Newslinks for Sunday 27th April 2025

Trump turns against Putin after meeting Zelensky at Pope’s funeral

“Donald Trump turned on Vladimir Putin after holding one-on-one talks with Volodymyr Zelensky in St Peter’s Basilica at Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday. He accused the Russian president of stringing him along in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine and warned he was prepared to hit Moscow with fresh sanctions. After leaving Rome, where he also held talks with European allies, Mr Trump said: “There was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days. “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘banking’ or ‘secondary sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!” The surprise face-to-face meeting, held on simple red chairs in the nave of the church, was the first between Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky since their acrimonious row in the Oval Office in February.” – Sunday Telegraph

• There could be no better answer to late Pope’s prayers than a lasting and just peace in Ukraine – Leader, The Sun on Sunday
• From beyond the grave, Francis brought Ukrainian peace a little closer – Tim Stanley, Sunday Telegraph
• Zelensky’s meeting in Rome may show a ceasefire is at hand, but this is no victory – Richard Kemp, Sunday Telegraph
• Trump may have seen Putin as he really is – Leader, Sunday Telegraph
• Christianity is at a crossroads but its values will endure – Leader, Sunday Times

Equality watchdog declares that biological men should not be allowed to use women’s lavatories

“The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has released interim guidance on how organisations should interpret the UK Supreme Court’s ruling that a woman is defined by biological sex in law. The new guidance, external says that, in places like hospitals, shops and restaurants, “trans women (biological men) should not be permitted to use the women’s facilities”. It also states that trans people should not be left without any facilities to use. The EHRC said it was releasing interim guidance because “many people have questions about the judgement and what it means for them”. – BBC

• Trans campaigners are fighting back against the legal definition of a woman as confused employers deal with its implications – Sunday Times

Starmer biography 1) Ex-girlfriend is a pro-trans judge

“Sir Keir Starmer had a long-term romance with a judge who has been accused of being influenced by trans activists, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. A new biography of the Prime Minister reveals that before meeting his wife, Victoria, Sir Keir spent ‘years’ in a relationship with Maya Sikand KC, a high-flying barrister who now works as a part-time Crown Court judge…Red Flag, the updated Starmer biography by former Tory Party deputy chairman Lord Ashcroft, says that Sir Keir became ‘close’ to Ms Sikand after she took a pupillage at his Doughty Street chambers in 1998.” – Mail on Sunday

Starmer biography 2) Rayner ‘repeatedly threatened to resign over ‘impossible’ housing target

“Angela Rayner has repeatedly threatened to resign from the Cabinet over the ‘impossible’ target of building 1.5 million homes in the next five years, according to the new updated biography of Sir Keir Starmer. Lord Ashcroft writes in Red Flag it was only a call from Tony Blair that prevented the Deputy Prime Minister from quitting.” – Mail on Sunday

Starmer biography 3) Ashcroft: At the height of the freebie scandal, he seemed more concerned about the Arsenal v Spurs match

“On Keir Starmer’s first day in Downing Street as Prime Minister in July last year, one of his aides was busy putting all of next season’s fixtures of his beloved Arsenal football club into his diary when an experienced No 10 civil servant intervened: ‘I wouldn’t bother with that, there won’t be time.’ The aide replied, ‘No, Keir insists,’ so every Arsenal game was blocked out. This caused surprise – even alarm – among some who worked there, fearing that the new PM had not really grasped the all-consuming magnitude of the job he was taking on. A source says of those early months in power that people in Downing Street expected Starmer to come in and know how he wanted to run things. But he didn’t.” – Lord Ashcroft, Serialised from Red Flag: The Uneasy Advance of Sir Keir Starmer, Mail on Sunday

Badenoch says why the elections on Thursday matter…

“Right now, Britain needs real leadership. A plan and not vague promises and media-trained soundbites. A vision. A spine. This coming week, voters have a chance to speak. Local elections matter. Mayoral elections matter. These elections shape the services you use every day. The people you choose will be in control of budgets of hundreds of millions of pounds. But these elections are also a moment to send a message to a prime minister who thinks he’s above scrutiny. Who won’t answer basic questions. Who thinks he’s too clever to be held to account.” – Kemi Badenoch, Sunday Telegraph

>Today: ToryDiary: We are all in a marathon one way or another. It’s long, hard work and the real result won’t come this week

…and warns against “trans Conservatives”

” ‘Trans Conservatives?’ I say. ‘Yes!’ she replies, warming to her theme. ‘They self-identify as Conservatives, but they’re not. Take Reform, for example – I put them in that category. But there are also other people who have not been conservative, but they’ve used the Conservative Party to get into power, you know?’ I wonder who she could possibly mean.” – Interview with Kemi Badenoch, Mail on Sunday

• Under ‘Brexit Badenoch’, what is the future of the Conservative Party? – Tim Bale, The Independent

Conservative donor defects to Reform UK

“One of the Conservatives’ biggest donors of recent times has defected to Reform UK and pledged £1 million to help Nigel Farage “bring this country back to its glory”. Bassim Haidar, who gave the Tories more than £700,000 during Rishi Sunak’s premiership, resigned his membership earlier this year, saying the party had “lost its way”. The technology billionaire said he was convinced that Mr Farage could become the next prime minister. He has already given the party more than £200,000 ahead of next week’s local elections, likely to be the biggest single donation to any party during the campaign.” – Sunday Telegraph

• The Conservatives are about to reveal at least one new major donor: Jeremy Elliot “Jez” San has committed to donating several million to the party – Sunday Times
• My Reform road trip to Lincolnshire. is there anyone not voting for Farage? Matt Rudd, Sunday Times
• The Tories face a bloody nose from Farage’s Reform, but the fight has just begun – Simon Heffer, Sunday Telegraph
• If I become the next Prime Minister, I’ll be deporter-in-chief, like Barack Obama – Nigel Farage, Mail on Sunday
• Farage top aide targeted by thugs hours after whirlwind day of campaigning with Reform UK boss – The Sun on Sunday
• Reform will continue to rise as long as we remember the failures of the mainstream – James Frayne, Sunday Telegraph
• The Labour stronghold that could fall to Reform – Sunday Telegraph
• Farage is a political fraud ‘cosplaying’ as working-class champion, TUC chief says – The Observer
• Labour tipped for disastrous defeat – Sunday Express

Colvile: All parties are unpopular

“These local elections may, like the last set, prove to be an inflection point: the moment when Reform establishes itself with a clear lead in the polls, when the Greens break through on the left, or the Tories or Labour start to turn round their grim ratings. But it feels more like a preview of how our politics looks now: a messy, multi-cornered fight between three, four or even five parties all struggling to speak to the nation as a whole, let alone win it over.” – Robert Colvile, Sunday Times

Conservatives warn of more Council funds for trade union officials

“Conservatives have warned ahead of this week’s council election that taxpayers’ cash will be used to fund “town hall Trots”. An analysis by the party found there are 5,147 full-time equivalent trade union officials across local government at a cost of £41.2million a year. It claims Transport for London employs a “staggering” 799 Full-Time Equivalent trade union staff at an annual cost of £7.9 million a year. Researchers found Glasgow City Council employs 179 FTE trade union staff, costing £2.5million.” – Sunday Express

Other political news

• Police investigating a ‘mass casualty incident’ in Vancouver – BBC
• Kneecap referred to counter-terror police for saying ‘kill your MP’ – Sunday Telegraph
• Public sector staff allowed to work from foreign countries – Mail on Sunday
• Gordon Brown makes criminal complaint against Rupert Murdoch’s media empire – The Observer
• Thousands attend Welsh independence march – BBC
• Reeves: I want our young to be able to work in Europe – Sunday Times
• Bridget Phillipson will cap the number of branded items of uniform a school can require – Sunday Express
• MPs limber up for London Marathon – BBC
• Special forces security blunder exposed names and ranks – Sunday Times
• London councils yet to spend £130m in local climate funds – The Observer
• The film-maker who exposed grooming gangs: ‘Things are worse now’ – Sunday Times

Hannan: Save our technical schools

“In order to find time to teach electronics, logistics and so on, space must be found in the curriculum. UTCs generally free up space by teaching less history, geography, modern languages and music. For children who want a humanities-based education, there are more suitable schools. Politicians and pundits are forever demanding that this or that be included in the curriculum, but they almost never say what should be taken out to make room for it. The danger is that once it has its shiny new curriculum, Labour will seek to impose it uniformly. Certainly, that is what the teaching unions want. It would, though, be a terrible mistake. If schools don’t have the freedom to specialise, children won’t be able to choose the style of education that suits them, and employers won’t be able to start with the skills they need.” – Daniel Hannan, Sunday Telegraph

News in brief

• Bolivia’s fuel crisis could cause a populist turn – Sam Meadows, The Spectator
• It’s time to turn Britain into a land of opportunity – Andrew Barclay & Lana Hempsall, CapX
• Kids should eat breakfast at home – Rhys Laverty, The Critic
• Kneecap make me ashamed to be Irish – Brendan O’Neill, Spiked Online
• Why China is winning – Andrew Marr, New Statesman