to maximise the ‘Keep Reform out’ vote in Runcorn. However that doesn’t imply she’s fallacious, and it could be stunning if she is. The Tories wrote off their probabilities on this seat a while in the past, and it could make sense for them to deploy marketing campaign assets elsewhere.

Right here is the agenda for the day.

9.30am: Keir Starmer chairs cupboard.

Morning: Ed Davey, the Lib Dem chief, is campaigning in East Anglia.

10am: Comedy trade figures, together with the podcaster Matt Forde, give proof to the Commons tradition committee in regards to the state of dwell comedy.

2.20pm: Jack Thorne, creater of the Netflix present Adolescence, and Emily Feller, its co-executive producer, give proof to the Commons ladies and equalities committee on misogyny amongst younger males and boys.

2.30pm: Andy Burnham, Larger Manchester mayor, and Kim McGuinness, North East mayor, give proof to the Commons enterprise committee about industrial technique.

Afternoon: Kemi Badenoch is campaigning within the south-west of England.

Afternoon: Nigel Farage, the Reform UK chief, is campaigning in Scunthorpe with Andrea Jenkyns, the celebration’s candidate for Larger Lincolnshire mayor.

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