No 10 says Starmer has ‘full confidence’ in Streeting, confirming he’s still in post
Downing Street has now confirmed that Wes Streeting is still health secretary. The PM’s spokesperson told reporters the prime minister has “full confidence” in the health secretary.
Key events
Discounts on energy bills at times of excess power to help ‘energy independence’
People will be able to get discounts on bills for using power at sunny, windy times when the grid is generating excess electricity as part of legislation to boost UK “energy independence”, the Press Association reports.
The energy independence bill, announced as part of the king’s speech, aims to get the UK off the “fossil fuel rollercoaster” with clean, homegrown power and electrification of the wider economy, officials said.
It includes measures to cut energy bills, require landlords to invest in home upgrades, pave the way to create a dedicated “warm homes agency” to deliver a £15bn programme of home electrification and provide for targeted support for vulnerable and low-income families.
It also contains measures to reform markets and regulation to speed up the deployment of technologies such as offshore wind and hydrogen, and reduce “unnecessary delays” to build the grid infrastructure needed to roll out more clean power.
PLP committee urges those Labour MPs coordinating release of statements criticising PM to stop
The parliamentary Labour party’s (PLP’s) committee has issued a statement urging Labour MPs to stop coordinating the release of comments criticising the PM. As Sky’s Sam Coates reports, the committee (the Labour equivalent of the Tory 1922 Committee) says:
We respect both those who have set out their objections to the prime minister and those who have voiced their support for the prime minister.
But the scenes of the last 48 hours cannot continue if we are to address the causes of distress for all concerned.
We know it is not in anyone’s interest to see an increasingly divided PLP descend into chaos.
We would ask that those coordinating the statements and resignations to stop. We want to convey to all concerned the following which reflects our discussions with colleagues:
-The rules of the party are clear regarding challenging the Party leadership. Colleagues either meet those requirements or desist. There will be lasting damage if the current position continues.
-We will continue in our role to convey the honest and heartfelt views of backbenchers to the prime minister.
Reform UK councillor apologises over Facebook post saying police should investigate ‘non white persons’ in park
A newly-elected Reform UK councillor has apologised after posting on social media calling for the police to take action about “non white persons taking over” a town park with the “strong pervading smell of cannabis”, the Press Association reports. PA says:
Army veteran Ken Tranter, who was elected to the Aldershot South seat on Hampshire county council, posted after his election on Facebook: “Someone on an Aldershot Facebook site was concerned about non white persons taking over the Municipal Gardens and the strong pervading smell of cannabis. I promised, if elected I would speak to the police which I did. Their response was to say ‘they were aware’.
“I don’t want them to be aware, I want them to stop it and return the park to family use. Therefore I will write to the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire and demand action.”
The comments provoked criticism online with one person posting: “Can you stop using non white as a label, it’s thoroughly rude, offensive and not needed. Disgusted.”
Following the criticism, Tranter deleted the post and said in a statement: “My recent post about cannabis smoking in the Municipal Gardens was wrong in its wording and has caused understandable offence. Referring to the group by skin colour was a poor choice that I deeply regret. It was clumsy, unnecessary, and open to misinterpretation as racist, and I take full responsibility for that.
“I apologise for the offence caused and for any distress my words have inflicted. Racism has no place in our community or in my politics, and I condemn it in all its forms.”
Ed Davey mocks claims Streeting fixing NHS
Davey also attacked Wes Streeting’s record on the NHS.
When he’s not plotting his next leadership bid on the prime minister, the secretary of state would have Labour backbenchers believe he’s fixing the NHS. If only.
Now we’re told that the health secretary is preparing to resign tomorrow. This resignation is taking so long it would give NHS waiting lists a run for their money.
Anyone who visits their local hospital knows that the NHS remains in a critical state. Thousands of people are still being treated in hospital corridors every day. We’re now even seeing job adverts for people to provide care in corridors.
Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, followed Keir Starmer.
He said the Lib Dems would vote against the king’s speech.
And he said this was the most surreal state opening he had attended.
The prime minister may soon not be in power, not in place for his own programme, not able to deliver these promises.
Davey said, if every Labour MP who has called for Starmer to go voted against it too, the government might be defeated.
We will be voting against, not just because the prime minister is one of the weakest prime ministers in postwar history now, but because this king’s speech does not offer the change our country needs.
He was particularly critical of the proposals on Europe, saying the speech included “an EU reset bill that fails to reset, from a prime minister who knows a thing or two about failed resets”.
He went on:
Maybe we shouldn’t be surprised with the prime minister’s refusal to remove his red lines on a new EU-UK customs union, the prime minister’s refusal to go further than his red lines on the single market, the prime minister’s refusal to deliver a new, deep trading relationship with our European partners, with a proper youth mobility scheme.
That all means his consigning our country to higher prices, and lower growth, and failing to address the economic insecurity plaguing our economy.
Mark Francois (Con) intervened, and said the recent supreme court judgment confirmed that overwhelmingly the last government’s Legacy Act was not incompatible with the Human Rights Act.
He said that Starmer recently criticised Zack Polanski for criticising the split-second decisions made by police in Golders Green. But he claimed Starmer was authorising the prosecution of military veterans over split-second decisions made in Northern Ireland many years ago.
Starmer said he had been in control rooms in Northern Ireland when decisions were being made about the use of force. He knew how difficult those decisions were, he said.
He said these were different from the issues addressed in the govenrment’s Troubles bill.
Lincoln Jopp (Con) intervened to ask when the government would publish its defence investment plan.
Starmer said it would be published soon, and attacked the Tories for hollowing out the armed forces.
Jim Allister (TUV) intervenes to say that, under the post-Brexit settlement, Northern Ireland has been subject “for some years to the humiliation of being governed by those we don’t make and can’t change”.
Starmer says he is aware of these problems.
He goes on:
We have to face the fact that promises were made about Brexit which were not true, which haven’t borne fruit.
Starmer says a complete break from the status quo is needed.
Our response this time must and will be different, a complete break.
We will not simply slump back to the old ways, because this king’s speech gives us the strength we need, the economic security, energy security and national security to control our future in a chaotic world.
It is an agenda of radical reform across our major public services, an urgent activist Labour government that tilts power back to workers.
Starmer claims king’s speech ‘strike against status quo that has failed working people’
Moving to the substance of his speech, Starmer says:
This king’s speech is a strike against the status quo that has failed working people.
It’s a king’s speech for the young people whose gifts lie in their hands, who work hard, want their talents to be recognised and just want an opportunity in their community.
A king’s speech for the children who, under the party opposite, had to go to school without breakfast, hungry, cold and tired when they should be focused on their learning.
And it’s a king’s speech for the backbone of this country, for working people who worry about the cost of living, want their town centres are thrive, their public services to work, their government to be on their side.
Starmer mocks Badenoch over her claim election results were positive for Tories
Starmer also pays tribute to Badenoch. He jokes sarcastically about “the usual warm and generous nature” of her contribution.
“Her input is always a ray of sunshine,” he says.
He goes on:
We do have one thing in common. Our parties both had tough results in the local elections last week. The difference is she hasn’t noticed.
That is a reference to Badenoch claiming (in the face of most of the evidence) that the results showed the Tories were “coming back”.
