logo

Newscast The Former Judge Challenging The Supreme Court Gender Ruling

BBC News5 hours ago

Today we hear from the woman who was the UK's only transgender judge.
Laura speaks to Victoria McCloud, who stepped down from the job last year, about her challenge to overturn the Supreme Court unanimous ruling that a woman is defined by biological sex under equalities law.
In an extended interview, Victoria talks about why she thinks she could succeed, and about the ruling's consequences.
You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Newscast'. It works on most smart speakers.
You can join our Newscast online community here: https://tinyurl.com/newscastcommunityhere
New episodes released every day. If you're in the UK, for more News and Current Affairs podcasts from the BBC, listen on BBC Sounds: https://bit.ly/3ENLcS1
Newscast brings you daily analysis of the latest political news stories from the BBC. It was presented by Laura Kuenssberg. It was made by Chris Flynn and Rufus Gray. The technical producer was Daffyd Evans. The assistant editor is Chris Gray. The editor is Sam Bonham.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

More than nine of out ten of the Tory rank-and-file want Kemi Badenoch to purge 'wets' from the party in order to meet the challenge of Nigel Farage and Reform UK
More than nine of out ten of the Tory rank-and-file want Kemi Badenoch to purge 'wets' from the party in order to meet the challenge of Nigel Farage and Reform UK

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

More than nine of out ten of the Tory rank-and-file want Kemi Badenoch to purge 'wets' from the party in order to meet the challenge of Nigel Farage and Reform UK

More than nine out of ten Tory supporters want Kemi Badenoch to mount a purge of 'wets' in the Tory party in order to meet the challenge of Nigel Farage, new polling has found. According to a survey by the Popular Conservatism group, known as PopCon, 92 per cent of Conservative members and voters agree that there should be a 'big shake-up' in the party, including 'getting rid of the wets who aren't really Conservative' and 'getting rid of the MPs who are big state, pro-EU and arrogantly elitist'. The poll offers support for Ms Badenoch, with 93 per cent agreeing with her vow to abandon Net Zero targets. A total of 91 per cent want to quit the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), while 89 per cent want to reverse Sir Keir Starmer 's EU deal. Despite the party languishing in the polls, Ms Badenoch receives backing for her approach. However, 42 per cent of her supporters want her to establish a formal relationship with Reform. Separate polling published today by Lord Ashcroft in The Mail on Sunday reveals that voters do not think Sir Keir is sincere when he promises to cut immigration.

MARK LITTLEWOOD: A full-blooded agenda can help revive the Tory Party's fortunes - but we must act fast
MARK LITTLEWOOD: A full-blooded agenda can help revive the Tory Party's fortunes - but we must act fast

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

MARK LITTLEWOOD: A full-blooded agenda can help revive the Tory Party's fortunes - but we must act fast

These are tough times for the Tory party. The Conservatives are struggling to get 'cut-through' in the national media and in the public debate. Because of the party's lowly poll ratings, such coverage as there is tends to focus on whether the Tories are minded to embark upon yet another leadership election. Some ask whether the party can survive at all. Good news for Kemi Badenoch has been thin on the ground. But she can draw some real comfort this weekend from a survey conducted by my grassroots organisation, Popular Conservatism. We asked hundreds of rank-and-file Tories how the party should seek to get back on its feet and how it should rebuild. Tory supporters are not overwhelmed with unalloyed hope and optimism – they would be delusional if they were. A vast majority thought last month's local election results were as bad as to be expected, or even worse. A good chunk of those surveyed are tempted by Reform and think Nigel Farage will be the next prime minister. On Kemi herself, 60 per cent think she is doing something from a reasonable to an excellent job in what have obviously been difficult circumstances. On policy and strategy, the messages they sent back are pretty clear. They expect a full overhaul of Tory party headquarters and more powers given over to the membership – rather than central office parachuting favoured sons and daughters into desirable seats. But it's on policy where Kemi should take the most heart. She has already pivoted away from the 2050 carbon Net Zero commitment and 93 per cent agree with her. She has now opened an internal commission into whether the UK should withdraw from the ECHR – 91 per cent think we should. There is also overwhelming support for slashing back quangos (95 per cent) and dramatically reducing the size of the Civil Service (93 per cent). Scrapping the Supreme Court (78 per cent), abolishing the Equality Act (76 per cent) and curtailing the independence of the Bank of England (79 per cent) also curry significant favour. Taken together, these measures could add up to the sort of full-blooded agenda that Tory members think could revive the party's fortunes. And they want it rolled out fast, with 86 per cent demanding that policy positions be adopted more rapidly than has been the case thus far. Tory members don't seem to think that Kemi is facing the wrong way, they just want her to run, rather than walk, in the direction she has set.

Labour at war over spending plans as Number 10 tries to stem threat from Farage
Labour at war over spending plans as Number 10 tries to stem threat from Farage

Daily Mail​

time2 hours ago

  • Daily Mail​

Labour at war over spending plans as Number 10 tries to stem threat from Farage

Sir Keir Starmer is fighting to quell mounting Labour tensions over how to deal with the threat from Nigel Farage, as bitter Whitehall negotiations over the Government's Spending Review go down to the wire. Sources describe 'very unpleasant' exchanges between Rachel Reeves and senior Cabinet ministers, including Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and Local Government Secretary Angela Rayner, as the Chancellor prepares to give the NHS a £30billion boost at the expense of the police and local councils. Preparations for Wednesday's announcement have been held against the backdrop of slamming doors and raised voices, as No 10 and the Treasury work out how to divide a limited pot of public money in a way most likely to arrest the surge in support for Mr Farage's Reform UK. Ms Reeves is expected to set out plans for an extra £113billion in spending on infrastructure projects such as Sizewell C nuclear power plant, and an extra 2.8 per cent real-terms increase in the NHS's £200billion-a-year budget, amounting to an extra £30billion by 2028. But with the economy barely growing, other departments have had to take a hit as a result. A source said: 'It turned nasty between Yvette and Rachel. It was just as bad as that between Rachel and Angela, who walked out during her negotiations. 'Yvette was just passing on the concerns of the police, who said that without more money they would be forced to make stark choices about which crimes they prioritise. 'The anger of the police shows they've been briefed by Cooper on how the negotiations are going, and they're not happy.' Reeves plotting £3bn tax raid on pension By CALUM MUIRHEAD Rachel Reeves is planning a £3billion tax raid on millions of pensions. The new Pension Schemes Bill lays out a blueprint for companies to take out 'surplus' cash from certain schemes. The theory behind the plan is that companies can use the money to invest in their business and that would fuel growth. But experts fear this could lead to a repeat of the Robert Maxwell scandal of the early 1990s, when the late tycoon stole £400 million from his staff pension fund to prop up his companies. The Chancellor, who is desperate to raise tax revenues, would benefit because any 'surpluses' released are taxed at 25 per cent, which could raise almost £3billion over a decade. The bill, tabled in Parliament last week, will affect old-style pension schemes where retirement incomes are linked to people's pay packets, which have around nine million members. A minister said: 'The negotiations over the final settlements are still not sorted for some departments. They're going to carry on fighting it out over the weekend.' Another source added: 'Rachel will stand up and promise things she can't deliver. There will be a lot of guff about how she will deliver security for the country. 'But how can you promise to deliver security when Trump's doing what he's doing on tariffs and Putin is so active?' At the heart of the schism is an ideological divide between the party's Blairites, represented in No 10 by Liz Lloyd, Sir Keir's head of policy delivery, and Morgan McSweeney, the Downing Street chief of staff. Mr McSweeney is desperate to tackle small boats migration while Ms Lloyd is encouraging spending more on the NHS. Rachel Reeves is planning a £3billion tax raid on millions of pensions. The new Pension Schemes Bill lays out a blueprint for companies to take out 'surplus' cash from certain schemes. The theory behind the plan is that companies can use the money to invest in their business and that would fuel growth. But experts fear this could lead to a repeat of the Robert Maxwell scandal of the early 1990s, when the late tycoon stole £400 million from his staff pension fund to prop up his companies. The Chancellor, who is desperate to raise tax revenues, would benefit because any 'surpluses' released are taxed at 25 per cent, which could raise almost £3billion over a decade. The bill, tabled in Parliament last week, will affect old-style pension schemes where retirement incomes are linked to people's pay packets, which have around nine million members.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store