A summary of today's developments
- The prime minister’s spokeperson refused to confirm that Lord Geidt will definitely be replaced as the PM’s ethics adviser. The spokeperson said that having a process for ensuring standards are maintained by ministers was “vitally important”. Geidt said in his resignation letter that the final straw was a request to consider a proposal that he said would be a “deliberate and purposeful” breach of the ministerial code. He implies that Boris Johnson asked him to approve of this breach.
- Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Brexit opportunities minister, told Newsnight’s Nicholas Watt that the Geidt resignation saga is really a story about Boris Johnson “protecting the British steel industry”. (See 1.45pm.)
- At the Downing Street lobby briefing, the prime minister’s spokesperson said ministers would not be getting directly involved in talks to stop the rail strikes next week.
- The Foreign Office has announced a fresh wave of sanctions against Vladimir Putin’s allies, including on officials involved with the “barbaric treatment of children in Ukraine”.
- Nicola Sturgeon has claimed the Conservatives are “terrified” of another vote on Scottish independence after the party’s leader in Scotland challenged her priorities.
- Witnesses should not be able to avoid giving evidence at inquiries after “an increasing number of rich and powerful” people have done so in recent years, MPs have said. As PA Media reported, the Commons committee of privileges has published a report recommending the introduction of legislation that would ensure parliament can compel witnesses to turn up to the House of Commons when summoned.
Updated
Hundreds of Ukrainians welcomed to England since Russia’s invasion have been left homeless or are threatened with homelessness, new figures show.
Families allowed to come to the country either to join relatives or as part of the Homes for Ukraine sponsorship scheme have instead found accommodation unavailable or had arrangements to house them break down.
A total of 660 Ukrainian households were owed a statutory homelessness duty by local authorities in England in the period up to 3 June, according to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
A government spokesperson said: “More than 77,200 Ukrainians have arrived in the UK since Putin’s invasion and all arrivals have access to benefits and public services, as well as the right to work or study, from the day they arrive.
“The overwhelming majority of people are settling in well but in the minority of cases where family or sponsor relationships break down, councils have a duty to ensure families are not left without a roof over their head.
“Councils also have access to a rematching service to find a new sponsor in cases under the Homes for Ukraine scheme.”
Updated
