general election 2019
DUP accuses other parties of ‘faking outrage’ in double-jobbing row
Boris Johnson pledges to ‘address underlying culture’ of lockdown parties in bid to save job
What is a no confidence motion and what could it mean for Boris Johnson?
Tory MPs divided over Johnson’s future as ‘partygate’ scandal deepens
Tory MPs divided over Johnson’s future as ‘partygate’ scandal deepens
PoliticsHuffPost UKBoris Johnson Urged To Reject Tommy Robinson Endorsement
English Defence League founder Stephen Yaxley-Lennon said "everyone should vote for Boris Johnson".
PoliticsThe GuardianBoris announces spending plan for neglected towns
Prime minister says new measures will focus on rail links and pub closures. Boris Johnson has announced another election package costing hundreds of millions of pounds for neglected towns, some of which will be spent in marginal constituencies. Concentrating on rundown high streets, the closures of pubs and post offices and the restoration of rail links, the prime minister has claimed that the measures will build upon the £3.6bn towns fund first announced in July. Towns that have been singled out in the new measures include Cleveleys, near Blackpool, where the Conservatives are defending a majority of 2,023, and Willenhall in Walsall North, where they hope to improve on a 2,601 majority. Labour said last night the Conservatives were responsible for the destruction of the high streets they are now claiming they will help. Andrew Gwynne, the shadow communities secretary, said: “The Tories are destroying our high streets and towns. A decade of vicious cuts to the services that people in our communities rely on has taken 60p in every £1 from council budgets.” Johnson said a future Conservative government would extend the retail discount on business rates to 50% next year. For businesses with a rateable value of less than £51,000, this will mean an increase on the current retail discount of 33% in 2020-21. This would amount to “an effective £280m tax cut” for small businesses, the party claimed. A new £1,000 business rates relief for pubs would also be introduced under a Johnson majority government – an £18m tax cut for next year, it is claimed. The Conservatives said they would also introduce a £150m fund that will help groups trying to take over and run pubs and post offices threatened with closure. Following on from previous pledges to reverse rail cuts recommended by Dr Richard Beeching in the 1960s, Johnson has also pledged to set up a £500m Beeching Reversal fund. Towns such as Ashington, Seaton Delaval and Blyth, with a combined population of 100,000, will receive cash following a request from Northumberland council for £99m to reinstate stations, the Tories claimed. Willenhall and Darlaston in the West Midlands will receive £18m to reopen stations – a further £10m has already been provided by the government, the party said. Investment will also be provided to connect Skelmersdale to Liverpool and Manchester. A disused railway line will be funded to improve transport connections for Thornton-Cleveleys and Fleetwood. In a statement last night, Johnson said: “For too long, too many towns and villages across Britain have been overlooked and left behind. When the UK voted to leave the EU in 2016, many communities felt their voices had been heard for the first time in decades and that their lives would improve. “We will invest in these communities and help people put the heart back into the places they call home.” One organisation representing retailers said Johnson’s plans did not go far enough to revive the UK’s troubled shopping districts. Tom Ironside, director of business and regulation at the British Retail Consortium, said the majority of the UK’s 3 million retail workers were employed in businesses that would not benefit from today’s announcement. “It is essential that the next government scraps ‘downwards transition’, which costs retailers £1.3bn, freezes next year’s rates increase, and introduces an improvement relief to encourage investment in our high streets. “To ensure the long-term vitality of our town and city centres, the next government should follow the recommendations of the treasury select committee and commit to wholesale reform of our broken business rates system,” he said. The Conservatives have been accused of using public money to boost their election prospects after it emerged that funding from the towns fund was going to wealthier Tory marginals. An analysis by the Times found this week that a third of the 100 towns due to receive some of the £3.6bn pot were not among the 300 most deprived towns. These included Loughborough, which was won by Nicky Morgan, the culture secretary, at the last election, with a majority of around 4,000. Kirby was not on the list.
NewsThe GuardianBoris Johnson accused of targeting BBC to save his premiership
Boris Johnson accused of targeting BBC to save his premiership. Government insider says announcement about abolishing licence fee was not expected this weekend
NewsThe IndependentBoris Johnson news – live: Dorries vows to abolish BBC licence fee as Starmer says PM ‘broke law’ over parties
Majority of Tory Party members want PM to resign, poll suggests
NewsThe GuardianBoris Johnson prepares a populist offensive to save his skin
Boris Johnson prepares a populist offensive to save his skin. Analysis: scandal-tainted PM hopes barrage of right-wing policy plans will provide cover for his greatest escape yet
NewsThe GuardianBoris Johnson broke the law and lied, says Keir Starmer
Boris Johnson broke the law and lied, says Keir Starmer. Knowledge of ‘industrial-scale partying’ at No 10 means there is no need to wait for Sue Gray report, says Labour leader
NewsEvening StandardConservative Party chairman hints Plan B restrictions will be lifted soon
The chairman of the Conservative Party said there are “encouraging” signs that Plan B restrictions will be lifted at the end of the month. Oliver Dowden told Sky News that it has “always been my hope” that the measures would be imposed for the “shortest period possible”. Boris Johnson announced so-called Plan B restrictions in December in a bid to slow the spread of the Omicron variant of Covid-19.
NewsThe IndependentBoris Johnson may scrap Covid restrictions to distract from Partygate, Labour suggests
Shadow health secretary says PM could change rules for ‘party management’ reasons
NewsThe TelegraphBoris Johnson will clean up Downing Street drinking culture, says minister
Boris Johnson will clean up an "underlying culture" of drinking and rule-breaking in Downing Street in an attempt to salvage his premiership and win back the support of his party, the Conservative chairman has suggested.
NewsHuffPost UKTony Blair Refuses To Call For Boris Johnson To Resign Over Partygate
The former Labour prime minister said he could "understand how these things happen" as staff worked under "enormous pressure".
NewsThe IndependentSerbia votes in referendum on constitutional changes
Serbia has held a referendum on constitutional amendments that the populist government says are needed for the Balkan country to advance in a bid to join the European Union
NewsHuffPost UKKeir Starmer Accuses Boris Johnson Of Breaking The Law Over Covid Parties
The Labour leader dramatically upped his attacks on the prime minister, claiming “industrial scale partying” was going on in No10.
NewsThe GuardianBoris Johnson will address No 10 ‘party culture’, says Tory chief
Boris Johnson will address No 10 ‘party culture’, says Tory chief. Conservative chair Oliver Dowden says PM feels ‘sincere regret’ and is committed to ‘upping our game’
NewsThe Independent‘Stop lying to us’: John Bishop calls Boris Johnson a ‘p***k’ over No 10 parties
Comic questioned validity of Sue Gray’s investigation when she herself reports to the prime minister
NewsThe IndependentKeir Starmer says Boris Johnson ‘broke the law’ and ‘lied about what happened’ at lockdown parties
Labour leader says prime minister has effectively admitted breaking law
NewsThe IndependentVoices: Boris Johnson won by defying the rules – and that is how he has lost
It is not yet clear when the end will come, but Johnson is on a one-way ratchet to the exit
NewsSky NewsBoris Johnson: Tory chairman Oliver Dowden 'disgusted' by Downing Street 'partygate' scandal and calls for culture change in Number 10
The chairman of the Conservative Party says he was "disgusted" at the revelations that two parties were held on the eve of Prince Philip's funeral and that a culture change is needed in Number 10. Oliver Dowden told Sky News' Trevor Phillips on Sunday programme that he had been "angered" by the reports of events that took place at a time when COVID restrictions were in force, but that "Boris Johnson should, of course, remain as prime minister".
NewsThe Guardian‘Where did it all go wrong?’: how the Tory press is turning on Boris Johnson
‘Where did it all go wrong?’: how the Tory press is turning on Boris Johnson. None of them have yet called for him to quit but the Conservative-leaning papers have harsh words for the beleaguered PM
NewsThe GuardianThis is a Boris Johnson scandal that even the great trickster can’t blag his way out of
Tories are paying a deserved price for giving the keys to Number 10 to a man they knew was unfit to be prime minister
NewsThe GuardianBoris Johnson’s red wall crumbles as Leave voters call for him to resign
Boris Johnson’s red wall crumbles as Leave voters call for him to resign. Pro-Brexit Tory voters deliver further blow to PM in poll as his popularity rating slumps
NewsThe GuardianIs it the end for Boris Johnson?
Is it the end for Boris Johnson?. Last week’s ridicule is not the worst sign of the PM’s plummeting standing. The anger of families who have suffered in the pandemic will not go away. It’s now just a question of how long he survives
NewsThe GuardianWhat will happen to Boris Johnson now?
What will happen to Boris Johnson now?. Will he be gone by the end of the week – or will he lead his party to the next election? Four scenarios for the beleaguered prime minister
HealthThe GuardianWhile Boris Johnson partied in the sun, I sweated in PPE, saving lives
While Boris Johnson partied in the sun, I sweated in PPE, saving lives . Downing Street’s lockdown parties were a world away from life as a frontline doctor in the pandemic
NewsSky NewsDowning Street parties: Boris Johnson faces further calls to resign over partygate as reports claim 'mass clearout' of Number 10 team
A sixth Conservative MP is calling for the prime minister to quit over the ever-growing list of alleged lockdown-breaking parties in Downing Street, as Boris Johnson is reportedly preparing to strike back by ousting members of his inner circle. Tim Loughton, former children's minister and East Worthing and Shoreham MP, said Mr Johnson's position had become "untenable" and that his resignation would be "the only way to bring this whole unfortunate episode to an end". "Obfuscation, prevarication and evasion have been the order of the day when clarity, honesty and contrition was what was needed and what the British people deserve."
NewsThe IndependentFurious Tory MPs put Boris Johnson on notice over No 10 lockdown party revelations
Prime minister urged to up his game or quit as Tories deluged with angry letters from constituents
