“Philip Hammond has declared that public-sector workers are “overpaid”, as a bitter cabinet war erupted over austerity. At a heated cabinet meeting on Tuesday, the chancellor refused to lift the 1% cap on wages for public-sector workers on the grounds that they earn more than those in the private sector, along with generous taxpayer-funded pensions. But Hammond left his colleagues thunderstruck at the language he used. “Public-sector workers are overpaid when you take into account pensions,” he declared. The chancellor then described train drivers as “ludicrously overpaid”.” – Sunday Times (£)
“Theresa May is to declare war on ‘Nimbys’ with radical plans to build 300,000 homes a year – and risk a revolt from Tories in her wealthy Maidenhead constituency. The Prime Minister has given her backing to moves by Communities Secretary Sajid Javid to force town halls in affluent areas to build more homes – or have targets forced on them. Mr Javid will this week warn that if wealthy areas like Maidenhead in Berkshire refuse to build extra homes to solve the UK’s housing crisis, they will drive more young voters who can’t afford to buy into the arms of Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn.” – Mail on Sunday
>Today: ToryDiary: Inflammatory language, noble aims. Javid prepares to battle for more home ownership and social justice.
“She said life at No10 was like TV political satire The Thick Of It – and blamed the volatile behaviour of the PM’s two most senior advisers, Hill and Nick Timothy. Perrior, who quit after a “horrendous” ten months, blames “the gruesome twosome” for ruining everything Mrs May had worked to achieve. She said: “I knew that without these two chiefs of staff, Theresa May would never have become Prime Minister. But by the very nature of the way they acted, I knew they would also be her downfall. And they very nearly were.”” – Sun on Sunday
“David Davis will go on the attack this week against an attempt to give European Union judges a say over life in the UK long after Britain has left the union. The Brexit secretary will accuse Brussels of the political equivalent of match-fixing in football with its proposals for the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to exercise influence after March 2019. Under the EU plan, European judges would be able to reopen any case previously heard under the ECJ if evidence is updated or new evidence presented.” – Sunday Times (£)
More:
>Today: Nick Boles in Comment: Why Britain should transition to full Brexit over three years – leaving before the next election is due
“Incoming Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable has disowned his party’s pledge to make “hell” for Theresa May over the Brexit process. Mr Cable, set to take over on Thursday, has promised constructive opposition instead. His comments come after the Prime Minister appealed for opposition parties to “contribute, not just criticise”. Outgoing Lib Dem leader Tim Farron had warned Mrs May that she would face hell trying to get the Repeal Bill, which will copy all EU rules on to the British statute book, through parliament.” – Sunday Express
“The question is not whether Brexit takes place, nor when, but how to make it advantageous to all sides. Most Remainers, being democrats, accept the result, and want to get the most beneficial terms. But that isn’t the game of the parliamentary agitators. Consider the issues on which they have chosen to fight. Staying in the customs union would be the worst of all worlds: it would mean that Brussels continued to dictate our trade policy without our having any input into that policy. No other country – not Iceland, not Switzerland, not Macedonia – has accepted such an idiotic deal.” – Sunday Telegraph
“Details of a new David Davis plot to wreck Boris Johnson’s hopes of succeeding Theresa May in No 10 by ‘cashing in’ on his feud with Chancellor Philip Hammond were revealed last night. Former Cabinet Minister Andrew Mitchell privately claimed that Mr Davis can boost his hopes of beating Foreign Secretary Mr Johnson by winning the backing of the Chancellor, The Mail on Sunday has been told. Mr Hammond, who opposed Britain leaving the EU, has been involved in a long-running battle with Brexit campaign leader Mr Johnson for months. Mr Mitchell is also said to have raised the possibility of writing to Mrs May himself and asking her to step down, though he decided against it.” – Mail on Sunday
“Theresa May is mishandling the Brexit negotiations and voters fear they are going to be left worse off as a result, an exclusive Mail on Sunday poll has found. Voters are split down the middle over whether we should still leave the EU, but are keen for Mrs May to ignore the hardliners in her party by pursuing a soft Brexit. And while Jeremy Corbyn maintains Labour’s poll lead, neither of the frontrunners to replace Mrs May – David Davis or Boris Johnson – would beat him if an Election was held tomorrow.” – Mail on Sunday
Analysis:
“May herself has to start with a full-hearted rapprochement with her chancellor, Philip Hammond. Even if he is isolated inside the Tory party, he speaks for the City and has the crucial decisions about public spending, as the economy slows, in his hands. He has been in close contact over the past few months with David Davis, trying to create a common position on Brexit. The prime minister may be more wary of Davis, who is now in pole position to take over. But he needs to avoid a protracted and bloody contest. That means persuading Boris Johnson not to stand. How likely do you think that is? Me too.” – Sunday Times (£)
>Yesterday: Anne Sutherland in Comment: Why Jacob Rees-Mogg should be the next Tory leader
“Yobs caught carrying acid with the intent of attacking someone could be jailed for up to four years under new proposals. Official sentencing guidelines will be reviewed following a worrying rise in the number of acid attacks on Britain’s streets. Corrosive substances will be classed as “dangerous weapons” to help tackle the growing wave of acid attacks, under a government review. Harmful products are likely be considered in the same category as knives and blades under a raft of heavy-hitting plans to aid prosecutors.” – Sun on Sunday
Comment:
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: The Conservatives must rediscover a sense of purpose
“Firefighters’ capability to tackle devastating blazes such as the Grenfell Tower firevary widely depending on where they are based in the UK, a union has said. The different standards in how fire services can respond to life-threatening tower block fires is a “postcode lottery”, the Fire Brigades Union has said. Differing levels of resources around the country mean that the numbers of fire engines that should automatically be sent to a fire varies greatly according to its location, according to FBU research.” – The Observer
Comment:
“The government has ordered the takeover of one of England’s first state-funded Muslim secondary schools, an institution where a child died and offensive books were found in the library. The books stated that a husband can beat his wife and insist on having sex with her. They were found in the library of the Al-Hijrah School in Birmingham, which became state-funded in 2001. Amanda Spielman, chief inspector at Ofsted, the schools regulator, said Al-Hijrah would be taken over by an independent academy trust on the orders of the Department for Education.” – Sunday Times (£)
“The Scottish Conservatives have accused the SNP of a funding “con” over money pledged to GPs. The accusation comes after GPs raised concerns with the Scottish Parliament over “confusion” surrounding a £500 million Scottish Government cash promise. Doctors believed their campaign for 11 per cent of the health budget to be spent on GPs had worked… However, the Royal College of General Practitioners Scotland has pointed out that a letter sent to surgeries mentioned “an extra £250m per year by 2021” in “direct support of general practice”.” – Scotland on Sunday
“Labour members must be handed greater power to choose the party’s candidates and leadership after their role in securing a strong election result, one of Jeremy Corbyn’s closest allies says. Jon Lansman, who founded the Momentum group that formed from Corbyn’s first leadership campaign, said the party needed to ensure that the thousands of members who had signed up after being enthused by the Labour leader did not drift away.” – The Observer
>Yesterday: Mohammed Abdel-Haq in Comment: To win the next election, the Tories need to learn from Corbyn
“Tory MP Johnny Mercer has shown he has a sense of humour after his face was used in a post to illustrate a story about a man defecating in the street. The representative for Plymouth Moor View was accidentally featured alongside a link that led to an article on a local paper’s website. The picture of a well-dressed Mr Mercer smiling at the camera was used above the headline: ‘Plymouth man “sorry” for defecating in front of “disgusted” onlookers’.” – Mail on Sunday