King’s Speech – live: New laws on oil, smoking and football as Charles III makes first State Opening
Seven pieces of legislation will be carried over into the next parliamentary session
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A raft of new laws – including measures on oil and gas licences, the establishment of a new football regulator, and moves to phase out cigarette smoking – have been included in the King’s Speech.
The proposed legislation was announced by King Charles III as he addressed Parliament in his first State Opening, as the monarch set out Rishi Sunak’s government’s policy agenda for the year ahead.
It is the first such speech King Charles III has made since assuming the throne last year. It is also the first of Mr Sunak’s tenure in No 10 – and most likely the last prior to an expected general election next year.
The speech revealed Mr Sunak’s plans to make law and order a key election battleground, with a series of measures promising tougher sentences for killers and rapists.
Mr Sunak has also introduced new legislation to expand the use of self-driving vehicles – which clear the way for buses and lorries to operate autonomously by the end of the decade.
Home Office was worried about ‘social unrest’ caused by ‘survival of fittest’ in pandemic
The Home Office believed a “survival of the fittest” scenario might unfold during the pandemic, with potential public unrest as services became overwhelmed.
The Covid-19 Inquiry has been shown minutes from a planning exercise in February 2020 dubbed operation Nimbus, in which attendees were warned to expect 840,000 deaths in a “reasonable worst case scenario”.
The meeting minutes said that in the scenario, Matt Hancock who was chairing asked what “key decisions” would need to be made about care. A representative from NHS England said decisions would have to be made about “whether to expand the intensive care capacity at the consequence of stopping treatment to others.
The Home Office said the social consequences would amount to a “survival of the fittest” situation which could lead to “social unrest”.
One of the recommendations after the meeting was that those involved in strategic decision-making during the pandemic be offered mental health support.
Reporting by Archie Mitchell
Can Rishi Sunak ever escape Boris Johnson’s shadow?
As the former PM makes a surprise visit to Israel, the present incumbent of No 10 is still struggling to shrug off his predecessor, writes Kate Devlin. And there is much more still to come
Can Rishi Sunak ever escape Boris Johnson’s shadow?
As the former PM makes a surprise visit to Israel, the present incumbent of No 10 is still struggling to shrug off his predecessor, writes Kate Devlin. And there is much more still to come
Starmer faces plot by Labour rebel MPs to force Commons vote on Gaza ceasefire
Sir Keir Starmer is facing a rebellion by left-wing Labour MPs who are trying to force a vote on a Gaza ceasefire in parliament.
The Labour leader is under growing pressure to change stance as his party suffers a major split on his refusal to back a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
At least 18 Labour frontbenchers have defied Sir Keir’s position, while more than 30 councillors have quit the party and more than 330 local leaders have urged him to back down.
NHS was considered ‘f*****’ in any scenario
The Covid inquiry has been shown notes from a February 2020 meeting by data scientist and former No10 adviser Dr Ben Warner which showed that he believed the NHS was “f***** in any scenario”.
Dr Warner clarified that what he meant was that the health service would be under “extreme stress” in any scenation.
Reporting by Archie Mitchell
Boris claims Sunak ‘refused to engage’ post-Covid because he wanted to be PM
Boris Johnson said Rishi Sunak “refused to engage” with him on kick-starting the UK economy after lockdown because the chancellor wanted to be PM, according to an extract from Nadine Dorries’ book.
According to the extract in the Mail, Mr Johnson told Ms Dorries: “Looking back, I can see that’s because there was a plan to remove me, and people were saying to him: ‘Don’t give him anything.’He had been given the impression by someone that he should simply bide his time as chancellor until the bigger prize became his.”
More sweary messages from Dominic Cummings
The Covid inquiry has seen more sweary WhatsApp messages from Dominic Cummings, including one in which he calls then civil service head Sir Mark Sedwill “the f*****”.
Mr Cummings, then Boris Johnson’s top adviser, told the PM that scientists were doing a “great job” while civil servants were “off the pace”. “You need to tell Sedwill this,” Mr Cummings told Mr Johnson.
He added: “The f***** should be in the office now.”
Lee Anderson accused of lying about protesters ‘glued to Centotaph’
Just Stop Oil said deputy Tory chairman Lee Anderson has been “tweeting lies about protesters being glued to The Cenotaph”.
The group said activists near the Cenotaph were dragged off the road and arrested by police for protesting in the street.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed there were no offences linked to the Cenotaph, though around 100 arrests were made for disruption in Whitehall.Anderson had tweeted: “Simple solution here. Give them stronger glue and leave them there till Sunday.”
Top Boris Johnson advisers joked ‘we’ve banned ourselves from going to the pub’
Two of Boris Johnson’s top advisers railed against the government’s handling of Covid before joking “worst part, we have banned ourselves from going to the pub after this”.
In September 2020, Dr Ben Warner told No10 comms chief Lee Cain he felt like the pair had “walked out of Covid in June and walked back in today”.
Mr Cain told Dr Warner “agree mate, we are so fucked”, adding that the government was making the “same errors as March” - a reference to the delayed decision-making process in the early days of the pandemic.
WhatsApp messages shown to the inquiry then show Dr Warner telling his colleague: “Worst part, we have banned ourselves from going to the pub after this.”
Reporting by Archie Mitchell
Right-wing Tory condemns Braverman over homeless tents remarks
Right-wing Conservative MP Natalie Elphicke has criticised home secretary Suella Braverman’s proposal for charities to stop giving tents to homeless rough sleepers.
“In all my years of helping people who are homeless … at no time, ever, has anyone said the answer lies in the removal of tents.”
King’s Speech 2023: When is it and what to expect
Today we will be focusing on the King’s Speech as the monarch sets out Rishi Sunak’s government’s policy agenda for the year ahead.
It will be the first such speech King Charles III has made since assuming the throne last year. It will also be the first of Mr Sunak’s tenure in No 10 – and most likely the last prior to an expected general election next year.
Mr Sunak said: “This will be the first King’s Speech in 70 years and the legislation we will bring forward is part of our plan to build a better future for the next 70.”
We take a look at the proposals which are expected to be included in the King’s Speech, at around 11.30am on Tuesday, and those which may be left out:
King’s Speech 2023: When is it and what to expect
Seven pieces of legislation will be carried over into the next parliamentary session – but key reforms such as a long-awaited ban on conversion therapy may be dropped
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