'Why won't Keir Starmer stand up to Israel?'
In this episode, editor-in-chief Tom McTague joins Anoosh Chakelian and Rachel Cunliffe to discuss how long the UK government will continue to support Israel after actions in Gaza and Iran; why council tax reform is being 'ignored'; and whether there could be a true 'red Tory' faction in the Conservative party.
Listen to the full episode above.
To submit your questions, head to newstatemsan.com/youaskus
[See also: Britain is dangerously exposed to the whims of despots]
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Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Rubbish collections are delayed because of a staff shortage... after binmen went on holiday
A delay in rubbish collections in London has been caused by staff shortages with binmen going on holiday. A shortage of drivers has left Ealing Council considering paying its remaining workers more to fill the gap. The council said that while some workers were on sick leave, it expected disruption to continue until holidays finished in September. On Sunday, the Government warned that taxpayers rely on regular waste collections and said the vital service must continue, The Telegraph reported. Meanwhile council tax has risen for Ealing residents, with the average band D homes now paying £93 extra per month, from £1,948 to £2,041. Occupiers in band H properties are now paying more than £4,000 in council tax. The Labour-led council said the services were being deployed later than usual, adding that any bins not collected on schedule would be prioritised the following day. A council spokesman told the Chiswick Calendar: 'We are sorry about the delays that are occurring to bin collections due to driver shortage and the impact it is having on residents. 'This is because a number of staff are currently off sick and, in addition, as it is the summer holiday period many staff are on leave, which we anticipate lasting until September when the holidays have finished.' 'To address this issue we are actively recruiting more staff. We also employ a number of HGV drivers, which are highly sought after across various industries, including supermarket deliveries, and consequently they are likely to be attracted by companies that are able to offer higher salaries. The council said it was reviewing salaries and other incentives for staff. Susan Hall, Conservative leader in the London Assembly, said the lack of collection was 'outrageous'. 'When you're paid to do a job, damn well do it and the people in charge of them, they need to be talked to as well,' she told The Telegraph. 'When you're running a company or a business, you have to make sure you've got a certain amount of staff in order to deliver the service you're providing. 'Just because these people work for a council, they assume they can do what they like. It's not good enough.' In Birmingham, mounds of rubbish is still piling up, seven months after strikes began in the city. Lengthy negotiations are taking place between the Unite union and city council - but there still appears to be no end in sight. Some locals have complained of feeling 'forgotten about' amid the foul smells and infestations of giant rats dubbed 'Squeaky Blinders'. In June Birmingham bin workers voted to continue industrial action - meaning the strikes could go on until December. The council has paid £8 million to keep a skeleton service run by agency staff in place while strikes continue. The council - which effectively declared itself bankrupt in 2023 - has been blamed for also mishandling an equal pay dispute. The walkout began in January over pay cuts of up to £8,000 impacting around 400 workers who are either former waste recycling collection officers or bin lorry drivers. It has so far paid out almost £1.1 billion after losing a landmark case in 2012 launched after it gave bonuses to refuse collectors and street cleaners but not to cleaners and caterers - roles typically held by women. It still has to find more money to settle further claims but insists its debt is 'unrelated to the need to modernise the waste service and to eliminate any future equal pay risk'.
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
ANDREW PIERCE: Londoners have the Tube, Sadiq Khan has a gravy train
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Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Fury as 'arch-hypocrite' Angela Rayner is selling off allotments... but not in her patch
has been branded an 'arch-hypocrite' after she campaigned for allotments in her own constituency but sanctioned their sell-off elsewhere. Before Labour came to power, Ms Rayner flagged up the work on community sites, describing one as a 'fantastic initiative'. But since the party has led the Government, the Deputy Prime Minister, who also runs the Ministry of Housing, has personally approved the sale of eight allotment plots across the country. The sites owned by councils are protected from development or sale under the Allotments Act 1925 but this can be allowed with a sign-off from the housing minister. Among the allotment plots sold under Ms Rayner's watch is one in Storrington, West Sussex, to make way for 78 homes. Two in Bolsover, Derbyshire, are also earmarked for closure. It comes as councils face a reported £8billion funding shortfall by the end of this Parliament. Earlier this month, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said Ms Rayner had put the 'nail in the coffin' of allotments by allowing councils to sell off the land. An allotment holder himself, Mr Corbyn said it would 'fill many with deep dismay'. But just three years ago, Ms Rayner visited a community garden allotment in Droylsden, Greater Manchester, praising it as a 'fantastic initiative'. Writing on her website, she added: 'Those that work on the allotment say the initiative has also helped them through some tough times and reduced loneliness and isolation in the area. 'They hold regular open days where residents can turn up and take food for free. The fruit and veg bags are topped up with store cupboard essentials to help those struggling with the cost of living crisis.' She also hailed other projects in her Ashton- under-Lyne constituency and Curzon Ashton Football Club which runs an allotment programme for ex-servicemen and women suffering from loneliness. Tory housing spokesman Paul Holmes said: 'Ms Rayner has been exposed as an arch-hypocrite, the ultimate Nimby who thinks selling off everyone else's allotments is fine – just not in her back yard. 'By declaring war on Jeremy Corbyn's treasured allotments, she has sown the seeds for the next iteration of Labour's Left-wing civil war. Rather than trying to prune her rivals by any means necessary, perhaps she should grow up and focus on what the country really needs to cultivate.' But a Ministry of Housing spokesman said ministerial approvals for sales last year, half of which were under the previous Tory government and half under Labour, were lower than in previous years. He added: 'We know how important allotments are for communities and that is why strict legal criteria are in place to protect them. 'It is simply untrue to suggest there is any change in the policy. The rules have been in place since 2016 and have not changed.'
