“A teachers’ strike would be “unforgivable” in the wake of Covid, the Education Secretary has said, as officials draw up plans for an army of supply teachers to keep schools open. Nadhim Zahawi said young people had already suffered “more disruption than any generation that’s gone before them” after the UK’s largest teaching union threatened to ballot for a strike. On Thursday, the Government will reveal plans to change the law to allow businesses to use skilled agency workers to cover striking staff to minimise disruption.” – Daily Telegraph
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Comment:
>Yesterday:
“Sir Keir Starmer has opened the door to supporting below-inflation pay rises for public sector workers, threatening a fresh clash with trade unions. A series of public sector unions, including teachers, doctors and nurses, have demanded pay rises that meet or exceed inflation amid signs that the rail strikes could spread. The Labour leader’s spokesman said he was likely to endorse whatever rates were suggested by the public sector pay review bodies. Eight bodies recommend to the government each year what the levels of pay in their areas should be.” – The Times
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>Today: ToryDiary: Why wage-price spirals fuel inflation – and neither the Keynesians nor the Monetarists are completely right
>Yesterday: Left Watch: Starmer struggles to pin Johnson down on the strikes because we have no idea what Labour would do
“Rich pensioners should return a £1,000 state pension hike if they don’t need it, a minister said today amid a row over plans to up the payment while telling workers to cool pay rise demands. Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey defended plans to spend billions on a double-digit boost for retirees next year after the Treasury vowed to reinstate its ‘triple lock’ pledge. The bumper rise could amount to nearly £1,000 a year extra at the same time that ministers are insisting that public sector workers like train staff, teachers and nurses temper their requests, to cool rampant inflation.” – Daily Mail
“Britain will tear up “perverse” Euro laws that have been entrenched into UK courts in a new Bill of Rights, Dominic Raab says today. The Deputy PM will “curb abuses” by making sure judges apply common sense in their rulings — and so the Supreme Court can overrule the European Court of Human Rights. Writing in The Sun, Mr Raab reveals under existing laws judges blocked the deportation of a Zimbabwean man jailed for child cruelty against his two-year-old stepson — because he had a “right to family life”.” – The Sun
“So, our Bill of Rights will clarify the remit of Strasbourg and ensure our courts have the final say. That is just one of the reforms in our UK Bill of Rights, published today, to replace Labour’s Human Rights Act. We have two fundamental aims. First, we will strengthen traditional UK rights such as freedom of speech — under attack, from expanding privacy law to stifling political correctness — and recognise the importance of jury trials in the UK. This better reflects our tradition of liberty in this country. Second, we will curb abuses of the system and reinject a healthy dose of common sense.” – The Sun
>Yesterday: Christopher Bellamy QC in Comment: The Bill of Rights, introduced today, builds on the long tradition of British justice
“The Conservatives are braced to lose two parliamentary by-elections, according to senior party strategists, in moves that could prompt a renewed backlash against Boris Johnson. Voters will head to the polls on Thursday in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, and Tiverton and Honiton in Devon, in by-elections prompted by the resignations of Tory MPs. It will be a chance for people to give a verdict on the prime minister’s conduct in the partygate scandal… This month Johnson survived a bruising no-confidence vote by Conservative MPs, when 41 per cent of the parliamentary party refused to back him.” – FT
“Jacob Rees-Mogg has unveiled a new website so that Britons can “count down” the scrapping of the more than 2,000 EU laws still in force. The Brexit Opportunities minister said he hopes the “dashboard” will prompt further suggestions from the public on which rules to axe. But he admitted the site, which is heavy on jargon, could prove difficult for ordinary people to understand and may need improving. “I accept that not everybody is going to have the time or inclination to do this but I think it helps show the scale” of retained EU law, he said.” – Daily Telegraph
“Boris Johnson is preparing to defend the UK government’s contentious policy of sending asylum seekers to Rwanda when the prime minister meets Prince Charles in Kigali at a Commonwealth summit. The heir to the throne will represent Queen Elizabeth at the Commonwealth heads of government meeting that officially opens on Friday and is being attended by most of the leaders of the organisation’s 54 member countries. The UK has agreed to pay Rwanda £120mn to take asylum seekers for resettlement, in an attempt to deter them from coming to Britain by crossing the English Channel in small boats.” – FT
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>Today: Garvan Walshe’s column: Ditch the culture war to win. Lessons from the Spanish right’s victory in Andalucía.
“Boris Johnson has not denied claims that his wife, Carrie, had been considered for senior roles in the Government and Royal household, as he was mocked by Sir Keir Starmer over wanting to appoint her. Urged by Chris Elmore, a Labour MP, to “be honest” with the House of Commons and say if he ever considered appointing Ms Johnson to one of the posts, the Prime Minister did not give a straight answer… It comes amid a week of half-denials by the Prime Minister and Downing Street, following reports of numerous jobs to which he is said to have tried to appoint Mrs Johnson.” – Daily Telegraph
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: PMQs sketch: On the whole, modern politicians have no solutions
“Boris Johnson could unveil an increase in defence spending as soon as next week, The Sun can reveal. Government sources believe the PM will use next week’s NATO summit to pledge a hike in the Ministry of Defence’s budget that has been hammered by inflation and the war in Ukraine. The Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has repeatedly warned the UK’s promise to spend 2.5 per cent of output on defence at risk of being missed by the middle of the decade. He has written to No10 and the Treasury to directly warn the crucial NATO commitment will be missed by 2025 without a major cash injection.” – The Sun
“Rishi Sunak will embark on a charm offensive with the oil and gas industry during a visit to Aberdeen on Thursday as he attempts to heal the rift caused by his windfall tax. The chancellor will meet executives from the sector in the Granite City, the home of the British oil industry, days after draft legislation for the Energy Profits Levy (EPL) was published. Sunak last month unveiled the levy, which he hopes will raise £5bn by increasing taxes on the profits of oil and gas producers in the North Sea to fund support for households struggling with the cost of living crisis.” – The Guardian
>Yesterday: Daniel Hannan’s column: Investors are working out the Government has no plan for the British economy