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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Andrew Sparrow

No 10 refuses to give details of how £4bn pay deal for health workers will be funded – as it happened

Dominic Raab NEU Steve Barclay
Nurses strike picket outside St Thomas' hospital, London, in February.
Nurses on strike outside St Thomas' hospital, London, in February. Photograph: Vuk Valcic/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock

James Cleverly, the foreign secretary, has welcomed the news that the ICC has issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin.

Updated

Keir Starmer has welcomed the news that the international criminal court in The Hague has issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and his children’s rights commissioner, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, for the “unlawful deportation” of Ukrainian children.

Starmer said:

Today’s announcement sends an important message: there will no hiding place for Putin and his cronies and the world is determined to make them pay for what they have done.

I have seen first-hand the destruction and devastation waged on the brave people of Ukraine. These cases are just the tip of the iceberg. One day Putin will face justice: until then, the focus of all who believe in Ukraine’s liberty and freedom must continue to be on ensuring her victory.

Tories pressured BBC over Johnson’s claim Starmer failed to prosecute Jimmy Savile

The Conservative party put pressure on the BBC not to describe a claim by Boris Johnson that Keir Starmer failed to prosecute Jimmy Savile as “false”, my colleagues Jessica Elgot and Rowena Mason report.

Joe Biden, the US president, has expressed his strong support for the Windsor framework, the revised version of the Northern Ireland protocol agreed by Rishi Sunak and the EU. “I very strongly supported the Windsor framework, which I know you do too,” said Biden, when he met Leo Varadkar, the taoiseach (Irish leader) in the White House today.

Varadkar, who was meeting Biden ahead of a St Patrick’s Day reception in the White House later, replied:

I really want to thank you for your help and support and understanding for our position on Brexit in recent years. It really made a difference and we’ve got to a good place now, I think, with the Windsor framework, where we can have an agreement that lasts, which is important for Northern Ireland, and also important for British, Irish and European relations.

Joe Biden (right) with Leo Varadkar in the Oval Office in the White House.
Joe Biden (right) with Leo Varadkar in the Oval Office in the White House. Photograph: Rex/Shutterstock

Updated

Labour MPs express alarm after Martin Forde suggests his report about racism in party not being taken seriously enough

Labour leftwingers have responded with alarm after Martin Forde KC, the lawyer who published a report about racism and factional fighting within the party, suggested his conclusions weren’t being taken seriously enough by Keir Starmer.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Forde said he had some “anxiety” about the party’s response to his 138-page report.

Commenting on his contact with the party since the publication last summer of the report, which was commissioned by Starmer and included findings deeply embarrassing to Labour, Forde said:

I’ve had very limited communication with the general secretary, David Evans, but that was really housekeeping. I have spoken to a caucus of black Labour party MPs in the House of Commons. Other than that, I’ve not spoken to anybody within the party machinery.

Forde went on:

My slight anxiety is, in terms of the perception of a hierarchy, and genuine underlying concerns about the wider racial issues, that it’s not, in my view, a sufficient response to say: “That was then, this is now”.

These are serious debates that need to be had in a respectful context. And I just feel there’s work to be done.

Forde was asked to carry out an inquiry following the leak in 2020 of an internal Labour party document containing hundreds of WhatsApp messages, some of which included racist or derogatory comments by staffers at HQ about other people in the party. It is assumed, but has never been proved, that the document was leaked to discredit officials who were hostile to Jeremy Corbyn.

By “hierarchy”, Forde in his interview was referring to “hierarchy of racism”. In his report Forde said the evidence he obtained showed “concerns that the attention to the surge of cases relating to antisemitism and the importance they appeared to play in the interfactional conflict meant that the party was in effect operating a hierarchy of racism or of discrimination, with other forms of racism and discrimination being ignored”.

In his interview, Forde also revealed that the BBC asked him to amend his report to remove a finding that undermined one of the claims in its Panorama programme criticising Labour under Jeremy Corbyn for its handling of antisemitism. Forde said he ignored the request.

Labour MPs on the left of the party, who welcomed the original Forde reporti as confirming their long-held belief that a faction at party HQ was actively opposed to Corbyn, said they were concerned that Forde now thinks his recommendations aren’t being given the attention they deserve.

Bell Ribeiro-Addy said today the interview was “concerning”.

Kate Osamor said Labour HQ should respond.

Momentum, the group set up to promote Corbyn’s agenda, said the interview raised “serious questions”.

And John McDonnell, who was shadow chancellor when Corbyn was leader, said yesterday the interview was “deeply worrying”.

In response, a Labour spokesperson said:

We are grateful to Mr Forde for his work producing the report. Many of the recommendations contained in the report have already been implemented and our work continues.

With Keir Starmer’s leadership, Labour has changed and real progress has been achieved in ridding the party of the destructive factionalism and unacceptable culture that did so much damage previously.

The spokesperson also pointed out that the party has published on its website information about how it is responding to all 165 recommendations made by Forde.

Martin Forde
Martin Forde. Photograph: Al Jazeera

Updated

Tory chair of health committee being investigated over NHS lobbying claims

Steve Brine, the Conservative MP who chairs the Commons health committee, is under investigation over allegations he lobbied the NHS and ministers on behalf of a recruitment firm that employed him, my colleague Rowena Mason reports.

Travellers flying to England from mainland China will stop needing proof of a negative coronavirus test from 5 April, the Department of Health and Social Care has announced. The full details are here.

Updated

The SNP leadership contender Ash Regan has said she is ready to “hit the ground running” if she wins the race to succeed Nicola Sturgeon after a meeting with Scotland’s top civil servant, PA Media reports.

Regan, who is seen as the outsider in the contest, met with permanent secretary John-Paul Marks at the Scottish government’s headquarters in Edinburgh this morning to lay out her vision for Scotland if she becomes first minister.

Afterwards she said:

It was a pleasure to meet the permanent secretary today, and to share my vision for the way forward for Scotland.

The positive, constructive, inclusive vision I have been advocating for over my campaign includes the independence commission which would be announced on day one alongside the civic-led convention.

I will hit the ground running, I will reach across party lines, and I will deliver for the people of Scotland.

There are huge priorities in both the NHS and with the economy suffering a cost-of-living crisis.

We will tackle them and all else with the full power of parliament and government.

The permanent secretary has also offered to meet Humza Yousaf and Kate Forbes, the other two leadership candidates, to discuss their plans. But, according to PA Media, it is unclear whether they are taking up that offer.

Ash Regan
Ash Regan. Photograph: Ken Jack/Getty Images

Updated

Here is a question from below the line, prompted by the Jeremy Hunt quote posted at 11.57am.

In fact, Hunt said the UK was “the fastest growing economy in the G7 last year”. He has said this before and the Full Fact factchecking website published a good analysis of it last month. They concluded that what Hunt said was correct, but far from the full picture.

Here is an extract.

It is true that, when comparing annual GDP in 2022 with 2021, the UK economy grew by 4%—the fastest rate in the G7.

However, as others have pointed out, when making this comparison it’s worth bearing in mind that in 2021 the economy was still impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic so comparisons with this period are not necessarily the most useful way of assessing recent economic growth.

Looking at other periods not impacted by the pandemic, the UK’s growth does not compare as favourably to other G7 countries.

ONS statistics show that the UK’s GDP growth between the final quarter of 2019 (pre-pandemic) and the final quarter of 2022, was the lowest in the G7, at -0.8%.

Government ‘to cut £250m from social care workforce funding’ in England

Ministers are poised to cut £250m from investment in the social care workforce in England, it has been reported, in a move that could set back care “for years to come”, my colleague Robert Booth reports.

No 10 says it has 'no current plans' to tell people to apply for passports earlier due to impending five-week strike

Downing Street says it has no plans start advising people to allow more time to get a new passport even though Passport Office staff have announced a five-week strike.

But the government will be doing what it can to reduce the impact of the strike, a No 10 spokesperson told journalists. He said:

There are no current plans to change the guidance that people should allow up to 10 weeks to get a passport. The Home Office will work hard to manage the impact of this strike action to ensure they can still provide the vital service to the British public as you would expect ahead of the summer where we fully acknowledge that many people will want to get away and enjoy the summer with their family.

So we will do everything we can to mitigate the impact of the strikes.

Updated

No 10 says new pay offer for health workers will cost £4bn, but won't give details of how it will be funded

Downing Street says the improve pay offer for health workers in England announced yesterday will cost around £4bn.

At the morning lobby briefing, a No 10 spokesperson said the “non-consolidated element for 2022-23” – the one-off payments worth up to 8.2% – would cost an extra £2.7bn.

And he said the “consolidated element for 2023-24” – the 5% pay rise – would cost around £1.3bn.

The spokesperson would not say how the £4bn would be funded. The health department will be discussing this with the Treasury, he said.

Updated

Yesterday Labour sought to weaponse the budget plan to abolish the lifetime cap on tax-free pension savings (the LTA, or lifetime allowance), describing this as a tax cut for the richest 1% which it will reverse if it wins power.

After Liz Truss announced the abolition of the 45% top rate of tax in last year’s mini-budget, a Labour attack along these lines quickly succeeded after many Conservative MPs concluded the opposition was right.

But this time the Conservative party is digging in, enthusiastically tweeting a story on the front page of the Daily Telegraph today claiming that the Labour policy amounts to a proposed “tax raid on up to two million pension pots”. Its report says:

Analysis showed that in two years’ time - by which point Labour could have won a general election - two million people could face paying taxes of up to 55 per cent on their pots as a result of [Rachel] Reeves’ policy.

My colleague Richard Partington, a Guardian economics correspondent, does not find the 2m figure convincing.

Updated

Hunt and Reeves respond after OECD says UK set to be only G20 economy apart from Russia to shrink this year

The UK will be the only economy in the G20 apart from Russia to shrink this year as high inflation, the energy crisis and low productivity hinder its recovery, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. My colleague Phillip Inman has the story here.

In a statement issued in response, Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, said the UK economy was resilient.

The British economy has proven more resilient than many expected, outperforming many forecasts to be the fastest growing economy in the G7 last year, and is on track to avoid recession.

Earlier this week I set out a plan to grow the economy by unleashing business investment and helping more people into work, alongside extending our significant energy bill support to help with rising prices, made possible by our windfall tax on energy profits.

But Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, said the OECD forecast reflected “13 years of Tory failure”.

Updated

Raab to push for tougher minimum sentence in domestic homicides

Domestic abusers in England and Wales who kill their partners or ex-partners are to face tougher sentences under government plans after a campaign by bereaved families, my colleague Alexandra Topping reports.

Private member's bill to ban import of hunting trophies from endangered species clears Commons

This morning MPs have passed the hunting trophies (import prohibition) bill, a private member’s bill introduced by the Conservative MP Henry Smith, which will ban the import of hunting trophies from species of conservation concern.

The bill passed its third reading unopposed after amendments were accepted preventing the government extending the ban to species that are not endangered, and setting up a board to advise the government on implementation of the law. The bill will now go to the House of Lords.

In their 2019 election manifesto the Tories promised to legislate to ban the import of hunting trophies from endangered species.

Smith posted this on Twitter earlier.

Updated

Starmer says SNP 'falling apart' and lurching to right, as he urges progressive Scots to back Labour

Even the most loyal SNP supporter would admit that the current leadership contest has not been a great advertisement for the party. None of the candidates are considered comparable to Nicola Sturgeon in leadership ability, some of the debates have been acrimonious, and the contest has opened up a public debate about the failings of the SNP government.

One person taking a close interest in this is Keir Starmer. Scotland was predominantly Labour territory, not SNP territory, in UK elections before 2015, and Starmer wants some of those voters back. He has made a pitch for them in a major interview with the Daily Record. Here are the main points.

  • Starmer claims the SNP are “falling apart”. He says:

I do think the SNP are falling apart. I think they have run out of road and the mask of many years, which is to argue only about the constitution in the hope that nobody will notice how bad you are in government, has slipped completely.

They’ve descended into an internal wrangle where they are bitterly accusing each other of being pretty well unfit for office on the basis of their appalling record.

  • He claims the SNP is lurching to the right. He says:

They are showing that they’re not truly a progressive party. They’re not truly the party of change. They’re actually the party that’s run out of ideas, run out of hope.

I do think there’s a real lurch to the right. I think it exposes the SNP as a party that hasn’t got a common thread running through it.

Some of the stuff that’s been coming out in these debates is very much to the right. People would recoil from it, when it comes to discussions about family rights, abortion rights. It shows a party that’s completely disorientated without any core progressive value.

Starmer is referring primarily to Kate Forbes, the finance secretary who has said she is opposed to equal marriage, and even having children out of wedlock, because of her Christian faith. The fact that betting odds suggest Forbes has a 44% chance of winning, according to OLBG (which has Humza Yousaf on 65% and Ash Regan on 4%), imply these views are not as big a vote loser for Forbes as many assumed at the start of the contest. But Forbes has stressed that these are just her personal views, and not proposals she would try to implement as first minister.

  • Starmer urges progressive voters wanting change to back Labour. He says:

If you’re progressive, if you want change, if you see a better future for Scotland, where the economy is thriving, where we are rushing towards the next generation of green jobs, if you want a Scotland with better public services and opportunities for every child and a safer Scotland, then that change is on offer. And that change is with Labour.

  • He says reforming the Gender Recognition Act will not be a priority for a Labour government, and criticises Sturgeon for not taking public opinion with her when her government passed its gender recognition reform bill. He says:

What’s happened in Scotland is a reminder that if you want change, you have to carry the public with you.

Gender recognition will not be one of the priorities of the incoming government.

Updated

Raab refuses to confirm extra money for pay deal for NHS staff won't come from health budget

The government has yet to explain how the pay rise for health workers announced yesterday will be funded.

Rachel Harrison, the national secretary of the GMB, told the Today programme this morning that the union was assured that the funding for the 5% pay rise agreed for 2023-24 would not come from the existing health budget. She said this was a condition set by the GMB and some of the other unions. She explained:

“We wanted reassurance that this was additional money and it was not going to come out of NHS current budgets and that was the commitment we were given by the government. We were told that this would be additional money and it wouldn’t come out of existing health budgets.”

But when Dominic Raab, the deputy PM and justice secretary, was asked to confirm this in his interview, he refused. He said that the government had already set aside money to pay for a 3.5% pay rise in 2023-24 (the original proposal) and that the money “won’t come, of course, from frontline funding”.

Pressed on whether the Department of Health would get extra money to fund this, Raab said that was a matter for the health secretary and the chancellor, but implied the money would come from the existing health budget. He said:

I think the expectation will be the budget is set, it provides enough resource, but of course with all of these things, and particularly with something as fluid as the strikes, the opportunity to make sure we get that right is there.

This is from Sky’s Rob Powell.

Updated

Passport Office workers across UK to strike for five weeks over pay

Passport Office workers are to strike for five weeks in an escalation of a dispute over jobs, pay and conditions, my colleague Jamie Grierson reports.

NEU and other teaching unions enter 'intensive talks' with DfE on pay, in hope of reaching deal to end strikes

In the strike negotiation process “joint statements” are always a good sign, and we’ve just had one issued on behalf of “the government and education unions”. It says they are moving into “intensive talks”.

The government and the education trade unions, Association of School and College Leaders, National Association of Head Teachers, NASUWT and National Education Union, have agreed to move into a period of intensive talks. The talks will focus on teacher pay, conditions and workload reduction.

In order for talks to begin and, we hope, reach a successful conclusion, the NEU has confirmed it will create a period of calm for two weeks during which time they have said no further strike dates will be announced. The education secretary and all the unions will meet today, beginning intensive talks, which will continue over the weekend.

The key move has come from the NEU, because other unions were already talking to the Department for Education. Previously there has been a deadlock because the government said it would not commit to serious talks on pay until the NEU called off its strikes, and the NEU said it would not call off its strikes until the government committed to serious talks on pay.

The NEU held strikes in England on Wednesday and yesterday. No further strike dates have been announced, and so it is not having to call off any. But it has committed to not announcing any further action over the next fortnight.

Coming after yesterday’s announcement of a pay deal for health workers, this statement will raise hopes that an end to the teaching strikes is getting closer.

Both sides are also briefing that they will not be commenting on the details of the talks. That is another sign that things are serious. (It is the equivalent of “going into the tunnel” in EU negotiations terminology.)

Updated

Dominic Raab urges junior doctors to call off strikes and accept ‘similar offer’ to that made to other health workers

Good morning. Yesterday the government and unions representing health workers, including nurses, announced they had reached a new deal on pay. It involves compromises on both sides – the government has improved the pay offer for the current financial year, which it had ruled out; the Royal College of Nursing’s demand for RPI inflation plus 5% is a distant memory – but there seems a good chance that it could end the strikes by workers such as ambulance staff and nurses in England. Here is our story by Heather Stewart and Anna Bawden.

The negotiations did not included junior doctors – the specialists below consultant level who keep hospitals functioning, and who staged a three-day strike this week. This morning Dominic Raab, the deputy PM and justice secretary, was giving interviews and he confirmed to the Today programme that a similar offer was on the table for junior doctors, and that he hoped they would resume talks too. He said:

A similar offer is on the table [for junior doctors]. I think it would be good for the BMA [British Medical Association, which represents junior doctors] to meet with the health secretary, as he’s offered. And I hope that we can resolve that issue as well.

Dr Vivek Trivedi, co-chair of the BMA’s junior doctors committee, told the same programme that he hoped to have a meeting with Steve Barclay, the health secretary, very soon. He said:

Our position has been that we are open to talk in good faith, meaningfully, at any time.

We were ready to talk months ago. Our formal dispute started over 150 days ago and, again, that is just what I mean in that it is disappointing it has taken Steve Barclay so long to get to the negotiating table.

I only hope that he does come with good faith and a mandate to negotiate.

So far we haven’t arranged a time for this afternoon but there has been some correspondence between our offices so it does look like we’ll be able to set something up in the near future.

The Commons is sitting today, with MPs debating private members’ bills (starting with the hunting trophies [import prohibition] bill), but generally the diary is quiet.

I’ll try to monitor the comments below the line (BTL) but it is impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, do include “Andrew” in it somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I do try to answer questions, and if they are of general interest I will post the question and reply above the line (ATL), although I can’t promise to do this for everyone.

If you want to attract my attention quickly, it is probably better to use Twitter. I’m on @AndrewSparrow.

Alternatively, you can email me at andrew.sparrow@theguardian.com.

Updated

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