Wednesday evening news briefing: Lord Kinnock leads backlash against Starmer over Tory defection

Joshua Hughes
·4-min read
Evening Briefing logo
Evening Briefing logo

Good evening. Lord Kinnock has led a backlash against Sir Keir Starmer following Natalie Elphicke’s defection to Labour from the Conservative Party.

Elsewhere, Oxford dons have called for the university’s head of equality to quit after he signed an open letter in support of a pro-Palestinian protest camp at the university.

Plus: A special dispatch from Ambrose Evans-Pritchard.

Lord Kinnock leads backlash against Starmer over Tory defection

Ms Elphicke stunned Westminster at lunchtime as she crossed the floor immediately before Prime Minister’s Questions. The move was also poorly received by some Labour MPs, with one telling The Telegraph the MP for Dover’s defection was a “f------ joke” and had “gone down like a cup of hot sick”.

Henry Hill | Elphicke’s defection is an utter farce

Oxford University head of equality faces calls to quit after backing pro-Palestinian protest camp

A Palestinian flag flies over the encampment at the University of Oxford
A Palestinian flag flies over the encampment at the University of Oxford - Leon Neal/Getty Images

Vernal Scott, who has led Oxford’s equality and diversity unit since October 2023, put his name to a letter declaring solidarity with students protesting against Israel’s war in Gaza. Last month, Mr Scott celebrated the closure of the National Conservatism Conference by police in Brussels.

Lauren Davidson | Western students can’t mask their vile anti-Semitism

Kate Forbes named Deputy First Minister of Scotland

John Swinney has appointed Kate Forbes as the Deputy First Minister of Scotland after she agreed not to stand against him for the SNP leadership. Ms Forbes said she was “deeply honoured” to be given the role, which indicates that Mr Swinney is serious about trying to drag his party back to the political centre ground.

Evening Briefing: Today’s essential headlines

Crime | A disabled pedestrian who shouted and waved at a cyclist causing her to fall into the path of an oncoming car has had her manslaughter conviction overturned at the Court of Appeal.

Watch: Boeing plane skids on runway as landing gear fails

A cargo aircraft made an emergency landing at Istanbul Airport on Wednesday after its front landing gear failed. You can watch the full video here.

Comment and analysis

Special Dispatch

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: Milei is weaponising Argentina’s vast shale reserves with flawless timing

Argentine president Javier Milei is placing the country's natural resources at the centre of his plans for an economic revival
Argentine president Javier Milei is placing the country's natural resources at the centre of his plans for an economic revival - ALLISON DINNER/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

President Javier Milei has flawless timing. Argentina’s shale boom has reached industrial take-off just as he embarks on his extreme libertarian experiment: a Hayekian free market assault on the delinquent Peronist state and all its works.

Business news: National security fears as hundreds of defence companies debanked

It has emerged that banks have shut the accounts of hundreds of defence companies amid fears that lenders’ internal ethics policies are putting national security at risk.

Dame Harriett Baldwin | The debanking scandal is a national disgrace

Live markets news: Europe leaves London behind in $12bn stock market boom

Editor’s choice

Sport briefing: Today’s essential headlines

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