POLITICS: Newslinks for Sunday 11th May 2025 – USSA News

Labour promises new powers to deport foreign nationals convicted of any crime

“Migrants could be kicked out of the country if they commit any crime under a planned government crackdown. Currently, foreign criminals are only reported to the Home Office if they receive a jail sentence – and only those given a year behind bars are usually considered for deportation. But Labour is set to rip up those rules as it tries to get a grip on immigration and see off the growing threat posed by Nigel Farage’s rampant Reform UK party.” – Mail on Sunday

• Skilled migrants will need degrees to come to UK – Sunday Telegraph
• Starmer to launch “immigration crackdown” – The Sun on Sunday
• Labour plan to use jet skies to thwart small boats crossing channel amid illegal immigration crisis – The Sun on Sunday
• Farage is not impressed – Sunday Express
• After years of Tory failure, it is time to restore control of our borders – Yvette Cooper, Sunday Telegraph
• A welcome first step to cutting migration – Leader, Sunday Telegraph
• Can Labour ever truly change its spots over immigration? – Leader, Mail on Sunday
• Labour MPs want to replace Starmer with Rayner to stop Farage – Dan Hodges, Mail on Sunday
• Labour’s new look won’t win over progressive voters – Will Hutton, The Observer

Asylum hotel “King” becomes billionaire

“An Essex businessman known as the “Asylum King” has become a billionaire after profits soared at his migrant-housing company. Graham King, 58, founder of Clearsprings Ready Homes, which has a government contract to provide asylum seekers with accommodation, food and transport, has enjoyed a 35 per cent jump in his fortune in the past year, making him one of the Sunday Times Rich List’s new billionaires. The annual list of the UK’s wealthiest people is published next Sunday. King made his debut on the Rich List only last year when he appeared at No 221 with £750 million. He is ranked 154 in the 2025 list with a fortune of £1.015 billion.” – Sunday Times

Rees-Mogg “agonising” over switch to Reform UK

“Jacob Rees-Mogg would return to the Commons with a majority of more than 20,000 if he defected to Reform UK, the party’s number crunchers have calculated. The former Tory MP, who lost his North East Somerset seat at the last election, is said to be agonising about what to do if there is a by-election as a result of the arrest last month of his successor, Labour’s Dan Norris, on suspicion of rape and child sex offences. Although friends stress that there has been no formal approach to Sir Jacob, he is aware of Reform leader Nigel Farage’s interest.” – Mail on Sunday

Starmer declares Kyiv ceasefire talks a “significant moment”

“Sir Keir Starmer has said that the outcome of talks between Ukraine’s allies in Kyiv marks a “significant moment” in the push to secure a ceasefire in its conflict with Russia – but admitted it was not “the end of the process”. Speaking to the BBC in Kyiv following a virtual meeting of the “coalition of the willing”, the UK prime minister said “we haven’t seen unity like this pretty well throughout the conflict”. Around 30 global leaders reasserted their call for Russia to agree to a 30-day unconditional ceasefire from Monday, threatening “massive” sanctions if it does not comply.” – BBC

• Putin calls for direct peace talks with Ukraine within days – Sunday Times
• Only chance of forcing peace on Putin is by massively increasing the cost of war to Russia – Leader, The Sun on Sunday

Retired police officer arrested for “thought crimes”

“A retired special constable was arrested and detained over a social media post warning about the threat of anti-Semitism in Britain, The Telegraph can reveal. Julian Foulkes, from Gillingham in Kent, was handcuffed at his home by six officers from Kent Police – the force he had served for a decade – after challenging a supporter of pro-Palestinian marches on X. Police body-worn camera footage captured officers scrutinising the 71-year-old’s collection of books by authors such as Douglas Murray, a Telegraph contributor, and issues of The Spectator, pointing to what they described as “very Brexity things.” – Sunday Telegraph

Badenoch: No trade deals are better than bad trade deals

“It’s time to stop being naive. Keir Starmer signed two bad deals this week, and I’m not surprised: when Labour negotiates, Britain loses. Instead of a comprehensive free trade agreement with the United States, we’ve got a tiny tariff deal. It’s better than nothing, but not by much, especially when we’ve cut our tariffs by three times more than the US. What surprised me was how many rushed to proclaim these deals as Brexit benefits without examining the details. It’s a fact that without Brexit, we wouldn’t be in the room, negotiating with India or the US. But the true Brexit benefit is taking control of our trade policy to sign good deals, not just any deals.” – Kemi Badenoch, Sunday Times

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• Conservatives should welcome our trade deal with the US – Kwasi Kwarteng, Sunday Telegraph
• The trade deals will be wasted unless Sir Keir rejects socialism – Janet Daley, Sunday Telegraph
• Britain’s deal with India will have far more impact than Trump’s razzmatazz – Liam Halligan, Sunday Telegraph

>Today: ToryDiary: Is this Tory party hungry enough?

Starmer looking to follow Swiss model of paying into the EU budget in return for access to the single market

“British negotiators preparing for an EU ‘surrender summit’ are operating from a blueprint used by Switzerland – which has agreed to accept EU rules and pay into the Brussels budget in return for access to the single market. The summit, in London on May 19, is the moment Sir Keir Starmer hopes to ‘reset’ the UK’s relationship with the EU, but Brexiteers fear the term is code for a capitulation to the bloc – despite Britain’s vote to leave in 2016.” – Mail on Sunday

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See also

Politics

·05/04/2025·0

POLITICS: Halt assisted suicide — ‘death cult’ never stops expanding it

• Badenoch: I’ll reverse Starmer’s EU reset if it betrays Brexit – Sunday Telegraph

Rape gangs still operating

“From Rotherham to Tameside to Blackpool, what’s plainly apparent is that not only does grooming and child sexual exploitation continue in this country, fuelled by the same toxic brew of vulnerable young people, poverty, mistrust of authority and predatory behaviour. Crucially, a culture of fear and silence endures. In places like Rotherham and Blackpool, due to past associations, those who dare to speak out about grooming gangs still fear accusations of racism. It is the very same culture that allowed grooming gangs to become so endemic in the first place.” – Sunday Times

•  Lucy Powell’s comments spoke volumes about the level of denial in senior Labour circles – Sarah Vine, Mail on Sunday

Labour MPs discontent over welfare reform growing

“This is now Starmer’s dilemma: can he and his strategists plot a middle course to keep all sides happy? Those on the so-called soft left have already grown weary of cuts to benefits. They want the winter fuel payments reinstated and the proposed changes to disability entitlements either watered down or ditched entirely. Those on the reforming right want to go further with what they see as an essential and radical agenda. They believe the state will have to “do less but do it better” to address the ballooning welfare bill, which is set to hit £100 billion by the end of this parliament and means the state currently supports about nine million working-age adults with no job.” – Sunday Times

• How Britain’s £300 billion welfare bill became untouchable – Sunday Telegraph

Defence review will be ‘damp squib’

“A review of the nation’s defences has been described as a “complete damp squib” amid claims that it will lack any detail. The most specific procurement decisions have been delayed until the autumn. The strategic defence review (SDR), which could be published as soon as next week, is being led by Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, a former defence secretary and Nato secretary-general, and Sir Richard Barrons, a retired general. The process is understood to have been fraught with tension, with little meaningful consultation with Britain’s senior military chiefs. Sources close to the Ministry of Defence claim the SDR, will be published “without any numbers attached to it” and will lack any “specific detail” with most procurement decisions delayed until October.” – Sunday Times

Other political news

• Pakistan ‘committed’ to ceasefire with India as both sides claim violations – Sunday Telegraph
• New MI6 boss will be a woman — and ‘Beijing Barbara’ is frontrunner – Sunday Times
• Two Derbyshire Dales Conservative councillors quit – BBC
• Ministers order officials to get down cost and time of public inquiries as Covid probe bill soars – The Sun on Sunday
• Investigate Lucy Letby doctor for perjury, David Davis urges police – Sunday Times
• Thieves who steal tradesmen’s tools should face harsher penalties, says Tory MP Matt Vickers – The Sun on Sunday
• “Bold investment decisions” needed to end prison crisis, says probation service union – BBC
• NHS staff told to stop wearing uniforms at pro-Palestinian demonstrations – Sunday Telegraph
• A third of those who voted Labour last year now believe they made the wrong choice – Sunday Express
• We are facing an antisemitism emergency, says education secretary – Sunday Times
• Durham County Council “aware” of claims some Reform UK councillors may not be eligible – BBC
• Unlawful LTN takes £1m from motorists – Sunday Telegraph
• Heathrow worker and NHS doctor run charity with Hezbollah links – Sunday Times
• British picnics at risk from EU net zero rules – Sunday Telegraph
• Lib Dems launch ‘Reform watch’ to monitor party in local government – The Guardian

Colvile: Miliband’s wind subsidies getting out of control

“Any project manager knows that the moment you set an immovable deadline, you become hostage to your suppliers. For example, there is a simple way to guarantee that people build their wind farms here rather than elsewhere: pay them more money. And that’s what seems to be happening with the 2030 target. For the next auction round, expected to begin in July, the government will target a particular amount of capacity, rather than a particular level of subsidy. Which suggests Miliband will spend what is necessary to reach his target, and worry about the cost later.” – Robert Colvile, Sunday Times

News in brief

• Reform UK takes over its first Conservative Club – Steerpike, The Spectator
• Trump sees trade as involving winners and losers. This is deeply misguided. – Harry Phibbs, Foundation for Economic Education
• Trade negotiations with the US are just getting started – Shanker Singham, CapX
• Come off it, Stonewall – Freddie Attenborough, The Critic
• The British elites have capitulated to Islamo-censorship – Tom Slater, Spiked Online

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