Keir the builder – can he fix it?
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Sky News' deputy political editor Sam Coates and Politico's Anne McElvoy have their guide to the day ahead in British politics.
Bats, pylons, and planning reforms - how far is Sir Keir Starmer willing to go to achieve the growth and infrastructure he's promised, and will Labour's new reforms help the UK get there? And what has the fallout been after Mike Amesbury announced his resignation, triggering a by-election in Runcorn?
And over in Saudi Arabia, ahead of peace talks over the war in Ukraine, how significant a role has Sir Keir's National Security advisor Jonathan Powell been playing?
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The Independent
26 minutes ago
- The Independent
Leaders share healthcare and efficiency hopes for AI at British-Irish Council
British and Irish political leaders discussed the potential of AI at a conference in Co Down on Friday. There was a particular focus on artificial intelligence at the 43rd meeting of the British-Irish Council (BIC), which was established as part of the Good Friday Agreement. Leaders discussed the potential of AI to enhance cancer screenings and help address the challenges of aging populations. At a press conference which was dominated by issues including race riots in Ballymena and legacy issues, political leaders were asked about the threat AI poses to jobs. Irish premier Micheal Martin said he had a 'glass half full' approach to AI and technology, but said it 'will change the nature of work'. 'I remember the 1980s when I was a young, emerging politician, I picked up a book on the bookshelf called The Jobs Crisis by the late Colm Keane. 'In that book, he was predicting that we would have to train and educate for leisure, that at best, we would be working about three days a week because of the technological revolution that was then about to happen. 'And then Jack Charlton took over the Irish (football) team, and we did very well in Italia 1990 and the Irish economy took off, and lots more jobs came on stream. 'I'm not being facetious, but I'm wary of the prophets of doom about technological change. 'We've had waves of technological change throughout history that have changed the nature of work, but actually created new opportunities for different kinds of work. 'So I would be the glass-half-full person here saying there will be different type of work.' Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O'Neill said governments would need to work with trade unions to 'take workers with us'. 'It has to be of benefit, and it has to assist. It can't be a replacement of what we do traditionally,' she said. 'Some of the examples that we've cited today are around breast screening and how that can be done efficiently with AI supporting an individual.' Northern Ireland deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said AI was developing at a 'remarkable rate'. She said they needed to 'seize the opportunity' while being aware of the risks and ethical concerns. 'The reality is that the AI revolution is happening. We can't ignore that,' she said. 'That's why Michelle and I have created the AI unit right at the heart of government to take a look at how we can harness the potential of that, particularly in public services. 'We do need our public services to be more efficient. We need that increased productivity. 'But yes, you're absolutely right. For a lot of people, there will be an apprehension that this is about replacing people with that technology.' She added: 'This is not about just simply getting rid of people and making them redundant. This is about doing things better and harnessing an agenda which is happening at the moment. We cannot deny that reality.' Scottish First Minister John Swinney said one of the challenges facing Scotland is the size of its working age population. 'So there is obviously a debate which we are engaged in about the importance of migration, because we value that, and we think it's important. 'We've lost a lot of the opportunities for that because of Brexit. 'But what AI provides the ability to do is to, for example, address some of the limitations and restrictions of our working age population, to enable us to meet need and demand within society, particularly in relation to some of the innovations we talked about in relation to health screening and the use of AI for early intervention to reduce demand on health services and to and to fill gaps in provisions. 'There are multiple challenges that will come at governments, one of which will be the ethics and the deployment of AI, but they'll also collide with other issues such as the challenges of the size of our working age population, which for Scotland, is a very significant strategic issue that we are trying to address.' Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn, Ireland's deputy premier Simon Harris and representatives of the Governments of Wales, Jersey and the Isle of Man also attended the conference in Co Down. Mr Martin said relations across the islands are in 'a good place' but more can be done to 'deepen cooperation and unlock potential' to everyone's benefit.
Telegraph
27 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Iran, an evil and desperate regime, is now more dangerous than ever
When I was woken up this morning at 3am by sirens that sounded across Israel I knew exactly what was happening. The signs had been piling up for the last few days: International Atomic Energy Agency declaring Iran in breach of its obligations, US pulling non-essential staff out of embassies, hospitals in Israel made ready, a warning issued to Hezbollah in Lebanon against attacking; the list goes on. But the signs of the inevitable had also been there for many years before. Iran has been a rogue state since the ayatollahs seized power in 1979. The Islamic Revolution that year was built on 'death to Israel' and 'death to America'. The US was the 'Great Satan', Israel and Britain the 'Little Satans'. These were not mere words. Iran was behind the suicide bombings that killed 241 US and 58 French military personnel plus six civilians in Beirut in 1983, as well as 63 deaths at the US Embassy there six months before. Iran's dirty work was also responsible for the killing of 85 people at a Jewish community centre in Buenos Aires in 1994, as well as 29 in an attack on the Israeli embassy in the same city in 1992. Iran and its proxies killed at least 1,100 British, American and allied troops in Iraq between 2003 and 2007 as well as an unknown number of coalition troops during the Afghanistan campaign. They have targeted US bases, international shipping and oil fields in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. And they have been attacking and killing Israeli soldiers and civilians for decades. That eventually culminated in the October 7 pogrom in Israel, in which 1,200 people were killed and many were taken hostage. There is much more to add to Iran's catalogue of terror: a bomb factory in London, for instance, that was disrupted by British security services in 2015 and alleged attempted terrorist attacks in the UK leading to arrests last month. Iran has also been the major supplier of drones and missiles to Russia which have been used against civilian and military targets in Ukraine. For decades the Tehran regime has been working to develop nuclear weapons. Although Iran sometimes paused its programme when it feared punitive action from either the US or Israel, it has refused to stop; its upward trajectory has now reached a point where the IAEA believes it now has enough highly enriched uranium to make at least ten bombs. Iran's ballistic missile capability has also been proceeding apace, giving it a nuclear capability to span the region, and of course there are also other more covert means of delivering nuclear weapons. Until recently the missing part of the intelligence jigsaw was weaponisation, the ability to turn fissile material into a viable bomb. Today Israeli prime minister Netanyahu revealed that Iran has indeed been working on that important final step. With all diplomatic pathways to prevent Iran becoming a nuclear armed state closed off, Israel had no choice but to attack. The alternative would have been unthinkable: a regime that has repeatedly proven its capacity for unlimited violence acquiring nuclear weapons capability. But Iran's dictators are now in a desperate situation. How they will react is difficult to foresee. Israel has decapitated their armed forces and destroyed significant parts of their offensive capability. The IDF will continue to attack Iran's nuclear facilities and to degrade its capacity to strike, although we don't yet know whether it will be completely neutralised. If not, like Hitler in his bunker, the unhinged ayatollahs might try to lash out at oil states in the region – either with their own remaining armoury and or using what terrorist proxies remain to them. They might even attack US bases in the Middle East, which they have threatened to do, even though they know that could bring about their Armageddon. All of that might lead to insurrection in the country. Much of the population in recent years has reached new heights of hatred for rulers that have oppressed, imprisoned, tortured, murdered and impoverished them. But it is far from clear that there is a viable opposition able to step up; one scenario is perhaps some kind of military coup. It is possible that ayatollah Khamenei might heed president Trump's advice today and come to the negotiating table. That would probably be the worst option, because whatever Khamenei agrees to would not be honoured, leaving the Islamic State in a position to lick its wounds and then return to its nuclear programme. It is therefore vital now that Israel be given the freedom and support to finish the job it started last night.
Edinburgh Reporter
an hour ago
- Edinburgh Reporter
West Lothian councillor questions school bus costs
Pupils in West Lothian could be asked to use public bus routes to get to school, after questions were raised over the cost of providing special transport. The council pays £1, 245 per pupil to provide 'free' school transport – but with the Scottish Government also providing free bus passes to under 22s, one councillor questioned why pupils were not being asked to use normal buses. And the council has confirmed they are looking at 'crossover' areas where normal public transport may be a suitable alternative. The cost to the council for school transport in the last year was more than £3m – but the 'use the bus pass' option is not the simple answer it might appear. Conservative councillor Alison Adamson, speaking at a recent Environment Policy Development Scrutiny Panel meeting, said: 'I hate using the expression free transport. It costs the council £1,245 to take each child to schools. That's not free in anyone's language.' 'I don't understand the Scottish Government saying that anyone up to a certain age gets free transport, but we have to find the money for school children to get to school so my question is. Can we find a way of tapping into free transport budget.? 'Why is that free but councils have to find funding to get children to get to school. I find that very difficult to understand. A lot of people would too? Given how much money it costs I find it very very difficult to swallow.' Chairing the meeting Labour's Tom Conn said 'I think the answer will be that the council is obliged to take pupils to school. We have a responsibility under legislation to support that, but I take your point.' He added that school contract buses 'take children from A to B', directly to schools, whereas commercial networks don't. In East Lothian a proposal in this year's budget by the ruling Labour group to encourage schoolchildren who have nationally funded under-22 free bus passes to stop using school passes was challenged by opposition groups. Under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, the council has a statutory responsibility to provide school transport for those pupils living over the qualifying distance for home to school transport. Section 42 (4) of the Act clarifies that the statutory walking distance is two miles for any pupil under the age of eight, and three miles for any other pupil where attending their catchment school. The council can discharge this duty through contracted school transport, using council owned vehicles, utilising the commercial bus network or even through mileage payments to parents for self-travel. The council will consider a number of factors when considering which transport option is most appropriate including available resources, the needs of pupils and the suitability and availability of the bus network. The total 2024/25 cost for school buses was £3,194,373. A West Lothian council spokesperson said: 'Although commercial bus routes may exist, they may not provide sufficient connection to meet the council's statutory obligations for school transport. 'West Lothian Council has a generous home to school policy which provides transport for secondary pupils living 2 or more miles from their catchment school and 1.5 miles for primary pupils. ' However, work is ongoing to assess the crossover between the school network and the local bus network to identify if there are any opportunities to enhance and supplement the options for transport for school pupils in the future.' By Stuart Sommerville, Local Democracy Reporter Like this: Like Related
