Starmer addresses leaked plan for pub smoking ban and refuses to rule out fuel duty hike – UK politics live

The prime minister dropped the phrase ‘rubble and ruin’ from his speech and tried to emphasise the things he is doing to fix the problems, writes John Rentoul – but will it work?

First Minister John Swinney has warned cuts by the UK government will leave his ability to serve Scotland “under real threat”.

Speaking ahead of his first conference as party leader in almost two decades, Mr Swinney urged Scots to rally against any potential spending cuts at a UK level, which would impact on the funding provided to Scotland.

Both the UK and Scottish governments find themselves fighting against dire financial outlooks, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves announcing a more than £20 billion black hole in public finances, while Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the Budget expected in October will be “painful”.

North of the border, Finance Secretary Shona Robison has said “tough decisions” will be needed, as experts suggested a combination of high spending and uncertainty around funding from the UK government could see Scotland struggle to balance its budget.

Ahead of the first SNP conference of John Swinney’s tenure as leader – after he succeeded Humza Yousaf earlier this year – the First Minister said: “The Prime Minister’s speech on Tuesday has made clear that Scotland is facing years of austerity under Labour, which will have profound consequences for public services and living standards.

“Be in no doubt – our ability to serve the people of Scotland is under real threat by the sweeping spending cuts that the Labour government are introducing – cuts that, only a few months ago, they were denying would take place.

“The SNP, and indeed Scotland as a whole, must come together to stand up against Labour’s cuts.

“My belief that Scotland will be better as an independent country has never been stronger – and I know that we will win our independence when we show the people of Scotland that the powers of independence are central to improving their living standards, their local services and their communities.

“Under my leadership, the SNP will work harder than ever for the country that we are so privileged to lead.

“What people in Scotland need right now is hope and ambition for a better future – and that is what the SNP will offer.”

The government has said it will not challenge judicial reviews brought against developments for the Rosebank and Jackdaw offshore oil and gas fields in the North Sea, in order to “save the taxpayer money”.

The move has been welcomed by climate action groups, despite the licences for drilling at the sites not being withdrawn.

Greenpeace and Uplift jointly brought judicial reviews to stop the development of the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields.

If the judicial review backs the environmental groups, operators would need to resubmit environmental assessments, adding costs to the projects.

Rosebank is owned by Equinor and Ithaca Energy, and Jackdaw is owned by Shell.

The Rosebank oil field was approved by the previous government in September 2023. Located 80 miles west of Shetland, it is the UK’s largest untapped oil field and is estimated to contain up to 300 million barrels of oil.

The Jackdaw gas condensate field is being developed 155 miles east of Aberdeen and is expected to start production in 2025.

Sir Keir Starmer confirmed prior to the election that Labour would respect the Conservative government’s decision to approve the fields and would uphold existing oil and gas licences, whilst banning any new ones.

Conservative leadership hopeful Tom Tugendhat has pledged that the party will commit to a policy of an annual net migration cap of 100,000 if he becomes party leader.

In a speech in central London on Thursday, he also said that Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is “already losing control of pay across the public sector” and warned that it could lead to rising inflation.

Mr Tugendhat said that “an honest and open conversation about population size is the only way to have a country that is happy with itself”.

Pointing to ideas such as reforms of visa policies and welfare, he said that “the pressure on housing, on infrastructure and on services is just one reason why the Conservative Party, under my leadership, will commit to a legally binding annual cap on non-British annual net migration of 100,000”.

Polling of Conservative party members from YouGov released earlier this week suggested that more than half of party members would “support” a policy of “a freeze in all migration coming into Britain for the next five years”.

The blunt subtitle of Sir Anthony Seldon’s account of our shortest-serving prime minister’s brief time in office says it all, writes Simon Walters – ‘How Not to Be Prime Minister’:

Pub industry bosses and brewers have criticised reported plans to ban smoking in beer gardens, as part of a drive to improve public health.

Chris Jowsey, chief executive of Admiral Taverns, told the PA news agency: “I’m no fan of smoking, but I just can’t see how this will improve health outcomes if you move people from smoking in a pub garden to smoking at home.

“It doesn’t really make any sense to me. It feels really ill-thought through.”

Mr Jowsey, whose company runs more than 1,600 pubs across the UK, added: “It would also reduce footfall and revenue into pubs.

“A pub is the last community asset left standing in many communities. Anything that undermines their ability to survive and grow their business is a bad thing, not just for the pub, but for the community.

“What are we going to do? Will we have to employ people now to just patrol the gardens to make sure nobody’s smoking? It seems a bit nuts.”

According to leaked proposals seen by The Sun newspaper, the indoor smoking ban could be extended to cover other locations including small parks, outdoor restaurants and hospitals.

‘Remember the photos of the wine and the cheese just over there,’ cried Starmer, his arm sweeping over the patio in a rare moment of animation. ‘Well, this garden and this building are now back in your service.’ Shame it felt more like a funeral service, writes Joe Murphy

Sir Keir Starmer has been criticised for lacking ambition in wanting to reset the UK’s relationship with the EU after he rejected free movement for under-30s even before talks got underway.

The prime minister made it clear he was not open to a deal on making it easier for young people from the UK and EU to travel when he held a joint press conference with German chancellor Olaf Scholz today.

Despite describing the renegotiation as “a once in a generation opportunity” there were concerns that he was not willing to be flexible on a proposal which is strongly supported in the EU.

Our political editor David Maddox has the full story:

Sir Keir Starmer insisted he was not “reversing Brexit” as he set out plans for a new treaty with Germany as part of a wider “reset” of relations with the European Union.

The prime minister, who agreed that a deal with Germany would be in place by the end of the year following talks with counterpart Olaf Scholz, said it was a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity.

Mr Scholz said the UK and germany were “good friends, close partners and trusted allies” as Sir Keir promised a “bright new future” for the countries’ relationship.

Sir Keir said the new UK-Germany treaty would result in “deeper links on science, technology, development, people, business, culture” and “a boost to our trading relations”.

A new defence agreement will build on the “already formidable” co-operation between the two countries, Sir Keir said.

He said the treaty was a “once-in-a-generation chance to deliver for working people in Britain and in Germany”.

“Britain can advance its interests much more effectively when we work with friends and partners.

“This treaty is part of a wider reset, grounded in a new spirit of cooperation with our shared understanding that this will be developed at pace, and that we hope to have agreed it by the end of the year.”

Sir Keir’s hopes for the “wider reset” with the European Union would not amount to undoing the Brexit decision, he insisted.

“I’m absolutely clear that we do want a reset. I have been able to repeat that here today, a reset with Europe, a reset with the EU.

“That does not mean reversing Brexit or re-entering the single market or the customs union, but it does mean a closer relationship on a number of fronts, including the economy, including defence, including exchanges, but we do not have plans for a youth mobility scheme.”

Fire Brigade Union general secretary Matt Wrack has described a blaze which destroyed a block of flats in Dagenham, east London, as a national scandal which should not be able to happen.

Mr Wrack spoke to The Independent after touring the site of the disaster in Freshwater Road, Dagenham, with deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, who is also in charge of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).

Our political editor David Maddox has the full story: