Latest news with #JessicaElgot
The Guardian
10 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Will the UK stay out of Trump's war in Iran?
Just a week ago, after a sit-down meal with Donald Trump at the G7 summit, Keir Starmer was telling reporters that 'nothing the president said suggests he's about to get involved in this conflict'. It seemed, and must have seemed to UK government officials too, that weeks of calling for de-escalation and diplomacy had paid off – that Donald Trump was not about to intervene in Israel's war in Iran. Then, on Saturday night, the US launched an enormous strike on three nuclear sites in Iran. Deputy political editor Jessica Elgot talks through Starmer and his government's response to the escalating crisis since. And Helen Pidd asks, given the UK's close relationship to the US, might it still be dragged into this conflict?
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Trump edges closer to war: could he drag the UK in?
As Israel and Iran trade escalating blows, and the horrific situation in Gaza continues, Trump has suggested the US could get directly involved. So how is Keir Starmer going to handle all this? And what could it mean for millions of Iranians? John Harris speaks to the Guardian's diplomatic editor, Patrick Wintour, and an Iranian woman who now lives in the UK. Plus, it's a rare week in British politics, with the House of Commons voting on two big social issues: abortion and assisted dying. Deputy political editor Jessica Elgot joins John to discuss
The Guardian
21-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Are we finally over Brexit?
On Monday Britain and the EU announced a series of new agreements ranging from sausages to arms sales. While the details of the deal are yet to be signed, it seemed to many like the start of a new, post-Brexit era. It reflects, as the Guardian's deputy political editor Jessica Elgot reports, a change in the public mood: tired of the endless rancour over Britain leaving the EU, but tired of the many inconveniences it caused too. Still, with Reform UK surging in the polls, it is an area fraught with risk for the Labour government. So how far, Helen Pidd asks, could it be willing to go with Britain's rapprochement with the EU?
The Guardian
16-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Friday briefing: The deepening turmoil over the assisted dying bill
Good morning. Today, the terminally ill adults (end of life) bill – also known as the assisted dying bill – is returning to the House of Commons, where MPs will debate amendments ahead of a second vote. The first vote on backbench Labour MP Kim Leadbeater's legislation last November – which passed with 330 votes to 275 – was hailed by supporters as a historic step that would finally grant terminally ill people the freedom to make their own choice about how their lives end. At the same time, it drew fierce opposition from religious groups and campaigners for vulnerable groups, such as advocates for people with disabilities, as well as MPs, who feared the bill did not offer the safeguards needed to ensure that the law was not abused. Six months and one painful committee stage later, there are still big, knotty questions to be answered. As some MPs switch sides or waver in their support, Leadbeater has tabled 44 amendments to her bill in an attempt to keep backers onside. With emotions running high, supporters and opponents have been passionately pressing their arguments ahead of today's debate. For today's newsletter, I spoke to Jessica Elgot, the Guardian's deputy political editor who has been leading our coverage of the subject in Westminster, about what she's expecting to be debated today – and what happens next. Israel-Gaza war | Israel launched a new and intense wave of airstrikes and artillery shelling on targets across Gaza on Thursday morning, killing at least 80 people, as faltering talks on a new ceasefire continued in Qatar and Donald Trump said he wanted to make the devastated territory 'into a freedom zone'. Iran | Donald Trump says Iran has 'sort of' agreed to the terms of a deal on the future terms of its nuclear programme. On a visit to Doha, the US president said: 'I want them to succeed. I want them to end up being a great country. But they cannot have a nuclear weapon. It is very simple really.' Immigration | Keir Starmer has been accused of overseeing a diplomatic 'embarrassment' after arriving in Albania to promote a policy of establishing 'return hubs' for refused asylum seekers only for his counterpart to rule it out. Armed forces | A general accused of failing to report evidence of war crimes committed by the SAS in Afghanistan has been appointed as the new head of the Royal Navy. Gen Sir Gwyn Jenkins replaces Adm Sir Ben Key, who was removed last week while under investigation over allegations of misconduct. UK news | The 18-year-old great-granddaughter of a late Labour MP is being held in prison in Georgia on suspicion of drug offences. Bella Culley was believed to have gone missing in Thailand before she was detained 3,700 miles (6,000km) away in Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, on Saturday. After months of high emotion, MPs will meet today to debate the changes made to the bill by its scrutiny committee and whether further amendments are needed. When they do vote it will be a free one, with MPs being asked to use their conscience – and not their loyalty to their party – when they decide to support or oppose the bill. Should it pass, the bill will progress to the House of Lords. What is the timetable going forward? Between January and March, a committee of MPs appointed by Kim Leadbeater met 29 times to consider the bill, hearing evidence from 50 expert witnesses and receiving hundreds of written submissions from the public. At the end of this nine-week committee stage, multiple amendments were proposed. The bill had been due to face another yes-or-no vote today, but the Commons speaker, Linsday Hoyle, granted more time for the debate, meaning the only votes today will be on specific amendments that came out of the committee stage. A second day of debate is scheduled for the 13 June, which is the earliest a crunch vote could take place. If needed, a third session would be scheduled for 20 June before the vote on the final bill. How much has changed since the last vote? There have already been major changes made to the bill since MPs voted in November. As reported by Jessica in a Guardian exclusive, the role of a high court judge in approving assisted dying cases has been replaced by a panel of experts, including two doctors, a lawyer, a social worker and a psychiatrist. 'It was deemed that it just wasn't feasible,' says Jessica. 'But if there was a change designed to make MPs feel nervous, this is it, because the idea of a high court judge being involved was very reassuring to many.' Another major change in the bill made since the last vote – and one that Leadbeater reportedly only agreed to under pressure – is an extension of the deadline for implementing any future assisted dying law from two years to four in order for the government, the NHS and other involved parties to guarantee they had the capacity to carry out their responsibilities safely. What are some of the most contentious issues that could be debated today? Since the last vote, the bill has become a lightning rod for deeply divisive and complex moral, political and religious issues. Jessica says that, going into today, there are still a huge range of issues where people have grave concerns and where opinion among MPs – and also campaigning and medical groups – is deeply divided. Among the votes today will be amendments intended to tighten up the bill, for example adding a further check on applications for assisted dying, and ensuring doctors and others are able to opt out of involvement in the process. Jessica says another topic that might get traction today is a call for a clause to prevent assisted dying being used in cases of eating disorders, 'which, in some cases of extreme anorexia, might be considered terminal at points but which the patient could theoretically recover from,' says Jessica. She says she also expects the concerns of disability charities – backed by disabled parliamentarians like MSP Pam Duncan-Glancy and peer Tanni Grey-Thompson – to be raised. One thorn in the side of Leadbeater's supporters will be the recent opposition to the bill in its current form from the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych). This is significant because under the bill's current stipulations a psychiatrist would need to be on a panel overseeing assisted dying cases and this point has been seized on by opponents, who have described the RCPsych's intervention as a 'blow to [the] foundations' of the bill. Another concern raised by some MPs is that there is still insufficient protection written into the bill for the most vulnerable, including people with mental health conditions and victims of domestic abuse. They also argue that it is reckless to introduce the option of assisted dying into a social care and health system that is already struggling, with no guarantee of significant improvements to palliative care to ensure people have a real choice. 'The fact that it is happening alongside cuts to the welfare system, and at the same time as Labour says that the NHS is in really bad shape and we need to fix it, is deeply uncomfortable for a lot of Labour MPs – and even for cabinet members,' says Jessica. Are MPs switching sides? When MPs debated the bill's second reading in November, it passed by a majority of 55 votes. This week Jessica reported that while only two MPs – Lee Anderson and his former Reform UK colleague Rupert Lowe – have openly declared that they will change their vote, at least five MPs who previously abstained will vote against it at its next stage in the commons. At least three others who voted in favour of the bill in November have said they are considering changing their vote. There are also concerns from the backers of the bill that undecided MPs may decide to return home to their constituencies instead of voting. On the other side, two other MPs have also reportedly moved to vote in favour of the bill. In the days leading up to today's debate, there have been passionate appeals from both camps for MPs to support or oppose the bill. The broadcaster Esther Rantzen, who has stage-four lung cancer, has written an impassioned letter to MPs asking them to support the bill and allow 'a good, pain-free death for ourselves and those we love and care for'. 'I think Kim still has reasonably solid support,' says Jessica. 'But she has to persuade MPs not to head back to their constituencies and abstain, and she has to try and keep a reasonable majority as that will give it momentum in the Lords, which will be a whole other very difficult and complicated endeavour.' What will come next? The MPs involved are facing a tough few days, says Jessica. 'While almost all polling suggests the public are overwhelmingly in support of the bill, as an MP you have to think: 'How is going to affect the most vulnerable in my constituency and what is the wider picture I need to consider for all the people I'm responsible for representing?'' Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Jessica says that from her own perspective as a political journalist 'this bill has been hugely illuminating in terms of the unlikely alliances struck with many MPs in the new intake with party veterans. It's been the talk of the tea rooms.' And while she expects things to be difficult for Leadbeater and her backers in the coming weeks, she still believes that ultimately the bill will pass to the next stage. 'Most of these amendments have been led by Kim – some under government pressure – but she has defended them,' she says. 'If you look at the maths, the bill got a 55 majority at the last vote, which is considerable, and we'd need about 20 MPs to change their mind for it to really risk failing,' she says. 'But I don't envy the decision these MPs have to make. It might be the thing of most long-term consequence this parliament does.' Abel Tesfaye started out as a melancholic sleaze-merchant – then scored the most-streamed single of all time with Blinding Lights. Ben Beaumont-Thomas gets a rare interview with the man who may be calling time on the Weeknd. Alex Needham, acting head of newsletters Emma Brockes is great on Mark Zuckerberg's take on fixing the loneliness epidemic by making an AI chatbot (presumably one of his own) your new BFF. Annie One in six people born today in the UK or US will live to be 100, a situation unprecedented in human history. So how are we going to make sure that these longer lives are worth living? Andrew J Scott has some thoughts. Alex For anyone still considering heading stateside, immigration lawyers give advice on how to travel safely and know your rights at the US border. Chilling but useful as increasing numbers of tourists get less than a warm welcome when attempting to get some R&R in Trump's America. Annie Progressive parties won recent elections in Australia and Canada – but a Trumpish ex-football hooligan could well be elected president of Romania this weekend. Andrei Popoviciu delves into the reasons for his rise. Alex Athletics | The Norwegian Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen has told a court that he finds it 'embarrassing to be a victim of domestic violence' on the final day of the trial of his father and former coach, Gjert. This week prosecutors called for Gjert to be given a jail sentence of two and a half years for hitting and verbally abusing Jakob, the Olympic 1500m champion in Tokyo and 5,000m gold medallist in Paris, and his younger sister, Ingrid. Golf | Rory McIlroy began the US PGA with a disappointing 74, eight shots behind the joint leader, Ryan Gerard. Football | Liverpool are in talks with the Bayer Leverkusen defender Jeremie Frimpong as the Premier League champions seek a replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold. The Netherlands international has been of interest to his compatriot Arne Slot for a lengthy period and Liverpool are set to trigger his £30m release clause. 'Thames Water to be blocked from paying bonuses out of £3bn loan' says the Guardian while the Metro is also on the money with '£9.5 billion – 'Staggering' cost of fraud and claim clangers'. The Financial Times has 'Economy registers fastest growth in a year as Trump tariff impacts loom'. 'UK scrambles for new migrant deal in Balkans after Albania snub' says the i while the Mail gloats 'Starmer left squirming by Albania farce' and the Times says 'Talks with up to nine nations for asylum deal'. 'Children to be taught to show some grit' – that's the tough-loving Telegraph while in the Express, Esther Rantzen's daughter explains why 'Mum deserves 'peace of mind' in right to die fight'. 'A smirk … but not reply' – the Mirror tells how it asked 'Do you know what happened to Maddie?' of the Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner. Our critics' roundup of the best things to watch, read, play and listen to right now Music Shanti Celeste: Romance | ★★★★☆Called upon to come up with a term to describe her 2019 debut album Tangerine – in which the subtlety and depth of classic US house productions was melded with a giddy, rave-y euphoria and rhythms that proceeded at pacy tempos more common to techno – Shanti Celeste offered the admirably prosaic 'fast house'. For the most part, its follow-up Romance proceeds at a far more leisurely pace: its key rhythmic sound isn't an insistent kick drum, but the clatter of percussion vaguely evocative of Celeste's Latin American roots, as unhurried as an R&B slow jam. More striking still are the vocals. An intermittent feature of her releases since the early 2010s, here they're front and centre throughout. Her music has always been marked by a strong melodic sense, but the tunes are noticeably brighter, their pop-leaning qualities accentuated by the airiness of her voice. Alexis Petridis TVOvercompensating | ★★★★☆ In the pandemic, Benito Skinner became internet famous for his camply unhinged impressions of celebrities, reality stars and LA types. Six years on, Overcompensating, an eight-part Prime Video comedy drama, fictionalises Skinner's first year at university, a time spent desperately trying to convince himself and others that he was totally not gay. The combination of Benny's sexuality-based struggles and his new bestie Carmen's attempts to grapple with grief means the ratio of laughs to sentimental musings occasionally feel out of whack – but there is still much to enjoy. Just don't come to Overcompensating expecting wall-to-wall comedy; this is a thoroughly charming show with a very sensitive soul. Rachel Aroesti GameDoom: The Dark Ages (PC, PS5, Xbox) | ★★★★☆Billed as a prequel to id Software's 2016 revival of Doom, The Dark Ages is about as different as it could be from its predecessors while remaining recognisably part of the series. Where 2020's Doom Eternal was about speed and evasion, The Dark Ages emphasises standing your ground. Where Eternal involved picking off enemies one by one, The Dark Ages empowers you to obliterate dozens of demons simultaneously. Id Software wants Doom to be the shooter that rewires how you think about the genre with each new entry. The Dark Ages isn't as successful at doing so as Id Software's earlier fare, but it is nonetheless a highly accomplished, smartly designed shooter that, at its best, hits like a truck. Rick Lane 'An island of strangers': is this the Labour party voters wanted? Helen Pidd heads to parliament to hear what Labour MPs think about the government's new talk on immigration, and asks the columnist Nesrine Malik whether it may all backfire A bit of good news to remind you that the world's not all bad It's a big year for Peggy Seeger – the American folk musician, activist and brother of Pete – as she turns 90 and releases her final album, Teleology. She's the subject of this week's reader interview, taking questions on her career, legacy and the prospect of a revival in protest music in a second Trump presidency. 'We're gonna be away six weeks and I'm a walking hospital case. I have meds, a step stool so I can put on compression stockings, and arthritis in both hands,' she says in response to one reader's question on touring at her age. 'My family treat me like glass, but as soon as I get on stage all these things melt away.' Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday And finally, the Guardian's puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword Wordiply
Business Mayor
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Business Mayor
Phasing out fossil fuels ‘doomed to fail', says Tony Blair as he calls for rethink of net zero policy
Jessica Elgot Jessica Elgot is the Guardian's deputy political editor. Tony Blair has called for a 'reset' of action on climate change, to the dismay of some green campaigners, suggesting the government should focus less on renewables and more on technological solutions like carbon capture. In remarks that have antagonised some in Labour and in industry, the former prime minister said people were 'being asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal'. Blair, who was writing the foreword to a new report from his thinktank, the Tony Blair Institute, echoed similar criticism of net zero made by the Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch. He wrote 'any strategy based on either 'phasing out' fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail.' The former Labour leader, whose institute has been highly influential in Labour circles, said that the current climate debate was 'riven with irrationality' and suggested net zero was losing public support. The paper itself, written by the TBI's Lindy Fursman, said that net zero policies were now being seen as 'increasingly viewed as unaffordable, ineffective, or politically toxic'. In the UK however, climate change policies have retained popularity. The thinktank Persuasion UK said in a report published yesterday that Labour could potentially lose far more seats from disillusioned leftwing Labour voters defecting to the Greens than from those defecting to Reform. Last week Keir Starmer told conference in London that tackling the climate crisis and bolstering energy security were 'in the DNA of my government' and that 'we won't wait – we will accelerate.' But Blair said that present policy solutions were 'inadequate' and said leaders should shift towards a 'pragmatic policy' that prioritised technological solutions. He said this was borne out by rising demand for production of fossil fuels, especially in China and India and the doubling of airline travel plus increased demand for steel and cement. He said he still believed climate was 'one of the fundamental challenges of our time' and that renewable energy was necessary. But he said the government needs 'to alter where we put our focus'. Blair said there should be more focus on carbon capture, saying: 'The disdain for this technology in favour of the purist solution of stopping fossil-fuel production is totally misguided.' He also called for a major new international embrace of nuclear power and to intensify work on new small modular reactors. Share Updated at 16.54 CEST Key events 29 Apr 2025 Afternoon summary 29 Apr 2025 Almost half of voters do not think any party leader would be effective at governing UK, poll suggests 29 Apr 2025 Badenoch says Spanish power cuts probably partly caused by reliance on renewables – as No 10 says these claims 'unfounded' 29 Apr 2025 Farage claims Reform UK 'winning the argument' on net zero after Blair says current policies not working 29 Apr 2025 Britain's gas power stations should be nationalised to prevent their owners from holding the electricity market 'to ransom', a thinktank has urged. 29 Apr 2025 Foreign Office minister Hamish Falconer rejects call for UK to join France in recognising Palestinian state in June 29 Apr 2025 Tories welcome Blair's critique of net zero, claiming this shows Labour's policy 'not feasible, or sustainable' 29 Apr 2025 Why Blair argues climate policy just based on cutting carbon emissions in short term 'doomed to fail' 29 Apr 2025 Dan Jarvis says future of grant scheme that led to Kneecap getting grant worth £14,000 being reviewed 29 Apr 2025 Dan Jarvis urges Glastonbury to drop Kneecap from this year's festival line-up 29 Apr 2025 Security minister Dan Jarvis tells MPs Kneecap's 'Kill MP' comment 'dangerous and irresponsible' 29 Apr 2025 Sarwar calls Benjamin Netanyahu 'war criminal' – but accepts he was elected after appearing to call him 'despot' too 29 Apr 2025 Blair calls for 'reset' in net zero policy, saying voters won't make sacrifices if they think impact on emissions minimal 29 Apr 2025 Badenoch says being unpopular is stage for Tories that 'has to be got through', as she rules out resigning if election results bad 29 Apr 2025 Sarwar urges Scottish trade unionists not to abandon faith in Labour 29 Apr 2025 MCB criticises Labour for not doing more to prevent 'slaughter' of Palestinians, highlighting contrast with Ukraine policy 29 Apr 2025 Starmer not expected to campaign in Hamilton byelection in Scotland, just as he's missed Runcorn, says Anas Sarwar 29 Apr 2025 UK's first trans judge appeals to European court of human rights over supreme court ruling 29 Apr 2025 Who is expected to win Runcorn and Helsby byelection? 29 Apr 2025 Wales not on target to meet health, climate and nature goals, says its future generations commissioner 29 Apr 2025 Badenoch suggests Tories would oppose plans to extend sugar tax, saying she was opposed when her party first introduced it 29 Apr 2025 Readout from Starmer's meeting with Palestinian authority PM Mohammad Mustafa 29 Apr 2025 Kneecap apologise to families of murdered MPs over 'dead Tory' comments 29 Apr 2025 Yvette Cooper says UK focused on 'resilience', in response to questions about massive power cut in Spain and Portugal 29 Apr 2025 Labour says Tories are 'gifting' Runcorn byelection to Reform as Badenoch says bad result in elections won't be down to her Show key events only Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature The public are clear and Tony Blair is out of touch. They support the net-zero agenda and want polluters to pay. The net-zero economy is how we renew our communities and tackle the cost of living crisis. Clinging to the roller coaster of a fossil fuelled energy system is what is truly unaffordable, ineffective, and politically toxic. It is sad to see a former Labour prime minister – someone who once got the importance of climate ambition for Britain's economic success – echo the lines of Big Oil. Downing Street has said suggestions that a reliance on renewable energy contributed to blackouts in Spain, which have been endorsed by the Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, are 'unfounded claims and speculation'. (See 5.04pm.) For a full list of all the stories covered here today, scroll through the key events timeline at the top of the blog. A Lib Dem activist in Grantchester, where supporter were gathering to meet Ed Davey on a visit today. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PA Share Updated at 18.47 CEST Almost half of voters do not have confidence that any party leader would be effective at governing the country, a poll suggests. Channel 4 News has released the results of polling carried out by More in Common ahead of a debate for the local elections it is broadcasting tonight at 7pm. C4 says: More In Common asked voters who they thought would be most effective in governing the country – 41% responded: 'None of the above'. The second most popular choice was Reform's Nigel Farage with 23%, followed by the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, with 19%, Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch with 8%, the Lib-Dem's Ed Davey on 6% and the Green's co-leaders, Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay, coming last with 2%. More in Common polled people in England living in areas where local elections are taking place (mostly shire areas, not big cities). In these areas, the poll also found Reform UK in the lead, on 26%, with the Conservatives on 25%, Labour on 18%, the Lib Dems on 17% and the Greens on 8%. Commenting on the poll findings, Luke Tryl, executive director of More in Common UK, said: The public mood going into these elections is one of deep disillusionment, voters are impatient for change but aren't confident any party can deliver it. As results trickle in on Friday this polling suggests we will see that the fragmentation of the electorate in last year's general election has only accelerated since then. For many their vote on Thursday will be an expression of deep frustration with the status quo. Nigel Farage's Reform UK look set to be the big winners of the night, leading in our polling, while the Conservatives on these numbers would lose scores of seats in elections being contested on normally solid turf – both to Reform UK and the Liberal Democrats. Yesterday, in a thread on social media, Tryl said that he was returning home after conducing focus groups in Beverley, Hull, Scunthorpe and Peterborough and that he thought the 'disillusionment' he had heard was the worst he had experienced in his time as a focus group organiser. Here are some of the points he made. Views of politicians went beyond healthy cynicism ranging from them not getting it to being useless to being actively corrupt. This wasn't a partisan thing, it applied to everyone Tory, Labour, Lib Dem, Reform, being part of the political class was more telling than party. The demand for change was palpable, but there was a lack of faith it was going to happen, again not limited to one party but instead there was a sense politicians weren't up to it or weren't willing to take on vested interests. From pot holes to the NHS it was all going wrong. While some people were still willing to give the government the benefit of the doubt and time – most were disappointed or angry at the pace of change, but more than that there was a common view of no difference between Labour and the last Conservative Government. All in all a bleak picture. If politics can't be shown to make genuine improvements in people's lives people will lose faith entirely, switch off, look elsewhere or demand something else – which is why I don't think what I've heard this weekend is sustainable. Share Updated at 11.09 CEST Downing Street has said suggestions that a reliance on renewable energy contributed to blackouts in Spain are 'unfounded claims and speculation'. Echoing a theory promoted prominently by the Daily Telegraph in its splash story on the power cuts in Spain and Portugal, Kemi Badenoch said she thought it was likely that having a grid reliant on renewable energy was a factor. She told journalists: I've heard different theories about what's happened. Some have said that it's cyberterrorism, but the more likely issue is the grid – that when you have an electricity supply that's reliant on renewables, you need a lot of battery storage. And quite often, what we're seeing is renewables running ahead of the storage facilities, which means that when you have surges one way or another, you end up with blackouts. And this is one of the reasons why I've been saying that the net zero plans we have are not thought through. But Dowing Street said these were 'unfounded claims'. At the afternoon lobby briefing, asked about the theory that there was a renewable energy link to the power cuts, a No 10 spokesperson said: In terms of the claims of reliance on net zero energy leaving countries affected vulnerable to power cuts, these are unfounded claims and speculation at this stage. It is too early to confirm the exact cause of the incident, and the priority has obviously been the restoration of power. Switching fossil fuelled generation for home grown, clean energy from renewables and other clean technologies offers us security, electricity supply that fossil fuels simply cannot provide. Share Updated at 11.08 CEST Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, has claimed his party is 'winning the argument' on net zero in the light of Tony Blair now arguing that current policies are failing. (See 3.05pm.) Farage posted this on social media. Even Tony Blair now says the push for Net Zero has become 'irrational' and 'hysterical'. We are winning the argument! Nigel Farage campaigning in Scunthorpe this afternoon. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters Share Britain's gas power stations should be nationalised to prevent their owners from holding the electricity market 'to ransom', the thinktank Common Wealth has urged. Jill Ambrose has the story. Share The Scottish Green MSP Maggie Chapman has survived an attempt to remove her from Holyrood's equalities committee, where she is the deputy convenor, over her criticism of the supreme court's ruling on trans rights and the defintion of a woman. As Holyrood reports, three MSPs (two Tory, and one Labour) voted to remove her, but they were outvoted 4-3 after three SNP MSPs voted to back Chapman, who also voted for herself. Chapman accused the supreme court of 'bigotry, prejudice and hatred', which led to Scotland's Faculty of Advocates accusing her of underming the independence of the judiciary. Share The government has rejected calls to join France in preparing to recognise the state of Palestine within months. As Hamish Falconer, the Foreign Office minister, made a Commons statement on this visit to London by Mohammad Mustafa, prime minister of the Palestinian authority, Emily Thornberry asked if the UK would follow France, which has said it might recognise the Palestinian state in June. Thornberry, chair of the Commons foreign affairs committee, asked if the government agreed 'that now is the time to take the next serious step which is to finally recognise the state of Palestine and perhaps the best time to do that might be alongside the French in New York in June?' Falconer said the government's position on this had not changed. He went on: We do wish to recognise a Palestinian state, we wish to do so as a contribution to a two state solution and we will make a judgment about when the best moment is to try and make the fullest possible contribution. Because as I said to the Palestinian prime minister this morning, our responsibility is for the reality of the situation on the ground, the practical viability of a Palestinian state. Of course there are other states that have taken a different position from the UK government and chosen to recognise a Palestinian state. That has not called it into existence. Our job in the British government is to make a practical contribution to a two state solution and that is how we intend to approach this issue. Share A reader BTL asked what the actual question was in the Commons urgent question tabled by Mark Francois on Kneecap. An urgent question is a means of getting a minister to make a mini-statement on a topic, and the actual question tends to be very bland. In this case, it was: 'To ask the secretary of state for the home department if she will make a statement on the alleged incitement to murder MPs by the Irish Republican group Kneecap.' Share The Conservatives have welcomed Tony Blair's criticism of current net zero policies. Andrew Bowie, the acting shadow energy secretary, said: It seems even Tony Blair has come to the realisation that Keir Starmer and the Labour party's mad dash to net zero by 2050 is simply not feasible, or sustainable. As Ed Miliband's net zero zealotry pushes this country's energy security even further into the arms of China, and their slave labour supply chains, and risks driving up energy bills further and further, only Kemi Badenoch and the Conservatives are telling the truth about energy policy in this country. Under new leadership, we have been clear that the cost of net zero by 2050 to families will be far too high, and we must urgently change course. Will Labour now finally be prepared to do the same, and put the national interest above their own ideological dogma? Blair's comments in foreword to the report published his thinktank (see 3.05pm) do not directly refer to UK government policy. His remarks refer to climate policy in developing countries in general. But the points he is making clearly apply to the UK. Share Here is a summary of the arguments that Tony Blair is making about net zero policy in the foreword to the report that his thinktank has published. (See 1.10pm.) Though most people will accept that climate change is a reality caused by human activity, they're turning away from the politics of the issue because they believe the proposed solutions are not founded on good policy. Blair does not cite evidence at this point to back up this claim, and it is at least arguable. Polling suggests that, in the UK, at least some aspect of the net zero agenda are popular. For example, YouGov published a poll recently saying more than half of Britons support the government's target of getting emissions to net zero by 2050. The government carries out its own tracker polling, and that shows 54% of people think the transition to net zero will have a positive impact on the economy over the long term. In developed countries, voters feel they're being asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal. Whatever the historical responsibility of the developed world for climate change, those with even a cursory knowledge of the facts understand that in the future the major sources of pollution will come principally from the developing world. This is quite similar to what Nigel Farage was arguing only last week. For that developing world, there is an equal resentment when they're told the investment is not available for the energy necessary for their development because it is not 'green'. They believe, correctly, that they have a right to develop and that those who have already developed using fossil fuels do not have the right to inhibit them from whatever is the most effective way of developing. Because of the levels of growth and development, present policy solutions are inadequate and, worse, are distorting the debate into a quest for a climate platform that is unrealistic and therefore unworkable. So, the movement now needs a public mandate, attainable only through a shift from protest to pragmatic policy. Too often, political leaders fear saying what many know to be true: the current approach isn't working. (The line about politicians not saying 'what many know to be true' sounds like an extract from a Kemi Badenoch speech. In fact, she would probably agree with almost all of what Blair is saying in this foreword.) Despite the past 15 years seeing an explosion in renewable energy and despite electric vehicles becoming the fastest-growing sector of the vehicle market, with China leading the way in both, production of fossil fuels and demand for them has risen, not fallen, and is set to rise further up to 2030. Leaving aside oil and gas, in 2024 China initiated construction on 95 gigawatts of new coal-fired energy, which is almost as much as the total current energy output from coal of all of Europe put together. Meanwhile, India recently announced they had reached the milestone of 1 billion tonnes of coal production in a single year. Airline travel is set to double over the next 20 years. By 2050, urbanisation is expected to drive a 40 per cent increase in demand for steel and a 50 per cent increase in demand for cement – core inputs to development, but materials with a significant emissions footprint. These are the inconvenient facts, which mean that any strategy based on either 'phasing out' fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail. Blair does not define 'short term' in this context. We need to recognise that without turning some of the emerging technologies into financially viable options, the world will choose the cheapest option. This applies to everything from nuclear fusion to sustainable aviation fuel, to green steel and low-emissions cement. We should put carbon capture – directly removing carbon as well as capturing it at source – at the centre of the battle. At present, carbon capture is not commercially viable despite being technologically feasible – but policy, finance and innovation would change this. The disdain for this technology in favour of the purist solution of stopping fossil-fuel production is totally misguided. Nuclear power is going to be an essential part of the answer. The confusion of this with nuclear weapons and consequently the irrational fear of it, intensified by hyperbolic campaigning, has led the world to an egregious policy error with many countries turning their back on it from the 1980s onwards, when embracing it would have significantly changed the trajectory of global emissions. The new generation of small modular reactors offers hope for the renaissance of nuclear power, but it needs integrating into nations' energy policy. And adaptation to climate change must also move up the agenda because the impacts that are already locked in cannot all be mitigated in the time available. But adaptation has always been the poor relation of climate action because it seems to accept that some climate change is inevitable. This is also an argument that Badenoch has made. [At Cop summits] political leaders argue for days in public about wording like 'ending', 'phasing out', 'reducing' fossil fuels, proclaiming that we can still meet the 1.5 degrees target on limiting global warming, about who bears 'responsibility' for climate change, and 'loss and damage' compensation, in a forum that frankly doesn't have the heft to drive action and impact. Because – agree with it or not – most political leaders are decent people who do want to do the right thing, in recent times the Cops have become uncomfortable for many leaders. They would like to start taking some of the hysteria out of the climate debate but are reluctant to be the first to do so. The Cop process will not deliver change at the speed required. The great gathering of all the nations has its place though probably not every year. But the reality is that it is the decisions of the large countries, and the policy direction they give towards the technology and the financial flows, which can in truth solve the climate issue. This is what will decide whether we begin to match our noble ambitions to protect the planet with the necessary actions to achieve them. Share Updated at 13.05 CEST Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, asked Jarvis if he would give an assurance that Kneecap would never again receive any public money. In response, Jarvis said the government was reviewing the music export growth scheme, under which Kneecap was awarded a £14,000 grant in the first place. He went on to say: It does seem strange to me, and I'm sure to other members of this house, that a Republican group, seemingly opposed to the British government in the first place, would want to receive funding from it. (Jarvis may have forgotten that, while Sinn Féin MPs do not receive a salary from the British state, because they don't take their seats, the Commons rules were changed in 2001 to allow them to receive parliamentary expenses. The party also gets Short money – government funding for opposition parties.) Share Mark Francois, the Conservative MP who was a close friend of David Amess, tabled the urgent question. Responding to Dan Jarvis, he asked why they government is not appealing against the court decision saying the last government was wrong when it decided to block a government grant to Kneecap worth £14,000. He asked Jarvis to name the minister responsible for this decision, which he described as a 'surrender'. And he asked if Jarvis agreed that it would be 'unconscionable' for Kneecap to appear at Glastonbury this year, at least while a police investigation is underway. Jarvis said he did not accept that way Francois characterised the grant decision. He said the last government approved the grant, and then withdrew it without taking proper legal advice. He says the new government did not contest the court decision because it did not want to end up in a costly legal battle. The government is now reviewing the scheme under which the grant was given, he says. Referring to the Glastonbury invitation, Jarvis says it is not for the government to decide who performs at the festival. But he goes on: There is an on-going live police investigation. So the government would urge the organisers at the Glastonbury festival to think very carefully about who is invited to perform there later this year. Jarvis did not name the band in his response to Francois, or in his opening statement. He said he had chosen not to name them deliberately to avoid giving them further publicity. Share Updated at 15.03 CEST In the Commons Dan Jarvis, the security minister, is responding to an urgent question about the 'Kill MP' comment from the Irish band Kneecap. The band has apologised. (See 9.58am.) Jarvis starts by recalling Jo Cox and David Amess – two MPs murdered within the last decade. He says the Kneecap comments were 'dangerous and irresponsible' and he says the the government utterly rejects the views expressed. Let me be crystal clear, political intimidation and abuse have no place in our society. Jarvis says the Kneecap video is being investigated by the police. The the investigation and prosecution of offences is a matter for the police and the Crown Prosecution Service. He says they should be allowed to carry out their work without political interference. Through the Defending Democracy taskforce, the government is working on measures to protect politicians, he says. He concludes: We may not always agree, but if there is one universal truth we would all subscribe to, it is surely that our politics is better when it is conducted respectfully and safely. Share Severin Carrell Severin Carrell is the Guardian's Scotland editor. Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, appeared to describe the Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu as a 'despot' before rowing back after being asked whether he believed that was accurate. Sarwar began ad libbing as he delivered a speech to the Scottish TUC's annual congress in Dundee about wars and violence around the world, when he paid tribute to: Those struggling in Gaza and the humanitarian catastrophe that continues and the ongoing bloodshed from a regime led by Benjamin Netanyahu that doesn't seem to understand or respect international law. Or whether it be those suffering in Ukraine at the hands of another despot in the name of Vladimir Putin, or indeed those that are suffering in the ongoing violence in Sudan, and the many, many other places where there are heightened tensions or the risk of war. Speaking to reporters after his speech, Sarwar qualified those remarks. He said: I talked about despotic regimes in Russia. Benjamin Netanyahu is a democratically elected prime minister. I believe Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal. I believe he is flouting international law in his actions in Gaza, but he is a democratic elected prime minister of Israel. Asked if he misspoke, Sarwar added: Well I called Vladimir Putin a despotic regime and leader. Our challenge, if we are going to see a peaceful resolution in the Middle East [is] yes, we have to see the end of violence. Yes, we have to see a ceasefire. Yes, we have to see the immediate release of hostages, but we also have to see a change in the political circumstances in the Middle East, because ultimately, we need two sides that are willing to negotiate and willing to come to a peaceful resolution and a two-state solution. At the moment, I don't get an impression that that's a position that Benjamin Netanyahu supports, and that's why he continues to flout international law; continues to starve the people of Gaza in many ways, continues the bloodshed of innocent individuals, and that's why, I think it demonstrates we need a different approach. The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu over war crime allegations. Israel does not accept these charges. Share Updated at 14.26 CEST Jessica Elgot Jessica Elgot is the Guardian's deputy political editor. Tony Blair has called for a 'reset' of action on climate change, to the dismay of some green campaigners, suggesting the government should focus less on renewables and more on technological solutions like carbon capture. In remarks that have antagonised some in Labour and in industry, the former prime minister said people were 'being asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal'. Blair, who was writing the foreword to a new report from his thinktank, the Tony Blair Institute, echoed similar criticism of net zero made by the Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch. He wrote 'any strategy based on either 'phasing out' fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail.' The former Labour leader, whose institute has been highly influential in Labour circles, said that the current climate debate was 'riven with irrationality' and suggested net zero was losing public support. The paper itself, written by the TBI's Lindy Fursman, said that net zero policies were now being seen as 'increasingly viewed as unaffordable, ineffective, or politically toxic'. In the UK however, climate change policies have retained popularity. The thinktank Persuasion UK said in a report published yesterday that Labour could potentially lose far more seats from disillusioned leftwing Labour voters defecting to the Greens than from those defecting to Reform. Last week Keir Starmer told conference in London that tackling the climate crisis and bolstering energy security were 'in the DNA of my government' and that 'we won't wait – we will accelerate.' But Blair said that present policy solutions were 'inadequate' and said leaders should shift towards a 'pragmatic policy' that prioritised technological solutions. He said this was borne out by rising demand for production of fossil fuels, especially in China and India and the doubling of airline travel plus increased demand for steel and cement. He said he still believed climate was 'one of the fundamental challenges of our time' and that renewable energy was necessary. But he said the government needs 'to alter where we put our focus'. Blair said there should be more focus on carbon capture, saying: 'The disdain for this technology in favour of the purist solution of stopping fossil-fuel production is totally misguided.' He also called for a major new international embrace of nuclear power and to intensify work on new small modular reactors. Share Updated at 16.54 CEST Voters are 'tired' of the Conservative party changing leader, Kemi Badenoch has said. In an interview with Matt Chorley for Radio 5 Live, being broadcast from 2pm today, Badenoch made the argument as she ruled out resigning however bad the results of the local elections are for her party. In an interview this morning Badenoch said that a bad result would not be her fault. (See 9.23am.) Expanding on that argument, asked if she would consider resigning in the event of a terrible result, she replied: No, because this is something that we have said has to be got through. We've got to get through this initial period where the public rejected Conservatism. Last year, they voted whatever they could to get Conservatives out. We have a job to do to fix the brand. Anyone who thinks that this is an overnight task and that changing leader yet again is the solution is not paying attention. The public are quite tired of watching us change leader. In her interview Badenoch also said she would like to see a statue of Margaret Thatcher erected in Parliament Square. And she slightly revised her view on sandwiches. Last year she made the headlines when she said did not like them because they weren't 'real food'. Today she said would be make an exception 'if a sandwich makes an effort, you know – like a burger'. Share Updated at 14.13 CEST Severin Carrell Severin Carrell is the Guardian's Scotland editor. Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, has appeared to plead with Scottish trade unionists to continue supporting Labour, urging them to 'never forget' only his party could deliver the rights and reforms they wanted. In an at times awkward speech to this year's Scottish TUC congress in Dundee, often speaking off script, Sarwar framed the UK government's policies on workers' rights, the take-over of British Steel, the increase in minimum pay and a £200m investment offer for Grangemouth as ones designed by Labour in alliance with trade unions. Those policies, he said, were 'only possible because this labour movement helped elect a Labour government'. The alternative was the chaos and regressive attacks on the poorest from the Conservatives, he said, before switching gear to implicitly warn delegates rejecting Labour would be counterproductive. Trade unionists had a 'duty' to back the party, he said. Now not everyone in this room will agree with every action of a Labour government, but people in this room will understand that you only get to make different decisions if you have a Labour government. And of course, people in this room have a duty to hold a Labour government to account, but they also have a duty to work with a Labour government to make sure they advancing the cause of working people and that is the fundamental role of our trade union movement. Facing a steep decline in polling support since the general election, Sarwar and senior Scottish Labour figures are making conspicuous efforts to court business leaders and investors, shifting the party into centrist, business-friendly territory. But addressing the STUC, he often used the word 'we' to suggest Labour and the union movement were one, pledging Labour 'will put high skill, high pay, unionised jobs workers here in Scotland first', with trade unionists helping to write the party's 2026 manifesto. Delegates largely sat stoney-faced and undemonstrative as he spoke, many listening with their arms folded, before giving his speech polite applause – a muted response experienced by John Swinney, the first minister and Scottish National party leader, on Monday. Anas Sarwar speaking at the STUC conference in Dundee. Photograph: JeffShare Ben Quinn Ben Quinn is a senior Guardian reporter. Keir Starmer is being urged today to end UK arms exports to Israel and recognise an independent state of Palestine, in a letter signed by hundreds of organisations ranging from campaign groups to Islamic societies and mosques. The letter, which is being hand delivered today to Downing Street by the Muslim Council of Britain, the UK's largest Muslim umbrella group, with more than 500 affiliated members including mosques, schools and charitable associations, comes as a reminder of the continuing political pressure on Labour over Gaza in the week of local and mayoral elections. It says: For the past 18 months, we have seen the indiscriminate slaughter of Palestinians daily and found very little support from the government to take practical steps to prevent this. What makes this much worse is the direct comparison with how Ukraine is being supported against Russian aggression. Although the two conflicts have their unique features, the Palestinian civilians being killed in their tens of thousands are no less human and no less deserving of the right to self-determination and safety. The letter calls for the facilitation of immediate humanitarian aid to Gaza, a cessation of UK arms exports to the Israeli government and the return of all hostages, 'including Palestinian prisoners, especially women and children held without trial for years on end'. Successive UK governments have, for more than a decade, had a policy of 'non-engagement' with the MCB, based on claims that the organisation is not sufficiently representative of the muslim community and that allegations that senior figures endorsed extremist positions in the past. Labour's vote share among British Muslims fell significantly between 2019 and 2024 amid anger in some communities over the party's stance on Gaza. Share Updated at 13.08 CEST READ SOURCE businessmayor April 29, 2025
