Tom Newton Dunn
@tnewtondunn
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Formerly of The Sun, Times Radio, TalkTV. Always #AFC , Upper East Stand. Agent, Mary Greenham
London
Joined February 2009
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Norawit with L'Oreal Paris
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President Biden has removed the Diet Coke button. When
@ShippersUnbound
and I interviewed Donald Trump in 2019, we became fascinated by what the little red button did. Eventually Trump pressed it, and a butler swiftly brought in a Diet Coke on a silver platter. It's gone now.
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The House of Commons has just updated its guidance on masks. Now mandatory for all staff, contractors, press and all other third parties while on the estate... but still not MPs. Begs the question, why not?
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If you have children born between March and July, and you obey the rules, they haven't had a birthday party for almost three years now. That's why the latest allegation of a restrictions-busting birthday party in Downing Street particularly stings for some of us.
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Operation Save Dom steps up. Mid-ranking ministers and backbenchers now being asked by Tory whips to tweet support for Cummings, for “basically looking after his family”. One MP: “I told them to piss off”.
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Exchange of the day at today's lobby briefing on Plan B:
"If I'm in a theatre watching a musical, can I take my mask off to sing?"
No10: "Yes. There is a general exemption for singing"
So could I walk into Tesco without a mask as long as I'm singing?
No10: "Essentially, yes"
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Wow. Boris Johnson bans CMO Chris Whitty and CSA Sir Patrick Vallance from giving their opinions on Dominic Cummings’ lockdown activities. Now we know why they were abruptly sent home from No10 on Monday instead of doing the press conference.
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For the Tories to lose North Shropshire - a pro-Brexit 23,000 majority seat they’ve held since 1832 - is awful. To lose it with a 34% swing and by 6,000 votes is quite extraordinary. It’s only a by-election, but would mean there’s no such thing as a safe Tory seat.
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Another powerful forensic assault by Keir Starmer today. Had PM on the ropes on care home testing and unexplained deaths in them, as well as international death comparisons. Lesson for No10 is Boris Johnson can no longer wing it at
#PMQs
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I’m told Eton is developing its own comprehensive testing regime so it can fully reopen as a bubble. Other private schools will do the same, but state schools cannot afford this. So the educational chasm between rich and poor will only widen further. A huge tragedy.
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This is unfortunate...
'Has Gavin Williamson ever met Marcus Rashford? “We met over Zoom and he seemed incredibly engaged, compassionate and charming". Later Williamson’s team tell me he actually met the rugby player Maro Itoje, not Rashford.'
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Sir Nicholas Soames tells me he will vote against the Govt tonight, unless the PM (who he’s going to see now) can assure him a Brexit deal will be done. Boris therefore faces the uncomfortable prospect of deselecting Winston Churchill’s grandson.
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The numbskull who tried his best to ruin
#SkyPapers
from Westminster tonight by whistling and shouting ‘losers’ and ‘Brexit now’ through out just admitted to the producer he’s paid £80 a night to do it. I wonder who by?
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“Nobody defends booing of the England side,” Johnson tells Starmer. This is factually untrue. A government minister has, as well as several Tory MPs, and Downing Street refused to condemn it for three days just before Euro 2020 started.
#PMQs
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Startling polling from
@Unherd
, on the eve of the 3rd anniversary of Brexit. In all 650 UK constituencies apart from three (all in Lincolnshire), more people now agree than disagree that Brexit was a mistake. Biggest movement in left leaning areas.
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Disastrous Met decision for No10 and No11. Downing Street confirms both Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak will be given Fixed Penalty Notices for breaching Covid regulations. Cue the absolute mother of all political rows: can rule makers be rule breakers?
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Retribution, it appears, is coming for the 26 bishops who said the Rwanda policy “shames Britain”. Cabinet ministers openly talking about expelling them from the Lords now. “Only Iran also has clerics that sit in their legislature”, one tells me. “They’ll go”.
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Chris Whitty finally admits what no government minister has dared to on
#Covid19
- Germany did what the UK should have done on mass testing: CMO: "Germany got ahead on testing, and there's a lot to learn from that".
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But Tory MPs adamantly aren’t. I also understand only 3 ministers spoke in favour of Plan B now during Cabinet yesterday. One senior Tory MP just now: “I’m not having all our lives fucked up by these fucking halfwits again just to dig themselves out of their own fucking mess”.
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Donald Trump said today, "I don't know Prince Andrew". When we interviewed him in July 2018, he told us he played 18 holes of golf with Andrew (and he insisted he won too).
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This is quite something. Two different backbench Tory MPs tell me they have been approached by whips in the last 24 hours to tell them the Chief, Mark Spencer, was NOT the instigator of last week's disastrous motion, but he was following direct orders from the PM. It means...
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NEW: Boris Johnson's former Attorney General Geoffrey Cox tonight reveals he will vote against the Internal Markets Bill in protest at the Government's plan to break international law - an act he calls "unconscionable". I have spoken to him. Full story on
@TimesRadio
now.
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Fancy that. No10 has, out of the blue, just given long standing eurosceptic Tory MP John Hayes a knighthood. Two unrelated facts: he didn't sign a no confidence letter, and hasn't yet said he'll vote down the Brexit deal.
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By just 1 vote, Commons decides to forbid Boris Johnson by law from proroguing Parliament to ensure Brexit happens on October 31. Such is history decided, sometimes by the thinnest of margins.
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I don't have a huge amount of sympathy for David Cameron telling
@thetimes
he still thinks about the referendum "every single day”. I have to write about it every single day, sometimes four or five times a day.
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I’m told there are only three Tory MPs defending the Government on their backbench WhatsApp group tonight, out of 200+. They are IDS, Sheryll Murray and Andrew Mitchell.
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A mixed reaction from Tory MPs on Patel-gate. Backbenchers loyally responding to PM's plea to 'form a square around the prittster'. But one minister tells me: "If we are not careful this will define us. One rule for us, one for everyone else".
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When senior politicians conduct morning broadcast rounds and don’t answer a single respectful question directly, two scenarios are possible. 1. They are hard of hearing, or 2. They think listeners are stupid. Listeners aren’t, and they hear every syllable of obfuscation.
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Jenny Harries finally admits contact tracing was halted in March because of a huge testing capacity shortage. A shame she was so economical with the truth at the time. On March 26, all she said was it was "not an appropriate mechanism as we go forward”. It was very appropriate.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England acknowledges there was a change of policy on virus testing in March partly because there was not enough capacity.
Dr Jenny Harries told the Commons Health Select Committee that “if we had unlimited capacity we would have done differently”.
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Why has the Govt stopped publishing a daily international league table of deaths, Starmer asks? Johnson: "International comparisons with other countries, I am advised, are premature". Why publish it for the 7 previous weeks then, asks Starmer, because we're now second top?
#PMQs
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Johnson on partygate, in summary: I was there, I'm terribly sorry, it shouldn't have happened, but it was someone else's fault, and we didn't technically break the rules anyway. Otherwise known as a non-apology apology
#PMQs
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Excl:
@Lord_Sugar
writes open letter to Labour voters to urge them to vote Tory - as the only way of saving the Labour Party. “On Thursday, it’s time to tell Corbyn to resign and get a sensible person to take the helm and make Labour great again”.
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Theresa May still intends to vote against the Internal Market Bill when it returns to the Commons tonight, I'm told - the first ex-Prime Minister in living memory to break a 3 line Government whip. More on
@TimesRadio
now.
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Tory MP says Theresa May has just told them she will resign as PM before the next general election. Some Ministers reported to be in tears inside the committee room.
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"She's 18 years old, she just did her A-levels. She had to qualify. She hasn't dropped a set, and she's US Open champion. It's a joke!" Tim Henman 👏🇬🇧
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Daily Telegraph: “What do you pray for in church, Prime Minister?”
Theresa May: “I pray for serious questions from journalists”.
👆Fair point.
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There are several alternative ways in and out of No10, via the basement back door or through the Cabinet Office. You only need to walk out the front door carrying a packing box if you want to be photographed doing it.
I know Dominic Cummings is supposedly staying till new year. But this rather looks like him having cleared his desk
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A sign of dire straits: the PM had dinner in Members’ Dining Room tonight - the first time she’s been seen in there for 10 years. An unimpressed Tory MP: “She didn’t know what to do, or where to get her food. I’ve never seen anything more desperate”.
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Prime Minister and Carrie Johnson booed by the crowd on the way into St Paul's Cathedral, though some counter-cheered. That will do little to steady Tory MPs' nerves.
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The Sun Says today: Tommy Robinson is not a freedom fighter. He is a nasty thug and a grandstanding idiot.
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I understand Matt Hancock has hit his 100,000 tests a day target. By any account, this is a phenomenal achievement - especially when quite a few in the Cabinet doubted him.
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Anyone expecting Dominic Cummings’ sacking, or en even an inquiry, at 5pm from Boris Johnson is going to be disappointed. I’m told the PM believes it’s “case closed”.
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An extraordinarily powerful statement from Prince William tonight. While slamming the BBC, it’s to his immense credit he also extolled the vital need for a free media and press. The words of a future King.
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The 3 big takeaways from that extraordinary Cummings press conference:
1. He has admitted to driving 30 miles to Barnard Castle with his wife and son, and sitting by a river - he says, to test if he could drive to London. That is a second clear breach of the lockdown rules.
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Jeremy Corbyn unable to tell
#Marr
, despite being asked 6 times, if he wants to leave the EU (or if it doesn’t want to), or if he supports a second referendum (or doesn’t).
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Cabinet ministers wring their hands about Afghanistan’s fate, as if they’re powerless observers. They are not. Why is the UK Govt unwilling to lead a new international effort to save the country from the Taliban? What a rank betrayal of a people, as well as Britain’s 457 dead.
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Nigel Farage refuses to give up his £73k MEPs’ pension. “Why should my family suffer”? He really just said that
#Marr
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Three months into the pandemic, a UCL study finds 20% of all school children (2 million) are still doing less than an hour of schoolwork a day at home, or none at all. The average is 2.5 hours. Many well-funded private school kids are doing 6 hours. A generation in regression.
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The most powerful intervention of the day: Mike Gapes reminds Jeremy Corbyn what Labour governments used to do;
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I am told Cabinet was roundly bollocked by Theresa May today for leaking from it. She blamed leaks last week for the humble address defeat today, and asked them to stop. That too has now leaked.
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Patrick Vallance tells the Science Committee that SAGE advised Govt to implement all lockdown measures “as soon as possible” on March 16, when data revealed Covid cases were doubling every 3 days. (The full lockdown wasn’t implemented for a further 7 days, until March 23).
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Well fancy that. The Intelligence and Security Committee has just elected Dr Julian Lewis as its Chair, NOT Chris Grayling - who was No10's chosen candidate. Quite a rebellion by its members against Downing Street.
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“I just feel we have under-estimated its complexity. We are unpicking 45 years of in-depth integration. This needed to be done with very great care, in a phased and graduated way. It needs a hard-headed understanding of realities” (1/2)
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Quote of the day to
@DavidGauke
: “A willingness by politicians to say what they think the public want to hear, and a willingness by large parts of the public to believe what they are told by populist politicians, has led to a deterioration in our public discourse”.
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EXCL: Johnny Mercer has called the British government “the most distrustful, awful environment I've ever worked in”, in his first interview since being sacked as Veterans Minister last night. Listen to it on
@TimesRadio
in a few minutes.
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“I am demanding to know what’s going to be in the emergency legislation next week.” JC could always ask his shadow health secretary, who helped Matt Hancock draw it up. Suspect the public has very low tolerance for cheap politicking right now.
"The government seems complacent"
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn says he has written a letter to the prime minister asking why advice on coronavirus "is different to that given in almost every other European country"
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Royal Marine, Special Forces officer, diplomat, spy, MP, party leader, orator, diplomat again, peace keeper, writer, statesman, mentor. What a life, and he had a smile through out.
#PaddyAshdown
RIP.
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England squad v Cabinet ministers. Not at all a good look for the Government...
You don’t get to stoke the fire at the beginning of the tournament by labelling our anti-racism message as ‘Gesture Politics’ & then pretend to be disgusted when the very thing we’re campaigning against, happens.
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AstraZeneca's CEO Pascal Soriot hits back at EU tonight:
- EU's supply is 3 months behind UK's because they signed contract 3 months later
- AZ isn't holding back supply to profiteer because it sells doses for the same not-for-profit price everywhere
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CCHQ now fear a total clear out of Tory MPs from London is now possible. Source: "London is looking horrible". Revenge of the Remainers.
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Theresa May hurls a full frontal Brexit hand grenade at Boris Johnson. Asks him to guarantee that UK police and Border Force will still have access to EU passenger data after the transition period. Boris declines: “That depends on the outcome of our negotiations”
#PMQs
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Fancy that. No10 announce - at 4.30pm on Xmas week Friday - that prominent Brexiteer Sir Edward Leigh has now been made a privy counsellor (he already has a knighthood). Wonder what he'll do come the meaningful vote?
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Meanwhile, it appears today is a good day to bury fairly explosive Brexit news. The UK Govt has unilaterally extended the grace period for food and agri imports into Northern Ireland by six months, to October. EU has gone crazy, and accused UK of breaking international law again.
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Excl: Boris Johnson accused of branding Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon “that bloody Wee Jimmy Krankie woman” in row over COP26
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Break: Sir John Major joins legal action against Boris Johnson to try to stop him proroguing. Tory party at full blown legal war with itself.
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Senior Govt minister claims Tory vote collapsing in middle class Remain areas: “If you knock on a door and they have books on their shelves, you can be pretty sure these days they’re not voting Tory”.
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Liaison Committee exchange of the afternoon.
Benn: "Is the EU negotiating in good faith?"
PM: (eventually) "I don’t believe they are".
Benn: "Why did your Northern Ireland Secretary say they were this morning?"
PM: “It’s always possible I’m mistaken".
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There'll be no spending cuts, Liz Truss declares to
#PMQs
. That's it then - she's going to abandon her mini-budget tax cuts. That, or the markets crash spectacularly on Friday.
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That was Keir Starmer’s best
#PMQs
yet. Admittedly he had a defection to crow about, and only had to hit the barn door from 5 paces, but he appears to have finally learned the immense power of political humour. Gags at the Despatch Box work, even bad ones.
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Endgame. Nothing in 24 years of journalism has made me angrier or sadder, not least because one day we’ll all have to go back
#Afghanishtan
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At the No10 press briefing, member of the public Ian nails it with his Q: "If the new variant is more infectious than last March, why are the rules more relaxed?" No answer from Priti Patel.
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Corbyn stops taking questions from journalists after only 3 national newspapers, and reverts to hearing from friendly party activists. Scrutiny not by the many but the few
#GE2019
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"We are not undermining the will of the people: we are the people". Sir John Major, in powerful defence of the 48%.
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Excl: Government urges Prince Harry not to invite Obama to his wedding for fear of infuriating Trump;
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Quite spectacular circular blame game erupting this morning on why contact tracing was stopped. Science Committee blames PHE, but PHE says Matt Hancock took the decisions, while Cabinet colleague Therese Coffey points the finger at the "wrong" science. A taster of things to come.
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Is getting a Fixed Penalty Notice for breaking covid rules while working in Downing Street to enforce them a resignation or sacking offence for any officials today? Huge tank trap for the Government, as what applies to the staff must surely also apply to their bosses.
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Rumours abounding of an imminent Quad meeting to discuss imposing Plan B as early as tomorrow morning, meaning Working From Home and covid passports for large venues. One source tells me it's "85% likely". Let's see. One helluva dead cat.
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Labour has finally managed to think up something as mad as the Tories kicking out 21 of their most senior MPs: abolish their rebellious deputy leader, on the eve of a pre-election party conference. Brexit is smashing Britain’s two parties of Government to pieces.
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Yet again, Sturgeon announces a measure before the UK Govt. If it's not a concerted attempt to embarrass Westminster, it's having precisely that effect anyway.
Scottish Govt recommend face coverings in shops and public transport
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Think what you like about Macron, but by God he answers a straight question. Our obfuscating politicians need to learn how to do that fast
#Marr
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Bercow has refused select ERG's amendment to rule out a second referendum, despite having 127 signatures. Here comes a riot.
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More trouble for Boris. Lots of Tory backbenchers in a 1922 Committee meeting with the PM now just cheered Edward Leigh and Damian Green for speaking up for the 21 rebels, and booed Dan Kawczynski for attacking them.
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Steve Barclay will respond for the Government in this afternoon's emergency debate, replacing Jacob Rees-Mogg who was down for it until last night. The PM is on a pre-arranged visit to a hospital in the North East, No10 say. A 'kill the story at all costs' operation under way.
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Mark Carney: 'No deal is possible'... massive abuse from hard Brexiteers.
Liam Fox: 'No deal is very possible'... complete silence.
🤨
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The Foreign Office have a rapid deployment team, designed to go to places like Kabul to lead evacuations. I understand it’s still en route, currently in transit in UAE, 3 days after MoD staff and the Ambassador began the evacuation. This really hasn’t been the FCDO’s finest hour.
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An unpopular view in Westminster, but
@eucopresident
is right - and all good Brexiteers (as well as Remainers) should agree with him. Here's why... (1)
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Three out of four Tory MPs privately refuse to support PM’s decision to stand by Dominic Cummings, in ring round by whips and PM’s PPS. Nine Cabinet ministers also fail to make public statements of support for him.
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Excl: Theresa May becomes first Tory leader in 185 years to face a grassroots vote to oust her. PM was told today that an association chairmen's petition has succeeded and Emergency General Meeting will be triggered in June (1/3)
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I understand Boris Johnson was given no forewarning about the Soleimani strike from Donald Trump, despite significant UK interests and 1,400 military personnel in Iraq/Syria.
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...government whips have (officially or not) begun actively briefing against No10. Sources close to Spencer emphatically deny he sanctioned this. Govt source: “It was a Government decison. It’s a team game, we stand or fall together”. More on
@TimesRadio
at 4pm.
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Actually, I think this statement is one of the most wonderfully subtle fuck yous of all time.
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Is Lord Frost right to say the UK "underestimated the effect" of the NI Protocol? Former DexEU Permanent Secretary Philip Rycroft tells
@TimesRadio
: "Take that with a large pinch of salt. The UK side knew exactly what they were signing up to. The UK has to accept responsibility".
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I was lucky enough to meet Bill. A giant of a man at 6ft 6, he held his hilltop against 6,000 Chinese soldiers by repeated grenade charges at them while wounded - throwing beer bottles when the grenades ran out. Amazing man, RIP.
We are extremely sad to learn that Chelsea Pensioner Bill Speakman VC sadly passed away last night. Our thoughts and prayers go to his family and friends at this sad time.
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Keir Starmer says he would bring back the 45p top rate of income tax, but keep the basic rate cut down to 19p and the NICs cut. The latter two cost 10 times the former - so unless he cuts spending, he too would have to borrow a tonne more, or put up other taxes. Them’s the maths.
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Finally caught up with
@afneil
’s Corbyn interview after a long night on a train. The antisemitism and foreign policy segments were painful viewing, but imho the real reputational damage came from seeing how stunningly fiscally innumerate he is, especially on his own policies (1)
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