Sir Keir Starmer is coming under increasing pressure as Labour MPs furious over cuts to winter fuel payments could vote against the government next week.
House of Commons Leader Lucy Powell said a motion to approve the changes would be debated on September 10, with the Prime Minister facing a revolt from Labour’s grassroots.
One MP told the i: “Six days is a long time. There are people who are determined to vote against this, even though they know it will probably cost them the whip.”
Opposition parties voiced concerns about the cuts on Thursday, with Liberal Democrat Wera Hobhouse saying many pensioners in her Bath constituency were “desperate about not being able to heat their homes this winter”.
Chris Philp, leader of the House of Commons shadow group, welcomed the vote and said he had been contacted by constituents from Croydon South who were “desperately concerned” about the proposed changes.
Mr Philp said 84 per cent of pensioners living in poverty would lose their benefits under ministers’ plans.
Ms Powell said the changes were needed after a Treasury audit found there was a £22bn black hole in spending taken over from the Tories.
Key Points
-
Starmer under pressure over winter fuel payment cut as general election looms
-
Pensioners could die from winter fuel payments, Labour MP warns
Labour minister does not deny reports that British prisoners could be sent to Estonian jails
08:29 , Joe Middleton
A Labour minister has not denied reports that there are plans to send UK prisoners to serve their sentences in Estonian prisons.
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)Dame Angela Eagle, Minister at the Home Office, said the Ministry of Justice was “considering every option” to reduce prison overcrowding.
She declined to comment directly when asked on Sky News whether the government was considering renting out cells for British prisoners in Estonia, as this was “not directly my ministerial responsibility”.
Dame Angela said: “The previous government closed a great many prisons and replaced none, so I think colleagues at the Ministry of Justice will be considering everything they can to fix the problem.
“What we cannot have is people who have been convicted of potentially violent or serious crimes not being able to serve time in prison.”
She added: “I’m sure colleagues are considering all sorts of measures to address the crisis that the previous government left us with in terms of prisons and the prison service, and the criminal justice system generally.”
Angela Eagle calls Tory plan for Rwanda a ‘gimmick’
08:20 , Joe Middleton
Dame Angela Eagle has called the Conservative government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda a “gimmick” and “not feasible”.
She told Sky News: “The previous government spent £700 million to get four people to Rwanda voluntarily and they were planning to spend literally billions more. I think if that plan had worked, it would have worked. We had to give it up, it just didn’t work.”
Germany considers plan to deport to Rwanda using UK facilities after Labour scraps plan
08:12 , Joe Middleton
Germany could use asylum facilities in Rwanda originally intended for the UK’s aborted migration programme, reports from Berlin suggest.
The country’s migration commissioner, Joachim Stamp, suggested the EU could use existing asylum facilities in the East African country, which were originally intended for migrants deported from Britain under the now-abolished scheme.
Downing Street said it would not comment on the talks between two foreign governments.
Germany considers deportations to Rwanda via British facilities after Labour abandons plan
Jenrick, the front-runner in the Conservative Party leadership race, said Labour had “surrendered to smuggling gangs”
08:09 , Joe Middleton
The government has “surrendered to the smuggling gangs”, said Robert Jenrick, former immigration minister and front-runner for the Conservative Party leadership.
Mr Jenrick told Sky News: “We have seen thousands of people crossing the Channel illegally since Labour came to power.
“They have abolished the only credible deterrent: the Rwanda policy.
“Yvette Cooper will meet the National Crime Agency and police chiefs today, and they will tell her what they told me when I was a minister, which is that while it is important that we do that work, it is not enough. You have to have a deterrent.”
He said the decision to scrap the Rwanda policy meant it was “open season” for people smugglers, adding: “Keir Starmer and Yvette Cooper have surrendered to the smuggling gangs.”
Yvette Cooper to chair summit aimed at stopping criminal gangs smuggling people across the Channel
08:00 , Joe Middleton
Yvette Cooper will chair a summit aimed at destroying the criminal gangs that smuggle people across the Channel in small boats.
The Home Secretary will today chair a meeting of senior ministers and figures from the National Crime Agency (NCA) and intelligence agencies.
It comes in response to the deaths of at least 12 people attempting to cross the Channel on Tuesday, in what is being described as the deadliest crossing tragedy of the year so far.
Their boat was ‘torn apart’ and sank off the northern French coast of Cap Gris-Nez. The crossings continued in the following days.
Speaking ahead of the meeting, Ms Cooper said: “Exploiting vulnerable people is at the heart of the business model of these despicable criminal trafficking gangs.
“Women and children were in an unsafe boat this week that literally crashed into the water.
“At least 12 people were killed as part of this evil trade. We will not rest until these networks are dismantled and brought to justice.”
The Home Secretary is joined at the NCA headquarters in London by Foreign Secretary David Lammy, Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Attorney General Lord Hermer.
Representatives of the intelligence service will also be present, assisting the NCA in infiltrating and dismantling the smuggling gangs.
British prisoners could be sent to Estonian prisons to ease overcrowding
07:45 , Joe Middleton
UK prisoners could serve their sentences in Estonia, according to reports, as the Labour government explores ways to tackle chronic overcrowding.
The Ministry of Justice and its Estonian counterpart are exploring “potential partnerships” after Tallinn offered to lease surplus prison capacity to other countries.
Justice Minister Shabana Mahmood and her Estonian counterpart Liisa Pakosta were expected to discuss the options at a meeting of the Council of Europe in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Thursday.
Tom Watling reports
British prisoners could be sent to Estonian prisons to ease overcrowding
Pensioners could die from winter fuel payments, Labour MP warns
07:43 , Joe Middleton
A Labour MP has warned that planned cuts to winter fuel payments could lead to pensioners dying.
Rachel Maskell said statistics show that nearly a quarter of excess deaths in winter are due to cold homes, and that pensioners are also at greater risk of serious health problems, such as heart attacks, due to the lower temperatures.
Writing in the The Telegraphshe said: “The concern that I and many colleagues have is that people will fall through the safety net. Last winter, 4,950 people died because their homes were cold, according to research by UCL and the Institute of Health Equity based on data from the Office for National Statistics, where 21.5 per cent of excess winter deaths are attributed to cold homes.
“The fear is that if we remove winter fuel payments for people in energy poverty, it will lead to a higher number of deaths.”
Starmer under pressure over winter fuel payment cut as general election looms
07:40 , Joe Middleton
Sir Keir Starmer is coming under increasing pressure as Labour MPs furious over cuts to winter fuel payments could vote against the government next week.
House of Commons Leader Lucy Powell said a motion to approve the changes would be debated on September 10, with the Prime Minister facing a revolt from Labour’s grassroots.
One MP told the i: “Six days is a long time. There are people who are determined to vote against this, even though they know it will probably cost them the whip.”
Opposition parties voiced concerns about the cuts on Thursday, with Liberal Democrat Wera Hobhouse saying many pensioners in her Bath constituency were “desperate about not being able to heat their homes this winter”.
Chris Philp, leader of the House of Commons shadow group, welcomed the vote and said he had been contacted by constituents from Croydon South who were “desperately concerned” about the proposed changes.
Good morning
07:39 , Joe Middleton
Hello and welcome to our politics live blog, where we discuss everything that’s happening in the world of Westminster and beyond…