Partygate live: Boris Johnson says no plan to resign over Sue Gray report despite Tory MP calling for him to step down | Politics

Northern Eire secretary Brandon Lewis has mentioned he’ll act “inside weeks” to fee abortion providers if Stormont doesn’t.
Final week, the UK Authorities took additional legislative motion in a bid to make sure the complete supply of abortion providers in Northern Eire, permitting Stormont well being ninister Robin Swann to fee providers with out Govt approval.

Swann is within the technique of in search of authorized recommendation.

Lewis,who met with volunteers in Belfast who assist girls by terminations, informed the PA information company: “The assertion and the motion we took final week does two issues; it takes away the ultimate hurdle that the division of well being have had right here to must undergo the Govt, so the division of well being can act, and I anticipate to see them take motion as a result of we now have taken away the hurdle that the division of well being mentioned was there.

“In the event that they don’t take motion, there’s a secondary level in what we did final week, which is that we now have now taken an influence in order that the secretary of state, I, can act, I’ve obtained the authorized foundation to behave and fee providers immediately in Northern Eire.”

The daughter of a Covid sufferer has mentioned she believes “egocentric” Boris Johnson should resign after “raucous and savage behaviour” in Westminster through the pandemic was laid naked in Sue Grey’s report.

Safiah Ngah, 29, wept as she recalled how restrictions in place final February meant she was denied a closing goodbye in individual along with her father, Zahari Ngah, earlier than he died.

Ngah mentioned her 68-year-old father, a retired NHS employee, would have been “scared” and susceptible with out his household in hospital throughout his final days.

The household needed to accept a video name as their final contact with him – in the meantime authorities officers have been “cheers-ing”, partying and joking about getting away with it, she mentioned.

She informed the PA information company: “It’s disgusting. It makes me embarrassed to be British.

“The federal government is totally out of contact with what actual individuals are experiencing and it’s unsurprising. They’re clearly a gaggle of very privileged folks with restricted expertise.”

“I believe it’s raucous and savage behaviour from the folks which can be main us and presupposed to be defending us,” she added.

Ngah mentioned she thought her father, who believed in democratic accountability, would have been “ashamed” and “disillusioned” at how the federal government responded to the well being disaster.

Boris Johnson has dismissed the thought of an alcohol ban in No 10 within the wake of the damning findings of the Sue Grey inquiry.

After the prime minister was requested concerning the suggestion throughout a gathering of the 1922 Committee of Tory MPs, a celebration supply informed PA: “He made the purpose he’s not an enormous drinker himself however had alcohol been banned in 1940 we’d not have received the Second World Struggle.

“The very fact about No 10 is there’s an alcohol coverage that now units tips to its use.”

He added: “there’s a recognition that on the finish of a very lengthy, exhausting day .. the treatment for decompressing … is to have a glass of wine or a beer.

“So, there’s recognition that a part of decompressing on the finish of a protracted day entails having a drink, however not trying out at 4am completely legless, having been impolite to a member of employees, having thrown up over a settee.”

The supply added the prime minister was as a result of have “an viewers with the Queen” this night just about following the publication of the Sue Grey partygate investigation.

A Tory get together supply mentioned the brand new bundle of measures to be introduced will include particulars of the place further funds shall be raised, in a touch at a windfall tax.

He informed PA: “There shall be a contemporary bundle of measures within the very close to future with a proof of the place some further funds could also be acquired with the intention to fund that.

“On the talk on the windfall tax … the main target of any bundle that shall be introduced by us is not going to be on elevating taxes as an finish in themselves, however on what that allows us to do to assist the folks struggling.

“The arguments have been examined rigorously each throughout the Treasury and throughout the authorities, so there’s a excessive threshold that any bundle that we carry ahead delivers extra achieve than ache, that the achieve is definitely worth the ache, that it doesn’t jeopardise the funding that Conservatives are aware of.

“That you just don’t introduce random taxes that make the financial atmosphere unpredictable.”

The takeover of British microchip producer Newport Wafer Fab by a Chinese language-owned firm has been known as in for a “full nationwide safety evaluation”, the federal government has mentioned.

The transfer follows rising strain from MPs amid considerations that one of many UK’s largest producers of semiconductors has been acquired by a “strategic competitor”.

Boris Johnson mentioned in July 2021 that he had requested the nationwide safety adviser, Sir Stephen Lovegrove, to take a look at the reported £63m buy by Nexperia, an organization mentioned to be linked to the Chinese language Communist get together, PA experiences.

Nevertheless in a report final month, the Commons overseas affairs committee mentioned there was no signal that any investigation had begun.

The Division for Enterprise, Power and Industrial Technique mentioned at this time that the enterprise secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, had lastly known as within the takeover.

Underneath the phrases of the laws, ministers have the facility to scrutinise and, if obligatory, intervene within the acquisition on nationwide safety grounds.

The federal government has an preliminary interval of 30 working days – doubtlessly extendable by as much as 45 days – to hold out that evaluation.

Two thirds of individuals imagine Boris Johnson ought to resign given the findings from Sue Grey’s report into Partygate, in line with a snap ballot from Savanta ComRes.

This determine is greater than the proportion who thought the prime minister ought to resign when he was issued with a hard and fast penalty discover final month (61%), however it’s decrease than when Sue Grey’s preliminary interim findings have been printed in January on the peak of the scandal (69%).

Whereas 49% imagine it isn’t but time to permit Johnson to maneuver on from Partygate, 38% say that it’s time, together with one in 5 (21%) who’ve an unfavourable opinion of him.

And whereas 52% say they suppose worse of Johnson given the findings of the Gray report, that features 73% of those that have already got an unfavourable opinion of him.

From Adam Payne at Politics Residence

Boris Johnson has been addressing Tory MPs on the 1922 Committee. These are from the Mail’s David Wilcock who has been doorstepping the assembly.

That is from Tom Harwood from GB Information.

And that is from ITV’s Paul Model.

That is from my colleague John Harris on one of many major arguments deployed by Boris Johnson at this time.

Tory MP Julian Sturdy says following Grey report he’s now calling for Johnson’s resignation

There may be rising curiosity in a query raised by the Labour MP Wayne David through the Commo ns exchanges earlier. David requested:

It’s completely crucial that the British public are informed the entire reality. Everybody hopes that there have been no redactions or adjustments to the report. Certainly, Downing Avenue mentioned that its intention was to publish the report in full, in its entirety, unchanged. Did anybody in No 10 obtain a duplicate of the report yesterday, and have been any requests made for sections to be eliminated or altered? Have been any adjustments made, following requests, to the part regarding the gathering within the No 10 flat on 13 November 2020?

Boris Johnson’s response was evasive. He mentioned:

I obtained the report—I had not seen it earlier than— shortly after 10 o’clock this morning. On [David’s] second level concerning the occasions on 13 November, I’ve addressed these a number of instances.

Johnson gave the same reply on the press convention. See. 4.40pm.

That is what David mentioned about Johnson’s reply on Twitter.

The Commons Hansard with a transcript of all of the exchanges earlier between Boris Johnson and MPs on the Sue Grey report is now obtainable here.

Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, has launched an announcement saying the Sue Gray report reveals the necessity to reassert the significance of requirements in public life. He says:

Sue Grey’s report reveals that tradition, behaviour and requirements in public life actually matter. We’d like to have the ability to belief our nationwide establishments, notably in instances of nice bother. Jesus instructions us to serve essentially the most susceptible and people in want. To assist obtain this we should get better the rules of mutual flourishing and the widespread good in the way in which we’re ruled. Requirements in public life are the glue that holds us collectively – we have to rediscover them and abide by them.

Cupboard ministers are posting messages on Twitter expressing their assist for the PM. They acknowledge his apology, and argue that it’s time to transfer on. Listed below are some examples.

From Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, who was fined himself for being on the shock celebration for the PM within the cupboard room

From Liz Truss, the overseas secretary

From Dominic Raab, the justice secretary and deputy prime minister

From Michael Gove, the levelling up secretary

From Sajid Javid, the well being secretary

Douglas Ross, the Scottish Conservative chief, was one of many first Tory MPs to name for Boris Johnson’s resignation when the Partygate scandal first erupted. Then, when Russia invaded Ukraine, he retracted his name for Johnson’s resignation, saying it could be unsuitable for him to go at a time of disaster. As we speak, as Sky’s James Matthews experiences, Ross is saying Johnson ought to keep for now, however resign when the battle is over.