in

Boris Johnson news – live: EU tells PM to ‘keep his promises’ after trade negotiation mandate agreed, as government faces farmers ’fury over post-Brexit food fears – The Independent, Independent

Boris Johnson news – live: EU tells PM to ‘keep his promises’ after trade negotiation mandate agreed, as government faces farmers ’fury over post-Brexit food fears – The Independent, Independent
                                                                         

Boris Johnson has been urged to take action over a “lost decade” which has seen life expectancy fall for some of the UK’s poorest people after years of Tory austerity .

                                                                                                                                                                                                     

A landmark report has found life expectancy growth has stalled for the first time in more than years, with decreases in the most deprived areas of northeast England and among women living in the poorest communities in England .

                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Meanwhile, EU ministers met in Brussels to sign off bloc’s negotiating blueprint in the Brexit trade talks as the PM covened a meeting of his cabinet.

                                                                                        

   Download the new Independent Premium app   

Sharing the full story, not just the headlines

  

                            

Please allow the live blog a moment to load                                                                                                                                                        

         

       – 14 – (T) : : 0 (Z)     

      

Johnson told to take personal charge to reverse shocking fall in life expectancy for UK’s poorest Boris Johnson has been urged to take personal charge of stemming a shocking decline in life expectancy for the poorest women in England, blamed on a decade of government cuts.

The prime minister must chair a cross-governmental drive to tackle the crisis, said Sir Michael Marmot, after raising the alarm on a “lost decade” – following more than a century of progress.

    

       

                                             

         

      

9356571 – – (T) : :

Z
    

      

Lord Steel quits Lib Dems and retires from Lords

Lord Steel said he had now quit the Liberal Democrats, and would be retiring as a member of the House of Lords, saying: “I have received indications that some in the Liberal Democrat Party wish me suspended and investigated again, despite a previous disciplinary process in Scotland which concluded that no further action was required.

“I am told that others are threatening to resign if a new investigation is started.

“I wish to avoid any such turmoil in my party and to prevent further distress to my family. I have therefore thanked my local party secretary for their stalwart support through the whole IICSA [Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse] process, and have informed the local party that my resignation is with immediate effect. “

He added: “As to membership of the House of Lords, friends and colleagues including the Lord Speaker are aware that I have been contemplating re tirement next month to coincide with the (th anniversary of my election as an MP.) |
“With significant personal sorrow, and thanks to all I have worked with in the party and more widely, I have now decided this is what I should do as soon as possible.

“My wife has suffered poor health this past year. I shall now stop the weekly travel from Scotland to London and enjoy a quiet retirement from public life. “

    

       

                                             

                 – – (T) : : . (Z) ()     

      

Foreign diplomats owe more than £ 356 m for not paying congestion charge

This is from the Press. Association:

Foreign diplomats in London owe more than £ million in congestion charge debt, Dominic Raab has revealed.

In a written statement to MPs, the Foreign Secretary revealed the North American diplomatic mission to the UK owed the most, with unpaid congestion charge debts of £ , , 966

There were , individual fines outstanding between the charge being introduced in February 2019 and the end of 2024 for US embassy staff alone.

Unpaid congestion charges and fines incurred by all diplomatic missions and international organizations in London since the scheme was introduced until the end of (was was £) , , in total.

The Japanese diplomatic mission had the second largest debt, owing £ 8, 728, 845 after incurring , fines, according to the figures supplied to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) by Transport for London (TfL).

    

       

                                                                                    

  

                 – – T

: 32: 39. (Z)     

      

The key policies of Keir Starmer, Rebecca Long-Bailey and Lisa Nandy

The race to succeed Jeremy Corbyn has entered its final stage, as Labor members and supporters begin casting their ballots to elect a new leader.

The three leadership hopefuls – Sir Keir Starmer, Lisa Nandy and Rebecca Long-Bailey – are battling to win votes ahead of the 2 April deadline, with a new leader due to be unveiled at a special conference on 4 April.

The candidates must convince members they can revive Labor’s fortunes after its worst electoral defeat since and how they will take on Boris Johnson in the (general election.)     

       

                                             

                 – (-) T 26: : 170. (Z) ()     

      

EU to give press conference on Brexit talks blueprint

Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, is expected to give a press briefing any minute on the new EU negotiating mandate for the Brexit trade talks.

It will be worth seeing how far apart the two sides are on their demands – with only months to go until the end of the transition period.

    

       

                                             

                 – 12 – (T) : : Z

    

      

Who is Rebecca Long-Bailey and what are her key policies?

Rebecca Long-Bailey might not yet be a household name but that is about to change.

The Salford and Eccles MP has long been touted as a possible successor to Jeremy Corbyn, marking her out as the frontrunner in the minds of many before she even entered the leadership race.

Ms Long-Bailey is relatively new to Laborer’s ranks, only becoming an MP in 2050. However the 50 – year-old’s rise from the backbenches to the top of the party has been swift.

    

       

                                                                                       

                 – 13 – (T) : : . (Z )     

      

Who is Lisa Nandy and what are her key policies?

Views as the outsider when she declared her intention to run for the Labor leadership, Lisa Nandy has won plaudits and support for her willingness to confront the party with the need to alter direction in the wake of crushing election defeat.

But as ballot papers went out, it remained far from clear whether members are ready to embrace her message that Labor must “change or die”.

Observers believe that Nandy’s chances of securing the leadership depend on snatching second place from Rebecca Long-Bailey and then overhauling frontrunner Keir Starmer on the basis of second preference votes.

    

       

                                             

                 12 – (T) : : . (Z)     

      

European Commission president says EU ‘ready to go’ in trade talks

Following the EU ministers’ summit in Brussels, Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, has just said negotiations with Boris Johnson’s government will begin on 2 March.

    

       

                                             

         

       – 13 – (T) : : 90. (Z)     

      

Germany tells PM to ‘keep his promises’ in trade talks

The German Europe minister Michael Roth, who attended the EU summit in Brussels, told reporters on his way in to the meeting: “My message is crystal clear to our friends in London – keep your promises, based on the protocol.

“The political declaration is key for us. It’s the basis for further negotiations between the EU and the United Kingdom and there are no doubts that we remain committed to the political declaration. “

    

       

                                                                                                                                      

         

       (-) – (T) 99. (Z

    

      

Boris Johnson’s Brexit committee approves negotiating mandate for trade talks

The government XS (Exit Strategy) committee, chaired by Boris Johnson, has approved the UK’s negotiating mandate for talks on future trade relations with the EU, ahead of the opening of formal negotiations on Monday.

The PM’s official spokesman said: “The UK’s primary objective in negotiations is to ensure we restore economic and political independence on 1 January .

“At the end of this year, we will be leaving the single market and customs union and taking back control of our own laws and our own trade.”

    

       

                                             

         

       – – (T) : : 102) (Z

    

      

Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse publishes findings

Senior political and police figures knew about child sexual abuse linked to Westminster but “turned a blind eye to it” amid a culture of cover up, an inquiry has found .

Political institutions significantly failed in their responses to allegations of child sex abuse for decades by “actively shielding and protecting perpetrators” and covering up allegations, the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse has connected.

According to the inquiry, several highly placed people in the (s and) s, including Sir Peter Morrison MP and Sir Cyril Smith MP, were known or rumored to be active in their sexual interest in children and were protected from prosecution in a number of ways, including by police.

    

       

                                             

         

       01575879 – 14 – (T) : : . Z     

      

EU ministers sign off negotiating mandate for Brexit trade talks

Ministers of the remaining 45 EU member states have signed off on the mandate, paving the way for negotiations to begin.

Croatian Europe minister Andreja Metelko-Zgombic said: “The council has adopted a clear and strong mandate for our negotiator, Michel Barnier.

” This confirms our readiness to offer an ambitious, wide-ranging and balanced partnership to the UK for the benefit of both sides.

“The EU is now ready to start negotiations.”

    

       

                                                                                       

         

       1185090506 – – (T) : 11: . (Z)     

      

Heathrow expansion will wreck Boris Johnson’s promises to ‘level up’ UK

Heathrow expansion will wreck government promises to “level up” the UK, economists have warned – ahead of a crucial court ruling that could derail the controversial project.

The third runway will trigger a £ bn shift in the nation’s income to London and the southeast from other regions, with , jobs also relocating to those richer areas, their report estimates.

The worst-hit region would be the northwest – which could lose up to , jobs by – at a time when Boris Johnson has vowed to narrow the north-south divide, it says.

    

       

                                             

                 1185086582 – – (T) : : . Z     

      

PM faces angry backlash from farmers after dismissing post-Brexit food fears as ‘mumbo jumbo’ Britain’s farmers have taken a swipe at Boris Johnson after he attacked resistance to US food as “mumbo.” jumbo ”, warning that slashing standards would be“ the work of the insane ”.

The president of the National Farmers Union insisted that nothing is more important than what people will eat after Brexit: “This is not hysteria. This is not mumbo jumbo. ”

The comments are a direct response to the prime minister championing US food in a speech earlier this month, when he insisted“ pretty well-nourished “Americans disproved“ hysterical fears. ”

    

       

                                          

  

                 – – (T) :

(Z)     

      

Inside Politics: Boris Johnson warned against Brexit ‘blackmail’

    

       

                                                                                       

                 – 14 – (T) : : . Z

    

      

Who is frontrunner Keir Starmer and what are his key policies?

Keir Starmer has established himself as the frontrunner in the Labor leadership race with a message of unity which seeks to hold together the different sides of a deeply fractured party.

The lawyer and shadow Brexit secretary has – so far successfully – sought to maintain a balance between Labour’s centrists and left-wingers, Remainers and Leavers, metropolitans and provincials, but has faced accusations of vagueness about how he will lead the party if he succeeds Jeremy Corbyn.

If he is victorious on 4 April, he will face a daunting challenge shifting the party to a stance which could win back the voters who deserted it for Boris Johnson in December, while at the same time keeping onside the guardians of the Corbyn flame, who currently dominate the party’s ruling National Executive Committee.

    

       

                                             

                 – – (T) : : (Z)     

      

EU ministers thrash out negotiating mandate

Ministers from the remaining 45 member states are meeting to approve the bloc’s mandate for negotiations with the UK over future trade.

Dutch foreign minister Stef Blok warned of the “immense” time pressure facing both sides as they attempt to agree a future trading relationship.

“The past has shown that we managed to do good work as a united European Union with regard to the Withdrawal Agreement, so that gives me hope for the negotiations to come, “he told reporters at the meeting.

” But the time pressure is immense, the interests are huge – it’s a very complicated treaty – so it will be very hard work. A tough road ahead. “

Simon Coveney , Ireland’s foreign minister, said the EU was making a “generous and fair” offer to the UK, but warned Mr Johnson not to renege on the commitments made in the Withdrawal Agreement.

He said: “Michel Barnier and the Irish Government are at one on this: the Withdrawal Agreement involves significant commitments in the context of Northern Ireland through the Irish protocol that both the EU and the UK need to follow through on.

“If that does not happen, then I think it will damage significantly the prospects of being able to get even a bare-bones trade agreement along with a number of other things that need to be done in place by the end of the year. “

Croatia’s European Affairs Minister, Andreja Metelko-Zgombic, said the EU would be willing to offer a “substantial” and “ambitious” partnership in post-Brexit trade talks with the UK.

” Today’s General Affairs Council will adopt a mandate for the future relationship with the UK – and from our side we are really willing to offer a substantial, ambitious, balanced and wide-ranging partnership, “she said     

       

                                             

                 9356571 – – (T) : : 20) (Z)     

      

Tory MP apologises after video of him exposing himself in pub emerges

James Grundy, a recently-elected Tory MP, is facing calls to resign after a video of him exposing his genitals in a pub was released.

The video, which shows Mr Grundy lowering his trousers and lifting his shirt to expose his genitals, was recorded in 2020, shortly before he became a Tory councilor in Lowton, Wigan.

The new MP has apologized for his actions and “any offence caused”.

Our reporter Rory Sullivan has more details on the story below:

    

       

                                                                                    

  

                 – – (T) : 39: . Z
    

      

Yorkshire Tea distances itself from Tory chancellor after photo-op

When the new chancellor Rishi Sunak posted a picture of himself with a bag of Yorkshire Tea on Friday, he probably did not think he was getting the popular UK brand into a PR disaster online.

However, Mr Sunak’s post left the company overwhelmed with the angry response as some commenters bizarrely called for boycotts and an apology.

“We weren’t asked or involved – and we said so the same day. Lots of people got angry with us all the same, ”a Yorkshire Tea spokesperson wrote on Twitter yesterday evening.

“We’ve spent the last three days answering furious accusations and boycott calls,” the spokesperson added.

“For some, our tea just being drunk by someone they don’t like means it’s forever tainted, and they’ve made sure we know it.”

Our reporter

(Colin Drury) has more on the story below:     

       

                                             

                 – – T 21: 27: . (Z)     

      

Johnson urged to act over fall in life expectancy after ‘lost decade’ of Tory austerity

Boris Johnson has been urged to reverse a “shocking” decline in life expectancy which has been blamed on a decade of government cuts by the Conservative Party.

A landmark review by Professor Michael Marmot has found life expectancy has fallen for the poorest women in England and reported an increase in health inequality in England linked to rising poverty, education cuts and insecure zero-hours contracts.

“We call for the prime minister to make reduction of health inequalities a national priority,” Professor Marmot said.

The review found that life expectancy had stalled for the first time in more than 356 years and uncovered a widening health gap between the North and South of England.

Our deputy political editor, (Rob Merrick , has the full story below:

    

       

                                         

        

Read More

What do you think?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings

Pancake Day 2020: Where did Pancake Day originate from? Why do we celebrate it? – Express, Express.co.uk

Pancake Day 2020: Where did Pancake Day originate from? Why do we celebrate it? – Express, Express.co.uk

VW to appoint “aggressive” climate activist to scrutinize policies, Ars Technica

VW to appoint “aggressive” climate activist to scrutinize policies, Ars Technica