Sign up to Gransnet Daily
Our free daily newsletter full of hot threads, competitions and discounts
Subscribe
“Starmer: UK must wean itself off migrant labour
Days of low pay and dependence on foreign workers are over, Labour leader to insist”
BEN RILEY-SMITHPolitical Editor (in the Telegraph today).
BRITAIN must end its economic dependence on immigration, Sir Keir Starmer will say today as he toughens the Labour Party’s stance in a speech to business leaders.
In a significant intervention, Sir Keir will tell the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) conference that the days of “low pay and cheap labour” are over.
The speech will be seen as an attempt to quash any suggestion that the Labour leader would emulate his predecessor Tony Blair’s looser approach to immigration if he reaches No 10.
Sir Keir is trying to convince voters that he is reconciled to Britain’s future outside of the European Union as he targets winning back former Labour Red Wall seats at the next election which voted en masse for Brexit.”
And yesterday when Sunak addressed the CBI conference he reiterated that the UK would not be seeking a Switzerland type deal, aligning the UK more with Brussels.
Finally, to me, it seems hopeful that a more robust Brexit will be delivered. It’s been on the back burner for six years and in my opinion it’s time to crack on with getting rid of red tape that doesn’t need to apply to us. This does not mean lowering standards, just simplifying processes and making the UK more competitive and lean.
What do you think about what Starmer & Sunak are saying?
Katie59
The national crime agency is not going make any difference to Indonesian criminals, they cant even keep track of criminal activity in the UK
Yes, they do make a difference. Firstly, they work with Indonesian officials. Secondly, they break up networks. Thirdly, they arrest people, if they try to enter the UK.
Generally, the NCA isn't responsible for criminal activity in the UK. That's the role of local police forces.
A £1.4bn Brexit opportunities fund launched last year by Rishi Sunak has been criticised as “smoke and mirrors” after an investigation by the Financial Times showed that money was being provided by existing government schemes.
As chancellor, Sunak, now prime minister, announced a “new £1.4bn Global Britain Investment Fund supporting transformative economic activity” in the 2021 autumn Budget.
As part of efforts labelled “seizing the opportunities of Brexit and advancing Global Britain”, the Budget documents stated that the fund “will provide grants to encourage internationally mobile companies to invest in the UK’s critical and most innovative industries, including life sciences and automotive”.
But the FT has found that much of the grants so far have been allocated through existing programmes — albeit with new money added in some cases at the last spending review — effectively rebadging investment under the “Global Investment” banner, with recipients often unaware that they were being supported through the fund.
In a freedom of information request, the FT asked for the beneficiaries of the GBIF, which showed six projects including factories and operations planned by companies, such as sustainable technology manufacturer Johnson Matthey and automotive groups Britishvolt and Ford.
The companies have had funds committed by the Automotive Transformation Fund, a dedicated scheme set up in 2020, as well as from other existing pots of money.
Offshore wind investments have been backed by the offshore wind manufacturing investment support scheme and regional growth funds.
In some cases, the money was committed to the companies even before the launch of the GBIF in April.
www.ft.com/content/807d45c5-1bcd-412c-895b-707353cfae6a
Somethings got to give surely?
I live in hope!
It is clear that the majority of people now feel they were conned and that Brexit was a massive mistake. Time for Starmer to accept this and say so.
Fleurpepper
It is clear that the majority of people now feel they were conned and that Brexit was a massive mistake. Time for Starmer to accept this and say so.
Absolutely.
I’m dithering about dropping my MP a line over Starmers stance.
I just wish I could work out his game plan. I’ve sort of convinced myself that he is playing the long game so that the right wing rags don’t go in guns blazing and convincing the red wall that he will go all remainer and let in millions of immigrant, as they convinced them in 2016.
Why are the small minority of Labour voters who support brexit the only ones who matter?
Whitewavemark2
Fleurpepper
It is clear that the majority of people now feel they were conned and that Brexit was a massive mistake. Time for Starmer to accept this and say so.
Absolutely.
I’m dithering about dropping my MP a line over Starmers stance.
I just wish I could work out his game plan. I’ve sort of convinced myself that he is playing the long game so that the right wing rags don’t go in guns blazing and convincing the red wall that he will go all remainer and let in millions of immigrant, as they convinced them in 2016.
Yes, my only hope.
"Keir Starmer wants big changes. Except when it comes to Brexit. The Labour leader is keen to shake the fundamentals of the British constitution by abolishing the Lords. But he appears happier than ever to leave the fundamentals of Brexit in place. Starmer went as far as saying he agreed with the “basic case” made by Leave voters. And he angered Europhiles further by refusing to accept that re-joining the single market would boost the British economy. Labour’s former Europe minister Denis MacShane told The Independent it was “rather odd” for Sir Keir to deny a “self-evident truth”. But he and other pro-Europeans in the Labour movement reluctantly accepted the position. For now. Labour MP Stella Creasy said the “brutal reality” was there was no appetite to talk about closer ties with Brussels. It leaves Labour less critical of Brexit impacts than the National Farmers’ Union. NFU president Minette Batters said labour shortages and red tape were part of Britain’s “sleepwalk” into a food supply crisis. Tory environment secretary Therese Coffey ruled out any intervention to help farmers, or families struggling with high food prices. “It is not the role of government to provide free food,” she grumbled. Bah Humbug, indeed. #2
Adam Forrest writing in The Independent
Starmer needs to man up about Brexit. It's a continuing disaster and we need to re-establish trading relations with the EU on single market terms as soon as possible.
The official statistics watchdog has reprimanded the Conservatives for claiming the UK had secured £800bn in “new free trade deals” since leaving the EU, saying the figure includes deals rolled over from before Brexit.
The UK Statistics Authority (UKSA) said it had written to the Tories about the infographic, shared last month by Michael Gove among others, also warning that the party should provide sources for such figures in the future.
Has Gove ever spoken the truth about anything?.
The Tory manifesto of 2019 which Sunak promises to deliver on was, as far as Brexit goes, based on the false premise that Brexit could be 'done' as though it would be a single event. That is clearly not a possibility - Brexit is a process as we see from all the continuing issues such as the NI protocol, discussions about fishing, the residual UK laws based on EU Directives, etc. Johnson's claim that he could get Brexit done was rhetoric and hokum. Because it is a process requiring intelligent discussion with the EU (rather than point scoring) I hope there can be a renegotiation of the trade arrangements (so we don't need these carbon copy agreements with the Faroe Islands and other countries - some of which impact badly as in the case of the Australian one on our farmers) and a re-entry into all the other useful arrangements such as research projects, the European University, etc., free movement and eventually being accepted as a Member State. Our economy is dependent on immigration and I hope the next government will not claim that immigration can be reduced to tens of thousands. We have an ageing population and we need young workers from elsewhere.
^ some of which impact badly as in the case of the Australian one on our farmers)^
Sadly, that was a brand shiny new one, not a rollover. Trumpeted at the time as a huge success and proof that we were indeed an independent actor... despite everyone saying it was rubbish
Beef imports have always worried farmers but we do import a great deal already from many countries, Ireland in particular has been one of the principal suppliers for many years. The deal with Australia is for up to 100,000 tons eventually which is very close to Irish imports currently. If the current standoff with EU continues Irish farmers will loose out for sure.
The number of people arriving at a UK port from France has more than halved after Brexit, a ferry firm has said.
Portsmouth ferry port saw 338,000 arrivals in 2019 but only 155,000 in 2022, according to Brittany Ferries.
The firm said "Brexit-related friction" including a need for passports was a major factor, although sailings to and from Ireland, within the European Union, had seen increased business.
We are not seeing coach loads of overseas school children in this are compared with before Brexit, the cost of a passport would be a burden to a school group. That aside the French aren’t usually active travellers like the UK, outside the big cities the roads always seem much quieter than us.
That aside the French aren’t usually active travellers like the UK, outside the big cities the roads always seem much quieter than us.
I've always thought that the comparative emptiness of French roads which makes them blissful to drive on was because France has a similar size population to the UK but it's spread throughout a much, much larger area. It's more than twice the size of the UK.
The French not active travellers. 😱 Good grief. Have you seen the roads on the big holiday departure / return weekends Katie59?
If the rural roads are quiet (and they are) in holiday seasons, it is because everyone is at the beach / mountains / lakes.
In addition to that our French friends are always travelling out of France - North Africa, the Far East, the overseas territories in the Caribbean and Réunion, the Americas and Canada etc etc.
It still amazes me, even having lived here for 17 years.
As a frequent traveller on Brittany Ferries boat to Portsmouth I would agree that French school trips are down and that will be because of the need for passports instead of identity cards. Still about half and half for foot passengers I would say, though on one crossing this year I was the only non-French person, which has never happened to me before.
Mamie
The French not active travellers. 😱 Good grief. Have you seen the roads on the big holiday departure / return weekends Katie59?
If the rural roads are quiet (and they are) in holiday seasons, it is because everyone is at the beach / mountains / lakes.
In addition to that our French friends are always travelling out of France - North Africa, the Far East, the overseas territories in the Caribbean and Réunion, the Americas and Canada etc etc.
It still amazes me, even having lived here for 17 years.
Have you seen the roads on the big holiday departure / return weekends
I have - thankfully we have been going in the opposite direction!
The NHS is on its knees and beset by strikes. It is desperately short of money and staff, with nurses, doctors and paramedics leaving in their thousands.
Not a penny of the £350m a week that Johnson said Brexit would release for the health service has ever been seen.
Increasingly, the whole Brexit endeavour is viewed by business leaders and economists as a self-inflicted disaster that has severely weakened the British economy, despite continued claims to the contrary by former Brexit opportunities minister Jacob Rees-Mogg on the BBC’s Question Time last week
Registering is free, easy, and means you can join the discussion, watch threads and lots more.
Register now »Already registered? Log in with:
Gransnet »Get our top conversations, latest advice, fantastic competitions, and more, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter here.
