Politics latest: Former PM attempts Scottish accent - as Hunt reacts to budget rule change (2025)

Former chancellor George Osborne has backed Kemi Badenoch as the next leader of the Conservative Party.

Speaking on his podcast, Political Currency, he said Ms Badenoch's competitor, Robert Jenrick, had "underperformed" and crossed the "red line".

"I can't get round this promise to leave the European Convention on Human Rights. For me, that is a red line; this is just a really impossible thing for Britain to do," he said.

"It's breaking the rule of law that we've helped establish around the world, it's something that Conservative governments did so much to establish."

He said he was "fed up" with a Tory party that wants to "leave things" and "break up international alliances".

"I want to hear about the Conservatives building things and forming international alliances," he added.

"I just can't get around the Jenrick promise, and therefore, I've come around to sayingI will vote for Kemi Badenoch."

Welcome to your teatime round-up from the Politics Hub.

Here are the main things you need to know:

• The chancellor has told Sky News that she will rewrite the government's fiscal rules in next week's budget to allow her to increase borrowing for public investment by around £50bn;
• The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed the government is set to ban the sale and supply of single-use vapes by next summer;
• Sir Keir Starmer touched down in Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting;
• He is set to encounter stormy waters at the summit, with some leaders pushing for reparations for the slave trade to be on the agenda;
• Back in the UK, Tory leadership hopeful Robert Jenrick said London was "safer" without Chris Kaba - a 24-year-old who was fatally shot by a firearms officer in 2022;
• The row between Donald Trump and the Labour Party over alleged interference in the US election has continued, with Leader of the House Lucy Powell saying it was "rich" for Tories to criticise staffers for campaigning in America;
• In the House of Lords, former prime minister Theresa May gave her first speech, urging parliament to tackle climate change and imitating a Scottish colleague.

On Politics at Jack and Sam's, they explore how Rachel Reeves may approach spending and debt in the upcoming budget.

In the next hour, we'll be bringing you all the latest updates from thePolitics Hub -you'll be able to watch it live on Sky News or in the stream above.

Tonight, the show will be hosted by Ali Fortescue, who will be joined by chair of the English Football League Rick Parry.

She'll also be speaking toSAS veteran and former principal private secretary to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton.

On the panel tonight is former Labour minister Caroline Flint and activist Nimco Ali.

Shadow chancellor Jeremy Hunt has reacted to the news that Rachel Reeves is going to rewrite the government's fiscal rules in the budget.

"The markets are watching," he warned.

Mr Hunt, who served as chancellor in the previous Conservative government, said that increasing borrowing would cause interest rates higher for longer, and "punish families with mortgages".

"What's even more remarkable is that the chancellor hasn't seen fit to announce this major change to the fiscal rules to parliament," he added.

Ms Reeves changes will allow the government to increase borrowing for public investment by around £50bn.

An apology is "not on the agenda when it comes to reparations, the prime minister's spokesperson has said.

Sir Keir Starmer has previously ruled out paying reparations to Commonwealth countries, saying he would rather "roll up his sleeves" and work with them on "future facing challenges".

"Our position on reparations is clear and remains unchanged," his spokesperson said.

"We should be facing forward and should be focusing on working with the Commonwealth on the shared issues at the current time."

They said reparations were not on the agenda at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, which is taking place in Samoa.

However, the issue of reparations for slavery could be included in a document due to be signed off at the meeting his week.

Nations are said to be looking at an agreement that could trigger conversations on the issue.

It is understood that a final communiqué is expected to be agreed by leaders on Saturday.

By Paul Kelso, business and economics correspondent in Washington

Rachel Reeves will rewrite the government's fiscal rules in next week's budget to allow her to increase borrowing for public investment by around £50bn.

Speaking in Washington, the chancellor said that the self-imposed rule under which borrowing must be falling by the fifth year of economic forecasts will be redefined from the current measure of public sector net debt.

Ms Reeves would not be drawn on what measure will replace the current rule, but there is speculation that she will favour using public sector debt net of financial liabilities (PSNFL).

Under this definition, investments such as the government's student loans book are defined as assets rather than liabilities, which on current measures would allow a further £53bn of borrowing.

The chancellor told Sky News that the second fiscal rule, under which day-to-day spending must be funded from government revenue rather than borrowing, would be unchanged.

Ms Reeves cited support for increasing the debt threshold from leading British economists, as well as the International Monetary Fund, which this week said public investment should be protected and was "badly needed" in the UK.

She insisted the change was necessary to end years of declining public investment and deliver on Labour's promise to deliver growth.

"Under the plans that I have inherited from the previous Conservative government, public sector net investment as a share of our economy was due to decline steeply during the course of this parliament," she said.

"I don't want that path for Britain when there are so many opportunities in industries from life sciences to carbon capture, storage and clean energy to AI and technology, as well as the need to repair our crumbling schools and hospitals.

She denied that she was effectively fiddling the rules to get around her manifesto pledge not to increase income tax, VAT or national insurance.

"The rule that really bites is the first rule, the stability rule, to get day to day spending funded by tax receipts. That's something that the previous government weren't even trying to achieve, and we will show in the budget next week how we will deliver on that promise," she added.

"The second role is about being responsible. By seizing the opportunities, but doing it in a way where we are making sure we're getting value for money for every pound of taxpayer's money spent.

"Of course we'll put guardrails in place to ensure that every pound of taxpayer's money that is spent, is spent wisely, and will involve the National Audit Office and the Office of Budget Responsibility in that."

The first test of the change in the debt rule will be the reaction of bond markets, which rose slightly today following reports of Ms Reeves' plans.

Coming just two years after the disaster of Liz Truss's mini-Budget, which saw UK gilt prices crash.

Tax rises not ruled out

Taken together, the redefined fiscal rules set the terms of a budget that is likely to see tax rises and public spending cuts balanced by more freedom to borrow.

Ms Reeves did not rule out a raft of tax rises, including adding national insurance to employers' pension contributions, from which public sector employers may be exempt.

"I was clear in the statement I made to the House of Commons in July that there will be difficult decisions in this budget around spending, welfare and taxation. But the precise details I will set out to the House of Commons next week," she said.

"I will be a responsible chancellor. I will be honest and transparent about the challenges we face, but also how we'll fix them to wipe the slate clean after the mismanagement we've seen in the last few years under the Conservatives."

Theresa May has urged parliament to save the planet and humanity by tackling climate change in her speech in the House of Lords.

The former prime minister stressed that it was an issue that cannot be ignored, arguing that taking action would bring economic benefits to the country.

She joined the upper chamber after stepping down at the last election from the Commons, where she served for 27 years as a Conservative MP for Maidenhead.

As prime minister, she set the UK's legally binding net-zero emissions target by 2050.

"I view with deep concern changes in our climate recently - 2023 was the hottest year in human history," she said.

"Without action, we will see the frequency and severity of extreme weather events accelerating.

"But I believe there is good news, that we can reap economic benefit from dealing with climate change.

She added: "I also believe that there is a cost of inaction.

"As the Green Finance Institute have said, as just one example, they have estimated that the degradation of our environment linked to climate could lead to a loss of 12% of our GDP."

During her speech, she also tried her hand at a Scottish accent as she mimicked a Tory colleague.

She jokingly recalled how her "mentor" Baroness Goldie had given her a gift ahead of her introduction to the red benches last month.

There was laughter as she impersonated the accent of the former Scottish Conservatives leader to reveal the "present" was in fact a copy of the Lords rulebook for her to read during the conference recess.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to rewrite the government's fiscal rules in next week's budget.

The decision is thought to allow her to increase borrowing for public investment by around £50bn.

A fiscal rule is a limit or restriction governments put in place to constrain how much they can borrow to fund public spending.

They can be set by an independent body, but since 1997 UK governments have set their own constraints.

Rules apply to the fiscal deficit - the gap between public expenditure and tax revenues in a year - the public debt - the total amount borrowed to finance past deficits - or public spending relative to GDP.

Our business correspondent Paul Kelso says Ms Reeves has indicated that she will stick to one fiscal rule which relates to day-to-day spending, but she is going to rewrite a second rule to "essentially give herself more room to borrow".

"She won't raise a range of personal finances, VAT, income tax or national insurance," he adds.

"She needs to fix the public finances but she also needs to encourage growth and investment."

Workers could be given twice as long under plans being considered by the government.

Unions could be able to stage walkouts for up to a year after balloting members, a consultation document produced by the business department has said.

Under current legislation, workers have up to six months to strike after voting to take industrial action.

If they have not walked out before then, another poll must be carried out for any following action to be valid.

The government has said that doubling this period would "strike the correct balance" between ensuring action is based on a recent vote and reducing the need for "costly and time-consuming" re-ballots.

Strikes would also need a simple majority in a vote, instead of the 50% turnout that is currently needed.

Existing rules mean that 10% of a workforce must be union members for an application to be made to get recognition to negotiate with employers, but ministers are planning to lower this to 2%.

The proposed measures are part of a major overhaul of workers' rights set out in a strengthened version of the Employment Rights Bill, which got its second reading in parliament earlier this week.

By Tom Clarke, science and technology editor

As new laws go, the Data Use and Access Bill sounds like one of the most boring imaginable. But don't nod off just yet…

The revamp of data laws, claims the government, has the potential to boost the economy, benefit patients, police and parents - even help reduce disruption from road repairs.

But done wrong, privacy and digital rights campaigners warn it could open the door to the state or shady big-tech firms using our data for their benefit not ours.

Streamlining the use of and access to data could generate £10bn of economic benefit, the government says.

In the NHS for example, the law would require all IT systems to share common data formats so information about pre-existing conditions, appointments or tests can be viewed in real-time between NHS trusts, GPs or ambulance services.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) calculates this could free up 140,000 hours of NHS staff time each year.

The police will also benefit by being allowed to automate certain manual data tasks. For example, officers currently have to log each time they access the personal information of an individual on the police database.

By Alix Culbertson, political reporter

Sir Keir Starmer has "misunderstood" why Commonwealth leaders are asking for slave trade reparations and he needs to have some cultural respect, a Labour grandee has told Sky News.

Baroness Harriet Harman told Beth Rigby on Sky News' Electoral Dysfunction podcast the prime minister has missed the mark with his refusal to talk about reparations at this week's Commonwealth summit.

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Ahead of the meeting in Samoa, Sir Keir called the transatlantic slave trade "abhorrent" but ruled out reparations as he said countries affected would rather the UK helps them with current issues, such as the impact of climate change.

But Commonwealth leaders, many from the Caribbean, Africa and the Pacific, have defied him and are drawing up an agreement to conduct further research into the issue and to begin a "meaningful conversation".

It could leave the UK owing billions of pounds, although Sir Keir's spokesman said the UK does "not pay reparations", which are usually defined as payments paid by a country for damage or losses caused to other countries or their people.

Baroness Harriet Harman, a former Labour minister, said: "It's about the relationship between the UK and other Commonwealth countries.