Bioreports

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Federal police said Friday that some of the human remains found deep in Brazil’s Amazon have been identified as belonging to British journalist Dom Phillips.

The remains of two people were found Wednesday near the city of Atalaia do Norte after fisherman Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, 41, nicknamed Pelado, confessed he killed Phillips, 57, and Brazilian Indigenous expert Bruno Pereira, 41.

He told officers he used a firearm to commit the crime and led police to a spot in the remote forest to locate the remains.

Police announced the forensic identification of Phillips’ remains in a statement. They still have not identified Pereira’s remains.

The discovery ended more than a week of searching for the missing pair.

BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Friday that it’s “absolutely necessary” for some leaders to talk directly to Russian President Vladimir Putin amid efforts to end the war in Ukraine, and he and France’s president will continue to do so.

Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron have held several telephone conversations with Putin, separately and together, since Russia’s invasion began on Feb. 24. Those contacts have drawn some criticism — including from Poland’s president, who said recently that they achieve nothing and serve only to .imize the Russian leader.

“It is absolutely necessary to speak to Putin, and I will continue to do so — as the French president will also,” Scholz told German news agency dpa in an English-language video interview a day after he, Macron and the leaders of Italy and Romania held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv.

“There are some countries needed, and some leaders needed, that speak to him — and it is necessary that they are clear,” Scholz told dpa.

“When I speak to Putin I say, for instance, the same things I said to you,” he added. “Please understand that there will be no dictate(d) peace, and if you really believe that you will rob some land and then hope that the times will change and all the things will become normal again, this is a mistake.”

He said his message is that “you have to withdraw your troops and you have to find an agreement with Ukraine which is acceptable and right for the people of Ukraine.”

During Thursday’s visit to Kyiv, Scholz and his fellow leaders pledged support for Ukraine’s candidacy eventually to join the European Union. On Friday, the EU’s executive Commission recommended making Ukraine a membership candidate, something all the bloc’s 27 existing members will have to approve.

“We will have to find a common approach, but I’m quite optimistic that we will be able to manage this,” Scholz said.

___

Follow AP’s coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

The Salisbury poisonings happened after Britain dropped its guard against Vladimir Putin, Gordon Brown has said.

The former prime minister told The Telegraph Magazine that potential targets of the Russian leader were given protection “for possibly years” after Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned in London, but that vigilance levels eventually dropped.

Ten years after Litvinenko was murdered, Russian assassins were able to slip into the UK and make an unsuccessful attempt to murder Sergei Skripal, a former KGB double agent, and his daughter, Yulia. Another woman, Dawn Sturgess, died when she was unwittingly exposed to the nerve agent they had used.

Mr Brown said he had been “under no illusions about what Mr Putin was like” after their first meeting in 2006, when the Russian deliberately made the then chancellor sit in a lower seat than him for a meeting in the Kremlin.

Referring to the death of Litvinenko, a Russian dissident who was poisoned with radioactive polonium-210 in London in November 2006, Mr Brown said he was certain the attack had been authorised by Putin, even though the official report into the killing said it was only “most likely” ordered from the Kremlin.

Warned by security officials that more Putin-sanctioned assassinations were expected, Mr Brown said Britain protected people thought to be “on his list” for years afterwards.

Although Mr Brown does not know whether the Skripals were among those given protection, he said their poisoning with novichok nerve agent happened “when the guard dropped”.

Mr Brown made it clear that no blame should be attached to the police or security services, but said: “You have got to be eternally vigilant about the threat that Putin poses on your domestic soil.”

He added: “The only thing Putin understands is strength. Weakness he will exploit; he’s opportunistic to the nth degree.”

Mr Brown has called for a special tribunal to indict Putin with the crime of aggression, which would be able to act more swiftly than the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Mr Brown said: “I first met Putin in 2006 at the Kremlin, when I was still chancellor. I was put in a very low seat so that I was looking up at him. He’s certainly a relatively small man, and he wears these stacked heels.

“He took out these index cards, and proceeded to read out all this information he had about me, as though he wanted to prove that he knew more about me than I knew about myself.

“So when people say that Putin’s changed and is only now threatening, I can tell you that he was threatening me even then. I was under no illusions about what Putin was like.”

The Kremlin meeting happened just months before the murder of Litvinenko, a former Russian intelligence officer who served in the FSB, the successor organisation to the KGB.

A British inquiry in 2016 named two Russian spies, Dmitry Kovtun and Andrey Lugovoy, as the likely assassins and concluded the murder was “probably approved by Mr [Nikolai] Patrushev, then head of the FSB, and also by President Putin”. Russia rejected Britain’s extradition requests for both men.

Kovtun died in Moscow in June this year having contracted Covid-19. Mr Lugovoy became a Russian MP in December 2007, a position that enjoys parliamentary immunity from prosecution.

Mr Brown said: “Although the official report concluded it was ‘most likely’ [Putin], I was sure from the information I got that not only had Putin authorised it but that he was about to conduct more assassinations. So we protected the people we knew were on his list for possibly years afterwards.

“It was only when the guard dropped, 10 years later you had Salisbury.”

Mr Brown warned that repeated failure to stand up to Putin’s increasingly aggressive actions had partly led to the war in Ukraine.

The invasion of Crimea, which took place on then-prime minister David Cameron’s watch, “allowed Putin to think he might get away with further incursions”, Mr Brown said.

Equally, the failure of the US to act on the use of chemical weapons in Syria after Barack Obama, the former president, warned Syria’s Bashar al-Assad that the use of such weapons would cross a “red line” was taken by Putin to show the limits of western foreign policy appetites amid complicated military actions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“We pulled away, we didn’t take action,” Mr Brown said. “Putin saw a weakness in our response. Our mistakes started then.”

A soldier from the Democratic Republic of Congo has been killed by police in neighbouring Rwanda after he crossed the border and began shooting, Rwandan officials have said.

The incident comes amid rising tensions between the two countries.

DR Congo accuses Rwanda of backing Congolese rebels and has halted all trade and cooperation agreements.

Rwanda has denied supporting the M23 rebel group, which this week seized control of the border town Bunagana.

On Friday morning, the Congolese soldier, armed with an AK-47, was shot dead 25 metres into Rwanda after he opened fire on security personnel and civilians injuring two police officers, a statement from Rwanda’s army said.

A Rwandan policeman shot back in self-defence killing the soldier, it added.

DR Congo officials have confirmed an “incident” but have not given any details, the AP news agency reports.

When the soldier was brought back into the nearby Congolese city of Goma, people surrounded the ambulance chanting “hero, hero”, the Reuters news agency says.

Pictures from the scene show hundreds of people following the vehicle.

Earlier in the week in the city, an anti-Rwanda demonstration resulted in the looting of Rwandan-owned shops.

On Monday, after the capture of Bunagana, the Congolese government accused its neighbour of “invading”.

Spokesperson Patrick Muyaya told the BBC’s Focus on Africa radio programme that two Rwandan soldiers had been captured on the Congolese side, which “is evidence that Rwanda is supporting this movement”.

“We don’t want a war with [Rwanda], we don’t want to fight with them, but we are taking measures in order to pressure the Rwandan government,” Mr Muyaya said.

The authorities have also closed the border crossings with Rwanda between 15:00 and 06:00 local time.

Rwanda has said it is not supporting the M23 and has made counter-accusations against DR Congo.

The ethnic Tutsi-led M23 group emerged in 2012 as one of a plethora of militia fighting in the mineral-rich east of DR Congo.

It brought havoc to the region, at one point briefly capturing Goma. At the time, the government and UN experts said Rwanda supported the M23 – a charge Rwanda denied. The Rwandan government is also dominated by ethnic Tutsis.

The M23 insurgency ended in 2013 but in recent months the group has re-emerged.

Tens of thousands of people have fled the fighting, which threatens to destabilise the wider region.

Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is the current head of the seven-member East African Community, has called for the deployment of a regional force to DR Congo to “enforce peace”.

Rwanda twice invaded its vast neighbour in the 1990s, sparking what was known as “Africa’s First World War”, in which millions of people lost their lives due to fighting and disease.

• Africa Live: More on this and other stories from the continent

• BBC Africa Daily podcast – Who are the M23?

• Find out more about DR Congo

• Find out more about Rwanda

• Biden told AP that Putin wanted the Finlandization of NATO by invading Ukraine.

• Putin instead got the “NATO-ization of Finland,” the president said.

• Russia’s invasion of Ukraine led Finland to break from a long history of neutrality and pursue NATO membership.

President Joe Biden in a new interview with the Associated Press said that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s goal of preventing NATO expansion by invading Ukraine backfired.

“The reason Putin said he was going to go in was because he didn’t want them to join NATO,” Biden said. “He wanted the sort of the Finlandization of NATO. He got the NATO-ization of Finland, instead.”

Finlandization is a term that refers to the state of relations between Finland and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. During that era, Finland agreed to remain neutral and militarily non-aligned in return for the USSR, its dominating neighbor, pledging not to invade. The Finns and Soviets fought a short but brutal war during World War II known as the Winter War, which saw Finland lose a significant chunk of its territory. Finland wanted to avoid another invasion and maintain its sovereigtny, which is why it agreed to remain neutral. That said, Moscow had a significant influence over Helsinki’s politics over the course of that period.

Finland became a NATO partner country after the collapse of the Soviet Union, but stopped short of pursuing full membership. But Russia’s unprovoked war of Ukraine rapidly changed that, and Finland — alongside Sweden, another historically neutral country — has moved to join NATO. The alliance is now working to add the Nordic countries to its ranks, but objections from Turkey have stalled the process. Any decisions on NATO enlargement require unanimous agreement from all current members, who pledge that an attack on one is an attack on all.

In the lead-up to the invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin demanded that the West agree to various security guarantees. This included permanently barring Ukraine and Georgia — another former Soviet republic Russia has invaded in recent history — from joining NATO. The alliance firmly rejected this demand, maintaining that its open-door policy was non-negotiable.

Finland and Sweden pursuing NATO membership is one of the more significant examples of the ways in which Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has backfired on Putin.

But that does not mean the war has not also been tough on the West, which rapidly came together to impose tough sanctions on Moscow in response to the invasion. The economic fallout from the conflict has raised questions as to whether the Western alliance can maintain the political will to continue its support for Kyiv and penalties against Moscow.

The war has caused a global oil crisis, and the rising gas prices — on top of high inflation — have placed pressure on Biden with midterms on the horizon late this year. But in the interview with the Associated Press, the president said that the consequences of supporting Kyiv were worth it.

“Gasoline went up…$1.25 right off the bat” when “Putin’s war started,” Biden said, adding “I made it clear with helping Ukraine, and organizing NATO to help Ukraine, that this was going to cost. There was going to be a price to pay for it.”

“This is not going to be cost-free” Biden said, but added that “the option of doing nothing was worse” and would have sowed “chaos in Europe.”

“What happens if the strongest power, NATO, an organizational structure we put together, walked away from Russian aggression of over 100,000 troops marching across a border to try to, to occupy and wipe out a culture of an entire people? What, then, then what happens? What happens next? What do we do next?” Biden said, suggesting that if the West had not stepped up then it would’ve raised the chances of Russia targeting other countries in the region.

Biden also suggested standing by as Russia invaded would’ve sent dangerous signals to China about Taiwan, as well as North Korea in terms of its nuclear ambitions.

“I’ve done foreign policy my whole career. I’m convinced that if we let Russia roll and Putin roll, he wouldn’t stop,” Biden said.

Read the original article on Business Insider

KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO – FRIDAY, 17 JUNE 2022, 20:00

Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that the Soviet Union is historical Russian territory.

Source: Putin at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum; video from the forum posted by RIA Novosti

Quote: “What is the Soviet Union? It’s historical Russia. As it happens, it ceased to exist. And I want to emphasise that in recent history we have always treated the processes of sovereignisation that have occurred in the post-Soviet area with respect.”

Details: Putin claimed that Russia has “brotherly” relations with Kazakhstan and is interested in strengthening those relations. “Who would ever think of spoiling relations with Kazakhstan?” he asked.

He also made it clear that there would have been no Russian aggression in Ukraine and no occupation of Crimea if there had been “good relations” and “partnership” between Ukraine and Russia.

Quote: “It would have been the same with Ukraine, absolutely. If we had had good allied relations, or at least a partnership between us, it would never have occurred to anybody…

And, by the way, there would have been no Crimea problem. Because if the rights of the people who live there, the Russian-speaking population, had been respected, if the Russian language and culture had been treated with respect, it would never have occurred to anybody to start all this.”

Background: The USSR comprised the present-day territories of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Lithuania, Moldova, Latvia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Armenia, Turkmenistan and Estonia.

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Britain can train Ukraine’s forces, Boris Johnson has said after he met with Volodymyr Zelensky on a surprise visit to Kyiv.

Mr Johnson confirmed Britain will offer Ukrainian forces a major training programme which would have the capacity to train as many as 10,000 soldiers every 120 days, using battle-proven British Army expertise.

“My visit today, in the depths of this war, is to send a clear and simple message to the Ukrainian people: the UK is with you, and we will be with you until you ultimately prevail,” he said.

“As Ukrainian soldiers fire UK missiles in defence of your nation’s sovereignty, they do so also in defence of the very freedoms we take for granted.

“That is why I have offered President Zelensky a major new military training programme that could change the equation of this war – harnessing that most powerful of forces, the Ukrainian determination to win.”

At a joint press conference, Mr Johnson resolved to give Ukraine “the strategic endurance that you will need” and pledged to intensify sanctions on Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

If accepted by Ukraine, the British scheme would see soldiers learn “battle-winning skills for the front line” in addition to basic medical and cyber-security training and counter-explosive tactics.

It would be in a similar vein to Operation Orbital, which saw the UK train more than 22,000 personnel between 2015, the year after the Russian annexation of Crimea, and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February.

Posting a photograph of him with President Zelensky on Twitter as he confirmed the visit, Mr Johnson had written: “Mr President, Volodymyr. It is good to be in Kyiv again.”

​​Follow the latest updates below.

05:38 PM

Eliot Wilson: The Tories have a House of Lords problem on their hands

One of the signs of a government beset by malaise is the frequency of the unforced error, notes Eliot Wilson.

Eliot Wilson: The second chamber must be managed carefully

05:23 PM

Is Boris ‘burning through goodwill’?

Not everyone is as happy as Ben Houchen (see 4.59pm) about Boris Johnson’s no-show at the Northern Research Group conference in Doncaster in favour of his visit to meet President Zelensky in Doncaster.

A Northern Research Group source tells the Telegraph’s Associate Editor Christopher Hope: “Sadly, today’s events show the PM has no commitment to levelling up, his voters, or the North of England.

“He is burning through goodwill, and looks scared to come and engage with the very group who delivered for him during the vote.”

05:21 PM

Stop putting unions ahead of saving people’s lives, Sajid Javid tells Labour

Labour is putting support for unions before saving the lives of patients, the Health Secretary has said.

Writing to Wes Streeting, Sajid Javid said that his shadow counterpart was neglecting his duty to protect patients and NHS staff.

He wrote: “These strikes will put patients at risk. The disruption these strikes will cause will make it more difficult for doctors, nurses, carers and other healthcare staff to get into work.

“They will also make it harder for patients to come in to see them for much-needed treatments. Some of these patients will have had to book time off work to attend their appointments.”

Mason Boycott-Owen has the full story

05:03 PM

Pictured: PM and Zelensky’s talks and press conference

04:59 PM

Ukraine ‘absolutely more important’ than Red Wall

One of the most prominent ‘Red Wall’ Tories has defended Boris Johnson after he was criticised for missing today’s inaugural conference of the Northern Research Group of Conservative backbenchers.

Ben Houchen, the first ever directly-elected Mayor of the Tees Valley, wrote on Twitter: “To all the rubbish being spouted on Twitter at the moment, Ukraine’s fight against Russia is absolutely more important than the PM attending a conference of Red Wall Tory politicians.”

04:56 PM

PM suggests no peace talks until Russia fully expelled from Ukraine

Boris Johnson stressed Britain will give Ukraine “the strategic endurance that you will need” and pledged to intensify sanctions on Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

“We’re going to do everything we can to continue to strengthen the diplomatic coalition of support across the world for Ukraine. We’re going to work together to liberate the grain, as you rightly say, that is being held hostage right now by Putin, depriving people around the world of the food that they need.

“Of course, we will continue as we have from the beginning to provide the military equipment that you need, and now of course the training that may be necessary to go with that new equipment so that you, the Ukrainian people, the Ukrainian armed forces, will be able to do what I believe Ukrainians yearn to do, and that is to expel the aggressor from Ukraine.

“And that will be the moment for talks about the future. And it will be in that context of a free Ukraine that we and other countries will be making the security commitments and guarantees that we’ve discussed so often.”

04:52 PM

‘It’s good to see visitors from other European countries’

Speaking at a joint press conference with Volodymyr Zelensky, Boris Johnson said it is “great to see how life is coming back to the streets, to the restaurants, to the cafes – much livelier, I think, than a few weeks ago than you and I went on our impromptu walkabout, Volodymyr.

“It’s good to see visitors, let me put it this way, from other European countries coming too to Kyiv. But we’ve got to face the fact that only a couple of hours away a barbaric assault continues on entirely innocent people.

“Towns and villages are being reduced to rubble, and as you rightly say Volodymyr we continue to see the deliberate target of civilians in what is unquestionably a war crime, and in a hideous echo of the past the illegal deportation of people that the Russian forces believe are insufficiently sympathetic to Putin’s aggression.”

Mr Johnson saluted the “bravery of your armed forces” and said he “completely understand[s] why you and your people can make no compromise with Putin”.

04:33 PM

GCSE and A-level grades ‘will be the most generous ever’

GCSEs and A-levels this year will get the “most generous grades ever”, England’s chief exam regulator has said, despite the pledge to return to pre-pandemic grading standards.

Jo Saxton, the chief regulator of Ofqual, said that “grading this year will make sense for this year’s students”, adding that “results will reflect a staging post between 2021 and 2019”.

Speaking at the Confederation of School Trusts’ annual conference in Birmingham on Friday, Ms Saxton warned schools that they would see “lower” results than the 2021 teacher-assessed grades, but that they would be the highest “ever” since pre-pandemic grading.

​India McTaggart has the story

04:18 PM

President Zelensky writes on Telegram…

04:05 PM

What would training for Ukrainian troops look like?

If accepted by Ukraine, the British scheme would see soldiers learn “battle-winning skills for the front line” in addition to basic medical and cyber-security training and counter-explosive tactics.

Operation Orbital saw the UK train more than 22,000 personnel between 2015, the year after the Russian annexation of Crimea, and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February.

“The battle-winning skills taught during the seven-year programme enabled Ukrainian forces to launch a ferocious defence against Russia’s illegal and unprovoked invasion,” Downing Street said in a statement this afternoon. “The new programme would train forces outside of the country.”

It follows more than£1.3billion in humanitarian and economic support to Ukraine since February 24, including military aid.

03:56 PM

Breaking: UK confirms major training programme for Ukrainian forces

The United Kingdom will offer Ukrainian forces a major training programme, Downing Street has confirmed after Boris Johnson met with Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv earlier today.

Mr Johnson said the UK could facilitate a training scheme with the capacity to train as many as 10,000 soldiers every 120 days, using battle-proven British Army expertise.

If the offer were to be accepted by Ukraine, international partners would also be invited to host the programme.

Mr Johnson said: “My visit today, in the depths of this war, is to send a clear and simple message to the Ukrainian people: the UK is with you, and we will be with you until you ultimately prevail. As Ukrainian soldiers fire UK missiles in defence of your nation’s sovereignty, they do so also in defence of the very freedoms we take for granted.

“That is why I have offered President Zelensky a major new military training programme that could change the equation of this war – harnessing that most powerful of forces, the Ukrainian determination to win. Two months on from my last visit, the Ukrainian grit, determination and resilience is stronger than ever, and I know that unbreakable resolve will long outlive the vain ambitions of President Putin.”

03:38 PM

The Prime Minister tweets…

03:37 PM

The last time PM went to Ukraine

Boris Johnson also travelled to Kyiv in secret on April 9, when he had a meeting in the capital with Volodymyr Zelensky.

Mr Johnson was understood to have travelled late the night before “in a show of solidarity with the Ukrainian people”.

It came as he set out a new British package of military and financial aid, prompting Andriy Syibha, a Ukrainian presidential aide, to describe him as “the leader of the anti-war coalition [and] the leader of sanctions on the Russian aggressor”.

While that visit was announced by the Ukrainian embassy on Twitter, news of today’s was confirmed in a one-line update provided to the PA news agency.

03:33 PM

Breaking: Boris Johnson travels to Kyiv

Boris Johnson is understood to have travelled to Kyiv, a day after European Union leaders including Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz.

Mr Johnson’s visit, his second time to Ukraine since the Russian invasion, was confirmed by the PA news agency.

It comes after he met Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, back in April to pledge Britain’s unwavering support to the country.

03:26 PM

Cochrane’s Scotland: Running a remote island’s school just the ticket out of rail strikes

It was about 40 years ago that I missed what I now realise may have been the opportunity of a lifetime, writes Alan Cochrane.

I’d gone, with the now sadly departed John Downing – who would go on to become a world-famous war photographer – to write about life on Foula in Shetland, which is, alongside Fair Isle, one of Britain’s most remote and least inhabited bit of real estate.

We had flown in a tiny plane in which, because the weather was getting worse, we were told we’d have to fly out again within a few hours – a fact that didn’t give us much time at all. However, it was enough to work out that this was a magical place with a fascinating history.

And if you want to escape rail strikes? Or are anxious to avoid the resultant road congestion? Or can’t afford £100 to fill up your petrol tank? Or are fed up queuing in supermarkets for over-priced food? Then the solution is at hand. Foula is looking for a headteacher – indeed, its only teacher – for its school.

Read the full Cochrane’s Scotland column here

03:11 PM

Where is the Prime Minister?

The chairman of the Northern Research Group has said he does not know why Mr Johnson did not address Tory MPs and party members at an event in Doncaster earlier today.

Jake Berry, the MP for Rossendale and Darwen, said: “http://news.yahoo.com/”When you have the Prime Minister of your country who is going to come and attend your conference, which is brilliant, and he’s a huge supporter and has been in touch to wish us all the best.

“Occasionally things happen, which I understand will come out in the next hour about why he’s had to cancel the whole of his tour to the North of England today.”

It was 1pm when Mr Berry said the reason for the PM’s absence would be clarified “in the next hour”, although there is no word from Downing Street just yet.

02:55 PM

Transport inequality ‘must be confronted’

Improving transport in the north must be the “number one priority for levelling up,” the co-chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on ‘Left Behind’ has said.

“The disparity between transport investment in the north compared to the south must be confronted if we are to truly equalise opportunities for everyone in the UK,” Paul Howell said as he appeared at today’s Northern Research Group conference of Tory MPs.

“Investing in the North East’s transport infrastructure has been something I’ve championed since becoming the MP for the Sedgefield constituency.

“Investing in our transport networks is the number one priority for levelling up our great country.”

02:35 PM

Lift congestion charge for motorists during rail strike, Sadiq Khan told

A government minister has urged Sadiq Khan to lift the congestion charge in London and stop non-essential roadworks during next week’s rail strikes.

Paul Scully, the business minister, also said the industrial action “risks people’s livelihoods” at a “fragile” time for personal finances. Speaking on LBC, he said:

02:32 PM

Good afternoon

Dominic Penna here, taking you through the rest of this gloriously sunny afternoon in Westminster.

It seems Boris Johnson has more important matters on today after cancelling his by-election visit and Q&A session with Northern Tories.

Tony Diver, our Whitehall Correspondent, is told that all will be revealed shortly.

02:09 PM

PM cancels visits

Boris Johnson has cancelled a Wakefield by-election campaign visit and Q&A with Northern Tories today, writes Tony Diver, The Telegraph’s Whitehall Correspondent.

It sounds like the order came down from the top last night and people in CCHQ and No 10 are baffled.

Today had been marked out in the No 10 grid as “LEADERSHIP”.

02:00 PM

We underestimated inflation, admits Bank of England

A top Bank of England official has admitted that the central bank underestimated inflation, but insisted it wasn’t behind the curve in tackling the surge in prices.

Huw Pill, the Bank’s chief economist, said: “In the sense of the outcome of our forecasts, yes we have underestimated inflation.”

It comes after the Monetary Policy Committee increased its estimates for peak inflation to just above 11pc – the eighth time in a year it’s been forced to change its forecasts.

You can read the latest here.

01:58 PM

Poll: Has Lord Geidt’s resignation damaged PM?

01:12 PM

Fuel duty is most wanted tax cut

There is a clear frontrunner when it comes to the tax people would most like to see cut: Fuel duty.

A Redfield & Wilton Strategies poll for The Telegraph conducted on June 15 found 44 per cent of people said fuel duty is the tax they would most like to see reduced.

In second place was income tax with 19 per cent and in third place was VAT with 13 per cent.

12:55 PM

Poll: More people now view Tories as tax raising party

More people now associate the Tories with being a party that raises taxes rather than one that lowers them, a new poll has found in a fresh blow to Boris Johnson.

An exclusive survey for The Telegraph conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies found that 43 per cent of people now most associate the Tories with raising taxes while 19 per cent most associate the Conservative Party with lowering taxes.

The poll also showed that more people now associate Labour with lowering taxes than raising them.

Some 29 per cent of respondents said they most associate Labour with lowering taxes while 23 per cent said they associate the party with raising taxes.

The numbers are likely to prompt alarm bells in Conservative HQ because they suggest the Tories are at risk of losing their reputation as the party of lower taxes.

12:37 PM

No 10 defends review of ethics adviser role

Downing Street was asked at lunchtime if Boris Johnson agreed with John Penrose who said this morning that it would be a “big mistake” to scrap the role of the PM’s ethics adviser following the resignation of Lord Geidt. (see the post below at 08.35).

The Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman said: “The Prime Minister believes it is right to consider some of the issues that have been raised by both Lord Geidt and PACAC. It is right to consider those issues and reflect on them before taking a decision on how best to fulfil the PM’s commitment to ensure rigorous oversight of ministerial interests.”

12:32 PM

Government remains committed to income tax cut in 2024

Rishi Sunak announced in March this year that he intends to cut the basic rate of income tax by 1p in 2024.

There have been calls from some Tory MPs to bring that cut forward to help families struggling amid the cost-of-living crisis.

No 10 said at lunchtime that there are “no plans” to change the timetable.

The Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman said: “You will remember that the Chancellor has set that out. There is no plans to change that but obviously taxation is a matter for the Chancellor and the Treasury.”

12:28 PM

No 10 welcomes chance for UK to host Eurovision

The UK is set to host Eurovision in 2023 after broadcast bosses ruled that previous winner Ukraine was unable to stage the next song contest, with the BBC in talks over organising the event (you can read the full story here).

No 10 has welcomed the prospect of the UK hosting the competition.

The Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman said: “Ukraine’s victory in the Eurovision song contest was richly deserved and as the rightful winner the Government’s firm wish has been to see next year’s contest hoisted there.

“If the EBU decides that the competition can’t go ahead in Ukraine we would of course welcome the opportunity to work closely with Ukraine and the BBC to host it here in the UK.

“But we would be committed to ensuring it overwhelmingly reflects Ukraine’s rich culture, heritage and creativity as well as building on the ongoing partnership between our two countries.”

12:09 PM

‘We can’t intervene in negotiations’

Labour has repeatedly called for ministers to get involved in talks between the unions and train companies to avert the strikes.

Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, said on Wednesday that Boris Johnson “could do something to stop the strikes, but he has not lifted a finger”.

Asked if ministers could intervene, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman said: “As I have said, we are not the employer here and we can’t intervene in negotiations between rail companies and the unions.

“But ultimately what we would like to see is the unions call off their strikes, get back round the table with the rail companies.”

12:08 PM

No 10 rules out last-ditch bid to halt rail strikes

Downing Street has effectively ruled out a last-ditch intervention by ministers to halt disruptive rail strikes which are due to go ahead next week.

Strikes by the Rail, Maritime and Transport union on Network Rail and 13 train operators are set for June 21, 23 and 25 next week. There will also be a walkout on London Underground on the June 21.

The Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman said the Government continues to “call on the unions to call them off” but said ministers will not be intervening.

He said: “Obviously ministers remain close to the ongoing situation with regard to what are live discussions.

“But as we have made clear, we are not the employers in this case and we can’t intervene in the negotiations between rail companies and the unions.

“But what we want to see is unions get back round the table with their employer and call off the strikes next week.”

11:24 AM

Ukraine takes step closer to joining the EU

Ukraine has taken a step closer towards joining the EU after the European Commission recommended it to be granted candidate status to join the bloc.

The boost to Ukraine’s hopes of membership is laden with meaning in a country that turned defiantly westwards during the 2013 Euromaidan protests that toppled its pro-Russian president.

It will be a blow for Vladimir Putin, whose illegal invasion was an attempt to force Ukraine back into Moscow’s sphere of influence.

EU leaders are expected to approve Ukraine’s candidate status at next week’s European Council summit but with strict conditions.

You can read the full story here.

11:19 AM

Julian Assange: Priti Patel signs US extradition order

The Home Secretary has signed an order to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the United States, it was announced on Friday.

WikiLeaks called it a “dark day” for press freedom and British democracy.

You can read the full story here.

11:18 AM

Number of migrants crossing Channel passes 11,000

The number of people crossing the English Channel to reach the UK this year has now passed 11,000, the latest figures suggest.

Analysis of Ministry of Defence data shows 11,092 people have been brought to shore by Border Force or the RNLI after being rescued from small boats in the Channel.

It comes after 146 people on four small boats were brought to Britain yesterday. The daily number has been decreasing steadily throughout the week after a high of 444 on Tuesday. That was the highest number since 562 on April 14.

11:06 AM

Is being ‘boring’ a good or bad trait for a PM?

Among those people who said they agreed Sir Keir Starmer is “boring” (see the post below at 10.56), some 41 per cent said they believed it is a bad trait for a potential future prime minister.

Asked if being “boring” is a good or bad trait for a PM, some 29 per cent said bad and 12 per cent said very bad.

About one in five said it was a good or very good trait – nine per cent said very good and 12 per cent said good.

Some 37 per cent said it was neither good nor bad.

10:56 AM

Almost half of voters believe Sir Keir Starmer is ‘boring’

Reports earlier this week suggested Sir Keir Starmer had urged his shadow cabinet to stop telling journalists that he is “boring”.

An exclusive poll for The Telegraph has now found that 45 per cent of voters believe the Labour leader is “boring”.

The survey conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies found 18 per cent said they strongly agreed he is “boring” while 27 per cent said they agreed.

Just four per cent strongly disagreed and 14 per cent said they disagreed. Just under a third – 28 per cent – said they neither agreed nor disagreed.

10:30 AM

One in five believe Rwanda plan is ‘too relaxed’

The nation is split on whether Boris Johnson’s Rwanda policy is too tough, with one in five people actually of the view that the “offshoring” plan is “too relaxed”.

An exclusive poll of 2,000 people for The Telegraph, conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies, found almost one third of voters – 30 per cent – believe the approach is “about right”.

But 21 per cent said they believed it is “too relaxed” while 24 per cent said it is “too tough”.

A quarter of respondents were unsure.

10:21 AM

Poll: More people back Rwanda policy than oppose it

Just over four in 10 Britons – 42 per cent – support the Government’s Rwanda migrants policy, an exclusive poll for The Telegraph has found.

The survey, conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies on June 15, found that 20 per cent of people strongly support the policy while 22 per cent support it.

The policy is strongly opposed by 17 per cent of people and opposed by 11 per cent of people – a total opposition of 28 per cent.

Some 16 per cent of respondents said they neither supported nor opposed the policy.

10:10 AM

Prospect of scrapping ethics adviser role is ‘shocking’

The prospect of Downing Street potentially scrapping the role of ethics adviser to the PM is “shocking”, according to Sir Ed Davey.

The leader of the Liberal Democrats said the independent adviser on ministers’ interests should be made totally independent because upholding the ministerial code is “really critical”. The adviser is currently appointed by the PM and the PM has final say on matters relating to the code.

Sir Ed told Times Radio: “The idea that the Government isn’t going to reappoint an ethics adviser to oversee the ministerial code, I think it’s quite shocking.”

10:04 AM

PM is not ‘like most Conservatives’

Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, has claimed Boris Johnson is not “like most Conservatives”.

He told Times Radio: “I don’t think the Prime Minister is like most Conservatives, actually. I think most Conservatives try to do the right thing, the decent thing, this Prime Minister never has.

“I’m just shocked that Tory MPs A. put him there in the first place and B. allow him to continue when the evidence is overwhelming.”

09:55 AM

Sir Ed Davey: Families facing a ‘cocktail of problems’

Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, has warned families are facing a “cocktail of problems” as he repeated his calls for immediate tax cuts.

He told Times Radio: “It means a tax cut for people who are struggling. We’ve argued for an emergency cut in VAT of 2.5 per cent, that would deliver for the average household £600 in VAT tax cut.

“That’s needed, because people are struggling with rising food prices, petrol prices, interest rates. I mean, it’s a real cocktail of problems for families at the moment.”

Sir Ed said the Government’s help on the cost of living so far has been “poor” and not of the “right order”.

09:28 AM

Northern Ireland border row could take a ‘decade’ to resolve

David Davis, the former Brexit secretary, has warned it may take a decade to resolve the Northern Ireland border row between the UK and the EU.

Mr Davis told Politico that some Brexit benefits had not materialised because of disruption caused by the coronavirus crisis.

He said: “It’s largely recoverable. I mean, Ireland’s going to take a long time. It’s going to take a decade to get right, I think… maybe I’m wrong about a decade, but it’s going to take years.”

09:10 AM

‘There won’t be tax cuts now’

Paul Scully, the business minister, has categorically ruled out imminent personal tax cuts.

He told Sky News: “What I don’t want to do is write a Budget months ahead of a Budget. There won’t be tax cuts now because as I say any taxes are dealt with at a Budget in the autumn.

“There is so much to go until we get to the autumn and things can change in a number of ways.”

09:05 AM

‘We are not going to be able to save every business’

The Bank of England warned yesterday that inflation will climb to 11 per cent this year while Rishi Sunak indicated that he will not cut personal taxes until spiralling prices are brought under control (you can read the full story here).

The increasingly grim economic picture has prompted renewed scrutiny of what the Government is doing to help take the sting out of the cost-of-living crisis.

Paul Scully, the business minister, said the Government “can’t solve every problem” but will do “everything we can” to help people.

He told Sky News: “In terms of existing householders and people’s everyday bills, the Chancellor will look and respond accordingly.

“What we can’t do, he has already said, he’s absolutely right, the Government can’t solve every problem within this. We are not going to be able to save every business and work with everybody’s individual costs but we will do everything we can within the remit of keeping public finances tight as well.”

08:53 AM

MPs ‘should not have say’ on next ethics adviser

The Liberal Democrats have called for Parliament to be given a say on the appointment of the PM’s next independent adviser on ministers’ interests (if there is one).

Paul Scully, the business minister, rejected the idea this morning as he suggested Parliament should not be involved in the “day to day running” of the Government.

He told Sky News: “I think it is difficult because you then get into positions where government governs and parliament scrutinises that.

“Parliament will undoubtedly continue to debate this matter but I am not sure that that day to day running, the Government is beholden to Parliament in that sort of balance of power as it were. In our unwritten constitution I am not sure that is how it works.”

08:48 AM

Minister unsure if Lord Geidt will be replaced

Paul Scully, the business minister, was asked if there will be another ethics adviser appointed following the resignation of Lord Geidt.

He told Sky News: “That I don’t know. There is a number of questions that Lord Geidt has raised about the way that that system works and that is right that No 10 actually takes time to look at that and work that through. That will be for them to announce.”

Asked if anyone would actually want the job, Mr Scully said: “As I say, I think that is part of the consideration is how the system works.”

08:43 AM

Minister insists PM upholds ‘highest standards of his office’

Paul Scully, the business minister, is on the morning media round for the Government.

He was asked if he could say that he believes Boris Johnson upholds the “highest standards required of his office”.

He told Sky News: “Yeah, I can. I think he has been clear in his approach regarding the fine that he received.

“I think Lord Geidt seemed to have resigned on the discussion around when the Prime Minister asked him for advice for supporting our industries in the next few months.”

08:37 AM

Labour: PM ‘doesn’t have a moral backbone’

Emily Thornberry, the shadow attorney general, has claimed Boris Johnson “doesn’t have a moral backbone”.

Ms Thornberry was asked during an interview on LBC Radio if she believes voters care about Lord Geidt’s resignation.

She said: “I think people care that they have a Prime Minister who is dishonest and who is happy to break the rules and who doesn’t have a moral backbone, just doesn’t, and keeps losing ethics advisers because he is not ethical. I think that matters.”

She added: “What is important is that we have a Prime Minister who doesn’t seem to think that the rules apply to him and they do.”

08:36 AM

PM is ‘overdrawn’ with voters and MPs

John Penrose, the Government’s former anti-corruption tsar, said Boris Johnson is currently “overdrawn” with voters and MPs.

The senior Tory MP said the “parameters” of the role of independent adviser on ministers’ interests could be changed but the role itself should remain.

He told the BBC: “So by all means change the parameters but I don’t think you can weaken it, particularly at the moment.

“I just think the Prime Minister is currently overdrawn, if I can put it that way, on his account with both the voters and with the Parliamentary party.

“They need to show that they are serious about this. This is part of the reset, I would argue, which the Prime Minister has rightly said he wants to do after last week’s vote of no confidence, good for him. This would be a good way of being part of that then moving it forward.”

08:35 AM

Scrapping ethics adviser role would be ‘big mistake’

Downing Street said yesterday that the role of ethics adviser could be scrapped following the resignation of Lord Geidt.

John Penrose, the Government’s former anti-corruption tsar, said this morning the PM would be making a “big mistake” if he does abolish the role.

He told the BBC: “Well, I think that that would be potentially quite a big mistake. The point here is that you can obviously, and if they felt it was sensibly it might be useful to look at it, you can obviously change the role a bit but you shouldn’t be weakening the role if you are going to come up with a revised version as a successor to Lord Geidt, some new format, some new way of dealing with the issue.”

08:34 AM

Good morning

Good morning and welcome to today’s politics live blog.

Downing Street is facing a backlash after it said yesterday that the role of the PM’s ethics adviser could be scrapped following Lord Geidt’s resignation.

Tory MPs have warned against the move and No 10 is under pressure to appoint a replacement as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, ministers are also facing calls to do more to help tackle the cost-of-living crisis amid growing fears the UK is heading for a recession.

There is lots going on in Westminster this morning and I will guide you through the key developments.