Reform's newest MP sparks groans with 'ban the burqa' demand

Reform UK's newest MP has called on the Government to ban women from wearing burqas.

Sarah Pochin, who was elected in Runcorn and Helsby last month, urged Mr Starmer to follow France, Belgium and Denmark "in the interests of public safety".

There were loud groans across the Commons. Mr Starmer responded: "Can I welcome her to her place, but I'm not going to follow her down that line.

"Now she is here and safely in her place, perhaps she could tell her new party leader (Nigel Farage) that his latest plan to bet £80billion of unfunded tax cuts with no idea how he's going to pay for it, is Liz Truss all over again.

"Although considering I think she was a Conservative member when Liz Truss was leader, she probably won't."

Trump tariffs

Then she brings up Donald Trump's threats of fresh steel tariffs: "Two weeks ago he was crowing about his historic treaty and how he got 0% tariffs on steel. Now the steel industry will face 25% tariffs unless he does exactly what President Trump tells him to.

And Ed Davey brought it up too in his first question - "A letter from the king, offering to water down online safety laws, even trying to send the Open to one of Trump's golf courses. The PM thought he'd secured 0% tariffs for British steel. But now Trump is threatening us with 50% unless we comply with his new five week deadline.

"This is classic Trump, changing the terms of the deal he had already agreed. Does he share my fear that nothing will stop Trump messing the UK around short of bunging a few hundred million pounds into his Trump coin."

Starmer insists: "We have a deal and we're implementing it. Within a very short time I'm confident we'll get those tariffs down in accordance with the deal. I'll come back to him and update the House in due course. I think the House will be very pleased with the outcome of that."

He insists this will be "zero tariffs on steel" and he'll have it in place "in a couple of weeks."

"I believe in standing by Ukraine"

"She asks me what I believe in," Starmer says. "I believe in standing by Ukraine and calling out Russia as an agressor."

Badenoch says her party stood behind Ukraine too, accusing him of dodging questions and "obfuscation."

"He's saying everything he can to distract from the mess he is making of our economy," she insists.

"Only one leader has been praised by the Russian Embassy this week"

Ouch. Starmer brings up Kemi Badenoch's comments on Sky News last week - accusing Ukraine of fighting a proxy war against Russia on behalf of Western interests.

The comments were picked up and praised by the Russian Embassy. "There's only one leader who's been praised this week by the Russian Embassy. And if she carries on echoing Kremlin talking points like this Reform are going to send her an application form for membership."

How is he going to pay for this?

Badenoch demands the PM apologise for means testing Winter Fuel payments in the first place, and explain how he's going to pay for reversing it.

Starmer says she should apologise for the Tories crashing the economy and leaving behind a £20bn black hole.

Badenoch, insisting Starmer's government is "chaos, chaos, chaos", turns to the two child benefit cap - which the Tories introduced - demanding to know whether it will be scrapped.

Starmer says he's determined to drive down poverty, and the child poverty strategy is coming.

Kemi Badenoch goes in on Winter Fuel

Keir Starmer opens by hailing his announcements on defence spending, saying his government "will never gamble with our national security."

Kemi Badenoch's first question is on Winter Fuel - joking that Rachel Reeves is scrambling to reverse it because she's "only just realised when winter is".

She demands to know how many pensioners will get it back.

Starmer jokes that it's good that she's caught up with the events of two weeks ago.

Labour should apologise for winter fuel misery, say Lib Dems

The Government should apologise for the way it handled the partial U-turn, the Lib Dems have said.

Deputy leader Daisy Cooper stated: "This whole debacle has caused needless misery for millions of pensioners.

"We will look at the details of the changes at the Spending Review next week. In the meantime the Chancellor should apologise to all those pensioners who had to freeze this winter because of this senseless policy.”

No prospect of return to universal winter fuel payments

As the Chancellor was speaking in the North West, pensions minister Torsten Bell told MPs in Westminster that, while more pensioners will be eligible, there is no prospect of returning to universal winter fuel payments.

He told the Work and Pensions Committee: "Directly on your question of is there any prospect of a universal winter fuel payment, the answer is no, the principle I think most people, 95% of people, agree, that it's not a good idea that we have a system paying a few hundreds of pounds to millionaires, and so we're not going to be continuing with that.

"But we will be looking at making more pensioners eligible."

Winter fuel payment changes are on way says Reeves

Askey by The Mirror's Sophie Huskisson whether there will be anything on winter fuel payments in next week's announcement, Ms Reeves said public finances are on a sound footing.

Ms Reeves said:"I had to make decisions last year to restore sound public finances, and that involved a number of difficult decisions around welfare, taxation and also public spending, including the decision to means test winter fuel payments, so only the poorest pensioners, those on pension credit, got it."

"But we have now put our public finances on a firmer footing, the economy is in a better shape, but we have also listened to the concerns that people had about the level of the means test, and so we will be making changes to that.

"They will be in place so that pensioners are paid this coming winter, and we will announce the detail of that and the level of that as soon as we possibly can.

"But people should be in no doubt that the means test will increase and more people will get winter fuel payment this winter."

'I'm not going to write another four years of budget'

Pressed on whether she would rule out a wealth tax, the Chancellor responded: "I'm not going to write another four years of Budget before we've got through the first year of this Government."

But she said measures already brought in have led to a £40billion injection of cash into public services.

On tax, she said she has "no intention" of repeating a Budget like the previous one. And she said Labour's manifesto commitments on not hiking tax for workers still stand.

Reeves refuses to commit to Manchester-Liverpool train line

Pressed for more detail on rail investment, Ms Reeves said there is more to come.

Quizzed on whether she will commit to a crossrail scheme between Liverpool and Manchester, she said: "Today I'm only announcing the mayoral settlements."

She said these have gone up by 2.4%. "There will be more to come next week," the Chancellor stated.

Chancellor defends her strict fiscal rules

The Chancellor defended her fiscal rules, insisting they were a "product of economic reality" and went "hand-in-hand" with social justice.

Ms Reeves said: "Over the next week you will hear a lot of debate about my so-called self-imposed fiscal rules.

"Contrary to some conventional wisdom, I didn't want to come into politics because I care passionately about fiscal rules. I came into politics because I want to make a difference to the lives of working people, because I believe as strongly now as I did when I was inspired to join the Labour Party almost 30 years ago that every person should have the same opportunities to thrive and to succeed."

'Prosperity is too narrowly shared' says Chancellor

Next week's spending review will be "targeted squarely on the renewal of Britain", Ms Reeves said.

The Chancellor stated: "While it is just one quarter, the most recent numbers showed Britain to be the fastest growing economy in the G7 and real wages rose more in less than 10 months under Labour than they did over the first 10 years of the previous Conservative government.

"But we know that not enough people are feeling that yet, that trust remains low, prosperity is too narrowly shared.

"I know that we must do more. In a week's time, I will set out a spending review targeted squarely on the renewal of Britain, focused on the priorities of working people by investing in our security, in our health and in our economic growth, to deliver on the promise of change to make you and your family better off."

'I've had to say no to things I want to do' says Chancellor

The Chancellor acknowledges that some Government departments will be disappointed by her spending review next week.

Hinting at disquiet among Cabinet members, she said: "Not every department will get everything they want next week.

"I've had to say no to things I want to do." Ms Reeves went on to blame the Tories for wrecking public services over their 14 years in power.

Reeves lashes out at Nigel Farage's 'fantasy economics'

Ms Reeves sets her sights on Nigel Farage.

After pointing out the misery Liz Truss inflicted on millions, she says: "Be in no doubt, Nigel Farage and Reform are itching to repeat that same experiment to pursue these fantasy economics all over again.

"The results would be the same."

Too few people enjoy benefits of growth, says Reeves

The Chancellor said her spending review next week will focus on creating a "renewed" Britain.

She said too few people feel the benefits of growth, with not enough regions reaping the rewards. "For every success story - and yes there are many - there's potential that has been held back by uneven distribution," Ms Reeves states.

UK has lagged behind on investment for too long says Reeves

Rachel Reeves is now delivering her speech.

She said Britian has "lagged behind" other G7 nations on business investment for too long. She went on: "The last Parliament was the worst on record for living standards.

"This Government's economic strategy is designed to fix that."

'This will unlock a new era for Greater Manchester'

Mr Burnham goes on: "We're going to unlock a new era for Greater Manchester."

He went on: "It's clear today that we're benefitting from a governemtn that's actually putting investment into the north.

"The leveling up that was once promised is actually happening here."

Andy Burnham welcomes 'fantastic news' for Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is introducing the Chancellor.

Praising more than £2billion of transport funding into the region, he said: "This is fantastic news for Greater Manchester." The former Labour minister went on: "What this says is that good transport powers good growth."

He said the funding will be a huge boost in the next 10 years, saying it "could be the best decade for Greater Manchester since the Victorian period".

Victim support services 'being pushed to the brink' warning

Domestic Abuse Commissioner for England and Wales Dame Nicole Jacobs and Victims' Commissioner for England and Wales Baroness Newlove wrote to the PM saying victim support services are being "pushed to the brink", hit by funding cuts and rising costs.

Rachel Reeves' spending review is due on Wednesday next week, and the Institute for Fiscal Studies has said she faces "unavoidably tough decisions" as the demands of NHS and defence spending raise the prospect of cuts in other departments.

Dame Nicole and Baroness Newlove welcomed Mr Starmer's "personal commitment to halving violence against women and girls within a decade" in their letter but said they were concerned that "funding cuts and scaled back ambition are leading to piecemeal policies".

They called for a "clear, well-funded national approach to prevent and respond to abuse, violence, and exploitation of women and girls".

Minister defends cash awarded to police forces

Responding to police chiefs' fears, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said more cash has been ploughed into supporting forces.

She told LBC: "Well, my response is that the first duty of any government is to ensure public safety. We have increased the police budget nationally by over a billion pounds, taking it to over £17 billion. Part of that billion pound investment was £200 million to ensure that the police can start to recruit some of the additional 13,000…"

Host Nick Ferrari butted in: "The bloke at the coalface says it’s not enough."

Ms Alexander responded: "Look, I know that the Chancellor, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, will have been talking very, very carefully and closely with the Home Secretary to make sure that through this spending review, the police do have the resources that they need."

UK's top cops issue dire warning ahead of spending review

Police will have to "deprioritise" some crimes if their budgets are slashed, the UK's top officers have warned Keir Starmer.

In a letter to the PM, police chiefs including the head of the Met Police and the National Crime Agency (NCA) said forces will face "stark choices". It comes amid behind-the-scenes wrangling ahead of Rachel Reeves ' much-anticipated spending review next week, with Home Secretary Yvette Cooper pushing for more cash.

Met Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley joined Gavin Stephens, head of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, and Graeme Biggar, who leads the National Crime Agency (NCA), in raising the alarm.

In a letter seen by The Times they wrote: “We understand that the Treasury [is] seeking to finalise departmental budget allocations this week and that the negotiations between the Home Office and the Treasury are going poorly.

“We are deeply concerned that the settlement for policing and the (NCA), without additional investment, risks a retrenchment to what we saw under austerity. This would have far-reaching consequences."

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Keir Starmer says focus must shift from South East

Keir Starmer said the announcement is "about pushing power out of Westminster and putting it back in the hands of communities who know what they need".

He wrote in the Manchester Evening News: "One thing is crystal clear. We will not get the renewal we need by focussing only on the South East and ignoring the huge potential of the rest of the nation.

"For too long, the mindset of previous governments has been to hoard power and potential behind the walls of Westminster. The result? Proud places across the country have been neglected and left behind."

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said the announcement "marks a watershed moment on our journey to improving transport across the North and Midlands - opening up access to jobs, growing the economy and driving up quality of life".

What projects will be getting cash?

The investment includes £2.4 billion for the West Midlands to fund an extension of the region's metro from Birmingham city centre to the new sports quarter, and £2.1 billion to start building West Yorkshire Mass Transit by 2028.

Greater Manchester will receive £2.5 billion for projects including new tram stops in Bury, Manchester and Oldham and an extension of the tram network to Stockport.

A £1.5 billion investment in South Yorkshire will include £530 million to renew the region's trams, while the East Midlands will receive £2 billion to design a new mass transit system between Derby and Nottingham.

In the south, the West of England will receive £800 million, including £200 million to develop mass transit links between Bristol, Bath, South Gloucestershire and north Somerset.

Cabinet member denies row over police funding

The Transport Secretary has denied that some of her Cabinet colleagues are engaged in a row over funding for the police.

Asked about reports that negotiations between the Treasury and the Home Office ahead of next week's spending review were ongoing, Heidi Alexander told Times Radio: "I know that the Chancellor, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, they are working hand-in-glove with the Home Secretary Yvette Cooper."

Responding to the suggestion they were "having a row", she said: "I'm not privy to any of those conversations. All that I've seen is a really collegiate atmosphere around the Cabinet table on the part of every single Cabinet member that we can start to deliver on our plan for change, we can get the economy firing on all cylinders, that we recruit those extra police officers - which was a big commitment at the election - that we can invest in the NHS, we can invest in our public transport in terms of the announcement that we are making today."

Will there be anything about winter fuel payments?

All eyes will be on the Chancellor to see if her spending review contains any clarity on winter fuel payments.

Keir Starmer has announced thresholds are being looked at to make more pensioners eligible. It comes after around 10million lost out on the annual payments - of up to £300 - when it became means tested.

It sparked a furious backlash against Labour. On Monday the PM admitted clarity is needed as soon as possible after saying he wants to look again at eligibility thresholds. Ms Reeves will unveil a spending review on June 11, which may include an update on the controversial policy.

Rachel Reeves to announce billions of transport spending

Rachel Reeves will announce plans today to pour billions of pounds into transport in the North and the Midlands.

Ahead of next week’s Spending Review, the Chancellor will confirm £15.6 billion of funding for local transport projects to overhaul creaking transport systems outside of London.

Mayors are expected to get cash to extend the metros in Tyne and Wear, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands, along with a renewed tram network in South Yorkshire and a new mass transit system in West Yorkshire.

In a speech in Greater Manchester, Ms Reeves is expected to say that “a Britain that is better off cannot rely on a handful of places forging ahead of the rest of the country".

She will warn that the “result of such thinking has been growth created in too few places, felt by too few people and wide gaps between regions, and between our cities and towns".

The Chancellor is expected to rip up Treasury spending rules to reprioritise investment outside of London and the South East - allowing her to splash tens of billions of pounds on road, rail and green energy projects.

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