Tories announce interim Shadow Cabinet as Sunak replaces key members following wipeout
Rishi Sunak unveils the Shadow Cabinet
PA
Lord David Cameron and Richard Holden have resigned from key posts as the Tory Party unveils its Shadow Cabinet.
Richard Fuller replaced Holden as Tory Party Chairman, with Andrew Mitchell becoming Shadow Foreign Secretary.
The reshuffle comes after Rishi Sunak's Tories were reduced to just 121 MPs.
A dozen Cabinet Ministers were topped as Labour romped to a landslide victory on July 4.
Jeremy Hunt will serve as Shadow Chancellor and James Cleverly will continue to oppose Yvette Cooper.
James Cartlidge joins as Shadow Defence Secretary, Ed Argar steps in as Shadow Justice Secretary, Andrew Griffith was appointed Shadow Science Secretary, Victoria Atkins will oppose Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Kemi Badenoch is being placed as Shadow Levelling Up Secretary.
Other Shadow Cabinet members include Shadow Environment Secretary Steve Barclay, Shadow Commons leader Chris Philp, Shadow Lords leader Lord True, Shadow Business Secretary Kevin Hollinrake, Shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho, Shadow Work & Pensions Secretary Mel Stride, Shadow Education Secretary Damian Hinds,, Shadow Transport Secretary Helen Whately, Shadow Culture Secretary Julia Lopez, Shadow Attorney General: Jeremy Wright, Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary Alex Burghart, Shadow Scotland Secretary John Lamont and Shadow Welsh Secretary Lord Davies of Gower.
Stuart Andrew was selected as Opposition Chief Whip, Laura Trott joins as Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, John Glen becomes Shadow Paymaster General, Tom Tugendhat opposes pal Dan Jarvis as Shadow Security Minister, Andrew Bowie will serve as Shadow Veterans Minister and Mims Davies becomes Shadow Women & Equalities Minister.
Fuller, interim Chairman of the Conservative Party, said: “The Conservative Party has had a difficult election and it is important that we regroup and reflect on these results.
“We should also challenge ourselves candidly and deeply on the strengths of the Conservative Party across the country and outline where improvements can be made.
“I am honoured to be asked to act as interim Chairman of the Conservative Party and to be working alongside colleagues in the Shadow Cabinet.
“United as a party we will be ready and able to hold this new Labour Government to account every step of the way.”
Streeting pledges billions to GPs to 'fix front door' of NHS
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has pledged billions of pounds to GPs in a bid to "fix the front door" of NHS.
He said: “Patients are finding it harder than ever to see a GP. Patients can’t get through the front door of the NHS, so they aren’t getting the timely care they need.
“That’s no surprise, when GPs and primary care have been receiving a smaller proportion of NHS resources. I’m committed to reversing that.”
Lord Cameron expresses 'honour' at stint as Foreign Sec
Lord David Cameron has released a statement expressing his "honour" at serving as Foreign Secretary.
Lord Cameron said: "It’s been a huge honour to serve as Foreign Secretary, but clearly the Conservative Party in opposition will need to shadow the new Foreign Secretary from the Commons.
"So I told Rishi Sunak that I would step back. I’m delighted that the Shadow Foreign Secretary role has gone to my good friend Andrew Mitchell.
"As a committed Conservative I will continue to support the Party and help where I can as we rebuild from the very disappointing election result."
Braverman tears into Labour's migration plan warning of 'soaring' illegal arrivals - 'Our borders will disintegrate!'
Suella Braverman has torn into Labour's plan for migration, claiming the UK will become "an even bigger magnet for illegal arrivals".
She said the numbers of illegal migrants will "soar", adding that our borders will "disintegrate".
She was responding to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper outlining the new Government's plan to tackle migration.
Cooper said she has "immediately started work on a major upgrade in law enforcement, including the process to recruit a new border security commander, new cross border police to go after the criminal gangs."
She said the gangs are "undermining our border security and putting lives at risk", adding: "They are getting away with it".
Posting on social media, the former home secretary said: "More blah, blah, blah. I warned, but prepare to see the UK become an even bigger magnet for illegal arrivals & numbers soar as our borders disintegrate.
"We need to leave the ECHR, scrap the HRA & quickly remove people when they arrive illegally. Nothing else matters."
Reform UK finished second in 89 Labour seats: Why Nigel Farage is now 'gunning' for Sir Keir Starmer
“We’re gunning for Labour now and they’ll not know what’s hit them,” Reform UK MP Lee Anderson, who defected from the Conservative Party in March, told GB News.
For some time, the rise of Reform UK has been regarded as an existential threat to the Tory Party.
Nonetheless, and as former Prime Minister Sir Tony Blair knows only too well, Reform UK’s threat in much of Brexit-backing England and Wales is being directed towards Labour.
Reform UK pulled off five victories and finished second in 98 seats, 89 of which were won by the Labour Party.
Starmer admits 'concern' about areas where Labour did not secure votes
Sir Keir Starmer has admitted he is “concerned” about areas where his party was not able to secure votes
PA
Sir Keir Starmer has admitted he is “concerned” about areas where his party was not able to secure votes.
Speaking to reporters in Wales, the Prime Minister was asked if he accepts there is a problem between the Labour Party and British Muslims, following a drop in vote share in areas with a high Muslim population.
Starmer said: “Very many people voted Labour in that General Election who’ve never voted Labour before.
“We now hold seats in parts of the country that have never had a Labour MP, so this is an incredibly strong mandate.
“Of course, wherever we weren’t able to secure votes, I’m concerned about that.”
He added that where his party did not secure the votes it would work to “address that”.
JK Rowling hits out at new Labour women and equalities minister for 'nonsensical' gender remarks
JK Rowling has dubbed past comments made by Anneliese Dodds on gender as "nonsensical" after she was announced as women and equalities minister
PA
JK Rowling has dubbed past comments made by Anneliese Dodds on gender "nonsensical" after she was announced as women and equalities minister.
After Dodds was appointed to the role, Rowling tweeted part of a transcript from an interview Dodds had done on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour in 2022.
When asked for Labour’s definition of a woman, the transcript showed, Dodds said there are “different definitions legally around what a woman actually is”.
When pressed again, she said: “I think it does depend what the context is.”
Braverman tears into Labour's migration plan warning of 'soaring' illegal arrivals
Suella Braverman has torn into Labour's plan for migration, claiming the UK will become "an even bigger magnet for illegal arrivals"
PA
Suella Braverman has torn into Labour's plan for migration, claiming the UK will become "an even bigger magnet for illegal arrivals".
She said the numbers of illegal migrants will "soar", adding that our borders will "disintegrate".
She was responding to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper outlining the new Government's plan to tackle migration.
Cooper said she has "immediately started work on a major upgrade in law enforcement, including the procress to recruit a new border security commander, new cross border police to go after the criminal gangs."
She said the gangs are "undermining our border security and putting lives at risk", adding: "They are getting away with it".
Posting on social media, the former home secretary said: "More blah, blah, blah. I warned, but prepare to see the UK become an even bigger magnet for illegal arrivals & numbers soar as our borders disintegrate.
"We need to leave the ECHR, scrap the HRA & quickly remove people when they arrive illegally. Nothing else matters."
Defence Secretary to represent veterans in the Cabinet
Defence Secretary John Healey will represent veterans in the Cabinet, a spokesperson for the Prime Minister has said
PA
Defence Secretary John Healey will represent veterans in the Cabinet, a spokesperson for the Prime Minister has said.
The spokesperson said: “First and foremost, the Defence Secretary will represent veterans at Cabinet. Veterans are part of our military family and the Secretary of State will drive work with Cabinet colleagues to deliver for them.
“The Government is determined to change how we do government, stopping silos and working collaboratively across departments to serve the public, including veterans."
Nigel Farage lets rip at 'brutal' voting system as he explains how Reform could have ended up with ONE HUNDRED new MPs
Nigel Farage has slammed the British voting system as "brutal", warning the Labour Party that the "argument for electoral reform is going to become very strong.
GBN
Nigel Farage has slammed the British voting system as "brutal", warning the Labour Party that the "argument for electoral reform is going to become very strong."
He said there is a "clear majority of the British public who now think the system doesn't work".
He noted that for every one Reform UK MP there are "800,000 votes behind them", while for every Labour MP there are "fewer than 30,000".
Speaking to GB News in Clacton after his election victory over the weekend, which saw Reform UK return five MPs to the Commons, Farage said: "The First Past the Post system is absolutely brutal.
Odds on Jacob Rees-Mogg, Michael Fabricant and Liz Truss to appear on reality TV shows by end of 2025
Michael Fabricant is the most likely candidate at 5/1 to appear on one of I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, Dancing on Ice, Strictly Come Dancing or Celebrity Traitor before the end of 2025
PA
Michael Fabricant is the most likely candidate at 5/1 to appear on one of I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, Dancing on Ice, Strictly Come Dancing or Celebrity Traitor before the end of 2025.
Former prime minister Liz Truss is on odds of 10/1 to appear on one of the three shows, while ex-veterans minister Johnny Mercer has odds of 12/1.
Both Steve Baker and former commons leader Penny Mordaunt have odds of 16/1, according to OLBG, while Grant Shapps has odds of 25/1.
Jacob Rees-Mogg has odds of 33/1.
Migrant crisis: First asylum seekers since Labour scrapped Rwanda scheme enter UK waters
Just days after the new Labour government came into power, the first Channel migrants have reached UK waters, GB News can exclusively reveal
PA
Just days after the new Labour government came into power, the first Channel migrants have reached UK waters, GB News can exclusively reveal.
A small boat carrying dozens of illegal migrants reached the mid-point in the English Channel just after 10:30am on Monday.
The boat is the first to successfully make the crossing since 85 migrants arrived in two dinghies on July 1.
Recent newspaper reports had suggested large numbers of migrants where massing along the French coast, waiting for a Starmer government before crossing.
Rachel Reeves to FORCE home-building on local areas as she sets out plan
Rachel Reeves has announced a bold plan for housebuilding, accepting their may be "opposition" to the Government's plans
PA
Rachel Reeves has announced a bold plan for housebuilding, accepting their may be "opposition" to the Government's plans.
She promised to build 1.5 million homes over the next five years, saying Labour is "not in the business of reneging on our manigesto commitments".
Giving a speech today, the new Chancellor set out the Labour Government’s plans to review greenbelt boundaries to prioritise brownfield and so-called grey belt land to meet housebuilding targets. She said the plans would include affordable housing and housing for social rent.
Reeves said the Government would set new policy intentions for critical infrastructure in the coming months, ahead of updating relevant national policy statements within the year.
Emily Thornberry breaks silence after being ditched by Starmer as she expresses 'surprise' at sacking
Emily Thornberry has broken her silence after not being appointed to a Cabinet role in Sir Keir Starmer's new Government
PA
Emily Thornberry has broken her silence after not being appointed to a Cabinet role in Sir Keir Starmer's new Government.
The MP for Islington South and Finsbury, who served as the Shadow Attorney General in the Shadow Cabinet, expressed her "surprise" at not being chosen for a cabinet role.
She said she feels "personal disappointment" over the decision but said nothing "can detract from the amazing and historic victory that all of us in the Labour movement worked together to win last week".
No 'quick fix' to prison overcrowing, Yvette Cooper says
Yvette Cooper said there is not going to be a “quick fix” to the problem of overcrowding in prisons
PA
Yvette Cooper said there is not going to be a “quick fix” to the problem of overcrowding in prisons.
She warned that the new Labour Government has to deal with the legacy left behind by the Tories.
The new Home Secretary sidestepped a question on whether the Prime Minister was considering lowering the automatic release point from the 50 per cent mark to ease the issue of overcrowding in prisons.
Speaking after meeting police officers in Lewisham, she said: “I’m extremely concerned with the legacy that the Conservatives have left us with on prisons. It seems to have been a complete scorched earth policy in which they have failed to build the prisons that we need.
“They have allowed the number of remand prisoners, of people waiting for trial to increase because of the chaos and the backlog in the criminal justice system.
“All of those things are going to need to be addressed and to be fixed, and the Prime Minister has said there isn’t going to be a quick fix, but we’re going to have to deal with the legacy that we inherit.
“But I think it’s been totally irresponsible, the way the Conservatives have handled this for not just recent months, but in fact, for years. It’s deeply, deeply damaging what they have done, and we are going to have to look at what it is we now inherit.”
Ex-Tory minister says leadership contest should take place in the autumn
Former Tory minister Kevin Hollinrake said a leadership contest should take place in September
GBN
Former Tory minister Kevin Hollinrake said a leadership contest should take place in September.
He told GB News: “I personally think the contest should start in the autumn, probably September time and pick a leader by the end of the year. I don't think there's any rush to do that.
“We need to decide the best two individuals to go forward to the membership. We've decided that in Parliament's and then the membership then decide who of those two individuals have the right person to lead the party.
“I would rather we take our time, have a proper debate about the issues, what went wrong, how we're going to fix those things before we find the leader by the end of the year, though."
Conservatives can recover 'quite quickly' from election defeat, says Kevin Hollinrake
Conservative MP Kevin Hollinrake has said that he believes that the Conservative Party can rebound “quite quickly” from its defeat at the General Election
PA
Conservative MP Kevin Hollinrake has said that he believes that the Conservative Party can rebound “quite quickly” from its defeat at the General Election.
Asked who the new leader of the party should be, the former Business Minister told GB News: “Somebody that the public believe we're going to tackle the issues they care about… do bear in mind, it's got less than 34 per cent of the vote. This is the least popular majority government in history.
“We can come back from that quite quickly, but we can only do that by picking the right leader, somebody with the right kind of determination and, critically, somebody that people trust to deliver on their priorities, which has got to be about controlling migration, lowering taxation, improve public services, but also tackle some of the cultural ideology that runs through our society.”
Darren Jones denies Labour has 'secret tax plan'
Treasury minister Darren Jones has denied Labour has a “secret tax plan”, and said Chancellor Rachel Reeves will be announcing “radical” and “immediate” interventions to stimulate economic growth.
Speaking to Good Morning Britain, he said: “We can’t keep dipping into recession and bumping along the bottom, which is what you’re going to hear from the Chancellor today. It’s a pretty radical, strong, immediate intervention to kick-start growth in the economy, as well as recognising that it will take some time for that to come through the system.”
Asked about Labour's failure to rule out raising tax beyond VAT, national insurance and income tax, Jones said: “There is not a secret tax plan. This was an attack from the Conservatives. It is not a reflection of reality.
“Our manifesto commitments, our priorities that we’re now implementing, our first six steps and our missions are funded with the loophole changes that were in the back of the manifesto that people voted for last Thursday.”
Starmer says he will take UK-Germany relationship 'to the next level'
Sir Keir Starmer has told Olaf Scholz there is “opportunity to further deepen” defence and security ties between the UK and Germany
PA
Sir Keir Starmer has told Olaf Scholz there is “opportunity to further deepen” defence and security ties between the UK and Germany.
The Prime Minister told the German chancellor he was looking forward to “taking the relationship to the next level” during his premiership, a Downing Street spokesperson said.
They said: "The leaders discussed the strong connection between the UK and Germany, and the Prime Minister said he looked forward to taking the relationship to the next level during his premiership.
“The Prime Minister said he believed there was opportunity to further deepen the defence and security ties between both countries, while also building greater economic co-operation.
“Discussing their upcoming visit to the Nato summit in Washington, the leaders reflected on the importance of ensuring strong support to Ukraine for the long term.
“The leaders looked forward to meeting in person next week.”
Starmer poised to let out 40,000 inmates early to ease prisons crisis
Sir Keir Starmer is poised to let out 40,000 inmates early as part of an attempt to ease the prisons crisis
PA
Sir Keir Starmer is poised to let out 40,000 inmates early as part of an attempt to ease the prisons crisis.
The new Prime Minister is expected to authorise emergency measures this week which would automatically release prisoners halfway through their sentence.
There are currently fewer than 700 spaces left in men’s jails in England and Wales, sources told the Times.
They warned that the "immediate crisis is quite severe".
An MoJ source said that one option presented to new Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood is to lower the automatic release point for prisoners to less than 50 per cent through their sentence - something which is expected to be done this week.
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