The Guardian

Starmer condemns ‘intolerable, racist’ riots during Northern Ireland visit – as it happened

By Tom Ambrose,

10 hours ago

5.01pm BST

Closing summary

Prime minister Keir Starmer has described the race related disorder in Northern Ireland as “intolerable”. He was speaking during a visit to the province and meeting frontline officers who dealt with the violence and members of ethnic minority communities targeted. Starmer noted that many PSNI officers had sustained injuries trying to quell the recent unrest.
Scottish Tory MSP Russell Findlay launched his campaign to become leader with a promise to inject “the Ruth Davidson mojo” back into the party while insisting he had “full faith” in the transparency of the contest after allegations last week suggesting a plot to install him a year ago. Last Friday, another of the candidates standing to replace Douglas Ross as leader, Meghan Gallacher, resigned as the party’s deputy because of “deeply troubling” allegations about Ross’s conduct over the leadership contest.
There are “obvious issues” around timing and the cost of developing Casement Park, the prime minister has said. The derelict west Belfast ground has been earmarked to host five matches in the showpiece football tournament, Euro 2028, being played in the UK and Ireland. However, the funding required to rebuild the stadium in time for the tournament is not in place, prompting concerns that the delays will see Belfast missing out.
Ministers have activated emergency measures to ease prison overcrowding as more rioters are sentenced for their role in the recent unrest. The longstanding measures , known as Operation Early Dawn, allow defendants to be held in police cells until prison beds become available and could mean their court dates are delayed or adjourned at short notice. The system was activated on Monday morning and means some defendants across the north of England waiting for a court appearance will be kept in police cells until prison space is available.
The vice-president of the Prison Governors’ Association has said he is “not sure” how much Operation Early Dawn will help the prisons crisis. Mark Icke told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I’m not sure it does help, today, tomorrow, the next day, because, as was just suggested, we have been lurching from crisis to crisis for some time. Running a prison is an incredibly complex business and so we don’t know which way to turn at the moment.”
Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie has announced he is standing down from the role, citing “irreconcilable differences” with party officers among his reasons. Beattie had been in the role since May 2021.
In a statement, Beattie said it has been a “huge honour” to lead the Ulster Unionist Party but added: “It has not been easy and at times it has been both lonely and isolating. I am no stranger to leadership and that is how it often feels in taking a toll both physically and mentally. It also strains friendships and political relationships,” Beattie said.
Sinn Féin’s vice-president Michelle O’Neill has said the party will take a “constructive approach” with the new leader of the UUP, as Beattie steps down. In a statement, O’Neill said: “I want to wish Doug Beattie and his family well as he announces today that he will step down as leader of the UUP. We have worked constructively since he became leader of his party, including during the restoration of the Executive and institutions at the beginning of this year.”
Suella Braverman is the latest senior Tory to be cashing in on the international speaking circuit, as it was revealed she was paid nearly £60,000 for making speeches around the world, the highest of any current MP. The former home secretary received £25,000 to speak in South Korea in May, according to the first register of MPs’ financial interests of this parliament, and she received £20,000 for another speaking engagement in India in March.
Children’s commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza has warned child strip-searches should only take place if a life is at risk. Dame Rachel told BBC Breakfast: “My argument is, they should only be done if it’s a life-threatening situation. Let me just remind viewers, this is pre-arrest, this is a child that’s just a suspicion, they’re taken – there’s meant to be an appropriate adult there: in 45% of cases there are not. And their clothes are removed, and their most intimate parts are looked at and moved if necessary.”
SNP MSP John Mason said he had not foreseen losing the whip over his social media post about Israel , saying: “I’m not someone who foresees the future exactly, but sometimes you have to do the right thing and just take the consequences.” He had written on X that the country’s actions in Gaza did not amount to “genocide”.
Jacob Rees-Mogg has said he is “very strongly” considering standing at the next general election after losing his seat to Labour. The former Tory cabinet minister told an audience at the Edinburgh fringe festival that the Conservatives had “deserved” to lose the recent election, and that he was not shocked after losing his North East Somerset and Hanham seat to the mayor of the West of England Dan Norris by more than 5,000 votes. Rees-Mogg had won it from Norris in 2010.
A Foreign Office official has resigned over the UK’s refusal to ban arms exports to Israel because of alleged breaches of international law. Mark Smith, a counter-terrorism official based at the British embassy in Dublin, said he had resigned after making numerous internal complaints, including through an official whistleblowing mechanism, but receiving nothing but pro-forma responses.
Rachel Reeves has been warned by Britain’s biggest manufacturers that her autumn budget must address a decade of decline in national infrastructure that is damaging economic growth. More than half of manufacturers surveyed by the industry group Make UK said that the country’s national road infrastructure had deteriorated in the last 10 years, making it slower and more expensive to build and export British products.
The number of asylum seekers who have died in the care of the Home Office has more than doubled in the last year, according to data shared with the Guardian, a development that has been described as “deeply troubling”. While some deaths were a result of illness or old age, others are thought to have happened as a result of suicide. Charities fear that the treatment of asylum seekers in the UK has adversely affected the health of an already vulnerable group of people.

That’s all from me, Tom Ambrose, and indeed the UK politics live blog for today. Thanks for following along and see you tomorrow.

4.51pm BST

A senior Scottish minister has said his government will refuse to meet with Israeli officials until there is peace in Gaza after furious criticisms of a meeting earlier this month.

Angus Robertson, Scotland’s external affairs secretary, apologised on Monday after senior figures in the Scottish National party reacted angrily to his decision to hold a secret meeting with Daniela Grudsky Ekstein, Israel’s deputy ambassador to the UK.

Critics called for Robertson to be suspended and demanded an urgent debate at next month’s SNP conference, accusing him of trying to normalise relations with Israel.

One veteran Holyrood backbencher, Christine Grahame, reportedly protested to John Swinney , the first minister. She said her constituents were shocked the meeting had happened, and described Robertson as “a liability”.

4.25pm BST

4.03pm BST

Unionism is entering a “new chapter” as Doug Beattie steps down as UUP leader, the deputy first minister has said.

In a social media post, Emma Little-Pengelly said: “Wishing Doug Beattie MC all the very best as he steps down from his leadership role in the Ulster Unionist Party.”

The DUP MLA for Lagan Valley added: “Unionism moves forward into a new chapter – one in which we must seize the opportunity to secure and strengthen our union, together.”

3.31pm BST

Scottish Tory MSP Russell Findlay launched his campaign to become leader with a promise to inject “the Ruth Davidson mojo” back into the party while insisting he had “full faith” in the transparency of the contest after allegations last week suggesting a plot to install him a year ago.

Last Friday, another of the candidates standing to replace Douglas Ross as leader, Meghan Gallacher, resigned as the party’s deputy because of “deeply troubling” allegations about Ross’s conduct over the leadership contest.

And the four other leadership candidates – Murdo Fraser, Jamie Greene, Liam Kerr and Brian Whittle – issued a joint statement questioning the “transparency and fairness” of the contest.

The Telegraph last on Thursday reported that senior party figures alleged Ross had planned to quit as leader a year ago and install Findlay – who remains the favourite to replace him.

Findlay, who has insisted he knew nothing of this plot, said he was “disappointed” by last week’s revelations. “I know that if I do get the job this first thing I need to do it try and bring the group together and repair some of that damage.”

He said that, under his leadership, the party would “stand up for mainstream Scotland” and the world beyond Holyrood’s “fringe obsessions and right-on causes”, saying that he believed in decency, value for money in public services and protecting both women’s rights and free speech.

He also pledged to inject some “optimism, energy and enthusiasm” that had been the hallmark of former leader Davidson, who took the Scottish tories to second place at Holyrood.

There was a distinctly macho 70s undertone to the event, with Findlay being introduced on stage by supporters as a man who “always had great-looking girlfriends” and “fought back against the criminals” – to be fair, Findlay was attacked on his own doorstep in his previous role as a crime reporter.

Findlay also declined to answer a question about whether he had taken class A drugs in the past, but said he believed decriminalisation was the wrong approach to Scotland’s drug death crisis.

3.13pm BST

Starmer condemns 'intolerable, racist' riots in Northern Ireland

Prime minister Keir Starmer has described the race related disorder in Northern Ireland as “intolerable”.

He was speaking during a visit to the province and meeting frontline officers who dealt with the violence and members of ethnic minority communities targeted.

Starmer noted that many PSNI officers had sustained injuries trying to quell the recent unrest.

“My purpose was to say to them thank you for what they have done. We make big asks of them. They step up and they deserve our thanks,” he told reporters during his visit to the PSNI training college in east Belfast.

“I’ve also had the chance to speak with the PSNI senior leadership about the challenges that they face and the support that they need. And then, third, and very importantly, to speak to some of the communities most impacted about the fear that they have, the anxiety that they have about the recent disorder.

“The disorder is intolerable. It is incapable of justification. It’s clearly racist and it does not represent the modern, forward looking Northern Ireland that I know that this place is.”

The prime minister said he would work with the PSNI and all communities to address the disorder and its consequences.

Updated at 3.30pm BST

2.59pm BST

There are “obvious issues” around timing and the cost of developing Casement Park, the prime minister has said.

The derelict west Belfast ground has been earmarked to host five matches in the showpiece football tournament, Euro 2028, being played in the UK and Ireland.

However, the funding required to rebuild the stadium in time for the tournament is not in place, prompting concerns that the delays will see Belfast missing out.

Speaking to reporters during a visit to Belfast, Keir Starmer said: “Obviously there’s a joint venture, the UK and Ireland together in relation to the Euros.

“We want football played everywhere in support of those Euros. Casement Park, obviously, is important in that respect.

“There’s two obvious issues which are the timing and the cost - and that is why we’re looking at it. And in due course, we’ll be able to say more.”

2.34pm BST

UUP MLA Mike Nesbitt said Doug Beattie’s decision to step down as the party’s leader came as a “shock”.

Nesbitt, who is also a former UUP leader, said the party faces a challenge in addressing internal matters, PA reported.

Asked on RTÉ radio if he was sorry to see Beattie go, Nesbitt said: “I am because I was the man who brought Doug Beattie into the party.

“His first engagement was at a party conference when he was speaking at a fringe event.

“He was so impressive that when I got the leadership, one of my first determinations was to try and attract them in as an elected representative, and I’ve been very supportive of them during the years, and I’m very sorry to see him step down.”

Asked if he would consider returning as leader, the minister for health said he had not given that possibility a “millisecond’s thought”.

1.54pm BST

The Irish deputy premier, Micheal Martin , said outgoing UUP leader Doug Beattie guided his party through “numerous challenges”.

Martin said: “I’ve always appreciated his emphasis on making politics work & the constructive relationship we built. I know he will continue to lead by example whatever the future holds.

“A strong relationship between this government and political leaders in Northern Ireland is vital - I look forward to building the same ties with Doug’s successor.”

1.41pm BST

DUP leader: we must work on maximising pro-Union vote

There is a need to work on maximising the pro-Union vote in future elections, the DUP leader, Gavin Robinson , has said while paying tribute to outgoing UUP leader Doug Beattie.

In a statement reported by PA Media, Robinson said: “I called Doug earlier to give him my best wishes. As leaders within unionism, we had many shared interests. Whilst we differed over tactics, there is no doubt that Doug is a committed Unionist who wants to see Northern Ireland remain firmly within the United Kingdom.

“Divisions within unionism have handed seats to non-unionists at council level, in the NI Assembly and most recently in the Westminster elections.

“The election of a new UUP Leader is a matter for UUP members but top of my priorities for the new leader will be discussions about how we maximise the pro-Union vote in future elections.”

Updated at 1.45pm BST

1.38pm BST

The Northern Ireland secretary, Hillary Benn , has thanked outgoing UUP leader Doug Beattie for his “commendable leadership”.

In a statement, Benn said: “It is clear that he has always sought to act in NI’s best interests and I know he will continue to do so.

“I look forward to working closely with his successor.”

1.26pm BST

Prison crowding emergency measures could be triggered several times over next few weeks, No 10 says

Authorities could trigger and deactivate emergency plans to ease prison overcrowding in northern England several times over the next few weeks.

A Downing Street spokesperson said she expects the area will “move in and out of” Operation Early Dawn during “short periods of significant pressure”.

She said: “It is a pre-existing contingency measure that is used for short periods – a matter of days or weeks to manage immediate, localised pressures on the prison estate.”

The spokesperson added No 10 understood the last time Operation Early Dawn was used was for “around seven or eight days, and it’s possible, to manage immediate pressures, we’ll move in and out of this operation over the next few weeks, exactly to manage what are short periods of significant pressure, but we’ll keep that under constant review and activate or deactivate for those kinds of short periods as is necessary”.

She added: “The purpose of it is to support very localised coordination between police stations, the prison services and the courts.

“It’s actually to ensure that nobody is taken to court unless there’s a guaranteed space for them should they be remanded, and it enables individuals to be held in a police station until they are summoned for court. So it’s about managing very local issues.”

Updated at 2.11pm BST

1.02pm BST

Lunchtime summary

Ministers have activated emergency measures to ease prison overcrowding as more rioters are sentenced for their role in the recent unrest. The longstanding measures , known as Operation Early Dawn, allow defendants to be held in police cells until prison beds become available and could mean their court dates are delayed or adjourned at short notice. The system was activated on Monday morning and means some defendants across the north of England waiting for a court appearance will be kept in police cells until prison space is available.
The vice-president of the Prison Governors’ Association has said he is “not sure” how much Operation Early Dawn will help the prisons crisis. Mark Icke told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I’m not sure it does help, today, tomorrow, the next day, because, as was just suggested, we have been lurching from crisis to crisis for some time. Running a prison is an incredibly complex business and so we don’t know which way to turn at the moment.”
Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie has announced he is standing down from the role, citing “irreconcilable differences” with party officers among his reasons. Beattie had been in the role since May 2021.
In a statement, Beattie said it has been a “huge honour” to lead the Ulster Unionist Party but added: “It has not been easy and at times it has been both lonely and isolating. I am no stranger to leadership and that is how it often feels in taking a toll both physically and mentally. It also strains friendships and political relationships,” Beattie said.
Sinn Féin’s vice-president Michelle O’Neill has said the party will take a “constructive approach” with the new leader of the UUP, as Beattie steps down. In a statement, O’Neill said: “I want to wish Doug Beattie and his family well as he announces today that he will step down as leader of the UUP. We have worked constructively since he became leader of his party, including during the restoration of the Executive and institutions at the beginning of this year.”
Suella Braverman is the latest senior Tory to be cashing in on the international speaking circuit, as it was revealed she was paid nearly £60,000 for making speeches around the world, the highest of any current MP. The former home secretary received £25,000 to speak in South Korea in May, according to the first register of MPs’ financial interests of this parliament, and she received £20,000 for another speaking engagement in India in March.
Children’s commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza has warned child strip-searches should only take place if a life is at risk. Dame Rachel told BBC Breakfast: “My argument is, they should only be done if it’s a life-threatening situation. Let me just remind viewers, this is pre-arrest, this is a child that’s just a suspicion, they’re taken – there’s meant to be an appropriate adult there: in 45% of cases there are not. And their clothes are removed, and their most intimate parts are looked at and moved if necessary.”
SNP MSP John Mason said he had not foreseen losing the whip over his social media post about Israel , saying: “I’m not someone who foresees the future exactly, but sometimes you have to do the right thing and just take the consequences.” He had written on X that the country’s actions in Gaza did not amount to “genocide”.
Jacob Rees-Mogg has said he is “very strongly” considering standing at the next general election after losing his seat to Labour. The former Tory cabinet minister told an audience at the Edinburgh fringe festival that the Conservatives had “deserved” to lose the recent election, and that he was not shocked after losing his North East Somerset and Hanham seat to the mayor of the West of England Dan Norris by more than 5,000 votes. Rees-Mogg had won it from Norris in 2010.
A Foreign Office official has resigned over the UK’s refusal to ban arms exports to Israel because of alleged breaches of international law. Mark Smith, a counter-terrorism official based at the British embassy in Dublin, said he had resigned after making numerous internal complaints, including through an official whistleblowing mechanism, but receiving nothing but pro-forma responses.
Rachel Reeves has been warned by Britain’s biggest manufacturers that her autumn budget must address a decade of decline in national infrastructure that is damaging economic growth. More than half of manufacturers surveyed by the industry group Make UK said that the country’s national road infrastructure had deteriorated in the last 10 years, making it slower and more expensive to build and export British products.
The number of asylum seekers who have died in the care of the Home Office has more than doubled in the last year, according to data shared with the Guardian, a development that has been described as “deeply troubling”. While some deaths were a result of illness or old age, others are thought to have happened as a result of suicide. Charities fear that the treatment of asylum seekers in the UK has adversely affected the health of an already vulnerable group of people.

12.39pm BST

Sinn Féin’s vice-president Michelle O’Neill has said the party will take a “constructive approach” with the new leader of the UUP, as Doug Beattie steps down.

In a statement, O’Neill said: “I want to wish Doug Beattie and his family well as he announces today that he will step down as leader of the UUP.

“We have worked constructively since he became leader of his party, including during the restoration of the Executive and institutions at the beginning of this year.”

The first minister added: “I will continue this constructive approach with the new leader of the UUP when they take up post.

“Sinn Féin will continue to work together with all parties in the Executive and Assembly to ensure we deliver for all.”

12.23pm BST

Suella Braverman is the latest senior Tory to be cashing in on the international speaking circuit, as it was revealed she was paid nearly £60,000 for making speeches around the world, the highest of any current MP.

The former home secretary received £25,000 to speak in South Korea in May, according to the first register of MPs’ financial interests of this parliament, and she received £20,000 for another speaking engagement in India in March.

Braverman also declared that she received £14,000 for articles she wrote for the Telegraph, and she also had an all-expenses trip to Israel worth £27,800 paid for by the National Jewish Assembly.

Last month Braverman declared she received £11,800 for a five-hour talk to a financial intelligence and risk control firm in London, and she also made a speech in Washington during which she was paid £6,500 in expenses for the trip by the Edmund Burke Foundation.

11.47am BST

England prison overcrowding emergency measures come into force

Ministers have activated emergency measures to ease prison overcrowding as more rioters are sentenced for their role in the recent unrest.

The longstanding measures , known as Operation Early Dawn, allow defendants to be held in police cells until prison beds become available and could mean their court dates are delayed or adjourned at short notice.

The system was activated on Monday morning and means some defendants across the north of England waiting for a court appearance will be kept in police cells until prison space is available.

The government said that its action to “tackle violent thuggery on our streets” had “exacerbated longstanding capacity issues in our prisons”.

James Timpson, the prisons minister, said: “We inherited a justice system in crisis and exposed to shocks. As a result, we have been forced into making difficult but necessary decisions to keep it operating.”

He said the emergency measures would help “manage the pressure felt in some parts of the country”. He added that anyone who posed a risk to the public “will not be bailed” and police’s ability to arrest criminals woud not be affected.

11.25am BST

Doug Beattie said he took over as leader at the beginning of a three-year election cycle with an overall aim of addressing the decline of the UUP, enhancing its influence and returning it to Westminster.

“Following the recent general election results, the party has now returned to the green benches after an absence of seven years,” he said.

“Our share of the vote had increased slightly, and we have also elevated a member to the House of Lords. This is something we have not achieved in 13 years; a move that demonstrates our increased influence at the highest levels of government.

“The party will now re-establish its parliamentary party to help increase our influence and ensure the Ulster Unionists’ voice, promoting a positive, optimistic, pro-union vision, is heard.

“These are small successes on the back of a difficult electoral results with a lot of work still to do, particularly in border constituencies. Nevertheless, they are successes which requires momentum to capitalise on the opportunities they present.”

11.03am BST

In a statement, Doug Beattie said it has been a “huge honour” to lead the Ulster Unionist Party but added: “It has not been easy and at times it has been both lonely and isolating.”

“I am no stranger to leadership and that is how it often feels in taking a toll both physically and mentally. It also strains friendships and political relationships,” Beattie said.

“It is now clear that some believe the momentum needed to keep the Ulster Unionist Party moving in the right direction cannot come from me.

“Irreconcilable differences between myself and party officers combined with the inability to influence and shape the party going forward means that I can no longer remain the party leader.

“Therefore, I shall stand down as the party leader and allow the party to immediately begin the process to select a new leader who may maintain the confidence of the party and continue the momentum I have started.

“It is important to acknowledge the loyalty and support from many within the party. This includes the MLA group and many other elected and non-elected members.

“I must also acknowledge that some did not agree with the direction and path I set for the party and the vision I promoted. I hope they can see that in the long term only an inclusive Ulster Unionist Party, promoting a positive message, can secure our future.

“I hope the new leader is given the freedom to act.”

10.45am BST

Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie steps down from role

Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie has announced he is standing down from the role, citing “irreconcilable differences” with party officers among his reasons.

Beattie had been in the role since May 2021.

More to follow as we get it.

10.30am BST

Police forces face a “big job” to adopt a safeguarding-first approach towards children and young people, Dame Rachel de Souza has said.

On BBC Breakfast, she said: “As Children’s commissioner, I get to talk to children everywhere. I talk to children in youth prison, children in schools, children in hospitals, children everywhere.

“And in fact, a million children recently have filled in my surveys on what they think about what they think the government should do.

“When I talk to them about the police, when they respond on the police, they say they know it’s a hard job, they know the police have to do tough things, they want to be protected by the police, but the police must be trustworthy and must keep the rules.

“I think that really says it all, and I think there are groups of young people who feel that isn’t the case and they’re unfairly, you know, picked on, and unfortunately, data like this shows that it does look like this is the case, or we certainly can’t say it’s not.

“So I think the police have a big job to do here in terms of listening to young people, especially those that are, you know, are from the black community and other communities that are disproportionately in these figures.”

Dame Rachel added: “It’s not always the big urban centres that are doing the largest amount of strip-searches. It’s right across the country. There’s a big job for the police to do in terms of listening to children and policing with a safeguarding-first approach.”

Updated at 10.44am BST

10.10am BST

Children’s commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza has warned child strip-searches should only take place if a life is at risk.

Dame Rachel told BBC Breakfast: “My argument is, they should only be done if it’s a life-threatening situation. Let me just remind viewers, this is pre-arrest, this is a child that’s just a suspicion, they’re taken – there’s meant to be an appropriate adult there: in 45% of cases there are not.

“And their clothes are removed, and their most intimate parts are looked at and moved if necessary.

“It’s really very intrusive and, you know, it’s hard to see, given that only about half of the strip-searches have further action taken - and a far smaller per cent actually end up with charges – that they’re being done because it’s really, really crucial for life and death that they’re being done.

“And that for me is the benchmark that really needs to be there.”

Updated at 10.10am BST

9.47am BST

The vice-president of the Prison Governors’ Association has said he is “not sure” how much Operation Early Dawn will help the prisons crisis.

Mark Icke told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I’m not sure it does help, today, tomorrow, the next day, because, as was just suggested, we have been lurching from crisis to crisis for some time.

“Running a prison is an incredibly complex business and so we don’t know which way to turn at the moment.”

He added that short term measures “are not ideal”.

“We have been highlighting this to the previous government, we’ve highlighted this to the new government, and we really do want to sit down and have a conversation about what the purpose of prison is moving forward,” he said.

“We cannot carry on operating in this kind of environment, it’s just too much pressure.”

Updated at 9.53am BST

9.47am BST

Opening summary

Good morning and welcome to our UK politics blog. We start with news that ministers have activated emergency measures to ease prison overcrowding as more rioters are sentenced for their role in the recent unrest.

The longstanding measures , known as Operation Early Dawn, allow defendants to be held in police cells until prison beds became available and could mean their court dates are delayed or adjourned at short notice.

Labour have already said that the previous Conservative administration failed to deal with prison overcrowding and on Monday the prisons and probation minister Lord Timpson said:

We inherited a justice system in crisis and exposed to shocks. As a result, we have been forced into making difficult but necessary decisions to keep it operating.

The national chairman of the Prison Officers’ Association also blamed the Tories. Mark Fairhurst told BBC Breakfast:

It has been an extremely pressured situation for several months now because we are so full, and that’s down to the previous government, let’s be honest now.
They closed 20 public sector prisons, they didn’t build enough new prisons, they didn’t create enough prison space and people are serving longer sentences.

More on the prison crisis later. In other developments:

SNP MSP John Mason said he had not foreseen losing the whip over his social media post about Israel , saying: “I’m not someone who foresees the future exactly, but sometimes you have to do the right thing and just take the consequences.” He had written on X that the country’s actions in Gaza did not amount to “genocide”.
Jacob Rees-Mogg has said he is “very strongly” considering standing at the next general election after losing his seat to Labour. The former Tory cabinet minister told an audience at the Edinburgh fringe festival that the Conservatives had “deserved” to lose the recent election, and that he was not shocked after losing his North East Somerset and Hanham seat to the mayor of the West of England Dan Norris by more than 5,000 votes. Rees-Mogg had won it from Norris in 2010.
A Foreign Office official has resigned over the UK’s refusal to ban arms exports to Israel because of alleged breaches of international law. Mark Smith, a counter-terrorism official based at the British embassy in Dublin, said he had resigned after making numerous internal complaints, including through an official whistleblowing mechanism, but receiving nothing but pro-forma responses.
Rachel Reeves has been warned by Britain’s biggest manufacturers that her autumn budget must address a decade of decline in national infrastructure that is damaging economic growth. More than half of manufacturers surveyed by the industry group Make UK said that the country’s national road infrastructure had deteriorated in the last 10 years, making it slower and more expensive to build and export British products.
The number of asylum seekers who have died in the care of the Home Office has more than doubled in the last year, according to data shared with the Guardian, a development that has been described as “deeply troubling”. While some deaths were a result of illness or old age, others are thought to have happened as a result of suicide. Charities fear that the treatment of asylum seekers in the UK has adversely affected the health of an already vulnerable group of people.