Parliamentary schedule for Thursday June 26
All timings approximate and subject to business.
House of Commons:0930 Transport questions1030 Business questions to Commons Leader Lucy Powell1130 Supply and Appropriation (Main Estimates) (No. 2) Bill: second and third readingGeneral debate on armed forces dayAn adjournment debate on potential merits of floating solar panels
Westminster Hall:1330 Select committee statement from Joint Committee on human rights1350 IVF egg donation in young women1510 Funding of the BBC World Service
House of Lords:1100 Oral questions1150 Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill – committee stage (day one)
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Spectator
2 hours ago
- Spectator
Keir Starmer is seriously stupid
Sir Keir has returned from his worldwide statesmanship tour. Barely the edge of a photograph went ungurned in, not a bottom went unkissed, no platitude went ungarbled. Now – lucky us! – he was back in the House of Commons for a good long crow about his achievements. As always, there was an obsequious toad ready on the Labour backbenches The PM began with the usual Starmerite guff production. The man is a veritable Chinese Power Station of pompous pollution. This, however, was more smug than smog. It began with a round-up of how crucial he'd been in every negotiation and discussion. 'We're following in the footsteps of Attlee and Bevan,' crowed Starmer. Well, up to a point Comrade Copper. I mean, his cabinet hated each other too. Apparently, the G7 was going to 'follow Britain's lead' on controlling illegal migration. I genuinely think he didn't see the irony in this. What's next? The G7 to follow North Korea's lead on free speech? Nato to follow Spain's lead on afternoon productivity? Dick the Butcher, in Henry VI, Part 2, famously exclaims 'now let's kill all the lawyers'. It was this energy and spirit which Kemi Badenoch sought to channel as she stood to respond to the Prime Minister's 12-minute self-paean. 'What we need is a leader, instead we have three lawyers', she said, referencing the PM, Lord Hermer and the Sage of Tottenham, David Lammy. The PM's slavish following of legal advice was a major theme of her speech. A picture emerged of a man who, if some UN precedent could be found for it, would crawl up and down Pall Mall in a leather gimp-suit singing 'I'm a Little Teapot' and then claim it as a stunning victory for soft power. Dame Emily Thornberry also invoked the 'soft power' geopolitical sugar plum fairy. Perhaps to distract from her troublemaking over welfare cuts, she put on a sort of sickly-sweet Pollyanna-ish voice to ask her non-question. Normally her mode of delivery is like a buffalo that's just smoked 100 Superkings. More soft pitches were thrown in Sir Keir's direction by Sir Ed 'Babe Ruth' Davey, who, while ostensibly asking questions on behalf of the Lib Dems, had as his most used phrase today 'I agree with the Prime Minister'. As always, there was an obsequious toad ready on the Labour backbenches to perform the act of ego-stoking necessary to keep the leader's sense of self intact. Enter John Slinger, who decried petty party politics, then praised the Prime Minister for the unique 'human empathy' he had brought to international diplomacy. Slinger is apparently MP for Rugby. I had assumed he actually represented the underside of a rock somewhere in the deepest, darkest Amazon because that appears to be where he has been living for the past 12 months. There was even a gentle backscratcher of a question from Rishi Sunak about Iranian sanctions. Would anyone in the House follow Mrs Badenoch's lead and try to pop St Pancras's very own pig's bladder of pomposity? Step forward, Stephen Flynn. The SNP's Westminster leader resembles an apoplectic egg and is the only person in the chamber who appears to hate the PM more than Kemi Badenoch and Big Ange do. How could Sir Keir make his arguments about foreign policy on moral grounds when he was about to cut aid to the disabled, he asked? Cue more fleshy clucking from Starmer. At the end of his rant, Flynn was called what had become the word of the day in this nightmarish episode of Sesame Street: 'unserious'. For all his capacity to render himself ridiculous by his legalistic pomposity, there is always potential for the PM to add to it. He is particularly keen on affecting the air of a self-important substitute teacher when addressing the Leader of the Opposition; 'not angry, just disappointed'. Inevitably, the PM also accused Badenoch of being 'unserious'. Further irony there of course, because as every good comedian knows, nothing is more ridiculous than someone going about something innately stupid – self destructive even – with the utmost seriousness.
Leader Live
2 hours ago
- Leader Live
Starmer seeks to win round welfare rebels with promise of ‘fairness'
The talks ahead of Tuesday's Commons showdown come after 126 Labour MPs publicly backed a move to block it. Sir Keir told MPs he wanted the reforms, which will restrict access to sickness and incapacity benefits, to demonstrate 'Labour values of fairness'. The Prime Minister told MPs there was 'consensus across the House on the urgent need for reform' of the 'broken' welfare system. 'I know colleagues across the House are eager to start fixing that, and so am I, and that all colleagues want to get this right, and so do I,' he said. 'We want to see reform implemented with Labour values of fairness. 'That conversation will continue in the coming days, so we can begin making change together on Tuesday.' The Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill has its second reading on Tuesday, the first opportunity for MPs to vote on it. If the legislation clears its first hurdle, it will then face a few hours' examination by all MPs the following week – rather than days or weeks in front of a committee tasked with looking at the Bill – with a plan for it to clear the Commons a little over a week later on July 9. Ministers have said they will listen to suggestions to improve the legislation, but opposition appears entrenched and the swift timetable for the Bill could add to critics' concerns. Commons Leader Lucy Powell told MPs: 'As the House would expect, the Government actively engages with parliamentary opinion throughout a bill's passage, as we are doing intensively with the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill.' But some Labour critics of the Bill said there were no concessions the Government could make which would persuade them to support it. Liverpool West Derby MP Ian Byrne said: 'No tweaks or concessions can save the disability cuts Bill. 'It's an awful piece of legislation that will cause huge and lasting damage to my disabled constituents and those across the UK.' York Central MP Rachael Maskell said the Bill 'cannot and must not be saved'. 'Any concessions will still cause harm to disabled people,' she said. 'The only option is to withdraw the Bill, rethink and start to rebuild trust with disabled people.' Overnight, six more Labour MPs added their names to the rebel amendment that would halt the legislation in its tracks. The reasoned amendment argues that disabled people have not been properly consulted and further scrutiny of the changes is needed. It is clear that the UC & PIP Bill cannot and must not be saved. Any concessions will still cause harm to disabled people. The only option is to withdraw the Bill, rethink and start to rebuild trust with disabled people. Not to is not Labour. — 💙Rachael Maskell MP (@RachaelMaskell) June 26, 2025 The new names take the total number of Labour backbenchers supporting the amendment, tabled by Treasury Select Committee chairwoman Dame Meg Hillier, to 126 out of a total of 162 backers from all parties. The plans restrict eligibility for the personal independence payment (Pip), the main disability payment in England, and limit the sickness-related element of universal credit. The Government hopes the changes will get more people back into work and save up to £5 billion a year. The Daily Telegraph reported that potential concessions being considered include a commitment to speed up payment of support to help people back into work and offering assurances that reviews of policies in this area will be published. Meanwhile, The Times reported some MPs opposed to the plans had blamed Sir Keir's chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney and suggested the time had come for 'regime change' in Downing Street. Asked if Sir Keir had confidence in his chief of staff, the No 10 spokesman would not comment on Downing Street staffing matters. Analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think tank indicated that 800,000 fewer working-age people are expected to receive a Pip daily living award in 2029–30 as a result of the reforms. The tighter criteria are set to lead to 430,000 new applicants – who would have received an award without reforms – receiving no award, and 370,000 existing claimants losing out following reassessment. NEW: Government's benefit reforms could reduce annual spending by around £11 billion in the long run – but still leave health-related benefit bill far above pre-pandemic levels. Read @TomWatersEcon, @LatimerEduin and @matthewoulton's new report: — Institute for Fiscal Studies (@TheIFS) June 26, 2025 Most of the 800,000 losers will receive £3,850 per year less in Pip. The 2.2 million existing claimants of the health element of universal credit who are expected to still be claiming in 2029–30 are estimated to see a £450 real decline in their support in that year because of the freezing of the payment. There are also set to be 700,000 new claimants who will typically receive £2,700 a year less than they would have done under the current system, the IFS said. It will be well into the 2030s before the reforms are fully rolled out and, in the long-term, the savings could amount to around £11 billion a year, the IFS said. A little over a quarter of the public are supportive of the proposed reforms, according to polling published on Thursday. Of 2,004 people surveyed by More in Common over the weekend, just 27% said they supported the planned changes to the benefits system and half (51%) said they believe the cuts would worsen the health of disabled people. A similar proportion (52%) said the cuts would increase pressure on the NHS while six in 10 said the Government should look at alternative cost-saving measures instead. Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said the Government should pull the Bill and 'go back to the drawing board' instead of 'cutting vital support from thousands of vulnerable people'.
Glasgow Times
3 hours ago
- Glasgow Times
Starmer criticises Badenoch as she claims PM is ‘irrelevant' on world stage
The Prime Minister slapped down Mrs Badenoch's dismissal of him as 'irrelevant' on the global stage as she launched a barbed attack on Sir Keir while he gave a statement on the two international events to the Commons. Her tone was rebuked by one of her own backbenchers, who admitted he could have the whip withdrawn for his criticism. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Mrs Badenoch had said: 'He has evaded Prime Minister's Questions for two weeks, only to come here to tell us what we already heard on the news. This is a weak statement from a weak Prime Minister which can be characterised in two words; 'noises off'.' She added: 'We used to be a strategic player on the global stage, advancing Britain's interests with confidence, and now we are on the sidelines.' She later said: 'Over the last few weeks, historic events unfolded in the Middle East, and at every stage Britain has been out of step with the US and out of the loop with Israel.' 'The Prime Minister may have finally returned to this House after a fortnight away, but in truth he is all at sea. Irrelevant on the world stage, impotent in the face of rising illegal immigration, and now with 126 of his own MPs all openly undermining his authority, his Government is incapable of making even the smallest changes to bring down the cost of our ever-expanding welfare bill,' she went on to say. In response, Sir Keir said: 'There has never been a more important time to work with our allies, and to be absolutely serious in our response. That response was unserious. 'To suggest that at a time like this that the Prime Minister attending a G7 summit and the Nato summit is avoiding PMQs is unserious. 'What happened at Nato yesterday was historic. It was very important at a time like this that Nato showed unity and strength with a commitment to the future, not just to the past. That took a huge amount of work with our allies over the last few days and weeks. 'We have been centrally involved in that, crafting the final outcome, and we were recognised as having done so. I am proud that we helped put that summit into the right place, and the world emerged safer as a result.' He added: 'For the leader of the Opposition to belittle it just shows how irrelevant she and the party opposite have become. They used to be serious about these issues, they used to be capable of cross-party consensus, and all of that is slipping away.' Conservative MP for the Wrekin Mark Pritchard said: 'Can I agree with the Prime Minister that as far as possible in this place, it would be better to keep partisan politics out of national security issues? 'And who knows, I may get withdrawn for saying that, but so be it, there are things that go beyond party politics.' Sir Keir had earlier said it was 'frankly embarrassing to suggest I shouldn't have been at Nato or the G7', adding: 'And I think her backbenchers recognise it.' Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey also criticised Mrs Badenoch, saying: 'It is astonishing, and I share his surprise, that it's now Conservative policy not to attend the G7 and Nato.' In his statement, the Prime Minister said the ceasefire between Iran and Israel had created an opportunity for peace, and said the pause in missile strikes between the two countries could also allow for a ceasefire in Gaza. He said: 'There is now a window for peace. We urge Iran and Israel to honour the ceasefire and seize this opportunity to stabilise the region. That is our priority, to get Iran back around the negotiating table with the US.' He added: 'Our national security strategy is clear, in this … era of radical uncertainty, faced with growing conflicts, state threats, illegal migration, organised crime and terrorism, the only way to respond to these issues is by being strong both at home and on the world stage, by pursuing a foreign policy that answers directly to the concerns of working people, and that is the approach I took to Nato and to the G7.' MPs heard the Government plans to spend 4.1% of GDP on defence by 2027, rising to 5% by 2035. Sir Keir said it would lead to a realignment of national security plans and economic policies in a way not seen since the Second World War. However Mrs Badenoch asked how the Government was going to meet its spending targets. She said: 'The Government's aspiration to get spending on national security to 5% is just hope. The reality is Labour does not have a plan to get to 3%, it is all smoke and mirrors.' Mrs Badenoch continued: 'It is one thing to talk about spending money on planes and infrastructure, making announcements about reviews, but it is another to be clear where the money comes from and how it will be spent efficiently to secure the defence of our nation.' Sir Keir replied: 'We are the party that has increased defence spend to the highest level since the Cold War, 2.5%, they talked about it. We did it.' He added that in a recent interview Mrs Badenoch had said the Conservative government had examined how to raise defence spending, but 'couldn't make the numbers work'.
