Latest news with #BBCPolitics
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Keir Starmer Has Apologised To An MP He Accused Of 'Talking Rubbish'
Keir Starmer has apologised to an MP who he said 'talks rubbish'. The prime minister was heavily criticised for his 'puerile' attack on Plaid Cymru leader Liz Saville-Roberts. Starmer made the comments at PMQs last week after she pointed out his record of performing U-turns. Saville-Roberts said: 'Is there any belief he holds which survives a week in Downing Street?' The PM angrily hit back: 'Yes, the belief that she talks rubbish.' His comments sparked a furious online backlash. In the Commons today, Saville-Roberts referred to last week's row as quizzed the prime minister on the UK-EU deal he unveiled on Monday. She said: 'The prime minister once argued, and we quote, 'we should retain the benefits of the single market'. 'Given his recent tendency to dismiss the views of others, what would he say to his younger self?' Sir Keir replied: 'I think last week I was overly rude and I apologise. 'I do respect the honourable member.' "Last week I was overly rude and I apologise"PM Keir Starmer apologises to Plaid Cymru's parliamentary leader Liz Saville Roberts after his remarks during last week's Prime Minister's Questionshttps:// — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) May 20, 2025 Starmer was less magnanimous when going head-to-head with Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, however. He accused her of delivering an 'unserious response' when she attacked his deal with the EU, as well as those he struck recently with India and the US. The PM added: 'There are members of the party opposite who I think are ashamed by the response of the leader of the opposition, and know very well these are good deals that should be supported.' Keir Starmer Under Fire For 'Puerile' Response To MP Question About His Principles Sadiq Khan Criticises Keir Starmer Over 'Island Of Strangers' Comment 'A Dead Party Walking': Starmer Savages The Tories In PMQs Clash With Badenoch
BBC News
01-04-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Warrington library could close as part of bid to save £30m
A Cheshire library could close as council bosses look to make more than £30m of savings, while others could become completely Council is seeking to close Westbrook Library and also introduce a tiered system, which would see some libraries employing paid staff for fewer hours while others would have no on-site staff at the council said it had revised some of its proposed parking charges in parts of the town following council said it was having to make "the most difficult decisions" about the services it provides. Warrington currently has 13 authority said it was looking to close Westbrook because it was the only one not within a council building so it had to pay also had a "lower performance" compared with other libraries, the council said. In terms of the planned tier system, Warrington Central Library would be a tier one library, meaning no changes would be in Burtonwood, Padgate and Penketh would be tier two community libraries, with council staff there at all three would be community supported libraries where staffing would be "streamlined" to reduced hours, and these would be in Culcheth, Lymm and Stockton in Bewsey and Dallam, Birchwood, Great Sankey, Orford, and Woolston would become self-service, without "dedicated" library staff, the authority Higgins, cabinet member for communities, culture and leisure, said: "Our current position means we have no choice but to look across all service areas, including libraries."While we are very proud to have retained so many libraries, it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain a high-quality library service across so many sites." Elsewhere, Warrington Council said it had changed its plans around parking in Lymm and Stockton Heath after a council said it will now keep longer free parking periods in both Lymm this would include keeping the first hour free parking at all times, although it said there was to be a "modest uplift" to the original proposed Stockton Heath, where the plans were to have the first 15 minutes free between 9:00-17:00 and the first hour free between 17:00-22:00, the council said it will provide 30 minutes free between 15:00 and 22:00.A consultation on the library proposals runs until 9 May. See more Cheshire stories from the BBC and follow BBC North West on X. For more local politics coverage, BBC Politics North West is on BBC One on Sunday at 10:00am and on BBC iPlayer.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ash Sarkar blasts UK for following US 'like a little lapdog'
THE UK's defence policy has been left 'twisting in the wind' because the country has followed the US along 'like a little lapdog', journalist Ash Sarkar has said. Sarkar appeared on a panel on BBC Politics Live where guests were discussing whether America is 'destroying' the world order as we know it. Following an extraordinary clash in the White House between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week, the US President has suspended military aid to Ukraine and has paused intelligence sharing with the nation. When Sarkar was asked if she felt the US is destroying the world order, she said she found it appalling the UK had 'paved the way' for the weakening of international law with its actions in Iraq in 2003. READ MORE: She also criticised how the UK had shaped its defence policy around the US, questioning why the country has two aircraft carriers which have been repeatedly mocked as being obsolete in the age of drones and hypersonic missiles. Sarkar said: 'Donald Trump's world view can be boiled down to this – he thinks there are three global apex predators: there's America, there's China and there's Russia. "We've spent decades following America along like a little lapdog hoping to get the crumbs from them," Novara Media's Ash Sarkar tells #PoliticsLivehttps:// — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) March 6, 2025 'When he says America First he doesn't mean America plus Ukraine, he doesn't mean America plus Britain, he means America first, America's interests first. 'For me the thing which, I think, is appalling about this situation is one, we have paved the way in many respects in weakening international law, so that's why you have Russia waging a war of aggression. 'I mean, we kind of did that first with Iraq. We led the way when it came to unlawful invasions on flimsy pretexts. 'The second thing is we have spent decades following America along like a little lapdog hoping to get the crumbs from them and shaping our defence policy around them.' (Image: Win McNamee, via REUTERS) Presenter Jo Coburn then pointed out the UK Government likely sees the US "as the most powerful country in the world". But Sarkar argued following the US had left the UK 'twisting in the wind' when it comes to defence. 'It's left us in a bad position,' she said. READ MORE: 'Why do we have two aircraft carriers? They're not useful for a land war in Europe. 'Russia doesn't have a single functioning aircraft carrier because they know what they're looking to do. We've got two aircraft carriers which were very expensive, came in 50% over budget, because we thought we'd have to follow America into a war in the Pacific. 'Now America's changed its geopolitical orientation, we've been left twisting in the wind.' Ukraine's ambassador to the UK and former military chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi said the US is "destroying" the established world order on Thursday. He said the White House had "questioned the unity of the whole Western world". He told an audience: "We see that it is not just the axis of evil and Russia trying to revise the world order, but the US is finally destroying this order." On Wednesday, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz confirmed the US had paused intelligence sharing with Ukraine. He added that the Trump administration was pausing and reviewing "all aspects of this relationship". The US has shared intelligence with Ukraine since the early stages of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. It paused military aid to Kyiv on Monday following a dramatic breakdown in relations in the Oval Office last week, when Zelenskyy was told to leave after an angry meeting with Trump in which the US President accused him of 'gambling with world war three'.
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kemi Badenoch says Donald Trump did not 'ambush' Volodymyr Zelenskyy
CONSERVATIVE leader Kemi Badenoch has said Donald Trump and JD Vance did not "ambush" Volodymyr Zelenskyy following their shocking exchange at the Oval Office. The US President and Vice President humiliated the Ukrainian leader on live television on Friday accusing him of "gambling with world war three". The extraordinary clash resulted in the cancellation of a planned press conference and the expected signing of a rare minerals deal between the two countries. But despite the scenes causing shockwaves across the world, Badenoch has said she does not believe Trump ambushed his Ukrainian counterpart. READ MORE: She added that she did not think having English as a second language was "helpful" for Zelenskyy. Speaking to the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme, she said: 'Honestly, my heart went out to President Zelenskyy. I watched it and I couldn't believe what was happening, he was being humiliated. 'I don't think we should conduct these sorts of difficult conversations in front of the cameras and we have to remember that President Zelenskyy is a hero, he is the person who represents that strength and resilience of the Ukrainian people.' "My heart went out to President Zelensky" Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch says she "couldn't believe what was happening" and that Ukrainian President Zelensky was "humiliated" while meeting US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office#BBCLauraK — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) March 2, 2025 She added: 'I don't think it was an ambush, I think that both parties are working for their respective national interest, and they seem to be speaking at cross-purposes. 'I think sometimes having English as a second language is not necessarily helpful. During all the trade negotiations I had as trade secretary, most of the eastern European countries had an interpreter there.' Badenoch added that the UK needs to make sure "America does not disengage" in efforts towards peace in Ukraine. READ MORE: Earlier on the programme, Keir Starmer said he still trusts Trump despite his treatment of Zelenskyy. Asked if he trusted both Trump and Zelenskyy, he responded 'yes, I do' to both questions. Pressed on why he trusts the US President, he said: 'Because I've spoken to him a number of times. I've got to know him. I've had extensive discussions with him and I believe his motivation is lasting peace.' Starmer also refused to say he would pull an invitation to the US President for an unprecedented second state visit to the UK. Kuenssberg questioned why Trump deserves an unprecedented second visit when it wasn't offered to other US presidents like George Bush or Ronald Reagan. He said: 'I've seen people ramping up the rhetoric and taking to Twitter and saying what they would do. 'Good for them. I'm not that interested in that. 'I'm interested in what are the practical steps, what is the bridge building that I can do, what are the relationships that I can mend and take forward to take us to lasting peace in Europe."
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Starmer Calls For 'Coalition Of The Willing' To End War As He Unveils Fresh Ukraine Peace Plan
Keir Starmer has called for countries to join 'coalition of the willing' to help bring an end to the war in Ukraine. The prime minister also revealed that the UK and France is now working on its own peace plan to present to Donald Trump. His comments came as he prepares to host a major defence summit of European leaders on Sunday. Appearing on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg on BBC1, the PM said: 'We've agreed that the UK, along with France and possibly one or two others, [to work] on a plan to stop the fighting and then we'll discuss that plan with the United States.' Starmer described the talks as 'a step in the right direction' after Friday's Oval Office bust-up between Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy. That led to the Ukrainian president leaving the White House without signing a deal which would have given America access to his country's natural minerals in return for military support. Starmer has already pledged to put British 'boots on the ground' in Ukraine to help police any peace deal, but said the whole of Europe 'needs to do more in its own defence'. He said: 'We need to increase spending, we've got to increase capability and we've got to co-ordinate more because in the Ukraine conflict we've seen that the co-ordination isn't there. 'On top of that we need to be clear what a European security guarantee would look like. 'I do acknowledge that that's more likely to be, in the first instance, a coalition of the willing. In other words, we've got to find those countries in Europe that are prepared to be a bit more forward leaning. 'Rather than move at the pace of every single country in Europe, which would in the end be quite a slow pace, I do think we've got to get to a coalition of the willing now to move this forward.' The PM said the UK and France were 'the most advanced in the thinking on this', which was why they were working on a peace plan to present to the US. He added: 'The more the better in this, but we need to move to a quicker, more agile way of going forward and I think that is a coalition of the willing at this stage.' "We've got to probably get a coalition of the willing... I think the UK and France are the most advanced in thinking on this"PM Keir Starmer says he is working on a "plan" with France's President Macron to increase security in Europe#BBCLauraKhttps:// — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) March 2, 2025 Keir Starmer Says He Still Trusts Donald Trump Despite Oval Office Bust-Up With Zelenskyy 'We Stand With You': Starmer Tells Zelenskyy UK Will Back Ukraine 'For As Long As It Takes' 'A Degrading Spectacle': UK Politicians Condemn Trump's Attack On Zelenskyy In Oval Office
