Keir Starmer said Boris Johnson’s government was “bereft of ideas or purpose” after a Queen’s speech that included bills to overhaul the planning system and rewrite human rights law, but few new measures to tackle the cost of living crisis. The Treasury has quashed a suggestion from Johnson that a significant government announcement about extra help for people with the cost of living is due imminently. (See 4.05pm.)
The European Union has said renegotiation of the Northern Ireland protocol is “not an option”. In a statement issued this afternoon Maroš Šefčovič, the vice-president of the European Commission, said: The protocol, as a cornerstone of the withdrawal agreement, is an international agreement. Its renegotiation is not an option. The European Union is united in this position. Šefčovič said the EU was open to negotiating with the UK on how the protocol was implemented, but, for these talks to succeed, that would require “the UK government to show the same level of determination and creativity [as the EU]”. He also said that if the UK were to take “unilateral action” – ie, to abandon parts of the protocol – this would make the situation more difficult. He said: Only joint solutions will work. Unilateral action by the UK would only make our work on possible solutions more difficult. Earlier Johnson refused to give his Irish counterpart, Micheál Martin, an assurance that the UK will not unilaterally abandon the protocol. (See 11.20am.) In fact, the Queen’s speech contained a strong hint that legislation that would allow the protocol to be ditched is being prepared behind the scenes. (See 12.11am.) In the Commons a few minutes ago Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the DUP leader, said he intended to stay as an MP, instead of leaving parliament to take up his seat in the Northern Ireland assembly (he was elected last week), until the protocol issue is resolved. Rishi Sunak has moved to weaken regulation of financial services brought in after the 2008 crash amid fears he is aiming to make London into a post-Brexit “Singapore-on-Thames” pushed by Tory donors. Environmental campaign groups have hit out at the “draconian” protest crackdown bill announced in the Queen’s speech. Ports and unions have cast doubt on the viability of legislation announced in the Queen’s Speech to ensure P&O Ferries and other ferry operators pay seafarers the minimum wage. The government’s proposed ban on conversion practices intended to change people’s sexuality will in fact only fully cover under-18s, Downing Street has confirmed, saying it had to “strike the right balance” on outlawing the much-condemned practice. Detectives investigating Keir Starmer’s alleged breach of lockdown rules are considering interviewing the Labour leader face to face, with his Beergate agony likely to last at least a month before a decision on a fine is made.