Latest news with #PhilBrickell
The Guardian
24-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Labour MPs press for right to roam policy in England after supreme court ruling
Labour backbenchers are pressing the government to revive a right to roam policy in England after a supreme court ruling enshrined the right to wild camp on Dartmoor. The court ruled this week that camping on the national park was legal after a multimillionaire hedge fund manager tried to remove the right to camp on his Devon estate, and by extension from the rest of the park. There is a legal right to roam over only 8% of England, with the rest subject to landowner permission. Dartmoor is the only place in the country where there is a right to wild camp. Scotland has had a right to roam since 2003. In opposition, Labour committed to a Scottish-style right to roam, where there would be an assumed right for English people to walk around the countryside. However, the party U-turned after pressure from countryside groups. The environment secretary, Steve Reed, has ruled out the idea, saying: 'Our intention is to increase access to the countryside, but in a responsible way, not as a free-for-all.' Phil Brickell, the Labour MP for Bolton West, said: 'The barriers preventing millions of people from enjoying and caring for our countryside are a legacy of a bygone era and urgently need replacing. 'It's time to resolve the issues of access to the English countryside once and for all. That must mean legislating for a widespread right to roam covering land and water, which removes access islands, allows responsible wild camping in national parks and increases connectivity to nature for everyone, regardless of where you live.' Andy MacNae, the Labour MP for Rossendale and Darwen, added: 'It's a relief that the supreme court have recognised the range of activities that make up outdoor recreation. The government now have the opportunity to build on this, not only expanding our right to access nature but also the activities we can enjoy when in it, such as kayaking, climbing or wild camping. 'At the heart of this must be an effort to expand access to the widest possible group of people. Nature should be there in our cities, towns and new housing developments, so that anyone can access green or blue spaces within 15 minutes.' The two MPs are part of a new all-party parliamentary group for outdoor recreation and access to nature that will be producing research and calling on the government to extend access to nature. Alex Sobel, the MP for Leeds Central, said of the ruling: 'We need to make this the start of a much wider access to nature than people currently enjoy.' The Liberal Democrats are also calling for greater rights of access over the English countryside, starting with a legal right to wild camp across the UK. Sign up to Down to Earth The planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential after newsletter promotion Caroline Voaden, the Lib Dem MP for South Devon, said: 'I hope we can begin work to extend our right to wild camp beyond Dartmoor. In opposition, Labour spoke about extending the right to wild camp across the UK. I hope they will put those words into action and expand access rights for walkers and campers across the country.' There are fears that government policy will reduce access to green spaces for people across England. The Guardian has recently revealed that housing developers will be able to build on once-protected green spaces without having to replace the loss of nature in nearby areas. New nature areas, parks and community gardens created to offset the removal of green spaces to make way for housing developments may not even have to be in the same county, under the new planning and infrastructure bill. The government is resisting attempts to enshrine legal access over more of the English countryside. The nature minister Mary Creagh said: 'Wild camping under the stars is one of life's great pleasures, so I welcome today's ruling which upholds that right on Dartmoor's common land. This government is passionate about bringing people closer to nature by creating nine national river walks and three new national forests.'
Times
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Times
University suspends vice-chancellor over ‘serious allegations'
The vice-chancellor of the University of Greater Manchester has been suspended over 'serious allegations'. Professor George Holmes, who has led the university for 20 years, has been suspended alongside the provost and a senior member of academic staff at the institution, formerly known as the University of Bolton. The university has commissioned an independent investigation by PwC into recent allegations against it. Lucy Powell, leader of the House of Commons, told MPs in March that the police and the Office for Students (OfS) were investigating 'serious allegations' of racism, bullying and financial misconduct at the university. Phil Brickell, the Labour MP for Bolton West, said that he had been contacted by whistleblowers with further allegations. Brickell asked Powell to give MPs time to debate these
The Guardian
23-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Russia imposes sanctions on 15 MPs and six members of the House of Lords
Russia imposes sanctions on 15 MPs and six members of the House of Lords, banning them from the country over what it called 'hostile statements and unfounded accusations' about Moscow. The Russian foreign affairs ministry published a statement on Wednesday accusing the UK of 'fabricating anti-Russian narratives' and attempting to 'demonise' the country. The ministry announced sanctions against 21 British politicians from across the political spectrum, targeting parliamentarians who have called for frozen Russian assets to be seized and used to fund Ukraine's war effort. Those sanctioned include Labour MPs Phil Brickell, Jeevun Sandher, Johanna Baxter and Blair McDougall, and the Liberal Democrats' Alistair Carmichael, Chris Coghlan, Helen Maguire and James MacCleary. Stephen Gethins of the Scottish National party and Jim Shannon of the Democratic Unionist party were also on the list. McDougall, who is a member of the foreign affairs select committee, said that 'being targeted by this thuggish, criminal regime is a compliment. That among the reasons is that I have been rude to Putin shows how brittle and pathetic his regime is. This won't stop British MPs from speaking up for the people of Ukraine.' Brickell, another member of the committee, said: 'I've been to Ukraine – I've seen the death and destruction Putin has wrought there over the last three years. So if he thinks that sanctioning myself and colleagues will get us to shut up he has another thing coming. Putin and his cronies must pay for the crimes they have committed. Slava Ukraini.' Sandher, a member of the Treasury committee, said: 'Almost a century ago, British politicians made the mistake of letting dictators like Putin redraw Europe's borders by force. That led to the most destructive war in humanity's history. We should be doing everything we can to stop that happening again. If that means me being sanctioned by Russia, so be it.' Maguire, who is her party's defence spokesperson, posted on X that she and other Liberal Democrat MPs would 'wear this retaliatory sanction as a badge of honour'. All four MPs quoted have in recent months called for the UK to work with allies to seize frozen Russian central bank assets and use them to support Ukraine. The UK government has long advocated for frozen Russian assets to be seized, but its position became more pronounced this year after an endorsement by David Lammy, the foreign secretary. 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 Other European governments such as France and Germany and institutions such as the European Central Bank are reticent over fears that such a move would breach the principle of the immunity of sovereign assets, deterring investment from countries such as China and Saudi Arabia. The peers sanctioned by Moscow included David Alton, a cross-bencher who chairs the joint committee on human rights, Kevan Jones, a former Labour MP who was a member of the intelligence and security committee when it published its Russia report, and Ross Kempsell, the Conservative peer who is a former special adviser to Boris Johnson. Of the 15 MPs sanctioned, 13 were from the 2024 parliamentary intake. In 2022, Russia sanctioned 287 MPs after the UK took action against Russian politicians over the invasion of Ukraine.
The Guardian
11-02-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
UK fails to improve on record low ranking in global table of corruption
The UK has failed to improve upon its record low ranking in a closely watched annual league table of international corruption, prompting concern about the 'humiliating' result. The UK is still seen as being among the 20 least corrupt nations in the world, according to the annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) produced by campaign group Transparency International. But the UK's position of 20th in the world is still significantly lower than in previous years, when Britain consistently ranked in the top 10. Transparency International cited factors including the Partygate scandal and revelations about large donations to political parties, while one MP referred to the lingering reputational effect of revelations about PPE contracts during the Covid-19 pandemic. The index is compiled by surveying experts and business leaders, asking them to score and rank countries by the perceived level of corruption in their public sectors. Denmark tops the rankings, followed by Finland and Singapore. The average score is 43 on a range of 0 to 100, where higher numbers indicate the highest standards of anti-corruption. The UK scored 71, its lowest result since the index was launched in 2012. Labour MP Phil Brickell, a member of a cross-party parliamentary group (APPG) examining corruption, described the UK's position on the fringe of the top 20 as 'humiliating'. 'Whether it's cracking down on corporate secrecy in UK offshore jurisdictions, ending London's role as a favourite destination for every crook and kleptocrat looking to hide their assets, or simply cleaning up our own politics by reforming rules around donations and second jobs, the time to act is now.' Brickell referred to claims of corruption around Covid contracts and revelations about MPs profiting from second jobs among reasons that the perception of the UK, reflected in the index, may have worsened. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Transparency International collected the data for the index between January 2022 and September 2024, a period it said included several events that may have dented trust in British politics. It cited revelations about major donors funding British political parties in the run-up to the election, as well as the resignation of Boris Johnson as prime minister, after an investigation into whether he had misled parliament over the Partygate scandal. The Guardian has approached the Conservative party for comment. The campaign group called for measures including the removal of big money from UK politics, greater transparency over political lobbying and tighter controls on transparency around appointments accepted by members of the House of Lords. Daniel Bruce, chief executive of Transparency International, said: 'Unless we act decisively to strengthen anti-corruption frameworks globally, we risk seeing further democratic backsliding and weakening of the international response to the critical challenges we face. 'The UK government ought to play a pivotal and much-needed role by taking the corrupting influence of big money out of politics, delivering on commitments to protect the integrity of government and accelerating efforts to tackle corruption globally.'
