RAAC concrete: Rishi Sunak supports Gillian Keegan’s handling of crisis despite criticism from Whitehall
Rishi Sunak has backed Gillian Keegan’s handling of the schools concrete crisis after she was accused of opening up a “Pandora’s box” by taking unilateral decisions on the issue.
The prime minister said the Department for Education (DfE) had acted “exactly correctly” upon learning that more than a hundred schools were affected by the presence of collapse-prone reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
In total 147 schools have been identified as containing RAAC after the government responded to demands from the Opposition to publish the full list.
The start of term has been delayed at 19 schools – responsible for 11,150 pupils – while four schools with a total of 2,938 pupils have also had to return to remote learning, with the rest having to resort to a mix of remote learning and face-to-face tuition.
Speaking to reporters while on a trip to the G20 summit in Delhi, Mr Sunak said the action taken by the government “will ensure the safety of children and these buildings”.
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“We’re providing lots of support to schools so that we can mitigate these things as quickly as possible, minimise the disruption of children’s education,” he said.
“But the professional advice from the independent bodies on RAAC remains as it is. Departments individually will follow that advice as it relates to their particular estate.”
Mr Sunak’s defence comes after Sky News revealed that Ms Keegan had come under fire from colleagues for her “unilateral” decision to determine which school buildings needed to close following RAAC concerns.
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Keegan didn’t consult on closing schools
Ministers in Whitehall fear she has opened a “Pandora’s box” by setting a more cautious than necessary standard that could affect a huge array of public buildings, including housing stock, local authority buildings and the military estate.
The education secretary has made clear she took the most cautious of the options presented by officials over which buildings to shut last week.
Sky News understands that the decision was signed off by the education team in Number 10 with the prime minister’s knowledge.
However, there was no Cabinet Office meeting and no ministerial follow-up for days after the issue emerged. The Department for Education “belatedly” shared the technical advice on why they shut schools with others in Whitehall – some of whom disagree it shows a need to shut schools.
Sky News understands she “informed” the relevant Whitehall committees, which have been dealing with the issue of crumbling concrete for years. However, she did not fully consult or secure an agreement for her move.
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Keegan caught swearing on camera
“This is suboptimal,” said a senior Whitehall figure. “She has made a unilateral decision. It’s not been resolved, and it’s a bit of a mess.”
The unravelling of the RAAC crisis coincided with parliament returning from the summer recess – creating a fresh headache for Mr Sunak.
At Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, Sir Keir Starmer said cowboys were “running the country” as he criticised the Tories over the crisis unfolding in England’s schools.
The Labour leader said school closures as a result of unsafe concrete were an “inevitable result of 13 years of cutting corners and sticking plaster politics”.
The government has faced criticism for attempting to shift the blame after Ms Keegan bemoaned that she had not been thanked for doing a “f*****g good job” while other people had been “sat on their arses” in a sweary outburst that she later apologised for.
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List of schools in England affected by unsafe concrete published
She later told school leaders to “get off their backsides” and fill out a survey informing ministers of whether their buildings contained RAAC.
Elsewhere, Mr Sunak addressed fears about hospitals that had been built with RAAC, saying the NHS had been looking at the issue “for years” and had a £700m mitigation programme in place.
“We’ve already moved seven hospitals that are particularly affected into the new hospital programme,” he said.
“They will be all sorted by 2030. Each department will have its own particular way of dealing with it and following the technical guidance that is there.
“The chancellor has been very clear that we will provide the funding for schools for these mitigations.”
Politics
UK-US trade deal ‘isn’t worth the paper it’s written on’, says Nobel Prize-winning economist
A Nobel Prize-winning economist has told Sky News the recently announced UK-US trade deal “isn’t worth the paper it’s written on”.
Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump announced the “first-of-a-kind” agreement with a live, televised phone call earlier this week – and the British prime minister hailed the deal as one that will save thousands of jobs in the UK.
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But leading economist Joseph Stiglitz has told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips he “wouldn’t view [the deal] as a great achievement”.
“Any agreement with Trump isn’t worth the paper it’s written on,” he said, pointing out the president signed deals with Canada and Mexico during his first term – only to slap them with hiked tariffs within days of returning to the White House this year.
“I would view it as playing into Trump’s strategy,” he said.
“His strategy is divide and conquer, go after the weakest countries, and sort of put the stronger countries in the back.”
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How good is the UK-US deal?
The scramble to secure a UK-US trade deal was sparked by Mr Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ announcement last month, which saw the president hike import tariffs for multiple countries and subsequently send global markets crashing.
China initially faced tariffs of 34% and when Beijing hit the US with retaliatory rates, a trade war quickly ensued.
The US and China now impose tariffs of above 100% on each other, but representatives from the two countries have this weekend met for high-stakes negotiations.
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Donald Trump, with US vice president JD Vance and Britain’s ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson, announcing the deal. Pic: AP
Sir Keir Starmer dialled in for the deal announcement. Pic: AP
With its response to Mr Trump, Beijing “made it very clear that the US is very dependent on China in so many ways,” Mr Stiglitz said.
“So they’re beginning now to negotiate, but from a position of strength.”
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Asked if he thinks the UK should have focused on its relationship with the EU instead of the US, Mr Stiglitz said: “Very much so.
“My view is that if you had worked with the EU to get a good deal, you could have done better than what you’ve done.
“If it turns out, in the end, when you work it all out, Trump is unhappy, he’ll run. If he’s unhappy, I pray for you.”
Among the terms in the UK-US trade deal are reduced tariffs on British car and steel exports to the US, while the UK has agreed to remove a tariff on ethanol, used to produce beer.
The agreement also opens a new agricultural exchange, with US farmers being given access to the UK for the first time – though UK food standards on imports have not been weakened.
UFC fighter turned Irish political candidate Conor McGregor has endorsed the idea of building a Bitcoin reserve in his country to give more “power back to the people.”
“Crypto in it’s origin was founded to give power back to the people. An Irish Bitcoin strategic reserve will give power to the people’s money,” McGregor wrote to X on May 9.
The former UFC champion said he would discuss his plans in more detail in an upcoming X spaces, prompting responses from some of the Bitcoin industry’s most prominent leaders.
“We need the greatest minds for this BTC Reserve. Message me and lets chat on my space,” McGregor said in response to Bitcoiner and host of The Pomp Podcast, Anthony Pompliano.
One of US President Donald Trump’s crypto advisors, David Bailey, also reached out, to which McGregor responded: “David message me, let’s discuss your ideas!”
McGregor announced his independent candidacy for the Irish presidency in late March 2025, centering his campaign on anti-immigration policies and combating crime.
Ireland’s next presidential election must take place by Nov. 11, 2025, as the term of the current President, Michael D. Higgins, is set to end the day after.
Establishing a Bitcoin reserve — let alone one coming from a minor, independent party — would be no easy feat.
Despite recent regulatory progress, the US, El Salvador and Bhutan are among the few countries that have established a Bitcoin reserve to date.
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McGregor’s political visibility was recently boosted by a trip to the White House, where he met Trump and received his support.
However, McGregor is facing intense scrutiny in Ireland, having recently been found guilty of sexual assault in a civil case — a conviction which he has since appealed — while also previously being investigated for hate speech crimes.
McGregor’s last crypto endeavor failed
McGregor’s push for a Bitcoin reserve comes a little over a month after the McGregor-backed REAL project failed to attract sufficient funding in its token launch pre-sale, prompting a full refund to all token bidders.
The team behind the project, Real World Gaming, only raised $392,315 over a 28-hour presale on April 5 and 6, less than half of the $1 million minimum requirement that it initially set.
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Sir Keir Starmer has joined other European leaders in Kyiv to press Russia to agree an unconditional 30-day ceasefire.
The prime minister is attending the summit alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, recently-elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
It is the first time the leaders of the four countries have travelled to Ukraine at the same time – arriving in the capital by train – with their meeting hosted by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz travelling in the saloon car of a special train to Kyiv. Pic: Reuters
Leaders arrive in Kyiv by train. Pic: PA
It comes after Donald Trump called for “ideally” a 30-day ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow, and warned that if any pause in the fighting is not respected “the US and its partners will impose further sanctions”.
Security and defence analyst Michael Clarke told Sky News presenter Samantha Washington the European leaders are “rowing in behind” the US president, who referred to his “European allies” for the first time in this context in a post on his Truth Social platform.
“So this meeting is all about heaping pressure on the Russians to go along with the American proposal,” he said.
“It’s the closest the Europeans and the US have been for about three months on this issue.”
Sir Keir Starmer, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Emmanuel Macron among world leaders in Kyiv. Pic: AP
Trump calls for ceasefire. Pic: Truth Social
Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine and its allies are ready for a “full, unconditional ceasefire” for at least 30 days starting on Monday.
Ahead of the meeting on Saturday, Sir Keir, Mr Macron, Mr Tusk and Mr Merz released a joint statement.
European leaders show solidarity – but await Trump’s backing
The hope is Russia’s unilateral ceasefire, such as it’s worth, can be extended for a month to give peace a chance.
But ahead of the meeting, Ukrainian sources told Sky News they are still waiting for President Donald Trump to put his full weight behind the idea.
The US leader has said a 30-day ceasefire would be ideal, but has shown no willingness yet for putting pressure on Russian president Vladimir Putin to agree.
The Russians say a ceasefire can only come after a peace deal can be reached.
European allies are still putting their hopes in a negotiated end to the war despite Moscow’s intransigence and President Trump’s apparent one-sided approach favouring Russia.
Ukrainians would prefer to be given enough economic and military support to secure victory.
But in over three years, despite its massive economic superiority to Russia and its access to more advanced military technology, Europe has not found the political will to give Kyiv the means to win.
Until they do, Vladimir Putin may decide it is still worth pursuing this war despite its massive cost in men and materiel on both sides.
“We reiterate our backing for President Trump’s calls for a peace deal and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to secure an enduring peace,” they said.
“Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.”
Sir Keir and Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a meeting in March. Pic: AP
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Putin’s Victory Day parade explained
The leaders said they were “ready to support peace talks as soon as possible”.
But they warned that they would continue to “ratchet up pressure on Russia’s war machine” until Moscow agrees to a lasting ceasefire.
“We are clear the bloodshed must end, Russia must stop its illegal invasion, and Ukraine must be able to prosper as a safe, secure and sovereign nation within its internationally recognised borders for generations to come,” their statement added.
“We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine.”
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The European leaders are set to visit the Maidan, a central square in Ukraine’s capital where flags represent those who died in the war.
They are also expected to host a virtual meeting for other leaders in the “coalition of the willing” to update them on progress towards a peacekeeping force.
Military officers from around 30 countries have been involved in drawing up plans for a coalition, which would provide a peacekeeping force in the event of a ceasefire being agreed between Russia and Ukraine.
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This force “would help regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces after any peace deal and strengthen confidence in any future peace”, according to Number 10.
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