Starmer vows to ‘turn corner on Brexit’ and reset ‘broken’ UK-EU relationship left by Tories – latest

Bahrain’s crown prince hailed Sir Keir Starmer’s garden speech “a very ambitious roadmap for the future”, when the pair met to discuss investment and defence in Downing Street.

Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa met the Prime Minister at Number 10, hours after Sir Keir claimed to have inherited “not just an economic black hole (but) a societal black hole” from the Conservatives.

“Having come into this office myself a while, a few years, ago, I do remember looking at what was inherited and then seeing what I could do to improve it,” the crown prince said, after having taken office as Bahrain’s prime minister in 2020.

He added: “Thank you for taking the time to receive myself and my delegation. I’d like to congratulate you on your speech today, laying out a very ambitious roadmap for the future.”

Sir Keir said: “Obviously, there’s a long and very important history between our countries that we’re very proud of and very keen to build on, whether that’s investment, defence, people-to-people. So, it’s very good to have this early opportunity.”

He added: “I think being clear about the inheritance is really important, and then clearing it away. The example I gave this morning was, the example of, sort of, clearing the garden but not really doing the weeding properly and you know where it’s going to end up.

“But I think there’s huge potential for us and our countries working together, I mean, particularly investment, particularly the defence work, already difficult.

“And thank you so much for the role that you play particularly in the Red Sea.” The crown prince replied: “Not at all.”

Top doctors have called for legislation aimed at tackling youth vaping to include a total ban on disposable e-cigarettes and all flavours apart from tobacco.

The British Medical Association (BMA) urged ministers to “take bold and brave actions” to protect the health of children and young people amid a “vaping epidemic”.

Former prime minister Rishi Sunak introduced the Tobacco and Vapes Bill earlier this year, which included plans to ban disposable e-cigarettes and introduce restrictions on flavours and packaging.

However, it was shelved after the General Election was announced in May.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer revived the Bill following Labour’s victory at the July 4 vote, although details on the measures included in the proposed legislation are yet to be published.

Dr Penelope Toff, chair of the BMA’s public health medicine committee, called on the current Government “to go even further” than the plans outlined by Mr Sunak.

She described the BMA report – Taking our breath away: why we need stronger regulation of vapes – as a “blueprint” of the actions that should be taken by ministers.

It calls for a ban on the sale of disposable vapes “on the grounds of disproportionate and harmful use by children and young people and their adverse impact on the environment”.

The BMA also suggests all vape flavours apart from tobacco should be banned, with measures introduced to prohibit the use of imagery, colouring and branding on packaging and e-cigarettes, as well as further restrictions on all advertising and marketing.

Tory leadership hopeful Tom Tugendhat has called for the military to be involved in tackling illegal migration in the way the Royal Navy helped stop slavery.

The shadow security minister said it was not “wrong or nasty to be against illegal migration” and tackling human trafficking gangs was the “moral thing to do”.

He said the UK’s national security “demands the same level of commitment” the Royal Navy showed “in the fight against slavery almost 200 years ago” – which cost the equivalent of around £50 billion a year.

A recording of Mr Tugendhat’s speech, delivered at Kensington, Bayswater, Chelsea and Fulham Conservatives association on 14 August, was obtained by The Times.

The newspaper reported that he told Tory members: “Human trafficking is costing thousands of lives and being weaponised by the Kremlin and its proxies. The UK must show the same determination and commitment to fighting this evil trade as we did in fighting slavery.

“We need to see our military engaged in fighting this threat.”

Most professionals working with children feel there are not enough services available to support those experiencing neglect in England, according to a survey.

The NSPCC said 83% of those working across healthcare, the police, children’s social care and education felt this way when asked, while many also felt poverty was a key factor in a rise in cases.

Of 700 professionals polled, more than half (54%) said they had seen an increase in neglect cases during their professional life.

Of those, the vast majority (90%) said the rising cost-of-living and poverty rates were driving factors, while more than a quarter (76%) said a reduction in community support to parents had contributed.

The NSPCC said neglect, defined as a persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical and psychological needs, had, according to those polled, become normalised and that there were limited resources, specialised professionals or interventions to help tackle it in England.

The charity has called for a national neglect strategy and better guidance for dealing with neglect, as well as plans to eradicate child poverty.

The independent panel which commissions reviews of serious child safeguarding cases said the NSPCC report’s findings echoed its own data which had shown that in more than half the cases it looked into where a child had died or been seriously harmed, there had been neglect beforehand.

The Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel’s most recent annual report had also shown that in the year to March 2023, a quarter of serious safeguarding incidents where neglect was recorded as a risk factor occurred in the 10% most deprived areas in England and that eight children had died because of extreme neglect.

A charity has warned that Sir Keir Starmer’s cut on winter fuel payment will bring higher energy bills for already struggling older poeple.

Simon Francis, co-ordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said: “The winter fuel payment axe is not about rot in the system, it is about basic fairness for older people facing soaring energy bills.

“In real terms, the changes this winter mean that some older people will face the highest energy bills on record.

“This has the potential to create a public health emergency which will actually create more pressure on the under-pressure NHS which the Prime Minister says he wants to fix.

“The impact of living in cold, damp homes is particularly harsh on those older people with a disability, a long-term health condition or with poor mental health. It results in people turning to the NHS and, in some cases, can result in additional winter deaths.

“Ending energy debt, extending the household support fund, expanding warm home discounts and evolving standing charges are all now needed urgently to help mitigate the impact of high bills and the axe to the winter fuel payment.”

The new rules are due to come into force on September 16.

The Conservatives have urged ministers to back down on their policy and are seeking to challenge the regulations in the Commons, although the Government has a working majority of 167.

Cabinet Office minister Ellie Reeves said the “proper processes” were followed when questioned on why a Labour donor Lord Alli was given a pass to Number 10.

She told Sky News: “Well, there’s no rules that prevent someone who has made a donation or had a political job in the past being, having a role.

“There are rules that have to be followed, there are processes that have to be followed, and it’s important that those rules are respected.

“Lord Alli had a pass for a few weeks. I don’t know all the details of that, but I’m sure the proper processes were followed.”

“He had a pass for a few weeks, as I understand it, he hasn’t got a pass now. He’s a well respected figure, a Labour peer,” she added.

Cabinet Office minister Ellie Reeves blamed the Tories’ “economic mess” for the restrictions on winter fuel payments, as she denied claims that Sir Keir Starmer’s Cabinet members are split on the policy.

Speaking to Sky News, she said: “This is an incredibly tough decision, and not one that the Chancellor wanted to be taking, but it’s because of the economic mess that we’ve inherited from the previous government.”

She added: “The Cabinet are behind the Chancellor on this. This is a decision that’s been taken by the Chancellor, with the support of the Cabinet, there aren’t splits on this.

“It’s a decision that no one wanted to be in the position to have to make, it’s not something that we wanted to do, but it’s something that is the responsible thing to do because of that £22 billion black hole in the country’s finances.”

Suella Braverman has claimed Sir Keir Starmer is attempting to pave the way for “draconian” tax rises at the next budget with his first keynote speech as prime minister, set to be delivered this morning at 10am.

She also argued that the chancellor’s claim that the government inherited a £22bn “black hole” in the public finances from the previous Tory government is “one of the biggest lies in British politics right now”.

Our political correspondent Millie Cooke has the full story:

The prime minister has reportedly cancelled the appointment of the top Royal Marines general as the UK’s national security adviser.

Sir Keir Starmer has overturned the decision made by predecessor Rishi Sunak to give the job to General Gwyn Jenkins, who was due to take the role this summer.

The Guardian reported that Gen Jenkins, who was previously vice chief of the defence staff, will be allowed to re-apply for the job but suggested the move could be a sign that the Labour Prime Minister will seek to appoint an ally to the role.

A government spokesperson told the PA news agency: “All senior appointments will be considered in the usual way.”

But an unnamed official told The Guardian: “This looks like another part of the grab for power by Keir Starmer and (his chief of staff) Sue Gray.

“The process to appoint Jenkins was run with full transparency, and there is no good reason to do it all over again.”