Rishi Sunak has ‘full confidence’ in Suella Braverman after controversial Times article, Number 10 says

Published

2 years ago

November 9, 2023

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Rishi Sunak has “full confidence” in his home secretary, Suella Braverman, despite her controversial article about pro-Palestinian marches.

Number 10 said it would “update further” after looking into the “details” surrounding the home secretary’s article in The Time, but insisted Mr Sunak still had “full confidence” in her.

In her piece for the newspaper, Ms Braverman accused the police of “playing favourites” with how it handles controversial protests by showing a more lenient attitude to left-wing protesters than their right-wing counterparts.

She also ramped up her attacks on those attending pro-Palestinian demonstrations, likening them to those in Northern Ireland – comments that were branded “wholly offensive” and “ignorant” by one former Tory cabinet minister.

Mr Sunak is under pressure to sack Ms Braverman over her remarks, which critics believe were aimed at undermining the operational independence of and public confidence in the police.

Politics latest: Tory MP claims Braverman ‘on mission to get herself sacked’

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer labelled her “divisive” and accused her of “stoking up tension” but claimed the prime minister was “too weak to say anything about it”.

Sir Keir said the home secretary is “undermining the police as they go into a very difficult set of operational decisions”.

He added: “She is doing the complete opposite of what I think most people in this country would see as the proper role of the home secretary.”

Downing Street has now admitted it did not clear Ms Braverman’s article for publication.

It is understood the article was sent to Number 10 for approval. When Downing Street suggested changes to the home secretary, they were not made before the piece was published.

“The content was not agreed by Number 10,” a spokesman for the prime minister confirmed to reporters.

He also would not say whether Mr Sunak agreed with the language used by his home secretary.

“The prime minister continues to believe that the police will operate without fear or favour,” they added.

In The Times op-ed, the home secretary once again described pro-Palestinian protesters as “hate marchers” and added: “I do not believe that these marches are merely a cry for help for Gaza.

“They are an assertion of primacy by certain groups – particularly Islamists – of the kind we are more used to seeing in Northern Ireland.

“Also, disturbingly reminiscent of Ulster are the reports that some of Saturday’s march group organisers have links to terrorist groups, including Hamas.”

In a rebuke to the Metropolitan Police, which is allowing a pro-Palestinian march to go ahead on Armistice Day, Ms Braverman also wrote: “Unfortunately, there is a perception that senior police officers play favourites when it comes to protesters.

“During COVID why was it that lockdown objectors were given no quarter by public order police yet Black Lives Matter demonstrators were enabled, allowed to break rules and even greeted with officers taking the knee?

“Right-wing and nationalist protesters who engage in aggression are rightly met with a stern response yet pro-Palestinian mobs displaying almost identical behaviour are largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law?”

Meanwhile, one former Tory cabinet minister told Sky’s political editor Beth Rigby that Ms Braverman’s comments were “wholly offensive and ignorant of where people in Northern Ireland stand on the issues of Israel and Gaza”.

“It would be good to know what she knows about what Northern Ireland people think about the current Israel-Palestine situation before she casts aspersions,” they said.

In response, the Met Police said they would “not be commenting at this time”.

Earlier this week its commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, confirmed that the demonstration on Saturday would go ahead because the “legal threshold” to stop it on security grounds “had not been met”.

Labour was joined by the Liberal Democrats in calling on Mr Sunak to sack Ms Braverman, with party leader Sir Ed Davey accusing Ms Braverman of “putting police officers in harm’s way”.

“The home secretary’s irresponsible words and foul actions have significantly increased the likelihood of unrest this weekend and the risk of violence towards officers,” he said.

Politics

MP Zarah Sultana who was ousted from Labour announces she is starting new political party with Jeremy Corbyn

Published

3 hours ago

July 3, 2025

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MP Zarah Sultana who was ousted from Labour announces she is starting new political party with Jeremy Corbyn

An MP who was ousted from the Labour Party has announced she is setting up a new political party with Jeremy Corbyn.

Independent MP Zarah Sultana said she and the former Labour leader will co-lead the new party, which she did not provide a name for.

She said other independent MPs, campaigners and activists from across the country will join them, but did not name anyone.

Politics latest: Zarah Sultana’s stinging resignation letter

Ms Sultana also said she was “resigning” from the Labour Party after 14 years.

She was suspended as a Labour MP shortly after they came to power last summer for voting against the government maintaining the two-child benefit cap.

Several others from the left of the party, including Mr Corbyn, were also suspended for voting against the government, and also remained as independent MPs.

However, Ms Sultana was still a member of the Labour Party – until now.

Mr Corbyn has previously said the independent MPs who were suspended from Labour would “come together” to provide an “alternative.

The other four are: Iqbal Mohamed, Shockat Adam, Ayoub Khan and Adnan Hussain.

Mr Corbyn and the other four independents have not said if they are part of the new party Ms Sultana announced.

In her announcement, Ms Sultana said she would vote to abolish the two-child benefit cap again and also voted against scrapping the winter fuel payment for most pensioners.

Ms Sultana also voted against the government’s welfare bill this week, which was heavily watered down as Sir Keir Starmer tried to prevent a major rebellion from his own MPs.

On Wednesday, Ms Sultana spoke passionately against Palestine Action being proscribed as a terror organisation – but MPs eventually voted for it to be.

She said to proscribe it is “a deliberate distortion of the law to chill dissent, criminalise solidarity and suppress the truth”.

Ms Sultana said they were founding the new party because “Westminster is broken but the real crisis is deeper – just 50 families now own more wealth than half the UK population”.

She called Reform leader Nigel Farage “a billionaire-backed grifter” leading the polls “because Labour has completely failed to improve people’s lives.

The MP, who has spoken passionately about Gaza, added: “Across the political establishment, from Farage to Starmer, they smear people of conscience trying to stop a genocide in Gaza as terrorists.

“But the truth is clear: this government is an active participant in genocide. And the British people oppose it.

“We are not going to take this anymore.”

A Labour Party spokesperson said: “In just 12 months, this Labour government has boosted wages, delivered an extra four million NHS appointments, opened 750 free breakfast clubs, secured three trade deals and four interest rate cuts lowering mortgage payments for millions.

“Only Labour can deliver the change needed to renew Britain.”