Newslinks for Monday 5th May 2025

Rape gang survivors hit back at Labour

“Grooming gang victims have attacked a Labour cabinet minister for calling the scandal a “dog whistle” issue, as Sir Keir Starmer refused to sack her. Lucy Powell was forced to apologise after making the remarks during a debate about a Channel 4 grooming gangs documentary. Conservative and Labour figures have criticised Ms Powell, Leader of the House of Commons, with some calling for her to resign. On Sunday, Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, defended her, saying “we all make mistakes” and insisting Ms Powell would not be sacked.” – Daily Telegraph

• Labour minister should be ‘ashamed’ after belittling grooming gangs scandal, survivor’s dad blasts – The Sun
• Labour minister told to resign over ‘sickening’ grooming gangs remarks – Daily Express
• Tory bid to force police into recording biological sex of criminals – Daily Telegraph
• MPs calling for ban on choking in pornography as they warn the aggressive act is being ‘glamourised’ – Daily Mail

Comment:

• Calling the rape gangs a ‘dog whistle’ issue is utterly disgraceful – Henry Hill, Daily Telegraph

Former transport secretary Louise Haigh tells Starmer to avoid ‘naive’ lurch to right after Reform success – and raise taxes

“Louise Haigh has urged Keir Starmer to avoid a “simplistic and naive” response by lurching to the right after Reform UK’s success in the local elections, in her first interview since being in effect sacked as transport secretary. The former cabinet minister warned the prime minister to “pick some battles” with the right as it would not be enough to ask progressive-minded voters to back Labour at the next election just to keep Nigel Farage out of power. Haigh was one of Starmer’s most prominent cabinet ministers on the “soft left” of the party and drove through his rail nationalisation bill, before she resigned as transport secretary in November when it emerged she had been convicted of fraud over a missing work phone a decade ago.” – The Guardian

• Raise taxes to fight off Nigel Farage, Keir Starmer told – The Times
• Labour minister Bridget Phillipson tipped for demotion in likely Cabinet reshuffle next month after school reforms that ‘blindsided’ Number 10 – Daily Mail
• Labour MPs press Keir Starmer to rethink benefits cuts after local elections – Financial Times

Comment:

• Why Labour shouldn’t shift right – John McTernan, New Statesman
• Reform has what Labour used to have: momentum, and now the middle classes – Anne McElvoy, The i

Reform takes on asylum hotels

“Nigel Farage is ready to go to court to stop asylum seekers being housed in Reform-run areas. A legal battle with Ministers is now on the cards within 100 days in a major push to close migrant hotels blighting communities. The battle-hardy tactics were revealed by party chair Zia Yusuf who revealed “every instrument of power” will be deployed by local authorities. The move follows Sir Keir Starmer declaring he would bring asylum hotels, costing £5.5 million PER DAY, to an end in an election pledge.” – The Sun

• Exposed: Home Office translators running a lucrative scam to spring illegal immigrants from detention – Daily Mail
• ‘Hyper-liberal’ Labour ignoring working-class immigration concerns, says Red Wall MP – Daily Telegraph
• Reform promises to do ‘everything it can’ to close migrant hotels – The Times
• Kemi Badenoch urged to be bold as critics warn she has a year to restore Tory hopes from the ‘existential’ threat of Reform UK – Daily Mail
• Labour hopes immigration crackdown and interest rate cut can stop Reform – The i 

Comment:

• Farage’s vow to ‘resist’ government in court over asylum hotels will be welcomed by fed-up voters – The Sun Says
• Labour faces the same fate as the Tories after Reform surge – unless it does five things – Maurice Glasman, The Sun
• Falsehoods fuelling the vote surge for Reform – Emma Duncan, The Times
• The Tories need to fight out their internal battle or they are doomed – Tim Stanley, Daily Telegraph
• The death of the centre-right – Wolfgang Munchau, Unherd

> Today: Here should endeth the lessons. Certainty and inevitability are the refuge of potentially false prophets

David Gauke: The direction the Conservatives will be tempted towards to seek salvation is not the way they need to go

> Yesterday: Jenkyns predicts more defections to Reform from the Conservative ranks

Badenoch – ‘Four years ago Keir Starmer had his worst result, he is prime minister now’

Labour’s net zero plans under attack

“Labour’s net zero push risks making the party “electorally toxic”, Lord Blunkett has said. The Labour peer and former home secretary urged Sir Keir Starmer to take a more flexible approach towards green targets to save businesses and consumers money. It comes days after Sir Tony Blair said net zero policies were “doomed to fail” and people were being asked to make financial sacrifices for a “minimal” impact on global emissions. A spokesman for Sir Tony later insisted he believed Sir Keir’s approach was “the right one”, but the intervention has opened a debate in the party about its green policies.” – Daily Telegraph

• Ed Miliband’s net-zero deadline is unrealistic, says union boss – The Times
• Huge blow to Ed Miliband as Reform councillors declare war on net zero plans – Daily Express
• Nigel Farage’s future constituencies could face this major issue because of climate change – Daily Express
• UK ‘green’ buses to run on fuel shipped 3,000 miles from controversial Saudi megacity – The i

Comment:

• North Sea still vital in the rush for net zero – Gary Smith, The Times

EU blocks efforts to curb flow of migrants

“The European Union has rejected British appeals for access to critical crime and illegal migration databases as part of a Brexit reset with the bloc. In a blow to Downing Street’s attempts to improve security ties with Europe, Brussels has told UK negotiators the EU cannot share information, including the fingerprints of illegal migrants, with British police and immigration officials. Sir Keir Starmer had made improved access to data one of his central requests to the EU, saying: “[The] more we can share, the better.”” – The Times

Comment:

• It’s crunch time for the Brexit reset – Jon Stone, Politico

News in brief:

• Shocked by the Farage surge? You haven’t been paying attention – Rachel Wolf, Politico
• Nobody likes the yookay aesthetic – Luca Watson, The Critic
• You won’t find God on your iPhone – Giles Fraser, Unherd
• The Motability scheme needs to be put into reverse – Lana Hempsall, The Spectator