Starmer latest: Angela Rayner and Andy Burnham hit out at PM’s pub tax grab

Reform The UK’s “flagship” local government in Kent has passed its first budget despite warnings from opposition leaders that it was “extreme risk” and “potentially reckless”.

Kent’s Reform leaders delivered a 3.99 per cent increase in council tax, despite promising not to increase it before their election victory; This is 1 percent below the limit required before the referendum.

But opposition bosses criticized the move for not raising it to the highest level possible, which would leave the council with £10m less money to maintain services and reserves for the next financial year.

They also noted a statement from the council’s head of finance, David Shipton, who legally had to be considered for the budget, saying: “The decision to increase council tax household tax below the allowable level without a referendum poses a long-term financial risk due to the foregone conclusion of council tax revenue.”

Both Angela Rayner and Andy Burnham criticized Sir Keir Starmer’s tax on pubs as the prime minister battles for his leadership.

Two Labor figures who have been floated as potential rivals in a future leadership contest have suggested Sir Keir should cut VAT to ease pressure on struggling businesses.

Speaking at an overnight economic summit in Liverpool, the former deputy prime minister called for extra help for the sector to help struggling towns and cities.

Ms Rayner, who was forced to leave the Government last year over a tax dispute over her properties, said in the question-and-answer session after her speech: “And I think we need to recognize that this is not a double whammy, or even a triple whammy.

“So, I talked about the challenges with business rates, the challenges with VAT. The challenges are, yes, increasing the minimum wage, the living wage and energy costs.”

Mr Burnham later supported “a VAT rate more consistent with what you find in Europe because of the social value your businesses bring to places and towns that need that life injected into them”. Telegram.

“I would personally support a permanently lower business rates regime for hospitality businesses for exactly the same reason.”

Sir Keir Starmer should stand down if Labor comes third in a by-election in Gorton and Denton, a union leader has said, as he backs Angela Rayner instead.

Maryam Eslamdoust, general secretary of the Transport Salaried Staff Association (TSSA), is the first leader of one of Labor’s unions to openly support an alternative to Sir Keir as party leader.

He warned that a leadership fight could come at the end of February, following a crucial by-election in which Labor risks falling behind Reform Britain and the Greens.

Ms Eslamdoust said: Daily Telegraph: “I think Keir will expire if we come third.”

Angela Rayner said the Government needed to listen to the struggling hospitality sector and recognize its “value not just in rhetoric but in policy”.

The former deputy prime minister was speaking at Liverpool’s Night Economy Summit about “what we should see from the Labor Party in the future”.

He said: “If we are serious about recovery then we must accelerate their (businesses’) recovery.

“This means recognizing the value of policy, not just rhetoric, and that is where we need to be sincere.

“There is undoubtedly a clear distinction between policy that truly understands the night-time economy and policy that implements a one-size-fits-all approach.

“Too often policy is made about this sector, not this sector. And I am clearly and explicitly aware that more needs to be done to directly, consistently and respectfully engage the sector, listen, co-design and recognize expertise where it exists.

“Because trust in politics is important. Businesses need to believe that they will be treated fairly, that the rules will not change without warning, that long-standing structural problems will finally be resolved rather than being postponed again.”

Ukraine’s allies must ensure that 2026 is the year Russia’s war against Kiev ends, the Defense Minister said.

Speaking after a meeting of defense ministers in Brussels, John Healey said Ukraine’s allies were “more united and determined than ever”.

“We will increase military aid to Ukraine and increase pressure on Russia,” he said.

“And we want to make 2026 the year this war ends, the year we secure peace.”

Angela Rayner called on Sir Keir Starmer to appoint a night economy minister, warning that “more needs to be done” to support the sector.

The former deputy prime minister, who is challenging the Labor government, claimed venues face a “triple cost problem”, with business rates, VAT and minimum wage increases among other pressures.

Speaking at a summit on the night-time economy in Liverpool, Ms Rayner said the sector needed to have a “real champion on the national stage” to represent its interests.

The Labor MP, who served as Sir Keir’s deputy and local government secretary until he resigned last year following a row over underpayment of stamp duty on a new property, told an event in Liverpool: “We must do better.

“We need to understand the economic, cultural and social value of this sector.

“We need to design policy with the industry, not for it.”

He added: “I will support the government in appointing a minister responsible for the night-time economy who will advocate for the sector within government and ensure that the voices of small and medium-sized businesses are heard loud and clear.”

Reform Britain’s candidate in the upcoming by-elections has called for a “biological reality” check on women and young girls as she gives her views on how Britain should deal with its looming “fertility crisis”.

days later Independent An unearthed clip posted on Matt Goodwin’s personal YouTube channel in November 2024, which revealed that Matt Goodwin had previously suggested charging extra taxes as a penalty to people who had not had children, showed the old academic warning that “many women in Britain start having children too late”.

Political correspondent Millie Cooke reports: