Sunday shows round-up: Labour defends its ‘one in, one out' migrant scheme

Spectator

2 days ago

The government is piloting a 'one in, one out' migrant scheme with France. As part of the deal, the UK will return some migrants to France, and in exchange others with a strong case for asylum in the UK will come the other way.
On Sky News, Trevor Phillips noted that France could refuse to take back certain individuals, and asked Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander why they would accept 'violent offenders and rapists'. Alexander said there is a lot of 'operational detail' that the Home Secretary and Prime Minister are working on, but claimed the deal was 'robust' and 'workable', and could ultimately 'break the model' of the international people smuggling gangs. Alexander said the government is not setting a numerical target for returns, but they are doing 'the hard work with our international allies', and their 'aspiration' is to return more than one in 17 migrants once the scheme ramps up.
Camilla Tominey: 'You can't possibly convince people… the economy is in a good state'
On GB News, Camilla Tominey questioned Heidi Alexander over the economy, which shrank by 0.1 per cent in May. Alexander defended the government's record, saying the UK had outperformed the other G7 economies over the first three months of the year, and that the £120 billion of inward investment since Labour took office showed that international capital looks at the UK as a desirable place to invest. Tominey pointed out that in 2022 Rachel Reeves had called for an emergency budget when the economy similarly contracted by 0.1 per cent under the Tories. Alexander said 'GDP figures do bump around from month to month', and talked up Labour's trade deal successes with India, the EU and the US. The Transport Secretary reiterated that Labour's 'number one priority' is to grow the economy.
Heidi Alexander: 'When it comes to taxation, fairness is going to be our guiding principle'
On Sky News, Heidi Alexander would not confirm expected tax rises in the October Budget. She told Trevor Phillips that Labour have stuck to their manifesto promise of not raising taxes for people on modest incomes, and that 'fairness' would be their principle going forwards. Phillips suggested that 'fairness' might be code for wealth distribution, and asked why Alexander wouldn't say there will be tax rises on the wealthy. Alexander said she wouldn't set the budget in July because the 'global economy is very volatile', and the Chancellor would look at the OBR forecast and make decisions based on the need to invest in public services.
Ofcom CEO: 'It is a really big moment'
On 25 July, the Online Safety Act regulations will come into force for social media companies, who will have to either remove harmful content or use age checks to protect children on their platforms. On the BBC, Laura Kuenssberg asked Ofcom CEO Melanie Dawes if she was confident that the new rules would be effective. Dawes admitted that the path ahead was 'challenging', but said the new rules represent a 'big moment' that will bring about change. Asked how the new regulations would work in practice, Dawes said that companies have been allowed to decide what works best for their platform, but some might become 18 plus only, and others might screen adult content behind age checks involving facial recognition or credit cards.
Chris Philp: 'I think they're wrong'
On the BBC, Laura Kuenssberg asked Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp about defections to Reform, after four former Tory MPs made the move in the last two weeks. Philp said those people represented a 'very small number' of Conservative MPs over the last ten years, and suggested Reform has 'superficial attractions to people who are frustrated'. He criticised Reform for having 'slogans', but no 'credible plans'. Kuenssberg pointed out that Jake Berry had been in the cabinet with Philp, and suggested that those defecting do believe Reform have credible policies. Philp said they were 'wrong', that Nigel Farage does not have detailed solutions to immigration issues, and that his plan to lift the two child benefit cap would increase the welfare bill and taxes.