16 April 2024 • 1:15pm
1:15PM
Sunak urges Cabinet ministers to back smoking ban Rishi Sunak has urged his Cabinet ministers to support his plan for a phased ban on smoking.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “If we want to build a better future for our children, we need to tackle the biggest cause of death, which is smoking.
“It costs 80,000 lives a year and costs the nation £70billion a year. No parent wants their children to start smoking and the Bill is about protecting future generations.
“He would urge everyone to consider that the Bill is seeking that future generations are smoke free. And the Chief Medical Officer said this morning that the great majority of smokers are wishing they had never started.”
1:06PM
Farage: ‘How do you think this looks to the rest of the world?’ Nigel Farage said he was used to “deep intolerance” being shown towards him from his time as an MEP in the European Parliament.
But he said he had “never seen it acted out” on a broader public stage. He also suggested the attempt to shut down the NatCon conference in Brussels would look bad on the world stage.
He told broadcasters in Brussels: “On an individual scale, yes, I was banned from restaurants, I was banned from pubs, I was even banned from coffee bars, refusing to serve me.
“So I am used to this deep intolerance of anybody with a different point of view. I have never seen it acted out, that was on a private stage, that was just me that they hate, fair enough.
“But this is on a public stage. How do you think this looks to the rest of the world?”
12:55PM
Chaos at NatCon follows ‘forced’ relocation The National Conservatism conference was already forced to relocate over the weekend after claims of “political pressure” from the mayor of Brussels.
It was due to be held at the Concert Noble in the city before it was moved to the Sofitel Brussels Europe hotel.
Yoram Hazony, the conference chairman, said his team had been told by the venue that it had to pull the event amid “political pressure” from Philippe Close, the Socialist Party mayor of Brussels.
Pressure had been growing on Concert Noble to cancel the conference, including from the Belgian League of Human Rights and the Belgian Anti-Fascist Coordination, according to local reports.
12:47PM
Farage: Attempt to shut down NatCon conference is ‘monstrous’ Nigel Farage described the attempt to shut down the National Conservatism conference in Brussels as “monstrous”.
He said it had further convinced him that the UK leaving the European Union “was the right thing to do”.
Speaking to broadcasters, Mr Farage said: “We have got the prime minister of country coming, we have got a Roman Catholic bishop coming, we have got representatives of parties at the top of the polls all around Europe in elections.
“This is the sort of complete old communist-style thing. You don’t agree with me, you have got to be banned, you are mad, and to be shut down. It is monstrous.
“I’ll tell you what , it has done me a favour because at times I think oh, I wish the government had done Brexit a bit better than they have and why haven’t they tightened the borders up.
“But if anything has convinced me that leaving the European Union ideology was the right thing to do it is the events of today.”
12:42PM
Farage blasts attempt to shut down NatCon conference in Brussels Nigel Farage suggested the attempt to shut down the National Conservatism conference in Brussels amounted to a “modern, updated form of communism”.
Speaking to broadcasters after delivering his speech Mr Farage said: “This is a modern, updated form of communism, that no alternative opinion is allowed.
“There is not a single public order interest here at all. Have a look at who is in the room. These are very eminently respectable people.”
12:37PM
Notice to close NatCon summit suggested event posed safety risk Emir Kir, the mayor of Saint Josse, said: “I issued an order from the Mayor to ban the National Conservatism Conference event to guarantee public safety. In Etterbeek, Brussels City and Saint-Josse, the far-right is not welcome.”
The notice served by the police said the event posed a danger to pedestrians outside the venue, a conference source said.
12:28PM
Suella Braverman addresses NatCon event as police attempt to shut it down There are chaotic scenes at the National Conservatism conference in Brussels as police officers attempt to shut the event down.
Suella Braverman, the former home secretary, is currently speaking on the stage.
12:20PM
Police attempt to shut down Conservative conference as Farage speaks Police officers in Brussels are attempting to shut down a conservative conference as Nigel Farage speaks on stage, writes Joe Barnes.
They arrived to issue a notice to close the National Conservatism summit after a municipal mayor ordered the event be shut down on security grounds.
Nigel Farage appears to be beckoned off stage as he addresses the NatCon conference in Brussels Credit: GB News 12:05PM
Mordaunt and Badenoch considering voting against Sunak smoking ban Penny Mordaunt and Kemi Badenoch are both considering voting against Rishi Sunak’s flagship smoking ban tonight, The Telegraph understands.
The two Cabinet ministers, who are both tipped for a future Tory leadership bid, are still deciding how to vote on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, seen as a potentially defining part of the Prime Minister’s legacy.
It raises the prospect that the Conservative backlash over the policy could spread all the way up to the top of Government.
Sources close to Ms Mordaunt, the Commons Leader, said she is known to have reservations about the legislation, which would bar anyone born after 2009 from buying cigarettes. It is understood she is yet to make up her mind on how to vote.
Meanwhile, a source close to Ms Badenoch, the Business Secretary, said she was weighing the issue up and speaking to colleagues before making a decision.
12:05PM
Poll: Andy Street on course to lose West Midlands mayor election Andy Street is on course to lose his role as the Mayor of the West Midlands at the election on May 2, a new poll has suggested.
A Redfield & Wilton Strategies survey conducted between April 10–14 put the Tory incumbent 14 points behind his Labour rival.
Mr Street was on 28 per cent of the vote while Labour’s Richard Parker was on 42 per cent.
Reform UK was on 13 per cent, the Green Party was on seven per cent and the Liberal Democrats were also on seven per cent.
Mr Street is arguably the Conservative Party’s most prominent regional politician and losing the mayoralty to Labour would represent a significant blow to Rishi Sunak.
Mr Street is seeking a third term in the role.
11:36AM
Pictured: Penny Mordaunt walks to Downing Street to attend Cabinet this morning Penny Mordaunt, the Commons Leader, is pictured in Whitehall this morning as she attended the weekly Cabinet meeting in Downing Street Credit: Richard Lincoln /Alamy Live News 11:22AM
Truss is ‘gift that keeps on giving to Labour’, claims Lord Barwell A Tory former Downing Street chief of staff claimed Liz Truss is the “gift that keeps on giving to Labour”.
Lord Barwell, who served in No 10 during Theresa May’s premiership, suggested Ms Truss’s recent round of interviews to promote her new book was unhelpful to the Conservative Party ahead of the local elections on May 2.
He tweeted: “If I were a Conservative candidate in May’s council elections, or indeed the General Election later this year, the very last thing I would want is days of headlines of [Liz Truss] blaming everyone else for her own mistakes. She is the gift that keeps on giving to Labour.”
11:06AM
Smoking ban will ‘increase sale of illicit tobacco’, says Tory MP A Tory MP has warned a ban on smoking will increase the sale of illicit tobacco.
Rehman Chishti, a former minister, expressed concerns about the Prime Minister’s Tobacco and Vapes Bill which MPs are due to vote on for the first time at 7pm tonight.
He tweeted: “Today’s Bill on banning smoking will increase sale of illicit tobacco. That can not be right.”
10:56AM
Tory MPs backing smoking ban shows ‘how politics constantly shifts left’, says Lord Frost Lord Frost suggested Tory MPs supporting a ban on smoking was an example of how “politics constantly shifts left”.
The former Brexit minister said that something the Conservative Party “has never wanted to do in its near-200 years of existence suddenly becomes conservative because Rishi Sunak decrees it”.
He was responding to Jesse Norman, a Tory MP and former minister, who tweeted that it was “very hard to see what is supposed to be unconservative about the Tobacco and Vaping Bill”.
Mr Norman said it is a “gradual long term reform that doesn’t affect anyone now smoking”.
But Lord Frost responded:
Something that the Conservative Party has never wanted to do in its near-200 years of existence suddenly becomes conservative because Rishi Sunak decrees it.
Thoughtful and clever Conservative MPs then willingly defend it.
Here is how politics constantly shifts left. t.co/bbLKB1n3Pg
— David Frost (@DavidGHFrost) April 16, 2024 10:49AM
Pictured: Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds speaks to broadcasters in Westminster Anneliese Dodds, the Labour Party chair, is pictured talking to broadcasters in Westminster this morning Credit: Thomas Krych/Shutterstock 10:39AM
Junk food TV advert ban must not be pushed back again, urges Whitty A watershed ban on fast food advertising must not be pushed back any further, Professor Sir Chris Whitty has said.
The Chief Medical Officer for England told the BBC: “The thing which I would first like to see is the ban on advertising at a time when children can watch TV, which is in force but the start date has been pushed back in time.
“I hope that never gets pushed back again and I think all of us would really like to see advertising of the most harmful foods, the ones that are likely to cause obesity extremely quickly, curbed in some ways.”
The Government has repeatedly pushed back plans to bring in a watershed ban on junk food adverts, which means they can only be broadcast between 9pm and 5:30am, which was first recommended in 2021 but will now come into effect from 2025 at the earliest.
10:29AM
Pictured: Simon Case, the Cabinet Secretary, in Westminster this morning Simon Case, the Cabinet Secretary, is pictured today in Westminster Credit: Tayfun Salci /Shutterstock 10:24AM
Health Secretary confirms she will vote for smoking ban Victoria Atkins, the Health Secretary, has confirmed she will vote for Rishi Sunak’s smoking ban tonight.
Numerous Tory MPs are expected to rebel and vote against the policy but Ms Atkins said she will support the “historic legislation”.
MPs will today vote on landmark legislation to create a Smokefree Generation and tackle youth vaping.
I will be supporting this historic legislation.
See more below 👇 t.co/H28NfQg7Jk
— Victoria Atkins (@VictoriaAtkins) April 16, 2024 10:20AM
Sunak’s ban will mean smoking dies out ‘almost completely’, predicts Whitty Rishi Sunak’s smoking ban will lead to the habit “dying out almost completely”, Professor Sir Chris Whitty has predicted.
The Chief Medical Officer for England said he was “confident that this will take the rates of smoking right the way down”.
He told the BBC: “This is a really serious health problem. And the reason this is doubly problematic is that the great majority of smokers wish they never started, but they become addicted at an early age and then they’re trapped and their choice has been taken away by that addiction.
“This is one of the reasons why the argument that if you’re pro-choice, you’re in favour of cigarettes is so surprising because this is a product which is designed to take your choice away from you.”
He added: “The aim of this legislation, as you say, is to ensure that no children 15 or below actually become addicted to smoking, or at least cannot be legally sold cigarettes, and we do expect that over time to lead to essentially smoking dying out almost completely, which would be an enormous public health achievement.”
10:16AM
Reader poll: Do you support the Government’s smoking ban? MPs will vote this evening for the first time on Rishi Sunak’s plan to introduce a phased ban on smoking.
The policy has prompted a revolt from some Tory MPs who are opposed to the ban on freedom grounds.
Many believe the policy is unconservative. But what do you think? You can have your say in our reader poll below:
10:10AM
Lord Hague: Liz Truss returning as Tory leader ‘definitely not a good idea’ Lord Hague said another Liz Truss premiership is “definitely not a good idea” after she said she had “unfinished business” at the top of politics.
Lord Hague, the former leader of the Conservative Party, rubbished the suggestion that Ms Truss could return.
He told Times Radio: “I am not in general in favour of former leaders having another go at being the leader, having experienced being the leader of the party myself and I certainly never wanted another go.
“It is definitely not a good idea to have another go if it was a particularly catastrophic episode when you were the leader.
“So no, I don’t think that would be a good idea. But there is a debate, let’s acknowledge, as in all political parties and it has often happened in the Labour Party, there is a debate about its future orientation and she has shown she is going to be part of that debate. I will happily take the other side of the debate.”
Ms Truss yesterday refused to rule out running for leader of the Conservative Party again. She suggested that “it’s never wise to rule anything out in politics”.
9:58AM
Position on Islamic Revolutionary Guard ‘not fixed’, says minister A Home Office minister said the Government’s stance on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was “not a fixed position” amid calls for the UK to proscribe the group.
Laura Farris told LBC News that “a range of sanctions remain under review” and “this isn’t the fixed position, but at this point in time I did notice that the Foreign Secretary was talking about the value of that direct line (to Tehran)”.
She added: “I don’t think there’s any disagreement, actually, on the principle.
“We’re not for a second defending the IRGC. We’re simply saying that maintaining that channel with Tehran at this moment in time is, at present, in our national interest.”
9:42AM
Truss: ‘I can’t see a purpose for the UN as it stands’ Liz Truss has suggested the United Nations should be abolished as she claimed it was not fit for purpose in its current form.
The former prime minister, who served as foreign secretary under Boris Johnson, accused the UN of playing a “damaging” role in the Israel-Gaza conflict.
Ms Truss told the BBC’s Newscast podcast: “I can’t see a purpose for the UN as it stands. At present it has been very ineffective at dealing with international situations, in fact positively damaging, for example, on Israel.”
Asked whether she wanted to abolish the UN, she replied: “I do recommend abolishing quite a lot of things in my book. I’m not a UN fan. I think the best use it has is actually a meeting point for governments.”
9:32AM
Pictured: Angela Rayner leaves her London home this morning Angela Rayner, the Labour deputy leader, is pictured this morning leaving her London home Credit: Marcin Nowak/London News Pictures Ltd 9:20AM
Big day in Westminster for two of Sunak’s flagship policies The Rwanda Bill returns to the House of Lords today for further scrutiny while MPs will vote for the first time on Rishi Sunak’s proposed smoking ban.
The House of Commons removed all of the amendments made by peers to the Rwanda Bill last night and the upper chamber is expected to try to make further changes to it this afternoon as the “ping-pong” process continues.
Meanwhile, the Tobacco and Vapes Bill is scheduled for its second reading debate – the first major hurdle all new Bills must clear on the path to becoming law.
The smoking ban Bill is expected to pass but it looks like Mr Sunak will suffer a Tory revolt over the plan.
The Rwanda Bill debate should get underway in the Lords at about 4pm while the vote on the smoking ban should take place at 7pm.
9:08AM
Pictured: Lord Cameron arrives in Downing Street for weekly Cabinet meeting Lord Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, is pictured today arriving in Downing Street Credit: Yui Mok /PA 9:04AM
Whitehall had EU ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ after Brexit, claims Truss Whitehall had a case of EU “Stockholm Syndrome” after Brexit because it was so used to being a “supplicant” to Brussels, Liz Truss has said.
The former prime minister said that officials were used to “looking to Brussels for validation” and that needed to change.
Stockholm Syndrome describes a situation in which a captive develops positive feelings towards their captor.
Ms Truss told Nigel Farage during an interview on GB News: “Given that we have decided to leave the European Union, the consequence of that is we need to become more dynamic, more nimble, more competitive. We need to get rid of all the EU laws straight away.
“We need to get on with doing trade deals with our allies. We made a decision and that has huge consequences.
“We’ve had a Whitehall that’s been shaped by being in Europe, essentially supplicants to Europe, and it’s almost like Stockholm Syndrome… officials are constantly looking to Brussels for validation and all of that needed to change.”
8:49AM
Minister: Smoking ban is ‘very sensible policy’ A Home Office minister who took up smoking at the age of 12 said she would back the plan to ban young people from ever legally being able to buy cigarettes.
Laura Farris rejected the criticism of the plan from some senior Tories including former prime ministers Liz Truss and Boris Johnson, telling LBC: “I think this is a very, very sensible policy and I’m not particularly interested in arguments about freedom on this one.”
The minister said: “It took me years and years and years to quit. It’s one of my biggest regrets, actually. I’ve got two young kids now and the fact that they will never be able to walk into a shop and buy a packet of cigarettes is something I welcome.
“I have never met a single smoker who’s glad they did it, wishes that their children do it, can identify a single health benefit or any other life benefit.
“It gets you hooked. It’s a horrible habit. And even when you’re doing it, you know that you’re causing yourself irreparable harm. And it’s incredibly difficult to get off.”
8:36AM
Polling expert: Nearly two-thirds of public back smoking ban There is “really significant” public support for Rishi Sunak’s smoking ban, a think tank expert and pollster has said as MPs prepare to vote on the Prime Minister’s proposals later today.
Luke Tryl, the UK director of More in Common, said support for Mr Sunak’s plan, which includes a year-on-year increase in the smoking age, was particularly high among 2019 Tory backers.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The top line finding is there is really significant support for this phased smoking ban. We find that nearly two-thirds of the public back a ban and what’s particularly interesting is among those who voted Conservative in 2019, support is even higher, 71 per cent of that group back a ban.
“It’s got really significant support among those voters that the Conservatives desperately need to get hold of. There’s this myth that has emerged that the public are pseudo-libertarians… people like the Government taking tough measures, particularly on public health and particularly on things that affect children and young people.
“If you ask people about a general smoking ban, they say I’m not sure how that’s enforceable, I’m not sure about how it’s going to work. But the idea of doing it for the future generations, this idea that it’s a phased ban… This measure that the Government is putting forward is particularly popular.”
8:25AM
Use education and tax to curb smoking, argues Tory MP There is “more than one way to crack a nut”, Sir Simon Clarke said as he said smoking should be curbed through taxation and education rather than prohibition.
The senior Tory MP told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “In the end we are sent to Parliament to make decisions and to follow our conscience and this is a conscience vote for the Conservative Party.
“I don’t think that this is the right way to go about stopping the next generation from smoking.
“That is a laudable goal but there is more than one way to crack a nut and I think that it is far better for us to focus on education and the tax system as tools to stop people from smoking than trying to introduce bans.”
8:16AM
Smoking ban is unconservative, says ex-Cabinet minister A ban on smoking is unconservative, Sir Simon Clarke said this morning as he set out his opposition to Rishi Sunak’s plan.
Sir Simon, a senior Tory MP and former Cabinet minister, said he believed the ban on young people smoking could end up being the “thin end of a wedge” which leads to other unhealthy things being banned.
It was suggested to Sir Simon during an interview on BBC Radio 4 Today that people would have used the same arguments against the ban on smoking in pubs.
But he said: “I think there is quite a significant difference between saying that it shouldn’t happen indoors, in pubs and clubs, and then the state saying outright you cannot do something.
“Philosophically I think that is an undesirable place for us to be because I think we ought to be talking in terms of both education and using the tax system to deter young people from starting smoking.
“I don’t think that an outright ban is a Conservative thing to do. I think it is the thin end of a wedge which once allowed in will then start to spiral to lots of other things, so let’s have an outright ban on fast food or an outright ban on alcohol. Once you start on the business of stopping people from doing things which are unhealthy for them that is the definition of a slippery slope.”
8:09AM
Sunak’s ban ‘risks making smoking cooler’, warns Sir Simon Clarke Rishi Sunak’s plan to introduce a phased ban on smoking risks making it “cooler”, a former Cabinet minister has warned.
Sir Simon Clarke argued the ban could fuel a black market and create an “unmanageable challenge for the authorities” to enforce it.
The former levelling up secretary made the comments as MPs prepare to debate and vote on Mr Sunak’s plan for the first time later today.
Mr Sunak’s Tobacco and Vapes Bill will make it illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone born after Jan 1 2009.
Asked if he was sceptical of the ban or downright opposed to it, Sir Simon told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “Both sceptical and downright opposed, I think it’s fair to say, because the truth is that we all agree that smoking is a very bad thing and that no young person ought to start.
“That is something which I think the science is unequivocal on, anyone who has spent any time talking, as I have, to doctors in the NHS about this will be in no doubt of the social and economic and health consequences of smoking.
“But there are good ways to tackle a problem like this and then there are bad ways and I think that an outright ban risks being counterproductive, I think it actually risks making smoking cooler, it certainly risks creating a black market, and it also risks creating an unmanageable challenge for the authorities.”