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| General election: Farage claims Brexit party will 'hurt Labour in most extraordinary way' - live news | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Rolling coverage of the day’s political events as they happen, including 2019 general election campaigning and the election of the new Speaker | Rolling coverage of the day’s political events as they happen, including 2019 general election campaigning and the election of the new Speaker |
| In a phone-in with LBC this morning Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the Commons and leading Brexiter, said that Nigel Farage should “retire from the field” because he had already achieved his lifelong ambition to deliver Brexit. Rees-Mogg claimed that, by standing against the Tories at the election, the Brexit party could end up snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Rees-Mogg said: | |
| In an interview with ITV’s Good Morning Britain Nigel Farage, the Brexit party leader, played down suggestions that by standing candidates all over Britain, his party would damage the Tories more than Labour. He said his party would “hurt the Labour party in the most extraordinary way”. He said: | |
| Farage’s analysis is not generally shared by election experts, who have been arguing that it is the Conservatives who will lost out most from having Brexit party candidates on the ballot. | |
| In his interview Farage also defended his decision not to stand as a candidate himself. | |
| As my colleagues Simon Murphy and Liz Perkins report here, Francesca O’Brien is being urged to stand down as the Conservative candidate in Gower after it emerged that five years ago she wrote a post on Facebook saying people on the reality TV show Benefits Street needed “putting down”. Gower, a Labour-held marginal, is one of the Tories’ key targets in Wales. | As my colleagues Simon Murphy and Liz Perkins report here, Francesca O’Brien is being urged to stand down as the Conservative candidate in Gower after it emerged that five years ago she wrote a post on Facebook saying people on the reality TV show Benefits Street needed “putting down”. Gower, a Labour-held marginal, is one of the Tories’ key targets in Wales. |
| In her Today interview Thérèse Coffey, the work and pensions secretary, refused to back calls for O’Brien to be removed as a candidate. Coffey said that O’Brien’s comment was “clearly wrong”, but that she had apologised and that it should be up to the people of the Gower to decide if they wanted her as an MP. | In her Today interview Thérèse Coffey, the work and pensions secretary, refused to back calls for O’Brien to be removed as a candidate. Coffey said that O’Brien’s comment was “clearly wrong”, but that she had apologised and that it should be up to the people of the Gower to decide if they wanted her as an MP. |
| Ian Lavery, the Labour party chair, said Coffey should have disowned her candidate. In a statement he said: | Ian Lavery, the Labour party chair, said Coffey should have disowned her candidate. In a statement he said: |
| Brexit is at risk because of Nigel Farage’s decision to put up Brexit party candidates against the Tories, Thérèse Coffey, the work and pensions secretary, told the Today programme this morning. She said: | Brexit is at risk because of Nigel Farage’s decision to put up Brexit party candidates against the Tories, Thérèse Coffey, the work and pensions secretary, told the Today programme this morning. She said: |
| The election campaign has only just started but already senior figures in the health service are expressing alarm at the way that the NHS is being used as a “political weapon” in the campaign. The NHS is always a key election issue, of course, but there are at least two reasons why it is set to be more salient than usual this year. First, we are having an unusual December election, which means hospitals are under more pressure than they are when people normally go to the polls in the spring. And, second, this is an election where both main parties think they can win on health. Normally the Tories cede this issue to Labour, but Boris Johnson has decided to put the NHS at the top of his agenda (he believes that the Vote Leave bus slogan means he is obliged to champion health spending) and some polling shows that he is trusted more on health than Jeremy Corbyn, which is an unusual feat for a Tory leader. | The election campaign has only just started but already senior figures in the health service are expressing alarm at the way that the NHS is being used as a “political weapon” in the campaign. The NHS is always a key election issue, of course, but there are at least two reasons why it is set to be more salient than usual this year. First, we are having an unusual December election, which means hospitals are under more pressure than they are when people normally go to the polls in the spring. And, second, this is an election where both main parties think they can win on health. Normally the Tories cede this issue to Labour, but Boris Johnson has decided to put the NHS at the top of his agenda (he believes that the Vote Leave bus slogan means he is obliged to champion health spending) and some polling shows that he is trusted more on health than Jeremy Corbyn, which is an unusual feat for a Tory leader. |
| In an article in the Times (paywall) Carrie MacEwen, chairwoman of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, says that any public debate about the NHS needs to be based on “realistic expectations” and that the general election makes this unlikely. She says: | In an article in the Times (paywall) Carrie MacEwen, chairwoman of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, says that any public debate about the NHS needs to be based on “realistic expectations” and that the general election makes this unlikely. She says: |
| And in an article for the Times’ Red Box website (paywall) Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents hospitals and other health trust organisations, makes a similar point. He says having the NHS as a dominant election issue could be counterproductive. He explains: | And in an article for the Times’ Red Box website (paywall) Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents hospitals and other health trust organisations, makes a similar point. He says having the NHS as a dominant election issue could be counterproductive. He explains: |
| These are understandable arguments, but there seems to be little chance of their having much impact on the campaign. Rightly or wrongly, electioneering is always drawn towards hyperbole. | These are understandable arguments, but there seems to be little chance of their having much impact on the campaign. Rightly or wrongly, electioneering is always drawn towards hyperbole. |
| Here is the agenda for the day. | Here is the agenda for the day. |
| 10am: John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, and Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow health secretary, meet NHS staff at Unison HQ in London. | 10am: John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, and Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow health secretary, meet NHS staff at Unison HQ in London. |
| 10.30am: Adam Price, the Plaid Cymru leader, and Liz Saville Roberts, its leader at Westminster, launch Plaid’s election campaign. | 10.30am: Adam Price, the Plaid Cymru leader, and Liz Saville Roberts, its leader at Westminster, launch Plaid’s election campaign. |
| 2pm: Nigel Farage, the Brexit party leader, unveils the party’s 600 election candidates. | 2pm: Nigel Farage, the Brexit party leader, unveils the party’s 600 election candidates. |
| 2.30pm: MPs start the process of electing a new Speaker. | 2.30pm: MPs start the process of electing a new Speaker. |
| As usual, I will be covering breaking political news as it happens, as well as bringing you the best reaction, comment and analysis from the web, although I will be focusing mostly on general election developments and on the election of a new Speaker. I plan to publish a summary when I wrap up. | As usual, I will be covering breaking political news as it happens, as well as bringing you the best reaction, comment and analysis from the web, although I will be focusing mostly on general election developments and on the election of a new Speaker. I plan to publish a summary when I wrap up. |
| You can read all the latest Guardian politics articles here. Here is the Politico Europe roundup of this morning’s political news. And here is the PoliticsHome list of today’s top 10 must-reads. | You can read all the latest Guardian politics articles here. Here is the Politico Europe roundup of this morning’s political news. And here is the PoliticsHome list of today’s top 10 must-reads. |
| If you want to follow me or contact me on Twitter, I’m on @AndrewSparrow. | If you want to follow me or contact me on Twitter, I’m on @AndrewSparrow. |
| I try to monitor the comments below the line (BTL) but it is impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, do include “Andrew” in it somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I do try to answer questions, and if they are of general interest, I will post the question and reply above the line (ATL), although I can’t promise to do this for everyone. | I try to monitor the comments below the line (BTL) but it is impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, do include “Andrew” in it somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I do try to answer questions, and if they are of general interest, I will post the question and reply above the line (ATL), although I can’t promise to do this for everyone. |
| If you want to attract my attention quickly, it is probably better to use Twitter. | If you want to attract my attention quickly, it is probably better to use Twitter. |