Victim 1961
A prominent lawyer goes after a blackmailer who threatens gay men with exposure (homosexual acts still being illegal). But he's gay himself..
FULL MOVIE
Sunday, May 05, 2024
SCOTLAND
Divers exploring the waters off Oban now have to travel to Aberdeen if they require treatment following closure of the Dunstaffnage facility.
Hyperbaric chamber in Oban opened in the 1970s.
Caitlin Hutchison
A hyperbaric chamber that has served the diving community on the west coast of Scotland since the 1970s has had its funding pulled.
The facility at Dunstaffnage near Oban has treated over 400 divers for decompression illness over the years – but now patients will have to travel to Aberdeen if they are to receive treatment for a condition that can result in paralysis or even death.
The wrecks and reefs in the waters near Oban make the area a mecca for diving enthusiasts. But another big draw for divers is the state-of-the-art hyperbaric chamber – one of only three in Scotland and the only NHS registered chamber on the entire west coast.
It saved Jessica Giannotti’s life ten years ago after a diving accident that left her gravely ill.
She told STV News: “My suit filled with air and I was shot to the surface. It was in the middle of a storm and I had to swim for 45 minutes to shore.
“I was quite scared because I thought I was having some sort of neurological illness and I felt like I was losing control of my body.
“I lost my balance, I couldn’t speak properly, I was just terrified in that moment but luckily I was treated at the hospital. They called me an ambulance and it took me straight away to the chamber.
“After two treatments, I started writing my name again, I could control my body, my bowels, I could start walking properly.”
The most severe cases of decompression sickness can result in paralysis or even death – so speedy treatment is crucial.
But with services at Dunstaffnage currently shut down after NHS Grampian withdrew funding, divers who become unwell now face a journey to Aberdeen.
Since it opened in the 1970s, more than 400 people have been treated at Dunstaffnage, and while the number of patients may be relatively low, the local diving community has serious concerns about the major impact that any potential delays to treatment could have.
Jonathan Sayer-Mitchell, director at Tritonia, a firm that undertakes underwater research and development, said: “Diving at work regulations recommend two to six hours for time to a chamber, so if we were operating on Mull or Tiree, or one of the outer isles, to get to Aberdeen in less than six hours is going to be a challenge.
“So there’s potential legal implications for the diving companies, there’s potential health implications for the divers.”
Companies like North West Marine, who provide professional diving services to a variety of businesses in the area, are now having to reassess.
Tony Ratcliffe, managing director at Jifmar Scotland, which owns North West Marine, said: “One of the things that we’re looking at is establishing our own chamber here to give chamber cover in the area to our divers.
“We’re looking into the costs but it’s probably going to be in excess of £500,000 – we don’t really want to go down that line.
“We were very happy with the service at the chamber at Dunstaffnage and to us it’s a big loss.”
NHS Grampian says there are well-established transport links in place to manage transfers to Aberdeen.
But with more than 10,000 signatures on a petition calling for the decision to be reversed, pressure on the health board is mounting.
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UK
How special forces chief 'blew the whistle on SAS war crimes in Afghanistan': Top officer 'told police soldiers under his command were murdering prisoners of war - despite fears of threats to his family'
Within the files are witness accounts from serving soldiers, emails to Number 10 warning of the crisis, as well as diares of police investigators.
Foreign Secretary David Cameron was the Prime Minister in the years the allegations relate to.
Detectives from the Royal Military Police- which investigates allegations of wrongdoing within the Forces- kept diaries alleging a covering up operation.
Within their notes investigators said weapons were allegedly planted on the bodies of the deceased and a raft of top-secret computer files relating to the SAS were deleted.
Johnny Mercer, Conservative MP and then a Defence Minister, wrote in emails that he believed the SAS was guilty of wronging during the war.
But a civil servant toned down Mr Mercer's email arguing 'bland is best'.
Johnny Mercer is a veteran of Afghanistan and served as a Defence Minister from 2019-2021
Members of the Afghan Special Forces units CF 333 and ATF 444 – dubbed the Triples – fought alongside the SAS (File image)
The inquiry was eventually shut down- but subsequent stories by The Sunday Times and the BBC put pressure on the government to open up a fresh inquiry.
This is called the Independent Inquiry relating to Afghanistan and documents released from this revealed to the newspaper the decision by N1466 to make his claims.
In the raft of emails, letters and documents released, a lieutenant colonel wrote: 'I find it quite incredible the amount of Bs [Afghan males, Bravos] that [the SAS unit] send back into a building who then decide to get weapons/grenades and engage the [SAS unit] knowing that it will achieve nothing.'
In certain emails relating to a particular raid commanders stopped calling victims EKIA, meaning enemy killed in action- and changed to EJK- extra-judicial killings.
While the Chief of Staff said: 'There appears to be a casual disregard for life, [military] principles and credible reporting.'
SAS raids were often completed late at night and were susposed to target bomb makers and terrorists.
But emails allege civilians were killed and then had weapons planted on them to make it look as though they were combatants.
The Afghanistan Inquiry, chaired by Sir Charles Haddon-Cave, is looking at whether there is any evidence to support claims the British Army unlawfully killed people in Afghanistan between 2010 to 2013.
Sir Charles Haddon-Cave chair of the Independent Inquiry relating to Afghanistan
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: 'We established the Independent Inquiry relating to Afghanistan which is investigating alleged unlawful activity by UK Special Forces during Deliberate Detention Operations between mid-2010 to mid-2013. The MOD is fully committed to supporting the Inquiry as it continues its work.
'It is not appropriate for us to comment on allegations which may be within the scope of the Statutory Inquiry, or speculate on outcomes. It is up to the Statutory Inquiry Team, led by Lord Justice Haddon-Cave, to determine which allegations are investigated.'
DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 5 May 2024
A high-ranking officer in the British special forces told police the SAS were committing war crimes by murdering prisoners in Afghanistan, it emerged today.
Known only as N1466 the officer risked the safety of his family when he claimed 'cancer had infected' a particular unit of the SAS.
Between 2009 and 2013 he was responsible for all SAS overseas operations- meaning he focused on British military activity in Afghanistan.
According to a Sunday Times investigation the officer tipped police off about a safe which held a dossier of evidence from a SAS soldier detailing allegations of murder.
The officer's actions caused a massive inquiry with 6,000 classified documents being disclosed by the Ministry of Defence.
PUBLISHED: 5 May 2024
A high-ranking officer in the British special forces told police the SAS were committing war crimes by murdering prisoners in Afghanistan, it emerged today.
Known only as N1466 the officer risked the safety of his family when he claimed 'cancer had infected' a particular unit of the SAS.
Between 2009 and 2013 he was responsible for all SAS overseas operations- meaning he focused on British military activity in Afghanistan.
According to a Sunday Times investigation the officer tipped police off about a safe which held a dossier of evidence from a SAS soldier detailing allegations of murder.
The officer's actions caused a massive inquiry with 6,000 classified documents being disclosed by the Ministry of Defence.
Within the files are witness accounts from serving soldiers, emails to Number 10 warning of the crisis, as well as diares of police investigators.
Foreign Secretary David Cameron was the Prime Minister in the years the allegations relate to.
Detectives from the Royal Military Police- which investigates allegations of wrongdoing within the Forces- kept diaries alleging a covering up operation.
Within their notes investigators said weapons were allegedly planted on the bodies of the deceased and a raft of top-secret computer files relating to the SAS were deleted.
Johnny Mercer, Conservative MP and then a Defence Minister, wrote in emails that he believed the SAS was guilty of wronging during the war.
But a civil servant toned down Mr Mercer's email arguing 'bland is best'.
Johnny Mercer is a veteran of Afghanistan and served as a Defence Minister from 2019-2021
Members of the Afghan Special Forces units CF 333 and ATF 444 – dubbed the Triples – fought alongside the SAS (File image)
The inquiry was eventually shut down- but subsequent stories by The Sunday Times and the BBC put pressure on the government to open up a fresh inquiry.
This is called the Independent Inquiry relating to Afghanistan and documents released from this revealed to the newspaper the decision by N1466 to make his claims.
In the raft of emails, letters and documents released, a lieutenant colonel wrote: 'I find it quite incredible the amount of Bs [Afghan males, Bravos] that [the SAS unit] send back into a building who then decide to get weapons/grenades and engage the [SAS unit] knowing that it will achieve nothing.'
In certain emails relating to a particular raid commanders stopped calling victims EKIA, meaning enemy killed in action- and changed to EJK- extra-judicial killings.
While the Chief of Staff said: 'There appears to be a casual disregard for life, [military] principles and credible reporting.'
SAS raids were often completed late at night and were susposed to target bomb makers and terrorists.
But emails allege civilians were killed and then had weapons planted on them to make it look as though they were combatants.
The Afghanistan Inquiry, chaired by Sir Charles Haddon-Cave, is looking at whether there is any evidence to support claims the British Army unlawfully killed people in Afghanistan between 2010 to 2013.
Sir Charles Haddon-Cave chair of the Independent Inquiry relating to Afghanistan
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: 'We established the Independent Inquiry relating to Afghanistan which is investigating alleged unlawful activity by UK Special Forces during Deliberate Detention Operations between mid-2010 to mid-2013. The MOD is fully committed to supporting the Inquiry as it continues its work.
'It is not appropriate for us to comment on allegations which may be within the scope of the Statutory Inquiry, or speculate on outcomes. It is up to the Statutory Inquiry Team, led by Lord Justice Haddon-Cave, to determine which allegations are investigated.'
Leeds sculpture to celebrate city's notable women
\Jules ListerThe names of 384 women will be inscribed on the sculpture
Almost 400 inspirational women have had their names engraved on a sculpture due to be unveiled in Leeds this summer.
Ribbons, designed by Pippa Hale, will celebrate women past and present who have contributed to the city.
The work, to be unveiled in July, will consist of five metal ribbons displaying the names of 384 notable women chosen by the public.
The project was developed by Leeds West MP Rachel Reeves, working with the city council and art university.
Among the women featured are former Olympic boxer Nicola Adams and social reformer and suffragist Isabella Ford.
Also included are women who have dedicated their lives to helping others, such as Tina Suryavansi who runs Homeless Hampers, and Rebekah Wilson who set up the charity Zarach to address child poverty in Leeds.
Almost 400 inspirational women have had their names engraved on a sculpture due to be unveiled in Leeds this summer.
Ribbons, designed by Pippa Hale, will celebrate women past and present who have contributed to the city.
The work, to be unveiled in July, will consist of five metal ribbons displaying the names of 384 notable women chosen by the public.
The project was developed by Leeds West MP Rachel Reeves, working with the city council and art university.
Among the women featured are former Olympic boxer Nicola Adams and social reformer and suffragist Isabella Ford.
Also included are women who have dedicated their lives to helping others, such as Tina Suryavansi who runs Homeless Hampers, and Rebekah Wilson who set up the charity Zarach to address child poverty in Leeds.
Jules Lister The new artwork will be unveiled in July
Ms Hale said she was "truly honoured" to be a part of the project.
She added she had been "humbled" by the stories of the nominated women.
"From women who have broken glass ceilings and overcome cultural, social, economic and physical barriers to rise to the top of their professions, to those who fly beneath the radar and whose contribution is neither seen nor recognised publicly.
"Ribbons is a massive thank you to all of them whose love, friendship, commitment, passion and dedication impact our lives every day."
Ms Reeves said the sculpture was a "chance to honour inspiring women from all walks of life".
"After launching this project several years ago, it's incredibly exciting to be that much closer to seeing Pippa's amazing vision come to life," she said.
Ms Hale said she was "truly honoured" to be a part of the project.
She added she had been "humbled" by the stories of the nominated women.
"From women who have broken glass ceilings and overcome cultural, social, economic and physical barriers to rise to the top of their professions, to those who fly beneath the radar and whose contribution is neither seen nor recognised publicly.
"Ribbons is a massive thank you to all of them whose love, friendship, commitment, passion and dedication impact our lives every day."
Ms Reeves said the sculpture was a "chance to honour inspiring women from all walks of life".
"After launching this project several years ago, it's incredibly exciting to be that much closer to seeing Pippa's amazing vision come to life," she said.
Jules Lister
The sculpture will honour women from "all walks of life", Leeds West MP Rachel Reeves said
A Leeds City Council review of statues carried out by Alison Lowe and published in 2020 highlighted the lack of diversity in public sculpture in Leeds and included Ribbons in an action plan to address this issue.
Ribbons will be located at the top of the gardens between Leeds City College's Quarry Hill campus and Leeds Playhouse at the gateway to the SOYO development at Quarry Hill.
The project is supported by LeedsBID, Caddick Developments, Leeds Civic Trust, the Liz and Terry Bramall Foundation, the Henry Moore Foundation and the Leeds Playhouse.
A Leeds City Council review of statues carried out by Alison Lowe and published in 2020 highlighted the lack of diversity in public sculpture in Leeds and included Ribbons in an action plan to address this issue.
Ribbons will be located at the top of the gardens between Leeds City College's Quarry Hill campus and Leeds Playhouse at the gateway to the SOYO development at Quarry Hill.
The project is supported by LeedsBID, Caddick Developments, Leeds Civic Trust, the Liz and Terry Bramall Foundation, the Henry Moore Foundation and the Leeds Playhouse.
Last week was tough for UK Tories, but Starmer cannot let his guard down yet
The local race results provided a blueprint for what Brits can expect in the general elections ahead
THE NATIONAL
Starmer has projected a persona of 'modest competence' as opposition leader. AFP
Keir Starmer faces his trickiest period having now entered the prime minister presumptive phase in charge of the British opposition. One thing will haunt him for the weeks ahead. Sheffield, 1992.
It was there the catch cry was send out: “We’re alright.” Interpreted as an act of triumphalism, it fell flat as an eve of polling celebration. With one hand on the trophy, it is best to concentrate on getting over the line, not already savour possession.
Rishi Sunak can appreciate the small margins that make up political catastrophe or not after local elections in the UK last Thursday. The outcome was a disaster for Mr Sunak but not, it appears, such a calamity that the Conservatives will rebel and chuck him out. Survival was the first order of business.
One incumbent survival of the mayor of Tees Valley Ben Houchen was enough to generate a victory headline for Mr Sunak. Subsequently worn away by the loss of London and the West Midlands, it still blunted the head of steam behind the rebels on his own side.
The experts projected share of the vote was Labour 34 per cent and Conservative 25. Good if you compare it to YouGov’s 44-18 gap between the two parties.
The extended drama around Andy Street eventually losing in the West Midlands provides a platform for continued rebel manoeuvres. The Conservatives won slightly more than 500 seats and lost slightly below that number.
If the Conservatives wanted a lifeline, here we go. They have a "backs to wall" narrative to pave a path to the general election.
In the first instance Mr Starmer, already a cautious political performer, will be haunted by the example of Neil Kinnock, his predecessor who was cruising to victory in 1992.
Not for a moment can Mr Starmer let his guard down. Mr Kinnock once recalled that rally at Sheffield where he let it slip it away. It was just a week before the election and, by Mr Kinnock’s telling, the gaffe came about by accident.
A new choreography for the event had been decided at the last minute. Mr Kinnock later told the BBC he should have put his foot down but went along with the new plan.
Having his senior colleagues march into the 11,000 arena through the crowd energised the room into a rally. And then his efforts to bring the crowd to order came across as an engorged gloat on the TV screens of the nation.
”There was a sort of tangible political heat coming off it, I guess that looked triumphalist, and I cursed the person - I knew who he was - and I took him aside afterwards and gave him a few choice remarks for changing those arrangements," Mr Kinnock recalled in 2017. "So instead of modest competence, which is what I wanted to portray, and most of the campaign did, we had this entry into the arena."
Modest competence is exactly Mr Starmer’s offer to the UK. It is also the lifeline that Mr Sunak is seeking to pursue as well.
For Mr Sunak in 2024 read John Major in 1992. He, too, was holding together a divided party reeling internally from leadership heaves.
A struggling economy is another common factor more than three decades on.
It is too late for a general election as far away as November to be about anything other than dividing lines like migration and the policy on Palestine-Israel
The incumbent prime minister is married into a billionaire family. Yet he has a Barbour jacket plainness that creates the smallest possible target for the opposition to hit, especially compared to the radical rivals who are jockeying to oust him on his own side.
Mr Major had his soapbox that he plonked in village squares as he led a backs to the wall comeback. Mr Sunak can take the local election results as a corner turned, whether or not it really has the seeds of a rescue.
Going to the people means taking control of the agenda and attempting to paint the Labour narrative as victory already .
The vulnerabilities are the rise of Reform from the right to attract Conservative votes and the independents on the left, most motivated by Gaza and the Labour leadership policy, who now have time to coalesce. No one is suggesting these forces will have an equal effect but George Galloway could be as much part of the general election and Nigel Farage and his flunkies.
It is too late for a general election as far away as November to be about anything other than dividing lines like migration and the policy on Palestine-Israel. For the Conservatives the last 10 days of the local election campaign were the blueprint. The news agenda was dominated by forced deportations to Rwanda and a sense of an urgent rally against despicable influx.
Starmer has projected a persona of 'modest competence' as opposition leader. AFP
Keir Starmer faces his trickiest period having now entered the prime minister presumptive phase in charge of the British opposition. One thing will haunt him for the weeks ahead. Sheffield, 1992.
It was there the catch cry was send out: “We’re alright.” Interpreted as an act of triumphalism, it fell flat as an eve of polling celebration. With one hand on the trophy, it is best to concentrate on getting over the line, not already savour possession.
Rishi Sunak can appreciate the small margins that make up political catastrophe or not after local elections in the UK last Thursday. The outcome was a disaster for Mr Sunak but not, it appears, such a calamity that the Conservatives will rebel and chuck him out. Survival was the first order of business.
One incumbent survival of the mayor of Tees Valley Ben Houchen was enough to generate a victory headline for Mr Sunak. Subsequently worn away by the loss of London and the West Midlands, it still blunted the head of steam behind the rebels on his own side.
The experts projected share of the vote was Labour 34 per cent and Conservative 25. Good if you compare it to YouGov’s 44-18 gap between the two parties.
The extended drama around Andy Street eventually losing in the West Midlands provides a platform for continued rebel manoeuvres. The Conservatives won slightly more than 500 seats and lost slightly below that number.
If the Conservatives wanted a lifeline, here we go. They have a "backs to wall" narrative to pave a path to the general election.
In the first instance Mr Starmer, already a cautious political performer, will be haunted by the example of Neil Kinnock, his predecessor who was cruising to victory in 1992.
Not for a moment can Mr Starmer let his guard down. Mr Kinnock once recalled that rally at Sheffield where he let it slip it away. It was just a week before the election and, by Mr Kinnock’s telling, the gaffe came about by accident.
A new choreography for the event had been decided at the last minute. Mr Kinnock later told the BBC he should have put his foot down but went along with the new plan.
Having his senior colleagues march into the 11,000 arena through the crowd energised the room into a rally. And then his efforts to bring the crowd to order came across as an engorged gloat on the TV screens of the nation.
”There was a sort of tangible political heat coming off it, I guess that looked triumphalist, and I cursed the person - I knew who he was - and I took him aside afterwards and gave him a few choice remarks for changing those arrangements," Mr Kinnock recalled in 2017. "So instead of modest competence, which is what I wanted to portray, and most of the campaign did, we had this entry into the arena."
Modest competence is exactly Mr Starmer’s offer to the UK. It is also the lifeline that Mr Sunak is seeking to pursue as well.
For Mr Sunak in 2024 read John Major in 1992. He, too, was holding together a divided party reeling internally from leadership heaves.
A struggling economy is another common factor more than three decades on.
It is too late for a general election as far away as November to be about anything other than dividing lines like migration and the policy on Palestine-Israel
The incumbent prime minister is married into a billionaire family. Yet he has a Barbour jacket plainness that creates the smallest possible target for the opposition to hit, especially compared to the radical rivals who are jockeying to oust him on his own side.
Mr Major had his soapbox that he plonked in village squares as he led a backs to the wall comeback. Mr Sunak can take the local election results as a corner turned, whether or not it really has the seeds of a rescue.
Going to the people means taking control of the agenda and attempting to paint the Labour narrative as victory already .
The vulnerabilities are the rise of Reform from the right to attract Conservative votes and the independents on the left, most motivated by Gaza and the Labour leadership policy, who now have time to coalesce. No one is suggesting these forces will have an equal effect but George Galloway could be as much part of the general election and Nigel Farage and his flunkies.
It is too late for a general election as far away as November to be about anything other than dividing lines like migration and the policy on Palestine-Israel. For the Conservatives the last 10 days of the local election campaign were the blueprint. The news agenda was dominated by forced deportations to Rwanda and a sense of an urgent rally against despicable influx.
Mr Starmer’s crawl along the knife edge ridge that leads to power must be built to withstand the ugly and ruthless pitch to the country that his rivals will make. That’s even with Mr Sunak at the helm.
It must also demonstrate the vigilance that Mr Kinnock forfeited for one fateful moment. The man in Barbour jacket will be there to capitalise on any mistake. Call it grubbing for every vote. Nothing else matters.
Despite the state of the nation, there is a knock down fight ahead that will give no clue on how the country should shift direction for better times ahead.
Published: May 05, 2024
Damien McElroy is London bureau chief at The National
SNP to retain just 15 seats with Labour set to overtake in Scotland, poll says
It also says John Swinney is the popular choice as next first minister for Scotland.
The SNP will retain just 15 of its current 43 seats at the forthcoming general election, according to a new poll for the Sunday Times.
The forecast comes as Humza Yousaf announced his resignation as First Minister on Monday after he abruptly ended the Bute House Agreement with the Scottish Green Party.
The Sunday Times poll, by Norstat – formerly known as Panelbase, is one of the first of its kind since Mr Yousaf announced his resignation, and looked at voting intentions for both Westminster and Holyrood.
It found that while support for independence remains largely unchanged, Labour is set to overtake the SNP at both Westminster and Holyrood, bringing an end to the SNP’s streak of four consecutive election victories.
The survey comes as John Swinney is now expected to become first minister on Tuesday, provided no other challengers enter the race.
When asked who would make the best first minister from a list of SNP candidates, Mr Swinney and Kate Forbes were neck and neck with the public on 23%, although Ms Forbes has said she will not be standing.
Ad
Stephen Flynn, the SNP leader at Westminster, was backed by 7%, and Jenny Gilruth, the Scottish education secretary, scored just 2%.
The SNP vote share in a Westminster election would fall to its lowest level since the 2014 independence referendum, the poll says.
The party would hold just 15 of its 43 seats with Scottish Labour winning 28 – a dramatic increase from its current two.
According to the Sunday Times poll, the SNP would attract votes from 29% of the electorate – a fall of three points in a month, while Labour’s share increased by two points to 34%.
This would return 15 SNP MPs and amount to a significant reversal in electoral performance.
Under Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP became the third largest party at Westminster, winning 56 of 59 Scottish seats in 2015.
There are currently 43 SNP MPs at Westminster.
The Scottish Conservatives, whose vote share remained at 16% in the poll, would add three seats to return nine MPs – while the Liberal Democrats, on 8%, would boost their yield by one to five MPs.
Support for independence remains evenly balanced, with 48% in favour of Scotland leaving the UK and 52% backing the Union.
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Voting intentions at Holyrood show the SNP remains a point ahead of Labour in the constituency vote at 34%.
The Conservatives would pick up 14% of the vote, the Lib Dems 9% and the Greens 5% – with the remaining 5% to other parties.
But Scottish Labour has edged a point ahead of the SNP on the more proportional regional list vote with the nationalists’ return of 27%.
The Tories would win 17% of regional votes, the Greens 9%, Lib Dems 8%, Reform UK 6% and Alex Salmond’s Alba Party 4%.
An analysis by polling expert Sir John Curtice for the Sunday Times found that this result would leave Labour as the largest party at Holyrood with 40 seats.
The remainder of the chamber would be 38 for the SNP, 24 Conservatives, 10 Greens, nine Lib Dems and eight Reform parliamentarians.
This would mark a historic breakthrough for Nigel Farage’s party in Scotland as it at least partially replicates its gains in England by attracting some older, Brexit-supporting Tories north of the border.
Sir John, professor of politics at Strathclyde University – who compiled the seat projections, said the “question that now arises is whether the coronation of John Swinney will enable the SNP to turn the page”.
He added: “Even among those who said they would vote Yes in another independence referendum, only 56% said they were now willing to back the SNP for Westminster, as would only two-thirds who voted for the party in 2019.”
Norstat interviewed 1,086 people aged 16 or over in Scotland between April 30 and May 3.
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SNP depute leader Keith Brown commented: “After 14 years of cruel Tory governments inflicting endless damage on Scotland and Keir Starmer’s Labour offering no meaningful alternative, it’s clear only the SNP and independence offers a better future for our country.
“The SNP is the only party standing up for the priorities of people across Scotland and offering a positive vision for the future where decisions about Scotland are made in Scotland.
“At the general election Scottish voters have the chance to reject the cosy status quo of a broken Westminster system that is failing them and vote to elect SNP MPs who will always stand up for their interests”.
It also says John Swinney is the popular choice as next first minister for Scotland.
PA Media
MSP John Swinney at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, after he became the first candidate to declare his bid to become the new leader of the SNP and Scotland’s next first minister.
The SNP will retain just 15 of its current 43 seats at the forthcoming general election, according to a new poll for the Sunday Times.
The forecast comes as Humza Yousaf announced his resignation as First Minister on Monday after he abruptly ended the Bute House Agreement with the Scottish Green Party.
The Sunday Times poll, by Norstat – formerly known as Panelbase, is one of the first of its kind since Mr Yousaf announced his resignation, and looked at voting intentions for both Westminster and Holyrood.
It found that while support for independence remains largely unchanged, Labour is set to overtake the SNP at both Westminster and Holyrood, bringing an end to the SNP’s streak of four consecutive election victories.
The survey comes as John Swinney is now expected to become first minister on Tuesday, provided no other challengers enter the race.
When asked who would make the best first minister from a list of SNP candidates, Mr Swinney and Kate Forbes were neck and neck with the public on 23%, although Ms Forbes has said she will not be standing.
Ad
Stephen Flynn, the SNP leader at Westminster, was backed by 7%, and Jenny Gilruth, the Scottish education secretary, scored just 2%.
The SNP vote share in a Westminster election would fall to its lowest level since the 2014 independence referendum, the poll says.
The party would hold just 15 of its 43 seats with Scottish Labour winning 28 – a dramatic increase from its current two.
According to the Sunday Times poll, the SNP would attract votes from 29% of the electorate – a fall of three points in a month, while Labour’s share increased by two points to 34%.
This would return 15 SNP MPs and amount to a significant reversal in electoral performance.
Under Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP became the third largest party at Westminster, winning 56 of 59 Scottish seats in 2015.
There are currently 43 SNP MPs at Westminster.
The Scottish Conservatives, whose vote share remained at 16% in the poll, would add three seats to return nine MPs – while the Liberal Democrats, on 8%, would boost their yield by one to five MPs.
Support for independence remains evenly balanced, with 48% in favour of Scotland leaving the UK and 52% backing the Union.
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Voting intentions at Holyrood show the SNP remains a point ahead of Labour in the constituency vote at 34%.
The Conservatives would pick up 14% of the vote, the Lib Dems 9% and the Greens 5% – with the remaining 5% to other parties.
But Scottish Labour has edged a point ahead of the SNP on the more proportional regional list vote with the nationalists’ return of 27%.
The Tories would win 17% of regional votes, the Greens 9%, Lib Dems 8%, Reform UK 6% and Alex Salmond’s Alba Party 4%.
An analysis by polling expert Sir John Curtice for the Sunday Times found that this result would leave Labour as the largest party at Holyrood with 40 seats.
The remainder of the chamber would be 38 for the SNP, 24 Conservatives, 10 Greens, nine Lib Dems and eight Reform parliamentarians.
This would mark a historic breakthrough for Nigel Farage’s party in Scotland as it at least partially replicates its gains in England by attracting some older, Brexit-supporting Tories north of the border.
Sir John, professor of politics at Strathclyde University – who compiled the seat projections, said the “question that now arises is whether the coronation of John Swinney will enable the SNP to turn the page”.
He added: “Even among those who said they would vote Yes in another independence referendum, only 56% said they were now willing to back the SNP for Westminster, as would only two-thirds who voted for the party in 2019.”
Norstat interviewed 1,086 people aged 16 or over in Scotland between April 30 and May 3.
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SNP depute leader Keith Brown commented: “After 14 years of cruel Tory governments inflicting endless damage on Scotland and Keir Starmer’s Labour offering no meaningful alternative, it’s clear only the SNP and independence offers a better future for our country.
“The SNP is the only party standing up for the priorities of people across Scotland and offering a positive vision for the future where decisions about Scotland are made in Scotland.
“At the general election Scottish voters have the chance to reject the cosy status quo of a broken Westminster system that is failing them and vote to elect SNP MPs who will always stand up for their interests”.
Most British Voters Think Rishi Sunak Has Accomplished Nothing and Has No Plan
May 5, 2024
R&WS Research Team
See more of our research
In January 2023, in an attempt to reset his Government’s policy agenda, Rishi Sunak named five key priorities for his Government: halve inflation, grow the economy, get the national debt falling, reduce NHS waiting lists, and stop the boats.
Announcing his priorities, Sunak promised, “No tricks… no ambiguity… we’re either delivering for you or we’re not.” He asked voters to judge his Government one year later “on the effort we put in and the results we achieve.”
Sixteen months later, in polling conducted as voters went to the polls in local elections across England, majorities of British voters say they think that Sunak will not achieve any of his priorities, that he has made no progress at all towards cutting NHS waiting lists or stopping small boats, and that he has no plan to make the UK a better place, nevermind a working plan.
When asked to rate how much Rishi Sunak has accomplished as Prime Minister, a plurality (41%) think he has accomplished ‘nothing at all,’ while just under a quarter (24%) think he has accomplished either a ‘significant’ (6%) or ‘fair’ (18%) amount.
Among Conservative voters at the last election, as many as 29% think Sunak has accomplished ‘nothing at all,’ while just 9% think he has accomplished a ‘significant’ amount.
Regarding his five priorities collectively, 38% think Sunak and his Government have made ‘no progress at all’ towards achieving these priorities. Another 38% think Sunak has made only ‘a little progress’ towards achieving them. 15% say ‘a fair amount of progress’ has been made, and just 5% think ‘a significant amount of progress’ has been achieved.
Almost half of 2019 Labour voters (47%) and more than a quarter of 2019 Conservative voters (29%) say ‘no progress at all’ has been made towards achieving these priorities.
Taken separately, majorities of Britons think Sunak and his Government have made ‘no progress at all’ towards cutting NHS waiting lists (63%), stopping small boats crossing the Channel (54%), and reducing the national debt (51%).
A plurality believe the Government has made ‘no progress at all’ towards growing the economy (44%).
Even on the one priority the Government has ostensibly achieved—halving inflation—only 9% say ‘a significant amount of progress’ has been made, against 68% who say the amount of progress that has been made is either ‘no progress at all’ (35%) or only ‘a little’ (33%).
The discrepancy between these numbers and the fact that inflation has indeed halved since last January may be down to many voters either misunderstanding what it was Sunak was committing to when he made halving inflation a priority in the first place (i.e., they thought he meant prices would fall) or being unwilling to attribute the halving of inflation to any policies set forth by the Prime Minister (who rarely, if ever, specified any active policies to halve inflation. Saying no to spending plans is a passive policy.).
With the next election drawing ever closer, majorities of voters believe the Government has not or will not ultimately achieve any of its stated priorities at the start of 2023.
Only between 19% and 32% believe Sunak and his Government will achieve any of its priorities.
At the same time, however, voters have little confidence that a Government led by Keir Starmer would have been or would now be able to achieve the same priorities.
British voters believe a Government led by Starmer would not achieve four of the five priorities named by Sunak in January 2023, while they are split 41% each on whether or not a Starmer-led Government would be able to cut NHS waiting lists.
Nevertheless, between Starmer and Sunak, pluralities say they trust Starmer the most to halve inflation (which, again Sunak has ostensibly, achieved), grow the economy, cut NHS waiting lists, and reduce the national debt.
A plurality of 40%, meanwhile, answer ‘neither of them’ when asked who between Sunak and Starmer they trust the most to stop small boats crossing the Channel.
When 2023 lapsed and most of Rishi Sunak’s pledges had not yet been achieved, the Prime Minister began to insist, “The plan is working,” in an earnest plea for voters to trust that results are on their way.
Altogether, 54% of voters—including 41% 2019 Conservative voters—say they think Rishi Sunak has no plan for how to make the United Kingdom a better place. Only 31% think he has a plan.
An even larger majority of 64% say they think Sunak does not have a plan for the UK that is working, including a majority (52%) of 2019 Conservative voters.
By contrast, 44% think Keir Starmer does have a plan to make the UK a better place.
However, a plurality of 40% of voters think Starmer does not have a plan that will work, against 32% who think that he does.
To find out more information about this research contact our research team. Redfield & Wilton Strategies is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules. Follow us on Twitter
May 5, 2024
R&WS Research Team
See more of our research
In January 2023, in an attempt to reset his Government’s policy agenda, Rishi Sunak named five key priorities for his Government: halve inflation, grow the economy, get the national debt falling, reduce NHS waiting lists, and stop the boats.
Announcing his priorities, Sunak promised, “No tricks… no ambiguity… we’re either delivering for you or we’re not.” He asked voters to judge his Government one year later “on the effort we put in and the results we achieve.”
Sixteen months later, in polling conducted as voters went to the polls in local elections across England, majorities of British voters say they think that Sunak will not achieve any of his priorities, that he has made no progress at all towards cutting NHS waiting lists or stopping small boats, and that he has no plan to make the UK a better place, nevermind a working plan.
When asked to rate how much Rishi Sunak has accomplished as Prime Minister, a plurality (41%) think he has accomplished ‘nothing at all,’ while just under a quarter (24%) think he has accomplished either a ‘significant’ (6%) or ‘fair’ (18%) amount.
Among Conservative voters at the last election, as many as 29% think Sunak has accomplished ‘nothing at all,’ while just 9% think he has accomplished a ‘significant’ amount.
Regarding his five priorities collectively, 38% think Sunak and his Government have made ‘no progress at all’ towards achieving these priorities. Another 38% think Sunak has made only ‘a little progress’ towards achieving them. 15% say ‘a fair amount of progress’ has been made, and just 5% think ‘a significant amount of progress’ has been achieved.
Almost half of 2019 Labour voters (47%) and more than a quarter of 2019 Conservative voters (29%) say ‘no progress at all’ has been made towards achieving these priorities.
Taken separately, majorities of Britons think Sunak and his Government have made ‘no progress at all’ towards cutting NHS waiting lists (63%), stopping small boats crossing the Channel (54%), and reducing the national debt (51%).
A plurality believe the Government has made ‘no progress at all’ towards growing the economy (44%).
Even on the one priority the Government has ostensibly achieved—halving inflation—only 9% say ‘a significant amount of progress’ has been made, against 68% who say the amount of progress that has been made is either ‘no progress at all’ (35%) or only ‘a little’ (33%).
The discrepancy between these numbers and the fact that inflation has indeed halved since last January may be down to many voters either misunderstanding what it was Sunak was committing to when he made halving inflation a priority in the first place (i.e., they thought he meant prices would fall) or being unwilling to attribute the halving of inflation to any policies set forth by the Prime Minister (who rarely, if ever, specified any active policies to halve inflation. Saying no to spending plans is a passive policy.).
With the next election drawing ever closer, majorities of voters believe the Government has not or will not ultimately achieve any of its stated priorities at the start of 2023.
Only between 19% and 32% believe Sunak and his Government will achieve any of its priorities.
At the same time, however, voters have little confidence that a Government led by Keir Starmer would have been or would now be able to achieve the same priorities.
British voters believe a Government led by Starmer would not achieve four of the five priorities named by Sunak in January 2023, while they are split 41% each on whether or not a Starmer-led Government would be able to cut NHS waiting lists.
Nevertheless, between Starmer and Sunak, pluralities say they trust Starmer the most to halve inflation (which, again Sunak has ostensibly, achieved), grow the economy, cut NHS waiting lists, and reduce the national debt.
A plurality of 40%, meanwhile, answer ‘neither of them’ when asked who between Sunak and Starmer they trust the most to stop small boats crossing the Channel.
When 2023 lapsed and most of Rishi Sunak’s pledges had not yet been achieved, the Prime Minister began to insist, “The plan is working,” in an earnest plea for voters to trust that results are on their way.
Altogether, 54% of voters—including 41% 2019 Conservative voters—say they think Rishi Sunak has no plan for how to make the United Kingdom a better place. Only 31% think he has a plan.
An even larger majority of 64% say they think Sunak does not have a plan for the UK that is working, including a majority (52%) of 2019 Conservative voters.
By contrast, 44% think Keir Starmer does have a plan to make the UK a better place.
However, a plurality of 40% of voters think Starmer does not have a plan that will work, against 32% who think that he does.
To find out more information about this research contact our research team. Redfield & Wilton Strategies is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules. Follow us on Twitter
Election results: What are the key trends and statistics?
Sunday 5 May 2024
Sunday 5 May 2024
Credit: PA
Hundreds of different contests were held across England and Wales on May 2, ranging from the election of local councillors to choosing high-profile mayors.
Now that almost all the counting is over, here are some of the key trends to emerge from the results – and the statistics behind them.
ITV News explains.
Mayors
Labour dominated this year’s mayoral elections, notching up a string of wins by high-profile incumbents as well as scoring a clean sweep of victories in those parts of the country that were voting for a mayor for the first time.
In five of the 11 contests, Labour not only finished first but won more than 50% of the vote: Liverpool (where Steve Rotheram got 68.0%), Greater Manchester (63.4% for Andy Burnham), Salford (61.5% for Paul Dennett), South Yorkshire (50.9% for Oliver Coppard) and West Yorkshire (50.4% for Tracy Brabin).
This is no mean feat in elections held under the first-past-the-post system, where having multiple candidates on the ballot often means the winner does not end up with over half of the popular vote.
This exact scenario happened in the five other mayoral contests won by Labour candidates: London (where Sadiq Khan got 43.8% of the vote), the North East (41.3% for Kim McGuinness), East Midlands (40.3% for Claire Ward), Birmingham (37.8% for Richard Parker) and York & North Yorkshire (35.1% for David Skaith).
Labour’s Sadiq Khan speaks as he is re-elected as the Mayor of LondonCredit: Jeff Moore/PA
Elections for the East Midlands, North East and York & North Yorkshire mayors were being held for the first time, meaning there was no incumbency factor to boost the chances of a particular party.
They also took place in areas that will be key Conservative-Labour battlegrounds at the next general election – particularly the East Midlands which contains a high number of marginal seats.
Seen in this context, the sole Tory success in this year’s mayoral contests, the re-election of Ben Houchen in Tees Valley, is very much an outlier, though he did – like most of the other incumbents – manage to win more than half of the vote (53.6%).
Only three candidates stood in the Tees Valley contest – Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat – which was the lowest number in any of this year’s mayoral elections.
Councils
Results are in from 106 of the 107 councils in England that held elections on May 2 and they show Labour has won 1,140 seats, an increase of more than 200.
The Liberal Democrats beat the Tories into second place, winning 521 seats, up nearly 100.
The Tories are just behind on 513 seats, down nearly 400.
The change in seats is the difference in the number of councillors compared with the state of the parties just before election day.
There are other ways to report the change, such as comparing this year’s results with how the parties fared the last time most of the seats were elected, though this overlooks factors such as by-elections and defections.
Independent candidates have won 228 seats, down 28, the Greens have won 181, up 64, while Reform has won two, down one.
Rishi Sunak said the results had been ‘disappointing’ but hailed his party’s victory in Tees ValleyCredit: Owen Humphreys/PA
The new-look council map of England shows a continuation of the trend that emerged in last year’s local elections: a tilt away from the Conservatives and towards councils controlled by other parties or where no party has a majority.
The Tories lost control of 10 local authorities on May 2: Adur in West Sussex, Nuneaton & Bedworth in Warwickshire, Redditch in Worcestershire and Rushmoor in Hampshire to Labour; Dorset to the Lib Dems; and Basildon in Essex, Dudley in the West Midlands, Gloucester, Havant in Hampshire and North East Lincolnshire to no overall control.
They also shed councillors in many areas, including losing 12 at Stroud in Gloucestershire, 12 at Maidstone in Kent, 11 at Peterborough, 10 at Thurrock in Essex and nine at Cherwell in Oxfordshire; were reduced to just one councillor at Stevenage and Wigan; and were wiped out entirely at Castle Point in Essex, Cheltenham, Sheffield and South Tyneside.
Many of these are in parts of the country that will be key battlegrounds at the next general election, with Labour hoping to make gains from the Tories in the Midlands and the South East, and the Lib Dems eyeing the “blue wall” in the South West.
Richard Parker: Who is the new mayor for the West Midlands?
Labour's Sadiq Khan wins historic third term as London mayor
A more localised trend specific to these local elections led to Labour losing control of two councils, Oldham in Greater Manchester and Kirklees in West Yorkshire.
In both areas, Independent candidates made gains at Labour’s expense, while in Rochdale in Greater Manchester the Workers Party – led by George Galloway – gained two seats from Labour.
These changes could reflect unhappiness with Labour among some of its supporters in traditional heartlands in northern England, linked to the party’s policy towards the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Meanwhile another result that could have consequences for the general election occurred in Bristol, where the Greens made 10 gains to become the largest party on the council.
The parliamentary seat of Bristol Central is the Greens’ number one election target – and they have just won every council seat inside the constituency.
But the overall picture chimes with the trend evident in the mayoral and council elections: that of the Conservatives losing ground in many areas of the country.
Hundreds of different contests were held across England and Wales on May 2, ranging from the election of local councillors to choosing high-profile mayors.
Now that almost all the counting is over, here are some of the key trends to emerge from the results – and the statistics behind them.
ITV News explains.
Mayors
Labour dominated this year’s mayoral elections, notching up a string of wins by high-profile incumbents as well as scoring a clean sweep of victories in those parts of the country that were voting for a mayor for the first time.
In five of the 11 contests, Labour not only finished first but won more than 50% of the vote: Liverpool (where Steve Rotheram got 68.0%), Greater Manchester (63.4% for Andy Burnham), Salford (61.5% for Paul Dennett), South Yorkshire (50.9% for Oliver Coppard) and West Yorkshire (50.4% for Tracy Brabin).
This is no mean feat in elections held under the first-past-the-post system, where having multiple candidates on the ballot often means the winner does not end up with over half of the popular vote.
This exact scenario happened in the five other mayoral contests won by Labour candidates: London (where Sadiq Khan got 43.8% of the vote), the North East (41.3% for Kim McGuinness), East Midlands (40.3% for Claire Ward), Birmingham (37.8% for Richard Parker) and York & North Yorkshire (35.1% for David Skaith).
Labour’s Sadiq Khan speaks as he is re-elected as the Mayor of LondonCredit: Jeff Moore/PAElections for the East Midlands, North East and York & North Yorkshire mayors were being held for the first time, meaning there was no incumbency factor to boost the chances of a particular party.
They also took place in areas that will be key Conservative-Labour battlegrounds at the next general election – particularly the East Midlands which contains a high number of marginal seats.
Seen in this context, the sole Tory success in this year’s mayoral contests, the re-election of Ben Houchen in Tees Valley, is very much an outlier, though he did – like most of the other incumbents – manage to win more than half of the vote (53.6%).
Only three candidates stood in the Tees Valley contest – Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat – which was the lowest number in any of this year’s mayoral elections.
Councils
Results are in from 106 of the 107 councils in England that held elections on May 2 and they show Labour has won 1,140 seats, an increase of more than 200.
The Liberal Democrats beat the Tories into second place, winning 521 seats, up nearly 100.
The Tories are just behind on 513 seats, down nearly 400.
The change in seats is the difference in the number of councillors compared with the state of the parties just before election day.
There are other ways to report the change, such as comparing this year’s results with how the parties fared the last time most of the seats were elected, though this overlooks factors such as by-elections and defections.
Independent candidates have won 228 seats, down 28, the Greens have won 181, up 64, while Reform has won two, down one.
Rishi Sunak said the results had been ‘disappointing’ but hailed his party’s victory in Tees ValleyCredit: Owen Humphreys/PAThe new-look council map of England shows a continuation of the trend that emerged in last year’s local elections: a tilt away from the Conservatives and towards councils controlled by other parties or where no party has a majority.
The Tories lost control of 10 local authorities on May 2: Adur in West Sussex, Nuneaton & Bedworth in Warwickshire, Redditch in Worcestershire and Rushmoor in Hampshire to Labour; Dorset to the Lib Dems; and Basildon in Essex, Dudley in the West Midlands, Gloucester, Havant in Hampshire and North East Lincolnshire to no overall control.
They also shed councillors in many areas, including losing 12 at Stroud in Gloucestershire, 12 at Maidstone in Kent, 11 at Peterborough, 10 at Thurrock in Essex and nine at Cherwell in Oxfordshire; were reduced to just one councillor at Stevenage and Wigan; and were wiped out entirely at Castle Point in Essex, Cheltenham, Sheffield and South Tyneside.
Many of these are in parts of the country that will be key battlegrounds at the next general election, with Labour hoping to make gains from the Tories in the Midlands and the South East, and the Lib Dems eyeing the “blue wall” in the South West.
Richard Parker: Who is the new mayor for the West Midlands?
Labour's Sadiq Khan wins historic third term as London mayor
A more localised trend specific to these local elections led to Labour losing control of two councils, Oldham in Greater Manchester and Kirklees in West Yorkshire.
In both areas, Independent candidates made gains at Labour’s expense, while in Rochdale in Greater Manchester the Workers Party – led by George Galloway – gained two seats from Labour.
These changes could reflect unhappiness with Labour among some of its supporters in traditional heartlands in northern England, linked to the party’s policy towards the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Meanwhile another result that could have consequences for the general election occurred in Bristol, where the Greens made 10 gains to become the largest party on the council.
The parliamentary seat of Bristol Central is the Greens’ number one election target – and they have just won every council seat inside the constituency.
But the overall picture chimes with the trend evident in the mayoral and council elections: that of the Conservatives losing ground in many areas of the country.
UK
Crisis? What Crisis? Mark Harper insists improving economy will save the Tories
WINNIE THE POOH OPTIMISM
Transport Secretary's insistence that Tories must 'stick to the plan' is likely to enrage MPs
Transport Secretary Mark Harper has insisted the plan is working despite dire election results (Photo: Jeff Overs/BBC/AFP)
By Richard Vaughan
May 5, 2024
Transport Secretary Mark Harper has insisted the general election is still winnable for the Conservatives as he dismissed calls for the party to change approach despite a battering in the local elections.
Mr Harper was adamant that Rishi Sunak’s “plan is working” amid growing calls from both moderate and right-wing Tories for the Prime Minister to change tack going into the national polls.
“We have a plan, and the plan is working but we’re not all the way through yet,” he told the BBC. “People want to see delivery, right? So they want to see inflation continue to come down. They want to see the boats stop. They want to see NHS waiting lists continue to fall. We’ve made a lot of progress on that, but we’re not all of the way there.”
His comments came in the wake of the Conservatives losing its mayoralty in the West Midlands, receiving a drubbing in the London mayoral race and the party suffering its worst set of council results in 40 years.
The phrase “Crisis? What crisis?” was used to paraphrase former Labour prime minister’s Jim Callaghan’s response to the Winter of Discontent in the 1970s, when he denied there was “mounting chaos” in the country being torn apart by industrial action.
The Prime Minister is being pulled in opposite directions by his own party, who fear his approach will lead them to a historic defeat in the general election.
Former home secretary Suella Braverman said the dire local election results showed that Tory voters were “on strike” as she demanded Mr Sunak move further to the right, urging him to introduce a cap on migrants, to leave the European Convention on Human Rights and to slash income tax.
By Richard Vaughan
May 5, 2024
Transport Secretary Mark Harper has insisted the general election is still winnable for the Conservatives as he dismissed calls for the party to change approach despite a battering in the local elections.
Mr Harper was adamant that Rishi Sunak’s “plan is working” amid growing calls from both moderate and right-wing Tories for the Prime Minister to change tack going into the national polls.
“We have a plan, and the plan is working but we’re not all the way through yet,” he told the BBC. “People want to see delivery, right? So they want to see inflation continue to come down. They want to see the boats stop. They want to see NHS waiting lists continue to fall. We’ve made a lot of progress on that, but we’re not all of the way there.”
His comments came in the wake of the Conservatives losing its mayoralty in the West Midlands, receiving a drubbing in the London mayoral race and the party suffering its worst set of council results in 40 years.
The phrase “Crisis? What crisis?” was used to paraphrase former Labour prime minister’s Jim Callaghan’s response to the Winter of Discontent in the 1970s, when he denied there was “mounting chaos” in the country being torn apart by industrial action.
The Prime Minister is being pulled in opposite directions by his own party, who fear his approach will lead them to a historic defeat in the general election.
Former home secretary Suella Braverman said the dire local election results showed that Tory voters were “on strike” as she demanded Mr Sunak move further to the right, urging him to introduce a cap on migrants, to leave the European Convention on Human Rights and to slash income tax.
Asked for her evidence of a need to shift further to the right, she said: “The evidence is that people are not voting for what he is doing because they don’t believe that we are serious about some of these issues.”
When asked if she regretted supporting Mr Sunak’s leadership, Ms Braverman said: “Honestly, yes I do.”
In contrast, Andy Street, who was defeated in his attempt to secure a third term as the Tory mayor for the West Midlands, said his campaign showed that the party could succeed if it made a more liberal offer to voters.
Mr Street said his brand of “moderative, inclusive, tolerant Conservatism, that gets on and delivered” nearly defeated Labour in one of its strongholds.
Asked if he was worried about the Tories drifting to the right, he replied: “I would definitely not advise that drift.
And he added: “The message is clear: winning from that centre ground is what happens.”
Conservative former minister Dame Andrea Jenkyns claimed the results showed that the party needed Boris Johnson to return to the “front line of politics”.
She told Sky News’: “I think now we’ve got to take the fight to Labour, I would like to see real common sense conservatism, honouring our manifesto commitments, I would like to see the return of Boris on the front line of politics, whether that’s going for a seat in the next election and being front and centre of our election campaign.
Asked if she could see Mr Johnson and Mr Sunak campaigning together on joint visits, she said: “I haven’t spoken to Boris, I haven’t spoken to the Prime Minister about this, but I’m an optimist, I’m not sure whether they’d share a stage together, but look how wonderful it is Boris campaigning in these elections.”
Dame Andrea submitted a letter of no confidence in Mr Sunak in November.
Steerpike
Suella Braverman: we will be lucky to have any Tory MPs soon
Suella Braverman: we will be lucky to have any Tory MPs soon
5 May 2024,
Suella Braverman (Image: BBC)
So, it didn’t take long for the recriminations to begin. After Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives were subject to a massive drubbing in this week’s council elections, and were hit with the loss of the West Midlands mayoralty last night, the blame game is well underway.
Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman certainly wasted no time in giving Sunak both barrels. Appearing on Sunday with Lura Kuenssberg, the MP laid into the PM for the disastrous results, and predicted that the party was heading for a wipe-out in the next election, saying:
‘The plan is not working … at this rate we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.’
Mr S imagines the Tories won’t be putting that on election leaflets any time soon…
In the interview, Braverman also accused the PM of essentially fiddling while the country burned, pointing out that the government had spent more time legislating on smoking and pedicabs than trying to fix the health service or social care. She added that it was a ‘disgrace’ that her party was trailing Keir Starmer, who has ‘the charisma of a peanut’.
Braverman admitted that she regretted backing Sunak as leader, but in a small consolation for the PM, argued that it was pointless trying to replace him now:
‘I just don’t think that is a feasible prospect right now, we don’t have enough time and it is impossible for anyone new to come and change our fortunes to be honest. There is no superman or superwoman out there who can do it.’
Still, Mr S isn’t sure Sunak will want to follow all of Braverman’s advice. Writing in the Telegraph she suggested that the hole the party is in was Sunak’s responsibility, and he should, err, ‘start shovelling’. It seems it really is only down from here for the party…
WRITTEN BY Steerpike
Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike
So, it didn’t take long for the recriminations to begin. After Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives were subject to a massive drubbing in this week’s council elections, and were hit with the loss of the West Midlands mayoralty last night, the blame game is well underway.
Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman certainly wasted no time in giving Sunak both barrels. Appearing on Sunday with Lura Kuenssberg, the MP laid into the PM for the disastrous results, and predicted that the party was heading for a wipe-out in the next election, saying:
‘The plan is not working … at this rate we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.’
Mr S imagines the Tories won’t be putting that on election leaflets any time soon…
In the interview, Braverman also accused the PM of essentially fiddling while the country burned, pointing out that the government had spent more time legislating on smoking and pedicabs than trying to fix the health service or social care. She added that it was a ‘disgrace’ that her party was trailing Keir Starmer, who has ‘the charisma of a peanut’.
Braverman admitted that she regretted backing Sunak as leader, but in a small consolation for the PM, argued that it was pointless trying to replace him now:
‘I just don’t think that is a feasible prospect right now, we don’t have enough time and it is impossible for anyone new to come and change our fortunes to be honest. There is no superman or superwoman out there who can do it.’
Still, Mr S isn’t sure Sunak will want to follow all of Braverman’s advice. Writing in the Telegraph she suggested that the hole the party is in was Sunak’s responsibility, and he should, err, ‘start shovelling’. It seems it really is only down from here for the party…
WRITTEN BY Steerpike
Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike
Senior Tories clash over Braverman’s call for party to move further right
Former home secretary calls for income tax cuts, legal migration cap and pulling the UK out of the European Convention on Human Rights
May 5, 2024
Senior Conservatives are clashing over whether Rishi Sunak needs to move the party further to the right after a damaging set of local election results.
Outgoing West Midlands Mayor Andy Street urged the Prime Minister not to stray further to the right, and stick close to the political centre to stave off general election defeat as he lost his post in a narrow defeat to Labour.
But former home secretary Suella Braverman insisted “terrible” local election results, with the Tories losing 473 council seats so far and Labour taking all but one metro mayoralty, showed “the plan is not working”.
Ms Braverman urged Mr Sunak to “change course” and move rightwards with income tax cuts, a cap on legal migration and pulling the UK out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
Asked for her evidence of a need to shift further to the right, she told BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: “The evidence is that people are not voting for what he is doing because they don’t believe that we are serious about some of these issues.”
Ms Braverman also appeared to confirm that any plot to oust Mr Sunak had fizzled out.
But her clash with Mr Street showed the party is now embroiled in a round of infighting over political direction and campaign strategy as it stares down the barrel of general election defeat.
After his knife-edge defeat on Saturday night, Mr Street told Sky News: “I would definitely not advise that drift [to the right].
“The message is clear: winning from that centre ground is what happens.”
Transport Secretary Mark Harper attempted to sidestep the debate as he gave broadcast interviews on Sunday.
He said Mr Street’s remarks were in line with Mr Sunak’s desire to “focus on the priorities of the British people”, including bearing down on inflation and stopping Channel small boat crossings.
When put to him that Mr Street had suggested more than that, Mr Harper told Sky News: “We are going to stick to focusing on the priorities that the Prime Minister set out, which are the Government’s priorities, the Prime Minister’s priorities but they are also the priorities of the British people.”
Mr Harper also insisted the Conservatives were still in with a chance of winning the next general election, despite the party’s local elections trouncing.
“There is everything to fight for and the Conservative Party under the Prime Minister’s leadership is absolutely up for that fight.”
Suella Braverman Calls For Tories To Swing Further To The Right In Furious Tirade Against Rishi Sunak
Kate Nicholson
David Maddox
Sun, 5 May 2024
Tory MPs have been warned that the reason for their electoral drubbing was not that they “were not right-wing or extreme enough”, as a battle over the party’s future begins.
The announcement late on Saturday night that former Tory mayor Andy Street had been defeated in the West Midlands has reopened questions over whether the party “is conservative enough” or should change its leader, replacing Rishi Sunak.
But Boris Johnson’s former director of communications, Guto Harri, joined Mr Street in warning against a “drift to the right”.
Rishi Sunak’s leadership is under fire (Molly Darlington)
It came as darling of the right Suella Braverman, who was sacked by Mr Sunak as home secretary, penned an article in the aftermath of the local election results demanding the party embraces a much more right-wing agenda.
Tories have been shocked by the scale of the defeat, with 472 council seats lost and a dreadful result for the party in London, where Sadiq Khan was returned as the city’s mayor for a third term.
Ms Braverman told Laura Kuenssberg on the BBC: “I am urging the prime minister to change direction. The problem is that many Conservative voters are on strike. When I was knocking on doors in the Midlands and elsewhere, Conservative voters told me we weren’t conservative enough.”
She insisted that Mr Sunak needs to put a cap on migration and take Britain out of the European Convention on Human Rights.
She claimed that “the evidence” for her message “is that people are not voting for us”.
Ms Braverman said she “regretted” supporting Mr Sunak’s bid to be leader in 2022, and added: “At this rate, we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.”
Andy Street’s defeat is a huge blow to the Tories (PA)
Ms Braverman warned against a change of leader: “I don’t think that’s a feasible prospect at this time. There is no superman or superwoman who can come in. Rishi Sunak needs to own this.”
However, on Saturday night as he digested his own defeat, Mr Street had pointed out that his much more centrist agenda had almost delivered an unlikely victory against a collapse in the national vote.
He was asked by Sky News: “Are you worried about the Conservative Party drifting to the right, over-emphasising the threat from Reform and ignoring other voters?”
Mr Street replied: “I would definitely not advise that drift.”
And on the Trevor Phillips show on Sky News on Sunday morning, Mr Harri joined Mr Street in warning against a Braverman right-wing agenda.
He said: “We did not lose because we were not right-wing enough. We did not lose because we were not extreme enough.”
Boris Johnson’s former advisor, Guto Harri, has warned against a lurch to the right (PA/Reuters)
The former Boris Johnson aide said the lesson of history is that governments need to govern from the centre.
But there were also questions about Mr Sunak’s own future with allies calling around angry MPs asking for “calm”.
One senior backbencher and former minister told The Independent that the result in the West Midlands and the revelations that Mr Sunak “could not be bothered to vote for Susan Hall [in London]” means that his future “is in play again”.
The senior MP added: “The West Midlands result is Rishi’s final ‘the emperor has no clothes’ moment. Combined with the loss of over 400 Tory councillors, London (in which the PM didn’t even bother to vote) and now this, it’s a cumulative total disaster. The only guy who actually won – Houchen – didn’t even have the balls to wear a blue rosette!”
Suella Braverman has again suggested the party is ‘not Conservative enough’ (Getty Images)
But transport secretary Mark Harper insisted that changing leader now would be wrong.
He claimed that the results showed that Labour is not on track for a huge victory in the general election.
The minister said on Sunday: “The election results over the last few days were disappointing. But the prime minister is interested in taking difficult decisions that are in the long-term interests of the country.
“The message from the election success in the Tees Valley is about having a plan and delivering a plan. We have made huge progress on our priorities, we have brought inflation down.
“The plan is working, but we haven’t got all the way through to the end of it yet.”
Tory rebel Braverman urges Sunak to change course after election blows
David Lynch, PA Political Staff
Sun, 5 May 2024
Rishi Sunak must change his political course to remain in power as there is no time to change Tory leader, Suella Braverman has said following a bruising set of local election results.
The senior Tory urged the Prime Minister to move to the right in response to the poll defeats, which saw a shock victory for Labour in the West Midlands mayoral contest on Saturday night.
Labour’s Richard Parker seized victory from outgoing Conservative mayor Andy Street by a mere 1,508 votes.
The party also stormed to victory in the London mayoral poll, with Sadiq Khan securing a historic third term in office, with a majority of some 275,000 over Conservative rival Susan Hall.
(PA Graphics)
“The plan is not working and I despair at these terrible results,” Conservative former home secretary Ms Braverman told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg.
“I love my country, I care about my party and I want us to win, and I am urging the Prime Minister to change course, to – with humility – reflect on what voters are telling us, and change the plan and the way that he is communicating and leading us.”
Asked about whether she wanted to see a change in leader, Ms Braverman said: “I just don’t think that is a feasible prospect right now, we don’t have enough time and it is impossible for anyone new to come and change our fortunes to be honest.
“There is no superman or superwoman out there who can do it.”
Instead she called on Rishi Sunak to “own” the result, adding: “Therefore he needs to fix it.”
Among the measures Ms Braverman has urged the prime minister to adopt to win back voters are further tax cuts and a cap on legal migration.
She claimed Tory voters were currently “on strike”, and warned: “I talk to many of my colleagues who are privately demoralised and incredibly concerned about the prospects.
“At this rate we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.”
Dame Andrea Jenkyns, a Conservative former minister who submitted a letter of no-confidence in Mr Sunak in November, meanwhile suggested former prime minister Boris Johnson should return to frontline politics to ease the party’s woes.
Andrea Jenkyns speaking to media at Westminster (Kirsty O’Connor/PA)
She told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I think now we’ve got to take the fight to Labour, I would like to see real common sense conservatism, honouring our manifesto commitments, I would like to see the return of Boris on the front line of politics, whether that’s going for a seat in the next election and being front and centre of our election campaign.”
Transport Secretary Mark Harper insisted the Conservatives still had “everything to fight for” ahead of the general election.
He would not, however, be drawn into a pull-and-push about the future direction of the Conservative party.
Outgoing West Midlands mayor Mr Street had urged the Prime Minister not to heed calls from Tory rebels to shift to the right following the local election results, and instead adopt a moderate position.
Asked about Mr Street’s remarks by Sky News, Mr Harper said: “What he is talking about there is what I just said.
“He is talking about you focus on the priorities of the British people, that is what you do.”
Mark Harper speaks to the media outside BBC Broadcasting House in London (Victoria Jones/PA)
In a statement released after the blow in the West Midlands, the Prime Minister acknowledged the result was “disappointing”, but added he would “continue working as hard as ever to take the fight to Labour and deliver a brighter future for our country”.
The West Midlands contest, which the Tories were on course to win, was seen as a potential lifeline in an otherwise disastrous set of results for the Conservatives.
The Prime Minister had hoped a brace of wins – alongside Lord Houchen’s victory in the Tees Valley mayoralty – could be enough to stave off rebellious Tory backbenchers.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer hailed the result in the West Midlands as “phenomenal” and “beyond our expectations”.
(PA Graphics)
It came after his party dominated mayoral elections across England – winning in Liverpool, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, and in Greater Manchester.
With the results of 107 councils in England that held elections on May 2 declared, Labour has won 1,158 seats, an increase of more than 232.
The Liberal Democrats beat the Tories into second place, winning 552 seats, up nearly 100.
The Tories are just behind on 515 seats, down nearly 400.
Rishi Sunak to face pressure to shift right after disastrous election results
Rowena Mason
Kate Nicholson
Sun, 5 May 2024
Suella Braverman on Laura Kuenssberg BBC
Suella Bravermanpinned the Tories’ terrible performance at the local elections on PM Rishi Sunak in a furious rant on the BBC – and called for the government to lean further right.
The former home secretary, and well-known figure on the right of the party, said there was “no disguising” the fact the Conservatives had a terrible set of results in the local elections.
She told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “I love my country, I care about my country, and I want us to win. And I’m urging the prime minister to change course.”
But, Braverman admitted it was not “feasible” to change the leader, saying, “there is no superman or superwoman” who can fix the party’s fortunes right now.
She continued: “What does the prime minister need to do? I think he needs to show people he really cares about the things he has talked about.
“He needs to actually lower taxes in a way people will feel, not tweaking around the edges.”
She also claimed that he needs to take the UK out the European Convention on Human Rights to show he is serious about “stopping the boats”.
Braverman added that the evidence people want the Tories to go further right is in the way people are not voting for her party.
She said: “At this rate, we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.”
Polls have suggested the Tories are in for a thrashing when the public next hit the ballot box.
Braverman said: “We are not delivering for the people, we are not delivering on the policies that people want.
“it is a disgrace that we are trailing behind Labour, led by Keir Starmer who has the charisma of a peanut, who is overseeing a rabble of hard-left maniacs, who would undo Brexit, who would open our border and who would indoctrinate our institutions and our schools with politically-correct madness.”
Kuenssberg asked her: “Do you regret backing Rishi Sunak?”
“Honestly?” She paused. “Yes I do, because I had assurances from Rishi Sunak that he was going to put a cap on illegal migration that he was going to do something about the European Convention on Human Rights, that he was going to do something about the transgender ideology in schools.
“He hasn’t done that.”
Braverman also predicted the Tories would face defeat before the local elections, back in April.
Kate Nicholson
HUFFPOST
Sun, 5 May 2024
Suella Braverman on Laura Kuenssberg BBC
Suella Bravermanpinned the Tories’ terrible performance at the local elections on PM Rishi Sunak in a furious rant on the BBC – and called for the government to lean further right.
The former home secretary, and well-known figure on the right of the party, said there was “no disguising” the fact the Conservatives had a terrible set of results in the local elections.
She told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “I love my country, I care about my country, and I want us to win. And I’m urging the prime minister to change course.”
But, Braverman admitted it was not “feasible” to change the leader, saying, “there is no superman or superwoman” who can fix the party’s fortunes right now.
She continued: “What does the prime minister need to do? I think he needs to show people he really cares about the things he has talked about.
“He needs to actually lower taxes in a way people will feel, not tweaking around the edges.”
She also claimed that he needs to take the UK out the European Convention on Human Rights to show he is serious about “stopping the boats”.
Braverman added that the evidence people want the Tories to go further right is in the way people are not voting for her party.
She said: “At this rate, we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.”
Polls have suggested the Tories are in for a thrashing when the public next hit the ballot box.
Braverman said: “We are not delivering for the people, we are not delivering on the policies that people want.
“it is a disgrace that we are trailing behind Labour, led by Keir Starmer who has the charisma of a peanut, who is overseeing a rabble of hard-left maniacs, who would undo Brexit, who would open our border and who would indoctrinate our institutions and our schools with politically-correct madness.”
Kuenssberg asked her: “Do you regret backing Rishi Sunak?”
“Honestly?” She paused. “Yes I do, because I had assurances from Rishi Sunak that he was going to put a cap on illegal migration that he was going to do something about the European Convention on Human Rights, that he was going to do something about the transgender ideology in schools.
“He hasn’t done that.”
Braverman also predicted the Tories would face defeat before the local elections, back in April.
Related...
Rishi Sunak Limps On As Tory Rebellion Crumbles Despite Miserable Local Elections
Labour Wins West Midlands Mayor Election In Another Huge Blow For Rishi Sunak
Rishi Sunak Humiliated As Labour Wins Mayoral Race In His Own Constituency
Tories warned not to embrace right-wing extremism after disastrous local elections
Sun, 5 May 2024
Suella Braverman on Laura Kuenssberg BBC
Suella Bravermanpinned the Tories’ terrible performance at the local elections on PM Rishi Sunak in a furious rant on the BBC – and called for the government to lean further right.
The former home secretary, and well-known figure on the right of the party, said there was “no disguising” the fact the Conservatives had a terrible set of results in the local elections.
She told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “I love my country, I care about my country, and I want us to win. And I’m urging the prime minister to change course.”
But, Braverman admitted it was not “feasible” to change the leader, saying, “there is no superman or superwoman” who can fix the party’s fortunes right now.
She continued: “What does the prime minister need to do? I think he needs to show people he really cares about the things he has talked about.
“He needs to actually lower taxes in a way people will feel, not tweaking around the edges.”
She also claimed that he needs to take the UK out the European Convention on Human Rights to show he is serious about “stopping the boats”.
Braverman added that the evidence people want the Tories to go further right is in the way people are not voting for her party.
She said: “At this rate, we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.”
Polls have suggested the Tories are in for a thrashing when the public next hit the ballot box.
Braverman said: “We are not delivering for the people, we are not delivering on the policies that people want.
“it is a disgrace that we are trailing behind Labour, led by Keir Starmer who has the charisma of a peanut, who is overseeing a rabble of hard-left maniacs, who would undo Brexit, who would open our border and who would indoctrinate our institutions and our schools with politically-correct madness.”
Kuenssberg asked her: “Do you regret backing Rishi Sunak?”
“Honestly?” She paused. “Yes I do, because I had assurances from Rishi Sunak that he was going to put a cap on illegal migration that he was going to do something about the European Convention on Human Rights, that he was going to do something about the transgender ideology in schools.
“He hasn’t done that.”
Braverman also predicted the Tories would face defeat before the local elections, back in April.
Related...
Rishi Sunak Limps On As Tory Rebellion Crumbles Despite Miserable Local Elections
Labour Wins West Midlands Mayor Election In Another Huge Blow For Rishi Sunak
Rishi Sunak Humiliated As Labour Wins Mayoral Race In His Own Constituency
Tories warned not to embrace right-wing extremism after disastrous local elections
David Maddox
Sun, 5 May 2024
Tory MPs have been warned that the reason for their electoral drubbing was not that they “were not right-wing or extreme enough”, as a battle over the party’s future begins.
The announcement late on Saturday night that former Tory mayor Andy Street had been defeated in the West Midlands has reopened questions over whether the party “is conservative enough” or should change its leader, replacing Rishi Sunak.
But Boris Johnson’s former director of communications, Guto Harri, joined Mr Street in warning against a “drift to the right”.
Rishi Sunak’s leadership is under fire (Molly Darlington)
It came as darling of the right Suella Braverman, who was sacked by Mr Sunak as home secretary, penned an article in the aftermath of the local election results demanding the party embraces a much more right-wing agenda.
Tories have been shocked by the scale of the defeat, with 472 council seats lost and a dreadful result for the party in London, where Sadiq Khan was returned as the city’s mayor for a third term.
Ms Braverman told Laura Kuenssberg on the BBC: “I am urging the prime minister to change direction. The problem is that many Conservative voters are on strike. When I was knocking on doors in the Midlands and elsewhere, Conservative voters told me we weren’t conservative enough.”
She insisted that Mr Sunak needs to put a cap on migration and take Britain out of the European Convention on Human Rights.
She claimed that “the evidence” for her message “is that people are not voting for us”.
Ms Braverman said she “regretted” supporting Mr Sunak’s bid to be leader in 2022, and added: “At this rate, we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.”
Andy Street’s defeat is a huge blow to the Tories (PA)
Ms Braverman warned against a change of leader: “I don’t think that’s a feasible prospect at this time. There is no superman or superwoman who can come in. Rishi Sunak needs to own this.”
However, on Saturday night as he digested his own defeat, Mr Street had pointed out that his much more centrist agenda had almost delivered an unlikely victory against a collapse in the national vote.
He was asked by Sky News: “Are you worried about the Conservative Party drifting to the right, over-emphasising the threat from Reform and ignoring other voters?”
Mr Street replied: “I would definitely not advise that drift.”
And on the Trevor Phillips show on Sky News on Sunday morning, Mr Harri joined Mr Street in warning against a Braverman right-wing agenda.
He said: “We did not lose because we were not right-wing enough. We did not lose because we were not extreme enough.”
Boris Johnson’s former advisor, Guto Harri, has warned against a lurch to the right (PA/Reuters)
The former Boris Johnson aide said the lesson of history is that governments need to govern from the centre.
But there were also questions about Mr Sunak’s own future with allies calling around angry MPs asking for “calm”.
One senior backbencher and former minister told The Independent that the result in the West Midlands and the revelations that Mr Sunak “could not be bothered to vote for Susan Hall [in London]” means that his future “is in play again”.
The senior MP added: “The West Midlands result is Rishi’s final ‘the emperor has no clothes’ moment. Combined with the loss of over 400 Tory councillors, London (in which the PM didn’t even bother to vote) and now this, it’s a cumulative total disaster. The only guy who actually won – Houchen – didn’t even have the balls to wear a blue rosette!”
Suella Braverman has again suggested the party is ‘not Conservative enough’ (Getty Images)
But transport secretary Mark Harper insisted that changing leader now would be wrong.
He claimed that the results showed that Labour is not on track for a huge victory in the general election.
The minister said on Sunday: “The election results over the last few days were disappointing. But the prime minister is interested in taking difficult decisions that are in the long-term interests of the country.
“The message from the election success in the Tees Valley is about having a plan and delivering a plan. We have made huge progress on our priorities, we have brought inflation down.
“The plan is working, but we haven’t got all the way through to the end of it yet.”
Tory rebel Braverman urges Sunak to change course after election blows
David Lynch, PA Political Staff
Sun, 5 May 2024
Rishi Sunak must change his political course to remain in power as there is no time to change Tory leader, Suella Braverman has said following a bruising set of local election results.
The senior Tory urged the Prime Minister to move to the right in response to the poll defeats, which saw a shock victory for Labour in the West Midlands mayoral contest on Saturday night.
Labour’s Richard Parker seized victory from outgoing Conservative mayor Andy Street by a mere 1,508 votes.
The party also stormed to victory in the London mayoral poll, with Sadiq Khan securing a historic third term in office, with a majority of some 275,000 over Conservative rival Susan Hall.
(PA Graphics)
“The plan is not working and I despair at these terrible results,” Conservative former home secretary Ms Braverman told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg.
“I love my country, I care about my party and I want us to win, and I am urging the Prime Minister to change course, to – with humility – reflect on what voters are telling us, and change the plan and the way that he is communicating and leading us.”
Asked about whether she wanted to see a change in leader, Ms Braverman said: “I just don’t think that is a feasible prospect right now, we don’t have enough time and it is impossible for anyone new to come and change our fortunes to be honest.
“There is no superman or superwoman out there who can do it.”
Instead she called on Rishi Sunak to “own” the result, adding: “Therefore he needs to fix it.”
Among the measures Ms Braverman has urged the prime minister to adopt to win back voters are further tax cuts and a cap on legal migration.
She claimed Tory voters were currently “on strike”, and warned: “I talk to many of my colleagues who are privately demoralised and incredibly concerned about the prospects.
“At this rate we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.”
Dame Andrea Jenkyns, a Conservative former minister who submitted a letter of no-confidence in Mr Sunak in November, meanwhile suggested former prime minister Boris Johnson should return to frontline politics to ease the party’s woes.
Andrea Jenkyns speaking to media at Westminster (Kirsty O’Connor/PA)
She told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I think now we’ve got to take the fight to Labour, I would like to see real common sense conservatism, honouring our manifesto commitments, I would like to see the return of Boris on the front line of politics, whether that’s going for a seat in the next election and being front and centre of our election campaign.”
Transport Secretary Mark Harper insisted the Conservatives still had “everything to fight for” ahead of the general election.
He would not, however, be drawn into a pull-and-push about the future direction of the Conservative party.
Outgoing West Midlands mayor Mr Street had urged the Prime Minister not to heed calls from Tory rebels to shift to the right following the local election results, and instead adopt a moderate position.
Asked about Mr Street’s remarks by Sky News, Mr Harper said: “What he is talking about there is what I just said.
“He is talking about you focus on the priorities of the British people, that is what you do.”
Mark Harper speaks to the media outside BBC Broadcasting House in London (Victoria Jones/PA)
In a statement released after the blow in the West Midlands, the Prime Minister acknowledged the result was “disappointing”, but added he would “continue working as hard as ever to take the fight to Labour and deliver a brighter future for our country”.
The West Midlands contest, which the Tories were on course to win, was seen as a potential lifeline in an otherwise disastrous set of results for the Conservatives.
The Prime Minister had hoped a brace of wins – alongside Lord Houchen’s victory in the Tees Valley mayoralty – could be enough to stave off rebellious Tory backbenchers.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer hailed the result in the West Midlands as “phenomenal” and “beyond our expectations”.
(PA Graphics)
It came after his party dominated mayoral elections across England – winning in Liverpool, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, and in Greater Manchester.
With the results of 107 councils in England that held elections on May 2 declared, Labour has won 1,158 seats, an increase of more than 232.
The Liberal Democrats beat the Tories into second place, winning 552 seats, up nearly 100.
The Tories are just behind on 515 seats, down nearly 400.
Rishi Sunak to face pressure to shift right after disastrous election results
Rowena Mason
Whitehall editor
Sun, 5 May 2024
Rishi Sunak on a visit to the Catterick Garrison in North Yorkshire on 3 May. His allies insist his plan is working despite criticism from the right of the party.Photograph: Molly Darlington/AP
Rishi Sunak will face pressure to adopt hard rightwing policies such as an immigration cap and scrapping European human rights law this week, with Suella Braverman saying he needs to “own and fix” a disastrous set of local election results.
Sunak’s allies were on Sunday insisting he wanted to stick to his current plan and that it was working, as plotters against his leadership accepted they did not have the support to challenge him.
But Braverman issued an extraordinary broadside against Sunak on a BBC news programme, saying she regretted voting for him to be leader but it was too late to get rid of him. She also said the party would be “lucky to have any MPs” if it continued on the same path.
Urging him to change course, she called for more conservative policies such as withdrawing from the European convention on human rights – a move that would be hugely unpopular with moderate Conservatives.
Braverman told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “I love my country, I care about my party and I want us to win, and I am urging the prime minister to change course, to – with humility – reflect on what voters are telling us, and change the plan and the way that he is communicating and leading us.”
Asked about whether she wanted to see a change in leader, Braverman said: “I just don’t think that is a feasible prospect right now, we don’t have enough time and it is impossible for anyone new to come and change our fortunes to be honest. There is no superman or superwoman out there who can do it.”
Instead she called on Rishi Sunak to “own” the result, adding: “Therefore he needs to fix it.” One of her allies, John Hayes, called for a reshuffle to bring her back into the cabinet.
Robert Jenrick, the former immigration minister and communities secretary, along with ex-minister Neil O’Brien are to publish a pamphlet this week urging more action to bring down migration before the election.
However, Sunak is looking at a schism in the party, as other senior Conservatives dismissed Braverman’s diagnosis that a swing further to the right was needed. Some Tories believe the prime minister needs to tack to the centre to take votes from Labour and the Lib Dems in marginal seats, while others believe the best strategy is squeezing the Reform UK vote on the right.
Andy Street, the former West Midlands mayor who narrowly lost to Labour on Saturday, said: “The thing everyone should take from Birmingham and the West Midlands is this brand of moderative, inclusive, tolerant conservatism, that gets on and delivered, has come within an ace of beating the Labour party in what they considered to be their back yard – that’s the message from here tonight.”
Robert Buckland, a Tory MP and former justice secretary from the One Nation wing of the party, told GB News that the British public are “putting their fingers in their ears” about the Conservatives because they are engaged in too much infighting.
“The more that we talk about factions and ideology and the less we focus on business, on growth, on jobs, on housing, all those issues that actually people are talking about … then I think we’ve become an irrelevant rump,” he said.
“The Conservative party wins elections, not by being soft and mushy but by reflecting the views of the British public, by being in alliance with them. The coalition that we need is with the British people. We’ve been the party of the nation for generations. I believe we can get back to that, but we need to focus on what people are talking about.”
Sunak has been largely absent from the airwaves over the weekend, apart from appearing at Ben Houchen’s Tees Valley victory on Friday – a sole pocket of good news for the Conservatives.
However, Mark Harper, the transport secretary and a longtime supporter of Sunak, gave a round of broadcast interviews insisting the prime minister’s plan is working. He said the party still had “everything to fight for” and pointed to there being only nine points between the Tories and Labour in the vote share in England.
Suella Braverman Calls For Tories To Swing Further To The Right In Furious Tirade Against Rishi Sunak
Sun, 5 May 2024
Rishi Sunak on a visit to the Catterick Garrison in North Yorkshire on 3 May. His allies insist his plan is working despite criticism from the right of the party.Photograph: Molly Darlington/AP
Rishi Sunak will face pressure to adopt hard rightwing policies such as an immigration cap and scrapping European human rights law this week, with Suella Braverman saying he needs to “own and fix” a disastrous set of local election results.
Sunak’s allies were on Sunday insisting he wanted to stick to his current plan and that it was working, as plotters against his leadership accepted they did not have the support to challenge him.
But Braverman issued an extraordinary broadside against Sunak on a BBC news programme, saying she regretted voting for him to be leader but it was too late to get rid of him. She also said the party would be “lucky to have any MPs” if it continued on the same path.
Urging him to change course, she called for more conservative policies such as withdrawing from the European convention on human rights – a move that would be hugely unpopular with moderate Conservatives.
Braverman told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “I love my country, I care about my party and I want us to win, and I am urging the prime minister to change course, to – with humility – reflect on what voters are telling us, and change the plan and the way that he is communicating and leading us.”
Asked about whether she wanted to see a change in leader, Braverman said: “I just don’t think that is a feasible prospect right now, we don’t have enough time and it is impossible for anyone new to come and change our fortunes to be honest. There is no superman or superwoman out there who can do it.”
Instead she called on Rishi Sunak to “own” the result, adding: “Therefore he needs to fix it.” One of her allies, John Hayes, called for a reshuffle to bring her back into the cabinet.
Robert Jenrick, the former immigration minister and communities secretary, along with ex-minister Neil O’Brien are to publish a pamphlet this week urging more action to bring down migration before the election.
However, Sunak is looking at a schism in the party, as other senior Conservatives dismissed Braverman’s diagnosis that a swing further to the right was needed. Some Tories believe the prime minister needs to tack to the centre to take votes from Labour and the Lib Dems in marginal seats, while others believe the best strategy is squeezing the Reform UK vote on the right.
Andy Street, the former West Midlands mayor who narrowly lost to Labour on Saturday, said: “The thing everyone should take from Birmingham and the West Midlands is this brand of moderative, inclusive, tolerant conservatism, that gets on and delivered, has come within an ace of beating the Labour party in what they considered to be their back yard – that’s the message from here tonight.”
Robert Buckland, a Tory MP and former justice secretary from the One Nation wing of the party, told GB News that the British public are “putting their fingers in their ears” about the Conservatives because they are engaged in too much infighting.
“The more that we talk about factions and ideology and the less we focus on business, on growth, on jobs, on housing, all those issues that actually people are talking about … then I think we’ve become an irrelevant rump,” he said.
“The Conservative party wins elections, not by being soft and mushy but by reflecting the views of the British public, by being in alliance with them. The coalition that we need is with the British people. We’ve been the party of the nation for generations. I believe we can get back to that, but we need to focus on what people are talking about.”
Sunak has been largely absent from the airwaves over the weekend, apart from appearing at Ben Houchen’s Tees Valley victory on Friday – a sole pocket of good news for the Conservatives.
However, Mark Harper, the transport secretary and a longtime supporter of Sunak, gave a round of broadcast interviews insisting the prime minister’s plan is working. He said the party still had “everything to fight for” and pointed to there being only nine points between the Tories and Labour in the vote share in England.
Suella Braverman Calls For Tories To Swing Further To The Right In Furious Tirade Against Rishi Sunak
Kate Nicholson
Sun, 5 May 2024
Suella Braverman on Laura Kuenssberg BBC
Suella Bravermanpinned the Tories’ terrible performance at the local elections on PM Rishi Sunak in a furious rant on the BBC – and called for the government to lean further right.
The former home secretary, and well-known figure on the right of the party, said there was “no disguising” the fact the Conservatives had a terrible set of results in the local elections.
She told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “I love my country, I care about my country, and I want us to win. And I’m urging the prime minister to change course.”
But, Braverman admitted it was not “feasible” to change the leader, saying, “there is no superman or superwoman” who can fix the party’s fortunes right now.
She continued: “What does the prime minister need to do? I think he needs to show people he really cares about the things he has talked about.
“He needs to actually lower taxes in a way people will feel, not tweaking around the edges.”
She also claimed that he needs to take the UK out the European Convention on Human Rights to show he is serious about “stopping the boats”.
Braverman added that the evidence people want the Tories to go further right is in the way people are not voting for her party.
She said: “At this rate, we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election.”
Polls have suggested the Tories are in for a thrashing when the public next hit the ballot box.
Braverman said: “We are not delivering for the people, we are not delivering on the policies that people want.
“it is a disgrace that we are trailing behind Labour, led by Keir Starmer who has the charisma of a peanut, who is overseeing a rabble of hard-left maniacs, who would undo Brexit, who would open our border and who would indoctrinate our institutions and our schools with politically-correct madness.”
Kuenssberg asked her: “Do you regret backing Rishi Sunak?”
“Honestly?” She paused. “Yes I do, because I had assurances from Rishi Sunak that he was going to put a cap on illegal migration that he was going to do something about the European Convention on Human Rights, that he was going to do something about the transgender ideology in schools.
“He hasn’t done that.”
Braverman also predicted the Tories would face defeat before the local elections, back in April.
Two years of El Salvador’s ‘State of Exception’
March marked the second anniversary of the State of Exception in El Salvador, which suspended basic constitutional rights, paving the way for the arrest of thousands of alleged gang members in the country. Its introduction has transformed the country from one of the most murderous to one of the safest in Latin America. But this has come at a price: nearly 2% of the entire population are now behind bars, the largest proportion anywhere in the world. Detainees face malnutrition, no access to critical medicine or medical care, and torture. The wider impact on families – children especially – has been devastating. This report is edited from the blogs of Tim Muth, who lives in the country.
Under the State of Exception, security forces of the police and military can arrest anyone without a warrant or observing them commit a crime, can hold them for 15 days before appearing before a judge and without telling them the charges, and can freely intercept communications without a judicial order. Those detained receive initial hearings, before judges with their identities masked, in groups that often number in the hundreds where the charges are simply gang affiliation. Judges routinely order defendants into El Salvador’s hellishly overcrowded prisons without bail, to await their next hearing which could come in six months.
Amnesty International issued this stinging statement on this two year anniversary: “The suspension of rights that, according to international standards, must be guaranteed at all times, such as the right to a fair trial, the principle of legality in criminal matters, and the prohibition of torture and discrimination, is an action that cannot be justified under any circumstances or in any context. It is a decision that deliberately ignores the numerous allegations of serious human rights violations reported by civil society organizations in El Salvador…
“As of February 2024, victims’ movements, local human rights organizations and media reports had registered 327 cases of enforced disappearances, more than 78,000 arbitrary detentions – with a total of approximately 102,000 people now deprived of their freedom in the country – a situation of prison overcrowding of approximately 148%, and at least 235 deaths in state custody.”
Prison conditions
48% of those deaths showed signs of violence and another 30% died for lack of adequate medical attention. Cases of tuberculosis are reportedly rising.
It is important to remember that at least two-thirds of the persons held in Salvadoran prisons under these conditions have not yet been convicted of a crime. The government is incarcerating them for trials which may not be commenced until the beginning of 2026. The country is in violation of innumerable provisions of the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules), adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015.
The suffering is not only within the prisons. Families outside are decimated as well. When a primary breadwinner is arbitrarily and illegally detained and sent into the prison system, the family loses its income, a parent or spouse stops working to search for news of the person, children are left without parents.
Families are being charged $100-$300 a month by the prisons to deliver basic food, hygiene and cleaning kits to their relative in prison. There is no accountability for these funds, and past years have seen numerous charges of graft and embezzlement from this system with inmates not receiving what their families have provided.
In the communities
President Nayib Bukele declares El Salvador to be the safest country in the Western Hemisphere, based on the homicide data.
There are strong reasons to believe that the homicide rate, while historically low, is not quite as low as the Bukele regime claims. The homicide rate fails as well to include the deaths in El Salvador’s prisons, many with signs of violence. The count also excludes disappearances, where no body has been found and a family is still searching desperately for a loved one.
Even with the caveat that the homicide rate could be double what is claimed by the government, the number of Salvadorans dying violent deaths is historically low. Undeniably, much has changed in El Salvador regarding the impact of gangs on everyday life. My personal experience, the journalistic reports from communities where gangs once ruled, the very low reported homicide rates, and what people tell pollsters when asked if they feel safer, all point to a different El Salvador.
And yet. I have also had personal experiences of a different sort during these years of the State of Exception. These are the conversations with people throughout the country who tell me of innocent sons or brothers or neighbours or employees who have been swept up in Bukele’s war on gangs. I think of the leaders in a rural community who tell me about the police and soldiers arriving and grabbing some of the best youth in their community. The fear generated by that event prompted some of the remaining promising youth to flee the country, lest they also get picked up arbitrarily.
The point is this. Both things can be true at the same time. Millions of Salvadorans can feel less at risk from gangs, while tens of thousands of families have lost someone innocent to the Exception regime.
The (In)justice System
One common assertion by proponents of the current State of Exception in El Salvador is that the justice system will correct errors and only guilty persons will be locked up for any significant period of time. In fact, changes in the law, and a court system which does not act independently of the Bukele regime, mean the reality is quite different for the 70,000 persons arrested since March 2022.
The failures of the criminal justice system in El Salvador under the State of Exception begin with the arrests and detention of persons, usually in marginalized communities, without sufficient proof of any criminal activity. The State of Exception, which continues to be extended every month, permits an arrest to be made on mere suspicion, without police seeing a crime being committed and without an order for arrest.
The online periodical El Faro documented hundreds of cases of arrests with flimsy evidence. Experts have warned of the link between anonymous denunciations and arbitrary arrests.
Once someone is detained, the State of Exception prolongs the time in which a preliminary hearing must be held from three days to fifteen days. Those hearings have almost never resulted in anyone being released right away. Instead, detainees are told there will be at least six months in prison before their next hearing.
In measures adopted early in the State of Exception, the Legislative Assembly lengthened the possible penalty for association with a gang to 20 – 30 years in prison. “Illicit associations” is the all-encompassing charge used overwhelmingly for those arrested during the State of Exception. For those found to be gang leaders, the penalty was increased from 30-40 years.
Th crime of “illicit associations” with its decades-long prison sentence is being charged in a variety of ways. Someone might be charged with gang ties for the simple fact of having given a ride to a gang member under threat of harm to a family member if they refuse. A relative of a gang member could be charged for letting the gang member sleep in their house. Or a gang member who has already served a 12 year sentence for robbery will usually be arrested for the separate crime of their gang membership the moment they walk out of prison. “Illicit association” is a dangerously flexible criminal charge carrying a severe penalty.
Criminal lawyers in El Salvador have reported that prosecutors will have until August 2025 to conclude the evidence-gathering phase of criminal cases while defendants languish in prisons throughout the country. In some cases, the prosecutors have asked that the trial phase not commence earlier than January 2026.
In the criminal law changes adopted under the State of Exception, suspected gang members can be tried in massive group trials including up to 900 defendants. It takes no stretch of imagination to see the unlikelihood that courts will be able to focus on the individual culpability of a single person swept up at the same time.
Human Rights Investigations
There have been numerous investigative reports of the severe violations of international human rights standards occurring during El Salvador’s State of Exception and the Bukele regime’s “war on gangs.” The reports are prepared by a wide range of Salvadoran and international human rights groups. These reports do not deny the reduction in homicides and gang control of territory during the past two years, but they point out the cost of the State of Exception.
First-hand accounts of torture and mistreatment of individual detainees, who were subsequently released, can be found here.
Tim Muth is a US-trained lawyer who works on matters involving civil liberties and human rights. He blogs at El Salvador Perspectives, and you can follow him on Twitter as @TimMuth.
Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lanzamiento_de_las_Fuerzas_Especailizadas_de_Reacci%C3%B3n_El_Salvador,_FES._%2826545827355%29.jpg. Source: Lanzamiento de las Fuerzas Especailizadas de Reacción El Salvador, FES. Author: Presidencia El Salvador from San Salvador, El Salvador, América Central, under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication
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