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Brexit: Leadsom criticised for saying PM could use 'unlawful' two-letter plan to sabotage Benn act - live news Brexit: Boris Johnson arrives at manor house in Wirral for private talks with Leo Varadkar - live news
(32 minutes later)
This is form MLex’s Matthew Holehouse on the venue for the Johnson/Varadkar talks.
The venue of previous high-stakes gatherings, including Coleen Rooney's 21st birthday party. https://t.co/FjG5R78hdA
Turning away from the Corbyn Q&A for a moment, Boris Johnson has lost his game of hide and seek with the media. This is from the Liverpool Echo’s Liam Thorp.
BREAKING: Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrives at Thornton Manor in Wirral for crunch talks with Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar pic.twitter.com/QfDlotfsq2
Q: How hard will it be to win an election when the Tories are also promising a big increase in public spending? And if you lose, will you stand down?
Corbyn says he never comments on opinion polls. He does not study them.
But the 2017 election was called in an emergency manner, and Labour went into it with the most radical, transformative manifesto that had been put to the people. He got the biggest increase in the Labour vote since 1945. He thinks he opened the eyes of people to how things could be different.
He says he has spent a lot of time since then touring the country, and listening to people.
A lot of people feel depressed and angry. The levels of mental health problem reflect the anxiety being generated by what is going wrong.
What this country cannot afford is the level of inequality it has.
He says, when the election is called, he will be out there, with hundreds of thousands of Labour members sending the message that things can be different.
Do you want the country run by a party that has cut and sliced public services? Or do you want more of the same?
He says he is very fit, and determined to win an election.
Q: What is your plan for the backstop?
Corbyn says the best solution would be to maintain a customs union relationship with the EU.
Q: What is your response to what Donald Trump said about how anyone could drive on the wrong side of the road?
That is the most crass, unsensitive comment anyone could ever make.
He says a man died. Let’s have some humanity and justice, he says.
Q: Some Labour MPs want a referendum before an election. Are you committed to an election first? And when should it be?
Corbyn says he is proposing a second referendum when a Labour government is elected. People would have a choice between remain and a deal. We are in for a few days of shadowing boxing by Boris Johnson. Corbyn says he hopes the decision comes back to parliament.
He says a deal does not look likely.
He says the opposition parties want as a priority to take no deal off the table.
He says he is very confident that he could get a deal with the EU.
But, with the remain option, he says he would also want to see some reforms from the EU.
Q: Should the Americans waive diplomatic immunity in the Anne Sacoolas case.
Corbyn says he is “alarmed and very concerned” by this case. It is not appropriate to seek diplomatic immunity when someone has been killed, he says.
Q: Would you give into Extinction Rebellion’s demands?
Corbyn says he has met many of these protesters. Their right to protest must be defended, he says.
He says people should think where protest can lead.
He refers to the 19th century Northampton MP Charles Bradlaugh, who ensured atheists could stand for parliament, and the suffragettes.
Corbyn is on his peroration.
The alternative Queen’s Speech I’ve set out today is the most transformative, radical and exciting programme ever put before the British electorate. This is Labour’s plan to change our country, it’s the real thing not the pale imitation offered by Boris Johnson and his Conservative Party.
It’s a path to a future where the economy is run for the people, not the privileged, and the government works for you not the vested interests. A future where we tackle the climate emergency and Britain is a force for peace and international justice in the world.
That future is within our grasp. Together we can build a country fit for the next generation. The future is ours to make It’s time for real change.
Turning to foreign affairs, Corbyn says the invasion of Northern Syria by Turkey is “completely unacceptable”.
He says Labour would pass legislation to ensure the PM cannot go to war without parliament’s approval.
Currently the prime minister has the power under the royal prerogative to launch military action without recourse to parliament. Boris Johnson – a prime minister without a majority – has talked about sending troops to Saudi Arabia to confront Iran: another disaster in the making. I will be a very different kind of prime minister, one who is prepared to limit my own power in the public interest. So that’s why a Labour government will introduce a War Powers Bill to ensure no prime minister can bypass parliament to take the country to war.
Corbyn confirms Labour would ban fracking.
Labour will ban fracking, roll out a street-by-street insulation programme and fit solar panels on 1.75 million roofs, double large-scale solar, remove barriers to onshore wind and ensure every single new house built is a zero carbon home.
Corbyn praises groups like Extinction Rebellion.Corbyn praises groups like Extinction Rebellion.
To have any hope of keeping global temperature rises to a manageable level we need immediate and radical action. I’d like to thank groups like the Climate Strikers and Extinction Rebellion for educating us and pushing the issue to the top of the agenda.To have any hope of keeping global temperature rises to a manageable level we need immediate and radical action. I’d like to thank groups like the Climate Strikers and Extinction Rebellion for educating us and pushing the issue to the top of the agenda.
The government’s target of reaching net zero emissions by 2050 is too late and the Tories are doing little to meet it – in fact investment in clean energy has fallen for three years running. A Labour government is fully signed up to a Green New Deal. We are already working closely with trade unions and the scientific community to develop the most radical climate targets in the world.The government’s target of reaching net zero emissions by 2050 is too late and the Tories are doing little to meet it – in fact investment in clean energy has fallen for three years running. A Labour government is fully signed up to a Green New Deal. We are already working closely with trade unions and the scientific community to develop the most radical climate targets in the world.
Corbyn says Labour would fund councils properly.Corbyn says Labour would fund councils properly.
And services have not been funded properly either, he says.And services have not been funded properly either, he says.
The same goes for vital basic services we all rely on, which have been carved up and fleeced by their private owners. The privatisation of our utilities, which are natural monopolies, has been a failure. People are sick of paying through the nose for a poor service while billions are handed over to shareholders. So Labour will bring rail, mail, water and the energy grid into public ownership, run by and for the public, not for profit.The same goes for vital basic services we all rely on, which have been carved up and fleeced by their private owners. The privatisation of our utilities, which are natural monopolies, has been a failure. People are sick of paying through the nose for a poor service while billions are handed over to shareholders. So Labour will bring rail, mail, water and the energy grid into public ownership, run by and for the public, not for profit.
And a Labour government will take the railways back into public ownership too. We’ll invest in public transport including Crossrail for the North, from Liverpool to Hull and up to Newcastle. We’ll reinstate bus routes and establish municipal companies making free bus travel available to the under-25s while maintaining the pensioner bus pass. Our public transport network is falling apart just when the climate emergency means we need it most.And a Labour government will take the railways back into public ownership too. We’ll invest in public transport including Crossrail for the North, from Liverpool to Hull and up to Newcastle. We’ll reinstate bus routes and establish municipal companies making free bus travel available to the under-25s while maintaining the pensioner bus pass. Our public transport network is falling apart just when the climate emergency means we need it most.
Corbyn says Labour will “guarantee every young person access to youth services in their community”.Corbyn says Labour will “guarantee every young person access to youth services in their community”.
Women will be at the heart of Labour’s programme for government, he says.Women will be at the heart of Labour’s programme for government, he says.
Labour is the Party of equality. We’ll bear down on sexism, racism, homophobia and all forms of discrimination wherever they exist in our economy and society.Labour is the Party of equality. We’ll bear down on sexism, racism, homophobia and all forms of discrimination wherever they exist in our economy and society.
He says yesterday’s antisemitic attack in Germany was “sickening” and a Labour government would oppose all forms of racism, including antisemitism.He says yesterday’s antisemitic attack in Germany was “sickening” and a Labour government would oppose all forms of racism, including antisemitism.
Corbyn confirms that Labour would increase the number of uniformed police officers.Corbyn confirms that Labour would increase the number of uniformed police officers.
But the reduction in police numbers is not the only reason why violent crime has doubled, he says.But the reduction in police numbers is not the only reason why violent crime has doubled, he says.
It’s also the wider impact of austerity – including the closure of youth services. 750 youth centres have closed their doors since 2012. Too many young people today are growing up with nowhere to go and no one to speak to about their lives.It’s also the wider impact of austerity – including the closure of youth services. 750 youth centres have closed their doors since 2012. Too many young people today are growing up with nowhere to go and no one to speak to about their lives.
Labour would deliver justice for Grenfell, Corbyn says.Labour would deliver justice for Grenfell, Corbyn says.
After the horror of Grenfell it’s astonishing that the Tories are still failing to make tower blocks safe. Nine out of ten private blocks with Grenfell-style cladding haven’t had it replaced.After the horror of Grenfell it’s astonishing that the Tories are still failing to make tower blocks safe. Nine out of ten private blocks with Grenfell-style cladding haven’t had it replaced.
Labour will ensure people aren’t living in death traps. And we will deliver justice for Grenfell.Labour will ensure people aren’t living in death traps. And we will deliver justice for Grenfell.
Corbyn says today is world homelessness day.Corbyn says today is world homelessness day.
And let me say this on World Homeless Day: in the fifth richest country in the world no one should be sleeping rough. We all know it’s wrong. It’s Labour that will end rough sleeping.And let me say this on World Homeless Day: in the fifth richest country in the world no one should be sleeping rough. We all know it’s wrong. It’s Labour that will end rough sleeping.
Corbyn quotes from the report (pdf) from the UN rapporteur on extreme poverty.
If I told you that our social security system has been “deliberately removed and replaced with a harsh and uncaring ethos” you might think, ‘Well, he would say that.’
But if I told you those aren’t my words but the damning verdict of the United Nations, no less, you get a sense of the damage wrought by nine years of Tory austerity.
Turning to welfare, he says:
A Labour government will change the whole culture of the DWP. It will become the Department for Social Security to give people dignity and respect.
Social security shouldn’t be about forcing women into the indignity of having to fill out a four-page form to prove their child was born as a result of rape as 500 women had to do last year.
Labour will scrap Universal Credit and introduce an emergency package to immediately end its worst aspects. Ending the benefit cap and the two child limit, which alone will stop up to 300,000 children being pushed into poverty.
And, yes, that means the end of the disgusting rape clause.
We’ll end the five week wait for the first payment, end the Tories’ vicious sanctions regime, end the bedroom tax and - because we’re committed to reducing poverty - we’ll end the benefit freeze.
We’ll control welfare spending by tackling low pay and insecure work ... and rip-off rents. Social security shouldn’t be subsidising bad employers and greedy landlords.
Turning to adult social care, Corbyn says the current system is “a disgrace”.
Nearly £8 billion has been taken from councils’ social care budgets since 2010. 87 people die every day while waiting for the care they need. It’s a disgrace, frankly, that we treat our older people in this way.
A Labour government will introduce free personal care providing help with daily tasks like bathing, washing, and preparing meals. This will be the first step to creating a National Care Service, easing the fear of getting older.
Turning to education, Corbyn confirms Labour would scrap university tuition fees, end SATS for 7 and 11-year-olds and rebuild Sure Start.
Turning to health, he says:
For a decade our NHS has been run down, carved up, and prepared for privatisation. A Labour government will reverse this. We’ll repeal the Tory-Lib Dem privatisation Act of 2012. We’ll give our NHS the resources, equipment and staff it needs. That means more GPs and nurses and reduced waiting times. And under Labour prescriptions in England will be free.
And he restates the policy he announced at conference - big drug companies would no longer be allowed to “hold our NHS to ransom”, he says.
Corbyn says Labour would raise the minimum wage to £10 an hour for all workers over 16 immediately.
The chancellor, Sajid Javid, has said the minimum wage will not rise above £10 an hour until 2024, and only for those aged 21 and over.
So a Labour government will immediately raise the minimum wage to £10 an hour for all workers from the age of 16.
And Corbyn runs through some of the party’s other flagship policies for workers.
We’ll create a new Ministry of Employment Rights to give workers a seat at the Cabinet table and strengthen the democratic voice of the workforce through collective bargaining.
Every worker will have full rights on day one of a new job; entitling them to sick pay, holiday pay, parental leave and protection against unfair dismissal. A new Workers’ Protection Agency will ensure all these rights are properly enforced. And we’ll create a Working Time Commission … to reduce the average full time working hours to 32 a week within ten years.
But to truly rebalance power in people’s daily lives we need to go further. So Labour will give workers a say and a stake in their workplace … by ensuring a third of the seats on company boards are reserved for worker directors ... elected by the workforce.
Corbyn says Labour wants an economy that works for the many, not the few.
A Labour government will rebuild communities across Britain with investment on a scale our country has never known bringing new jobs and fresh growth to every town, city, region and nation.
We’ll upgrade our creaking infrastructure with £250 billion of public investment into energy, housing and transport through a National Transformation Fund and establish a National Investment Bank to make a further £250 billion available through loans to businesses and co-ops to get our economy moving.
Grotesque inequality isn’t inevitable. It’s the result of a deliberate effort to tip the balance of power away from workers towards the privileged elite that Boris Johnson’s Conservatives represent.
Corbyn says the first task of a Labour government would be to get Brexit sorted.
The first task of a Labour government will be to finally get Brexit sorted.
After three years of Tory failure, it’s time to take the decision out of the hands of politicians and let the people have the final say.
So a Labour government will immediately legislate for a referendum.
And he sums up the Brexit position confirmed at Labour’s conference.
Within six months of being elected we will put that deal to a public vote alongside remain.
And as prime minister I will carry out whatever the people decide.
There’s nothing complicated about that position. It’s really very simple: Labour trusts the people to decide.
Corbyn sums up Labour’s election offer.
We might be just weeks away from the first Queen’s Speech of a Labour government.
And in that Queen’s Speech, Labour will put forward the most radical, hopeful, people-focused programme in modern times: a once-in-a-generation chance to rebuild and transform our country.
It will:
Let the people decide on Brexit
Build an economy that works for all
Change government so that it works for you
Tackle the climate emergency …
Reset our global role to one based on peace and human rights.
Corbyn says Labour will back an election once a no-deal Brexit has been taken off the table.
It wasn’t long ago that Johnson was pretending not to want an election. Now he’s pretending that it’s Labour that doesn’t want one.
So let me address this directly:
Prime minister, we can’t trust you not to break the law because you’ve got form.
We can’t trust you not to use the period of an election campaign to drive our country off a No Deal cliff edge that will crash our economy, destroy jobs and industries, cause shortages of medicine and food and endanger peace in Northern Ireland.
So it’s simple: obey the law, take No Deal off the table and then let’s have the election.
Corbyn starts by describing next week’s Queen’s speech as a “cynical stunt”.
On Monday, we will be treated to the farce of Boris Johnson’s Conservative government, amid full pomp and ceremony, setting out an agenda to parliament that it has no intention and no means of delivering.
Because this government isn’t going to put any legislation before parliament.
It has a majority of minus 45, a 100 per cent record of defeat in the Commons and is seeking a general election which will rapidly end the parliamentary session the Queen is about to open.
Holding a Queen’s Speech before an election is a cynical stunt.
Johnson is using the Queen to deliver a pre-election party political broadcast for the Conservative Party.
Stage set for Jeremy Corbyn speech in Northampton. Lots of activists here. Definitely has something of an election rally feel to it. pic.twitter.com/eCV0VEnyQI