Afternoon summary
Mark Harper, the transport secretary, has said there was nothing wrong with Downing Street saying the final decision on HS2 had not been taken when Rishi Sunak had already recorded a video announcing its cancellation. (See 9.31am.)
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Osborne warns Sunak not to disown achievements of Cameron government
David Cameron and his allies are surprised that Rishi Sunak has chosen to disassociate himself from Cameron-era Conservatism, George Osborne has said.
The former chancellor said that this might just be “rhetoric” in a conference speech. But if it signalled an intention by Sunak to open “a new fight in the Tory party”, it would be a mistake, Osborne said.
Osborne, who is a close friend and ally, was speaking on his new podcast, Political Currency, which he co-hosts with Ed Balls.
Cameron and Osborne have both criticised Sunak’s decision to ditch the second phase of HS2, a project championed by the Cameron government.
But Sunak went further in his speech yesterday. By saying that Britain endured “30 years of a political system which incentivises the easy decision, not the right one”, he was seeking to disassociate himself from every Conservative PM since John Major.
Osborne said this piece of positioning came “as a bit of a surprise to me and my friends, including to David” because, when Sunak became PM, Cameron’s supporters though there was “a return … to a Cameroon way of doing things”. Sunak had “made deliberate efforts to bring people back into the fold, to get the party back together”, Osborne said.
He went on:
We’ll see whether it’s just the rhetoric in a conference speech, whether he’s serious about it …
If it’s just a device, if it’s just a clever way of doing a conference speech – and let’s be fair, it was a pretty good, well-delivered conference speech – fine.
But if he’s really going to set about trying to unpick or tear down what I regard as the achievements of that government, then he is opening up a new fight in the Tory party, and that is not something I think is going to help him electorally.
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A reader has been asking for a “dogs at polling stations” update from the Rutherglen and Hamilton West byelection, and it turns out the Labour candidate, Michael Shanks, has been able to oblige. I am sure there are some terrific SNP dogs too, but I’m afraid I don’t have any pictures of them.
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Catherine McKinnell, Labour’s shadow schools minister, told the Confederation of School Trusts conference in Birmingham that she had little time for Rishi Sunak’s new A-level replacement. She said:
In what alternative world must our prime minister be living to announce a back of the envelope 16-to-19 maths policy, which he did again yesterday, while roofs up and down the country are literally having to be propped up? Not to mention the shortage of qualified maths teachers.
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How Heseltine was made to apologise to Commons for saying decision to axe rail project hadn't been taken when it had
Rishi Sunak is unlikely to face any sanction over the fact the government kept saying it had not taken the final decision on HS2 when he had already recorded the video announcing it had. (See 9.31am.) But 50 years ago Michael Heseltine was made to apologise to the Commons over something very similar.
I am grateful to the reader who has been in touch to tell me about the story – not least because, with HS2 in the news, it revives memories of another great British rail investment fiasco.
Heseltine was a minister of state in the Department of Trade and Industry in 1973 and he was responsible for a government research unit which was ploughing large sums of money into a project that was intended to run a train with no wheels along a cushion of air at speeds of up to 300mph. It was called the hovertrain.
Similar maglev trains are now in operation in China, South Korea and Japan. But in the 1970s the hovertrain concept was going nowhere. Heseltine decided to axe the project and, when he was invited to give evidence to the Commons science committee about the scheme, he decided to announce its cancellation there.
But a Labour MP tabled a parliamentary question about hovertrain for answer two days before the committee hearing and Heseltine, rather than tell the MP the project was over, gave an answer saying its future was “still under consideration”. In his memoirs he says he thought it would be more respectful to the committee to let it hear the news first.
That led to Heseltine being accused of having given a misleading answer two days earlier. The committee later published a report saying Heseltine’s answer to the MP had been “untrue”. Heseltine says this left him “speechless with fury”. But the chief whip, Francis Pym, ordered him to apologise to the Commons, which he did.
Keegan says school absence problem in England 'slowly' being tackled
Gillian Keegan, the education secretary, has told school leaders at a conference in Birmingham that pupil absence is “slowly” being tackled – but still remains a major problem.
Speaking at the Confederation of School Trusts annual conference, she said:
Too many children are missing school regularly or are persistently absent. More children are missing school than ever before, any time before the pandemic.
Solving this is one of my top priorities because nothing is worse than giving up on those children.
I know that challenge has grown since the pandemic, and this has made your job more challenging. And thank you for all the hard work to tackle the absence problem and it is slowly starting to make a difference but we know the size of the challenge is real and big.
Keegan added:
The pandemic did cast a long shadow, it changed everything and you worked tirelessly to support schools, teachers, pupils and parents throughout and I know we’ve not yet recovered - I look at the data all the time, I go into schools all the time - particularly for the most disadvantaged children.
Keegan had little to add about Rishi Sunak’s announcement yesterday that he wants to scrap A-levels, T-levels and BTecs and replace them with a single “advanced British standard” qualification for sixth formers in England.
But Keegan admitted that “we need even more teachers in order to meet our long-term ambitions for the advanced British standard” as school leaders were quick to point out after Sunak’s announcement that students would face longer hours in the classroom and be able to take up to five subjects compared to three for A-levels and one for T-levels.
Keegan said:
I’m under no illusion about the scale of these changes. They are profound and they will be long term... They will take time and care to implement well.
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Commons public accounts committee says cancellation of phase 2 of HS2 'little surprise' given project's history
The cross-party Commons public accounts committee, which scrutinises government spending, says it is “not surprised” that phase two of HS2 has been cancelled. It has released this statement from its chair, the Labour MP Meg Hillier.
Stop-start approaches on large and complex infrastructure projects plainly do not represent value for money for the taxpayer. And this approach undermines wider confidence that government programmes for major infrastructure investment will be delivered. In a globally competitive world companies may now choose to invest their time and skills in other countries.
The original plans for HS2 were calculated on the basis of the line extending beyond Birmingham - both the cost to the taxpayer of construction, and the boost to local economic development.
As a committee we have been raising concerns about HS2 for a full decade, so this latest change is little surprise. It has been confirmed that HS2 will run to London Euston, but it was only in July that we warned that government does not know what it is trying to achieve with the planned new station there, and we had raised concerns about the considerable cost of the two-year pause which had been presented by government as a money-saving move.
Minister rejects claims Sunak's conference speech transphobic, saying PM distinguishing between sex and gender
Mark Harper, the transport secretary, has dismissed claims that Rishi Sunak was being transphobic in his Tory conference speech yesterday when he said people cannot change sex.
In a short but provocative passage, Sunak told the conference:
We shouldn’t get bullied into believing that people can be any sex they want to be. They can’t; a man is a man and a woman is a woman. That’s just common sense.
This comment was strongly criticised by trans activists. Among those denouncing him was Petra De Sutter, the Belgian deputy prime minister, who is said to be the first transgender minister in Europe. In a post on X/Twitter she said Sunak’s comments were “hurtful and disappointing”.
Hurtful and very disappointing.
These words are fueling transphobia and endangering the lives of many people around the world.
Trans women are women. And in no way a threat to others. Don’t join the real bullies, @RishiSunak.
Hurtful and very disappointing.
— Petra De Sutter (@pdsutter) October 5, 2023
These words are fueling transphobia and endangering the lives of many people around the world.
Trans women are women. And in no way a threat to others. Don't join the real bullies, @RishiSunak. https://t.co/dr4UJaoBmI
Following the publication of figures today showing that a record number of hate crimes against transgender people were recorded in England and Wales last year (see 1.29pm), the trans charity Mermaids accused the government of legitimising the persecution of trans people.
But, in an interview with Sky News this morning, Harper defended Sunak.
When it was put to him that Sunak seemed to be in breach of the Equality Act, which outlaws discrimination against transgender people, Harper replied:
Not at all. I think what you’re doing there is mixing up sex and gender.
He was being very clear that you can’t change your sex, of course you can change your gender and there are very clear processes for doing that.
He also said Sunak was using a “very common sense definition”.
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Record rise in hate crimes against transgender people reported in England and Wales
A record number of hate crimes were committed against transgender people last year in England and Wales, even as racist and homophobic hate crimes recorded by police fell for the first time on record, Michael Goodier reports.
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HS2 won't extend to Euston without private investment, sources disclose
HS2 will not be extended to Euston unless enough private investment is secured, PA Media reports. PA says:
PA understands that Rishi Sunak’s commitment to extend the high-speed railway to the central London station is contingent on a substantial proportion of the cost being met by private funds.
If not enough money is found, HS2 will permanently stop at Old Oak Common in the capital’s western suburbs.
Extending HS2 to Euston involves digging a 4.5-mile tunnel from Old Oak Common and building a six-platform station next to the existing west coast mainline terminus.
At his speech to the Conservative party conference on Wednesday, the prime minister said: “We will complete the line from Birmingham to Euston.”
He added that the government’s new plan for the central London station will generate “£6.5bn of savings”.
A No 10 source said the figure was a combination of replanning the project after considering “what is no longer required” and a developer contribution model, such as the one used in Battersea, south-west London.
A Department for Transport (DfT) document stated that the development of Battersea power station and nearby Nine Elms “secured £9bn of private sector investment”.
DfT officials believe the capacity of Old Oak Common as a terminus station can be stretched to eight trains per hour, which is the same as planned for Euston after the scrapping of HS2 north of Birmingham.
But there are concerns at the comparative lack of options for onward journeys from Old Oak Common.
Government modelling shows two-thirds of people would prefer to travel to or from Euston.
HS2 work at Euston was paused in February because costs had ballooned to £4.8bn compared with an initial budget of £2.6bn.
The DfT said it would appoint a development company, separate from HS2 Ltd, to manage the delivery of the Euston project.
Euston was initially due to have 11 platforms for high-speed trains but will now have six.
A railway consultant, William Barter, whose recent clients include the DfT, told PA the plan was “totally unambitious” as it “rules out options” for expanding the railway north of Birmingham in the future.
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Photograph: Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images
Complaints against police in England and Wales rise by 8% over past year, figures show
More than 80,000 complaints were made against police in England and Wales last year, a rise of 8% on the previous 12 months, PA Media reports. PA says:
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said more than half the cases, 55%, were about delivery of duties and service; 20% were about police powers, policies and procedures; and 13% about individual behaviours.
While only 1% of complaints were about discreditable conduct, the number of these allegations rose from 622 in 2021-22 to 743 this year, an increase of 19%.
The IOPC annual report on police complaints, published today, showed that a total of 81,142 complaints were logged in 2022-23, which included 134,952 separate allegations.
When they receive a complaint, police forces can handle the complaint informally, or the issue goes a stage further and is handled formally.
Of the 30,521 complaints handled formally in 2022-23, about half (52%) had at least one allegation that led to an explanation or apology, a rise of 10% on last year.
No further action was taken in 40% of formally handled complaints, down 8% on 2022-23.
There were 468 of the most serious cases where misconduct proceedings are a possible outcome.
The figures showed that 113 complaints led to a misconduct meeting or hearing, up from 68 in 2021-22 and 18 in 2020-21.
The acting IOPC director general, Tom Whiting, said: “Our annual police complaints statistics broadly reflect public concern with day-to-day policing issues and the level of service that people directly experience, rather than high-profile police misconduct cases that have repeatedly dominated news headlines.
“It is notable that by far the most commonly recorded complaint type continues to relate to police service delivery such as a lack of updates or delays in responses, rather than concerns around police misconduct.”
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Sky’s political editor Beth Rigby has posted an interesting thread on X (Twitter) about the Labour take on Rishi Sunak’s performance at Tory conference.
Heading back from Mancs after Tory conf & now thinking about Labour. What their view ? Sunak had no option to be “change” candidate but it’s “simply not credible”. The more he talks about change, the better for Labour. He’s a doing their work for him 1/
Heading back from Mancs after Tory conf & now thinking about Labour. What their view ? Sunak had no option to be “change” candidate but it’s “simply not credible”. The more he talks about change, the better for Labour. He’s a doing their work for him 1/
— Beth Rigby (@BethRigby) October 5, 2023
Interestingly, one Labour source also told me that the change message points to May election, arguing that the strategy of being the change guy - difficult already - cannot work in a year’s time. 2/
Interestingly, one Labour source also told me that the change message points to May election, arguing that the strategy of being the change guy - difficult already - cannot work in a year’s time. 2/
— Beth Rigby (@BethRigby) October 5, 2023
Lab source argues the HS2 ‘shamble’ where PM toured studios saying he’d not decided when obvs had brand damaging. ‘Sunak said he’s end the ‘chaos of Truss’ then ended up in row for days and looked disingenuous’ 3/
Lab source argues the HS2 ‘shamble’ where PM toured studios saying he’d not decided when obvs had brand damaging. ‘Sunak said he’s end the ‘chaos of Truss’ then ended up in row for days and looked disingenuous’ 3/
— Beth Rigby (@BethRigby) October 5, 2023
As for the Con party, “no-one was left with impression he could turn the ship” said Labour figure pointing to the obvious leadership positioning from others. “He looked like a supply teacher in an unruly classroom” 4/
As for the Con party, “no-one was left with impression he could turn the ship” said Labour figure pointing to the obvious leadership positioning from others. “He looked like a supply teacher in an unruly classroom” 4/
— Beth Rigby (@BethRigby) October 5, 2023
Sunak says there is 'strength in unity' ahead of summit with European leaders on topics including migration
At the European Political Community summit in Spain today Rishi Sunak will be urging European countries to act together to tackle people-smuggling.
He will be co-chairing what No 10 describes as a “small group meeting” on the topic with Giorgia Meloni, the Italian prime minister. In a statement issued in advance, he said:
Levels of illegal migration to mainland Europe are the highest they have been in nearly a decade. With thousands of people dying at sea, propelled by people smugglers, the situation is both immoral and unsustainable. We cannot allow criminal gangs to decide who comes to Europe’s shores.
When it comes to facing down the threat from Putin, confronting the risks and opportunities of AI or dealing with illegal migration, there is strength in unity.
These issues transcend national borders and require creative Europe-wide solutions – that is what I will be discussing with my fellow leaders at the European Political Community summit in Spain today.
According to a report in the Telegraph last week, Sunak “caused havoc” by trying to get the Spanish, who are chairing the EPC summit, to make people-smuggling the main focus. But the Spanish government refused, and insisted on artificial intelligence, the war in Ukraine and graduate mobility as priorities, the Telegraph said.
The EPC is a forum set up last year where EU countries liaise with other European countries not in the EU.
Yesterday Sunak sounded less keen on “strength in unity”. In his speech to the Tory conference, he criticised Labour for wanting to “cook up some deal with the EU” as a means of tackling small boats.
There is more coverage of the EPC summit on our Europe live blog.
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Sunak claims next election choice between him and Keir Starmer
In his Today interview Rishi Sunak claimed the next election would be a choice between him and Keir Starmer.
When it was put to him that he could not credibly ask people to trust him in the future when he was tearing up promises his party made on HS2 earlier during its 13 years in power, Sunak replied:
This is about leadership. I’ve been prime minister for less than a year.
The choice at the next election is between me and Keir Starmer. I’m the person that’s doing politics differently. I’m the person making the big decisions that are going to change our country for the future.
Sunak rejects claims global investors will be deterred by HS2 U-turn
In his Today interview Rishi Sunak rejected the argument that the HS2 U-turn would discourage global investors.
Yesterday the CBI said the cancellation of the phase two link to Manchester would send “a damaging signal about the UK’s status as global destination for investment”.
But when this argument was put to him, Sunak said he did not accept that. He said:
I speak to investors all the time in this job … that’s my background. It’s a world I know well …
When I talk to investors, there’s many things they want from our country. They want us to focus on skills … They want us to make sure that our regulatory regime post-Brexit is competitive. They want to make sure our tax regime is competitive. We’re doing all those things. And the proof is that billions of pounds are coming in, jobs are being created.
I can tell you, they do not talk to me about the railroad between Birmingham and Manchester. They talk to me about all these other things.
Railroad is an Americanism for railway. Sunak spent a lot of time studying and working in the US before be became an MP and, according to a profile in the FT earlier this year, railroad data is something that particularly interests him. He views figures for freight movements by train in the US as a particularly reliable guide to economic performance.
As Aubrey Allegretti reports, in his Today interview Sunak also rejected claims that cancelling the Manchester leg of HS2 would leave it as just a “shuttle service” between London and Birmingham.
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Sunak refuses to say he is 'happy' with Braverman's rhetoric about refugees - but backs her argument on illegal immigration
Rishi Sunak has partially defended Suella Braverman’s recent anti-immigration speeches – without saying he was “happy” about her language.
In his interview with Nick Robinson from the Today programme, broadcast this morning but recorded yesterday, Sunak was asked how he squared what he said in his speech yesterday about the UK being “the most successful multiethnic democracy on earth” with what Braverman said in her recent speech in Washington about immigration posing an existential threat to the west.
Sunak implied there was no inconsistency because they were talking about different things. Braverman was talking about illegal immigration, he said. He went on:
Illegal migration is putting unsustainable pressure on our country. And, for me, it is non-negotiable that it should be the British people who decide who comes to our country and not criminal gangs.
Asked if he agreed with Braverman when she said in her party conference speech on Tuesday that an immigration “hurricane” was coming to the UK, Sunak said:
I made a speech myself eight months ago about illegal migration. I pointed out the number of people who potentially could come to the UK, figures that have been mentioned by international organisations. That’s clearly unsustainable, which is why we’re taking action to stop the boats.
But he also believed that Britain was one of the most welcoming and tolerant countries in the world, he said.
Asked about the difference in aspirations between his parents, who came to the UK as immigrants, and people arriving on small boats, Sunak said there was “a big difference between coming here illegally and legally”.
Robinson then put it to Sunak that he was “happy” with the language used by Braverman. At that point Sunak pushed back, saying: “Your words, not mine.”
When he was asked if that meant he was not happy with Braverman’s rhetoric, Sunak just said he had been very clear about his views.
Minister defends No 10 saying HS2 decision not taken after PM recorded video confirming it
Good morning. Westminster is still digesting the repercussions from Rishi Sunak’s conference speech yesterday, although Sunak himself will have other things on his mind; he’s attending the European Political Community summit in Spain.
The speech has had an enthusiastic reception in the Tory papers, but not elsewhere, and it is still not clear whether or not Sunak will garner any electoral credit for the decision to scrap the Manchester leg of HS2. One PR aspect of the announcement is getting attention today, because Mark Harper, the transport secretary, has had to explain why No 10 kept telling us all that no decision about HS2 had been taken when Sunak had already recorded a video announcing it.
Downing Street posted a video from Sunak justifying the decision on X (formerly Twitter) at 1.18pm yesterday. It was filmed in Downing Street, and even with the most brilliant high-speed rail in the world, or one of his helicopters, he would not have been able to get there that quickly after his speech in Manchester at noon. It was recorded in advance.
I am cancelling the rest of the HS2 project.
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) October 4, 2023
In its place we’ll reinvest every single penny, £36 billion, into hundreds of transport projects in the North, Midlands, and across the country.
Here’s why 👇 pic.twitter.com/0GPdsqNS1E
That is routine in government communications. But, as rumours about HS2 swirled around Manchester during the Tory conference, the government went further than saying it would not comment on speculation; on Monday No 10 issued a statement saying no final decision had been taken, and Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, insisted on Tuesday that, still, no formal decision had been taken. Sunak was claiming the same day that he wanted to take his time, and would not be rushed.
This morning, in an interview with Kay Burley on Sky News, Harper dismissed suggestions that No 10 had been misleading. He said that the government had been working on the plan for weeks, but that as transport secretary he did not take the formal decision to axe phase two until Tuesday, and that that was approved by cabinet on Wednesday. “All very straightforward. I don’t really know why people are getting het up about this particular issue,” he said.
So why did Sunak record a video in advance saying phase two was scrapped?
Harper said government did “lots of work in advance” in relation to this. A command paper was prepared for publication. “But the decision was taken this week, on Tuesday, by me … all very straightforward,” he said.
"Why didn't you just tell us that HS2 has been scrapped rather than waiting until yesterday?"
— Sky News (@SkyNews) October 5, 2023
Transport Secretary @Mark_J_Harper says 'I took the decision formerly on Tuesday and it was approved by the cabinet on Wednesday.'https://t.co/Zv4Q4DKxkp
📺 Sky 501 and Virgin 602 pic.twitter.com/lEzG0ANGVB
Mhari Aurora from Sky News says No 10 says the fact that Sunak filmed the video does not mean it was definitely going to be used.
Gov relentlessly said no decision made on HS2 throughout party conference
But Sunak filmed this video in Downing therefore before he went to Manchester on the weekend
Gov says videos are filmed and not always used, but couldn’t confirm whether a keep-HS2 version was also filmed
Gov relentlessly said no decision made on HS2 throughout party conference
— Mhari Aurora (@MhariAurora) October 5, 2023
But Sunak filmed this video in Downing therefore before he went to Manchester on the weekend
Gov says videos are filmed and not always used, but couldn’t confirm whether a keep-HS2 version was also filmed https://t.co/icvhBJrIDp
Sunak has only given one interview since the speech, to Nick Robinson from the Today programme, recorded yesterday (before his video was attracting much attention), but broadcast this morning. I will post highlights soon.
Otherwise it’s a relatively quiet day. Lili Bayer, our new Europe blogger, is covering the European Political Community summit on her blog.
And in Scotland people are voting in the Rutherglen and West Hamilton byelection. Here is Libby Brooks’s story.
If you want to contact me, do try the “send us a message” feature. You’ll see it just below the byline – on the left of the screen, if you are reading on a laptop or a desktop. This is for people who want to message me directly. I find it very useful when people message to point out errors (even typos – no mistake is too small to correct). Often I find your questions very interesting, too. I can’t promise to reply to them all, but I will try to reply to as many as I can, either in the comments below the line; privately (if you leave an email address and that seems more appropriate); or in the main blog, if I think it is a topic of wide interest.
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