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People who believe the things posted in a controversial Labour WhatsApp group shouldn’t have been MPs in the first place, according to Harriet Harman.

Speaking on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast, the veteran Labour parliamentarian said the scandal was “very serious” as the public already thinks MPs are “contemptuous of their voters”.

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Ms Harman was a Labour MP for 42 years and now sits in the House of Lords.

The scandal over the “Trigger Me Timbers” WhatsApp group has seen former health minister Andrew Gwynne sacked from the government and suspended from the Labour Party.

Fellow MP Oliver Ryan has also been suspended from the party.

Both men are still MPs.

And 11 councillors in Manchester have also been suspended, including Mr Gwynne’s wife.

Andrew Gwynne, pictured in 2022. Pic: PA
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Andrew Gwynne, pictured in 2022. Pic: PA

Oliver Ryan MP
Pic House of Commons
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Oliver Ryan MP. Pic: House of Commons

Speaking on the podcast, Ms Harman said: “I think it’s very serious. One of the things that people think about MPs is that they talk nicely in public, but actually they’re contemptuous of their voters in private.

“And they say one thing publicly, but they believe something completely different.

“And what this WhatsApp group has shown is exactly that.

“A lot of people have said, ‘oh, how stupid they were to write this down’, but I think it’s much more profound than that.

“I think if you have got racist thoughts, and you have got antisemitic beliefs, and if you’ve got contempt for the people you’re supposed to be representing, you shouldn’t be an MP.

“It’s not that you shouldn’t write it down in a WhatsApp group.

“You shouldn’t be an MP in the first place.”

Read more:
The alleged messages and who sent them
11 councillors suspended over scandal
MP ‘deeply regrets’ comments he made

Andrew Gwynne thumbnail for Electoral Dysfunction
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Health minister Andrew Gwynne was sacked over the ‘Trigger Me Timbers’ WhatsApp group scandal

Ms Harman said that Mr Ryan and Mr Gwynne would not have been selected by their local Labour branch to run as MPs if the contents of the WhatsApp group were known.

She added: “Keir Starmer was absolutely right to not miss a beat, but to say all of these people – they shouldn’t be in the Labour Party.

“And that comes with political risks, because if there are by-elections, those will be very difficult by-elections.”

Former Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson reckons that the likelihood of voluntary by-elections was unlikely.

She told the podcast: “We’re about six months into a parliament.

“There’s four and a half years of collecting a £90,000 plus salary that they can both have, whether they’ve got the Labour whip or not.

“I don’t think they’re going to voluntarily resign and refight their seat.”

She also pointed out that, as both men represent seats in and around Greater Manchester, Sir Keir Starmer and Labour would be competing against Reform more than the Conservative Party, which he will want to avoid as it could give Nigel Farage’s party momentum.

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M4 and M48 closed after human remains found

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M4 and M48 closed after human remains found

Two motorways have been shut after human remains were found on the road. 

Several drivers reported a body on the carriageway between junctions 20 and 21 of the M4 – between Almondsbury and Awkley – at about 6.40pm this evening.

The body is believed to be that of a man in his forties, whose next of kin have been told.

A police investigation to establish how the person came to be on the motorway continues.

Parts of the M4 and M48 motorways near Bristol are likely to remain closed until the early hours of Sunday morning, Avon and Somerset Police said.

In a statement, the force said: “Police are keen to hear from anyone who was travelling along that stretch of the M4 has any relevant information or dashcam footage.”

The road closures were likely to cause significant delays in and out of Wales tonight, with closures starting on the English side of the Prince of Wales Bridge and the Severn Bridge.

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National Highways said the M4 is shut in both directions between junctions 20 and 21, while the M48 eastbound is closed from junction 1 near Aust.

The links from the M5 junction 15 south to the M4 junction 20 west, and the M5 junction 16 north to M4 junction 20 west were also closed.

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Starmer asks US to stand by Ukraine with security guarantee as bad peace deal would be ‘disaster’ for all

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Starmer asks US to stand by Ukraine with security guarantee as bad peace deal would be 'disaster' for all

Sir Keir Starmer has urged Donald Trump to stand by Ukraine with a security guarantee as he warned a bad peace deal would be a “disaster for everyone”.

The prime minister is due to meet the US president for talks in Washington DC next week amid fragile relations between America and Europe after Mr Trump launched a verbal attack on President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The US president called Ukraine’s leader a “dictator” on Wednesday and later said Sir Keir and French President Emmanuel Macron, both of whom will visit the White House in the coming days, “haven’t done anything” to end the war.

Sir Keir Starmer leaves after a meeting in Paris with European leaders on Ukraine on 17 February. Pic: Reuters
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Sir Keir Starmer met with European leaders in Paris on Monday to discuss Ukraine. Pic: Reuters

Sir Keir said a good peace “can only be won through strength” and Ukraine “must have a voice in negotiations about its future”.

And he warned that a “peace deal which does not stop Putin from attacking again would be a disaster for everyone”.

Writing in The Sun on Sunday, he said Kyiv needs strong security guarantees “so the peace will last” and America “must be part of that guarantee”.

This could mean providing air defence and a promise that the US will come to the aid of a NATO country if Russia attacks them, the paper reported.

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So far, talks aimed at ending the war have been taking place between US and Russian delegations in Saudi Arabia, which have not included the Ukrainians.

UK Defence Secretary John Healey has said “any negotiations about Ukraine cannot happen without Ukraine. We all want the fighting to end, but an insecure peace risks more war”.

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Don’t expect Love Actually-style moment from Starmer-Trump meeting

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Will Trump and Starmer have a ‘Love Actually’ moment?

‘Turn the screws’ on Russia

The third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is on Monday.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said he will unveil new sanctions to “turn the screws” on Russia on Monday to coincide with the anniversary.

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Sir Keir also said the UK must increase its defence spending and play a bigger role in NATO.

And he is open to British troops playing a role in any European force in Ukraine after a peace agreement.

He added: “This is not something I say lightly.”

Sir Keir, along with other European allies and UK opposition parties, has backed Mr Zelensky as a “democratically elected leader”.

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Conflicting views over Ukraine deal

Also, Washington has warned that Europe must shoulder more of the cost of its own security.

Sir Keir is expected to use his upcoming trip to the US to confirm a timeline to raise UK defence spending from 2.3% to 2.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) in a bid to ease tensions.

It comes amid pressure from defence chiefs and opposition critics including Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who wrote to the prime minister on Saturday demanding he set out a plan for meeting the target.

:: Education secretary Bridget Phillipson, campaigner for global health and education Sarah Brown, and shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge will be discussing all the latest political stories in the UK and around the world on the Trevor Phillips on Sunday show on Sky News from 8.30am

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Girl, 3, dies after tram and van crash in Manchester city centre

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Girl, 3, dies after tram and van crash in Manchester city centre

A three-year-old girl has died after a collision between a tram and a van in Manchester city centre.

The girl was taken to hospital but died from her injuries, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said.

“No arrests have been made and inquiries are ongoing,” the force said.

The child was a pedestrian and was not travelling in either the tram or van, GMP said.

The fatal collision happened on Mosley Street shortly before 10am, a Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) spokesperson said.

“All of our thoughts are with her family and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time. We are supporting police with their investigation,” a statement said.

A North West Ambulance Service spokesperson said two ambulances, a rapid response vehicle and two air ambulance crews attended the scene.

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TfGM said there was continued disruption across the Metrolink after the incident and advised people to check the Bee Network website and app for the latest travel information.

Manchester‘s Bee Network said: “Due to a road traffic collision on Mosley Street in the city centre, no tram services are operating between St Peter’s Square and Piccadilly Gardens.”

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An X post from GMP’s traffic officers said: “Our officers are currently in attendance at a collision, involving a tram and another vehicle in Manchester city centre.

“We are presently trying to establish the circumstances however we envisage there will be a lengthy closure of surrounding streets near to St Peters Square.”

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