Sir Keir Starmer says Eluned Morgan right to raise concerns
The prime minister has played down divisions within his party after weeks of public criticism of him from Welsh Labour leader Eluned Morgan.Sir Keir Starmer told BBC Wales the Welsh first minister was "right to raise concerns" and promised to "deliver on those as far as we can".He spoke ahead of his Welsh Labour conference speech in Llandudno, where he will allege Plaid Cymru would be willing to form a "backroom stitch-up" with Reform and the Tories after the next election.Plaid, which has strongly ruled out working with Reform in any form, accused Sir Keir of "peddling fiction".
In her conference speech First Minister Eluned Morgan will say Reform would "rip" up the NHS.In May, Morgan used an event in Cardiff Bay's Norwegian Church to set out a series of criticisms and demands of the UK government.Dubbed her "Red Welsh Way", Morgan said she would "not stay silent" if Sir Keir's government took decisions "we think will harm Welsh communities".She complained about the UK government's plans for benefits and winter fuel payments, and demanded Wales benefit from wind power via the Crown Estate.
The UK government has since U-turned on both winter fuel payments and disability benefits - the latter after a huge rebellion threatened Sir Keir's government. Speaking at a visit to RAF Valley on Anglesey, Sir Keir said the Westminster and Welsh governments "work very well together".He said the UK government had given Welsh ministers their largest financial settlement since devolution began.Sir Keir said there was a "good relationship" and argued the spending review - which saw £445m for rail including new stations and £118m for coal tip safety - showed there was "a lot of really important delivery for Wales"."She quite rightly raises the issues of concern and I'd expect her to do so. And I work with her to deliver on those as far as we can."
In a conference speech on Saturday, Sir Keir will make the case that having two Labour governments in London and Cardiff is delivering for Wales."This is the party that has got wages rising faster in the first 10 months than the Tories managed in 10 years.This is the government that is cutting bills and creating jobs," he will say.He will warn abandoning Labour could risk a "return to the chaos and division of the last decade" with a "backroom stitch-up between the Tories, Reform and Plaid".Plaid Cymru has firmly ruled out working with Nigel Farage's Reform UK, with leader Rhun ap Iorwerth saying in March there was "no way to see any co-operation at all between two parties who are so fundamentally different".He also told PA Media in May he could not see a "formal relationship" with the Conservatives "after 14 years of destruction".But he said "co-operation can take many, many forms. It can be informal. It can be issue by issue".
The next Senedd election will see the partial-first past the post and proportional voting system used since 1999 replaced with elections that aim to better reflect how people vote.It will make it very hard for any party to win a majority or govern alone, and parties will face questions about who they may be prepared to work with.In response, a Plaid Cymru spokesperson said: "If this is Labour's big pitch to the people of Wales, then frankly, they're scraping the barrel. Instead of offering hope, they're peddling fiction about imaginary coalitions involving parties that agree on virtually nothing."Welsh Conservative Senedd leader Darren Millar has said he would work with "anybody" to unseat the Welsh Labour government in Cardiff Bay.He said: "It is in the national interest to kick Labour out of office so we can get to grips with these challenges and fix Wales. The Welsh Conservatives will do everything we can to secure that outcome."
'Moment of reckoning'
In her conference speech, First Minister Morgan will say the next Senedd election will be a "moment of reckoning".In a bid to mobile the party's membership, Morgan will say: "Reform are rising. Plaid are mobilising."This is not a moment to look away. This is the moment to look forward - a moment of maximum opportunity and, yes, also of serious threat."She will say Reform want to "dismantle" the NHS and "rip it up" for a "privatised, profit-driven" system.A Reform UK Wales spokesperson said: "Wales now has the worst health service and health outcomes in the entire UK. Baroness Morgan is a former health minister herself – her record speaks for itself."
Jo Stevens, Welsh Secretary, will announce a £11m fund for businesses in Port Talbot.It includes £6.78m from the UK government and £5m from Tata Steel and will support firms that offer skilled, well-paid employment opportunities.She will say: "This new fund is a powerful example of what can be achieved when Labour governments, trade unions and business work together to deliver for communities."
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ITV News
33 minutes ago
- ITV News
Starmer has ‘every confidence' in the First Minister and Welsh Labour ahead of Senedd election
The Prime Minister says he has 'every confidence in the First Minister and Welsh Labour' ahead of next year's Senedd election. Sir Keir Starmer was speaking to ITV Cymru Wales on a visit to RAF Valley on Anglesey. He'll also speak to Welsh Labour members at the party's conference in Llandudno today. In her speech to the conference, Eluned Morgan is expected to underline how difficult next year will be, saying that 'The next Senedd election won't be a routine affair. It will be a moment of reckoning. "Reform are rising. Plaid are mobilising. And across the country, people are asking big, serious questions about the kind of future they want for Wales.' The most recent Barn Cymru poll for ITV Wales and Cardiff University suggests that Labour could come third behind Plaid Cymru and Reform UK. Starmer to warn of 'backroom stitch-up' in Welsh elections I asked Keir Starmer if he was worried that Labour might lose Wales after more than a quarter of a century in power and a century dominating Welsh politics. He said that 'I have every confidence in the First Minister and Welsh Labour. They have delivered over many years for Wales and we have the added advantage now that, with a Labour government in Westminster, working hand in hand with the Welsh Government we are able to deliver... ...just to give some examples, the biggest settlement in the budget since devolution, hugely important under the spending review; much more money into transport in Wales; money for coal tips; money into the energy sector; supporting through the defence spend the 6,000 or so jobs in Wales. 'That's the benefit of having a Prime Minister and a First Minister who, yes, engage and of course the First Minister argues and makes her point and challenges and puts her propositions forward, as she should , as I'd expect. "And then we engage together and we deliver for Wales and what we both have in our mind is 'are we delivering for the people of Wales?' And the answer to that is yes, look at what we've done in the spending review, in the budget.' The Prime Minister's visit comes after a week in which he was forced to make major concessions on plans to reform disability welfare payments, following a threatened rebellion by Labour backbenchers. I asked him why it had taken that threat to force him to act and not earlier calls for a rethink from the First Minister. He said, 'I think that's the opposite of what you've just put to me because, true it is that the First Minister raised issues with me; we've been engaging with her and others. And look, for me, some of these things are common sense. "I want to get this right. I want the package right and therefore we've had a discussion with the First Minister and others as a result of which we've changed the package and that means that we can deliver the overall reform that we need now. 'In politics sometimes people pretend it's much more complicated than it is. It's common sense to hold a proposition up to the light and make sure it's the right package. We've done that now, we've adjusted the package, I'm pleased that we've gone through that exercise and now we can get on with delivery.' In her conference speech, Eluned Morgan, is expected to say that the 'moment of reckoning' created by the pressures from Plaid Cymru and Reform UK will mean that Labour needs to work together. She's expected to say, 'This is not a moment to look away. This is the moment to look forward - a moment of maximum opportunity and, yes, also of serious threat. It's time to stand up. It's time to get involved. 'Now, for the first time in a generation, we have two Labour governments - in Cardiff and Westminster - working together, pulling in the same direction. 'Reform don't want to protect the NHS - they want to dismantle it. Rip it up and replace it with an insurance system. Privatised. Profit-driven. Out of reach for the people who need it most. Because in their world, your health depends on your wealth. 'They point to problems. We are the party of answers - not the party of excuses. Not the party of fear. But make no mistake - they are a threat. To your NHS. To your rights. To our Welsh way of life.' Meanwhile, the Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens will announce a new £11 million fund for businesses in Port Talbot and the surrounding area s. She's expected to tell the conference that the 'Economic Growth and Investment Fund' wil support companies that take on workers in that region. Away from politics, perhaps the most difficult question of all, knowing that the Prime Minister is a big football fan and a supporter of England, is who would he support in the Euros, Wales or England? 'The third game is England versus Wales. I went to see the Lionesses and we discussed that very fixture. I'm afraid I'm going to have to say this: good luck to Wales in every game other than when they play England because I'm an England fan and I will be supporting England on that occasion. "But for all other games the best of luck [to Wales] - it'll be a great game and the Lionesses know that that is going to be a really important game in the group and I've talked it through with them and their preparation for it.'
The Guardian
41 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Starmer still faces Labour anger over risk of ‘two-tier' disability benefits
Keir Starmer is battling to stem the revolt over his cuts to disability benefits, with about 50 Labour MPs concerned the new concessions will create a 'two-tier' system where existing and new claimants are treated differently. Senior government sources insisted things were 'moving in the right direction' for No 10, with the whips phoning backbenchers to persuade them to support the bill on Tuesday. Government insiders said they believed they had peeled off enough of the original 120-plus Labour opponents of the legislation to win the vote, after the work and pensions secretary, Liz Kendall, promised to exempt current disability claimants from the changes, and to increase the health element of universal credit in line with inflation. However, rebel MPs will attempt to lay a new amendment on Monday giving colleagues a chance to delay the bill, which will still involve £2.5bn of cuts to future disability benefits. The continuing row over the changes is likely to blight the week that will mark the first anniversary of Labour's return to power. In an interview on Thursday, Starmer admitted to a range of mistakes – including using the phrase 'an island of strangers' in an immigration speech, and hiring his former chief of staff Sue Gray. His government has made a series of U-turns in the last 12 months, but his handling of the welfare bill might be the most damaging episode of them all. Starmer will next week be hoping to draw a line under the difficult period, in which the government has also reversed cuts to winter fuel payments and changed course over holding an inquiry into grooming gangs. Dozens of Labour MPs are continuing to criticise the welfare cuts on a Labour WhatsApp group. Many MPs are still undecided about how they will vote and are pressing for more assurances that it is ethical and legal to set up a division between current and future claimants. Disability charities have said the bill remains 'fatally flawed' and will lead to an 'unequal future' for different groups of disabled people, making life harder for hundreds of thousands of future claimants. The government confirmed on Friday night that people who have to make new claims for Pip after November 2026 will be assessed under the new criteria. This means those reapplying after losing their Pip or who have fluctuating health conditions will not have the level of their previous awards protected. Starmer defended the bill on Friday, saying it struck the right balance. The changes will protect 370,000 existing recipients who were expected to lose out after reassessment. The prime minister said: 'We talked to colleagues, who've made powerful representations, as a result of which we've got a package which I think will work, we can get it right.' Asked how the government would pay for the £3bn of concessions, which experts believe will have to be funded by tax rises or extra borrowing, Starmer replied: 'The funding will be set out in the budget in the usual way, as you'd expect, later in the year.' There would need to be at least 80 rebels to defeat the bill, and government sources were quietly confident they had given enough ground after Meg Hillier, the chair of the Treasury committee, said she would back the legislation following changes. Others were unconvinced. One leading rebel said 'everyone but a handful of people is unhappy', even if they do end up reluctantly backing the changed legislation. Another expressed frustration that No 10 and the whips were 'trying to bounce people into agreeing before we've seen enough details'. Rachael Maskell, the Labour MP for York Central, a leading opponent of the bill, said: 'They are going to have to go back to the negotiating table … deaf and disabled people's organisations are rejecting these changes as it fails to address future need and gives no security for people with fluctuating conditions, for instance where people are in remission.' Other critics who plan to vote against the bill include the MP for Crawley, Peter Lamb, who said: 'Despite many improvements to the system set out in the bill, at its core the bill remains a cost-cutting exercise. No matter the level of involvement of disability groups in co-producing a scheme for new applicants, to save money the new scheme has to result in people with high levels of need losing the support necessary to wash themselves, dress themselves and feed themselves.' Sign up to Headlines UK Get the day's headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion Simon Opher, the MP for Stroud, said he still opposed the bill. 'The changes do not tackle the eligibility issues that are at the heart of many of the problems with Pip [personal independence payments]. The bill should be scrapped and we should start again and put the needs of disabled people at the centre of the process.' Diane Abbott, a leading figure from the left of Labour, said the rebellion was 'far from over', while another Labour MP said: 'The bill starts from the premise of cuts, not reform. It's also arse about face in terms of impact assessments and co-production. It's simply a negotiated dog's dinner. In that sense, nothing has really changed except the fact they've negotiated more [people to] misguidedly to sign up to it.' 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The Labour MPs opposed to the changes are citing a fundamental rejection of the idea that a Labour government will be making disabled people worse off. At the same time, many of them have also been alienated by what they say is a No 10 operation that is out of touch with the parliamentary party, and has tried to strongarm MPs into backing the legislation with threats and promises of preferment. 'Good will has been lost and there is still huge suspicion about whether they will try and pull a stunt at the last minute,' said one Labour MP. The majority of disability charities and campaign groups still opposed the cuts. Ellen Clifford, from Disabled People Against Cuts, said: 'Many people who rely on Pip to survive have fluctuating conditions which means our support needs can go up and down. By penalising existing claimants if we go out of and then go back to the benefits system depending on our health, more people will be denied the support they need. 'This is exactly why no disabled people's organisation across the whole of the UK has welcomed these concessions because we know the complexities of the social security system and bitter experience from years of cuts that there are many ways in which grand sweeping statements about protections translate to very little in practice when you go into the detail of it.' The disability equality charity Scope said that despite the concessions, an estimated 430,000 future disabled claimants would be affected by 2029-30. Its strategy director, James Taylor, said: 'It is encouraging that the government is starting to listen to disabled people and MPs who have been campaigning for change for months. But these plans will still rip billions from the welfare system. 'The proposed concessions will create a two-tier benefits system and an unequal future for disabled people. Life costs more if you are disabled. And these cuts will have a devastating effect on disabled people's health, ability to live independently or work.' Additional reporting by Frances Ryan
Metro
an hour ago
- Metro
Holly Valance splits from billionaire husband after 13 years of marriage
Former Australian soap star Holly Valance has reportedly split from her billionaire husband Nick Candy after 13 years of marriage. The Neighbours star, 42, met her property tycoon husband in 2009, and he proposed two years later. The pair were married at a lavish £3million California ceremony in 2012, with Simon Cowell being among the star-studded list of attendees. Holly and Nick share two daughters together – Luka Violet Toni, born in November 2013, and Nova Skye Coco, in September 2017. In recent years, Holly and Nick have both become prominent figures in the world of right-wing politics, with Nick resigning his Conservative Party membership last year to become treasurer for the political group Reform. Sources have now revealed that she and Nick have split, putting an end to the power couple's reign. A source told The Sun: 'This has been a very difficult period for both Nick and Holly, and they are keeping things private out of respect for their family. 'The joint parenting of their two amazing daughters remains their top priority. They've had to juggle a demanding lifestyle. Between family, public life, and Nick's intense work commitments, it's been a tough balance. 'This is a family matter, and they're doing their best to handle things thoughtfully. Privacy is obviously very important to them both, so they can focus on what's best for the family.' A spokesperson told the publication: 'This is a private matter and we will not be making any further comment.' During their marriage, Holly and Nick lived in what was Britain's most expensive flat – a two-storey penthouse worth £175million. They have since downsized, moving to a £10million mansion in the Cotswolds. As of last year, Nick was credited with a net worth of around £1.57billion, while Holly's sits at £15.7million according to The Express. Former Kiss Kiss singer Holly is credited with encouraging Nigel Farage to run for parliament. After previously endorsing Jacob Rees-Mogg for PM, she defected from the Conservative Party to Reform along with husband Nick – telling GB News of how she had been 'whispering in [Farage's] ear for a long time.' In 2022, she and former I'm A Celebrity contestant Farage attended a dinner at (then) former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago abode in Florida. Last year, she hosted a fundraiser in London for his Presidential campaign, with some tickets costing up to $10,000 (£7,287) Of her shift in politics, Holly claimed that 'everyone starts off as a leftie' but at some point 'wakes up.' 'After you start either making money, working, trying to run a business, trying to buy a home, and then you realise what crap ideas they all are,' she said on GB News' Choppers's Political Podcast. Of her meeting with Trump, Holly described him as 'fabulous' and 'extremely gentlemanly.' Holly continued to surprise those who might only know her as the star of the 2006 film DOA: Dead or Alive, by denying climate change. 'I just think the climate crisis – or lack of – is not a crisis. The air is better than when I was growing up, it used to stink walking down the street when I was growing up,' the National Lampoon's Pledge This! star said. She went on to describe climate champion Greta Thunberg as a 'demonic little gremlin,' blaming her for 'all the kids coming home with depression and anxiety.' In the same podcast interview, she described her home country of Australia as 'woke,' due to what schools are teaching children. 'I don't think sexuality and children should be in the same sentence. I don't think anyone's sexuality is anyone's business. You don't know about mine. I don't know about yours. Why would we?' Fans who remember Holly for her music and acting career have reacted to her reinvention as a cheerleader for right-wing politics with a state of bafflement. More Trending Of her controversial podcast appearance, utb_smith said: 'Holly Valance being a UK political commentator was not on my 2024 bingo card, and Kraig said 'teenage me is very upset by this'. 'Holly Valance ,,,,HOLLY VALANCE ???!!!! I was in love with her for a whole 2 years . What's she doin in british politics?' said Jay Tee. 'Wait, wait, wait… Holly Valance of 'Kiss, Kiss'?!?!?!? Jesus, please, I know you're busy… but… help?' begged Le Gateau Chocolat. has reached out to Holly Valance's representatives for comment. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: 54 years of groundbreaking LGBT TV that shaped what we watch today MORE: Chris Tarrant reveals heartbreaking reason he left TV career after 52 years MORE: Keir Starmer feels pressure after poll shows Reform would win election today
