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The Guardian
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Tasmanian salmon farming expansion on hold as state Liberals order review ahead of parliament showdown
The Tasmanian Liberal party has promised a pause on salmon farm expansion and an independent review of the industry as it attempts to win support from crossbench MPs and survive a no-confidence motion in the state parliament this week. In a concession to independent MPs critical of the operation of salmon farms in public waterways, the premier, Jeremy Rockliff, on Sunday said he supported the industry but that it was 'on notice' after a mass mortality event last summer, and it must 'operate transparently and responsibly and meet its obligations to the community'. He said the government would respond by introducing a marine environment act to strengthen regulation of the industry and order a study by an 'off-island specialist organisation'. There would be a pause on industry expansion while it was completed, he said. 'We know how important transparency is to the industry so we expect them to fully participate in the study,' Rockliff said. 'Our government would want to see from this study practical reforms and smarter regulations that protect our environment, but also investment certainty for industry.' The state parliament returns on Tuesday after a snap election last month that was called after the parliament passed a no-confidence motion in Rockliff moved by the Labor leader, Dean Winter. Voters responded by delivering a parliament highly similar to the last one: 14 Liberals, 10 Labor MPs, five Greens and six other crossbenchers. With all parties short of the 18 seats needed for a majority, Rockliff and Winter have spent the past month jockeying for support. Sign up: AU Breaking News email As the incumbent, Rockliff has been reappointed as premier until parliament returns, but Winter has promised that either he or an independent would move a vote of no confidence in the Liberals and a vote of confidence in Labor on the first day back. The Liberals' concession on salmon was welcomed by some crossbenchers on Sunday. It followed the revelation last week that an endemic bacteria, Piscirickettsia salmonis, which caused an unprecedented mass mortality event at salmon farms last summer, was again present at elevated levels at farms in the D'Entrecasteaux Channel, south of Hobart. Rockliff's commitment matches some of the measures suggested by two independent MPs, Peter George and Craig Garland, in a letter to the major parties last week. George told Guardian Australia the announcement was 'a real step forward'. 'If it was to be adhered to in good faith we'd see it as a real win, but the devil is in the detail,' he said. Garland, who had previously indicated he would back Labor, said he 'cautiously welcomed' Rockliff's announcement, but also wanted more detail. He said Tasmania's oceans were 'in trouble', and called on Labor to back the Liberals' commitment. 'Over summer we've seen rotting salmon lining our beaches, and salps and jellyfish choking our waterways, and we now watch with dread the ecological disaster unfolding in South Australia, where dolphins, sharks and fish are washing up dead on beaches,' he said. 'Before things can get better, we must stop them from getting worse.' The Greens leader, Rosalie Woodruff, said the Liberals' announcement was a 'potential turning point' and suggested the government had 'finally recognised that something must be done'. But she said the party would be cautious as the Liberals had a 'terrible record of inaction on environmental protection'. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Labor's spokesperson for aquaculture and the environment, Janie Finlay, said Rockliff had broken promises on reviews into other issues in the state, including the budget and controversial plans to build an AFL stadium on the Hobart waterfront, and should not be believed. 'The only thing Jeremy Rockliff cares about is clinging to power, and he will say anything, promise anything, and break his word on everything, just to keep his job,' she said. The salmon pledge is the latest in a series of announcements since the election aimed at winning cross bench support. Rockliff ditched a plan to open nearly 40,000 hectares of protected forest for logging and said he would ban greyhound racing from 2029. The new treasurer, Eric Abetz, last week held a multi-party meeting including Greens and independent MPs to discuss how to deal with the state's ballooning debt and promised the discussions would be ongoing. Winter said an upper house independent, Ruth Forrest, would be treasurer in a Labor government. He held meetings with crossbenchers focused on budget repair, but refused to offer policy concessions to the Greens despite needing their support to form government. After a meeting with Winter last week, Woodruff said the Labor leader had 'not made a serious attempt' at negotiating and her party could not support a no-confidence motion in the Liberals 'at this stage'. On Sunday, the independent MP David O'Byrne, a former Labor leader and cabinet minister, said he would back Rockliff remaining as premier as the Liberals were the only party able to form a 'workable majority' in parliament. The Liberals are aiming for a fifth straight term in government. They increased their primary vote by 3.2% to nearly 39.9% at last month's election. Labor's vote fell 3.1% to 25.9%. The Greens' vote rose slightly to 14.4% of the vote. Other parties and crossbenchers received a combined 19.8%.
The Guardian
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Monday briefing: What Zarah Sultana's new breakaway party could mean for Labour and the left
Good morning. Last week, Zarah Sultana resigned from the Labour party and announced she was co-founding a new leftwing political party alongside former leader Jeremy Corbyn. The MP for Coventry South, who was first elected in December 2019, lost the Labour whip last July after defying the party to oppose the two-child benefit cap. She has stood by that decision, saying she would 'do it again'. In her resignation statement, Sultana accused the government of seeking to make disabled people suffer and called the political system in Westminster 'broken'. She said she was joining forces with other independent MPs and activists to build an alternative to what she described as a political establishment that no longer served ordinary people. The news will not come as a surprise to many Westminster watchers – Corbyn has been hinting at the formation of a new party since last September, and an appeareance on Peston on Sunday two weeks ago was widely seen as a soft launch for the project. But so far Corbyn has confirmed only that he is in discussions about a new party; some reports suggest Sultana caught parts of the emerging alliance off guard, exposing divisions over strategy and direction – and a struggle for leadership and power. While we await more key details – including the party's name – it's worth asking whether there is real public appetite for a new leftwing party, what it could look like, and what impact it could have on not just Labour but the entire political landscape. To explore those questions, I spoke with veteran pollster and Deltapoll co-founder Joe Twyman for today's newsletter. That's after the headlines. Labour | Downing Street is facing another bruising battle after last week's humiliating retreat on welfare reforms as MPs, campaigners and parents voice concern at its overhaul of special needs education for children in England, the Guardian can reveal. Middle East | Israeli warplanes launched a wave of strikes in Gaza on Sunday, killing at least 38 Palestinians, according to hospital officials, as talks over a ceasefire in the devastated territory reached a critical point. US news | Residents in central Texas were observing a day of prayer on Sunday for at least 82 people killed and dozens missing in flash flooding. A search, rescue and recovery operation was continuing. Australia | A jury in Australia has found Erin Patterson, 50, guilty of murdering three relatives and attempting to murder a fourth with a poisoned beef wellington lunch almost two years ago. UK news | Keir Starmer, King Charles and the home secretary, Yvette Cooper, have marked the 20th anniversary of the 7 July attacks in London in which Islamist suicide bombers killed 52 people and injured more than 770. Sultana published a statement on Thursday accusing Labour and the Conservatives of offering 'nothing but managed decline and broken promises'. She pointed to Reform – and its leader, Nigel Farage, a 'billionaire-backed grifter' in her words – leading the polls as evidence of the political system's failure. Framing the next general election as a battle between 'socialism or barbarism', a slogan famously used by the Marxist thinker Rosa Luxemburg, she called for urgent political change. The MP's statement strongly criticised some of Labour's most controversial policies in government, including the two-child benefit cap, winter fuel payment cuts and welfare reform proposals that the government's own impact assessment says would push many disabled people into poverty. She also condemned politicians across the spectrum for smearing 'people of conscience trying to stop a genocide in Gaza as terrorists'. Sultana ended the statement by urging supporters to 'join us' in building what she presented as a new political alternative. As of this morning, more than 45,000 people had signed up as 'actioners'. Together, these two themes – inequality and poverty, and anger over the war in Gaza – point to the communities this new party is hoping to mobilise and represent. But is there any appetite for this among the British electorate? What does the polling say? It's hard to measure hypotheticals in polling, Joe Twyman told me, yet he warned: 'The last 10 to 15 years of British politics have taught us that you cannot rule anything out, and that nothing can be guaranteed.' On the question of whether there is a desire for a new leftwing party among the electorate, Twyman said: 'There is always a desire for a new party … if there were a general election tomorrow and the following parties were running, the normal parties, and then a new party, left, right, whatever, they will always poll relatively well. And by relatively well, I mean around 10-15%.' A recent poll by More in Common, shared with the New Statesman last month, backed this up, finding that a new party fronted by Corbyn could pick up 10% of the votes in an election. But Twyman was keen to temper expectations. 'That's because you're asking in an abstract way: how would you hypothetically vote in a hypothetical election for a hypothetical party? But what people are actually answering is how they feel about the existing parties. We project our hopes and expectations on to a new party. People think, 'Oh yeah, I'd vote for that,' not because they like the new party, but because they don't like the established ones. There's nothing bad yet about this new party in the eyes of many people.' He added that he speaks from experience. Twyman was the official pollster for the ill-fated Change UK party, made up of centrist defectors from Labour and the Conservatives in 2019. Ultimately, not a single candidate won a seat. 'It lasted so short a time I didn't even get the T-shirt,' he joked. What does this mean for the Greens? It has been particularly interesting to see how leading figures in the Green party have responded to the announcement of a new political party. Zack Polanski, the insurgent London assembly member running to lead the Greens on a radical, mass-membership 'eco-populism' platform, quickly announced he would work with any party that wanted to stop Reform and challenge Labour. So did Mothin Ali, the most high-profile candidate currently running to become the party's deputy leader. Could we soon see a political pact between the Green party and this new organisation? James Meadway, an economist, former adviser to John McDonnell and now a Green party member, has been calling for exactly that, and he isn't alone. He claims there are 60 seats up for grabs for an alliance between socialists and environmentalists. But could this actually work? Twyman told me it is difficult to test the public appetite for formal alliances. 'The average person in the street has not thought about this at all,' he said. 'What you're dealing with here is hypotheticals, but the reality can be very, very different.' He said the mistake people often make is simply adding up parties. It's the same trick Conservatives use when they add Reform's vote to their own and claim that is what they would get if Reform didn't stand. So for now, there is no reliable way to model how well such an alliance would actually perform. Will it be a serious threat to Labour? As for Labour leadership, they have so far brushed off the announcement of this new party, while some Labour backbenchers actively welcomed Sultana's resignation. But could this new party prove to be a headache for Labour down the line? 'Everything's a headache for Labour,' Twyman said. 'If you're Tony Blair and you're 40 points ahead in the polls and you get complaints from your left flank, then you can laugh it off. If, on the other hand, you're Keir Starmer and you have had a really tough first year, you're trying to get things back on track, you recognise the risk that Reform represents on some of your voters … and now you're thinking, well, maybe here's another risk.' Should Downing Street be worried as things stand right now? No, Twyman said. But he wouldn't dismiss it completely, especially if the new party gains money, momentum, or defections. He suggests the announcement of the party adds to growing evidence of fragmentation in British politics. 'Reform and this new party didn't create this wave of dissatisfaction, but what they're being very effective at doing is riding it on to the beach.' 'Labour governments are meant to make people feel less scared, not more.' John Harris is typically powerful in today's column asking incredulously: is Labour really about to target the educational rights of special needs children? Charlie Lindlar, acting deputy editor, newsletters What does it mean to come dead last on the nation's most beloved reality TV show? I loved this roundup of contestants from a range of shows, from The Traitors to Bake Off. Aamna In case you missed it on Saturday: First Edition's own Archie Bland is excellent in this column on Bob Vylan and the coalescing of a steadfast public opposition to Israel's war on Gaza. 'It isn't just that people are angry that the catastrophe in Gaza isn't being given due attention: it is that their encounters with observable reality are being flatly denied,' he thinks. Charlie From his earliest reading memory (The Very Hungry Caterpillar) to the author he once struggled with but now frequently rereads (Jane Austen), this is a lovely, quiet meditation from bestselling author David Nicholls on the books that changed his life. Aamna I'm in the midst of yet another Girls rewatch – the perfect time for Lena Dunham's long-awaited next project, Too Much, and this Michael Segalov interview with its star, Megan Stalter. Charlie 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 Tennis | At Wimbledon, Cameron Norrie lost a third-set match point but beat Chile's Nicolás Jarry 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (7), 6-7 (5), 6-3 to set up a quarter-final against Carlos Alcaraz. Briton Sonay Kartal lost to Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-6 (3), 6-4 in a clash marred by technological failure, with Wimbledon organisers apologising after the electronic line-calling system was turned off in error at a crucial moment on Centre Court. Football | Second-half goals from Géraldine Reuteler and Alayah Pilgrim gave Switzerland a 2-0 win against Iceland in Group A of Euro 2025. Caroline Graham Hansen struck late on as Norway ended 2-1 against Finland for their second win in two games at Euro 2025, with Switzerland's win sealing their qualification. Formula One | Lando Norris took his maiden win at the British Grand Prix after a dramatic and incident-packed race at Silverstone in treacherous wet and dry conditions. The Guardian begins the week with 'New battle for No 10 as MPs raise alarm on special needs provision'. The Times likewise has 'PM facing fresh revolt over special needs help'. 'Labour 'willing to explore' wealth tax' says the Telegraph. 'State pension tax would be 'insult to all OAPs'' – that's the Express while the i leads with 'UK was 10 years from turning off the taps: Labour vows to avert new water crisis'. The Financial Times tells us that 'China reroutes exports via south-east Asia in bid to skirt Trump's tariff wall'. The Metro reports on a call by the Met commissioner, Mark Rowley, for ''12 mega forces' in policing shake-up'. Biggest story in the Daily Mail is 'Top police chiefs: Smell of cannabis is a 'sign of crime''. ''Fined'... for keeping teeth healthy' – it's a 'perverse' case that stains NHS dentistry, says the Mirror. A rogue fertility clinic, stolen eggs, and an unlikely friendship Jenny Kleeman reports on the IVF clinic in the US that stole women's eggs to get other women pregnant. Sign up for Inside Saturday to see more of Edith Pritchett's cartoons, the best Saturday magazine journalism and an exclusive look behind the scenes A bit of good news to remind you that the world's not all bad Two decades after the 7/7 London bombings, families of victims have channelled grief into powerful memorials that continue to change lives. The Miriam Hyman Children's Eye Care Centre in India now treats thousands of children each month, while initiatives like Fiona Stevenson's swimming project in Belize and Michael Matsushita's orphanage fund in Cambodia and Vietnam have safeguarded and uplifted countless young lives. Closer to home, bursaries and hospital donations honour victims like Helen Jones, Benedetta Ciaccia, and Philip Russell. Alongside these legacies, families have also campaigned for reconciliation and social cohesion. From clinics to classrooms, each initiative reflects the values of those lost and the enduring power of compassion. 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
Sky News
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Sky News
MP Zarah Sultana who was ousted from Labour announces new party with Jeremy Corbyn - but he says 'discussions ongoing'
An MP who was ousted from the Labour Party announced she is setting up a new political party with Jeremy Corbyn - but he has said in a statement that "discussions are ongoing". Independent MP Zarah Sultana said last night that she and the former Labour leader will co-lead the founding of this new party, and added that other independent MPs, campaigners and activists from across the country will join them, but did not name anyone. She also said she was "resigning" from Labour after 14 years, and the former leader congratulated her on the "principled decision", and said: "I am delighted that she will help us build a real alternative." Mr Corbyn was sharply critical of Sir Keir Starmer's government for having "refused to deliver the change people expected and deserved", and that "the democratic foundations of a new kind of political party will soon take shape". But he did not confirm that he and Ms Sultana will jointly lead the founding of this new venture, saying: "I am excited to work alongside all communities to fight for the future people deserve. "Together, we can create something that is desperately missing from our broken political system: hope." Iqbal Mohamed, who is part of Mr Corbyn's alliance of independent MPs, hinted that he will be part of this new endeavour by sharing the statement on X and writing: "Real change is coming." Speaking to Sky News, Mr Corbyn's former adviser James Schneider said his phone had been "exploding with people being extremely excited" about a "home for progressive politics in this country". Who are Corbyn and Sultana? Ms Sultana was suspended as a Labour MP shortly after they came to power last summer for voting against the government maintaining the two-child benefit cap. Several others from the left of the party were also suspended for voting against the government, and also remained as independent MPs. Mr Corbyn was suspended as a Labour MP in October 2020 after a report was published by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission into antisemitism in the Labour Party found it was responsible for unlawful acts of harassment and discrimination. In response to the findings, Mr Corbyn said that "one antisemite is one too many", but added that "the scale of the problem was also dramatically overstated for political reasons". He was then expelled from the party in May 2024 for standing as an independent in the general election in July, having been blocked from standing as a Labour candidate. 0:47 The pair have been close political allies in recent years, and have been very vocal in supporting the pro-Palestine movement. On Wednesday, Ms Sultana spoke passionately against Palestine Action being proscribed as a terror organisation - but MPs eventually voted for it to be put into law. She said to proscribe it is "a deliberate distortion of the law to chill dissent, criminalise solidarity and suppress the truth". The MP also shouted: "We are all Palestine Action." In her statement last night, Ms Sultana said: "Across the political establishment, from Farage to Starmer, they smear people of conscience trying to stop a genocide in Gaza as terrorists. "But the truth is clear: this government is an active participant in genocide. And the British people oppose it. We are not going to take this anymore." Ms Sultana said they were founding the new party because "Westminster is broken but the real crisis is deeper - just 50 families now own more wealth than half the UK population". She called Reform leader Nigel Farage "a billionaire-backed grifter" leading the polls "because Labour has completely failed to improve people's lives". The MP signed the letter off with: "In 2029, the choice will be stark: socialism or barbarism. Andrew Fisher, former head of policy for Mr Corbyn, told Sky's Barbara Serra: "If Labour keeps moving to the left on issues like migration and attacking welfare, there will be support for this." 'Only Labour can deliver change' Speaking to Sky News, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said Ms Sultana has "always taken a very different view to most people in the government on a lot of different things". "We're one year on from the Labour government being elected and as the prime minister said a year ago that change doesn't happen at the flick of a switch, but it starts straightaway," the home secretary said. A Labour Party spokesperson said: "In just 12 months, this Labour government has boosted wages, delivered an extra four million NHS appointments, opened 750 free breakfast clubs, secured three trade deals and four interest rate cuts lowering mortgage payments for millions.
The Independent
04-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Discussions ongoing and foundations of new party soon, says Corbyn
Jeremy Corbyn said 'discussions are ongoing' about the shape of a prospective new political party, after an ex- Labour MP claimed they would 'co-lead the founding' of a new outfit. Former Labour leader Mr Corbyn said that the 'foundations of a new kind' of party will 'take shape' soon. Coventry South MP Zarah Sultana, who has sat as an independent since last year, said on Thursday that she was resigning from Labour to lead on establishing a new party with Mr Corbyn, alongside other independent MPs and campaigners. It is understood that questions over the leadership and the timing of an announcement had not been settled before Ms Sultana's statement about working on the founding of a new party on Thursday. In a statement more than 17 hours after Ms Sultana's, Mr Corbyn said: 'The democratic foundations of a new kind of political party will soon take shape. 'Discussions are ongoing – and I am excited to work alongside all communities to fight for the future people deserve.' He also said that Ms Sultana will 'help us build a real alternative'. Ms Sultana, who had the Labour whip suspended last year, said on Thursday that she was quitting Sir Keir Starmer's party and would 'co-lead the founding of a new party' with Mr Corbyn. She said that ' Westminster is broken but the real crisis is deeper' and the 'two-party system offers nothing but managed decline and broken promises'. The Coventry South MP also attacked the Government's policies on welfare and Gaza. Ms Sultana was one of seven MPs who had the Labour whip suspended last summer when they supported an amendment to the King's Speech which related to the two-child benefit cap. Four of the seven had the whip restored earlier this year but Ms Sultana was not among them. Mr Corbyn led Labour from 2015 to April 2020, stepping down after the party's loss at the 2019 general election. He was suspended from Labour in 2020 after he refused to fully accept the Equality and Human Rights Commission's findings that the party broke equality law when he was in charge, and said antisemitism had been 'dramatically overstated for political reasons'. He was blocked from standing for Labour at last year's general election and expelled in the spring of 2024, after saying he would stand as an Independent candidate in his Islington North constituency, which he won with a majority of more than 7,000. Last year Mr Corbyn formed the Independent Alliance with other Independent members of the Commons. On Friday, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper appeared to shrug off Ms Sultana's announcement, and said that the MP had 'always taken a very different view to most people in the Government' on several issues, adding: 'That's for her to do so.' But during a series of broadcast interviews, Ms Cooper declined to be drawn on whether she was concerned the new party could pose a threat to Labour. Asked whether she was concerned, the Home Secretary told LBC: ' People have always had different views, and I just disagree with the views and the approaches they're taking.'
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Discussions ongoing and foundations of new party soon, says Corbyn
Jeremy Corbyn said 'discussions are ongoing' about the shape of a prospective new political party, after an ex-Labour MP claimed they would 'co-lead the founding' of a new outfit. Former Labour leader Mr Corbyn said that the 'foundations of a new kind' of party will 'take shape' soon. Coventry South MP Zarah Sultana, who has sat as an independent since last year, said on Thursday that she was resigning from Labour to lead on establishing a new party with Mr Corbyn, alongside other independent MPs and campaigners. It is understood that questions over the leadership and the timing of an announcement had not been settled before Ms Sultana's statement about working on the founding of a new party on Thursday. Real change is coming. — Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) July 4, 2025 In a statement more than 17 hours after Ms Sultana's, Mr Corbyn said: 'The democratic foundations of a new kind of political party will soon take shape. 'Discussions are ongoing – and I am excited to work alongside all communities to fight for the future people deserve.' He also said that Ms Sultana will 'help us build a real alternative'. Ms Sultana, who had the Labour whip suspended last year, said on Thursday that she was quitting Sir Keir Starmer's party and would 'co-lead the founding of a new party' with Mr Corbyn. She said that 'Westminster is broken but the real crisis is deeper' and the 'two-party system offers nothing but managed decline and broken promises'. The Coventry South MP also attacked the Government's policies on welfare and Gaza. Ms Sultana was one of seven MPs who had the Labour whip suspended last summer when they supported an amendment to the King's Speech which related to the two-child benefit cap. Today, after 14 years, I'm resigning from the Labour Party. Jeremy Corbyn and I will co-lead the founding of a new party, with other Independent MPs, campaigners and activists across the country. Join us. The time is now. Sign up here to stay updated: — Zarah Sultana MP (@zarahsultana) July 3, 2025 Four of the seven had the whip restored earlier this year but Ms Sultana was not among them. Mr Corbyn led Labour from 2015 to April 2020, stepping down after the party's loss at the 2019 general election. He was suspended from Labour in 2020 after he refused to fully accept the Equality and Human Rights Commission's findings that the party broke equality law when he was in charge, and said antisemitism had been 'dramatically overstated for political reasons'. He was blocked from standing for Labour at last year's general election and expelled in the spring of 2024, after saying he would stand as an Independent candidate in his Islington North constituency, which he won with a majority of more than 7,000. Last year Mr Corbyn formed the Independent Alliance with other Independent members of the Commons. On Friday, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper appeared to shrug off Ms Sultana's announcement, and said that the MP had 'always taken a very different view to most people in the Government' on several issues, adding: 'That's for her to do so.' But during a series of broadcast interviews, Ms Cooper declined to be drawn on whether she was concerned the new party could pose a threat to Labour. Asked whether she was concerned, the Home Secretary told LBC: 'People have always had different views, and I just disagree with the views and the approaches they're taking.'
