Liz Truss speaks at party conference amid Tory turmoil
If Prime Minister Liz Truss continues with her same “agenda of tax cuts and high debt”, she will trigger a Tory “wipe-out” in the process, a former cabinet minister has warned.
Speaking to The Times on Wednesday, Nadine Dorries said she understood the government needed “rocket-boosting growth, but you don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.
“Elections are not won by swinging to the right and abandoning the center ground for Keir Starmer to plant his flag,” he added.
Dorries said the Conservatives faced a defeat comparable to that of their Canadian counterparts in 2015, when incumbent Stephen Harper lost to Justin Trudeau’s Liberals after his party had been in office for a decade.
“If we continue down this path, we’re absolutely going to be facing a Stephen Harper-type takedown. I’m sure he’s listened and he’s going to stop and think again,” she said.
Mrs Truss’s popularity hit a new low after she stood at the Conservative Party Conference, and now has a lower rating than Boris Johnson or Jeremy Corbyn.
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Truss lands in Prague
Liz Truss has landed in the Czech Republic for a key set of meetings in Prague as she attends the first meeting of the European Political Community.
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 9:35 am
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Tory mini-budget “as anti-growth as cold as it gets,” says Starmer
Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget was “about as anti-growth as you could get”, said Sir Keir Starmer.
Speaking to BBC Radio Manchester and asked about being labeled as part of an anti-growth coalition, the Labor leader said: “The kamikaze mini-budget that Liz Truss launched two weeks ago today has had a devastating impact in the economy”.
Referring to the effect on mortgages, Sir Keir said: “This kamikaze mini-budget is as anti-growth as you could get. It’s destroying growth.”
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 9:25 am
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Conservative members ‘subjected to sickening homophobic abuse’ at LGBT event
Conservative party attendees have been accused of homophobic abuse at an LGBT+ event on the sidelines of this week’s annual conference in Birmingham.
Several people were sacked for allegedly hurling homophobic slurs at an event organized by LGBT conservatives at the Reflex nightclub, it has been claimed.
One attendee was removed by security after calling a gay man “shit” and another was ejected for calling two women “filthy,” according to ITV News.
Our political correspondent Adam Forrest has the details:
Conservative members ‘subjected to sickening homophobic abuse’ at LGBT event
Several assistants dismissed for allegedly throwing insults
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 9:15 am
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Kwarteng to meet with bank chiefs
Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng will meet UK banks and building societies today amid turmoil in the mortgage sector caused by chaos in the mini-budget market.
He will sit down with senior executives from major lenders and major banks over their upcoming plans to loosen regulation in the financial services sector.
But it comes amid growing problems in the lending market, with a number of banks making mortgage deals in the past week and raising mortgage rates.
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 9:05 am
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Government ‘waits for new inflation figures before making decision on benefits’
The government must wait until inflation figures are available to make a decision on whether to raise benefits this autumn, Conservative party leader Jake Berry has said.
He told LBC: “Instead of people waiting for us to guess, we need to wait until these figures are available, at which point the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and the Chancellor will decide how to increase these benefits, this will come to the Council of Ministers, they will be discussed and a decision will be announced in due course.
“You just can’t make a decision on numbers that you don’t currently have.”
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 8:55 am
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Labor “is not going to put people in more debt,” says Lisa Nandy
Lisa Nandy has denied that Labor will raise taxes if they get into government.
He said: “We want to reduce the tax burden on workers by getting growth back into the economy. When we borrow to pay for day-to-day spending, we will only do so when the independent Office for Budget Responsibility says there is a crisis.
“We’re not going to put workers in more debt.”
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 8:45 am
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Tory president laments ‘clumsy’ call for people to find better jobs
Jake Berry has said he regrets his call for people to get out and get better-paying jobs to cover their bills, admitting his comments were “a bit clumsy”.
The Tory party chairman told Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday last week: “Go out there and get that new job.”
Speaking to Times Radio on Thursday, he said: “I think my language was a bit clumsy in that regard and I’m sorry for that.”
“What I said…is that the government needs to look for growth to make sure it can grow the economy and Britain can get a pay rise. You don’t need to tell me how people are grafted into this economy. I know how people work.”
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 8:35 am
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Liz Truss is ‘destroyer of growth’, says Keir Starmer
Asked about Mrs Truss’ attack on an “anti-growth” coalition of Labour, unions and left-wing elites, Sir Keir Starmer told BBC Radio Sheffield: “Oh, for God’s sake, the enemies of the growth!”
“He has just passed a kamikaze budget which has lost control of the economy, which is putting hundreds of pounds on mortgage bills. This is the very opposite of a plan for growth,” Sir Keir said.
The Labor leader: “It’s not only anti-growth, it’s destructive of growth.”
Adam Forrest October 6, 2022 8:25 am
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Brits face £500 rise in mortgage payments due to ‘kamikaze’ budget, Labor warns
Sir Keir Starmer has called on Liz Truss and Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng to reverse their “kamikaze” mini-budget as he warned families face “exciting” mortgage rises.
The average UK buyer moving out of a two-year fixed mortgage could see a monthly increase of £498 if interest rates hit 6%, according to Labor analysis.
The opposition made estimates based on the assumption that a homeowner has a 20-year mortgage term and pays 5 to 6 percent interest after their two-year fix ends on the third quarter of 2022.
£500 rise in mortgage payments due to Budget, Labor warns
“You just have to reverse the mini-budget,” says the Labor leader
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 8:15 am
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Tory leader urges MPs to make Truss’ ‘bold vision’ for UK a reality
Conservative party leader Jake Berry has said he hopes his peers will listen to Liz Truss’ message at the conference and make her “bold vision” for Britain a reality.
Asked if he was concerned the current administration was “driving the party over a cliff”, Berry told Times Radio: “If people listen and look at what the Prime Minister said yesterday, I don’t think she was talking just with the people.in the conference room, he was talking to the country about his vision.
“I hope and I believe that the country will hear it, and I hope that colleagues will hear it and see that we have a bold vision for our country to transform it to improve the lives of families and people everywhere and from below this country.”
Emily Atkinson October 6, 2022 8:04 am