Rishi Sunak has essentially told Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley that if there’s violence at the pro-Palestine march in London on Saturday, it’s his fault.
But it’s a petulant response to Sir Mark’s defiance in the face of the enormous pressure from the PM and other ministers for the Armistice Day march to be banned.
Picking a fight with the UK’s top cop is probably not the most sensible move for a prime minister or home secretary – especially for a Conservative.
Remember the Tories’ claim to be the party of law and order?
Politics live: Johnson’s team ‘brutal and useless’, inquiry hears
The only targets for attack that might have been more unwise would be the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Pope, Harry Kane, David Beckham or a national treasure like Joanna Lumley.
Having said that, former England football manager Glenn Hoddle still claims Tony Blair hounded him out in 1999 after he said the disabled were being punished for sins committed in a previous life.
But once Suella Braverman had made her incendiary “hate marches” attack on pro-ceasefire protesters last week, the battlelines were drawn and the Tories declared war on Sir Mark.
The climax in this power struggle came when Mr Sunak summoned the commissioner to Downing Street on Wednesday in the hope – no doubt – of persuading him to back down and veto the march.
But he failed. Sir Mark stood his ground, and the PM – along with his fiercely combative home secretary – were forced into an embarrassing retreat.
The march goes ahead, and Mr Sunak has been outmanoeuvred.
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Braverman criticises protests
Stepping back from the current dispute for a moment, what Met commissioner is going to admit to a prime minister that he or she can’t police a big demo – however large – and protect the public?
Supporters of the demands for a ceasefire have argued that – despite some of the offensive slogans and allegations of intimidation – there are more arrests at Premier League football matches than these marches.
That’s highly debatable. But the organisers of the Armistice Day march did help Sir Mark’s defiant stand by pledging to stay away from the Cenotaph in Whitehall and wait nearly two hours until after the two-minute silence before they begin.
Even before the Downing Street showdown, Mr Sunak appeared to concede that he was losing the battle with Sir Mark.
“This is a decision that the Metropolitan Police commissioner has made,” said the PM.
“He has said that he can ensure that we safeguard remembrance for the country this weekend as well as keep the public safe.”
Then the prime minister declared: “Now, my job is to hold him accountable for that.”
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Met Police chief ‘accountable’ over protest
That sounded very much like a threat. And no doubt if there is serious violence on Saturday, Mr Sunak – and his controversial home secretary – will gloat: “Told you so!”
In a tetchy statement admitting defeat after the Downing Street meeting, Mr Sunak talked rather sheepishly about the freedom of the right to protest peacefully.
Yet at the same time, he repeated his claim that the protest was disrespectful and offensive to the memory of Britain’s war heroes.
And then, in a bizarre comment, he said the commissioner had committed to keep the Met’s “posture” under constant review based on the latest intelligence about the nature of the protests.
Posture? That’s a loaded word. Was Mr Sunak suggesting Sir Mark had been posturing in his stand-off with the government?
Despite all his talk about policing of the march being an operational matter for the Met, if the PM is indeed guilty of misjudgement in his strategy, who is to blame?
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‘We can’t enforce taste or decency’
Many MPs will point the figure at his inflammatory home secretary, accused by Sir Keir Starmer in the King’s Speech debate this week of pursuing a “divisive brand of politics … as a platform for her own ambitions”.
That was after Ms Braverman’s “lifestyle choice” slur on the homeless sleeping in tents in town centres, which came just days after her “hate marches” attack.
Plenty of Tory MPs want Mr Sunak to sack his home secretary. Some even believe she’s goading him into sack her so she can launch a Tory leadership bid.
Whatever her motives, if she’s responsible for Mr Sunak’s ill-judged attacks on Sir Mark and his force, she’s done the PM no favours.
The Met chief will obviously be desperately hoping there isn’t serious trouble at Saturday’s march. Because he knows Mr Sunak – and Ms Braverman – will blame him and say it’s his fault.
Rory McIlroy has completed a career Grand Slam in golf with his win at the US Masters tournament.
The Masters was the last major tournament left for McIlroy to complete the modern golf Grand Slam – a feat only five others have managed before him.
McIlroy, who was making his 11th attempt at completing the Grand Slam, faced off Justin Rose in a sudden-death playoff to decide the Masters champion, after they finished tied on 11 under at the end of regulation on Sunday.
McIlroy reacts as he wins. Pic: AP
McIlroy reacts after winning against Justin Rose at the Masters. Pic: AP
“It’s my 17th time here and I started to wonder if it would ever be my time,” McIlroy said just before slipping on the Green Jacket during the presentation ceremony.
“I’m just absolutely honoured and thrilled and just so proud to be able to call myself a Masters champion.”
McIlroy had missed his six-foot putt for par, a bogey which dropped him back to 11 under, where he joined Rose – leading to a dramatic play-off between the two.
Only five other golfers have been able to complete a career Grand Slam, including Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen.
Pic: AP
McIlroy is a two-time winner of the PGA Championship, claiming the prize in 2012 and 2014.
The 35-year-old also won his first major title, the US Open, in 2011, and won The Open Championship in 2014.
How did McIlroy get to the victory?
McIlroy recovered from losing his overnight two-shot advantage with an opening-hole double bogey to initially take control at Augusta National, only to blow a four-shot lead over his closing six holes.
The world No 2 bogeyed the last to close a one-over 73 and slip back to 11 under alongside Rose, who overturned a seven-stroke deficit and posted a stunning final-round 66 to force a play-off.
The players returned to the 18th for the play-off, where McIlroy made amends for his 72nd-hole blunder by firing a stunning approach to within three feet of the pin and making the birdie putt required for a life-changing win.
UK
Race to keep British Steel furnaces running with last-minute efforts to secure raw materials under way
Last-minute efforts to keep British Steel operating are to be carried out today, as the plant races to secure a supply of raw materials.
The Department for Business and Trade said officials are working to secure supplies of materials, including coking coal, to keep British Steel operational, as well as to ensure all staff will be paid.
It added that setting up new supply chains was “crucial” as a fall in blast furnace temperature could risk “irreparable damage to the site, with the steel setting and scarring the machinery”.
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British Steel: What happens next?
Companies including Tata – which ran the now-closed Port Talbot steelworks – and Rainham Steel have offered managerial support and materials to keep the Lincolnshire site running.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said in a statement that “when I said steelmaking has a future in the UK, I meant it”.
“Steel is vital for our national security and our ambitious plans for the housing, infrastructure and manufacturing sectors in the UK,” he added.
“We will set out a long-term plan to co-invest with the private sector to ensure steel in the UK has a bright and sustainable future.”
Unions said Jingye decided to cancel orders of key materials for the steelworks
Earlier this month, unions said the steelwork’s owner, Chinese company Jingye, decided to cancel future orders for the iron ore, coal and other raw materials needed to keep the furnaces running.
It meant the Scunthorpe plant had been on course to close down by May, bit it sparked urgent calls for government intervention.
Emergency legislation was passed on Saturday bringing the steelworks into effective government control, and officials were on site as soon as the new legislation came into force.
However, the business secretary has warned that does not mean the plant is guaranteed to survive.
Appearing on Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Mr Reynolds also said he would not bring a Chinese company into the “sensitive” steel sector again.
“I don’t know… the Boris Johnson government when they did this, what exactly the situation was,” he added. “But I think it’s a sensitive area.”
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‘I wouldn’t bring a Chinese company into our steel sector’
Jingye stepped in with a deal to buy British Steel’s Scunthorpe plant out of insolvency in 2020, when Mr Johnson was prime minister.
The minister added that while The Steel Industry (Special Measures) Bill stops short of the full nationalisation of British Steel, “to be frank, as I said to parliament yesterday, it is perhaps at this stage the likely option”.
The Conservatives accused the government of acting “too late” and implementing a “botched nationalisation” after ignoring warnings about the risk to the steelworks.
Read more:
A sticking plaster, not a solution: What next for British Steel?
How Trump, China and Reform all played their part
Shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith said: “The Labour Government have landed themselves in a steel crisis entirely of their own making.
“They’ve made poor decisions and let the unions dictate their actions.”
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