Summary of the day
Labour has partially rowed back from its policy on boosting rights for those working in the gig economy as it seeks to head off Conservative attacks on its approach to business in the run-up to the general election.
Angela Rayner, the party’s deputy leader, whose portfolio covers workers’ rights, said on Friday morning that Labour still intended to ban zero-hours contracts, tackle bogus self-employment and end qualifying periods for rights, in the “biggest levelling up of workers’ rights in decades. “Far from watering it down, we will now set out in detail how we will implement it and tackle the Tories’ scaremongering,” she added.
However, the party’s policy forum in July changed the wording of the pledges on workers’ rights to suggest there may be more flexibility in its approach. Labour had been planning to create a single “worker” status for all but the genuinely self-employed, ensuring the same rights for everyone regardless of sector, wage or type of contract. The forum agreed last month to consult on this policy after entering government to create “a simpler framework” that differentiates between workers and the genuinely self-employed in a way that would “properly capture the breadth of employment relationships in the UK” as well as ensuring workers can still “benefit from flexible working where they choose to do so”.
The number of UK-based students in clearing who are trying to find higher education courses a day after exam results were released has jumped to its highest level for at least a decade – though plenty of places are still available, figures show.
A leading forecaster has predicted the typical gas and electricity bill will move to an average of £1,823 a year from October after the regulator, Ofgem, announces its energy price cap next week.
Train drivers in England are to stage a fresh strike in their attempt to secure a pay rise. Members of Aslef will walk out on 1 September and will ban overtime on 2 September, the same day as a strike by the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT). Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary, said the union have had no contact with employers since 26 April or with the government since 6 January. Train routes running to and from Scotland and Wales will also be affected.
The Northern Ireland policing board is to hold an additional meeting over last week’s major PSNI data leak. A spokesperson for the board, which oversees policing in the region, said members will receive an update from the PSNI chief constable, Simon Byrne, and consider any further actions necessary. A man has been arrested in County Derry investigating criminality linked to the leak.
The oligarch Eugene Shvidler, who had sanctions imposed on him after the invasion of Ukraine, has lost a high court challenge against the UK government’s decision to freeze his assets.
Andrew Malkinson, who spent 17 years in prison for a rape he did not commit, has accused the body that investigates miscarriages of justice of having an “attitude problem” and said it has still not contacted him since he was cleared by the court of appeal last month.
The former Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale has said her stance on independence has moved and she can no longer argue for staying in the UK with the same strength she did in the run-up to the 2014 referendum.
High street banks will have to ensure customers can find access to cash within 3 miles of their communities, and those falling below the minimum service level will face a fine, the government has confirmed. It will be seen as a victory for campaigners against digital currencies and a move to a cashless economy.
Transport for London (TfL) has vowed that vandalism of ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) cameras “will not stop” the scheme’s expansion, due to start at the end of August. The transport body issued the statement after the Metropolitan police said they had recorded 288 crimes relating to the cameras as of 1 August.
A leading architect of the Freedom of Information Act has called for a parliamentary review into the system after there were serious data breaches by police forces in responses to FoI requests.
Environment secretary Thérèse Coffey has pledged to do “all we can” to ensure a ban on trophy hunting imports becomes law amid fears pro-hunting peers could “wreck” the reforms.
The British Beer and Pub Association has said it hopes other councils follow Cornwall in permitting pubs to serve drinks from 10am before the England-Spain Women’s World Cup final on Sunday. Michael Gove had written to councils across England asking them to do everything they can to help venues seeking to extend their hours. The Liberal Democrats are still trying to push for a recall of parliament to get licensing laws changed for the weekend. Foreign secretary, James Cleverly, will be able to get a beer, as he has decided he is attending the match in Sydney in person.
That is it from me, Martin Belam. Thank you for reading and putting up with me this week, and thank you for all your comments, which I always find interesting and useful. I will see you somewhere around the Guardian website again soon.
One more thing from that Angela Rayner podcast recording today – she claimed “the landscape has changed towards Labour” in the last couple of years in Scotland.
PA Media reports she said:
We’ve been working really hard to earn back that respect because I think we lost it in Scotland, people were very emotionally charged because Scotland has always been traditionally quite a Labour area. I think they felt quite betrayed by Labour for a long time.
Updated
Speaking at a podcast recording as part of the Edinburgh festival fringe, Labour’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, has been critical of disruptive protests, saying “pissing them off” is not the way to bring people with you.
PA Media quotes her telling the comedian Matt Forde that when she was 18 years old she would have seen such disruptive protest groups as an “irritant”, adding: “I don’t think it brings people round, in my opinion.”
She continued: “As someone who’s had to convince the public to go with what I want sometimes, especially as a union rep, pissing them off is not the way to bring them with you, in my opinion, there’s other ways of doing it.”
Updated
Rayner: being 'safe' and 'a little less crap' than the government is not enough for Labour
Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner has said that being safe and promising to be “a little less crap” than the government is not a way to win power.
Speaking at a recording of the Party political podcast with comedian Matt Forde during the Edinburgh festival fringe on Friday, PA Media reports Rayner said the party had to show it was “radical, realistic and responsible”.
She said voters do not want to see Labour treating the next election like they “have it in the bag”, but cautioned Labour had to be realistic about what they could achieve in power. She said
I’ll just be safe and be a little less crap than these people and they’ll let me in – that’s not a way of getting there
But you’ve also got to be able to give people hope for the future, but be realistic about what you’re potentially taking on because the Tories have crashed the economy.
We are in a bit of a managed decline spiral at the moment, so there has to be some radicalism in, like, the green prosperity plan and the vision of how we can build the industries, but also the realism of we won’t be able to do everything at the same time.
The Liberal Democrats are still trying to push for a recall of parliament to quickly pass a law so pubs can open early on Sunday morning for England’s World Cup final.
This is an open goal for the government.
— Liberal Democrats (@LibDems) August 18, 2023
The lionesses have made history. It's only right that people can get together and celebrate the final properly.
MPs should get down to Westminster and score a last minute winner for our pubs and the Lionesses.https://t.co/yT9XwfuloE
My colleagues Peter Walker and Rowena Mason have been looking at the possible consequences for some Conservative MPs in marginal seats of supporting the rhetoric of the likes of Lee Anderson over immigration:
As political graffiti goes, the message to the Conservative MP Alex Chalk scrawled on some steps in the centre of his Cheltenham constituency was polite, if very pointed. “F**k off back to France?” it began, using slightly coy asterisks. “Really, Alex?”
For baffled locals in the genteel Regency town who have not been following politics amid the summer recess, it was a reference to Chalk’s defence of inflammatory comments about asylum seekers made last week by Lee Anderson, a fellow Tory MP and one of the party’s vice-chairs.
Government ministers often find themselves defending ideas or colleagues they might have little in common with. But as an election looms, some Conservatives are wondering whether the increasingly hard-right, culture war-infused stance taken by Sunak could cost them their seats.
The calculation for the Conservatives – and one being made on a near-daily basis by a number of Tory MPs – is whether this relentless focus on subjects such as small boats could push away traditional supporters with less appetite for populism.
Cheltenham, where Chalk had a sub-1,000 majority over the Lib Dems in 2019, is a case in point. While he is expected to lose his seat, it remains to be seen whether Sunak’s recent embrace of culture war issues, including scepticism about environmental policies, will be a significant factor.
Read more here: ‘Really, Alex?’: Tory moderates risk reputations by backing Lee Anderson
The number of UK-based students in clearing who are trying to find higher education courses a day after exam results were released has jumped to its highest level for at least a decade – though plenty of places are still available, figures show.
414,940 people were confirmed on courses on results day itself – Thursday – down 3% on the equivalent figure of 425,830 in 2022, but up on 408,960 in the pre-pandemic year of 2019.
PA Media reports that by Friday morning, about 53,700 UK-domiciled 18-year-old applicants were recorded as being “free to be placed in clearing”, according to the admissions service Ucas.
This means they missed the conditions of their higher education offer and are now eligible to find places through clearing.
The figure is up slightly on 53,510 at the same point last year and is the highest number since at least 2013.
The British Beer and Pub Association has said it hopes other councils follow Cornwall in permitting pubs to serve drinks from 10am before the England-Spain Women’s World Cup final on Sunday.
PA Media reports the chief executive, Emma McClarkin, said: “The decision by Devon and Cornwall police and Cornwall council to permit all pubs in Cornwall to serve drinks from 10am before kick-off this Sunday is the exact type of flexibility that councils can provide and what the government so helpfully encouraged.
“Football fans and communities want to come together in their local pubs to roar the Lionesses to a historic victory, and we hope other councils across the country follow their example.”
Updated
The government has pledged to do “all we can” to ensure a ban on trophy hunting imports becomes law amid fears pro-hunting peers could “wreck” the reforms.
The environment secretary, Thérèse Coffey, said the government will not support any further amendments to the hunting trophies (import prohibition) bill. In a letter to the Humane Society International/UK, she wrote: “It is a manifesto commitment to ban the import of hunting trophies from endangered animals and we are working hard to deliver.
“The bill passed the Commons in March, with the government’s support, and we will do all we can to support its progress through the House of Lords.”
The proposed legislation would prohibit importing body parts from species deemed of conservation concern. The bill, introduced by the Conservative MP Henry Smith, has already cleared the House of Commons.
But a group of peers has raised concerns and tabled amendments that threaten to derail the proposals.
PA Media reports time is running out to consider the bill and it will fall if it does not receive royal assent before the current parliamentary session stops before the King’s Speech on 7 November.
Smith, the MP for Crawley, said he is speaking with the government to try to secure more parliamentary time for his bill.
The Conservative peer Lord Mancroft, who opposes the proposals, said amendments had been tabled in an attempt to “clean up” or clarify parts of the “badly drafted” bill.
He acknowledged it is “very possible” the amendments could halt the bill’s progress and rated its chances as “less than 10%”.
Updated
A leading forecaster has predicted the typical gas and electricity bill will move to an average of £1,823 a year from October after the regulator, Ofgem, announces its energy price cap next week.
According to Cornwall Insight, the cap will drop from the current July to September level – equivalent to £2,074 a year – but consumer groups have warned that prices remain “dangerously high”.
Craig Lowrey, a principal consultant at Cornwall Insight, said that despite the small decrease in bills from October, the energy price was forecast to remain far above pre-crisis levels, underscoring “the limitations of the price cap as a tool for supporting households with their energy bills”.
Read more here: Ofgem energy price cap predicted to fall to £1,823 a year
Transport for London (TfL) has vowed that vandalism of ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) cameras “will not stop” the scheme’s expansion, due to start at the end of August.
The transport body issued the statement after the Metropolitan police said they had recorded 288 crimes relating to the cameras as of 1 August. PA Media reports it said:
TfL is working closely with social media companies to identify the people featured in videos damaging Ulez cameras circulating online. Camera vandalism will not stop the Ulez expanding London-wide on 29 August.
TfL’s director of capital delivery, Nick Fairholme, said: “We urge the small minority of vandals who are damaging Ulez cameras to reconsider their actions.
“We have seen evidence of vandalism where cables have deliberately been left exposed so that anyone carrying out repairs would be killed or seriously injured. This is dangerous and reckless behaviour putting lives at risk.”
Updated
A leading architect of the Freedom of Information Act has called for a parliamentary review into the system after there were serious data breaches by police forces in responses to FoI requests.
The call by Lord Clark of Windermere, the author of New Labour’s 1998 proposals that laid the groundwork for the law, also follows accusations that Rishi Sunak’s government is failing to disclose information under the act.
David Clark, who as chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster drafted the Blair government’s FoI proposals, said a serious re-examination was needed to look at whether the correct balance was being struck between the need for confidentiality and openness.
Clark said he thought freedom of information was in a weakened state due to continued resistance from senior civil servants, many of whom still did not recognise its value to good governance.
“I think there really does need to be a serious re-examination of the situation,” he said. “I would set up a parliamentary committee with a general view of examining FoI over the past 25 years, [and] the balance between confidentiality and openness.”
Freedom of information and FoI officers, who handle requests, have not been afforded the status required for the system to work effectively, he said. “We’ve [now] got the result we’ve got at the moment in too many government departments (…) it’s just [regarded as] an add-on.”
Read more of David Batty’s report here: Lord Clark calls for freedom of information review after data breaches
Updated
PA Media reports Cornwall council and Cornwall and Devon police have confirmed they will not be enforcing licence conditions for pubs that open earlier than they would usually be allowed on Sunday for the Women’s World Cup final.
Linda Taylor, the leader of Cornwall council, said: “Although it is too late to issue licences to allow our pubs and clubs to open, this is a sensible way forward, ensuring their businesses can benefit from the occasion, and so people can come together to enjoy the match together. I am delighted the police are supporting this move as well.”
Updated
The foreign secretary, James Cleverly, will attend the Women’s World Cup final in Sydney on Sunday.
PA Media reports Cleverly said: “All eyes are on Sydney this Sunday. This is an amazing moment to celebrate the very best of women’s international sport with Australia and New Zealand as our brilliant tournament hosts.
“Everyone back home is behind the Lionesses for their first appearance ever in a World Cup final, and I will be there in person to cheer them on.”
Cleverly is also expected to meet Australia’s minister for foreign affairs, Penny Wong, to discuss foreign policy issues, including regional security.
Updated
The Northern Ireland policing board is to hold an additional meeting over last week’s major PSNI data leak.
A spokesperson for the board, which oversees policing in the region, said members will receive an update from the PSNI chief constable, Simon Byrne, and consider any further actions necessary.
“Members will also have the opportunity to question other data loss incidents that have been reported over the course of the last week,” they added.
Earlier today a man was arrested in County Derry by detectives investigating criminality linked to last week’s leak.
Additionally, PA Media reports that the PSNI is investigating the loss of a police officer’s laptop and notebook yesterday.
The assistant chief constable Chris Todd said: “It is believed the material fell from a moving vehicle on the foreshore stretch of the M2 motorway, on Thursday 17 August about 4.15pm. The laptop was immediately deactivated and has been recovered. Sections of the notebook remain outstanding. Inquiries are under way to establish the contents of the notebook.”
Updated
Summary of the day so far …
Labour has partially rowed back from its policy on boosting rights for those working in the gig economy as it seeks to head off Conservative attacks on its approach to business in the run-up to the general election.
Angela Rayner, the party’s deputy leader, whose portfolio covers workers’ rights, said on Friday morning that Labour still intended to ban zero-hours contracts, tackle bogus self-employment and end qualifying periods for rights, in the “biggest levelling up of workers’ rights in decades. “Far from watering it down, we will now set out in detail how we will implement it and tackle the Tories’ scaremongering,” she added.
However, the party’s policy forum in July changed the wording of the pledges on workers’ rights to suggest there may be more flexibility in its approach. Labour had been planning to create a single “worker” status for all but the genuinely self-employed, ensuring the same rights for everyone regardless of sector, wage or type of contract. The forum agreed last month to consult on this policy after entering government to create “a simpler framework” that differentiates between workers and the genuinely self-employed in a way that would “properly capture the breadth of employment relationships in the UK” as well as ensuring workers can still “benefit from flexible working where they choose to do so”.
Nearly 300 crimes relating to London’s Ulez cameras have been recorded, police have said.
Train drivers in England are to stage a fresh strike in their attempt to secure a pay rise. Members of Aslef will walk out on 1 September and will ban overtime on 2 September, the same day as a strike by the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT). Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary, said “We haven’t heard a word from the employers – we haven’t had a meeting, a phone call, a text message, or an email – since 26 April and we haven’t had any contact with the government since 6 January. This shows the contempt in which the companies, and the government, hold passengers and staff and public transport in Britain.”
A man has been arrested in County Derry by detectives investigating criminality linked to last week’s major PSNI data breach.
The oligarch Eugene Shvidler, who had sanctions imposed on him after the invasion of Ukraine, has lost a high court challenge against the UK government’s decision to freeze his assets.
Andrew Malkinson, who spent 17 years in prison for a rape he did not commit, has accused the body that investigates miscarriages of justice of having an “attitude problem” and said it has still not contacted him since he was cleared by the court of appeal last month.
The former Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale has said her stance on independence has moved and she can no longer argue for staying in the UK with the same strength she did in the run-up to the 2014 referendum.
High street banks will have to ensure customers can find access to cash within 3 miles of their communities, and those falling below the minimum service level will face a fine, the government has confirmed.
The Ministry of Defence must urgently tackle the impact of the climate crisis on its operations to make sure the capability of the UK armed forces is not eroded by rising temperatures and harsh climatic conditions, MPs have said.
Trade unions have called for a safer working environment for civil servants after it emerged that legionella, insect infestations and more than 100 sewage leaks were discovered in government buildings in the past year.
Covid booster vaccines are expected to become available for the UK public to buy for the first time, after health officials supported the proposal.
Michael Gove has written to councils across England asking them to do everything they can to help venues seeking to extend their hours so they can serve alcohol while people watch England in the Women’s World Cup final on Sunday morning. The shadow education minister Stephen Morgan said there should be a “pragmatic, flexible approach so that people can enjoy the game in a local pub”. The Conservative MP Michael Fabricant has said he has written to his local police chief constable to ask them to “turn a blind eye” to pubs opening early.
Updated
Labour partially rows back on workers’ rights pledges
Our Whitehall editor, Rowena Mason, has filed her report on Labour’s change in position on workers’ rights:
Labour has partially rowed back from its policy on boosting rights for those working in the gig economy as it seeks to head off Conservative attacks on its approach to business in the run-up to the general election.
Angela Rayner, the party’s deputy leader, whose portfolio covers workers’ rights, said on Friday morning that Labour still intended to ban zero-hours contracts, tackle bogus self-employment, and end qualifying periods for workers’ rights, in the “biggest levelling-up of workers’ rights in decades”.
“Far from watering it down, we will now set out in detail how we will implement it and tackle the Tories’ scaremongering,” she added.
However, the party’s policy forum in July changed the wording of the pledges on workers’ rights to suggest there may be more flexibility in its approach.
Labour had been planning to create a single “worker” status for all but the genuinely self-employed, ensuring the same rights for everyone regardless of sector, wage or type of contract.
The forum agreed last month to consult on this policy after entering government to create “a simpler framework” that differentiates between workers and the genuinely self-employed in a way that would “properly capture the breadth of employment relationships in the UK” as well as ensuring workers can still “benefit from flexible working where they choose to do so”.
Labour also tweaked its plan for “day one” workers’ rights, such as sick pay, parental leave and unfair dismissal, to say that this would not prevent “probationary periods with fair and transparent rules and processes”.
The changes, first reported by the Financial Times, are supported by a number of trade unions and their organising body, the TUC. However, Unite, the party’s biggest donor, is believed to have given the new wording a “thumbs down”.
Read more of Rowena Mason’s report here: Labour partially rows back on workers’ rights pledges
Updated
An oligarch who had sanctions imposed on him after the invasion of Ukraine has lost a high court challenge against the UK government’s decision to freeze his assets.
Eugene Shvidler, who was born in the former Soviet Union before moving to the US as a stateless refugee in 1989, had sanctions placed on him by the Foreign Office using 2019 regulations over his links to Roman Abramovich and to a steel mining company with operations in Russia.
PA Media reports the 59-year-old brought a legal challenge against the decision, made in March last year, in an attempt to have the sanctions lifted, and his case was the first of its kind to be considered by the high court.
In his ruling, Mr Justice Garnham said decisions over whether sanctioning a friend of Abramovich could influence him to distance himself from President Vladimir Putin or speak out against the invasion of Ukraine “are essentially matters of executive judgment”.
“It cannot properly be said that the secretary of state has failed to strike a fair balance between the rights of Mr Shvidler and his family and the interests of the community.”
Updated
I will just whisper this as I know my talk of “the football” is not universally popular here on the blog, but the Conservative MP Michael Fabricant has said he has written to the Staffordshire police chief constable and the police and fire commissioner for Staffordshire to ask them to “turn a blind eye” to pubs opening early on Sunday in order to serve alcohol while showing England’s Women’s World Cup final, which kicks off at 11am.
Fabricant, who it must be said always has a keen eye for publicity, issued a statement saying: “With parliament in recess and so many MPs abroad, licensing laws cannot be changed in time to allow pubs to open early for Sunday.
“I think now is the time for the police to show discretion to allow pubs and other venues to open early, allowing people to cheer on our wonderful Lionesses in the company of others. I hope other police forces might show similar flexibility too – on this particular Sunday.”
He does go on to make a serious point about the legislation that surrounds licensing, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t see some movement around this when parliament resumes.
PA Media reports that said: “When parliament returns, I shall discuss with ministers whether the law can be changed to allow for Home Office ministers to change licensing hours for special occasions without it needing legislation in parliament each time.”
Updated
Nearly 300 crimes relating to London’s ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) cameras have been recorded, police have said.
About 2,750 cameras are being installed in new areas the zone will cover once it is extended to include the whole of the capital from 29 August.
The Metropolitan police launched an operation in April after Transport for London (TfL) reported criminal damage to, and theft of, cameras. The force said it had recorded 288 crimes relating to Ulez cameras as of 1 August.
PA Media reports this included 185 reports of cables being damaged, 164 cameras being stolen and 38 reports of cameras being obscured.
Commander Owain Richards said: “We are providing a proportionate policing response, balancing these incidents against the wide range of operational demand and crime we must respond to across London.”
Owners of vehicles that do not meet minimum emissions standards are required to pay a £12.50 daily fee for themto be used in the Ulez zone, or face a fine. TfL says nine out of 10 cars seen driving in outer London on an average day comply with the Ulez standards.
Updated
Andrew Malkinson, who spent 17 years in prison for a rape he did not commit, has accused the body that investigates miscarriages of justice of having an “attitude problem” and said it has still not contacted him since he was cleared by the court of appeal last month.
Malkinson and his legal team first heard that the Criminal Cases Review Commission was launching a review into its handling of his case after the Guardian contacted them about it on Thursday.
Malkinson, 57, was convicted in 2004 over a stranger rape in Greater Manchester that he did not commit.
The CCRC twice considered his case before referring it for appeal after fresh DNA testing had linked another man to the crime.
The Guardian revealed earlier this week that the commission knew in his first application in 2009 that another man’s DNA had been found in a “crime specific” location on the victim’s clothes but declined to do further forensic testing or refer the case for appeal.
Read more of Emily Dugan’s report here: Miscarriages of justice body has ‘attitude problem’, says Andrew Malkinson
Keir Starmer has just published a short promo video on the five national missions he claims will be at the heart of any future Labour government he leads. He lists:
Secure the highest growth in the G7
Build an NHS fit for the future
Make Britain’s streets safe
Break down the barriers to opportunity at every stage for every child
Make Britain a clean energy superpower
These are my five missions for Britain. pic.twitter.com/7f9aTYQmYH
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) August 18, 2023
Train drivers in England are to stage a fresh strike in their attempt to secure a pay rise. Members of Aslef will walk out on 1 September and will ban overtime on 2 September, the same day as a strike by the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT).
Aslef said its strike will force train companies across England to cancel all services – including those running to and from Wales and Scotland – while the ban on overtime will “seriously disrupt” the network.
Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary, said: “We don’t want to take this action but the train companies, and the government which stands behind them, have forced us into this place because they refuse to sit down and talk to us and have not made a fair and sensible pay offer to train drivers who have not had one for four years – since 2019 – while prices have soared in that time by more than 12%.
“We haven’t heard a word from the employers – we haven’t had a meeting, a phone call, a text message, or an email – since 26 April and we haven’t had any contact with the government since 6 January. This shows the contempt in which the companies, and the government, hold passengers and staff and public transport in Britain.”
The companies affected are Avanti West Coast; Chiltern Railways; c2c; CrossCountry; East Midlands Railway; Greater Anglia; GTR Great Northern Thameslink; Great Western Railway; Island Line; LNER; Northern Trains; Southeastern; Southern/Gatwick Express; South Western Railway; TransPennine Express; and West Midlands Trains.
Earlier this week Aslef members in Scotland voted to accept a pay deal from ScotRail.
ScotRail’s service delivery director, David Simpson, said at the time: “We are grateful to our trade union colleagues for their constructive approach to negotiations, which has resulted in a well-deserved pay increase for our staff, while delivering value for the taxpayer in the challenging financial environment in which the railway operates.”
Updated
PA Media reports that a man has been arrested in County Derry by detectives investigating criminality linked to last week’s major PSNI data breach.
The 50-year-old was detained after a search in the Dungiven area on Friday. He is being questioned at Musgrave serious crime suite in Belfast.
DCS Andy Hill said: “We continue to work toward establishing those who possess information relating to last week’s data breach, and will take action to ensure that any criminality identified is dealt with robustly to keep communities, and our officers and staff who serve them, safe.”
Updated
First Edition today features my colleague Aamna Mohdin talking to our legal correspondent Haroon Siddique on how lawyers have been dragged into the culture war by the government:
Attacks against legal professionals have steadily increased as the government has failed to meet its pledges around immigration. Since coming into power in 2010, every Conservative prime minister – from David Cameron who promised to reduce net migrations to “tens of thousands” to Rishi Sunak who has vowed to “stop the boats” – has failed to meet their pledge.
“The government is under real pressure on immigration,” says Haroon. “Some of it is self-imposed because they set targets, they come up with all these schemes and none of them are working. The thing to stress is that it’s entirely proper for lawyers to challenge the legality of government policy in the courts. That’s what judicial review is for. In recent years, they’ve been a convenient scapegoat when things aren’t going the government’s way. I think it’s just another plank of the culture wars.”
It has been the modus operandi for Johnson, Truss, and now Sunak, though some appear surprised by the latter. But, according to Haroon, they shouldn’t be. “During his leadership campaign, he put out a press release where he was very critical of Jolyon Maugham, of the Good Law project, who revealed the existence of the VIP lane for PPE during Covid.”
As for Labour’s position on immigration, there isn’t that much of a difference between them and the Conservatives, Haroon says. Shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock admitted that Labour would use controversial barges and military camps to temporarily house asylum seekers if it won the next election, and Keir Starmer has also been urged to defend the legal profession against government attacks.
Read more here: Friday briefing – Years of attacks have dragged the legal profession into the culture wars
The government has been trying to make this “NHS week” in their comms strategy, hoping that announcements on changes to cancer targets and funding for an extra 900 beds might catch voters’ eyes. One of today’s announcements is that all GP surgeries in England will move to a digital phone system by spring.
The government says it could potentially bring an end to the “8am scramble” when patients usually rush to secure an appointment.
PA Media reports that more than 1,000 practices have signed up for the upgrade, which will come into force from March, and has been backed by a £240m investment from the government, which was announced in May as part of the primary care recovery plan.
The health secretary, Steve Barclay, said: “We are delivering on our promises to make access to GP appointments easier while boosting staffing numbers.
“With the support of NHS England, general practices, pharmacies and dental surgeries, backed by significant investment from the government, we will bring an end to the 8am scramble for appointments.”
The shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, was among those underwhelmed, breaking out the phrase “all talk, no trousers” to describe Barclay.
This announcement is just a repeat prescription from the Tories. People have heard it all before.
— Wes Streeting MP (@wesstreeting) August 18, 2023
The reality is that under the Tories, patients find it harder than ever before to see a GP.
Steve Barclay is all talk, no trousers. https://t.co/GOsTH1iv4U
Updated
The former Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale has said her stance on independence has moved and she can no longer argue for staying in the UK with the same strength she did in the run-up to the 2014 referendum.
Dugdale said she felt Scots would eventually get a second vote on the future of Scotland’s place in the UK but did not believe a referendum would take place within the next decade.
“I don’t think either the Labour party or the Conservative government will concede a referendum,” the former politician said.
Asked how she would vote if there was another ballot on independence, Dugdale said she would “decide at the time”.
While stressing she was now outside party politics, she said: “If you are presented with a binary choice between an independent Scotland in a progressive Europe or little Boris Brexit Britain, I know where my cards would fall down.
“I also know I couldn’t argue with the same strength for the union that I did in 2014 now.
“That doesn’t mean I’m ready to vote yes, there are big, big questions we need to debate as a country and resolve.
“So I have moved … we have to keep talking about some of these big issues in the country, but not just purely through that yes/no lens.”
Read more of Caroline Davies’ report here: My view on Scottish independence has moved, says Kezia Dugdale
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Rayner: 'Far from watering down' employment policy, Labour promises to legislate improved rights within 100 days
Labour’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, has said that “far from watering down” the party’s commitments to improve workers’ rights, it will be setting out “in detail how we will implement” changes, and promised the party would legislate to protect rights within 100 days of coming into office.
Her long thread on social media comes off the back of reports today in the FT that the party is planning to water down some of its previous policy positions. Rayner wrote:
Labour’s New Deal for Working People will be the biggest levelling-up of workers’ rights in decades – providing security, treating workers fairly, and paying a decent wage.
We’ll tackle insecure work by banning zero-hours contracts, ending fire and rehire, and ending qualifying periods for basic rights, which currently leave working people waiting up to two years for basic protections.
We’ll make work more family friendly by making flexible working a day one right except where it isn’t reasonably feasible, strengthening protections for pregnant women and by urgently reviewing parental leave.
And we’ll make sure work actually pays with a genuine living wage that covers the cost of living, ensuring fair tips, boosting collective rights - and by speeding up the closing of the gender pay gap.
I’m proud that we developed our comprehensive New Deal together with Labour’s affiliated unions. Far from watering it down, we will now set out in detail how we will implement it and tackle the Tories’ scaremongering.
Tackling bogus self-employment is a key priority for a Labour government, and stronger protections against unfair dismissal will mean workers can no longer be sacked without reason from day one.
I’m delighted to be in Scotland this week – meeting apprentices in Glasgow – to explain why only Labour can deliver a New Deal for Working People in Scotland and across the UK. We know this will resonate in workplaces and on the doorstep.
The New Deal will be a core part of our manifesto and our plan for growth, raising living standards for all. We’ll bring forward legislation within 100 days of taking office.
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The shadow education minister Stephen Morgan was inevitably also asked about Sunday’s licensing conundrum with the Women’s World Cup final during the media round. He said pubs should be given flexibility.
Asked whether pubs should be allowed to start serving alcohol earlier than their licences allow on Sunday, PA Media reports Morgan said: “We could have seen this coming, they [the England team] performed brilliantly and I’m really excited to be watching the game on Sunday.
“I appreciate what Michael Gove has done. I think that we’ve got to have a pragmatic, flexible approach so that people can enjoy the game in a local pub.”
He added: “I think they’ve got to be flexible, let’s be sensible. I think it makes sense.”
I’ll try not to write about the football all day, I promise, and I haven’t even touched yet on the Mail and the Sun getting vexed that the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, and the president of the FA, Prince William, haven’t dropped everything to be there in Sydney, in the way the papers argue they surely would have done if it had been the men in a World Cup final.
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Having been admonished in the comments earlier in the week that this was meant to be a politics blog and not, I quote, “an England supporters’ sports blog”, I approach the next topic with some trepidation …
Michael Gove has written to councils across England asking them to do everything they can to help venues seeking to extend their hours so they can serve beer while people watch England in the World Cup final on Sunday morning.
PA Media reports that in the Telegraph, the Tory MP Damian Green, a member of the culture select committee, said: “We wouldn’t think twice about doing it if the men’s team were playing a World Cup final so let’s do it on Sunday.”
But councils are unable to grant extensions to pubs that failed to apply by 11 August – when England had not even won their quarter-final tie.
A blanket change to licensing hours across England would require the approval of parliament, which is not sitting as it is the summer recess – and demands for an emergency recall to Westminster have been dismissed. The Liberal Democrats had called for Rishi Sunak to recall parliament, to no avail.
Instead, the government is urging local councils and police chiefs to do what they can to approve extensions.
Gove, the levelling up secretary, said: “The whole nation is ready to get behind the Lionesses this Sunday in what is England’s biggest game since 1966.
“I’ve asked councils to do everything they can to help pubs get open earlier on Sunday, so people can come together and enjoy a drink before kick-off for this special occasion.”
A curmudgeon – ie, me – might point out that we’ve known the date of the final since at least when the draw was made on 22 October 2022, the Lionesses have won both the European Championship and the Finalissima in the last 12 months, suggesting they are quite good at this sort of thing, and maybe a bit of foresight could have been applied.
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Friday's newspaper front pages
Michael Parkinson features on a lot of front pages, but there is quite a varied selection of stories to go with tributes to him.
The Guardian led with A-level grades and the announcement that the CCRC is to open an investigation into the Andrew Malkinson case.
GUARDIAN: Thousands miss top grades #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/ud21NOwq2M
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 17, 2023
Here is the FT with that line on UK Labour apparently watering down its plans to reform employment law.
FT UK: Labour waters down pledges to strengthen workers’ rights #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/XkleunMbtB
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 17, 2023
The Telegraph is complaining that France is stopping fewer migrants crossing the Channel than before.
TELEGRAPH: France stops fewer migrants despite £480m aid #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/V36W2db4VZ
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 17, 2023
The Times features that story about people being able to buy Covid boosters over the counter.
THE TIMES: Rules change lets anyone buy a Covid jab #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/E2SfiuQL4q
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 17, 2023
The Independent leads with the British Museum curator, as does the Daily Mail.
INDEPENDENT: Named: Curator sacked after British Museum treasured vanished #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/GsTJvt9GQg
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 17, 2023
MAIL: Museum sacks top expert over its missing treasures #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/11MkhzAWaf
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 17, 2023
The Scotsman has a warning about arts funding.
Good morning. Here is the front page of The Scotsman for Friday pic.twitter.com/fs7deNZ2hJ
— The Scotsman (@TheScotsman) August 18, 2023
The Daily Express lucky roulette wheel of front pages today landed on small boats, Brexit joy, pensions, Diana, Meghan, house prices, cutting taxes.
EXPRESS: Yes! Britain CAN afford tax cuts #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/LhpIO3qz31
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 17, 2023
Labour’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, was also drawn into discussion about what the UK party had planned for workers when she visited Glasgow yesterday.
Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, had said on social media: “Will Labour commit to full devolution of employment law should they form the next government?”
Rayner said “They won’t need it because I want employment law across the whole of the United Kingdom to be uplifted and better. That’s why we’ve got a new deal for working people. I want a new deal for working people to be here in Scotland so we have those protections of employment law.”
She said employment practices would be “in effect across the board” rather than split off across the four UK nations. And she said she did not want to see “disparities” across the different parts of the UK.
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Here is a snippet from that FT report that the shadow education minister Stephen Morgan was being asked about this morning:
A pledge to boost the protection of gig economy workers was diluted by the party’s leadership at Labour’s national policy forum in Nottingham last month, according to people familiar with the matter and text seen by the Financial Times.
The text agreed last month will be published in the run-up to Labour’s annual conference in October and will form a menu from which it picks its manifesto pledges.
Passages seen by the FT showed that Labour has diluted its 2021 pledge to create a single status of “worker” for all but the genuinely self-employed, regardless of sector, wage or contract type.
Instead of introducing the policy immediately, Labour has agreed it would consult on the proposal in government, considering how “a simpler framework” that differentiates between workers and the genuinely self-employed “could properly capture the breadth of employment relationships in the UK” and ensure workers can still “benefit from flexible working where they choose to do so”.
Labour also clarified that its previously announced plans to introduce “basic individual rights from day one for all workers”, including sick pay, parental leave and protection against unfair dismissal, will “not prevent … probationary periods with fair and transparent rules and processes.”
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Labour can be 'pro-worker and pro-business', says shadow education minister
Labour will be “pro-worker and pro-business”, a shadow minister has said after reports the party had watered down its commitment to strengthen the rights of gig economy employees.
The FT reported Labour has scaled back its commitments to bolster workers’ rights in an attempt to woo corporate backers, including by diluting its pledge to strengthen gig workers’ rights.
PA Media reports that when asked about the reports by Sky News, the shadow education minister Stephen Morgan said he could not comment, but added: “Labour set out its five national missions. That has been approved by our national policy forum in July.
“Obviously we will set out more detail in our manifesto, but the Labour party can be pro-worker and pro-business.
“We have got a really good relationship with business now, we can be trusted to run our economy and to run our country, and we have got a set of policies which are pro-worker too.”
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Welcome and opening summary
Welcome to today’s live coverage of UK politics. It is Friday. It is recess. There is nothing much in the diary. I’m not expecting a blistering day’s news to be honest. Here are your headlines:
High street banks will have to ensure customers can find access to cash within 3 miles of their communities, and those falling below the minimum service level will face a fine, the government has confirmed.
The Ministry of Defence must urgently tackle the impact of the climate crisis on its operations to make sure the capability of the UK armed forces is not eroded by rising temperatures and harsh climatic conditions, MPs have said.
Trade unions have called for a safer working environment for civil servants after it emerged that legionella, insect infestations and more than 100 sewage leaks were discovered in government buildings in the past year.
Covid booster vaccines are expected to become available for the UK public to buy for the first time, after health officials supported the proposal. Pharmacists and private clinics will be allowed to sell the jabs, as they do with the flu vaccine. They are unlikely to be available in time for an autumn booster campaign but could become available next year.
Unusually wet weather impacted British retailers last month, pushing down sales by more than had been expected, the ONS reported.
Pubs across England are hoping a minister’s letter to councils across England means venues can open early for the Women’s World Cup final on Sunday. The cabinet minister Michael Gove has written to councils across England asking them to do everything they can to help venues seeking to extend their hours for the game.
I am Martin Belam, and I will be with you today. You can reach me at martin.belam@theguardian.com.
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