Nigel Farage brands Kemi Badenoch a 'fraud' as row over migrant social housing ban erupts

Reform UK has hit back at the Conservatives, with Nigel Farage accusing Kemi Badenoch's party of being "frauds".

Under Tory plans announced today, foreign nationals would lose their right to social housing in the UK, with the Conservatives saying around 230,000 homes would become available as a result of their plan to limit social housing entitlements.

Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately told GB News: "We know that British people feel that they are being taken for a ride, and that billions of pounds of British taxpayer's money is being spent on welfare for foreign nationals, and that includes social housing.

"So we're saying we will end that and free up those 230,000 households for British families on the waiting list to move into. And this will save up to £4billion for the taxpayer as well."

However, Mr Farage said" The Tories copy every policy of ours. They are frauds."

Meanwhile, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said: ""People without Indefinite Leave to Remain are already ineligible for social housing, so the Tories are targeting refugees and long-term UK residents who have contributed to this country but are not British citizens, including NHS staff.

"It would leave more families at risk of homelessness, while driving up the use of temporary accommodation at taxpayers’ expense.

"This unserious, unworkable proposal, copied from Reform, would do nothing to tackle the housing crisis the Tories themselves created."

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Reform UK accuses Conservatives of 'betraying their instincts'

Reform UK has accused Conservatives of "betraying their instincts to prioritise foreigners."

The party's home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf told GB News: "Incredibly, Kemi Badenoch’s new policy is to allow tens of thousands of foreign nationals from the EU to occupy British social housing funded by British taxpayers.

"Reform UK will ensure British social housing is strictly for British citizens.

"The Tories say they will continue to give it to foreign nationals while our own people and veterans are left to fend themselves."

Angela Rayner says Tory plans to ban all migrants from council housing leaves people 'at risk of homelessness' 

Angela Rayner slammed the Conservatives leaving families "at risk of homelessness" as she blasted Kemi Badenoch's plans to ban all migrants from council housing.

The Housing Secretary said: "No amount of headline-chasing, or following Reform to the extremes, can conceal the damage the Tories did to housing in this country.

"People without Indefinite Leave to Remain are already ineligible for social housing, so the Tories are targeting refugees and long-term UK residents who have contributed to this country but are not British citizens, including NHS staff.

"It would leave more families at risk of homelessness, while driving up the use of temporary accommodation at taxpayers’ expense.

"This unserious, unworkable proposal, copied from Reform, would do nothing to tackle the housing crisis the Tories themselves created."

Sadiq Khan fumes that British Muslims 'are being made to feel like second-class citizens'

Sir Sadiq Khan has claimed British Muslims were being made to feel like "second-class citizens" as he stood by his record on crime.

The London Mayor said he was unsure why people wanted to politicise a controversial public Iftar event in Trafalgar Square.

The event was described as an "act of domination and division" in a post on X by Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy.

However, Sir Sadiq hit back at criticism of the event, denying Mr Timothy's classification of the event, which passed without incident.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE.

Millions of workers could face two years of income tax in 14 months under new plans

Up to 3.6 million self-employed workers could be forced to pay two years' worth of income tax within just 14 months.

Experts have warned workers the change could come amid HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) proposed overhaul of the self-assessment system.

The revenue authority plans to move self-assessment taxpayers onto a PAYE-style monthly tax collection system from April 2029.

The proposals, first reported last month, would replace the current twice-yearly payment structure with automatic monthly deductions.

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Senior Conservative suggests party has been 'upfront' about previous Tory mistakes

A senior Conservative has said the party has been "upfront" about mistakes made by previous Tory governments

Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately told GB News: "We've been up front and Kemi Badenoch herself, as a leader, has been upfront about things that were made mistakes by previous conservative leaders.

"Under Kevin Badenoch, she has said very clear principles and we're being very clear about the approach that we would take, for instance, to migration to immigration.

"We've said, amongst other things, that we would leave the European Convention on Human Rights HR, so we don't get that judicial activism getting in the way of us tackling migration issues and making sure that we have control over our borders."

Reform UK meets Trump administration in preparation for 'sooner than expected' General Election

Reform UK has held talks with the Trump administration in Washington DC.

Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick was despatched to the US capital for a series of meetings on Thursday, including with Vice President JD Vance, to lay the groundwork for the potential future of the "special relationship, should Reform win the next election

Speaking exclusively to GB News during the visit, Mr Jenrick said Reform wanted to be ready for the next election, which he claimed come "much sooner" than an expected 2029 date.

He said it was "very important" that UK-US relations were strong, given America remains Britain's "primary defence, security and trading partnership".

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Conservative plans to ban all migrants from council houses are 'divisive', warns charity

Kemi Badenoch's plans to ban all migrants from council housing have been slammed as "divisive".

Under the proposals revealed on Friday, the Tories said around 230,000 homes would become available if they removed the right of foreign nationals to live in social housing.

Foreign nationals with settled status, refugee status or specific humanitarian protections currently qualify for social housing.

Asylum seekers are not eligible for social housing, unless in exceptional circumstances such as domestic abuse cases.

But the plans were condemned by the housing charity Shelter.

Chief executive, Sarah Elliott, said: "These divisive plans would brutally kick people out of their homes, including thousands of families and pensioners who have lived in them for decades.

"Let’s not forget that social tenants pay rent, which goes back to the public purse and into society. It is completely senseless to ruin people’s lives, drive up homelessness and put extreme pressure on councils.

"This policy does nothing to deliver new social homes, which is what we desperately need."

Primary schools will be required to identify potential Neets'

Primary schools will be required to identify pupils they believe could face being jobless after leaving school at 16, according to the former minister leading a review into the issue.

Former health secretary Alan Milburn, who is leading the review into young people not in education, employment or training (Neet), said somebody should be “responsible” for supporting children at risk with the first signs available "from pre-school".

Mr Milburn told The Guardian: "The warning signs are there from a very early, early age. Definitely primary schools should be identifying children who are at risk of being Neet.

"Secondary schools and other services should be intercepting, intervening, supporting and helping those young people to get on a different path.

“We know what the correlated factors are, whether that is poverty, mental health or being in care. What we don’t do is take that knowledge and turn it into action."

Kemi Badenoch to ban all migrants from council houses and end 'cash machine UK'

Kemi Badenoch has vowed to remove foreign nationals from council houses in order to stop Britain being a "cash machine for the world".

The Conservative plan would take nearly 230,000 non-EU foreign national households out of council homes to open them up for British families.

Migrants from any country, including EU member states, would also be barred from taking on new social housing tenancies.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE.