Political news

• Jeremy Corbyn Could Back Plans To Make It Easier To Deselect MPs, Allies Reveal

  05-07-2017 22:33
  
  Jeremy Corbyn could back radical plans to make it easier for party members to deselect sitting Labour MPs, senior sources have revealed.
  In what appears to be a move to entrench his authority after his successful election campaign, the Labour leader is open to changing the party’s rules to “democratise” how it chooses who represents it at Westminster.
  The tougher stance came as grassroots group Momentum took control of yet another local Labour party, warning sitting MP Luciana
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn attacks 'zero-hours' Glastonbury contracts

  05-07-2017 21:57 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The Labour leader is "happy" to raise the issue of laid-off workers with the festival's organisers.
  
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• Theresa May defends public sector pay cap under pressure from Labour

  05-07-2017 21:23 via theguardian.com
  
  Easing of austerity policies aimed at reducing deficit would lead to Greek-style economic collapse, claims the PMTheresa May raised the spectre of a Greek-style economic collapse if Britain fails to press ahead with tackling the deficit on Wednesday, as she was challenged repeatedly by Jeremy Corbyn over the public sector pay cap.With intense political pressure on the prime minister – including from her own cabinet colleagues – to ease the strain for cash-strapped public servants, in
  
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• Jacob Rees-Mogg announces birth of his sixth child, Sixtus

  05-07-2017 20:24 via theguardian.com
  
  Social media users react with glee and disbelief as Tory MP reveals name of newborn son on InstagramThe Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg has provoked delight and mirth by naming his newborn son and sixth child Sixtus.Rees-Mogg, MP for North East Somerset, announced the birth on Instagram on Wednesday.Continue reading...
  
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• Taskforce to run some operations at Grenfell council

  05-07-2017 20:06
  Kensington and Chelsea local authority heavily criticised after deadly fire
  
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• Corbyn has the knives out for Maybot – and so has Freewheelin' Phil | John Crace

  05-07-2017 19:50 via theguardian.com
  
  No one enjoyed himself more than Philip Hammond as the prime minister felt the heat over public sector payThe Maybot blinked uneasily. Her handlers have done their utmost to keep her well hidden in recent weeks, but the one time they have no choice but to allow her out in the open is prime minister’s questions. The woman without qualities is now the woman without authority.Still, no one could say the Maybot hadn’t been fully primed for her day out. She had been told Jeremy Corbyn wou
  
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• 'Shame on you' over Waspi women

  05-07-2017 19:25 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Minister heckled for suggesting women over 60 facing financial hardship could start an apprenticeship.
  
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• Minister sparks anger by suggesting 'Waspi women' start apprenticeships

  05-07-2017 19:22 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A minister is heckled for suggesting women over 60 affected by pension charges can start apprenticeships.
  
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• Public sector pay – Politics Weekly podcast

  05-07-2017 19:14 via theguardian.com
  
  Heather Stewart is joined by Rafael Behr, Polly Toynbee and Sam Hall to discuss the Tory wobbles on the public sector pay cap. Plus: Labour’s Baroness Smith on how Brexit bills will fare in the Lords and Cathy O’Neil on regulating big data As public sector pay becomes the latest political battleground, cabinet splits surface as Downing Street struggles to keep control. Are key Tories softening their stance on austerity – or is it just the early pangs of the race to succeed Ther
  
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• Theresa May's Speech 'Could've Been Taken Out of Mein Kampf' Says Vince Cable

  05-07-2017 19:05
  
  Theresa May’s attack on international citizens “could have been taken out of Mein Kampf”, Lib Dem leadership candidate Vince Cable has claimed in a stinging criticism of his former cabinet colleague.
  Cable, who served alongside May for 5 years in the Tory/Lib Dem coalition government, believes the Prime Minister used language that was “quite evil” when she addressed the Conservative conference last year.
  In her speech in Birmingham, May attacked those who act like
  
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• Court rejects challenge to UK anti-pollution plan

  05-07-2017 18:30
  Judge rules in favour of the government over its proposals to improve air quality
  
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• UK service sector growth slows, productivity stumbles and car sales slide - as it happened

  05-07-2017 17:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Business optimism hits second-lowest level since 2011, as service sector firms are buffeted by Brexit-related worriesUK productivity has fallen again
  UK service sector growth slowed in JuneFirms hit by rising costs...and struggle to find workers
  UK car sales fall for third month running
  Scotland avoids recessionSainsbury’s criticised over Fairtrade plansBut....the eurozone just posted its best quarter since 20114.09pm BSTOK, time for a recap.A flurry of disappointing data have fuelled fear
  
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• Labour says taskforce sent in to aid Grenfell recovery lacks power

  05-07-2017 17:08 via theguardian.com
  
  Criticism follows announcement team of outside experts being brought in to run key services in Kensington and Chelsea Labour has complained that a specialist taskforce sent in to Kensington and Chelsea council to take over key services following the Grenfell Tower fire will have too few powers, saying the government remains “off the pace” in its response.John Healey, the shadow housing minister, also said the announcement that just 14 of 158 families made homeless had accepted tempor
  
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• Home Office offers immigration amnesty to Grenfell Tower survivors - Politics live

  05-07-2017 17:02 via theguardian.com
  
  Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happenPMQs - Snap verdictPMQs - Verdict from the Twitter commentariat 4.01pm BSTJo Maugham, a Labour-supporting QC, claims the Home Office immigration amnesty offer for Grenfell Tower survivors is carefully-worded and minimalist.First, the 12 month limitation is unhelpful and unnecessary. It will be read as: 'give us your details now so we can deport you later'.Second, as with its previous statements, the Government's language is
  
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• Grenfell Tower: Government sends in 'taskforce'

  05-07-2017 17:02 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The team will take over housing at the council, as police say they have recovered the last visible human remains from the tower.
  
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• Grenfell Tower Fire: Minister Alok Sharma On Verge Of Tears As He Describes 'Unimaginable Pain' Of Families

  05-07-2017 16:22
  
  A Government minister was choked up with tears as he described the “humbling and moving experience” of meeting Grenfell Tower families in the House of Commons. 
  Alok Sharma, Theresa May’s Housing Minister, was overcome with emotion as he updated MPs on the blaze, which has claimed the lives of at least 80 people.
  But as he ended his statement, his voice faltered and he struggled to complete his sentences.
  He said: “Mr Speaker, on my visit to the Westway, hearing the
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn attacks use of zero-hours contracts at Glastonbury

  05-07-2017 16:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Response follows reports 700 people hired as litter pickers were sacked after two days at event attended by the Labour leaderLabour has condemned the use of zero-hours contracts for workers at Glastonbury festival, where Jeremy Corbyn made a high-profile appearance last month.Reports claim hundreds of workers were hired from other EU countries to work as litter pickers – with many finding themselves unexpectedly dismissed after just two days’ work. Continue reading...
  
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• Grenfell fire: Minister visibly moved in Commons

  05-07-2017 15:46 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Alok Sharma pauses on several occasions and later wipes away a tear while speaking in Parliament.
  
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• PMQs: Speaker John Bercow on MPs' behaviour in Commons

  05-07-2017 15:37 via bbc.co.uk
  
  MPs are asked if they "would like to be viewed by their constituents shrieking their heads off.".
  
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• Theresa May defends austerity after public sector pay row

  05-07-2017 15:20
  Prime minister warns that UK risks turning into Greece if it fails to control deficit
  
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• Britain’s unhelpful obsession with the European Court of Justice

  05-07-2017 15:18
  Doubts over how UK government can keep insisting on leaving jurisdiction
  
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• Latest legal challenge to Tory air pollution plans fails

  05-07-2017 15:14 via theguardian.com
  
  High court instructs ministers to publish full proposals by the end of JulyThe government has won the latest court challenge over the UK’s air pollution crisis.Environmental lawyers ClientEarth had argued that ministers’ draft proposals to improve air quality – which contributes to tens of thousands of deaths each year – were unlawful. Continue reading...
  
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• PMQs: Jeremy Corbyn says government 'floundering' on pay cap

  05-07-2017 14:59 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Theresa May hits back at the Labour leader by saying he would "bankrupt" the UK if elected.
  
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• Prison suicides are soaring. More inmates should be trained to prevent this, as I was | Jonathan Aitken

  05-07-2017 14:56 via theguardian.com
  
  With Osborne’s legacy of a 30% cut, staff cannot cope with the crisis. It would cost little to save lives by empowering prisoners and working with charities• Jonathan Aitken is a former Tory MP who served a prison sentence for perjuryThe soaring suicide and self-harming rates in our prisons are reaching crisis levels. Last week’s National Audit Office report confirmed this: in 2016 there were a record 120 self-inflicted prison deaths – a doubling of the number within four
  
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• Desperate Plea For Theresa May To Save Three-Year-Old Girl From Female Genital Mutilation

  05-07-2017 14:51
  
  A three-year-old girl faces female genital mutilation (FGM) if her family is deported, the Prime Minister was warned today.
  Hannah Bardell MP made a desperate appeal for Theresa May to intervene in the case of Lola Ilesamni, whose toddler Dara faces becoming a victim of the brutal and bloody crime if sent back to Nigeria by the Home Office. 
  Bardell set out a “harrowing” catalogue of abuse Ilesamni has suffered at the hands of her husband because the mum refused to allow her dau
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn Could Boycott Glastonbury If It Keeps Zero Hours Contracts

  05-07-2017 14:38
  
  Jeremy Corbyn is open to boycotting Glastonbury if fails to abolish zero hours contracts or exploits migrant workers, senior party sources have suggested.
  The Labour leader received a rousing reception when he addressed the pop festival last month, with many in the crowd chanting his name.
  But it emerged since that hundreds of Eastern European migrants were hired on zero hours contracts to pick up litter, and were fired after just two days.
  Speaking after Prime Minister’s Questions, a sen
  
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• PMQs verdict: Corbyn goes on offensive as May channels Osborne

  05-07-2017 14:33 via theguardian.com
  
  PM reheats familiar claim that Labour was responsible for deficit as opposition leader presses her on pay cap for public servantsAfter a few days which revealed that the government is divided on whether or not to lift the 1% cap on public sector pay, Jeremy Corbyn used his questions to press Theresa May on the issue. He began by summarising the confusion in Tory ranks: first it seemed that the cap remained, “in a rare moment of clarity between No 10 and No 11”, but then firefighters
  
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• Corbyn grills May over public sector pay at PMQs – video highlights

  05-07-2017 14:31 via theguardian.com
  
  The Labour leader questions how the prime minister could afford £1bn for the Conservatives’ deal with the DUP yet refuse to commit to increasing public sector pay. Speaking during PMQs on Wednesday, Theresa May defends her government’s record and says Labour would increase taxes and destroy jobsTheresa May and Jeremy Corbyn at PMQs - Politics liveContinue reading...
  
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• Theresa May says hospital will 'consider any offers' in Charlie Gard case

  05-07-2017 14:21 via theguardian.com
  
  Prime minister tells MPs she understands that parents of sick baby involved in legal case want to ‘explore every option’Theresa May has said that the hospital treating Charlie Gard, the critically ill baby whose parents are seeking experimental treatment for him in the US, will “always consider any offers on new information” about his welfare.The comment at prime minister’s questions came after the US president, Donald Trump, offered help to the 10-month-old’s
  
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• NHS Birthday: 5 Mind-Blowing Facts About The National Health Service

  05-07-2017 14:19
  
  Today marks the 69th birthday of the great British institution, the National Health Service (NHS).
  In honour of this milestone here are 5 facts that demonstrate just how unbelievably massive our health service actually is.Tomorrow is the 69th anniversary of the NHS - pls RT if you've ever been grateful for the UK's finest institution #HappyBirthdayNHS pic.twitter.com/dbDF5O9Fhw— NHS Million (@NHSMillion) July 4, 2017
  1) It’s The Fifth Largest Employer In The WorldDespite the UK being
  
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• Corbyn accuses May of presiding over 'low-pay epidemic'

  05-07-2017 14:10 via theguardian.com
  
  PM ‘found £1bn to keep her own job’ so why can’t find similar amount to keep nurses and teachers in their jobs, Labour leader asksJeremy Corbyn accused Theresa May of presiding over “a low-pay epidemic” in the UK as he used a noisy and boisterous prime minister’s questions to challenge her repeatedly over the continued cap on public sector pay.Following a week in which several ministers have called for the cap to be eased, May vigorously defended continu
  
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• Conservative MP Sarah Wollaston tells of abuse during election

  05-07-2017 14:02 via theguardian.com
  
  MP says masked man covered her office with insulting graffiti as she was targeted in treatment ‘designed to intimidate’Sarah Wollaston has become the second Conservative MP to speak out against abuse and intimidation around the election campaign, revealing that a masked man covered her office with graffiti insults.
  The MP for Totnes in Devon, a former chair of the Commons health watchdog, said she felt the abusive words on her office building were an attempt to “force me out of
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn Accuses Theresa May Of 'Flip Flopping And Floundering' On Public Sector Pay Cap

  05-07-2017 14:00
  
  Jeremy Corbyn has accused Theresa May “flip flopping and floundering” on whether to scrap the 1% public sector pay cap.
  Speaking during prime minister’s questions, the Labour leader attacked May for agreeing to spend £1bn extra on Northern Ireland in order to convince the DUP to back her minority government.
  “The prime minister found £1bn to keep her own job, why can’t she find the same amount of money to keep nurses and teachers in their job, who after
  
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• The best Brexit outcome we can hope for is not much change at all

  05-07-2017 13:55
  
  Britain stands to gain little and to lose almost everything from leaving the EU
  
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• Tony Blair should be prosecuted over Iraq war, high court hears

  05-07-2017 13:54 via theguardian.com
  
  Lawyer for former Iraqi general argues former PM should face trial due to legal precedent set during Nuremburg hearingsThe Chilcot inquiry’s conclusion that the invasion of Iraq was unnecessary and undermined the United Nations requires the prosecution of Tony Blair, the high court has heard.In his opening argument calling for a war crimes trial in Britain, Michael Mansfield QC said that the offence of waging an aggressive war has effectively been assimilated into English law. Continue rea
  
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• Productivity usually bounces back after a recession – why hasn't it?

  05-07-2017 13:41 via theguardian.com
  
  The decade-long flatlining of Britain’s economy has hit living standards – firms have to be weaned off plentiful, low-skill labour to invest in new kit Britain’s economy has moved sideways over the past decade. That’s the main message from the latest set of official figures for productivity which, once again, are dismal.It is not just that the performance in the first three months of 2017 was poor. The 0.5% quarterly drop in output per hour worked meant productivity fell
  
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• Jacob Rees-Mogg's Family Welcomes New Son, Sixtus Dominic Boniface Christopher

  05-07-2017 13:31
  
  Following our recent deep-dive into the magical world that is the Instagram account of Jacob Rees-Mogg, we’ve got some exciting news for you.
  Ladies and gentlemen, meet the newest member of the clan: Sixtus Dominic Boniface Christopher Rees-Mogg.A post shared by Jacob Rees-Mogg (@jacob_rees_mogg) on Jul 5, 2017 at 12:18am PDT
  Sixtus is the Latin form of the Greek name Ξυστος (Xystos) meaning “scraped, polished”, according to Behind The N
  
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• Is Brexit an error? Now even Vote Leave’s chief is having doubts | Jonathan Freedland

  05-07-2017 12:57 via theguardian.com
  
  Dominic Cummings is the most high profile of many former Brexiteers realising thatleaving the EU might not work out well for Britain. The tide is turningWhat would it take to make those who voted for Brexit change their minds? That may turn out to be the dominant question of British politics over the coming years, as the reality of the British exit from the EU comes ever closer. Even the most diehard remainers concede that the only way it can be halted is if British public opinion has a change o
  
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• London’s EU expats prepare for Brexit party season

  05-07-2017 12:13
  After the referendum, Europeans in the UK capital are thinking twice about staying
  
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• U-turn if you want to? Not any more – voters have had enough | Abi Wilkinson

  05-07-2017 11:21 via theguardian.com
  
  Now the Tories are backtracking on the energy price cap. Their electoral strategy seems to rely on us having remarkably short memories
  • Abi Wilkinson is a freelance journalistHands up who is surprised that the Tories have already U-turned on their promise to introduce a price cap on energy bills – the much vaunted manifesto policy that prompted suggestions they were “parking their tanks on Labour’s lawn”? In hindsight, it’s obvious that an idea scavenged from
  
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• Immigration Detainees 'Benefit' From Being Paid Just £1 An Hour, Says Tory Minister

  05-07-2017 11:05
  
  The Conservative government has been slammed using immigration detention centres as “virtual sweatshops”, after a minister said detainees “benefit” from working for just £1 an hour.
  Home Office minister Baroness Williams of Trafford told the House of Lords yesterday the low wage given to “volunteers” in the centres was fair as they did not have the same employment rights as UK citizens.
  “Paid work is provided in immigration removal centres as a mea
  
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• Britain First Leader Paul Golding Steals Dubious Independence Day Tweet

  05-07-2017 10:35
  
  Tuesday was Independence Day and the perfect opportunity for many Brits to have a light-hearted dig at our American cousins.241 years since USA decided they could easily find a better head of state than the British Queen/King. Can't win them all. #IndependenceDay— Simon J Dixon (@WoodinRivers) July 4, 2017
  Britain First’s Paul Golding, never one to shy away from pushing his group’s own narrow version of what makes this country great, joined in the fray with a tweet espousing ma
  
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• MP Laura Pidcock says parliament 'reeks of establishment' in maiden speech – video

  05-07-2017 10:34 via theguardian.com
  
  Laura Pidcock, the new Labour MP for North West Durham, criticises the ‘archaic’ parliamentary system and calls for an end to the indignity caused by austerity, in her maiden parliamentary speechThis is what I learned in parliament: the Tories enjoy making people poorer
  Continue reading...
  
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• Public sector pay cap is matter for future budgets, says Grayling

  05-07-2017 09:56 via theguardian.com
  
  Transport secretary says decision will be taken in the autumn, despite senior Tories’ calls for quicker easing of controlsChris Grayling, the transport secretary, has dampened hopes of an imminent lifting of the 1% public sector pay cap for teachers, police and prison officers, saying the issue was a matter for future budgets.He said a decision on the future of the cap would be taken collectively by the cabinet at the next budget in the autumn, despite signals from some senior Tories &ndas
  
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• The Waugh Zone Wednesday July 5, 2017

  05-07-2017 09:26
  
  1. POWER CUT
  It’s PMQs day again and after last week’s 50-minute marathon Speaker Bercow could again turn the event into a form of water torture for Theresa May. There’s no shortage of topics, from North Korea’s long-range missile “gift to the American bastards on their independence day” to another U-turn finally confirmed (free school lunches are to stay). David Cameron’s ‘selfish’ attack line on public sector pay, Brexit in-fighting, 
  
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• ‘Come at me you parasites’: a real live intern reacts to Path program | First Dog on the Moon

  05-07-2017 08:51 via theguardian.com
  
  Ian the Climate Denialist Potato has invited Bethany the intern to speak to his new coffee shop franchisees. But does he know she’s in the union?Sign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are publishedGet all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and printsContinue reading...
  
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• UK Aid Should Promote Capitalism And Free Trade, Says Ruth Davidson Endorsed Report

  05-07-2017 08:13
  
  Theresa May has been urged to put promoting capitalism and free trade at the heart of its international development spending.
  A report by the Policy Exchange think-tank published on Wednesday and backed by Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson said while it was right to maintain the government’s commitment to spending 0.7% of GNI on aid - the money needed to be better spent.
  Writing the forward to the report, Davidson said there was a “strong centre-right case for putting overseas aid
  
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• Steve Bell’s If ... Murdoch backs dead horse Theresa May

  05-07-2017 07:10 via theguardian.com
  
  Continue reading...
  
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• Iraq war: judge to review Tony Blair prosecution ban

  05-07-2017 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Private criminal prosecution against former PM was blocked last year by courts giving Blair immunity against criminal charges
  The most senior judge in England and Wales will hear a case attempting to overturn a ban on prosecuting Tony Blair over the Iraq war, the Guardian has learned.
  A private criminal prosecution against the former Labour prime minister was blocked in 2016 by Westminster magistrates court when it was ruled Blair would have immunity from any criminal charges. Continue reading..
  
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• London’s ‘regeneration’: the backdrop to Grenfell rage

  05-07-2017 06:00
  Policies aimed at replacing rundown estates viewed as ‘decanting’ the urban poor
  
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