Badenoch says organisations should be able to decide if staff can wear burkas
Asked on the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme if the Conservative Party's position is not to speak to people who cover their face, Mr Philp said of Mrs Badenoch: 'Well she was talking specifically about her constituency surgery I think, and it is definitely the case that employers should be allowed to decide whether their employees can be visible or not.
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North Wales Chronicle
4 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Molly Russell's father urges PM to act over online harms as ‘app cap' considered
Ian Russell, whose 14-year-old daughter took her own life after viewing harmful content on social media, urged the Prime Minister to 'act decisively' in toughening legislation to protect young people online. It comes after Cabinet minister Pete Kyle signalled he was looking at measures to restrict the amount of time children spend on their phones, including through a possible 10pm curfew. Mr Russell, who is chairman of the Molly Rose Foundation set up in his daughter's memory, said: 'Every day the Government has delayed bringing in tougher online safety laws we've seen more young lives lost and damaged because of weak regulation and inaction by big tech. 'Parents up and down the country would be delighted to see the Prime Minister act decisively to quell the tsunami of harm children face online, but sticking plasters will not do the job. 'Only a stronger and more effective Online Safety Act will finally change the dial on fundamentally unsafe products and business models that prioritise engagement over safety.' The Online Safety Act has passed into law, and from this year will require tech platforms to follow new Ofcom-issued codes of practice to keep users safe online, particularly children. Hefty fines and site blockages are among the penalties for those caught breaking the rules, but many critics have argued the approach gives tech firms too much scope to regulate themselves. Mr Kyle was asked on Sunday morning whether he would look at limiting the time children spend on social media to two hours per app after the Sunday People and Mirror reported the measure was being considered by ministers. 'I've not been able to talk publicly about what the Labour approach is because we have the legacy legislation that has to go through first,' he told the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg show. 'This year we've had illegal content that needs to be taken down, but in July age-appropriate material must be supplied by platforms otherwise there'll be criminal sanctions against them. 'And in this time, I've been looking very carefully about what we do next.' Pressed on whether he was looking at an 'app cap', Mr Kyle said: 'I'm looking at things that prevent healthy activity, I'm looking at some of the addictive nature of some of the apps and smartphones. 'I'm trying to think how we can break some of the addictive behaviour and incentivise more of the healthy developmental… and also the good communicative side of online life.'
North Wales Chronicle
5 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Zia Yusuf's return to Reform UK ‘great news', says deputy leader
Mr Yusuf said his decision to stand down had been the result of 'exhaustion' and working for 11 months 'without a day off'. Party leader Nigel Farage, speaking to the Sunday Times newspaper alongside Mr Yusuf, said the former chairman will now effectively be doing 'four jobs', though his title has not yet been decided. He will lead Reform's plans to cut public spending – the so-called 'UK Doge', based on the US Department of Government Efficiency which was led by tech billionaire Elon Musk. The ex-chairman will also take part in policymaking, fundraising and media appearances. Mr Yusuf said he was quitting Reform following the latest in a series of internal rows, in which he described a question to the Prime Minister concerning a ban on burkas from his party's newest MP as 'dumb'. On Sunday, it was put to Mr Tice that it does not look very professional for Reform's chairman to be in, out, then back in again. He told the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: 'Zia Yusuf has done a brilliant job in growing the party, creating huge infrastructure, over 400 branches, but it's a massive job and as we were growing incredibly fast, essentially that job was too much for one person, so we're reorganising, and I'm delighted that Zia is staying with the party, and he's going to be focusing on our Doge unit. 'There is so much waste you've been talking about, how does the Government find more money? 'Well, the best thing is to stop wasting money. I'm afraid, what we're discovering as we look under the bonnet of the 10 councils that we are now in control of, is there's waste everywhere, and it's got to stop. 'That's what Zia is going to focus on, as well as fundraising. So it's great news he's with us.' Meanwhile, shadow home secretary Chris Philp called Reform UK a 'protest party' and said it is offering 'populist policies that are essentially Liz Truss on steroids'. Asked if it is time for the Conservatives to think about a more constructive approach to Reform, he told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips on Sky News: 'Nigel Farage is saying he wants to destroy the Conservative Party, which makes it quite difficult to work together. 'I mean, they're all essentially a protest party. 'You just asked about Liz Truss… they're offering populist policies that are essentially Liz Truss on steroids.' Announcing his resignation on Thursday afternoon, Mr Yusuf said: 'I no longer believe working to get a Reform government elected is a good use of my time, and hereby resign the office.' Mr Yusuf said he had been left feeling undervalued by some in the party and drained after being subjected to relentless racist abuse on X, and that he made the comments in 'error'. He added: 'I spoke to Nigel and said I don't mind saying I made an error. It was a function of exhaustion.' Asked about the row over talk of banning the burka, Mr Yusuf said he 'certainly did not resign because I have any strong views about the burka itself' but felt blindsided by Sarah Pochin's question to Sir Keir Starmer. He said: 'If there were a vote and I was in Parliament, I would probably vote to ban it actually,' but that 'philosophically I am always a bit uneasy about banning things which, for example, would be unconstitutional in the United States, which such a ban no doubt would be'.
Daily Record
5 hours ago
- Daily Record
Gary Lineker barred from speaking at Jewish football icon Brian Glanville's funeral over controversial post
The son of the late football writer has said he will not have Lineker "anywhere near" his father's memorial service The son of the late football journalist Brian Glanville has stated that he won't allow Gary Lineker"anywhere near" his father's memorial service due to his criticisms of Israel. Brian Glanville, a renowned former Daily Express sports reporter who passed away at 93, was Jewish and had been friends with Lineker since the ex-footballer's early days at Leicester City. The family had considered inviting Lineker to speak at a service at St Bride's Church on London's Fleet Street. However, this was before Lineker was compelled to leave the BBC after sharing an anti-Zionism post featuring an illustration of a rat. Mark Glanville commented: "I can't have somebody coming to speak at my Dad's memorial service who, though not anti-Semitic, is someone who is giving ammunition to people who are anti-Semites. Once you share a picture of a rat which is associated with Nazis, you really are crossing a line." The Nazis used images of rats to depict Jews, and Mark added that his father, who passed away last month from Parkinson's Disease, would not have wanted Lineker to speak, despite his respect for him as a player and Match Of The Day presenter. He revealed to the Mail on Sunday that the atrocities of the Holocaust deeply impacted his father, who was born in 1931 and experienced anti-Semitic abuse at the fee-paying Charterhouse School in Surrey. Mark revealed: "Dad was passionate about Israel. He was a schoolboy during the Second World War but he was aware of what happened. "He saw Israel, after all the utter horror, like so many Jews, as a country that was Jewish and where Jews could thrive as Jews and be safe. "I do not think Lineker is anti-Semite. But he does single out almost exclusively Israel, as so many people do, with the type of criticism that gives no context of what happened on October 7 and what has triggered it all. "As he is such a major public figure, he is lending a lot of fuel to people who have a very different agenda and who really don't just hate Israel, but also detest Jews. "I believe Lineker really cares about issues but I wish he would talk about what is going on in Syria, in Sudan and with women in Afghanistan." Reflecting on his father's legacy, Mark said: "We felt that for a man of such stature, Dad deserved a proper memorial service and my sister suggested inviting Gary Lineker to speak, saying that he had really loved Dad's work. "But I said that while this was undoubtedly the case, loads of other people were admirers of Dad's work as well. I then said there was no way Lineker was coming anywhere near it. "She was very understanding as I explained that in my view Lineker was an exceptionally talented footballer and that is where it should have stayed." Lineker himself acknowledged, 'I recognise the upset that I caused'. Lineker, 64, was set to leave Match of the Day at season's end while still covering the FA Cup and World Cup for the BBC. Nonetheless, his departure from the Corporation came last month following a dispute over the rat image, despite his insistence that he "would never consciously repost anything antisemitic". He acknowledged: "However, I recognise the error and upset that I caused, and reiterate how sorry I am. Stepping back now feels like the responsible course of action."
