Kemi Badenoch refuses to protect triple lock if Andy Burnham scraps pensions guarantee
Kemi Badenoch has admitted it would be "difficult" to reinstate the pension triple lock if it were to be scrapped by Labour.
The Tory leader insisted that while it was party policy to keep it in place, she refused to commit to reversing any changes to legislation that axes it in its current form.
She told Times Radio: “I have said that the triple lock is our policy and it remains our policy. I don’t think going after pensioners is the right thing when there are loads of people who can work, who won’t work.
“When we are going to reverse Labour’s policies, I say we are going to reverse their policies.
“I have said that we are keeping this policy, but if they take that money and they spend it on something that we can’t get it back from, then it would be difficult for me."
In his speech at the Labour conference in Liverpool, the Prime Minister called for the triple lock to be reviewed in his party's next election manifesto.
Mr Burnham told party members there must be an "honest conversation" about how to fix Britain's deep structural issues and warned that Britain "can’t carry on as we are".
Introduced in 2010, the policy requires the Government to increase the state pension each April by whichever is highest - CPI inflation, average earnings growth or 2.5 per cent.
FOLLOW BELOW FOR LIVE UPDATES THROUGHOUT THE DAY…
Andy Burnham accused of leaving 'Britain's security underfunded as Labour considers delaying spending decision
Andy Burnham has been accused of leaving "Britain's security underfunded" as Labour weighs up a delay to a decision on when to boost defence spending.
Ministers had been expected to set out a timetable for increasing defence spending to three per cent of GDP in spring, which would outline plans for all Government spending until the end of the decade.
But the UK Government is now considering whether to delay the review until the autumn of next year.
It is hoped pushing back a final decision to coincide with the next Budget will allow ministers to foot the bill for the increase through raising taxes or slashing spending.
Reaching the Nato defence spending target of three per cent is expected to cost roughly £10billion per year, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
One Whitehall source told The Times the “working assumption” among civil servants is that the review will not place until October.
The Conservatives are expected to unveil plans to build a £10billion "Iron Dome" missile defence system to protect Britain at the party conference in Birmingham today.
Announcing plans for the “Britannia Shield”, Kemi Badenoch said the move proves her party are taking Britain's security seriously, while the Prime Minister would still “not commit the money Britain needs for defence”.
Washington believes Britain 'not serious' about defence, Kemi Badenoch says
Kemi Badenoch has warned that the US believes Britain is "not serious" about its own defence.
The Tory leader said it was "very significant" that Washington decided to pull all of its bombers out of RAF Fairford.
She told LBC: “I’m extremely concerned about the threats we’re facing, and that our allies think that we’re not serious."
President Donald Trump yesterday confirmed the decision had been made after there were "some threats" to the Gloucestershire base.
Shadow Defence Secretary warns there is 'limit to what any country can spend' amid British 'Iron Dome' plans
The Shadow Defence Secretary has warned there is a "limit to what any country can spend" as the Tories are poised to unveil a new £10billion defence system.
James Cartlidge said the costly Britannia Shield proposal was “12 times more than Labour have announced” in the Government’s defence investment plan (Dip).
The Dip includes a proposal on £790million on integrated air and missile defence to bolster Britain's security.
The Tory frontbencher said: “I’m here with a very detailed plan. On the £10billion and is it enough, I mean, first of all, there is a limit to what any country can spend and even the £10billion is only possible because we are taking those difficult decisions on welfare.
“But let’s look at other countries. Greece is spending around three billion euro on a system. Benelux, about that ballpark as well.
“If those size countries are spending around three billion, the UK spending £10 billion doesn’t sound a million miles away to me.”
US envoy on antisemitism to make 'representations' over Green anti-Zionist motion
The US is to make "representations" to Westminster over the Green Party’s controversial adoption of a policy branding Zionism as racism, Washington’s top adviser on antisemitism has said.
Special envoy Ambassador Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun suggested Zack Polanski's party was being hypocritical in adopting the policy.
Mr Kaploun indicated this amounted to antisemitism under the definition of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), signed by the British Government in 2016, in applying double standards towards the Middle Eastern country.
The key ally of President Donald Trump took aim at Zack Polanski's party at a press conference in Washington after the motion passed.
'It's very personal!' Kemi Badenoch hits out at Suella Braverman amid English identity row
Kemi Badenoch has hit out at Suella Braverman over her suggestion that only white people could be English.
During an appearance on BBC Question Time, the Reform MP said that non-white people born in the country could be British, but not English.
The Tory leader accused Ms Braverman of pushing “identity politics, where people keep putting other people into boxes”.
She told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “I don’t understand why all of a sudden some people are policing other people’s identity.
“I think identity is something very personal.
“If that’s how she feels about herself, I think that’s fine, but what I’m worried about is, you know, politicians running around telling some people that they are not English.”
Kemi Badenoch slams Labour over possible defence spending delay as she warns Britain 'not at peace anymore'
Kemi Badenoch has hit out at Labour amid fears ministers could delay a decision on when to boost funding for defence in an interview with GB News.
The Tory leader said it was "completely crazy" that ministers were planning to "kick this into the long grass for another year" after the US withdrew all of its bombers from RAF Fairford.
She told the People's Channel: "The Defence Secretary resigned from Keir Starmer's Government. He's the Chancellor now. He needs to find the money. And I'm not having it from Labour about what we did in Government, they were asking us to spend less on defence.
"Jeremy Corbyn wanted us to, you know, disarm more nuclear missiles. He was saying we should leave Nato. So the idea that things would have been better under under them is for the birds.
"We're in a different era now. Back in those days, Russia was in the G8. We were having a golden age with China. We spent the peace dividend.
"We thought we were in an era of peace. We're not in an era of peace anymore."
Kemi Badenoch compares Conservative Party leadership to heritage brand refresh
Kemi Badenoch has compared her leadership of the Conservative Party to a refresh of a heritage brand that lost its way.
The Tory leader was questioned whether she was concerned that her positive approval ratings had not translated into a surge in the polls.
She told Times Radio: “I’ve been reading a lot about heritage brands that lost their way and it always happens when the brand stops looking after its core customers and starts doing things that are off-brand, and it takes some time to recover from that.
“But that is what I’m doing, refreshing the brand. I’m glad that I’m doing well.
“I know that people have started listening to the Conservative Party again. I want them to start buying, but I’m very worried about the direction Labour is taking the country.
“I want them to know that we acknowledge the mistakes and I’ve apologised many times for mistakes that were made. But we are a different party now, different people, different policies, and we’re looking to the future.”
Andy Burnham's plans to give regional leaders devolved powers over water services 'a bit bonkers'
Andy Burnham's plans to hand greater powers to regional leaders over water services is "a bit bonkers", a mayor has warned.
Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Paul Bristow claimed mayoral devolution in England was a “success story” for his party, the Conservatives, but warned it was “not going to solve all our problems”.
The Prime Minister last week promised mayors “will have new powers to hold water companies to account, with tougher consequences for those which repeatedly fail”, as part of a bid to “strengthen public control” over the sector.
But at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, Mr Bristow said: “The idea that I’m going to become responsible for a water company or Anglian Water, I think, frankly, is a bit bonkers.”
Kemi Badenoch admits it would be 'difficult' to reinstate pension triple lock if scrapped by Labour
Kemi Badenoch has admitted it would be "difficult" to reinstate the pension triple lock if it were to be scrapped by Labour.
The Tory leader insisted that while it was party policy to keep it in place, she refused to commit to reversing any changes to legislation that axes it in its current form.
She told Times Radio: “I have said that the triple lock is our policy and it remains our policy. I don’t think going after pensioners is the right thing when there are loads of people who can work, who won’t work.
“When we are going to reverse Labour’s policies, I say we are going to reverse their policies.
“I have said that we are keeping this policy, but if they take that money and they spend it on something that we can’t get it back from, then it would be difficult for me."
Tories vow to keep 'political activism' out of the classroom under education overhaul
The Conservatives will today vow to keep "political activism" out of the classroom as part of plans to overhaul Britain's education system.
At the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, Shadow Education Secretary Laura Trott is expected to announce new powers for Ofsted to shield pupils from left-wing indoctrination and ensure schools remain politically neutral.
The Tory frontbencher will announce a new seven-point plan designed to allow parents to keep tabs on what their children are being taught and measures to report any teachers who push radical agendas.
"We will kick political activism out of the classroom, but never our values," she will say.
Zack Polanski said a vote for him is a vote 'for Israel' as shock comments resurface
Zack Polanski previously said a vote for him is a vote "for Israel" – words that will undoubtedly reverberate with a sense of irony among many following this weekend's controversial motion.
The Green Party passed the "Zionism is racism" motion yesterday, resulting in severe backlash from all political corners – including from within.
The leader of the Jewish Greens yesterday threatened to leave the party, slamming the vote as "unhelpful", while Mr Polanski, who is Jewish, has been banned from entering Israel, despite not voting on the motion himself.
But in comments recovered from 2016, the Green Party leader appears to position himself as pro-Israel.
Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter
