Liz Truss says she has ‘absolutely no shame’ in performing tax cut U-turn
Liz Truss says she had “absolutely no shame” in performing a dramatic U-turn on the government’s plan to scrap the 45p higher rate of tax.
The prime minister told Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby she “took the decision very rapidly” to axe the policy, which was “becoming a distraction” from the rest of the government’s economic agenda.
But Home Secretary Suella Braverman told a Conservative Party fringe event hosted by The Telegraph that she was “very disappointed” by the policy reversal, adding that “members of our own parliamentary party staged a coup, effectively”.
Responding to Ms Braverman’s remarks, Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Secretary Simon Clarke also revealed that he objects to the U-turn, stating: “Suella speaks a lot of good sense, as usual.”
Ms Truss’s U-turn came on Monday morning – more than a week after the mini-budget on 23 September.
Politics Hub: Truss refuses to say if she trusts chancellor
The tax cut for the wealthiest 1% was one of a series of proposals in the government’s tax-cutting mini-budget that prompted turmoil in the markets over the past week, with the pound reaching record lows against the dollar.
The policy also received a bitter backlash from Tory MPs and the public, with Labour surging to opinion poll leads not seen since the early 2000s.
Ms Truss told Sky News that removing the 45p tax rate for those earning £150,000 or more “wasn’t a priority policy” for the government.
“I listened to people and I think there’s absolutely no shame in a leader listening to people and responding,” Ms Truss said. “And that’s the kind of person I am, and I’ve been totally honest and upfront with people.
“But everything I’ve done as prime minister is focused on helping people get through what is a very difficult winter and very difficult circumstances and putting our country on a stronger footing in the future.”
Announcing the U-turn yesterday, Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng said: “We have listened.”
In an earlier broadcast round on Tuesday morning, the PM repeated refused to say whether she trusted the chancellor following the 45p tax rate U-turn, instead saying the two work “very closely”.
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Truss swerves three chances to back chancellor
Ms Truss was also probed on whether she supports increasing benefits in line with inflation, replying that a decision “will be made in due course”.
Ms Truss is facing a fresh battle with Conservative MPs over a potential benefits squeeze and cuts to public spending, after already being forced into making a policy U-turn on her tax cuts yesterday.
The PM has not ruled out a real-terms cut to benefits.
Penny Mordaunt became the first cabinet minister to openly oppose the idea of not uprating benefits with inflation, telling Times Radio: “I’ve always supported – whether it’s pensions, whether it’s our welfare system – keeping pace with inflation. It makes sense to do so. That’s what I voted for before.”
The leader of the House of Commons added: “We want to make sure that people are looked after and that people can pay their bills. We are not about trying to help people with one hand and take away with another.”
But despite growing pressure to outline her position on the issue, Ms Truss reiterated numerous times on Tuesday morning that “no decision has been made”.
Read more:
First part of Truss’ reign is over – is there any way back?
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Should benefits rise with inflation?
Benefits are usually uprated in line with the consumer price index (CPI) rate of inflation from September, with the rise coming into effect the following April.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies estimates that each percentage point rise in CPI adds £1.6 billion to welfare spending.
Speaking after Ms Truss’s interview round, former Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said it “doesn’t make any sense” to not uprate benefits in line with inflation.
He told a Conservative party fringe event in Birmingham that he resigned as work and pensions secretary under former Conservative PM David Cameron in 2016 because the government had “lost the plot” over cuts to the welfare system and that it “would be a mistake to do that again”.
Earlier, Justice Secretary Brandon Lewis refused to give his position when asked about the government’s plans to uprate benefits on Sky News, telling Kay Burley: “There is a process around this that the Department for Work and Pensions, Chloe Smith, the secretary of state, works through.”
He said announcements will be made “over the autumn”, adding: “I’m not going to pre-judge what that will be.”
Actor Timothy West has died peacefully in his sleep aged 90, “with his friends and family at the end”.
He was known for many roles in television and the theatre, including popular soaps Coronation Street and EastEnders.
Husband to Prunella Scales – who played Sybil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers – the pair travelled together on UK and overseas canals in the Channel 4 series Great Canal Journeys.
His children Juliet, Samuel and Joseph West said in a statement issued by his agent: “After a long and extraordinary life on and off the stage, our darling father Timothy West died peacefully in his sleep yesterday evening. He was 90 years old.
“Tim was with friends and family at the end. He leaves his wife Prunella Scales, to whom he was married for 61 years, a sister, a daughter, two sons, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. All of us will miss him terribly.
“We would like to thank the incredible NHS staff at St George’s Hospital, Tooting and at Avery Wandsworth for their loving care during his last days.”
The couple married in 1963 and had two sons, actor Samuel and Joseph.
West was previously married to actor Jacqueline Boyer from 1956 to 1961, with whom he had a daughter, Juliet.
West with his wife, Prunella Scales. Pic: Geoff Pugh/Shutterstock
West with his wife at a charity dinner in 1998. Pic: PA
In 1984, West was appointed CBE for his services to drama in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
He was the winner of an RTS television award for his lead role in Churchill And The Generals, released in 1979, according to imdb.com.
In his career, he played Winston Churchill three times, including in The Last Bastion (1984) and in Hiroshima (1995).
West with his son Samuel in 1999. Pic: PA
West was also nominated for best actor in the 1976 BAFTAs for his part as Edward VII in the historical drama.
Four years later, he was nominated in the same category for a number of roles, including as best actor in Crime And Punishment.
West (right) in BBC drama, Last Tango In Halifax. Pic: PA
After a small part as Eric Babbage in Coronation Street in 2013, West appeared in 2014 for the first time as Stan Carter in EastEnders.
He also held other popular TV roles, such as in BBC comedy-drama Last Tango In Halifax.
In the long-running BBC comedy, Not Going Out, he played Geoffrey, the father of Lucy Adams, played by Sally Bretton.
He was the ruthless self-made businessman Bradley Hardacre in comedy-drama Brass, playing the role from 1982 to 1984 before returning for a third series in 1990.
West as King Lear during a 2003 English Touring Theatre production of William Shakespeare’s tragedy. Pic: PA
In 2019, the Bradford-born actor played Private Godfrey in Dad’s Army: The Lost Episodes, a recreation of three missing episodes of the BBC comedy.
His film roles included Commissioner Berthier in The Day Of The Jackal (1973), King Francis in From Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998), and Nazi physician and war criminal Karl Gebhardt in Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973).
He was also a regular performer of Shakespeare, playing Lear in 2002 and 2016.
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The actor performed at the Piccadilly Theatre, with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, and the West End, portraying many classic roles, including Shylock, Falstaff, and Macbeth.
Prior to acting, West attended the John Lyon School and Bristol Grammar School.
He worked as an office furniture salesman and a recording technician before becoming an assistant stage manager at Wimbledon Theatre in 1956.
UK
Man jailed for more than three years for loading illegal streaming services on to Amazon Fire Sticks
A 29-year-old man has been jailed for more than three years for loading illicit TV streaming services onto Amazon Fire Sticks.
Jonathan Edge, from Liverpool, pleaded guilty to three offences under the Fraud Act.
He was sentenced to three years and four months in prison, which included a separate concurrent sentence of two years and three months for accessing and viewing the content he was supplying.
Edge ran a service uploading illegal services to Fire Stick devices in return for cash-in-hand payments at his home, Liverpool Crown Court heard.
He used Facebook advertising and word-of-mouth recommendations to run his operation.
He ignored multiple warnings about the illegal activity, which were referenced by the judge and treated as an aggravating factor in sentencing.
The prosecution was undertaken by the Premier League and supported by several other organisations, including FACT (Federation Against Copyright Theft) and Merseyside Police.
Kevin Plumb, Premier League general counsel, said: “The significant sentence handed down to the individual involved once again serves to highlight the severity of his actions.
“We will continue to pursue legal action against those supplying unauthorised access to Premier League football, regardless of the scale or mode of operation. Ignoring warnings to stop only served to make the consequences worse for the individual.”
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Detective Sergeant Steve Frame from Merseyside Police said: “Merseyside Police is committed to working in collaboration to investigate intellectual property theft and we welcome today’s sentence handed to Edge.
“Many people see no harm in illegally streaming TV services but they are wrong, and this outcome should serve as a further warning how seriously such copyright theft continues to be taken.”
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