
Doncaster Reform councillor quits two months after election
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, council chief executive Damian Allen has written to councillors notifying them that a "notice of vacancy" will be published for the seat.The council website displays one seat in Bentley as having a "vacancy" and Samuel Booth's profile now loads an error message.Doncaster Council has been approached for more information.Booth's resignation will drop Reform to 35 sitting councillors, a loss of two since they swept to a majority with 37.In June, the party suspended the whip from Mark Broadhurst for Hatfield ward over "unacceptable" posts he had made to social media.Broadhurst still sits as an independent councillor.
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Times
11 minutes ago
- Times
Catholic MP warns of ‘witch hunt' over assisted dying bill
An MP whose priest denied him communion for voting for assisted dying has warned of a 'witch hunt' of fellow Catholic politicians. Chris Coghlan's priest wrote to him before the House of Commons vote to legalise assisted dying, warning he would be 'obstinately persevering' in sin if he supported the bill. Coghlan, a Liberal Democrat, supported the bill despite the threats. It has passed the Commons and will start its journey through the House of Lords in September. Fr Ian Vane, the priest, went on to give three masses publicly denouncing Coghlan for his decision. Coghlan called for disciplinary sanctions against Vane. Senior figures in the church are understood to have ruled that the priest was within his rights to make the decision, but they are unhappy that the issue was not dealt with in private. Coghlan said the incident shows there was a 'conflict of interest' for Catholic MPs and Lords. 'I know of at least 13 other Catholic MPs who voted either for assisted dying or to decriminalise abortion, and there appears to be a public witch hunt', Coghlan said. 'The Catholic press is pushing for them to be denied communion as well. 'But we're not here as Catholic MPs, we're here to represent our constituents … this is a clear attempt to meddle with the political process by the church.' Religion was as strong a predictor of how an MP would vote on the assisted dying bill as the party they belong to. Some 57 per cent of Christian MPs opposed the bill, including 74 per cent of Catholics, compared with 18 per cent of non-believers. Coghlan, who represents Dorking and Horley in Surrey, said that MPs should be forced to declare their membership of a faith before discussing life issues like abortion and assisted dying. 'In the same way that if you own shares in a company and you're talking about that company in a debate, you would declare that conflict of interest beforehand. And you probably would not vote either. 'I think it's a major problem for parliament in that we have this bill going through right now and the actions of Catholic parliamentarians could have a material impact on that. 'It is incredibly important for public trust in parliament, that parliamentarians are able to demonstrate that they're acting in the best interests of their constituents or the country in the case of the Lords. 'It is hard to see how that is the case if they're also being required by their faith to vote in a certain way, with the threat of public disciplinary sanctions as happened to me, and looks like may happen to other MPs.' • Assisted dying: 8 practical questions MPs still need to answer Under the laws of the Roman Catholic church, priests 'cannot deny the sacraments to those who seek them at appropriate times', but there can be exceptions. One law, Canon 915, forbids a priest from administering Holy Communion to those who have been excommunicated or formally barred from the sacrament and also from those they judge to 'obstinately persist in manifest grave sin'. This gives a priest the right to use their discretion. Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Archbishop of Westminster, had repeatedly called on Catholics to put pressure on their MPs to oppose the assisted dying bill, but no Catholic bishop or archbishop has been willing to comment publicly on Vane's decision to refuse communion to Coghlan, deeming it to be a matter for the local diocese of Arundel and Brighton. The priest and diocese were approached for comment. The Diocese of Arundel and Brighton said that neither would provide any further is understood, however, that some senior figures in the English and Welsh church feel the priest should have taken greater heed of the late Pope Francis's words in 2016 when he said: 'There is a need to avoid judgements which do not take into account the complexity of various situations.' • How did your MP vote on assisted dying? Vane's move to publicly declare his decision to his congregation during a mass service is understood to have caused greater consternation among senior clerics. A source said that priests were expected to share the church's teaching and 'accompany individuals' while they are making important decisions, but that this should take place 'in a sheltered environment and not in the glare of public attention'. In the meantime, Coghlan said, his family had been 'devastated' by the episode. 'The priest gave my daughter her first communion, children from her class were in the congregation, so for him to come out and try and publicly humiliate me … it's difficult not to feel very angry. 'He didn't respect the fact that I'm simply trying to do my job as an MP. We get enough abuse as MPs — you don't expect it from your own priest.'


Telegraph
31 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Swinney an ‘analogue politician in a digital age' says Streeting
John Swinney, the First Minister, has been described by the UK Health Secretary as an 'analogue politician in a digital age' in a row over the Scottish Government's failure to create an NHS app. Wes Streeting said there was 'no excuse' for the devolved government not to have introduced an app that allows patients to book appointments with their GP, order prescriptions and manage hospital appointments. A similar app was rolled out in England six years ago. Plans to create an NHS Scotland app are underway but are currently limited to a trial for dermatology patients in NHS Lanarkshire. A national rollout is not expected before the end of the decade. Mr Streeting warned patients in Scotland are 'missing out' and said it showed why Scotland 'can't afford a third decade of the SNP'. He is the first senior Westminster politician to publicly criticise the running of Scotland's NHS, which has been under fire for lengthy waits. Mr Streeting said: 'The UK Labour Government is embracing technology to deliver a better NHS for patients and their families, giving them more control and transparency over their treatment. 'In John Swinney, the SNP have an analogue politician in a digital age, and patients in Scotland are missing out. 'The SNP have record funding and complete control of the NHS in Scotland, there's no excuse for this, and it just shows why Scotland can't afford a third decade of the SNP and needs a new direction with Anas Sarwar as first minister.' It is not the first time that Scotland's First Minister has been accused of being slow to bring the Scottish NHS into the 21st century. Earlier this year, Ian Murray, the Scottish Secretary, made similar remarks after GPs said they looked 'on with frustration' at the digital health tech divide between England and Scotland, citing the delay in launching tools such as the NHS Scotland app. Mr Streeting has pledged to improve the use of technology in the NHS south of the border and last week announced improvements to the country's NHS app, which already has 35 million users. Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, said the app would 'become, as technology develops, like having a doctor in your pocket, providing you with 24-hour advice, seven days a week'. The 'supercharged' version of the app is promised to be delivered by 2028 and is expected to allow patients to book and check hospital appointments, interact with specialists or visit an 'AI doctor' for advice. An app for the Scottish health service, announced in 2021, is not expected to launch on a trial basis until December. Its functionality will initially be severely restricted, with its only practical purpose being to allow dermatology patients served by one health board, NHS Lanarkshire, to be notified of appointments. If successful, rollouts will continue in other areas until its full introduction in five years. 'Sustained improvements for patients' According to the latest official health statistics, the number of patients waiting more than 78 weeks for treatment in Scotland has increased to 38,070, while in England the figure has halved to 1,154. Cancer treatment waiting time standards are also being missed. A spokesperson for Neil Gray, the Scottish Health Secretary said: 'Scotland's planned online app is for both health and social care and we will launch it in Lanarkshire by the end of 2025. 'National rollout will commence through 2026 and we will publish a national rollout plan later this summer. 'We will leave Labour to carry out personal attacks – the SNP Government's focus is on putting in place the lasting solutions which will deliver sustained improvements for patients. 'As Wes Streeting knows, Scotland's core A&E performance has been the best in the UK for the last 10 years, we have more GPs per head than south of the border, and we are building on this with record funding for health and social care this year.'


Times
37 minutes ago
- Times
Keir Starmer to push Macron for last-minute migrant return deal
Sir Keir Starmer will urge President Macron to agree a 'one in, one out' migrant returns deal on Tuesday, despite warnings that announcing it before it is ready will lead to a surge in crossings. The prime minister is pressing for the deal as the centrepiece of a new agreement between Britain and France that the two leaders will sign at an Anglo-French summit on Thursday. The arrangement would allow Britain to return small boat migrants to France in exchange for accepting asylum seekers with a family connection in the UK. However, British and French officials are yet to finalise the details as the French president's three-day state visit begins on Tuesday. The UK government is also in last ditch talks with the European Commission to overcome opposition from a group of five Mediterranean countries who fear a bilateral deal between Britain and France would add to pressure at their own borders.