Summary of the day …
Kemi Badenoch has suggested that western civilisation is at risk of collapse, and the UK will be lost as a country if the Conservative party is not successful in renewing itself and regaining power
In a speech at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (ARC) conference in London, the opposition leader insisted the UK was not a racist country, said Keir Starmer had taken the knee during BLM protests because he was “cowed by the mob”, said that “some cultures are better than others” and that British people should be put first. Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper criticised the speech as “dangerous rhetoric”. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is expected to appear at the event tomorrow
Prime minister Keir Starmer has said the UK and Europe face a “generational challenge when it comes to national security” after he wrote an article for the Telegraph announcing that he was prepared to put British troops on the ground in Ukraine as part of a peacekeeping force. Starmer is in Paris meeting other European leaders to discuss European security in the wake of Donald Trump’s seemingly unilateral decision to negotiate a peace with Russia on Ukraine’s behalf
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said it was “absolutely right” that Starmer was proposing deploying troops, and suggested the only people in parliament unlikely to support the move were what he called the “Trump bootlickers” of Reform UK
Keir Starmer has announced that he will travel to the US to meet president Donald Trump next week
Health secretary Wes Streeting has hailed news that the government claims to have met an election promise early by providing an extra two million appointments in NHS England since it was elected compared to figures from a year ago. Streeting said there was “a hell of a lot further to go” but the government was determined to provide “year-on-year improvement” in the NHS
A group of more than 900 Labour members and trade unionists, including MPs and peers, have accused the government of copying the “performative cruelty” of the Conservatives in its migration and asylum policy
Both Robert Jenrick and shadow chancellor Mel Stride have attacked chancellor Rachel Reeves over news that UK employers are preparing for the biggest redundancy round in a decade amid collapsing business confidence
The government has announced investment in two Leeds-based cultural institutions as part of its Plan for Change programme, which will provide six major culture projects across the UK with more than £47m
That is it from me, Martin Belam, today. I will be back with you tomorrow. Take care, and I hope you have a good evening.
The Conservatives have published the full text of leader Kemi Badenoch’s earlier speech. You can read it here.
