Anas Sarwar ‘right’ to distance himself from winter fuel cut, says Ruth Davidson
Anas Sarwar is “right” to distance himself from Sir Keir Starmer over the decision to scrap winter fuel payments for most pensioners, Baroness Davidson has said.
The Scottish Labour leader has promised to go against the national party and reintroduce the universal winter fuel payment for pensioners if elected to Holyrood in 2026.
The Tory peer told Beth Rigby on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast that while it was politically “necessary” for Mr Sarwar to disassociate himself from the Westminster policy, people in Scotland “can see it for what it is”.
“People in Scotland are pretty sophisticated,” she said. “They can see it for what it is.
“They know that 35 Scottish Labour MPs voted to take Granny’s winter fuel allowance away, and then you’ve got the leader of Scottish Labour saying, ‘Don’t listen to my 35 MPs – if in 18 months’ time you give us your vote, we might give some of you that money back’.”
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“He’s right to do it I think politically – but there’s a healthy level of cynicism in the reaction to it.”
Shortly after winning the UK-wide general election, Sir Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced the winter fuel payment would now be means tested.
Instead of every pensioner getting up to £300, only those entitled to certain benefits will get the stipend – thought to be around 1.3 million households, compared to 7.6 million before.
Pic: PA
Ministers have insisted the decision was necessary in order to fill the £22bn “black hole” in the public finances they claim they inherited from the previous Conservative government.
Before this announcement was made, the plan in Scotland – where benefits are devolved – was to replace the payment with a like-for-like scheme.
However, the SNP-run Scottish government has since said it needs to means test the new programme as a consequence of the UK’s policy.
Earlier this week Mr Sarwar said universal payments for pensioners would be introduced if he takes over in two years’ time – although they would eventually be tapered so those with the money to pay do not get subsidised by the taxpayer.
Sir Keir Starmer with Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar. Pic: PA
“A Scottish Labour government will reinstate the winter fuel payment for pensioners in Scotland,” he said.
“The winter fuel payment was supposed to be a devolved benefit this year and there were additional resources available to the Scottish government through the household support fund.
“That meant we could have taken a different approach in Scotland to support more households this year – instead, the SNP decided to hand the power back to the DWP [Department for Work and Pensions].”
He added: “Scottish Labour will take back this devolved power from the DWP, reinstate the winter fuel payment, and deliver a fairer system to ensure that everyone who needs support gets it.”
Baroness Harman, Labour’s former deputy leader, told the podcast that Mr Sarwar’s decision over the winter fuel payments was the “reality of devolution”.
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“Anas Sarwar can say, ‘I’m not going to be under the thumb of the Labour government in Westminster’,” she said.
“This is the reality of devolution. He can say, ‘I will make choices which I think are better for Scotland’… but he’ll have to then work out if he can take it away from the extremely rich people, or if he’s not going to take it away from extremely rich people, how he justifies that.
“I think Keir will be very relaxed about this. He’s very close politically to Anas Sarwar. They’ve worked well together and this is the positive of showing devolution.”
The 19-year-old woman who died after she was attacked by a dog at a flat in Bristol on Wednesday has been named as Morgan Dorsett from Shropshire.
Two people – a man and a woman both aged in their 20s – have been arrested over the attack and have been released on conditional bail.
Initial reports suggested the dog may be an XL bully, but confirming the breed will form part of the police assessment process, according to Avon and Somerset Police.
It was sedated and seized by officers.
An XL bully. File pic: PA
Ms Dorsett’s family thanked the public for their support and those who have left flowers near the scene.
Officers were called to an incident in the Hartcliffe area of Bristol at 7.19pm on Wednesday.
Paramedics and police officers attended but Ms Dorsett died at the scene.
Ms Dorsett. Pic: Avon and Somerset Police
On Thursday, Inspector Terry Murphy said: “Our thoughts, first and foremost, are with the family of the young woman who’s tragically died as a result of yesterday evening’s incident. They have been updated and will be supported by a family liaison officer.
“I’d also like to thank the officers and paramedics who attended yesterday evening and tried to save her life. Support is in place for them.
“A full investigation is now well under way to establish the full circumstances of the events that led to her death.”
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Flowers left near the scene. Pic: PA
A neighbour also paid tribute to Ms Dorsett, saying she “seemed a lovely girl” and had only lived in the property for a few weeks.
“I was up all night awake trying to process this,” the neighbour, who did not want to be named, said.
“I am shocked. I just can’t believe it’s happened and she hasn’t been there that long.”
The neighbour said she had seen the dog on a lead with its owner and was certain it was an XL bully.
“I do feel so sad for the dog owner,” she said.
“She did mention the dog wasn’t great with men, fine with women and children.
“I feel for her so, so much. It wasn’t her fault.”
She added: “I genuinely feel that this was one of those freak accidents and wasn’t her fault – that’s how I feel.”
In February 2024 it became a criminal offence to own the XL bully breed in England and Wales without an exemption certificate.
Anyone owning one of the dogs must have had the animal neutered, microchipped, and kept muzzled and on a lead in public, among other restrictions.
The government move to ban the breed followed a series of attacks on people and other dogs.
UK
Bargain Hunt auctioneer Charles Hanson cleared of coercive control and assault allegations related to his wife
Bargain Hunt auctioneer Charles Hanson has been cleared of coercive control and assault allegations relating to his wife.
The 46-year-old was accused of being violent towards Rebecca Hanson over an eight-year period.
The charges were brought after he was arrested in June 2023.
The TV auctioneer, from Mackworth, Derby, denied controlling or coercive behaviour spanning from 2015 to 2023, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and assault by beating. The two assault charges related to incidents in 2015 and 2023.
During the trial, Hanson claimed his wife had controlled him. He told the court he was “almost a slave” to her, saying she left him “a beaten and broken man” by controlling him and making him subservient towards her.
She had claimed her husband was violent towards her and put her in a headlock in 2012, while she pregnant with a baby she later lost.
Mrs Hanson also alleged her husband repeatedly “grabbed” her, scratched her as she tried to snatch a mobile phone and pushed her twice during a row.
Hanson outside the court with his parents today. Pic: PA
The auctioneer told the court his wife was allowed “to do what she wanted” but had experienced “moments and episodes” including one which saw her claim his legs being crossed amounted to abuse.
Jurors deliberated for around four and a half hours before delivering not guilty verdicts on all charges.
As the verdicts were returned, Hanson smiled at his parents, who were sat in the front row of the public gallery at Derby Crown Court, and gave them a thumbs-up.
After thanking the jurors for their care in considering the case, Judge Martin Hurst told Hanson: “You have been found not guilty. That is the end of the case. You will hear no more about it and you are free to go.”
The TV star’s parents wept and hugged their son after he was discharged from the dock.
Hanson ‘relieved this is all over’
Hanson speaks to media after the verdict. Pic: PA
Speaking to reporters outside the court, Hanson said: “I’m delighted that after a year and a half the truth has finally come out.
“I can finally live my life again. I feel this burden has finally been lifted.”
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“It has been a tormentuous time and all I want now is to readjust to what has been such an ordeal,” he continued. “I am so relieved that this is all over.”
As well as regularly featuring on Bargain Hunt, Hanson has appeared on Flog It! and Antiques Road Trip.
A self-described “monster” who beat a top chef to death near Notting Hill Carnival has been jailed for life.
Omar Wilson repeatedly punched and kicked Mussie Imnetu during an altercation outside a restaurant in Queensway, west London, on 26 August last year.
Wilson, 31, then left the scene to go clubbing.
Mr Imnetu, 41, who worked under star chefs Gordon Ramsay and Marcus Wareing, died in hospital four days later, without regaining consciousness.
Mussie Imnetu. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Sentencing Wilson to a minimum 18 years, Judge Philip Katz said Mr Imnetu’s “brutal” killing was “abhorrent”.
“Mussie and those who loved him are the victims in this case and the impact on them of his murder has been severe,” he said.
“Mussie was defenceless on the ground when you punched and kicked him to death.”
He continued: “You could not control your temper. Only a few seconds after punches were aimed by both of you you tripped Mussie and he fell to the ground and you could have walked away.
“As he knelt you rained further punches down on his head. You could have walked away.
“However, you stood up, raised your leg and kicked him hard to the head. Kicking someone to the head when they are defenceless on the ground is abhorrent.”
CCTV footage of Omar Wilson at a security point after the assault. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Mr Imnetu’s wife, Linda, described her husband as “respected, admired and loved” in a pre-recorded victim impact statement played in court.
“Mussie didn’t just leave behind a legacy for his family, he left an indelible mark on his workplace and community,” she said.
“Nothing can undo what has been taken from us. I ask the court to remember the man Mussie was: his character, his integrity and the life he built; not just the circumstances of his passing.”
An audio recording of Mr Imnetu’s six-year-old son wishing his “daddy” goodbye was also played in court, which the judge called “heart-rending”.
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CCTV footage was played in court during the trial showing Wilson approaching Mr Imnetu and headbutting him.
Around a minute later, Wilson punched Mr Imnetu five times in the head, continued to repeatedly punch him while he was on his hands and knees, and then kicked him in the head.
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Wilson of Napier Road, east London, told the Old Bailey he was acting in self defence, telling jurors: “I just regret that somebody’s life was taken while I was trying to defend mine.”
He claimed Mr Imnetu had a broken bottle – something Judge Katz described as “a deliberate lie”.
The court heard after the attack that Wilson had told an associate he “crossed the line”.
In a message, he said: “There’s a monster in me, man, and it’s just like sometimes it comes out.
“And I think I’ve messed up now, I’ve messed up, everything’s finished.”
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