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Tory MP suspended over alleged misuse of funds

The amount eventually escalated to £6,500, sourced from the personal savings of Menzies’ office manager, reimbursed from campaign donations…reports Asian Lite News

The Conservative Party finds itself embroiled in controversy as one of its Members of Parliament, Mark Menzies, faces suspension over allegations of mishandling campaign funds. Menzies, who represents the Fylde constituency in Lancashire, has been accused of soliciting funds from his former campaign manager under dubious circumstances.

The Times reports that Menzies claimed to have been detained overnight in a flat by unidentified individuals whom he referred to as “bad people,” prompting his urgent plea for financial assistance.

As a result of these allegations, Menzies has been stripped of the party whip pending the outcome of an investigation into the matter. However, he vehemently denies the accusations, stating to the Times that he strongly disputes them and maintains his innocence.

According to the newspaper’s account, Menzies contacted his former campaign manager in December, requesting £5,000 to resolve the purported life-threatening situation he found himself in. The amount eventually escalated to £6,500, sourced from the personal savings of Menzies’ office manager, reimbursed from campaign donations.

Reports suggest that Menzies justified his actions by expressing fear of potential consequences if he refused to comply with the demand for funds. Although he offered to repay the money, he claims to have been dissuaded from doing so by local Conservative Party officials who controlled the account from which the funds were withdrawn.

This incident is not an isolated one, as the Times reveals a pattern of similar requests made by Menzies in the past, including one four years prior, where he sought £3,000 from campaign funds to cover medical expenses, with no repayment made thereafter.

Despite Menzies’ assertions of innocence, the allegations have triggered an internal investigation by the Conservative Party. The party has remained tight-lipped about the details of the probe, maintaining the confidentiality of the process. Menzies, for his part, has refrained from further comment on the matter, citing the ongoing investigation.

ALSO READ-Labour commits to Tory childcare expansion plan

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Labour commits to Tory childcare expansion plan

Phillipson said last month that Labour would not commit to the £4bn plan, saying the government risks “crashing the childcare system” due to a lack of places for parents with struggling providers…reports Asian Lite News

Labour will back the childcare expansion plan being rolled out by the government if it wins the next general election. Shadow education minister Bridget Phillipson has said Labour will not remove any entitlements promised to families “in the future”.

The government announced an expansion of free childcare to all children under five in England in last year’s Budget.

There are three phases of expansion, with the final one in September 2025.

Previously, 30 hours of free childcare was available for working parents with children aged three and four, although that is limited to 15 hours a week if at least one parent earns more than £100,000.

From 1 April, working parents with two-year-olds are eligible for 15 hours of free childcare and that will be extended to nine-months from September this year.

From September 2025 the third phase will see hours of free childcare doubled to 30 hours a week for eligible parents.

Previously, Labour has said the expansion “would not be reduced” if the party takes power in a general election expected to take place in 2024. The party also commissioned a review of childcare, led by former senior Ofsted figure Sir David Bell, in October.

Phillipson said last month that Labour would not commit to the £4bn plan, saying the government risks “crashing the childcare system” due to a lack of places for parents with struggling providers.

That sparked an attack by education secretary Gillian Keegan, who claimed a Labour win could put the scheme “at risk”.

In a letter to her Labour counterpart, Keegan wrote: “Parents have told me that they are now uncertain whether they should go back to work, grow their families, or take a promotion, because they don’t know if they will still have this childcare provision.

“Will the Labour party commit to supporting our policy of giving working parents 30 hours free childcare a week from when their child is nine months old to when they start school?

“If not, how would you make up for the 60,000 fewer people in work that our policy will support?”

Phillipson responded with a letter of her own, promising a reformed childcare system that will “stand the test of time”.

“I am delighted to see the Conservatives have finally woken up to the importance of childcare after 14 years of smashing the system to pieces,” she wrote.

“As we have made abundantly clear, Labour will not be removing any entitlements offered to families now or those promised to them in the future. Your suggestion to the contrary is an outright lie – and the public will not believe a word of it.”

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Ministers face Tory revolt over plans to criminalise rough sleeping

On Monday, Kevin Hollinrake, a business minister, refused to say whether he supported the plans…reports Asian Lite News

Ministers are facing a revolt from their own MPs over plans to criminalise homelessness in upcoming legislation.

Under proposals that form part of the UK government’s flagship crime bill, police in England and Wales are to be given powers to fine or move on rough sleepers deemed to be causing a “nuisance”.

The move has infuriated many Conservative MPs, about 40 of whom have warned whips they will vote against the measures, the Times reported.

Bob Blackman, the Tory MP who is coordinating the rebellion, told the paper: “A lot of colleagues believe that the bill as it stands is completely unacceptable because it would have the effect of criminalising people who have no choice but to sleep on the streets. We are urging ministers to think again.”

On Monday, Kevin Hollinrake, a business minister, refused to say whether he supported the plans.

“I believe that those things are not within my auspices,” he told Times Radio. “I’ll be interested to see the legislation as it goes through. And what the prime minister has planned.”

The proposals form part of the criminal justice bill, which is going through the House of Commons and is due to become law before the general election.

They were announced by the former home secretary Suella Braverman and would give police and local authorities powers to act against “nuisance rough sleeping” in England and Wales. Rough sleepers could be moved on, fined up to £2,500 or imprisoned.

Senior Tory MPs on the left and right of the party, including the former leader Iain Duncan Smith and the One Nation caucus chair, Damian Green, have signed amendments to the legislation to remove the plans to criminalise rough sleeping.

Critics say the legislation is so broadly drawn that someone could be considered a nuisance for sleeping in a doorway, being deemed to have an excessive smell or looking as though they intend to sleep rough.

Hollinrake insisted the proposals were only one part of a wider government strategy to get people off the streets. “That’s just part of the things we’re looking to do in terms of making sure that people don’t sleep on the streets and that’s not right, we want to provide the resources for people, housing, improving the number of refuges people can sleep in, and the amount of social housing and affordable housing, which we’ve done,” he said.

“I think [there are] about 700,000 more affordable homes than there were in 2010, so significant progress we have made in terms of these kinds of issues. But nevertheless, there’s a lot to do and it’s important we’ve created ways to try and deal with those issues.”

Polly Neate, the chief executive of the homelessness charity Shelter, said on X the plans were “cruel and nonsensical” and sought “to punish people for ending up on the streets”.

Matt Downie, the chief executive of Crisis, another homelessness charity, said: “It is a cruel and counterproductive idea. It must not be allowed to pass. I’m hugely grateful to the MPs on all sides that have worked with us to stop it.”

The Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran said: “The heartless proposals in the criminal justice bill risk bringing back the Vagrancy Act by the back door. The government should listen to their own backbenchers and take a compassionate approach to tackling homelessness, instead of stigmatising and criminalising rough sleepers.”

While she was home secretary, Braverman branded rough sleeping a “lifestyle choice” and declared that “we cannot allow our streets to be taken over by rows of tents occupied by people, many of them from abroad”. Her remarks triggered outrage from Conservative MPs and she was sacked less than two weeks later after Rishi Sunak accused her of making statements he had not approved.

The broad nature of the criminal justice bill has led MPs to use the legislation as an opportunity to attach other proposals, including banning conversion practices and decriminalising abortion in England and Wales.

ALSO READ-Tory rebels warn Sunak on poll date

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Tory rebels warn Sunak on poll date

Downing Street sources have moved to play down speculation that a summer election could be on the cards, stressing that going to the ballot box in the autumn remains the aim…reports Asian Lite News

Tory rebels have warned Rishi Sunak off holding a June general election, claiming they would launch a fresh move to oust him as leader if that month was picked.

Downing Street sources have moved to play down speculation that a summer election could be on the cards, stressing that going to the ballot box in the autumn remains the aim.

Central to that argument is the improving economic picture, with inflation and possibly interest rates likely to be lower and economic growth higher at the end of the year than now.

But the idea of a June election, which would have to be called by early May if it is to happen, has spooked some critics of the Prime Minister on the Tory backbench.

One Conservative MP told The Telegraph of a June election: “If he does that, the letters will go in before he gets to see the King.

“Colleagues don’t want an election yet. They’re trying to be as loyal as they can, but they think it will be political suicide. Someone’s clearly floating a June election to stop the plotters. He would obviously prefer to be ousted by the election than fellow MPs.”

Another said: “It would be disastrous. It would cause a move against the PM. There is an increasing view that he’s just not up to it. People are thinking ‘we are not having you lead us into the next election’.”

Since the start of the year, the Prime Minister has been saying publicly that he expects the vote to be held in the second half of the year, though he has avoided being categorical. He did earlier in March say that the general election would not be held on May 2, the same day as the local elections.

That comment was widely seen as a sign that a spring election was being ruled out, since sending voters back to the polls a few weeks after the local elections could risk a backlash.

But focus has now turned on whether a surprise summer general election, perhaps in June or early July, could be on the cards. Sunak’s allies accept that if Tory MPs try to force him from office that could trigger an early vote, but otherwise autumn remains the working assumption.

The argument for calling the election in the summer is that the Tory vote share, which has been ticking downwards this year, could fall even further if Number 10 waits until the autumn.

Politicians usually avoid calling elections at the height of summer since Britons often head away for their holidays, making turnout hard to predict.

But on Thursday figures at the top of the party moved to play down the idea of a June election.

A senior Tory source said, “I think everyone needs to enjoy a long weekend and have a cold shower. We have been working on the assumption of Oct/Nov for over a year and I’ve not seen anything to suggest that’s changed.”

Only a small number of advisers and trusted figures are expected to be in the loop about Mr Sunak’s real thinking about when to call the election.

With there being a political incentive to retain an element of surprise and keep the Labour Party guessing, it is difficult to say with confidence exactly what date is being planned.

But the widespread expectation within Westminster among government insiders and MPs of all political stripes is that the election will be called for either October or November.

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Tories will commit to pensions triple lock, says Hunt

Hunt confirmed the current triple lock system to decide how much the payments rise each year would “absolutely” remain if the Conservatives win the general election, which must be held by 28 January 2025, for the whole of the next parliament…reports Asian Lite News

Jeremy Hunt has said the Conservatives will keep the triple lock system to decide rises in the state pension if they win the election. The chancellor confirmed the policy pledge, which means the increase in the state pension is the highest of average earnings growth, inflation or 2.5%.

He told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg he was confident the “expensive” promise would be paid by growing the economy. Labour said it was “committed to retaining” the triple lock.

However the party is yet to confirm if the pledge will feature in its election manifesto. “We will set out those plans for our manifesto in detail,” Labour party chair Anneliese Dodds said. The state pension is to rise by 8.5% in April.

Hunt confirmed the current triple lock system to decide how much the payments rise each year would “absolutely” remain if the Conservatives win the general election, which must be held by 28 January 2025, for the whole of the next parliament.

“When we came to office in 2010, pensioners were more likely to be in poverty than other income groups, now because of the triple lock that we introduced they are less likely to be in poverty,” he told the BBC.

“I think that is a very important social change because unlike adults of working age, pensioners can’t work, they have retired and so we need to respect that.”

Hunt said he realised continuing the policy would be an “expensive commitment”, but added: “You can only make that commitment if you’re confident that you’re going to deliver the economic growth that is going to pay for it.”

In response to Mr Hunt’s confirmation, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Sarah Olney said the pledge was a “shameless election trick by the Conservatives” and claimed Mr Hunt was “yet again taking pensioners for granted”.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer declined to say if the triple lock would be in his party’s manifesto when asked by The Sun newspaper last week.

“We will have to see what the state of the economy is as we go into the election. We will publish all of our plans as we go in and answer that question, but I believe in the triple lock.”

The state pension is a payment made every four weeks by the government to people who have reached the qualifying age and have paid enough National Insurance contributions. More than 12 million people in the UK receive it.

Currently, the pension is worth £203.85 a week for the full, new flat-rate (for those who reached state pension age after April 2016), and £156.20 a week for the full, old basic state pension (for those who reached state pension age before April 2016).

In April, the two payments will rise to £221.20 and £169.50 per week respectively, taking the annual totals to £11,502 and £8,814.

Next month’s increase is set to be the second significant rise in the state pension in two years, after a 10.1% increase in April 2023.

The triple lock is designed to ensure pensioners, especially if they rely solely on the state pension, are able to afford rising prices, or keep pace with the increases in the working population’s wages.

It was introduced by the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government in 2010, but there has been debate over whether it can continue in the long-term future due to its costs. The state pension cost £110.5bn in 2022-2023, just under half the total amount the government spends on benefits, and the government’s official forecaster, the Office for Budget Responsibility, estimated the level would grow to £124bn in 2023-2024.

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Hester’s Racial Barb

The new revelations accuse Tory donor of making comments about “the Indians” and saying he made “jokes about racism” during meetings with staff…reports Asian Lite News

Fresh comments allegedly made by Tory donor Frank Hester have emerged suggesting he joked about “the Indians” standing on the roof of a train in a staff meeting.

After Downing Street was forced to condemn businessman Hester for remarks he is said to have made about MP Diane Abbott, The Guardian published more allegations levelled against the businessman.

The new revelations accuse Hester of making comments about “the Indians” and saying he made “jokes about racism” during meetings with staff in Leeds.

He is said to have made the remarks during a meeting at the technology firm The Phoenix Partnership (TPP). Mr Hester runs the company, which has won several government contracts.

Speaking to staff on a balcony, overlooking a railway line, he asked if there was “no room for the Indians, then?” and added: “Climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train there maybe?”

The Guardian reported he then allegedly said he made “a lot of jokes about racism” and said he was looking forward to an upcoming trip to Malaysia “so that I can make new jokes – I don’t know any jokes about Malaysian people but I’m sure we’ll find them”.

The meeting was to address allegations of racism made by former employees in 2019, the newspaper reported.

He is accused of saying: “I do think that in a loving company, we should be able to make jokes about each other in a loving way, and tease each other, and enjoy each other’s company. And I think we all know the difference between a racial slur and perhaps ‘Asian corner’, which is still going on here today.”

The latest allegations were revealed after Downing Street was forced to condemn Hester’s comments about Abbott as “racist and wrong”.

Hester is alleged to have said the longest-serving black MP made him “want to hate all black women” and that she “should be shot”.

Rishi Sunak had come under pressure over the remarks after he refused to say they were racist.

In a new statement issued on Tuesday evening, the Prime Minister’s spokesman said: “The comments allegedly made by Frank Hester were racist and wrong. He has now rightly apologised for the offence caused and where remorse is shown it should be accepted.

“The Prime Minister is clear there is no place for racism in public life and as the first British-Asian Prime Minister leading one of the most ethnically diverse Cabinets in our history, the UK is living proof of that fact.”

Hester, who has donated £10 million to the Tories in the past year, has admitted making “rude” comments about Abbott, but claimed they had “nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin”.

Responding to the latest accusations, Labour Party Chair Anneliese Dodds said: “After finally conceding that his comments are racist, what further proof does Rishi Sunak need that the Conservatives accepting Frank Hester’s cash is completely wrong? After ministers lined up to dodge the reality of the situation, it’s time to face up to the facts: the Conservatives must apologise unequivocally to Diane Abbott, pay back these donations and root out the extreme views and prejudice which appears to be tolerated within the party.”

At the 2019 meeting for “foreign” workers, Hester gave his own definition of racism, saying: “For me, racism is just a hatred and a fear of the other. For me, it is just exactly the same as homophobia – it’s not limited to the colour of your skin, it is not limited to religion, it can just be the country next door, it can just be the county next door. It can be northerners and southerners, which we have here.”

In the same meeting, Hester said: “I make a lot of jokes about racism, about our different creeds and cultures. But I just want to assure you that it is just the most abhorrent thing.”

Carter-Ruck, representing Hester and TPP, has previously said Hester’s comments were distorted and taken out of context, and were not a true or accurate characterisation of the company or Hester.

Lord Marland, a businessman and Tory donor who says he knows Hester, told LBC that Hester was “an international businessman, he travels widely overseas – he does a lot of a business in Jamaica, he does business in Malaysia, in Bangladesh, in places like that – so he’s not a racist. He made some unfortunate remarks which do sound racist, and quite rightly, he’s apologised for them.”

A statement from TPP said Hester “accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin”. The statement said Hester had tried to apologise directly for the “hurt he has caused” and that he was “deeply sorry for his remarks”. The statement also said he abhorred racism.

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No general election in May, says Hands

But expectations have been raised of a May election ahead of mooted tax cuts in Wednesday’s budget and the potential deportation flights to Rwanda could take off within weeks…reports Asian Lite News

A Tory Minister has appeared to rule out a May general election, suggesting voters will go to the polls this autumn. With Rishi Sunak’s party lagging Labour in the polls by 20 points, Greg Hands said the contest will be “later this year”.

The trade minister was asked about mounting speculation the PM could call a snap election in May, to coincide with local elections around the country, but ruled the prospect out.

At the same time, Labour’s shadow paymaster general was making a bet with Sky News presenter Kay Burley that the contest would be in May.

Jonathan Ashworth said: “After 14 years of the Tories… I think the British people will say it’s time for a change and will want to get rid of the Tories.

“And by the way, this election is coming in May. I think it is definitely coming in May… the Conservatives are planning for that.”

Ashworth accepted a £10 bet for a children of alcoholics charity and called on Mr Sunak to “name that date”.  Sunak has previously said his “working assumption” is that he will call the election in the second half of this year, but has refused to set out a date.

But expectations have been raised of a May election ahead of mooted tax cuts in Wednesday’s budget and the potential deportation flights to Rwanda could take off within weeks.

There are also growing fears Sunak faces a tough set of results at the May local elections, which could destabilise his leadership. And some suggest the government could opt for a May election to limit the damage to the Conservatives, with no evidence the party can expect a turnaround in the polls.

Former Tory leader Lord Hague urged the PM to “keep his options open” on the timing of the election, but added that it is “much more likely” to come late this year. Sunak’s deadline to dissolve parliament in time for a 7 May election is 26 March. It comes after a shock survey on Monday revealed the party is on course for one of its worst election defeats in history.

It showed for the Conservative Party has plunged to the lowest level since 1978 with just a fifth of British voters now backing Sunak’s party.

The Tories were 27 points behind Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party, which would spell electoral oblivion for Sunak’s party if replicated at a general election.

The Ipsos poll, published on Monday, shows Mr Sunak could hold on to as few as 25 seats – 351 fewer than Boris Johnson won in 2019 – in what would be a historic defeat.

It also predicts Sir Keir could secure as many as 537 seats – 340 more than Jeremy Corbyn managed at the last election and equating to a landslide which would eclipse Sir Tony Blair’s 1997 win.

The survey showed support for the Tories at just 20 per cent, the lowest since 1978 when Ipsos started tracking the poll. Ipsos is a multinational market research firm and the poll is the latest in its monthly independent Political Monitor.

In the latest survey, Labour’s support has dropped to 47 per cent from the 49 per cent it had in January. Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats were backed by 9 per cent of the electorate, while support for both the Green Party and Reform UK was at 8 per cent – double what it was in January.

Ipsos’s previous lowest score for the Conservatives was 22 per cent, recorded by John Major in December 1994 and May 1995, only a few years before Sir Tony’s election win.

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Anderson suspended from Tory party over ‘Islamists’ comments

The London mayor added he was “unclear why Rishi Sunak and members of his Cabinet” were not calling out the remarks or condemning the comments…reports Asian Lite News

Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson has been suspended from the party after “refusing to apologise” for comments aimed at Sadiq Khan.

The Conservative Ashfield MP told GB News on Friday “Islamists” had “got control” of the mayor of London. Responding on Saturday, Khan described the remarks as “pouring fuel on the fire of anti-Muslim hatred”. Anderson said his comments had put the chief whip and PM in a “difficult position”.

Losing the Conservative whip essentially expels Anderson from his party in Parliament. Just over an hour after Khan’s criticism, a spokesperson for the Tory party’s chief whip Simon Hart said: “Following his refusal to apologise for comments made yesterday, the chief whip has suspended the Conservative whip from Lee Anderson MP.”

Speaking on GB News Anderson said: “I don’t actually believe that the Islamists have got control of our country, but what I do believe is they’ve got control of Khan and they’ve got control of London… He’s actually given our capital city away to his mates.”

Pressure then mounted on Rishi Sunak to take action over the comments from the Ashfield MP after Khan criticised a “deafening silence” from the prime minister and his Cabinet. Until January Anderson served as one of the deputy chairmen of the Conservative Party, but he resigned so he could rebel against the government over the Rwanda vote.

Posting his reaction to losing the whip on social media Anderson said: “Following a call with the chief whip, I understand the difficult position that I have put both he and the prime minister in with regard to my comments. “I fully accept that they had no option but to suspend the whip in these circumstances. However, I will continue to support the government’s efforts to call out extremism in all its forms – be that anti-Semitism or Islamophobia.”

Earlier on Saturday afternoon, Khan responded to the comments Anderson first made on GB News which he described as “Islamophobic, anti-Muslim and racist”. “These comments pour fuel on the fire of anti-Muslim hatred,” Khan said.

The London mayor added he was “unclear why Rishi Sunak and members of his Cabinet” were not calling out the remarks or condemning the comments. Anderson’s initial remarks have prompted criticism from some Tories, including former chancellor Sir Sajid Javid who said the remarks were “ridiculous”.

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) said it welcomed Anderson’s suspension but claimed it has “only taken place after widespread disgust”. A MCB spokesman said: “The Conservative Party has an Islamophobia problem. They need to own up to it.”

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Tory backlash after Cameron calls for Palestinian state

The Palestinian envoy described Cameron’s words as a “significant” moment –refers it as “Cameron Declaration” …reports Asian Lite News

Foreign secretary David Cameron has sparked a backlash from Tory MPs after he suggested Britain could bring forward formal UK recognition of a Palestinian state.

The former PM has said such a move could help to make a two-state solution – currently stalled, with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu firmly opposed – an “irreversible” process.

Cameron – speaking ahead of his latest visit to the Middle East – spelled out how the UK and its allies could add to pressure on Israel by considering recognising a Palestinian state at the United Nations.

Palestinian ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot pounced on his words as “significant” – but senior Conservatives warned Rishi Sunak’s foreign secretary not to push too far or too fast.

Ex-Tory cabinet minister Theresa Villiers said bringing forward the recognition of a Palestinian state would “reward Hamas’ atrocities” after the 7 October terror attack.

Fellow senior Tory Sir Michael Ellis said the move could risk equipping “dangerous actors” with the “trimmings and capabilities of a state”.

And Stephen Crabb, another ex-cabinet minister, said the gesture may be “noble”, but questioned what “talk about early recognition” of Palestinian statehood would achieve.

Cameron told a London reception there was a need to give the Palestinian people “a political horizon” to end the Israeli-Hamas war as he addressed a reception for Arab ambassadors in parliament.

The foreign secretary suggested that Britain and others could formally recognise a Palestinian state during peace negotiations – rather than wait for a final peace deal with Israel.

“We should be starting to set out what a Palestinian state would look like – what it would comprise, how it would work,” he said on Monday night.

“As that happens, we, with allies, will look at the issue of recognising a Palestinian state, including at the United Nations. This could be one of the things that helps to make this process irreversible,” Cameron said.

The foreign secretary last week pushed Netanyahu to re-consider talks aimed at a two-state solution to bring about peace for both Israeli and Palestinian people.

Netanyahu has rebuffed the push from western allies, including the US – saying the plan would “endanger the state of Israel”. The Israeli PM also criticised what he described as an “attempt to coerce us”.

On Tuesday Netanyahu ruled out an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza or the release of thousands of militants – both key Hamas demands in ongoing ceasefire talks. The Israeli leader once again vowed that the war will not end without “absolute victory” over Hamas, in remarks to reporters.

Both No 10 and junior Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell responded to Cameron’s remarks on Tuesday by insisting that there has been “no change” in UK policy. Sunak’s spokesman said recognition of a Palestinian state will take place “at a time it best serves the cause of peace”.

However, Labour welcomed Cameron’s suggestion. Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy told MPs: “As Keir Starmer has said, statehood is not the gift of a neighbour – it is the inalienable right of the Palestinian people.”

Lammy added: “I welcome the foreign secretary adopting this position and rejecting the notion that recognition can only follow the conclusion of negotiations.”

But as Tory MPs shared their concerns in the Commons on Tuesday, Villiers said it was “really disturbing” that Cameron appeared to have “changed the UK government’s approach on recognition of a Palestinian state”.

“Will the minister agree with me that bringing forward and accelerating unilateral recognition of Palestinian state would be to reward Hamas’ atrocities?” she asked.

Mitchell replied: “There is no question of rewarding Hamas for the appalling acts they perpetrated in a pogrom on October 7. But the point the foreign secretary has been making is that we must give the people of the West Bank and Gaza a credible route to a Palestine state and a new future, but we must do so when the time is right.”

Michael also warned that “unilateral recognition of Palestinian state now” risked “equipping those dangerous actors … with the trimmings and capabilities of a state”.

The Palestinian ambassador to the UK described Cameron’s words as a “significant” moment – and even referred to “the Cameron Declaration” in a social media statement.

Zomlot said: “It is the first time a UK foreign secretary considers recognising the state of Palestine, bilaterally and in the UN, as a contribution to a peaceful solution rather than an outcome.”

He said: “If implemented, the Cameron Declaration would remove Israel’s veto power over Palestinian statehood, would boost efforts toward a two-state outcome.”

Cameron, whose latest trip starts in Oman, is expected to say Britain will do “everything it can” to prevent the conflict from “spilling over borders” during a visit to the Middle East.

In Oman, the foreign secretary is expected to meet his Omani counterpart, Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, to discuss de-escalating rising tensions across the region.

An attack by Iran-backed militia in Jordan over the weekend that killed three US troops and left dozens injured has stoked fresh fears of a Western confrontation with Tehran.

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Tories launch attack on Starmer

“Are you a terrorist in need of legal advice? Better call Keir,” read a mocked-up poster published by the Conservatives this week on X…reports Asian Lite News

Conservatives are stepping up personal attacks on opposition Labour leader and former prominent lawyer Keir Starmer, who is tipped to become prime minister after the next general election. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Tories and sympathetic right-leaning newspapers are targeting Starmer’s record as a leading human rights lawyer and public prosecutor in a bid to haul back support from his centre-left party. Political scientists view the broadsides as an increasingly desperate tactic by a government that is running out of ideas and probably in its death throes, after 14 years in power.

“Are you a terrorist in need of legal advice? Better call Keir,” read a mocked-up poster published by the Conservatives this week on X, the social media site formerly called Twitter. “When @RishiSunak sees a group chanting jihad on our streets, he bans them. Keir Starmer invoices them,” the party added in an adjacent comment. The dig related to advice that Starmer gave the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir in 2008, when the organisation challenged a ban on its activities in Germany. The government in London this week declared Hizb ut-Tahrir a “terrorist” organisation and banned it from operating in the UK.

Sunak said during the weekly prime minister’s questions in the House of Commons on Wednesday that the now-proscribed group had once been “a client” of Starmer’s. “If Keir Starmer wasn’t leader of the opposition, he’d be representing a lot of these people still today,” Sunak’s press secretary told reporters afterwards. A Labour spokesman stressed that Starmer did not formally represent Hizb ut-Tahrir, and shortly afterwards became the chief state prosecutor in England and Wales. “The nature of being a lawyer is that you represent and give advice to a whole range of clients, including people that you don’t agree with,” he added. The brickbats fit a pattern.

Britain’s Tory-supporting press recently reported that Starmer had represented an Irish Republican Army member and hate preacher Abu Qatada. Labour and legal experts reiterate that Starmer would have been obliged to do so under the “cab rank rule”, which ensures that everyone receives legal representation whoever they are. The personal slights also tie into Britain’s so-called culture wars, with 43-year-old Sunak — a privately educated former investment banker — fond of accusing Starmer, 61, of being a “lefty lawyer”. Starmer defended a number of salient causes as a human rights barrister, including defending trades unions and anti-McDonald’s activists.

He also worked to ensure police in Northern Ireland complied with human rights legislation. In 2008, Starmer was appointed director of public prosecutions for England and Wales at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), a role he held until 2013. He oversaw the prosecution of lawmakers for abusing their expenses, journalists for phone hacking and young rioters involved in 2011 unrest across England, earning a knighthood, giving him the title “Sir Keir”, in 2015. The privately wealthy Sunak has accused Starmer, the son of a toolmaker and a nurse who ran a donkey sanctuary, of being “soft on crime, soft on criminals”, and has dubbed him “Sir Softie”. Starmer told an ITV documentary this week that “of course” there will have been mistakes committed during his tenure leading the CPS. “But there’ll be no smoking gun, no skeletons in the closet,” he insisted.

A YouGov poll released this week found Labour 27 points ahead of the Conservatives, before the election, the date of which Sunak is yet to announce. The survey put the ruling party on only 20-percent support, suggesting it is heading for a landslide defeat. The Tories have presided over a crippling cost-of-living crisis in recent months, record waiting lists for hospital treatment and served up five prime ministers since the 2016 Brexit vote. “The cupboard is bare, isn’t it?” Robert Ford, a political scientist at Manchester University, said of the motivation for the personal attacks. “They haven’t got much to run on.” Tim Bale, politics professor at Queen Mary University of London, does not think the barbs will land with voters. “The personal stuff is unlikely to trump the bread and butter issues that are killing this government, most obviously the state of the economy and the National Health Service,” he said.

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