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The Labour Party has withdrawn support for its candidate in the Rochdale by-election after “new information” emerged about comments he is alleged to have made.

It is understood that Azhar Ali has also been suspended from the party pending an investigation.

A Labour Party spokesperson said: “Following new information about further comments made by Azhar Ali coming to light today, the Labour Party has withdrawn its support for Azhar Ali as our candidate in the Rochdale by-election.

“Keir Starmer has changed Labour so that it is unrecognisible from the party of 2019.

“We understand that these are highly unusual circumstances but it is vital that any candidate put forward by Labour fully represents its aims and values.

“Given that nominations have now closed Azhar Ali cannot be replaced as the candidate.”

Politics latest: Labour withdraws support for Rochdale candidate

Mr Ali’s candidacy had been thrown in the spotlight after the Mail on Sunday reported he had told a meeting of the Lancashire Labour Party that Israel deliberately allowed the Hamas atrocity to take place in order to give it the “green light” to invade Gaza.

Mr Ali had earlier issued an “unreserved” apology for the “deeply offensive, ignorant and false” comments.

Later on Monday evening, the Daily Mail reported the new comments in question, in which Mr Ali is alleged to have blamed “people in the media from certain Jewish quarters” for fuelling criticism of a pro-Palestinian Labour MP as well as claiming that Israel planned to “get rid of [Palestinians] from Gaza” and “grab” some of the land.

Sky News has approached Mr Ali and the Labour Party for comment.

Speaking to reporters after the decision to withdraw support was made, Labour’s national campaign co-ordinator, Pat McFadden, said Sir Keir had taken the “tough but necessary” decision.

“When Keir Starmer became leader of the Labour Party, he said he would change the Labour Party and expect that every candidate and MP would operate to the highest standards,” he said.

“And although it is a difficult decision, today, he’s put those words into action. And unfortunately we’ve had to take this difficult decision.”

Asked what had changed in the last 24 hours since he himself defended Labour continuing to support Mr Ali, the senior MP said: “More comments have come to light which meant we had to look at this situation again.

“Once we saw those comments, Keir Starmer took [the] swift decision, took the tough but necessary action to withdraw support for Mr Ali’s candidacy.”

Starmer’s worst crisis as leader


Jon Craig - Chief political correspondent

Jon Craig

Chief political correspondent

@joncraig

The sacking of Azhar Ali as Labour’s candidate in the Rochdale by-election is the biggest disaster for Sir Keir Starmer in nearly four years as Labour leader.

There will now be an almighty inquest into how a candidate who had made such comments about Israel and Gaza was selected for such a high-profile by-election.

Defending Rochdale was never going to be easy for Labour. Sir Tony Lloyd’s majority at the 2019 general election was 9,668, with the Conservatives in second place.

But the challenge from firebrand left-winger George Galloway and the constituency’s former Labour MP Simon Danczuk standing for Reform UK already presented difficulties.

But now Labour goes into the by-election on 29 February, with no candidate, even though Mr Ali’s name will still be on the ballot paper, right at the top of the list in alphabetical order.

Read analysis in full here

However, Mr McFadden would not say what this “new information” was, adding: “This was a difficult decision, but it’s the right thing to do.”

Mr McFadden also rejected suggestions Labour had let the Jewish community down, saying Sir Keir’s decision was testimony to his pledge to “root antisemitism out of the Labour Party”.

“Tonight the decision he has taken is evidence that he is sticking by that, no matter what the circumstances,” he added.

Today Sky News reported that Labour had received an official complaint from the campaign group Labour Against Antisemitism (LAAS), which branded the remarks “antisemitic”.

LAAS, a campaign group founded by Labour members to combat antisemitism within the party, earlier today called for Mr Ali’s immediate suspension as a candidate and party member.

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McFadden on support being withdrawn for Ali

Alex Hearn, who is a director of the campaign group and member of the Labour Party, submitted a formal complaint against Mr Ali this afternoon in which he wrote: “The accusation that Jews plotted a massacre of innocent people for their own bloodthirsty gain is antisemitic.”

Although Labour has withdrawn its support for Mr Ali, it is understood he will still appear on the ballot paper in the by-election as the party’s candidate.

Read more:
Israel should ‘stop and think’ on Rafah offensive, says Cameron

Labour candidate ‘fell for online conspiracy theory’

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak immediately seized on the developments in Rochdale to further his accusation that Sir Keir had “no principles at all”.

“Keir Starmer has been running around for the last year trying to tell everybody ‘OK, Labour Party’s changed’,” he said.

“Well, look what just happened in Rochdale, a candidate saying the most vile conspiracy theories, antisemitic, and what happened?

“He’s stood by and sent cabinet ministers to support him, until literally five minutes before I walked on tonight, under enormous media pressure, has decided to change his mind on principle. No principles at all.

“So no the Labour Party hasn’t changed. It’s a con.”

Grant Shapps, the Conservative defence secretary who is Jewish, questioned why Labour had not acted sooner, writing on X: “A real shame that communities have had to once again endure prolonged Labour support for someone spewing antisemitism and conspiracy theories.

“This should have been dealt with immediately.”

The Jewish Labour Movement statement said the party was “right to cease campaigning” for Mr Ali.

“As he cannot be removed from the ballot, we believe it is correct that he will not sit as a Labour MP if elected.”

See below the full list of candidates and the political parties they represent:

Azhar Ali, (listed as Labour Party, but now removed as their candidate)
Mark Coleman, Independent
Simon Danczuk, Reform UK
Iain Donaldson, Liberal Democrats
Paul Ellison, The Conservative Party Candidate
George Galloway, Workers’ Party of Britain
Michael Howarth, Independent
William Howarth, Independent
Guy Otten, Green Party
Ravin Subortna, The Official Monster Raving Loony Party
David Tully, Independent

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Senior King aide was head of royal protection when Prince Andrew ‘asked officer to dig up dirt on accuser’

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Senior King aide was head of royal protection when Prince Andrew 'asked officer to dig up dirt on accuser'

A current senior member of the King’s household was the head of royal protection at the time Prince Andrew allegedly asked one of his police officers to dig up dirt on Virginia Guiffre, Sky News has discovered.

Lord Peter Rosslyn, who is now Lord Steward and Personal Secretary to the King and Queen, was head of Royalty and Diplomatic Protection between 2003-2014.

It is not clear if Lord Rosslyn – known at the time as Commander Peter Loughborough – was made aware of Prince Andrew’s request. However, it reportedly happened in 2011 when it’s claimed Andrew wrote in an email that he passed the date of birth and confidential social security number of his accuser, Virginia Guiffre, to one of his close protection team to find out information about her.

Lord Peter Rosslyn arriving at the Duchess of Kent's funeral. Pic: PA
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Lord Peter Rosslyn arriving at the Duchess of Kent’s funeral. Pic: PA

At the weekend, the Metropolitan Police said it was “actively looking into the claims made”.

Sky News approached Lord Rosslyn for comment, which was passed to Buckingham Palace.

A palace spokesperson said: “As you may or may not be aware, Lord Rosslyn works for The Royal Household and thus this issue has been referred to me. However, since this matter relates to his time in service with the Metropolitan Police, they would be the appropriate body to approach with media enquiries of this nature.”

The Met Police had nothing further to add.

Police sources have told Sky News the officer (CPO) involved would have been expected to escalate this request from Andrew to his superiors.

While there may have been other members of senior staff between the CPO and Lord Rosslyn, the request should have been considered serious enough to be referred to the top of the Royalty and Diplomatic Service.

Those with knowledge of the royal household tell us Lord Rosslyn is one of the King’s closest and most trusted members of staff.

His role as Lord Steward involves managing all aspects of the King’s personal affairs, and the non-state business of the monarch.

Who is Lord Peter Rosslyn?

As well as being much respected by Queen Elizabeth II, and affectionately known as her “favourite policeman”, in 2014 Lord Rosslyn was appointed as Master of the Household of the then Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall at Clarence House.

In February 2003, he was made Lord Steward by the King, thereby becoming the “first dignitary of the King’s court” – a sign that the monarch wanted to keep him around.

While Andrew’s alleged attempts to smear Virginia Guiffre would have been morally wrong, he also would have been asking his police officer to put his career on the line.

Any attempt to use police databases to find information on an innocent individual not connected to a crime would have been a sackable offence, and unlawful.

In his statement on Friday, Prince Andrew again stressed that he vehemently denies the allegations against him.

A Buckingham Palace source told Sky News that the recent claims that have emerged are being viewed by the Royal Family with “very serious and grave concern” and “should be examined in the proper and fullest ways”.

Prince Andrew's signature
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Prince Andrew’s signature

Andrew should give evidence to US authorities – minister

The revelation comes as a government minister said Andrew should give evidence to US authorities – and anger grows after it emerged he had been paying “peppercorn rent” for two decades.

On Friday, Andrew announced he was giving up his royal titles, including the Duke of York, after new, damaging reports about his relationship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Passages from the memoir released on Tuesday of the late Virginia Giuffre, who accused Prince Andrew of sexually assaulting her, provide further details of their alleged encounters.

Prince Andrew has always strenuously denied the allegations.

Business Secretary Peter Kyle said on Tuesday he would “support” Prince Andrew giving evidence to US prosecutors.

He added he would also support any decision by the Met Police to investigate allegations that Prince Andrew used a Met bodyguard to gain information on Giuffre.

It comes as anger continues to grow over Prince Andrew’s housing arrangements.

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‘Victims should be in driver’s seat’

‘Peppercorn rent’

The royal has only paid “peppercorn rent” for more than two decades at his Windsor mansion, according to a National Audit Office report published in 2005.

“Peppercorn rent” is a legal term used in leases to show that rent technically exists, so the lease is valid, but it’s nominal, often literally £1 a year or just a symbolic amount.

In practice, it means the tenant pays no rent.

It also shows he was required to pay a further £7.5m for refurbishments.

A document from the Crown Estate also shows he signed a 75-year lease on the property in 2003.

It reveals he paid £1m for the lease and that since then he has paid “one peppercorn” of rent “if demanded” per year.

Read More:
Pressure grows on Andrew to be stripped of dukedom
Key claims from Andrew accuser’s posthumous memoir

The agreement also contains a clause which states the Crown Estate would have to pay Andrew around £558,000 if he gave up the lease.

Pressure is mounting on him to give up the 30-bedroom mansion.

Senior Tory Robert Jenrick called for Prince Andrew to live privately.

‘He has disgraced himself’

He said: “It’s about time Prince Andrew took himself off to live in private and make his own way in life.

“He has disgraced himself, he has embarrassed the royal family time and again. I don’t see why the taxpayer, frankly, should continue to foot the bill at all. The public are sick of him.”

Virginia Giuffre's posthumous memoir was released today. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir was released today. Pic: Reuters

Mr Kyle, however, said that would be a question for King Charles.

But he did say MPs could bring forward a motion to strip Prince Andrew of his remaining titles, adding it would be up to Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to choose one of these motions for debate.

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Bank tax could hurt households and business lending, UK’s biggest mortgage provider says

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Bank tax could hurt households and business lending, UK's biggest mortgage provider says

The chief executive of Lloyds Banking Group has warned that a tax raid on the banks could harm lending to households and businesses.

In an exclusive interview with Sky News at the government’s regional investment summit, Charlie Nunn urged the chancellor to ignore calls for a windfall tax on commercial banks even though the sector is enjoying record profits.

“If we are going to have the ability and the confidence to continue to lend into the real economy, to help households and businesses invest, we need to make sure that the financial services system and Lloyds Banking Group really remains healthy in that context,” he said.

Money latest: Which country pays the most for a pint?

Charlie Nunn was appointed Lloyds boss in November 2020. Pic: PA
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Charlie Nunn was appointed Lloyds boss in November 2020. Pic: PA

Britain’s four largest banks – HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group and NatWest – posted record profits of £45.9bn last year and are on course for another bumper performance this year, thanks to higher interest rates.

Their financial success has raised speculation that the sector could be in the chancellor’s firing line at next month’s budget.

More on Banking

Rachel Reeves could raise the bank surcharge – a levy on bank profits in addition to corporation tax.

The Conservative government cut the levy from 8% to 3% in 2023. Returning it to 8% could raise £2bn for a chancellor who needs to find anywhere up to £50bn to meet her fiscal rules.

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Chancellor faces tough budget choices

Some have suggested a separate windfall tax, which could raise closer to £8bn.

Mr Nunn said such a move risked undermining the health of a sector which underpins the country’s economic prosperity.

“Obviously, taxes are a matter for the government to look at. But it’s definitely one of the factors that impact our ability to support the real economy in the UK,” he said.

A raid on the banks would cause pain to a sector that is already facing substantial costs because of the car finance scandal.

Lloyds, one of the most exposed lenders, has set aside nearly £2bn to cover potential compensation arising from the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) redress scheme.

The FCA established the scheme to draw a line under the long-running mis-selling scandal, in which lenders failed to disclose commission paid to brokers, meaning many customers ended up paying more than they should have for their car finance.

Under the FCA’s scheme, eligible customers – as many as 14.2 million – could receive an average of £700 each.

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Payouts due after motor finance scandal

There is mounting anger within the industry at the way the scheme, which is going out to consultation, has been set up. Mr Nunn said the proposal was too generous to customers and not proportionate to the harms actually caused to customers.

He did not rule out the possibility of a judicial review but, in the first instance, called for a rethink, warning that the current scheme risks scaring away investors, causing an exodus from the market and driving up the cost and availability of credit.

“When you look at the implication of what’s being proposed by the FCA, it’s going to potentially take 20 years of profitability of the car finance industry. And, what does that mean for invest ability in that industry and for other investors and businesses looking to invest in the UK? There’s real concern that this is going to create an invest ability issue,” he said.

“Our concern is will the industry continue to function? Will it support all customers across the whole of the UK that need finance? Will other investors be looking at this and wondering whether the UK is a place they should invest, if retrospectively we can take away 20 years of profits?”

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Anger grows over Prince Andrew’s ‘peppercorn rent’ arrangement as accuser’s memoirs released

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Senior King aide was head of royal protection when Prince Andrew 'asked officer to dig up dirt on accuser'

Prince Andrew should give evidence to US authorities, a government minister has said, as anger grows after it emerged he had been paying “peppercorn rent” for two decades.

On Friday, Prince Andrew announced he was giving up his royal titles, including the Duke of York, after new, damaging reports about his relationship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Passages from the memoir released on Tuesday of the late Virginia Giuffre, who accused Prince Andrew of sexually assaulting her, provide further details of their alleged encounters.

Prince Andrew has always strenuously denied the allegations.

Business Secretary Peter Kyle said on Tuesday he would “support” Prince Andrew giving evidence to US prosecutors.

He added he would also support any decision by the Met Police to investigate allegations that Prince Andrew used a Met bodyguard to gain information on Giuffre.

It comes as anger continues to grow over Prince Andrew’s housing arrangements.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

‘Victims should be in driver’s seat’

‘Peppercorn rent’

The royal has only paid “peppercorn rent” for more than two decades at his Windsor mansion, according to a National Audit Office report published in 2005.

“Peppercorn rent” is a legal term used in leases to show that rent technically exists, so the lease is valid, but it’s nominal, often literally £1 a year or just a symbolic amount.

In practice, it means the tenant pays no rent.

It also shows he was required to pay a further £7.5m for refurbishments.

A document from the Crown Estate also shows he signed a 75-year lease on the property in 2003.

It reveals he paid £1m for the lease and that since then he has paid “one peppercorn” of rent “if demanded” per year.

Read More:
Pressure grows on Andrew to be stripped of dukedom
Key claims from Andrew accuser’s posthumous memoir

The agreement also contains a clause which states the Crown Estate would have to pay Andrew around £558,000 if he gave up the lease.

Pressure is mounting on him to give up the 30-bedroom mansion.

Senior Tory Robert Jenrick called for Prince Andrew to live privately.

‘He has disgraced himself’

He said: “It’s about time Prince Andrew took himself off to live in private and make his own way in life.

“He has disgraced himself, he has embarrassed the royal family time and again. I don’t see why the taxpayer, frankly, should continue to foot the bill at all. The public are sick of him.”

Virginia Giuffre's posthumous memoir was released today. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir was released today. Pic: Reuters

Mr Kyle, however, said that would be a question for King Charles.

But he did say MPs could bring forward a motion to strip Prince Andrew of his remaining titles, adding it would be up to Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to choose one of these motions for debate.

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