The Cabinet Office has appeared to reject claims that Sue Gray’s Partygate report was tampered with prior to publication, with details of an alleged party at Boris Johnson’s Downing Street flat supposedly removed.

Senior members of Mr Johnson’s team are also alleged to have put pressure on the civil servant to remove certain details and names from her report into coronavirus rule-breaking, according to the Sunday Times, which quoted a source as saying that “the entire machine fought her” once she made clear an intention to publish emails and WhatsApp messages.

But the Cabinet Office insisted on Sunday that Ms Gray’s report “was impartially conducted and its contents represent the findings and conclusions of the investigation team alone”.

Earlier, a No 10 source had denied the allegations, saying: “It is untrue that anyone on the political side saw anything in advance or sought to influence it.”

The claims come as the prime minister fends off increasing pressure over the report, with 24 of his own MPs now publicly calling for his resignation.

An Afghan man who came to the UK as a child says he tried to take his own life after being told he faces deportation to Rwanda under the government’s new asylum removal policy.

Hakim Khan, 32, told The Independent he would “rather die” than be sent to the east African nation after he was detained at Brook House removal centre this month.

“I tried to take my life the day before yesterday ... I just want to be free, I want to be with my family, I want to be a human,” the asylum seeker, who first arrived in the UK as a child in 2008, said. “I have hopes like other people. I want to have rights. There are no deportations to Afghanistan – why are they keeping me here?”

Read the rest of May Bulman’s exclusive here:

Afghan asylum seeker tried to take own life after UK threatened to send him to Rwanda

In case you missed it..

Sue Gray would not have published her investigation into lockdown parties if she was not comfortable, according to a Cabinet minister amid claims her report was edited by the Prime Minister’s chief of staff.

According to The Sunday Times, the senior civil servant was lobbied to remove names from the final 37-page document and had edits made before its release on Wednesday.

The newspaper said “tweaks” were made on the eve of publication by Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Steve Barclay, who is also chief of staff in No 10, in relation to the so-called “Abba party” held in the Prime Minister’s flat on 13 November 2020.

Gray would not have issued probe she was not comfortable with – Cabinet minister

Senior Tories have warned Boris Johnson against appointing Martin Reynolds, an official mentioned numerous times in the Partygate report, to a diplomatic post, according to reports in The Observer.

Mr Reynolds quit as Mr Johnson’s principal private secretary in February after it emerged that he had invited staff to a “bring your own booze party” in Downing Street.

Mr Reynolds is reportedly the favourite for the new Saudi ambassador job but some Conservatives are warning that the appointment should not go through.

One senior figure in the party told The Observer: “The ambassador represents the Queen. It is pretty extraordinary that someone who has deliberately and knowingly broken the law should be appointed to represent her.”

No, Boris Johnson is not trying to rig the rules to save his skin. But The Independent’s editorial today argues that “his attempt to avoid genuinely independent scrutiny of ministerial standards is pitiful and wrong”.

The Independent continues to argue that the adviser on ministerial interests “should have the power to start investigations without waiting to be asked by the prime minister”, adding: “This is what Mr Johnson has resisted, resorting to some convoluted language that amounts to the retention of a prime ministerial veto.”

Editorial: The PM’s attempt to avoid genuinely independent scrutiny is shameful

Social care cuts in the name of austerity were a “silent killer”, Jeremy Hunt has admitted.

The former health secretary, who left his post in 2018, defended “in its entirety” the decision to freeze the NHS budget “because the result of getting the economy back on its feet was that we were then able to afford a record increase for the NHS in 2018, not that I would ever pretend there was anything other than a lot of pain for the NHS until that point”.

“But if I look at the individual cuts under that umbrella, the one that I think went too far was social care. I think it was a silent killer,” he told the New Statesman.

Because what happened was when you cut the money for social care going to local authorities, no individual has their package cut, but the local authority just doesn’t provide new packages for as many people, or at as generous a level as it would otherwise have done, so people don’t really notice that but when I was health secretary and I was seeing our hospitals filling up because we couldn’t get people out into the community, I realised just how dangerous that was.”

Austerity social care cuts were "silent killer" - Jeremy Hunt@Jeremy_Hunt joins @Anoosh_C to discuss his regrets from when he was in government and if he'd consider running again for the Tory leadership.

Read here: https://t.co/tSY2aNHE0H pic.twitter.com/ZVK4jDiZFY

Labour will attempt to force a Commons vote after changes to the ministerial code, accusing Boris Johnson of “trampling all over” long-standing principles, our political correspondent Ashley Cowburn reports.

It follows accusations the prime minister had watered down the rules for ministers after the code was amended to make clear they will not automatically lose their jobs for a breach.

A government policy document – published on Friday by the Cabinet Office – said it would be “disproportionate” to require ministers’ resignations for “any breach, however minor”.

Instead, sanctions could involve “some form of public apology, remedial action or removal of ministerial salary for a period”, it added.

But with the prime minister facing a Commons inquiry over whether he deliberately misled parliament over the Partygate scandal, opposition parties said Mr Johnson was “watering down the rules to save his own skin”.

The new code, however, continues to state that ministers “who knowingly mislead parliament will be expected to offer their resignation”.

Labour to force vote after Boris Johnson amends ministerial code ‘like tinpot despot’

A union leader has said he “cannot see a way out from the strikes” which could hit the rail sector from next month.

Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union at Network Rail and 13 train operators overwhelmingly backed industrial action in a ballot over jobs and pay, threatening huge disruption. The union will have to give two weeks’ notice of strikes, which could start in mid-June.

On whether a strike is inevitable, RMT general secretary Mick Lynch told Sky News: “I cannot see a way out from the strikes at the moment unless there is a breakthrough and the government instructs these companies – which they are doing to change their line rather than harden their line – it is very, very likely there will be strike action and it will be very soon.”

Fears have been raised that staff walkouts could lead to much of the rail network being closed, affecting petrol and diesel supplies and the delivery of goods to shops.

Union leaders will decide next week when to call strikes after workers overwhelmingly backed industrial action over jobs, pay and conditions.

He could not say the level of disruption union action may cause, but added: “We will decide that if it happens. We want to make the strike action as effective as possible from our point of view. Our members are prepared to take effective strike action in pursuit of the settlement of this dispute.”

Boris Johnson’s favourite former chief political aide has weighed in on the prime minister’s latest “cunning plan” with typical aplomb:

no10's cunning plan that bullshit about feet & inches is a good distraction from the total chaos of no10's/tory party's real situation shd strike terror into even the dumbest of the ERG

Following claims in the Sunday Times that senior members of Boris Johnson’s team put pressure on Sue Gray to remove certain details and names from her Partygate report, a Cabinet Office spokesperson has said:

“The report was impartially conducted and its contents represent the findings and conclusions of the investigation team alone.

“As with all such investigation reports, the process of obtaining formal representations from those perceived to be criticised prior to publication took place. This is an appropriate and usual process in such matters.”

Patrick Daly has more on the allegations here:

No 10 denies details of Downing Street flat party were edited out of Gray report

Voters and businesses are “pleased” that the UK government is set to open the door to greater use of imperial weights and measures, Brandon Lewis has insisted.

Ministers are preparing to consult on how to further incorporate imperial measurements in Britain after Brexit, with Boris Johnson reportedly keen to announce the move on Friday to coincide with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

The move has faced criticism from the Conservative backbenches, with Alicia Kearns – one of 24 Tory MPs to declare they have lost confidence in the prime minister over his handling of lockdown-busting parties in Downing Street – calling the idea “a nonsense”.

But Mr Lewis, the Northern Ireland secretary, said that while the policy was “light-hearted”, there were people who “want to go back” to using imperial weights, such as pounds and ounces, and measures such as yards and miles.

The EU weights and measures directive came into force in 2000, with traders legally required to use metric units for sale-by-weight or the measure of fresh produce. It remains legal to price goods in pounds and ounces but they have to be displayed alongside the price in grams and kilograms.

Our political correspondent Ashley Cowburn has more details on the Northern Ireland secretary’s insistence this morning that Boris Johnson will not face a no confidence vote:

Brandon Lewis plays down threat of no confidence vote in Boris Johnson

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak have given the Tories a “massive identity problem” by raising rather than cutting taxes, a former party leader has said.

Iain Duncan Smith told The Observer that, rather than impose a windfall tax, the chancellor should have cut taxes for middle and lower earners.

“He had the headroom not to do a windfall tax,” Sir Iain said. “Getting growth going is the priority. We have to avoid recession and to do that we have to lower taxes and get people spending.

“Conservatives believe in lower taxes, leaving people with more of their own money because they make the best choices. Unless we get back to this approach and cut taxes in the autumn budget we are in real trouble.”

The Tories now risk being seen as a high tax, big state party after also breaking their manifesto pledge with a national insurance hike, he reportedly said, adding: “I don’t just think we have a bit of an identity problem, we have a massive identity problem.”

A possible rail strike over jobs and pay could go on “for a very, very long time”, a union leader has suggested.

Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union at Network Rail and 13 train operators have overwhelmingly backed industrial action in a ballot.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch told Sky’s Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme: “They could go on for a very, very long time. There is no sign at the moment of that anybody is backing down on their side of the table.”

He could not say the level of disruption union action may cause, but added: “We will decide that if it happens. We want to make the strike action as effective as possible from our point of view.

“Our members are prepared to take effective strike action in pursuit of the settlement of this dispute. I have got no idea how long that will take and I can’t determine from here what the outcomes and side effects of that will be.”

Our chief political commentator John Rentoul highlights this story in today’s Mail on Sunday, which claims that Tory Chairman Oliver Dowden faces being moved in a Cabinet reshuffle which is coming “sooner than everyone thinks”.

The paper reports that Mr Dowden is expected to pay the price for recent by-election losses and poor performances in May’s council elections, as well as plunging poll ratings.

Mr Dowden’s public pledge to change candidate selection processes to ensure that half of Tory MPs elected at the next election are women has alienated both male and female colleagues, according to the paper.

Reshuffle speculation in Mail on Sunday pic.twitter.com/MaXohzhwUc

A Tory MP has made a joke widely interpreted as making light of outrage over Covid rule-breaking in No 10.

“Off to the footy,” Brendan Clarke-Smith tweeted. “Making the tough choice not to buy sandwiches and an orange juice in case anybody accuses me of being a lawbreaker.”

🥪🧃Off to the footy. Making the tough choice not to buy sandwiches and an orange juice in case anybody accuses me of being a lawbreaker. pic.twitter.com/B39odReHwG

Richard Walker, managing director of Iceland, says the supermarket chain serves “some of the poorer demographics” but has seen customers “disappearing to food banks” amid the rising cost of living.

Mr Walker told Sky News’s Sophie Ridge On Sunday programme there is a “perfect maelstrom of inflationary pressures”, adding: “The reality is there is no typical Iceland shopper, averages don’t work very well because we have people who come in and spend five quid and people who come in and spend £50.

“Generally, I think it is safe to say everyone is feeling the pinch now, it doesn’t matter who you are.

“We do serve some of the poorer demographics around the country. We are hearing stories, as you said, of some of our custom disappearing to food banks, which is a reality, or, indeed, some customers when they are at the till asking the cashier when it amounts to 40 quid so that they can leave the rest of their shopping.”

Boris Johnson will survive as prime minister even if the Tories lose next month’s by-elections, the Northern Ireland secretary has claimed.

Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday Morning show, Brandon Lewis suggested that the prime minister would survive a no confidence vote, adding: “But I would go further. I don't think we are in that space.”

Asked whether Mr Johnson's position was in jeopardy if the Conservatives lose the Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton by-elections, Mr Lewis replied: “No, I don't think so. I equally don't think we will lose those two by-elections.

“I think we've got a very strong case, we've got great candidates and we'll all be out campaigning to win them, because that is what is in the interest of those areas.”

London’s mayor Sadiq Khan has urged the government to scrap the benefits cap, after it emerged that tens of thousands of Britain’s poorest families stand to miss out on a huge boost to their incomes next year in Rishi Sunak’s £15bn package.

Benefits payments are set to soar by as much as 10 per cent from April, the chancellor has confirmed, but more than 120,000 households will lose out unless ministers raise the cap on how much they can receive from the state.

The cost of living crisis is hitting the worst-off Londoners the hardest.

Ministers must scrap the benefit cap and ensure benefits are increased to reflect the soaring cost of living at a time when so many people are struggling. https://t.co/aFbK1GP2mM

Our Whitehall editor Kate Devlin has more details here:

Tens of thousands of UK’s poorest families to miss out on help due to benefits cap

Labour Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds said the government has failed to take action to grow the economy as she criticised the “frustrating” lack of measures to alleviate the causes of the cost of living crisis.

Speaking on the BBC's Sunday Morning programme, Ms Dodds said: “The really frustrating thing is yes we’ve finally seen some action from the government on the symptoms of the cost-of-living crisis ... but we’re not seeing any action on the causes.”

She added: “They also haven’t taken action to grow our economy. Labour’s saying we need to buy, make and sell more in our country. Why is that important? Because we’ve had lower growth under Conservative-led governments than under Labour-led – it’s a big problem.”

Ms Dodds was asked by presenter Clive Myrie about the government’s decision to give the worst-off families £1,200 to ease rising costs as opposed to Labour’s proposed £600.

“Are you embarrassed that actually the Conservatives are way more generous than you would have been?” Myrie asked.

“No, not at all, and actually for the most hard-pressed families Labour plans would have supported them more,” Ms Dodds replied, adding that Labour policies, including a home-insulation programme, would also help people in the long term by cutting household bills “every year” and not just as a one-off.

Rishi Sunak has “stepped up” and is “pulling the right levers” to help struggling families with his latest support package, the Iceland supermarket chain’s managing director has said.

“They already had over £20bn of support before this additional £20bn of latest packages so certainly huge intervention there by the government and actually we have got to take a step back and realise a lot of these pressures are global in nature and outside of the influence of the government of the day or businesses like ours,” Richard Walker told Sky’s Sophie Ridge On Sunday.

“So I think they have done plenty, actually, for the general public and hopefully it will ease the pain and the burden as we get into the autumn as inflation may peak.

“There is a tonne of stuff I would like him to do for business, I don't know how he is going to afford it or we are all going to pay for it but, I think at the moment they are doing a good job.”

A union boss has suggested that companies could “restrain their profits and return that money into lower prices” in order to combat inflation.

“All British workers deserve a pay rise,” RMT general secretary Mick Lynch told Sky News. “There’s a bit of a nonsense that goes round, especially in the media that says ‘if we get a pay rise somehow other workers won’t get a pay rise’, or ‘if we don’t get a pay rise, it’ll be transferred to nurses, to other public sector workers and people that are also being exploited’.

“That just won’t happen. If we don’t get a pay rise, the profits of the companies will just go up. And what needs to happen in the UK, is that some of these profits need to be reduced so that British workers can get a pay rise. Every worker in this country is struggling at the moment. They can’t keep up with the utility prices, they can’t keep up with their household bills.”

Asked if he was concerned about the impact this would have upon inflation, he said: “There are railway bosses taking home millions of pounds every year. The railyways made £500m of profit last year when fares and passengers were at an all-time low. People are stripping money out of the railway, they’re stripping money out of the economy.

“And if workers’ wages don’t go up, it means a transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich. We’ve got more billionaires than we’ve ever had in this country. The rich have never been richer. And the reason they’re able to do that and get richer all the time, is because they’re deliberately depressing workers’ wages. Inflation has come on board now and virtually nobody has had a pay rise the last two or three years. So this idea that there’s a wage-price spiral is nonsense.”

Conceding that mass pay rises “could lead to more inflation”, he said: “But what could also stop inflation is that some of the companies could restrain their profits, and return that money into lower prices. BP and Shell and the others are making record profits of billions of pounds every quarter ... one of the things they could do is sacrifice those profits. Never mind a windfall tax, what about a dividend that goes back to the people that are consuming their materials.”

With the UK potentially facing the largest rail strike in decades, the general secretary of the RMT union, Mick Lynch, told Sky News: “We don’t want strike action.

“This is a defensive action against the companies and the government, in fact, who are bringing in stringent cuts [to] thousands of jobs for our members, thousands have already gone, and there are thousands more to go.

“They also want to completely change the conditions that our members have agreed with their employers, and we haven’t had a pay rise for a very long time. Many of our members are now in the third anniversary of not having a pay rise.

“They worked all the way through Covid, they mainly had to work at work, not staying at home working online, and they’re fed up with it. They want to have job security, the want to provide a service for the public, but we do need a pay rise to keep up with the rocketing inflation that we’re all experiencing.”

The UK has to “buy, make and sell more” domestically in order to boost economic growth, Labour Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds has said.

Pressed to single out one policy that Labour has come up with to deal with the causes of the cost of living crisis, Ms Dodds said: “We’ve got to buy, make and sell more in our country, and that’s what [shadow chancellor] Rachel Reeves has been setting out.

“If we do that then we can build growth back up again, because we’ve had far too low levels of economic growth. That’s holding back people’s living standards, and we’ve set out exactly how we would be delivering that. So it really is Labour that is the party of ideas now.”

Labour Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds has said the government has had be “dragged kicking and screaming” to act “last minute” over the cost-of-living crisis.

Speaking to Sky’s Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme, she said Labour has called for policies which would not only alleviate the “symptoms” of the crisis but the “causes” as well, such as a home-insulation programme that would cut household bills.

“We are concerned that there doesn’t seem to be any plan to deal with the causes of that cost-of-living crisis,” she said. “Yes, some action to deal with its symptoms that we’ve called for, as I’ve said for many months, but not action to deal with its causes.”

She added: “It seems that this government, they tend to be dragged kicking and screaming to action at the last minute. We need to see those longer-term plans now.”

Labour Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds has accused Boris Johnson of “seeking to water down the ministerial code”.

“That’s the big issue here,” she told Sky News. “That’s what Labour’s focused on, because for as long as we have Boris Johnson at the head of government currently, we actually aren’t seeing many of the big issued being gripped onto by the Conservatives, that government continues to be in chaos and ultimately working people are paying the price.”

Pressed that despite the ministerial code changes, the most serious offences such as misleading parliament would still be a resignation issue, Ms Dodds said: “Well unfortunately, he has not resigned.”

Asked whether the PM should resign regardless of whether he is officially found to have misled Parliament over partygate, Anneliese Dodds said “most people would draw their own conclusions”.

“Ultimately you're seeing many Conservative MPs themselves making that decision, not enough of them I would say,” the Labour Party chairwoman told Sky News's Sophy Ridge On Sunday.

She added: “When it comes to the reform of the ministerial code, I think the difference is very, very clear. You’ve got Boris Johnson having removed the words integrity, accountability, honesty even from the foreword to that code. He has watered down the sanctions. It used to be previously the case that any breaking of the ministerial code would be a resignation issue. Now there are other sanctions that have been put in there, even just apologising. Surely that would be the very first thing that we would expect.”

“So we will be forcing a vote on this. We think that ultimately politics should be clean, it should be a force for good. We should have all politicians held to high standards.”

Asked why Boris Johnson is trying to “water down parliamentary standards” by rewriting the ministerial code, Brandon Lewis told Sky News: “He’s not. Let’s remember, there’s been a bit of misinformation out there about this.”

While the ministerial code is “updated quite regularly”, the Northern Ireland secretary said, this latest change stems from recommendations from the commission and ministerial ethics adviser Lord Geidt around the “idea of there being a graduated penalty process”.

“People still have to resign if they commit a – misleading the House or something serious – but there was a request from others, including Lord Geidt and the commission, that we actually do have this kind of graduated approach,” he said.

“So it means that if there’s a minor infraction – whereas before there may have been a decision, if there was a minor infraction in theory, that’s too minor to resign then there’s no penalty – there’s now a series of penalties for different infractions if anybody commits an infraction in the first place.”

Asked if Mr Johnson will face a no confidence vote, Brandon Lewis told Sky News: “I don’t think he will actually. I don’t think it’s in the interests of the country, I don’t think it’s in the interests of the Conservative Party.

“I’m somebody who was chair of the party through the last prime minister having not only a confidence vote but I was the chairman who ran that leadership campaign, so I’ve seen this from both sides, I don’t think it’s in anybody’s interest, no I don’t think we will see that happen,” the Northern Ireland secretary said.

Pressed on the fact that the number of Tory MPs who had publicly declared sending letters of no confidence in Theresa May was around half of the number needed once a vote was triggered, he insisted it was “rumours and supposition”, and that “nobody knows” how many letters have been sent to the 1922 Committee.

Asked about claims in the Sunday Times that Boris Johnson’s chief of staff Steve Barclay tweaked part of Sue Gray’s report referring to a party in the prime minister’s flat, Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis said: “No 10 Downing Street are saying that this claim is not correct, that it’s untrue.

“And I would say it’s backed up by the fact that the police didn’t see anything there that required anybody being fined, so I think the Downing Street statement is a fair statement.”

Pressed on the fact that No 10 have previously apologised for misleading journalists and asked how the public can trust Downing Street, he said: “First of all, it’s a different Downing Street.

“You’ve got a different team of people ... the team that work with the prime minister, lead on these issues, Steve Barclay himself is new and wasn’t there at the time of those original mistakes. And on top of that, it’s not just Downing Street denying it, we’ve also got a situation where the police have looked at this particular set of incidents and didn’t find an issue there to fine people.”

Asked to give an assurance that nobody in Downing Street or the civil service tried to influence the Sue Gray report, Mr Lewis said: “I’m absolutely confident that’s the case. I wasn’t part of the report, I’m not part of the No 10 team that worked with Sue Gray on the report, but ... those who have worked with Sue Gray across government ... anybody whose worked in No 10 knows Sue Gray well enough to know that that kind of thing just wouldn’t work.”

He added: “I am confident that Sue Gray had the freedom to write the report that she was comfortable to write and publish.”

Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis has described allegations in the Sue Gray report over the treatment of No 10 security and cleaning staff as “appalling”.

“There’s no denying this whole situation is not good, it shouldn’t have happened,” he told Sky News.

“I have to say there were things in that report ... around how the security and cleaning staff were treated, it was appalling. Nobody should be treated like that. You’re one team working together for the benefit of the country. Whatever your role is, it’s an important part, you should be treated with respect.”

He said the civil service would be looking to “get to the bottom of” who was responsible for the poor treatment of staff in Downing Street.

Pressed on claims in the Sunday Times that civil servants lobbied Sue Gray to water down her Partygate report, Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis has insisted that Sue Gray would not deliver a report she was not “comfortable” was “full and complete”.

“I don’t recognise any of that, and I’ve got to say, we’ve had a police investigation into all of these issues now, they’ve come to their conclusions, made their decisions, and we’ve had Sue Gray, and I don’t think anybody would question the independence and the probity of the police,” Mr Lewis told Sky News.

“Having worked with Sue Gray in her previous roles and my previous roles, I wouldn’t in any way question Sue Gray’s independence and determination to deliver a report that she is comfortable is a full and complete report, which is what she’s done.”

He added: “Nobody has said anything of the sort to me that reflects what you’ve just outlined from the Times.”

Pressed further, he said: “If Sue Gray wasn’t comfortable, she wouldn’t be putting the report out ... She’s an independently-minded – as well as doing this in an independent capacity – and a very professional civil servant. So I don’t believe that anybody, and knowing Sue Gray, that anybody would be able to pressure Sue Gray into putting any kind of report out that she wasn’t comfortable was the full and proper report.”

A majority of voters believe that Tory MPs should oust Boris Johnson from No 10, according to new polling carried out between Wednesday and Friday this week.

Opinium found that, although 51 per cent of people now believe Partygate to be a distraction from more important issues – compared to 38 per cent who said otherwise – a majority of voters still think the prime minister should resign.

And the same proportion – 56 per cent – believe that Tory MPs should remove Mr Johnson from office.

However, in terms of what should happen, voters still think Johnson's time is up.

If he doesn't, 56% think Tory MPs should remove him

If they do, 50% think he should go straight away pic.twitter.com/bYpN1WVlnW

Here are the line-ups for the political shows this morning. From 8:30am, Sophy Ridge on Sky News will be speaking to the government’s Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis, Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds, and Iceland boss Richard Walker, among others.

Here’s our running order this morning #Ridge pic.twitter.com/YcfEbLWIEq

Over on the BBC from 9am, Sophie Raworth will hear from people including foreign secretary Liz Truss and her Labour counterpart David Lammy.

Tomorrow on Sunday Morning with #raworth

Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy

Papers with Bridget Kendall and Fraser Nelson

9am, BBC One pic.twitter.com/bYah8HmVOo

Hello, and thanks to those joining us on The Independent’s politics blog this morning.

Our headline story today focuses on the claims in the Sunday Times that officials sought to water down Sue Gray’s report into coronavirus rule-breaking in Downing Street.

Samantha Jones, the permanent secretary at No 10, reportedly discussed who should be publicly named in the report with Ms Gray’s team ahead of publication. According to the the Sunday Times, Ms Gray was lobbied to make changes on Tuesday evening by Ms Jones, cabinet secretary Simon Case, and permanent secretary in the Cabinet Office Alex Chisholm.

The newspaper alleged that up to 30 names were scheduled to be included in the report, but in the end only 15 people featured.

Certain details were also removed from the report, according to the paper, including references to music being played at an “Abba party” in the prime minister’s flat and the leaving times of the attendees.

Details about a leaving party for Hannah Young, a No 10 private secretary, were also allegedly removed.

Both No 10 and Cabinet Office sources denied claims that the report had been edited, while those in Downing Street said: “It is untrue that anyone on the political side saw anything in advance or sought to influence it.”

My colleague Holly Bancroft has more details on the fresh claims here:

Civil servants ‘lobbied Sue Gray to have names removed’ from Partygate report

Thanks for following along with our coverage of MPs’ reaction to Sue Gray’s Partygate report.

We are pausing our coverage now and will be resuming it tomorrow morning.

Here is every Tory MP that has so far called on Boris Johnson to quit.

Every Tory MP that has called for Boris Johnson to quit over Partygate

While there are 24 Tory MPs who have publicly called on Boris Johnson to resign, our chief political commentator John Rentoul has compiled a list of some 63 Conservatives who he believes have potentially written letters intended for the 1922 Committee chair Sir Graham Brady.

While this is considerably above the threshold of 54 letters needed to trigger a no-confidence vote, apart from Sir Graham, some MPs may have either rescinded not have actually sent letters in the first place, while others not on the list may well have done so secretly.

Oliver Heald and Anne Marie Morris are new to me: my list now up to 63 identified potential letter-writers https://t.co/Uu6gSCmRs0 https://t.co/ghLCO689c2

The West is working to break the Russian blockade on Ukrainian ports in order to “avert a global food crisis” by releasing millions of tons of grain, Boris Johnson has said.

The Prime Minister spoke on Saturday morning with President Volodymyr Zelensky about international efforts to put a stop to the “despicable blockade” of Odesa, Ukraine’s major southern port on the Black Sea.

The conversation between the leaders comes after Mr Johnson revealed this week that the West was supporting the Ukrainians to demine the Black Sea and reopen international shipping lanes.

West working to break Russian blockade and ‘avert global food crisis’, says PM

Jeremy Hunt has warned the Conservative Party against “alienating” what he calls its southern “heartlands”.

“We should remember that we got a majority in 2019 because we are a coalition of Blue and Red Wall seats,” he told the New Statesman.

“If you look at the Australian election results, you can see the dangers of alienating your more suburban conservative voters, who have those more socially liberal views. We need to keep that coalition together.”

Jeremy Hunt has said he wouldn’t “rule out” running again for the Conservative leadership.

In an interview with the New Statesman, Mr Hunt said: “Well, I don’t rule it out. I don’t think now is the best time for a leadership contest because we’re in the middle of a horrific war in Ukraine and Britain has been, I think to a lot of people’s surprise, the most robust member of the Western alliance. But who knows what the future holds?”

The magazine reports that the former health secretary’s parliamentary office is home to a version of the unpublished front cover which the Spectator would have run had he beaten Boris Johnson in the 2019 Tory leadership election, titled: “Hunt wins”.

Our climate correspondent Saphora Smith reports:

Rishi Sunak’s new tax relief on investment in oil and gas extraction in the UK will cost the taxpayer around £1.9bn a year, it has been claimed.

The tax relief that has been widely criticised by green groups, opposition politicians and even oil executives also risks shortchanging the public further down the road, according to the New Economics Foundation (NEF) think tank.

By the time the investments start returning profits, the 25 per cent temporary windfall tax on oil and gas profits announced by the chancellor on Thursday could no longer be in place as it is set to end in 2025.

And having paid for 91 per cent of the investment cost, the taxpayer would be left claiming only 40 per cent of the benefit, the NEF said. This is because the temporary windfall tax takes the total rate of tax on oil and gas profits up to 65 per cent – so when the levy expires, taxes will drop back down to 40 per cent.

“In the midst of a climate crisis, when we need to end our dependence on high carbon fuel as rapidly as possible, this policy is irrational and destructive,” said Alex Chapman, a senior researcher at the foundation who carried out the analysis. “This money would be far better spent reducing the need for fossil fuels through investment in home energy efficiency measures such as insulation and heat pumps.”

Sunak’s ‘obscene’ tax relief for fossil fuel firms will ‘cost taxpayer £1.9bn a year’

A Labour MSP who is campaigning for safe drug consumption rooms to be legalised in Scotland has pointed out that such facilities are not “radical” but actually “fairly normal in over 150 places around the world, including most recently in New York City, where they’ve very successfully tested the pilot”.

Glasgow MSP Paul Sweeney told Times Radio that the Home Office had opposed the idea and that the UK government was against it, adding: “By introducing controls, to hygienic spaces for people to attend, not only are we preventing drug deaths, helping to address the fact that a person dies every six hours in Scotland on average, from a preventable, drug related death, we can also affect the way in which drugs are taken so that they're done more hygienically in a safer way, and therefore reducing a lot of the costs associated with injecting into veins.”

Mr Sweeney’s proposed Bill would also abolish the existing Scottish Drugs Death Taskforce, with the MSP insisting the organisation “longer commands the confidence of the public or those working in the sector”.

The Labour member said he had volunteered with activist Peter Krykant’s safe consumption van which travelled around Glasgow city centre to encourage people to inject in a safe place.

“The sky didn't fall and people weren't busted and arrested because of it,” he said. “Actually, the police were quite supportive on the ground. They actually recognised its efficacy. And they were indeed, you know, bringing along drug debris and fighting in the streets to dispose of hygienically. They were even informally directing people injecting in the street to go to the safe facility because at least they were able to consume in a more hygienic environment.”

Western nations are working to break the Russian blockade on Ukrainian ports in order to “avert a global food crisis” by releasing millions of tons of grain, Boris Johnson has said.

The prime minister spoke on Saturday morning with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky about international efforts to put a stop to the “despicable blockade” of Odesa, Ukraine's major southern port on the Black Sea.

Ukraine was known as the “bread basket of Europe” and was one of the world's largest exporters of wheat, corn and sunflower oil, but Russia’s invasion and mining of the access to the southern ports has halted much of that flow, endangering world food supplies.

Giving details of the phone call, a No 10 spokeswoman said: “The leaders spoke about Putin's despicable blockade of Odesa, Ukraine's biggest shipping port. The prime minister outlined to President Zelensky the intensive work taking place with international partners to find ways to resume the export of grain from Ukraine to avert a global food crisis.

“He said that the UK would work with G7 partners to push for urgent progress. The leaders agreed next steps and the imperative for Russia to relax its blockade and allow safe shipping lanes.”

The Independent’s chief political commentator John Rentoul has been looking at Keir Starmer’s prospects as Boris Johnson continues to fight for his career.

Much excitement about a big YouGov opinion poll that suggests Boris Johnson would lose his Uxbridge seat if there were a general election tomorrow.

Which is one reason there won’t be a general election tomorrow – or indeed next year, despite the attempt by David Canzini, the prime minister’s deputy chief of staff, to persuade the Conservative Party to prepare for one.

Canzini is No 10’s outreach worker to punk Thatcherites, who described a windfall tax as “un-Conservative”, and look what difference that made. His attempt to make party workers work harder by scaring them with a 2023 election is likely to meet a similar fate.

Click here for the full story,

Discontent in the Conservative ranks is growing because MPs fear they may lose their seats over the Downing Street lockdown parties fallout, a former cabinet minister has said.

Boris Johnson critic David Davis said his colleagues “see their own seats disappearing” as Tory popularity continues to languish in the wake of the so-called partygate saga.

The comments come as the Prime Minister faces mounting calls to resign following the publication of senior civil servant Sue Gray’s investigation into Covid rule-breaking in No 10 and Whitehall during the lockdowns in England, writes Patrick Daly.

Tory rebellion against Boris Johnson grows as senior MP warns of electoral losses

Chris Bryant, chairman of the Commons Standards Committee, said the “loosening” of the ministerial code by Boris Johnson showed why there should be an independent system in place for judging the conduct of ministers.

The Labour MP told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme he disagreed with recommendations made by the independent Committee on Standards in Public Life and adopted by the Prime Minister which allow ministers to remain in their jobs for what could be deemed minor breaches of the code.

“Maybe this is what you would expect from people who have mostly been civil servants in the past - that’s how they end up on the Committee on Standards in Public Life - that they would support a strong government that is, broadly speaking, able to do what it likes,” Mr Bryant said.

“But I think what the last couple of years have shown, whether it is Priti Patel instances of bullying when she was basically found guilty of bullying staff in her office by the so-called independent adviser on ministerial interests, but then the Prime Minister decided not even to publish the report because he didn’t like it.

“I just think you have to end that process, you have to have a proper system whereby an independent figure, entirely without the Prime Minister’s involvement, decides whether or not to launch an investigation into a minister, and decides whether it is a very serious case or a less serious case, and then suggests the sanction.

“That’s not what the Prime Minister has got, it still all lies in the Prime Minister’s hands and we know, don’t we, that the Prime Minister always finds himself innocent in the court of his own opinion.”

Tens of thousands of Britain’s poorest families stand to miss out on a huge boost to their incomes next year in Rishi Sunak’s £15 billion package to ease the cost of living crisis thanks to the benefits cap.

Benefits payments are set to soar by as much as 10 per cent from April, the chancellor has confirmed, but more than 120,000 households will lose out unless ministers raise the cap on how much they can receive from the state.

Experts warned that unless the government acts more families, many of whom have children under five, will hit the ceiling on payments.

Click here for the full story.

Discontent in the Conservative ranks is growing because MPs fear they may lose their seats over the Downing Street lockdown parties fallout, a former cabinet minister has said.

Boris Johnson critic David Davis said his colleagues “see their own seats disappearing” as Tory popularity continues to languish in the wake of the so-called partygate saga.

The comments come as the Prime Minister faces mounting calls to resign following the publication of senior civil servant Sue Gray’s investigation into Covid rule-breaking in No 10 and Whitehall during the lockdowns in England.

Former health minister Steve Brine was discovered to have added his name to the list of Tory MPs to have handed in letters of no confidence in the Prime Minister.

Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Tories, will be obliged to order a confidence vote if he receives 54 letters demanding one.

Boris Johnson is facing renewed calls to quit after more Tory MPs submitted letters of no confidence following the publication of Sue Gray’s report into the partygate scandal.

A total of 24 Conservative backbenchers are now publicly demanding his removal, but behind the scenes others have privately said he should step down.

It comes after images emerged of the prime minister apparently drinking at a lockdown-breaking Downing Street event during the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

Click here for the full story.

Boris Johnson is in “yellow card territory” after the publication of the long awaited Sue Gray report into the Partygate scandal, a government minister has said.

The comments from John Glen come amid a drip-feed of no confidence letters being submitted in the prime minister’s leadership, with one former Tory cabinet minister warning that discontent was spreading in the party.

Our political correspondent Ashley Cowburn has more:

Boris Johnson in ‘yellow card territory’ after Sue Gray report, minister says

A former Labour minister has appeared to suggest that voters in the Tiverton and Honiton by-election should consider going Lib Dem in a bid to oust the Conservatives.

Ben Bradshaw – who was culture secretary between 2009 and 2010 – said his party should fight for every vote in the seat.

But, in what some will regard as a coded message, he added: “What some Labour members and activists don’t always appreciate is that a lot of Conservative voters, if they want to give the government a kicking will vote Liberal Democrat but they wouldn’t vote Labour…

“So if we have a joint purpose of wanting to send the prime minister a message and ultimately defeat this government in a general election then I think there are very good prospects of a Lib Dem victory there.”

Click here for the full story.

It was the afternoon of the Sue Gray report and, stood under the historic Tiverton Clock Tower, life-long Tories Andrew and Heather Barlow had already decided how they would vote in next month’s by-election here.

“Liberal Democrats,” he said decisively. “Until that man [Boris Johnson] is no longer leader, I will never vote Conservative again.”

This was, he made clear, not a decision taken lightly.

The couple, both retired teachers, had gone blue at almost every election since they turned 18. As a student, Mr Barlow had been a member of the Oxford University Conservative Association. He once had dreams of being a politician – until Mrs Barlow told him that she had no dreams of being a politician’s wife.

Yet this near lifelong loyalty will be broken after the prime minister refused to resign over revelations he broke coronavirus lockdown rules by attending boozy Downing Street parties.

For more on Colin Drury’s look at the by-election, click here.

Tory MP Steve Brine has confirmed he has submitted a letter of no confidence in the Prime Minister.

In a statement on his website, Mr Brine said: “There is no question in my mind, the events collectively known as ‘party-gate’, have created a sense of great disappointment and mistrust in our Government and the Conservative Party. This is neither sustainable for the country or fair on good people (including MPs) just doing their job.

“For me also, new revelations in the Sue Gray report that staff and cleaners were not treated properly is deeply disappointing and speaks to a culture inside Downing Street which I find distasteful to put it mildly. It was right for the Prime Minister to apologise to them and I note a number of reforms that Sue Gray has welcomed in her final report. Yes, all the senior management at No.10 have changed since these events – except the PM – and that’s a problem.

“There is of course a bigger picture here about leadership, honesty and decency. Not whether this Prime Minister can get away with it, but whether he should.

“I said some time ago, I thought it was inevitable the Prime Minister would face a vote of confidence among Conservative MPs (it was widely reported) and I haven’t changed my view. All I can do as a backbencher is seek to trigger that process and (some time ago actually) I have done that.”

Rory Stewart has said the entire Downing Street operation is now focused solely on trying to keep “monstrous ego” Boris Johnson in power, as he warned about the erosion of trust in British politics and compared the current leadership to that of convicted fraudster and former Italian prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi.

The former Conservative cabinet minister joined a chorus of voices criticising the prime minister and his No 10 team after the damning Sue Gray report laid bare the extent of the lockdown-breaking behaviour at the heart of government, writes Tom Batchelor.

No 10 solely focused on keeping ‘monstrous ego’ Johnson in power, says Rory Stewart

SNP leader Ian Blackford has branded Boris Johnson a “charlatan” after a new policy statement was announced yesterday which said ministers should not be expected to resign if they break the ministerial code.

The rules do not apply for @BorisJohnson you can change them at will to protect yourself from wrong doing. How much more before the Tories remove this charlatan. https://t.co/cP7knxvLrj

Cleaners delivered a stinging rebuke to Boris Johnson’s government at a Downing Street protest on Friday evening, accusing the cabinet of looking “down on us like we’re the dirt that we clean”.

The protest was called after Sue Gray’s report into illegal parties at Downing Street found that No 10 staff had treated cleaning and security staff “unacceptably” on several occasions.

Workers told The Independent that the problems with respect went beyond No 10 and raised issues relating to insecure, outsourced contracts and low pay.

My colleague Liam James has more details:

‘They look down on us’: Protesters outside No 10 say cleaners need respect

David Davis has said discontent was spreading across the Conservative ranks due to MPs fearing the controversy around the Downing Street lockdown parties could cost them their seats.

The former cabinet minister told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Nobody in the world could have made it plainer, I don’t think, that I want the Prime Minister to go - I haven’t changed my mind about that.”

Asked whether discontent was spreading in the Tory party, Mr Davis said: “There is no doubt about that, for two reasons.

“Number one, frankly they see their own seats disappearing in many cases, they see themselves losing the next election on the back of this.

“Also, it has a bad effect on the country ... it is a distraction on everything you do and it doesn’t help the reputation of the country.”

The former Brexit secretary said party leadership trouble traditionally took a “long time” to be sorted out, pointing to the length of time Sir John Major and Theresa May stayed in No 10 despite experiencing backbench revolt.

He added: “I fear we’ll not resolve this until the latter part of the year.”

Schools do not have to accommodate transgender pupils by addressing them by their prefered pronouns or allowing them to use gender-appropriate toilets, the attorney general has said.

In an interview with The Times, cabinet minister Suella Braverman said that schools are under no legal obligation to allow transgender children to wear their prefered school uniform.

She also criticised schools for their “unquestioning approach” to gender reassignment, saying they should take a “much firmer line” when it came to making provisions for transgender students.

My colleague Holly Bancroft reports:

Attorney general says schools do not have to accommodate transgender pupils

The Conservative party would only hold three of its 88 battleground seats in the UK were an election to take place tomorrow, stark new polling suggests.

In a major blow to the party, the prime minister’s own seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip would likely fall to Labour control, with current results suggesting a 5 point Labour lead over the Conservatives.

According to latest YouGov modelling, of the 88 seats which Boris Johnson’s party either won from Labour in 2019 or currently hold with a slim majority, the Tories would only manage to retain its control of Ashfield, Bassetlaw, and Dudley North, writes Emily Atkinson.

Tories ‘would hold just three out of 88 battleground seats’ if election held now

Boris Johnson has been accused of misleading Parliament by one of his own MPs as the number of Tories calling for him to resign over No 10 lockdown parties continues to grow.

Veteran Conservative Sir Bob Neill and 2019 entrant Alicia Kearns both voiced their dissatisfaction with the Prime Minister’s insistence that he had not broken coronavirus rules by attending leaving-dos for departing officials.

Sir Bob, a qualified barrister and chairman of the Commons Justice Committee, confirmed he had submitted a letter of no confidence in Mr Johnson’s premiership following the publication of Sue Gray’s report into Downing Street partying.

Ms Kearns said the senior civil servant’s inquiry demonstrated that Mr Johnson had been “complicit in the holding of many goodbye parties for his staff” which the backbencher said “displayed a complete disregard” for Covid restrictions in place at the time.

The Rutland and Melton MP said she had reached the conclusion that the “Prime Minister’s account of events to Parliament was misleading”.

Rishi Sunak’s new tax relief on investment in oil and gas extraction in the UK will cost the taxpayer around £1.9 billion a year, it’s claimed.

The tax relief that has been widely criticised by green groups, opposition politicians and even oil executives also risks short-changing the taxpayer further down the road, according to the think tank the New Economics Foundation (NEF).

Click here for the full story.

Britain’s one million unpaid carers are facing a real-terms cut to their income of more than £200 after being excluded from Rishi Sunak’s cost of living package, the Liberal Democrats have warned.

With the carer’s allowance increasing by just 3.1 per cent from £67.60 a week to £69.70, rocketing inflation means claimants are taking a combined hit of £193m this year, after inflation of 9 per cent is taken into account, the party said.

There was dismay on Thursday when it emerged that a one-off payment of £650 to help benefit claimants with living costs was going to recipients of universal credit, tax credits and income support, but not those getting the carer’s allowance.

Our political editor Andrew Woodcock reports:

Carers ‘facing £200 cut to income’ after being left out of Sunak cost of living help

The Conservative party would hold just three of its 88 battleground seats in the UK were an election to take place tomorrow, stark new polling suggests.

In a major blow to the party, the prime minister’s own seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip would likely fall to Labour control, with current results suggesting a 5pt Labour lead over the Conservatives.

According to latest YouGov modelling, of the 88 seats which Boris Johnson’s party either won from Labour in 2019 or currently hold with a slim majority, the Tories would only manage to retain its control of Ashfield, Bassetlaw, and Dudley North.

It follows a dire result for Mr Johnson in this year’s local election, which saw voters move against the Conservatives in the PM’s seat - instead electing three Labour councillors across 21 seats in eight wards.

According to shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves, the government’s latest U-turn on a windfall tax on the big energy companies proves that “Labour is winning the battle of ideas in Britain”, writes Sean O’Grady.

Leaving aside the inconvenient fact that the Liberal Democrats proposed such a levy in October, there is something in what Reeves says about our country’s two major parties. Rishi Sunak’s fiscal event was more or less scripted by Reeves, and she looked suitably pleased with herself at the despatch box.

Analysis: Labour says it is ‘winning the battle of ideas’ – it is tough to argue

Rishi Sunak’s measures to help disabled people during the cost-of-living crisis are not enough and will be “quickly swallowed up”, a woman living on Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) has said.

Julie Inglis, 53, from Forres in the north of Scotland, worked in an ambulance control centre but had to retire after multiple strokes.

She lives with chronic pain, and has been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, a lung condition that causes breathing difficulty.

Speaking to the PA news agency following Mr Sunak’s statement on Thursday, Ms Inglis said: “Although yesterday’s announcements were very welcome and will make a difference, I’d be lying if I said it was enough.

“I’m sure most in my position will be the same. We’ve been struggling for so long that a few hundred here or there is quickly swallowed up and just reduces the debt a little.

“I won’t feel a difference in my purse.”

Boris Johnson is rewriting the Ministerial Code to help him and his Ministers.

Dishonest, appalling and now allowing Ministers to be able to break the rules without resignation.

The sooner this rotten Tory Government is gone, the better. https://t.co/7WXzn5AWMN

Cleaners delivered a stinging rebuke to Boris Johnson’s government at a Downing Street protest on Friday evening, accusing the cabinet of looking “down on us like we’re the dirt that we clean.”

The protest was called after Sue Gray‘s report into illegal parties at Downing Street found that No 10 staff had treated cleaning and security staff “unacceptably” on several occasions.

Workers told The Independent that the problems with respect went beyond No 10 and raised issues of insecure, outsourced contracts and low pay.

‘They look down on us’: Protesters outside No 10 say cleaners need respect

The Archbishop of Canterbury has said it would have been “cowardly” not to have spoken out against the plan to send failed asylum seekers to Rwanda.

Asked why he waded into the affair, the archbishop told Channel 4: “There is a very strong moral and ethical component to the discussion.”

He added: “The main point I was making, and it was carefully not personalised, is let’s look forward and say whatever happens with the prime inister or political figures is a matter for politicians, so it wasn’t commenting on that in any way at all.

“What it was saying is one of the things the Sue Gray report shows us is a need for a renewal of the default reactions within our institutions so that the default reaction when someone says the rules were x but we’ll do y is to say, ‘It would be lovely to do it but it is not a good idea.’

“It is a systematic problem in many institutions, including the Church of England.”

Labour MP Emma Hardy has accused Boris Johnson of “laughing” at the British public after he ripped rules on ministers resigning over misbehaviour earlier today

Posing on Twitter today, the MP for Hull West and Hessle wrote: “He’s laughing at us. He thinks the rules don’t apply to him. He thinks he can get away with it. Honourable Conservative MPs must act to remove him.”

He’s laughing at us.

He thinks the rules don’t apply to him.

He thinks he can get away with it.

Honourable Conservative MPs must act to remove him. https://t.co/0i4dSkENcW

According to The Independent’s chief political commentator, today’s wave of submissions to the 1922 committee brings the total number of potential letters of no confidence in the PM to 60.

John Rentoul writes: “Kearns takes total potential letter-writers to 60

Kearns takes total potential letter-writers to 60

• Say they’ve sent letter to 1922 Cttee chair – 13

• Say they’ve withdrawn letter – 2

• Called for PM to go but not confirmed letter – 13

• Won’t say if they have sent letter – 3

• Criticised PM – 29https://t.co/Uu6gSCmRs0

Oil giant Shell has questioned the UK’s move not to allow its green investment to count towards the tax relief it will get from the new windfall tax.

Shell had originally seemed to welcome the new system after it was announced on Thursday.

It said that a tax relief that could give it 91p back for every £1 it invested in the UK was “a critical principle in the new levy.”

But bosses now appear to have some new thoughts on the way the relief works.

“In its current form the levy creates uncertainty about the investment climate for North Sea oil and gas for the coming years,” it said.

“And, longer term, the proposed tax reliefs for investment don’t extend to the renewable energy system we want to drive forward in the UK and invest in very substantially.

“When making plans for the next decade and beyond, we need certainty.”

Boris Johnson’s former chief aide has claimed he was not asked for evidence by the Metropolitan Police when they were investigating gatherings held in Whitehall during lockdown.

Dominic Cummings, who held the role of de facto chief of staff in Downing Street until his departure in November 2020, stated he also had not received a fine, despite Sue Gray’s report stating he attended two events.

Questioned by a journalist on Twitter if he received a Fixed Penalty Notice from the force, he replied: “No, didn’t even send a questionnaire or email asking for evidence.”

PM’s former top aide says he ‘was not sent questionnaire by Met’ over partygate

One Tory rebel who has submitted a letter of no confidence in the PM tells me: "This is 100 per cent not organised. It is a sign of the point we have got to."

“Good, hard-working and law-abiding Conservatives feel ashamed” by Boris Johnson’s complicity in the string of lockdown-breaking parties held in No 10, a Tory MP has said.

Alice Kearns, MP for Rutland and Melton, who had already said in January that Mr Johnson no longer enjoys her confidence, also accused the prime minister of having “contempt and disregard” for the many sacrifices made by her constituents and the wider British public over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Posting on Facebook this afternoon, Ms Kearns said: “It is wrong that families were banned from saying goodbye to their dying loved ones, whilst the prime minister was complicit in the holding of many goodbye parties for his staff, which we now know displayed a complete disregard for restrictions and were complete with vomiting, fighting and bullying.”

She adds: “This protracted affair has brought our government and my party into disrepute. It has made good, hard-working and law-abiding Conservatives feel ashamed and has been a complete distraction from the many challenges we should be focused on at this difficult time.

“There are broader issues with the culture that breeds under this regime in Parliament, from the shameful lengths some will pursue to preserve this premiership, to some of the individuals and actions permitted to continue under it.

“My position remains unchanged since January, and the prime minister continues not to hold my confidence.”

Ms Kearns’ statement is available to read in full here.

Rishi Sunak should scrap an estimated £200 million “loophole” that allows wealthy owners of second homes to receive multiple energy rebates, Labour’s shadow chancellor has said.

In an interview with The Independent, Rachel Reeves claimed the system’s design was a result of the chancellor’s support package being “cobbled together at the last minute” and amid damaging Partygate headlines.

After the extraordinary U-turn to impose a windfall tax, Ms Reeves also hit out at the inclusion of a tax relief measure for energy companies investing further in fossil fuel extraction — describing it as a “get out of jail card”.

Our political correspondent Ashley Cowburn has this exclusive report:

Sunak told to scrap £200m ‘loophole’ giving second homes multiple energy rebates

Former minister Sir Bob Neill has become the 12th Conservative MP to submit a letter of no confidence in Boris Johnson’s leadership.

The Bromley and Chislehurst MP said that this week’s Partygate report by senior civil servant Sue Gray had uncovered “wholly unacceptable” behaviour within 10 Downing Street which had undermined trust in government.

And he said: “Trust is the most important commodity in politics, but these events have undermined trust in not just the office of the prime minister, but in the political process itself. To rebuild that trust and move on, a change in leadership is required.”

Here’s more from our political editor Andrew Woodcock:

Another Tory MP declares no confidence in Boris Johnson’s leadership

Veteran Tory MP Sir Bob Neill has called for prime minister Boris Johnson to quit in the wake of Sue Gray’s report.

In a statement posted to his website, Sir Bob said that as those the “set the rules”, politicians have a “particular responsibility to stick to them ourselves.”

He continues: “Since the start of this episode, I have been very clear that I would wait for the conclusion of any police investigation and the publication of Sue Gray’s full report before making a judgement.

“My years as a lawyer have taught me not to come to conclusions without the fullest possible evidence. I have been equally clear that we cannot have one rule for those working in government and a different one for everyone else.”

Sir Bob adds: “Sue Gray’s report has highlighted a pattern of wholly unacceptable behaviour, spread over a number of months, by some working in 10 Downing Street, including breaking rules that caused real pain and hardship for many, and which the government, and we as parliamentarians, were telling others to live by.

“I have listened carefully to the explanations the Prime Minister has given, in Parliament and elsewhere, and, regrettably, do not find his assertions to be credible. That is why, with a heavy heart, I submitted a letter of no confidence to Sir Graham Brady on Wednesday afternoon.”

He concludes: “Trust is the most important commodity in politics, but these events have undermined trust in not just the office of the prime minister, but in the political process itself. To rebuild that trust and move on, a change in leadership is required.”

It looks likely Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer will not be fined for the so-called ‘Beergate’ event held in Durham in the spring of 2020, reports claim.

Sources told Mail Plus it is “highly unlikely” Sir Keir will face retrospective action unless a “game-changing smoking gun” emerges.

It comes after Sir Keir faced allegations from opponents that a beer-and-curry gathering in Durham in April last year breached lockdown rules.

Labour insisted the food was consumed between work events, meaning it was within the rules despite the ban on indoor socialising.

But the Labour leader faced fresh questions after a leaked memo suggested the takeaway was planned, with no further work apparently scheduled after dinner.

The PM’s former chief aide Dominic Cummings has said he was not asked for evidence by the Metropolitan Police when they were investigating the lockdown-busting gatherings held in Downing Street.

Mr Cummings, who held the role of de facto chief of staff in No 10 until his departure in November 2020, stated he also had not received a fine, despite Sue Gray’s report stating he attended two events.

Asked by a journalist on Twitter if he had received a fixed penalty notice from the force, he replied: “No, didn’t even send a questionnaire or email asking for evidence.”

no, didnt even send a questionnaire or email asking for evidence

The Met Police, which has always stated it would not name those who were fined or sent questionnaires due to national guidance, declined to comment to The Independent’s request.

Boris Johnson has today rewritten his own foreword to the ministerial code, removing all reference to honesty, integrity, transparency and accountability.

He is downgrading standards and debasing the principles of public life before our very eyes. 👁https://t.co/wsXOEpb4dm

The best definition of conservatism I ever heard was only change things if you are 100% certain you will make an improvement. There is always the potential to make things worse......https://t.co/pIOcRUOlwu

The new ministerial code is a disgrace. It means that the tiny semblance of accountability disappears. If you break the rules just rewrite the rule book is the motto of this despicable government.

S̶e̶l̶f̶l̶e̶s̶s̶n̶e̶s̶s̶ Selfishness

̶I̶n̶t̶e̶g̶r̶i̶t̶y̶ Deceit

̶O̶b̶j̶e̶c̶t̶i̶v̶i̶t̶y̶ Prejudice

̶A̶c̶c̶o̶u̶n̶t̶a̶b̶i̶l̶i̶t̶y̶ Irresponsibility

̶O̶p̶e̶n̶n̶e̶s̶s̶ Secrecy

̶H̶o̶n̶e̶s̶t̶y̶ Lies

̶L̶e̶a̶d̶e̶r̶s̶h̶i̶p̶ Cowardice

A stain on our democracy.

According to reports, Boris Johnson’s deputy chief of staff David Canzini told 60 Conservative ‘red wall’ MPs to prepare for general election in Autumn 2023 at a secret away day on Wednesday.

EXCLUSIVE: Boris Johnson's deputy chief of staff David Canzini tells 60 Conservative 'red wall' MPs to prepare for general election in Autumn 2023 at a secret away day on Wednesday.

More in today's Chopper's Politics Newsletter. 👇👇

Sign up: https://t.co/yT597dTjrE pic.twitter.com/7ElHqtknwj

Outlining the difference between Labour’s policy and the Conservatives’ policy on tax and spending, the prime minister said his party’s policy is “much more generous”.

Boris Johnson told journalists during a visit to Stockton-on-Tees: “It’s very simple.

“When it comes to this particular policy, what it does, for instance, is it’s much more generous, this gives £1,200 for eight million households.

“What it also does is the levy is designed so that companies can offset investments that they’re making in new energy supply or in green technology to the tune of 91p in the pound.

“So, what I’ve been saying for months and months, if you listen carefully to my answers, we want to have a solution that protects people, but also protects investments in our economy.

“Because as we come through this, the way to fix the problem of inflation in energy prices is also to have more sustainable energy supply in the UK.

“That’s why we’re moving to 50 gigawatts of wind, 25 gigawatts of nuclear and all the other investments that we’re making. We need the private companies to do the same.”

British MPs have demanded Boris Johnson’s government exert “maximum pressure” on Egypt to secure a consular visit for UK citizen Alaa Abdel-Fattah, who is nearly two months into a jail hunger strike, warning his situation is “dire and urgent”.

The fresh calls for help come after more than 30 MPs and peers wrote to Foreign Secretary Liz Truss last week urging her to push for his immediate release, claiming his treatment sets a “dangerous precedent” and and doing nothing could impact on the rights of all Britons abroad.

Our international correspondent Bel Trew reports:

‘Extremely urgent’: British MPs push government to help activist jailed in Egypt

Ministers who are found to have breached the Ministerial Code will no longer automatically be expected to resign or face the sack, according a new Government policy statement.

The statement said it would be “disproportionate” to expect a minister to lose their job for “minor” breaches of the code.

It said the Prime Minister could instead order “some form of public apology, remedial action or removal of ministerial salary for a period”.

It said revised terms of reference for the Prime Minister’s independent adviser on the code, Lord Geidt, include an “enhanced process” to allow him to initiate investigations with the Prime Minister’s consent, although the final decision rests with the Prime Minister.

“Reflecting the Prime Minister’s accountability for the conduct of the executive, it is important that a role is retained for the Prime Minister in decisions about investigations,” the statement said.

The statement comes as Boris Johnson is facing an investigation by the Commons Privileges Committee into whether he misled Parliament over lockdown parties in Whitehall.

Government ministers will no longer be expected automatically to resign or be sacked if they breach their code of conduct, under changes announced by Boris Johnson.

Andrew Woodcock, our political editor, reports:

PM waters down ministers’ code to end automatic sack for misconduct

“Rishi Sunak’s “not an emergency Budget” was more significant than expected, both economically and politically. Ignore the claims the timing had nothing to do with Partygate; of course it did. At various points, I was told the cost-of-living package would come in August, then July, then June.

“Boris Johnson had every reason to change the music on the day after Sue Gray’s final report. Ofgem, the energy regulator, provided some cover by predicting the hike in domestic bills in October, but Johnson would surely have insisted on a diversion even without it,” writes Andrew Grice.

The impact of Rishi Sunak’s ‘mini Budget’ has been ruined by Partygate| Andrew Grice

Rishi Sunak’s energy bills support will hand wealthy pensioners £850 that they may not need while low-income families miss out, new analysis has shown.

A £15bn package of grants unveiled by the chancellor on Thursday will deal out “rough justice” to some groups, the Resolution Foundation said.

The think tank said that the biggest winners are wealthy pensioners while larger families will see their bills rises most steeply but still receive the same flat-rate paynment.

My colleague Ben Chapman has more:

Sunak hands wealthy pensioners £850 while poor families lose out, analysis show

The Conservative candidate for the upcoming Tiverton and Honiton by-election has been ordered not to speak to the media by senior party officials because they fear she will be asked about partygate, insiders say.

Parish councillor Helen Hurford has been selected to fight the seat after former Tory MP Neil Parish resigned following revelations that he had twice watched pornography in parliament.

But the former headteacher is said to have been told not to speak to press – because CCHQ think she will struggle to deal with questions about Boris Johnson’s lockdown lawbreaking.

Colin Drury has more details:

Tory by-election candidate ‘told not to speak to media because of partygate’

Britain’s 1m unpaid carers are facing a real-terms cut to their income of more than £200 after being excluded from Rishi Sunak’s cost-of-living package, Liberal Democrats have warned.

With the carer’s allowance increasing by just 3.1 per cent from £67.60 a week to £69.70, rocketing inflation means claimants are taking a combined hit of £193m this year, after inflation of 9 per cent is taken into account, the party said.

Our political editor Andrew Woodcock reports:

Carers ‘facing £200 cut to income’ after being left out of Sunak cost-of-living help

Boris Johnson has said his situation is “different” to Rishi Sunak after the chancellor confirmed he would be donating his £400 energy bill rebate to charity.

As part of the emergency cost-of-living package, the chancellor announced each household will get the £400 energy discount that will be partly funded by a £5 billion windfall tax on oil and gas giants.

Mr Sunak, who last week appeared on The Sunday Times Rich List with his wife Akshata Murty for the first time with their joint £730 million fortune, was questioned about what would happen to his £400 grant.

He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “I’m sure you will join me in giving that money to charity.”

But when questioned if he would be following suit and donating his grant money, the Prime Minister said it works differently for him.

He told reporters during a visit to Stockton-on-Tees: “I think my arrangements are different because I live in a Government flat.

“But I think it’s important that people should recognise these payments will not necessarily cover the increased costs fully.

“We can’t cover every single cost that people are going to pay, we’ve got to be realistic about that.

“However, they will go a long way towards helping people.”

Martin Lewis has said he just tries to “call it straight” as he hit back at critics who accused him of being a “sell out” after praising Rishi Sunak‘s package of measures to help with the cost of living crisis.

The Money Saving Expert has in recent months been highly critical of the chancellor and the government more broadly for not doing enough to help people with rising fuel, food and energy bills.

But Mr Lewis said on Thursday that he welcomed the series of measures announced by the chancellor in parliament earlier in the day, which included a £400 cut to energy bills for every household in the UK, Matt Mathers writes.

Martin Lewis hits back at claims he’s ‘sold out’ over Rishi Sunak cost of living plan

The British chancellor announced a host of new measures this week following criticism the government wasn’t doing enough.

My colleague Zoe Tidman has a list of all that is available at the moment to help easy the financial burden:

All the cost of living help available and how to get it including £400 bill discount

Boris Johnson has described yesterday’s multi-billion pound package of support for households struggling with the cost of living crisis as a “big bazooka”.

But he added that he was “not going to pretend this is going to fix everything for everybody immediately”.

And he rejected the idea the move would be inflationary. “I don’t think will lead to more discretionary spending as people’s outgoings have been going up already,” he said.

Tory MP Paul Holmes has resigned as an aide to Home Secretary Priti Patel, saying the Sue Gray report into Partygate has exposed a “deep mistrust” in government (Alastair Jamieson writes).

It is the first resignation since the publication of the civil servant’s final report into Covid rule-breaking parties in Downing Street.

The Eastleigh MP said it was clear a “toxic culture [seems] to have permeated Number 10”.

Tory MP quits as government aide over ‘toxic culture’ at No10

Rishi Sunak’s energy bills support will hand wealthy pensioners £850 that they may not need while low-income families miss out, new analysis has shown (Ben Chapman writes).

A £15bn package of grants unveiled by the chancellor on Thursday will deal out “rough justice” to some groups, the Resolution Foundation said.

The think tank said that the biggest winners are wealthy pensioners while larger families will see their bills rises most steeply but still receive the same flat-rate paynment.

Sunak hands wealthy pensioners £850 while poor families lose out, analysis show

Rishi Sunak headed to a Watford branch of B&Q yesterday to promote his cost of living support package.

It is not uncommon for a minister to announce a policy then head for a photo-op, though the choice of location tends to be more obviously relevant to the announcement.

When the chancellor announced the council tax rebate to help with energy bills in February he headed to a community centre in north London to meet ordinary families.

Yesterday I met staff and customers at Treasury Connect @BandQ Watford to discuss how our new £15bn cost of living support package will help families.

Today we've launched a new website where you can find all the support available in one place: https://t.co/gSPUx9RqXU pic.twitter.com/D3BgZBbNEZ

Rishi Sunak has set out his rescue package to help with the cost of living crisis, with one of the main takeaways being that every UK household will get at least £400 off their energy bills.

The story dominates the news agenda for the second day in a row and splashes the front of most major papers and news websites, whose coverage of the package of measures is broadly split between those who favour it and those who would have preferred tax cuts and less government spending.

My colleague Matt Mathers has more:

Inside Politics: Rishi to the rescue

Conservative Treasury financial secretary Lucy Frazer was questioned this morning on how many taxes the Tory government has raised.

Watch the full clip here:

'If you don't know the answer, you can say.'

Eddie Mair presses Tory Treasury Financial Secretary Lucy Frazer for an answer on how many taxes the Government has raised.@eddiemair | @lucyfrazermp pic.twitter.com/X6zkZy22Eb