Rishi Sunak to update MPs on Houthi strikes – as dispute arises over whether Labour was briefed

Published

1 year ago

January 23, 2024

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Rishi Sunak will address MPs about the latest Houthi strikes later today – amid a dispute about whether Labour was briefed over the action.

The prime minister will give a statement at 12.30 in the House of Commons, Downing Street confirmed.

It comes amid a brewing row over whether or not Sir Keir Starmer was informed about the strikes ahead of time

Huw Merriman, the transport minister, told Sky News that Sir Keir Starmer and Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle were told about the operation before it happened, despite briefings to the contrary.

Politics live: Row brews over Houthi strikes briefing

“I can confirm that the Leader of the Opposition and indeed the Speaker were again given that information in the same way they were the first time around,” he said.

However Sir Lindsay is disputing this, Sky News understands.

Labour also said they were not told about the operation before it happened.

Karin Smyth, a shadow health minister, told GB News this morning: “We don’t know why the government hasn’t spoken to us on the usual terms.

“We would expect them to do that.”

Speaking later at the Institute for Government, she said this mattered because of Sir Keir’s “constitutional position as leader of the official opposition”.

She said this means he should be briefed under the terms of the privy council, the mechanism through which interdepartmental agreement is reached on certain matters of government business.

“We’ve been very clear that these issues after immediate action or urgent action of course is done on those terms, the prime minister should come to parliament. That is his job,” Ms Smyth said.

Number 10 said Sir Lindsay and Sir Keir “were informed last night”, but refused to provide clarity on whether this was before the strikes were launched.

The US and UK carried out joint attacks on Houthi military targets in Yemen for the second time on Monday night, in response to their repeated attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

Ahead of the first strikes earlier this month, both Sir Keir and Sir Lindsay were briefed in advance.

Sir Keir expressed his support for the military intervention to protect ships and personnel in the vital trade route, in a rare showing of cross-party unity.

It is understood there will be a briefing today which Labour representatives will attend.

Lots of MPs have demanded parliament be given a vote on the strikes, amid concerns over escalation of conflict in the Middle East.

Military intervention is currently a prerogative power, so the government does not have to seek approval.

Mr Merriman said the prime minister will “account to parliament” by addressing MPs in the House of Commons later on Tuesday.

Bizarre and petty row risks damaging cross-party unity

Amanda Akass

Political correspondent

@amandaakass

Ahead of the last joint military operation against the Houthis on January 11th there was a rare outbreak of agreement between the Conservatives and the Labour leadership.

Sir Keir Starmer, shadow defence secretary John Healey and the speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle were called to Downing Street and briefed in advance of the strikes, shortly after the rest of the cabinet.

Afterwards Sir Keir expressed his support for military intervention to protect ships and personnel in the Red Sea.

While some backbenchers were uneasy about the risk of escalation – the ghosts of past wars in the Middle East looming large – and the Liberal Democrats and SNP called loudly for parliament to be recalled to debate what had happened, that wasn’t Labour’s official position.

Indeed Sir Keir found himself in hot water the weekend afterwards when he was accused of U-turning on a pledge made during his leadership campaign only to support military action if it had been approved by a parliamentary vote in advance; he claimed he only meant in situations with boots on the ground, not airstrikes.

This time around there’s a battle of briefing and counter briefing between the two parties.

Sky News understands neither Sir Keir nor Sir Lindsay, received an advance briefing this time, with shadow minister Karin Smyth telling broadcasters this morning “we don’t know why the government haven’t spoken to us on the usual terms – we would expect them to do that.”

But Huw Merriman, the government minister put up for this morning’s broadcast round, told Kay Burley that he believed that was not correct – as he understood they “were again given that information in the same way that they were the first time around”.

Both sides are standing by their story.

The key discrepancy seems to be on the timing; while No 10 sources insist both were briefed last night, it doesn’t seem to have been in advance.

We’re expecting some kind of statement from the government in parliament, as we saw last time, to set out more information about what happened to MPs.

But this rather bizarre and slightly petty row over who was informed when this morning is surely going to be damaging to the sense of cross party unity in the national interest we saw briefly flickering a few weeks ago.

He said the latest air strikes in the Red Sea will “not just be a one-off” if the Houthis continue their campaign of harassment against cargo ships in the region.

“For us to take action and then the Houthis respond, and then we do nothing, would send out the completely wrong signal,” he told Sky News.

“So, this demonstrates that we will be tough and we will take all measures required against the Houthis to protect international shipping and protect the lives of those who operate those ships.”

Politics

Why a ‘Trump-fest’ could be just the tonic for a special relationship under strain

Published

1 hour ago

April 18, 2025

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Why a 'Trump-fest' could be just the tonic for a special relationship under strain

It was perhaps not quite how officials, in London at least, had envisaged the announcement of the state visit would be made.

In the Oval Office, Donald Trump revealed the news in his own way.

“I was invited by the King and the great country. They are going to do a second fest – that’s what it is. It is beautiful,” he said during an impromptu Oval Office moment.

The question was, did this “fest” – which Mr Trump suggested could happen in September – amount to the much hyped second state visit for the American president?

Or was this actually just the smaller visit that had been offered two months ago as an initial bilateral visit at which the state visit would be discussed?

Back in February, Sir Keir Starmer presented the president with a letter from King Charles and the offer of a state visit.

The letter proposed an initial meeting between the King and the president to discuss details of the state visit at either Dumfries House or Balmoral, both in Scotland, close to Mr Trump’s golf clubs.

The King wrote: “Quite apart from this presenting an opportunity to discuss a wide range of issues of mutual interest, it would also offer a valuable chance to plan a historic second state visit to the United Kingdom… As you will know this is unprecedented by a US president. That is why I would find it helpful for us to be able to discuss, together, a range of options for location and programme content.”

As he revealed the news of his “fest” with his “friend Charles”, Mr Trump said: “I think they are setting a date for September…”

Sources have since confirmed to Sky News that it will amount to the full state visit.

‘Even more important’

It’s possible the initial less formal presidential trip may still happen between now and September. Mr Trump is in Europe for the NATO summit in June and is due in Scotland to open a new golf course soon too.

“It is the second time it has happened to one person. The reason is we have two separate terms, and it’s an honour to be a friend of King Charles and the family, William,” the president said.

“I don’t know how it can be bigger than the last one. The last one was incredible, but they say the next one will be even more important.”

His last state visit in 2019, at the invitation of the late Queen, drew significant protests epitomised by the giant blow-up “Baby Trump” which floated over Parliament Square.

Britain’s trump card

September is a little earlier than had been expected for the visit. It may be an advantage for it to happen sooner rather than later, given the profoundly consequential and controversial nature of the first few months of his second term.

The decision by the British government to play its “state visit trump card” up front back in February drew some criticism.

And since February, Mr Trump’s position on numerous issues has been increasingly at odds with all of America’s allies.

On Ukraine, he has seemingly aligned himself closely with Vladimir Putin. His tariffs have caused a global economic shock. And on issues like Greenland and Canada, a member of the Commonwealth, he has generated significant diplomatic shock.

A risk worth taking

Mr Trump is as divisive among the British public as he is in America. Sir Keir is already walking a political tightrope by choosing the softly softly approach with the White House.

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The UK government chose not to retaliate against Mr Trump’s tariffs, unlike some allies. Sir Keir and his cabinet have been at pains not to be seen to criticise the president in any way as they seek to influence him on Ukraine and seek an elusive economic deal on tariffs.

On that tariff deal, despite some positive language from the US side and offers on the table, there has yet to be a breakthrough. A continuing challenge is engaging with the president for decisions and agreements only he, not his cabinet, will make.

British officials acknowledge the risk the state visit poses. In this presidency, anything could happen between now and September.

But they argue British soft power and Mr Trump’s fondness for the Royal Family and pomp – or a “fest” as he calls it – amount to vital diplomatic clout.

For a special relationship under strain, a special state visit is the tonic.

Politics

Hashkey takes aim at XRP ETF in Asia with new fund backed by Ripple

Published

4 hours ago

April 18, 2025

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Hashkey takes aim at XRP ETF in Asia with new fund backed by Ripple

Hong Kong-based crypto investment firm HashKey Capital announced the launch of an XRP fund, with plans to convert it into an exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the future.

According to an April 18 announcement, the fund, officially titled the HashKey XRP Tracker Fund, is reportedly “the first investment fund in Asia designed to track the performance of XRP.”

XRP developer Ripple will serve as the fund’s anchor investor. In a separate X post, HashKey Capital said the fund aims to bring “more institutional capital into regulated XRP products and the broader digital asset ecosystem.”

Close collaboration with Ripple

In another X post, HashKey Capital said the fund marks the beginning of a closer collaboration with Ripple. The two firms “are exploring new investment products, cross-border DeFi solutions, and tokenization —including the possibility of launching a money market fund (MMF) on the XRP ledger.”

In the announcement, HashKey Capital partner Vivien Wong said the firm will share its connections with financial institutions, regulators and investors in Asia with Ripple, adding:

“Ripple offers us the opportunity to collaborate on more investment products and solutions across cross-border payment solutions, decentralized finance (DeFi), and enterprise blockchain adoption.”

A Hong Kong XRP ETF in the works?

The XRP (XRP) Tracker Fund is HashKey Capital’s third tracker fund and follows the firm’s Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) ETF products. The company noted that this product may also become an ETF in the future.

A boon for XRP’s institutional adoption in Asia

Hank Huang, CEO of Kronos Research, a crypto investment firm based in Asia, told Cointelegraph that “the launch of the XRP Tracker Fund by HashKey Capital marks a pivotal moment for institutional adoption” in the region. He said regulated and transparent products like Hashkey’s fund are what institutional investors need to enter the market.

“XRP’s proven use case in cross-border payments, combined with HashKey’s robust infrastructure, sets the stage for meaningful capital inflows and wider acceptance of crypto assets in global finance,“ Huang said.

Magazine: XRP win leaves Ripple and industry with no crypto legal precedent set

Politics

Altcoins may rally in Q2 2025 thanks to improved regulations: Sygnum

Published

4 hours ago

April 18, 2025

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Altcoins may rally in Q2 2025 thanks to improved regulations: Sygnum

Altcoins may see a resurgence in the second quarter of 2025 as regulations for digital assets continue to improve, according to Swiss bank Sygnum.

In its Q2 2025 investment outlook, Sygnum said the space has seen “drastically improved” regulations for crypto use cases, creating the foundations for a strong alt-sector rally for the second quarter. However, it added that “none of the positive developments have been priced in.”

In April, Bitcoin dominance reached a four-year high, signaling that crypto investors are rotating their funds into an asset perceived to be relatively safer.

But Sygnum believes regulatory developments in the US, such as President Donald Trump’s establishment of a Digital Asset Stockpile and advancing stablecoin regulations, could propel broader crypto adoption.

“We expect protocols successful in gaining user traction to outperform and Bitcoin’s dominance to decline,” Sygnum wrote.

Increased focus on economic value ignites competition

Sygnum also said that competition would increase as the market focuses on economic value. Increased competition in a market often results in better products, ultimately benefiting consumers:

“The market’s increased focus on economic value compels greater competition for user growth and revenues, with rising protocols such as Toncoin, Sui, Aptos, Sonic, or Berachain taking different approaches.”

Sygnum added that while high-performance blockchains address limitations of the Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana blockchains, these chains find it challenging to achieve meaningful adoption and fee income.

The report highlighted that some approaches have been more sustainable. These include Berachain’s approach of incentivizing validators to provide liquidity to decentralized finance (DeFi) applications, Sonic’s rewarding developers that attract and retain users, and Toncoin’s Telegram affiliation to access one billion users.

Aside from layer-1 chains, Sygnum highlighted that layer-2 networks like Base also have potential. The report pointed out that while the memecoin frenzy on the blockchain pushed its users and revenue to new highs, it made an equally sharp decline after memecoins started losing steam.

Despite this, Sygnum noted that Base remains the layer-2 leader in metrics like daily transactions, throughput and total value locked.

Memecoins still a leading crypto narrative in Q1

Despite recent price declines, memecoins remained a dominant crypto narrative in Q1 2025. A CoinGecko report recently highlighted that memecoins remained dominant as a crypto narrative in the first quarter of 2025. The crypto data company said memecoins had 27.1% of global investor interest, second only to artificial intelligence tokens, which had 35.7%.

While retail investors are still busy with memecoins, institutions have a different approach. Asset manager Bitwise reported on April 14 that publicly traded firms are stacking up on Bitcoin. At least twelve public companies purchased Bitcoin for the first time in Q1 2025, pushing public firm holdings to $57 billion.