Starmer says UK strengthening defence partnership with Saudi Arabia as charities criticise human rights record – as it happened | Politics

• Keir Starmer has said it is “far too early” for the UK to consider unproscribing Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist group which has taken over Damascus. (See 5.38pm.)

• Starmer has agreed “a step change in defence partnership with Saudi Arabia today”, Downing Street has said. (See 3.42pm.) It issued the statement after Starmer’s meeting with the crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman. In a subsequent interview, Starmer said his visit to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia was primarily about boosting growth in the UK. He told broadcasters:

Last week I launched my plan for change and made it clear that economic growth in the UK is my number one mission, and I want that to be people feeling better off, living standards driven up across the United Kingdom, in all parts of the United Kingdom.

For that to happen we have to win contracts and investment around the world, and UAE and Saudi Arabia are key partners of ours.

So I’ve been making the case that now’s the time for further investment into our country.

• Pat McFadden, the Cabinet Office minister, has said he would like to see “innovators and disrupters” working for the civil service. (See 11.42am.) He made the comment in a speech in which he also said the government would “rewire” the way Whitehall works by getting officials to adopt a tech startup-style “test and learn culture”. (See 9am.)

A Conservative housing spokesperson has suggested the government is “tinkering” with planning decision-making, instead of “getting developers developing and builders building” new homes, PA Media reports.

After ministers unveiled proposals to let some developers swerve town hall committees before they build (see 3.17pm), David Simmonds said the 4% of applications that elected councillors considered themselves were the ones where “the local democratic voice is so relevant”. Housing minister Matthew Pennycook said Simmonds’s party had “torpedoed” housing supply when they were in power.

In a Commons urgent question on the plans, Simmonds said:

Given the huge increase in the housing planning permissions granted under the previous government, when does the government now intend to start work on getting developers developing and builders building, rather than tinkering with a democratic system that’s already delivered more than a million homes with consent in England already?

He also said during his question that with 96% of planning applications determined by council staff already, “it is that 4% to which the local democratic voice is so relevant”.

Pennycook replied:

It’s quite rich hearing from [Simmonds] crow about planning permissions in the system. We’re experiencing the lowest planning permission and completions in a decade as a result of the party opposite’s changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) made in December 2023 that have torpedoed supply and hit growth across this country.

He also said the announcement was “just the latest in a series of working papers on planning reform, and it’s explicitly designed to kick-start engagement before we launch a formal Government consultation on a more detailed proposition”.

As PA reports, Pennycook described three proposals which he said could “streamline local planning decision-making” across England: a national scheme setting out which types of planning applications should be determined by a committee of elected councillors and which by employed officers; new dedicated committees for strategic development “to dedicate energy to the most significant projects”; and mandatory training for elected decision makers.

He said that although just 4% of applications came before councillors’ committees, these represented some of the largest plans and therefore a “substantial portion of total units in the planning process”.

The UK has paused decisions on Syrian asylum claims due to the uncertainty following the collapse of the Bashar Assad regime, PA Media reports. A Home Office spokesman said:

The Home Office has paused decisions on Syrian asylum claims whilst we assess the current situation.

We keep all country guidance relating to asylum claims under constant review so we can respond to emerging issues.

This morning Pat McFadden, the Cabinet Office minister, said that the government would be considering whether Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist group which has taken over Damascus, should remain proscribed in the UK as a terrorist organisation. At the No 10 lobby briefing the PM’s spokesperson said the government did not routinely comment on matters like this. (See 2.03pm.) Now Keir Starmer has said it is “far too early” to consider this.

Speaking to journalists in Saudi Arabia, he said:

No decision is pending at all on this, it is far too early.

At the moment the focus has to be on talking to our allies, making sure that this is an opportunity for Syria and therefore we have to work to make sure that this is a peaceful opportunity.

Labour at risk of losing control of Edinburgh council after minority administration leader resigns over sexting allegations

Severin Carrell

Cammy Day, the leader of Labour’s minority administration in Edinburgh, has quit after being accused of bombarding several Ukrainian female refugees with sexually suggestive messages about meeting for dates.

The allegations emerged over the weekend in the Times and Sunday Mail after Police Scotland confirmed they were investigating allegations that Day has sexted the women using social media.

Day denied any wrongdoing and said he would cooperate fully with the police and council investigations, but his resignation will trigger a battle for control over Edinburgh’s administration.

Day became council leader, despite leading the third largest political group, after brokering a deal with the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives to block the Scottish National party from taking control despite being the largest party on the council.

In a statement, Day said:

The recent commentary on my personal life is detracting from the important work this Labour-led council does for the people of Edinburgh. It undermines the dedicated efforts of my colleagues and council officers.

That’s why it’s time for me to step aside as leader. I have yet to be contacted by the police, but want to reiterate that I will cooperate fully with their ongoing inquiries.

I am hugely proud of what we’ve achieved for the capital during my time as leader and truly believe that Edinburgh is a better, fairer city as a result.

David Lammy, the foreign secretary, is making a statement to MPs now about Syria.

He says that, when Labour took office, people asked if the government would start to re-engage with Syria. Other governments were starting to do this, he says.

But Lammy says the UK government refused – because Bashar al-Assad was a “monster”, a “dictator’ and a “butcher”.

Lammy says Assad is now filing for asylum in Russia. But he says Assad’s demise is “no guarantee of peace”. This is “a moment of danger” as well as a moment of opportunity, he says.

Lammy says Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist group that has taken over the country, will be judged “by their actions”, including how they deal with civilians.

He is implying that the government won’t rush into deciding that they should no longer be proscribed as a terrorist group.

He says the British government wants to focus on protecting civilians, and pushing for “an inclusive, negotiated political settlement”.

And he says illicit finance played a role in supporting Assad’s regime. He says the government has appointed an anti-corruption champion to help address the problem of illicit finance.

Here are the key points from Rachel Reeves’ speech to eurozone finance ministers. (I’ve left the punctation as it is in the official version.)

In the long-run, Brexit is expected to cause UK trade intensity to fall by 15%…

… and with goods exports between both the UK and EU continuing to remain below 2018 levels, this is impacting UK and EU economies alike.

I know from speaking to business that they want to see trade barriers reduced….

…And so, the reset in relations is about doing what is in the best interests of our shared economies.

Trade intensity is not the same as the volume of trade. It is a means of measuring trade as a share of GDP. The 15% figure is not a new one (the OBR has been quoting it for some time) but in the past Reeves has not always been keen to highlight the downsides of Brexit for fear of sounding too much like a remainer.

We intend to build on those agreements to reflect our mutual interests.

And we will be more ambitious in taking practical steps to strengthen our economic relationship, benefiting both the UK and the EU.

Closer cooperation too on financial services is a great example of strength through openness…

… with the EU-UK Financial Services Regulatory Forum due to meet for the third time early next year.

Across Europe, we need to unlock private capital to invest in future growth.

The UK has deep global capital markets that can fund the growth that economies across the continent need…

…vital to help all our industries and innovative entrepreneurs access finance, grow and stay in Europe.

And we must work together, because the reality is that our financial markets are highly interconnected….

…and collectively ensuring financial stability is a prerequisite for economic growth.

As well as a closer partnership on defence and security…

…I believe we must continue to make the case together for a crucial principle…

…the importance of free, open trade.

Of course, it would be naïve in today’s world to try to go back to the world of hyper-globalisation.

The shocks we have endured in recent years show that we have become too exposed to supply chain disruptions, disease and conflict.

But at the same time, it would be a profound mistake to abandon free trade.

Our citizens benefit significantly from all the investment, innovation, and lower prices that free trade brings.