Wednesday briefing: SNP touts manifesto, Corbyn seeks shelter in NHS
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Version 0 of 1. Labour leader resists calls to apologise to Jews … Johnson under fire for Islamophobic comments … deadly faults in electrical goods sold online Good morning. One imagines both the main party leaders – especially Jeremy Corbyn – have woken up feeling pretty bruised after facing trenchant criticism for their record on race and faith. Today the SNP will seek to make its mark on the campaign agenda as it launches its manifesto in Glasgow – among other things, expect Nicola Sturgeon to set out terms for supporting a Labour government. We have a taste of the non-election news and you can follow our rolling coverage of the day’s politics. What’s going on? The antisemitism accusations – which came on the day Labour was seeking to brand itself as the party of equality and compassion through the launch of its race and faith manifesto – have continued to dog the party, and look as if they will be difficult to shake after Corbyn’s interview with Andrew Neil last night, in which he repeatedly resisted calls to apologise to the Jewish community. That refusal is the focus of most of the newspapers’ front pages today. The Guardian’s religion correspondent, Harriet Sherwood, spoke to Jewish community leaders and heard that while plenty of Jews in the UK would say the chief rabbi does not speak for them, many, probably most, agree with the thrust of his unprecedented intervention ahead of next month’s general election. Today the Labour leader will be aiming to steer the conversation back to safer ground, by making a “major statement” on the NHS in Westminster in the morning and then heading to Falmouth, where he will address a climate change rally. Boris Johnson will also be hoping to move away from talk of race or faith, after comments by the prime minister likening Muslim women who wear veils to “letterboxes” or “bank robbers” resurfaced. The chancellor, Sajid Javid, was asked about the comments and refused to condemn them. Johnson later dismissed criticism by the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB). The MCB has released a report urging parties to tackle racism and Islamophobia to win the support of Muslim voters, and particularly singled out the Conservatives and “sections of the media” for “growing Islamophobia”. The prime minister will be in the south-west today setting out plans for new phone masts and shared infrastructure to strengthen phone signals in rural areas. At a glance The Lib Dems have come under fire for distributing campaign material made to look like fake newspapers with names similar to independent local publications. Labour has announced it would significantly increase staffing at 18 violence reduction units in an effort to clamp down on gang warfare and crime. The Tories will announce a plan for GPs to send text reminders to parents about vaccinations to increase uptake. The latest in our People and Power series takes us to Southampton, where the issue of housing could prove a decisive one at the election. With the spectre of the last general election looming over this campaign, Rafael Behr writes that voters have shifted since 2017 and there’s danger in looking back. Don’t know who to vote for? Here’s our bite-size guide to the UK election manifestos. The day ahead Corbyn will make a statement on the NHS in London at 10am, before heading to Falmouth to speak at a climate change rally tonight. Johnson will be in the south-west talking about boosting mobile phone signal in rural areas. The SNP will launch its manifesto in Glasgow. Nigel Farage will be in Doncaster. Chuka Umunna, Sam Gyimah and Michael Heseltine will be giving a press conference in London. Sign up here to receive Andrew Sparrow’s afternoon round-up from the campaign trail – direct to your email inbox. Best of the rest > Regional divides in the UK are among the worst in the developed world, according to the IPPR thinktank, which found parts of England have higher mortality rates than places in Turkey, Romania and Poland. The UK was found to be more unequal than comparable countries when it comes to health, jobs, disposable income and productivity. The IPPR has called for the next parliament to champion a shift of power out of London “so that England’s regions, towns and cities can work together to bridge our regional divides”. > The Canadian data firm AggregateIQ (AIQ) broke privacy laws in working for Vote Leave and US political groups, according to Canada’s privacy authorities, who said AIQ had not taken measures to ensure it had the authority to disclose UK voter information. “When the company used and disclosed the personal information of Vote Leave supporters to Facebook ... it went beyond the purposes for which Vote Leave had consent to use that information,” said Canada’s privacy tsar. > UK shoppers have been warned of the risks of buying electrical goods from third-party online sellers on sites such as Amazon, eBay and Wish. Electrical Safety First bought items from the online retailers and during testing a hair dryer shot out flames, a phone charger ruptured internally and a laser hair remover had live parts accessible that could cause an electric shock. Nearly all items bought failed tests against UK safety standards, and only one of the 15 bought passed every electrical safety requirement. Today in Focus podcast: Battle for Boris Johnson’s seat Rachel Humphreys heads to Uxbridge, where the 25-year old Labour candidate, Ali Milani, is campaigning to unseat Johnson. And: Jonathan Freedland on antisemitism in the Labour party. Lunchtime read: Melanie C – ‘Time I accepted myself’ It’s 20 years since Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm went solo, but, she says, it has taken until 2019 – ironically, the year of the band’s reunion tour – for her to really find herself, writes Laura Snapes. Sport José Mourinho felt compelled to apologise to Eric Dier after substituting him after just 29 minutes of Tottenham’s 4-2 Champions League win over Olympiakos, which ensured the club’s qualification for the last 16 of the competition. Manchester City went through to the last 16 as group winners despite another of the stuttering displays – in a 1-1 draw with Shakhtar Donetsk – that have been a feature of their season. Paris Saint-Germain, under pressure for much of their match against Real Madrid, completed a late comeback to draw 2-2 at the Bernabeu, while Club Brugge scored a 92nd-minute equaliser but then had two men sent off for their celebrations in an extraordinary conclusion to their match against Galatasaray. Chris Silverwood, on his first tour as England’s head coach, will fly home after day two of the upcoming second Test in New Zealand following a family bereavement. The UK Sport chief executive, Sally Munday, has warned UK Athletics it risks having a cut in its £27m funding if it fails to address the problems that have seen its chief executive, chair and performance director depart over 10 turbulent months. The International Olympic Committee has demanded the “toughest sanctions” against those responsible for deleting Russian doping tests in data handed over to the World Anti-Doping Agency. And the organisers behind the Southeast Asian Games have apologised after complaints emerged of football teams sleeping on floors, airport delays and athletes complaining of going hungry. Business A no-deal Brexit would devastate UK car manufacturing at a cost of more than £40bn in lost production by 2024, the industry has warned. It says tariffs could add £3.2bn to costs, wiping out companies’ R&D budgets. Asian markets nudged higher overnight despite another steep fall in the profitability of China’s manufacturing sector. The FTSE100 is expected to follow suit. The pound is at $1.285 and €1.167. The papers “Corbyn: chief rabbi wrong” is the splash in the Metro, while the Guardian has “Corbyn struggles to rebuff antisemitism accusations”. The Mirror looks elsewhere, headlining on “Tory minister’s trade talks with US drug firms boss” as the paper raises suspicions about the Conservatives’ plans for the NHS and medication prices. The Sun also steps away from politics to lead with “Worth a few bob the builder” about the winner of a £105m lotto jackpot. But elsewhere Labour is unable to dodge the spotlight over antisemitism. “Torn apart” thunders the Mail, saying Corbyn was “skewered” on TV over that issue, plus taxes and pensions. “Corbyn refuses to say sorry” reports the i, while the Times and the Telegraph essentially have the same headline along the lines of “Corbyn refuses to apologise”. The hopeful Express asks: “Has Corbyn’s horror show gifted Boris keys to No 10?” Hmmm, well there are still two weeks to go and that’s a long time in campaign politics … You can read more on the front pages here. Sign up The Guardian Morning Briefing is delivered to thousands of inboxes bright and early every weekday. If you are not already receiving it by email, you can sign up here. For more news: www.theguardian.com |