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The Clapham chemical attack is “not really about asylum”, Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has claimed.

A manhunt is still under way for Abdul Ezedi following the attack on Wednesday 31 January in which a mother, 31, and her two children, three and eight, were hospitalised.

After two failed attempts, the 35-year-old suspect’s asylum claim to stay in the UK was granted in 2020.

This was despite the fact he was handed a suspended sentence for a sexual offence in November 2018.

Ezedi was allowed to stay in the country after a priest confirmed he had converted to Christianity and had said he was “wholly committed” to his new religion, Sky News understands.

Politics latest: Education secretary ‘confident’ on childcare promise

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An asylum seeker can claim asylum in the UK on the basis of religious persecution in their native country.

Speaking to Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Ms Keegan was asked how it was possible for someone who was repeatedly rejected asylum and who had a criminal record to be granted permission to remain in the country by a tribunal.

The cabinet minister said: “My understanding is the home secretary has asked for all the details, but this is not really about asylum.

“This is about, obviously, the attack on, you know, a mother and her children, which was horrific and obviously impacted others as well.”

Ms Keegan added: “But, you know, it is a question that the home secretary will be asking as well, and looking at that.”

She added that people who have been given a sentence of more than 12 months are normally not able to stay in the UK.

Asked why Ezedi was free to roam the streets, Ms Keegan said: “That’s something that, you know, we need to get to the bottom of. But that’s not something that I have the details of.”

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She would not be drawn on whether the asylum tribunal system needed to be reviewed – adding that it was something under Home Secretary James Cleverly’s purview.

Labour’s shadow culture minister, Sir Chris Bryant, told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “If everything that we’ve been told is true, then it seems absolutely extraordinary that the British people should be put at such risk from this person.

“And it does make you ask lots of questions about the criminal justice system in the UK, about the asylum system and how safe our borders are.”

He added that he “would” say there’s something wrong with the system.

Asked about tribunals, he said: “In the end, it’s politicians who write the rules, the tribunals have to follow.

“But of course, it’s something that we need to look at.”

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‘Shy’ Reform voters in Labour areas led to Farage’s party winning by-election, Harriet Harman says

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'Shy' Reform voters in Labour areas led to Farage's party winning by-election, Harriet Harman says

“Shy” Reform voters in Labour areas led to Nigel Farage’s party winning the Runcorn by-election by just six votes, Labour peer Harriet Harman said.

The Runcorn and Helsby seat, created in 2024, went to Reform UK’s Sarah Pochin who defeated Labour candidate Karen Shore by six votes.

Reform overturned a 34.8% majority gained by former Labour MP Mike Amesbury last year before he stood down earlier this year after he punched a constituent on a night out.

It is the closest by-election result since records began in 1945.

Read more: Badenoch apologises to Tory councillors

Labour peer and former minister Baroness Harman told Beth Rigby on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast: “If we’d have known it was so close, I, myself, would have gone on extra time there and got those six votes.

“So, there’s a real level of frustration and I’m sure there’ll be a post-mortem, but I think there’s a lot of talk about shy Reform voters in Labour areas.”

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In the local elections, running at the same time, the Conservatives lost control of all 18 councils it was contesting, with Reform taking eight of those.

The party also won two of the six mayoral contests – Reform’s first two mayors.

Harriet Harman on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast
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Harriet Harman on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast

Baroness Harman said Labour now has “got to get on with delivering on the health service” and pointed out the minimum wage increase and breakfast clubs are only just being rolled out.

But she said the government also needs “more of a story” instead of just telling people to “bear with us” while it fixes what the Conservatives did.

“It seems to be that Farage has got no delivery, as yet, and all the story, whereas the government is really getting on with delivery, but it hasn’t got a big enough story about what that fits,” she said.

Read more: Reform’s political earthquake is now shaking our political system

An installation represents a bus stop during Reform UK's local elections campaign launch in Birmingham. Pic: Reuters
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An installation represents a bus stop during Reform UK’s local elections campaign launch in Birmingham. Pic: Reuters

She added that “Blue Labour” MPs – a socially Conservative wing of the Labour Party – “will be emboldened to press for further action” on issues like immigration, which they want to see a tougher stance on.

“There’s been grumbling about the big salience of the concerns of the winter fuel payment, but I don’t see there being any change on that,” she said.

Baroness Harman said she does not think the by-election and local election results were “utterly predictable” and will not lead to any splits or instability within the party.

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Tory leader apologises to councillors as Reform makes big gains in local elections

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Tory leader apologises to councillors as Reform makes big gains in local elections

Kemi Badenoch has apologised to Tory councillors who lost their seats after Reform made massive gains at the Conservatives’ expense in Thursday’s local elections.

The Conservative leader said she knew it was “disappointing” and that she was “sincerely sorry”, but added: “We are going to win those seats back – that is my job now.”

The Tories lost overall control of all 18 councils they had been in charge of that were up for election. There were 23 councils in the race in total.

Politics latest: Sky News analysis shows Reform surge in estimated national vote

A particularly bad loss was Buckinghamshire, which has been under Tory control since 1973 when local government was reorganised. The Conservatives lost overall control by just one seat after losing 29 seats.

Reform, which has never run in local elections before, gained eight councils from the Tories, one that had no overall control previously and one from Labour – the only Labour council up for grabs in this election.

Nigel Farage and candidate Sarah Pochin react as the party wins the Runcorn and Helsby by-election results at Halton Stadium in Widnes, Britain, May 2, 2025. REUTERS/Phil Noble      TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
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Nigel Farage with the new Runcorn and Helsby MP Sarah Pochin. Pic: Reuters

The Lib Dems won Shropshire from the Tories, as well as Cambridgeshire and Oxfordshire – both of which had no overall control before.

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The Conservatives had one win, with Paul Bristow being voted in as Cambridgeshire and Peterborough mayor, previously held by Labour.

Reform’s first major win of the election was the Runcorn and Helsby by-election where Labour lost to Reform by six votes. It was triggered by ex-Labour MP Mike Amesbury resigning after his conviction for punching a constituent.

Sir Keir Starmer said he “gets” why his party suffered defeat there and the results show “we must deliver that change ever more quickly, we must go even further”.

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Tories suffer heavy defeats

Addressing the Conservatives’ abysmal results, Ms Badenoch said: “Other parties may be winning now, but we are going to show that we can deliver and that we are on course and recovering.

“But they [the public] are still not yet ready to trust us,” she added.

“We have a big job to do to rebuild trust with the public.

“That’s the job that the Conservative Party has given me, and I’m going to make sure that we get ourselves back to the place where we are seen as being a credible alternative to Labour.”

Read more:
Reform’s political earthquake is now shaking our political system

Reform wins two new mayoral contests

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Farage: ‘This is Reform-quake’

Ms Badenoch said Labour’s election results showed Sir Keir Starmer “is on course to be a one-term prime minister”.

However, when asked if she would still be leader at the next general election, Ms Badenoch dodged the question and said: “I’m not playing all these questions that the media loves to ask about my future.

“This is not about me.”

She insisted she was the right person to lead the Conservatives, as she was chosen by the party’s members.

“I told them it wouldn’t be easy, I told them it would require a renewal and rebuilding of our party,” she said.

“That doesn’t happen in six months. I’m trying to do something that no one has ever done before, which is take their party from such a historic defeat back into government in one term.”

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Can Nigel Farage and Reform prove themselves?

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Can Nigel Farage and Reform prove themselves?

👉 Click here to listen to Electoral Dysfunction on your podcast app 👈

Beth Rigby, Harriet Harman and Ruth Davidson assemble for an elections debrief.

Beth’s been following a very happy Nigel Farage after Reform gained an MP in Runcorn, took the Greater Lincolnshire mayoralty and seized control of several councils.

But, how does the party promising change in its very name prove itself with greater power and responsibility?

They also discuss how Sir Keir Starmer reacts to Labour’s losses (Harriet says he needs to deliver on what he’s promised).

And what Kemi Badenoch has to do after a terrible set of results for the Conservatives (Ruth reckons it’ll be worse for the 2026 set of elections).

Come and join us live on Tuesday 20 May at Cadogan Hall in London, tickets available now: https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/electoral-dysfunction-live/

Remember you can also watch us on YouTube!

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