Residents who live near newly installed pylons will be compensated with £250-a-year off their energy bills, a minister has said.

Housing and planning minister Alex Norris told Sky’s Wilfred Frost on Breakfast that communities “need to share the benefits” of the government’s tilt towards clean energy.

“If you’re making that sacrifice of having some of the infrastructure in your community, you should get some of the money back,” he said.

“So we’re making that commitment – £250-a-year if you are near those pylons.

“We think that’s a fair balance between people who are making that commitment to the country… they should be rewarded for that.”

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Ministers are currently pushing through an overhaul of the planning system – long seen as a brake on housebuilding and vital infrastructure projects – to stimulate growth in the economy.

Overnight it was announced parts of the planning system could be stripped away as part of the government’s attempts to speed up house building.

In its election-winning manifesto, Labour promised to build 1.5 million new homes over the next five years to tackle the lack of affordable housing, with recent statistics showing that there are 123,000 households in temporary accommodation – including nearly 160,000 children.

Sir Keir Starmer has repeatedly vowed to put “builders not blockers first”, announcing at the beginning of the year “unarguable cases” that are legally challenged will only be able to be brought back to the courts once – rather than the current three times.

Councils have also been told to come up with “immediate, mandatory” housing targets to help the government achieve its target.

Under the reforms announced last night, consulting bodies such as Sport England, the Theatres Trust and the Garden History Society will no longer be required for those looking to build under the new plans being considered by ministers.

While consultees will not be completely removed from the process, it will no longer be mandatory for builders to receive the opinion of such bodies and their scope will be “narrowed to focus on heritage, safety and environmental protection”, according to the government.

It is hoped the slimming down of the process will reduce waiting times for projects.

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Mr Norris said the interjections of official bodies in planning decisions was causing a “bottleneck” in granting applications.

“I think viewers might be surprised to hear that there are two dozen-plus organisations that have to be consulted on planning applications – that’s providing a bit of a bottleneck, often not getting back in time,” he said.

He said that while members of Sport England were “fine people”, there was a case where the body held up the development in Bradford next to a cricket pitch.

“The hold up is around a disagreement on the speed at which cricket balls are hit,” he explained.

“So Sport England are querying the modelling of the speed at which the balls will be hit, and that, as a result, has meant that the whole process is now multiple years down the line, and there’s no build out.”

Senior members of Reform UK are embroiled in a bitter row – with one of its MPs being suspended from the party.

Rupert Lowe, the Reform MP for Great Yarmouth, lost the party whip over the weekend, meaning he will now sit as an independent MP in the Commons.

It is a setback for party leader Nigel Farage, who has been on a mission to “professionalise” Reform as it seeks to capitalise on its position in the polls – which only a month ago gave the party a lead over Labour and the Conservatives for the first time.

But how did the row start, and what now for Mr Lowe?

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Alleged threats of physical violence

Mr Lowe, the former chairman of Southampton Football Club, was suspended last week after Reform reported him to the police over alleged threats of physical violence towards the party’s chairman, Zia Yusuf.

A statement from Mr Yusuf and Lee Anderson, the chief whip, also said the party had received complaints from two female employees about alleged serious bullying in Mr Lowe’s offices.

Mr Lowe, who served as a member of the European Parliament for the Brexit Party, has strongly denied the allegations, calling the accusations of physical threats “outrageous and entirely untrue”. He also referenced a “vexatious complaint” made by another staff member.

Mr Yusuf and Mr Anderson claimed the Great Yarmouth MP had “on at least two occasions made threats of physical violence against” the former.

“It is with regret that we feel obligated to disclose that the party received complaints from two female employees about serious bullying in the offices of the member of parliament for Great Yarmouth, Rupert Lowe,” they said in a joint statement.

“Evidence was provided to us of workplace bullying, the targeting of female staff who raised concerns, and evidence of derogatory and discriminatory remarks made about women, including reference to a perceived disability.

“We feel we have a duty of care to all our staff, whether employed directly or indirectly. Accordingly, we appointed an independent King’s Counsel to conduct an investigation into the veracity of these complaints. To date, Mr Lowe has yet to cooperate with this investigation.

“In addition to these allegations of a disturbing pattern of behaviour, Mr Lowe has on at least two occasions made threats of physical violence against our party chairman. Accordingly, this matter is with the police.

“Reform stands for the highest standards of conduct in public life, and we will apply these standards without fear nor favour, including within our own party.”

What has Mr Lowe said?

In response to the allegations, Mr Lowe said on Friday the party leadership had a “complete inability to accept even the most mild constructive criticism without such a malicious reaction”.

In a statement posted on X, he wrote: “I am disappointed, but not surprised, to read Reform’s untrue and false allegations. Let me be abundantly clear – this investigation is based on zero credible evidence against me, as has been repeatedly stated by the neutral investigator. None has been provided.

“I have cooperated and spoken at length with the KC they instructed, at great cost to the party, to investigate a minor staff matter.”

In a further statement on X, Mr Lowe said: “Ever since this malicious attack on my reputation was launched, all I have asked for from both Reform and the KC is the credible evidence against me.”

He said that “none has been provided” because “there is no credible evidence against me”.

He added: “I will not have my name dragged through the mud as part of a political assassination because I dared to question Nigel Farage.”

War of words

Mr Lowe’s statement suggests he believes he has been suspended from the party because he chose to criticise Mr Farage.

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In a recent interview with the Daily Mail, Mr Lowe said that while Mr Farage was a “fiercely independent individual” with “messianic qualities”, that did not equate to “sage leadership”.

He added: “I’m not going to be by Nigel’s side at the next election unless we have a proper plan to change the way we govern from top to bottom,” he said.

He also said he was “barely six months into being an MP” and “in the betting to be the next prime minister.”

Those words could have struck a nerve with Mr Farage after Elon Musk, the Tesla and Space X billionaire who has become one of Donald Trump’s closest allies, suggested the Reform leader “doesn’t have what it takes” and that Mr Lowe should take over.

Mr Farage has brushed off the incident and in an article for the Daily Telegraph on Saturday claimed Mr Lowe’s suspension was a result of “inappropriate” behaviour.

‘Sense of unity has been dented’

“If the last general election taught us anything, it is that the public does not like political parties that engage in constant infighting,” Mr Farage wrote.

“Now, thanks to one of our MPs, Rupert Lowe, unloading a barrage of criticisms against our operations and its main actors, that sense of unity has been dented.”

Mr Farage went on to claim that Mr Lowe had “managed to fall out with all his parliamentary colleagues in one way or another”, adding: “We did our best to keep a lid on things but, in the end, containment strategies invariably fail.”

He then referred to a Commons clash with transport minister Mike Kane just before Christmas after Mr Lowe staged a debate about a damaged ship containing toxic cargo docked in his Great Yarmouth constituency.

“Mr Lowe was unhappy with the answer that he received from Mr Kane and, at the end of the debate, he crossed the floor to make his feelings known,” Mr Farage wrote.

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“A confrontation ensued. Heated language was heard. The minister’s shoulder was pushed. In the end, the Serjeant at Arms had to step in to calm things down between the two parliamentarians.”

He added: “Yet the fact is that, sadly, there have been too many similar outbursts from Mr Lowe, often involving the use of inappropriate language, to the despair of our chief whip, Lee Anderson.

“I have been surprised and saddened at this behaviour.”

On bullying allegations, Mr Farage said Reform was a “responsible political party” that had a “duty of care to every single member of staff, whether they are employed by us directly or indirectly”.

As a result, he said a lawyer had been appointed to conduct an independent inquiry into the allegations.

Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice said it was “right and proper” that the KC had been appointed to conduct an investigation.

Speaking on Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, he said: “We’ve also got a duty of care as a party, whether people are employed directly or indirectly. So, that’s why the chairman has instructed an independent investigation by a KC, that’s the right and proper thing to do. That will run its course.”

‘Correcting’ the record

In his own Telegraph article, Mr Lowe repeated the claim he made on X that there was no credible evidence against him and he was removed from the party before any investigation had started.

He called his treatment by the party a “witch hunt” and said he had been “entirely frozen out of the Reform machine over the last few months, in a deliberate and calculated way”.

However, the lawyer appointed to investigate the claims against Mr Lowe – who has remained anonymous – has denied saying they were “shocked” about the party’s process.

The lawyer said “I have seen a number of statements made by Mr Lowe MP which are attributed to me and which describe my reactions to the process conducted by the party into the allegations made against both Mr Lowe and his constituency manager.”

“I find myself in the unfortunate and regrettable position of having to make this statement to correct the record. I have not expressed either ‘dismay’ or ‘shock’ at any time as to the process.

“Nor have I said ‘there is zero credible evidence against [Mr Lowe]’, let alone said this ‘repeatedly’.”

Kia’s first electric sedan, the EV4, has officially hit the market. Kia opened EV4 orders at under $30,000 (41.92 million won) in South Korea ahead of its global rollout. It even has the longest driving range of any Hyundai Motor Group EV rated with over 330 miles (533 km).

Kia EV4 orders open in Korea for under $30,000

Since debuting as a concept in October 2023, Kia’s EV4 has become one of the most highly anticipated electric vehicles.

Last month, we got our first look at the production model during Kia’s 2024 EV Day (check out our recap of the event). Kia showcased four EV4 models, two sedans and two hatchbacks.

The EV4 is part of Kia’s new “EVs for all” strategy with prices ranging from around $30,000 to upwards of $80,000. After launching the EV5 and EV3, both electric SUVs, Kia aims to corner another segment with the EV4.

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Kia opened EV4 orders in Korea on Monday, starting at just 41.92 million won, or around USD $29,000. With incentives, Kia expects the actual purchase price to be around 34 million won, or roughly $23,500.

Powered by a 58.3 kWh battery, the standard “Air” model is rated with up to 237 miles (382 km) driving range. The long-range EV4, starting at 46.29 million won ($31,800), gets up to 331 miles (533 km) range from an 81.4 kWh battery, the most of among Hyundai Motor Group EVs.

As Kia’s most aerodynamic vehicle yet, the EV4 has ultra low drag coefficient of just 0.23, which unlocks maximum driving range.

With a 350 kW charger, the long range EV4 can charge from 10% to 80% in around 31 minutes, while it will take about 29 with the standard model.

The EV4 is Kia’s fourth EV to arrive in Korea, following the EV6, EV9, and EV3. As its first EV in the segment, Kia claims it will “set a new standard for electric sedans.”

As you can see, the EV4 has a unique sports car-like silhouette with an added roof spoiler, which Kia says is “the new look of a sedan fit for the era of electrification.”

Inside, the electric sedan is loaded with the latest software and connectivity. Kia’s new ccNC infotainment system, with dual 12.3″ driver display and navigation screens, sits at the center of an otherwise minimalistic setup.

For the first time, it also includes a new “interior mode, “enabling you to easily change the seating and lights to maximize interior space.

Kia’s vice president and head of its domestic business, Won-Jeong Jeong, said the EV4 “will present a new direction in the domestic electric vehicle market, which has been formed around SUVs.”

Will it have the same “charm” in the US, Europe, and other markets? We will find out soon, with the EV4 rolling out globally this year. What do you think of Kia’s first electric sedan? Would you buy one for around $30,000?