
Watch: Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar brands Nigel Farage ‘a pathetic little man'
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has labeled Nigel Farage 'a clown' and 'pathetic' in response to a Reform UK campaign advert accusing Sarwar of 'introducing sectarianism to Scottish politics'.
'The reality is, this is just a pathetic little man, hungry for attention, trying to bring his brand of divisive politics and hate into Scotland,' Sarwar told the Press Association.
The ad, which was played at a Reform party press conference on Tuesday (27 May) ahead of a Holyrood by-election next week, shows clips of Sarwar calling for more South Asian representation in politics, along with text on screen claiming he would 'prioritise' the Pakistani community - despite Mr Sarwar not making such a suggestion during the speech.
Both Labour and Scottish Minister John Swinney have described the video as 'racist'.
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Daily Mirror
37 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Reform UK are 'chancers' and no friends of working people says GMB chief
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Times
43 minutes ago
- Times
Reeves considers energy bill subsidy for manufacturers
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Reeves is preparing for Wednesday's spending review and the subsequent publication of the industrial strategy for eight key areas of the economy that the government has promised to promote to bolster economic growth. Industry argues that the price it pays for energy is double that paid by European competitors and four times that of America, which is leaving Britain at a disadvantage. It affects not just the country's existing steelmakers, ceramic industry and chemical businesses but also attempts by the government to attract new technologies, such as energy-hungry data centres. In a document seen by The Sunday Times, the industry lobby group Make UK warned the government: 'If we do not address the issue of high industrial energy costs in the UK as a priority we risk the security of our country. We will fail to attract investment in the manufacturing sector and will rapidly enter a phase of deindustrialisation.' Rain Newton-Smith, chief executive of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), warned the chancellor last week that high energy prices were an 'anchor on our ambition, a crack in our economic security and must be fixed'. The plan being drawn up by Make UK, which it calls a contract for difference, would cost £1.1 billion a year for five years from 2027 to provide a guaranteed energy price. But the organisation argues this 'upfront cost' should be considered in the context of its estimates that it would generate a medium-term boost for the economy of about £3 billion a year — or 0.1 per cent of gross domestic product — and also provide more tax revenue. It claims the policy is politically expedient for the government as it would help the red wall constituencies in the Midlands and northern England where Labour is vulnerable to the threat posed by Reform. The biggest energy-intensive companies already receive a subsidy through the British Industry Supercharger scheme, which was set up by the Conservatives in 2024 and which the Financial Times reported last week could become more generous under plans being considered by ministers. But this does not benefit many industrial companies, which still say they are struggling with high energy prices. When she appeared at an event hosted by the CBI last week, Reeves told the audience of business leaders: 'We know that one of the questions that we need to answer is how we're going to make energy more affordable, particularly for some of our most intensive energy-using businesses where the price differential with other countries is just too acute for many to be competitive. That's a question we know we need to answer and we will answer in the industrial strategy in a few weeks.' Other ideas being presented to the government include stepping up drilling in the North Sea, which is likely to create tensions with Miliband. Solving the energy situation is regarded as a crucial plank of the industrial strategy, which the business secretary put out for consultation six months ago to look at eight sectors: advanced manufacturing; clean energy; the creative industries; defence; digital; financial services; life sciences and professional and business services. The result of the consultation had widely been expected to be published alongside Reeves's spending review but it is not now expected for another two weeks. It is understood that the delay has been caused by a desire to resolve the issue of industry energy costs. Stephen Phipson, chief executive of Make UK, said: 'If we don't want to lose the big corporates we have to get competitive and the government is going to have to make tough choices.' Jakob Sigurdsson, chief executive of the FTSE 250 Lancashire chemical business Victrex, said the industry was not 'asking for handouts' but needed a government policy to ensure it was viable. His energy bill is £12 million — double what it was before Russia's invasion of Ukraine pushed up oil prices — while profits are £60 million. 'When you look at it from a global perspective, for the price of power we're paying four to five times the price for electricity that a Chinese company would be paying,' he said, with a similar situation compared to the US. 'It's a cost disadvantage for us so a sound energy policy and how we deal with pricing mechanisms is paramount,' he said. 'This is not going to be solved through incremental changes. There needs to be a bold energy shift.'


The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Ministers commit to £86bn for ‘breakthrough' UK science and tech R&D
New drug treatments, longer-lasting batteries and developing artificial intelligence are among research projects that will receive funding as part of an £86bn government investment into science and technology. Ministers have announced a £22.5bn a year commitment in research and development (R&D) over the next four years, including up to £500m for regional authorities to target the investment locally. The announcement comes before the spending review on Wednesday where Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, will set out day-to-day expenditure for three years and investment spending for four years. Reeves said: 'Britain is the home of science and technology. Through the plan for change', we are investing in Britain's renewal to create jobs, protect our security against foreign threats and make working families better off.' Peter Kyle, the science and technology secretary, said: 'R&D is the very foundation of the breakthroughs that make our lives easier and healthier – from new medicines enabling us to live longer, more fulfilled lives to developments in AI giving us time back, from easing our train journeys through to creating the technology we need to protect our planet from climate change.' Ministers said the investment would boost the life sciences industry in Liverpool, the defence sector in Northern Ireland and semiconductors in south Wales. It matches a commitment made by the previous Conservative government to spend £22bn a year on R&D. The seven mayoral strategic authorities in England – Greater Manchester, West Midlands, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Liverpool City Region, North East and Greater London – will each receive awards of at least £30m each. The fund will also include a competition open to all other parts of the UK. The announcement was welcomed by Richard Parker, the mayor of the West Midlands, and Kim McGuinness, the north-east mayor. McGuinness said the funds would support the car and green energy industries in her region. The package also includes £4.8m for a partnership between Manchester and Cambridge to attract business investment. Alongside the spending review on Wednesday, Reeves is planning to announce an overhaul of the Treasury's 'green book' – the rules that govern how public investment plans are judged. Critics say the existing rules are biased in favour of London and the south-east. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Changing the rules will allow ministers to divert more money to areas of the north and Midlands, including the so-called red wall where Labour MPs face an electoral challenge from Reform UK. The chancellor will put £113bn of new capital investment in homes, transport and energy at the forefront of the spending review, money which was unlocked by changes she made to the government's debt rules in October. Ministers hope that billions in capital investment and a funding boost for the NHS will stave off disquiet over harsh cuts to day-to-day spending expected across many departments.