Ex-Remain campaign chief vows to leave Britain if Nigel Farage becomes PM
A leading figure in the Remain campaign has vowed to quit Britain if Nigel Farage becomes PM.
Lord Rose, the former M&S chief who chaired Britain Stronger in Europe during the Brexit struggle, laid down a marker amid the Reform surge.
Polls have shown Mr Farage's party well ahead of Labour and the Tories since its storming performance in local elections on May 1.
Keir Starmer has been scrambling to find a way of clawing back ground, unveiling a crackdown on immigration.
Today the PM visited Albania trumpeting his desire to strike a deal for an overseas 'returns hub' where failed asylum seekers could be processed. However, embarrassingly counterpart Edi Rama immediately ruled out having one in Albania.
Appearing on ITV 's Peston programme, Lord Rose was reminded that he previously promised to leave Britain if Mr Farage became Tory leader.
Asked what he would do if the Reform leader ended up in Downing Street, the peer said: 'I will definitely leave the country.
'He won't become Prime Minister, we hope. But if you were sitting there looking at the danger signs - which is what the Prime Minister's done this week - you'd be taking action.
'I'm fascinated to see what the parties are going to come up with.'
There is a long history of prominent figures vowing to emigrate in the event of a political outcome they do not like.
Magician Paul Daniels notoriously threatened a disappearing act if Tony Blair won the 1997 election, although he later claimed his comments were misrepresented.
Others have made good on departing for other countries. Charlie Mullins, millionaire founder of Pimlico Plumbers, moved to Spain complaining that Labour was wasting public money.
He told MailOnline in January: 'The real reason is not what they are charging but what they are doing with the money. I'd be more than happy to help the NHS and pensioners but I'm not prepared to help people who don't contribute.'
A number of US celebrities said they would leave America if Donald Trump became president.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
18 minutes ago
- BBC News
Trans former judge says Supreme Court gender ruling risks lives
The UK's only judge to ever publicly say they are transgender has told the BBC she is concerned the Supreme Court's ruling on biological sex puts lives at risk and fears "someone's going to get killed" because of Victoria McCloud is planning to take the government to the European Court of Human Rights over the April ruling, which said a woman is defined by biological sex under equalities led to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) issuing new interim guidance to services and businesses on access to public facilities, such as toilets and changing Forstater, of campaign group Sex Matters, said Dr McCloud's comments were "alarmism". Speaking to Laura Kuenssberg on Newscast, the BBC's daily news podcast, Dr McCloud said: "This incident is putting lives at risk. I can't go out to the pub now, for example. It might not be the be all and end all of life but I am a lawyer."I've got to use the men's loos in a south London pub with a bunch of blokes who are drunk. I mean, come on. That's now government policy. Someone's going to get killed."Dr McCloud said she agreed with an argument put forward by "the gender critical ideological movement" that it is "risky" or "at least rather intimidating" to have a space designated for women, such as a changing room, that is occupied by men."But that applies to me too," she to the full Newscast interview on BBC Sounds"That danger is all the more if it is not going to be me and a bunch of women and one man, instead it's me - one woman - in an entirely male space in a drunk pub."That's absolutely clearly dangerous."Ms Forstater said: "Women have already been assaulted and many, many are self-excluding because of the policy Dr McCloud endorses of allowing men to self-identify into women's toilets, showers and changing rooms."Where's the concern for the female half of the population who need privacy, safety and dignity?"If McCloud isn't comfortable using male-only spaces, then there are usually gender-neutral options available. This is irresponsible alarmism."In the wake of the unanimous Supreme Court judgement, Equalities Minister Bridget Phillipson, speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme in April, stopped short of explicitly saying trans women should use the men's toilets. She said: "The ruling was clear that provisions and services should be accessed on the basis of biological sex."Pushed further for clarification on whether a trans woman should use the men's or women's toilets, she repeated: "The ruling is clear."The EHRC has already suggested trans people should use their "powers of advocacy" to campaign for so-called third spaces that are gender-neutral to avoid these sorts of Minister Sir Keir Starmer said in April the ruling gave "much-needed clarity" for those drawing up guidance."We need to move and make sure that we now ensure that all guidance is in the right place according to that judgement."A woman is an adult female, and the court has made that absolutely clear."Dr McCloud moved to Ireland after leaving her job as a judge last year and says she visits the UK only on essential said she is going to challenge the Supreme Court judgement at the ECHR, arguing the court did not hear from trans people before its ruling, and therefore breached her human Supreme Court did consider arguments on trans issues from the human rights campaign group Amnesty International, but not from exclusively trans activists.
Daily Mail
28 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Jewish football writer's son: I'll not let Gary Lineker anywhere near Dad's memorial after antisemitic rat emoji post
Gary Lineker will be barred from paying tribute at a memorial service for a friend, football writer Brian Glanville, because of his attacks on Israel. Celebrated reporter Glanville, who died aged 93, was Jewish and his son Mark said: 'I am not having Lineker anywhere near Dad's memorial.' Mark's sister Jo had suggested asking Lineker to speak at a service at St Bride's Church in Fleet Street as the family knew he had been friends with Glanville since his early days at Leicester. But Lineker, 64, has been forced to leave his Match Of The Day role early after sharing an anti-Zionism post that had an illustration of a rat, which is how the Nazis characterised Jews. Mark said: '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.' He added that Glanville, who died last month after suffering from Parkinson's Disease, would not have wanted Lineker to speak, despite his admiration for him as a player and Match Of The Day host. He said the horrors of the Holocaust deeply affected Glanville, who was born in 1931 and suffered anti-Semitic abuse at fee-paying Charterhouse School. Mark said: '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 an 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.' Glanville was an award-winning football correspondent for The Sunday Times for 30 years and wrote several novels. 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.' In 2007, recalling his most memorable footballing moments, Glanville cited the 1992 Euros tournament when England manager Graham Taylor 'inexplicably' substituted Lineker in a crucial match with Sweden. 'And England lost,' added Glanville in his trademark disdain, lamenting Taylor's foolish decision and supporting Lineker, playing his last match for England.
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
From creating the NHS to investing in people, Labour are innovators – next week we'll do it again… with £86b for hi-tech
IT has been almost a year since Labour came to power – and in that time we have made tough choices to steady our economy. This government will never forget that the decisions we make impact your family's finances. 4 4 You know what it means to work hard and make sacrifices when times are tough. And while that has not been easy, the tide is beginning to turn. Interest rates have been cut four times — a boost for everyone with a mortgage. We raised the pay of millions of working people by up to £1,400 a year by increasing the national minimum wage. In the last week, we have increased the number of children eligible for free school meals by half a million and announced £15billion to upgrade trains and buses outside London. Now is the time to invest in Britain's future, and that means doing things differently. We are building a new economic model that puts working people first. By investing in the industries of tomorrow, we will create good jobs, boost wages and put more money into people's pockets. Too often, governments get caught firefighting today's problems, neglecting the opportunities of tomorrow. But history shows us a different path. Inside robotic surgery that is revolutionising outcomes on the NHS After a post-war election victory in 1945, a Labour government created the NHS. In the 1960s, we backed science and technology in the age of the 'white heat'. In the 1990s, we invested in people and public services, transforming lives. Today, we must do the same, by backing British ideas and innovation. Next week, the Chancellor will set out our plan to renew Britain's economy by investing in your priorities: health, security and good jobs. As part of that, we are announcing an £86billion investment in the UK's fastest-growing sectors — tech, life sciences, advanced manufacturing and defence. This money will fund cutting-edge medical research to tackle hard-to-treat diseases to help keep families together for longer. It will support defence innovation to keep Britain safe in an increasingly volatile world. 'Foundations for change' And it will power advances in engineering biology that could revolutionise how we produce food, fuel, materials. These investments will more than pay for themselves and will create thousands of well-paid jobs across the country. And the decisions over where to spend the cash will not be made in Whitehall, but in the communities that will benefit, because we know every corner of Great Britain has a part to play. We want to see Liverpool leveraging its expertise in life sciences to accelerate drug discovery; Northern Ireland harnessing its reputation for cutting-edge defence equipment to shore up our national security; and South Wales making the most of its expertise in designing cutting-edge semiconductors that power the devices like mobile phones and electric cars we rely on every day. 4 4 We know the legacy of the past 14 years can't be reversed overnight. But the tough decisions we have made are laying the foundations for lasting change. Now, we are entering a new phase, focused on long-term renewal and economic strength. The principle is simple: invest through tough times to grow stronger. We see this in the business world constantly. Like the American tech company that, in the 1990s, was 90 days from bankruptcy before doubling down on innovation. That company was Apple, and today many of you are reading this on one of their products. Britain has always led the world when we bet on ourselves. Led the world James Watt's steam engine powered the Industrial Revolution. Work at Bletchley Park laid the foundations for modern computing. Tim Berners-Lee invented the worldwide web. Today, we are global leaders in life sciences and among the top three countries for AI development. These strengths are not just academic — they represent opportunity. Industries that generate billions, improve lives and offer quality jobs for the next generation. We believe Britain's best days are still ahead. That's why we are investing in our people, in innovation, in the future. The road won't always be easy, but we are building a stronger, fairer economy that works for everyone.
