Rishi Sunak latest news: Pensions triple lock will stay, Nadhim Zahawi hints
Zahawi #Zahawi
Nadhim Zahawi has given a clear hint that the Government will maintain the triple lock on state pensions after Downing Street yesterday refused to commit to keeping the pledge.
The new chairman of the Conservative Party said he did not want to “preempt” what will be in the Autumn Statement which is now due to take place on November 17.
But he said: “What I would say to pensioners watching this morning is both the Prime Minister and the Chancellor are very much aware, and I am going to state the obvious here, pensioners are uniquely unable to work to add to their income, improve their income.”
The comments to Sky News will be viewed as a signal that Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt do intend to keep the triple lock in place even if they are not willing to say so publicly until they unveil the Government’s new public spending plan.
No 10 refused to commit to the triple lock yesterday, insisting it is “something that is going to be wrapped up into the fiscal statement”.
The promise to stick to the triple lock, which states that state pensions will rise by the highest of inflation, average earnings or 2.5 per cent, was contained in the 2019 Conservative election manifesto.
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09:01 AM Labour: Home Secretary’s position ‘very fragile’
David Lammy, Labour’s shadow foreign secretary, has claimed Suella Braverman’s position as Home Secretary is “very fragile”.
He told Sky News: “I suspect that Suella Braverman, her position is now looking very, very fragile indeed.”
08:58 AM David Lammy says Suella Braverman should be sacked
David Lammy, Labour’s shadow foreign secretary, said Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, should be sacked.
He told Sky News: “It is clear to me that she should be sacked and there should be a full inquiry into what has gone on.”
Mr Lammy was asked if he agreed with Nadhim Zahawi, the chairman of the Conservative Party, when he said politicians deserve a “second chance” (see the post below at 08.21).
He said: “A Home Secretary making decisions about terrorism isn’t allowed to make mistakes.”
08:48 AM ‘You should not compromise on your identity’
James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary, sparked a row yesterday after he urged LGBT football fans to show “a little bit of flex and compromise” and to “respect the culture of your host nation” when attending the World Cup in Qatar.
Nadhim Zahawi, the chairman of the Conservative Party, today said that fans travelling to Qatar should not have to compromise on their identity or sexuality.
He told LBC Radio: “I would say you should not compromise on your identity or your sexuality or your sexual preference in any way. Of course you are safe to go to the World Cup. No one should have to compromise at all in my view.
“I am very proud of what we have done in the UK. We use every opportunity when we engage with the Qatari government to share with them how we do things here.
“They have had a different historical journey but football is a celebration of diversity. I am sure the Qataris completely understand this as well. No one should need to compromise on their sexuality or their preference whatsoever.”
08:44 AM Pictured: Rishi Sunak hosted Diwali reception at No 10 last night 
Dame Diana Johnson, the Labour chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee, said the asylum and immigration systems are “in crisis”.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, she said: “I think the asylum system and the immigration system is in crisis.”
“There are over 100,000 asylum claims waiting to be decided so there’s a huge backlog,” she added.
08:40 AM Nadhim Zahawi: Home Secretary has ‘full security clearance’
Asked if Suella Braverman has “full security clearance” after she was reappointed as Home Secretary, Nadhim Zahawi, the Tory chairman, told Sky News: “The Home Secretary has full security clearance, of course, but what I am really trying to say to you is she didn’t try and hide away or try and brush this under the carpet.”
08:38 AM Suella Braverman committed ‘multiple breaches of the ministerial code,’ says former Tory chairman
Former Tory chairman Sir Jake Berry has claimed Suella Braverman committed “multiple breaches of the ministerial code” as Rishi Sunak faces a backlash over reinstating her Cabinet role.
You can read the full story here.
08:36 AM No ‘easy decisions’ on public cuts
Told that it looks like Rishi Sunak will have to be a Prime Minister who imposes significant public spending cuts, Nadhim Zahawi, the Tory chairman, said: “He said that yesterday, there is not going to be any easy decisions. You have to step back a second and think where we are today.
“We have war on our continent, this is a major war, we haven’t seen anything like it since the second World War. Putin is using energy as a weapon.”
08:32 AM ‘I won’t preempt the Autumn Statement’
Nadhim Zahawi said Rishi Sunak is committed to protecting the most vulnerable, including pensioners, in a further hint that the triple lock will be maintained (see the post below at 08.07).
He told Times Radio that while he could not preempt the Autumn Statement on November 17, Mr Sunak, when he was chancellor, “always protected the most vulnerable”.
He went on: “I am stating the obvious here, but uniquely pensioners cannot add to their income by taking on more work and therefore we have to be clear in how we make sure we help the most vulnerable in our society including those pensioners but I won’t preempt the autumn statement.”
08:21 AM Sunak right to give Braverman a ‘second chance’
Rishi Sunak is right to give Home Secretary Suella Braverman a “second chance”, Conservative Party chairman Nadhim Zahawi has said.
The Prime Minister has faced criticism over his decision to reappoint her to the post just six days after she was forced to resign over a security breach.
Mr Zahawi told Sky News: “She admitted her mistake, she resigned. A new Prime Minister came in, looked at the information and decided that he wants to give her a second chance. It think that is the right decision. Redemption is a good thing.”
Mr Zahawi refused to be drawn on reports that officials, including the Cabinet Secretary Simon Case, expressed concern about her reappointment so soon after her resignation.
“Officials raise concerns and raise points with secretaries of state, with ministers, all the time. I think they should be allowed to do that,” he said.
08:12 AM Tory MP warns of triple lock ‘vacuum’
A key question this morning is whether it is politically sustainable for the Government to wait until November 17 to announce its decision on the pensions triple lock.
Liz Truss’s No 10 had initially refused to commit to the pledge but swiftly backed down after a ferocious backlash.
Maria Caulfield, a Tory MP, told Sky News last night that the failure to give certainty on the issue would cause pensioners to worry.
She said: “I have been pretty clear. It was in our manifesto to keep the triple lock and Rishi was also very clear that he is a Prime Minister that is standing on that 2019 manifesto and he wants to deliver it.
“Of course we can’t have a running commentary on the fiscal announcement that is going to be happening on the 17th of November.
“What worries me is when the Government doesn’t confirm one way or the other, the speculation mounts and a vacuum is created and people start to worry and I have got pensioners who are worried.
“But the Chancellor only last week said he was committed to the triple lock and given that Rishi said at PMQs that he is standing on the 2019 manifesto, I am hoping that means that the triple lock is in place but we will know for sure on the 17th of November.”
08:07 AM Nadhim Zahawi hints pensions triple lock will be kept in place
Downing Street yesterday refused to commit to keeping the triple lock on state pensions in place, insisting it is being considered as part of the Autumn Statement.
But Nadhim Zahawi, the new chairman of the Conservative Party, today gave a firm hint that the promise made in the 2019 Tory manifesto will be stuck to as he represented the Government on the morning media round.
Asked what will happen with the triple lock, Mr Zahawi told Sky News: “I think it would be unwise of me to preempt the autumn statement. This Government is about responsibility and sustainability.
“What I would say to pensioners watching this morning is both the Prime Minister and the Chancellor are very much aware, and I am going to state the obvious here, pensioners are uniquely unable to work to add to their income, improve their income.”
08:04 AM Good morning
Good morning and welcome to today’s politics live blog.
Rishi Sunak’s premiership is now firmly up and running after he appointed his Cabinet, handed out a raft of junior minister jobs and successfully navigated his first PMQs.
The PM will now focus his attention on November 17 when the Government will deliver its Autumn Statement spending plans.
There are big questions this morning about what cuts could be made and whether big ticket promises – like the pensions triple lock – will be stuck to.
There is also a rumbling row over the reappointment of Suella Braverman as Home Secretary. I will guide you through the key developments.