Anti-hunting ban campaigners descended on Westminster tonight. Hounds and all…
The protesters gathered on on Marsham Street for a protest organised by the Countryside Alliance outside the DEFRA offices, where Labour peer Baroness Mallalieu attacked the government for being out of touch. Protesters held banners bearing the slogans “hands off the countryside” and “fight the ban, save our countryside.” Any sane person would recognise that Labour is waging a war on the countryside…
The protest comes a day before the end of the government’s consultation on banning trail hunting. More than 75,000 people so far have responded to the government’s consultation opposing the ban…
Tim Bonner, Chief Executive of the Countryside Alliance, told Guido:
“This demonstration outside Defra highlights the massive opposition to the government’s proposal to ban trail hunting which has seen over 75,000 people respond to the consultation to tell the government to drop the idea. There could not be a clearer message. The countryside rejects this return to culture war politics and the anti-rural policies of this government from the Family Farm Tax, to hikes on business rates, to attacks on game shooting and gun ownership. The countryside, and the country as a whole, has a thousand greater priorities than Labour’s vendetta against hunts.”
Cry havoc and let slip the hounds of war…
The Treasury has published its monthly comparison of independent economic forecasts, and the numbers massively undercut the OBR’s forecasts. When is the OBR ever right…
The June edition, compiled by the Treasury’s own Macroeconomic Conditions and Risk Team and posted on gov.uk, collects the latest predictions from 20 City and independent forecasters. They expect CPI inflation to hit 3.7% by the end of 2026. The OBR’s March forecast had inflation back at its 2% target by then, a precise 1.9%. Today’s predicted number is nearly double that…
The growth picture is obviously no better. Forecasters put 2026 GDP growth at 0.9%, below the OBR’s 1.1%, and have trimmed their 2027 call to 1.0%, against the watchdog’s 1.6%. They also see the Bank Rate stuck at 3.8% by year-end, above the 3.3% the OBR’s March forecast assumed. In other words, don’t expect any rate cuts. All of this is still technically a headache for Rachel Reeves, although it may soon be someone else’s problem once Burnham returns…
Rachel Reeves has capitulated to trade union barons and will force the Civil Service to waste a huge amount of money on a wide array of projects. Competition? I hardly knew her…
According to new rules celebrated by the PCS union today, every central government service contract worth over £1 million now triggers a mandatory “Public Interest Test” forcing officials to assess whether the work could be done in-house before any procurement can begin. The Cabinet Office says this captures over 95% of central government spend and will take effect from 1 April 2027…
PCS, Unite, Unison, GMB, the TUC, RMT, UCU, NEU and NASUWT have been campaigning for the “biggest wave of insourcing in a generation.” The guidance says they should be consulted on reducing competition in government…
“Contracting authorities should also take a consultative approach and engage with trade unions, the wider workforce and service end-users to inform their approach… Trade unions are likely to support the Test by providing frontline operational insights and evidence regarding historical employment practices, workforce resilience, and the potential social value impacts of direct delivery.”
One of the headline “benefits” the document lists for bringing work in-house is “secure employment in the public sector,” “higher workforce morale,” expanded “apprenticeship programmes,” and raised “labour standards.” That simply means more unionised public sector jobs...
Departments spending £100 million or more a year on contracts also have to produce five-year “Insourcing Strategies” and publish them. The guidance forces them to consult trade unions directly when drawing these up…
The guidance instructs officials to “avoid undue emphasis on risks or barriers to insourcing.” They are also told value for money should look beyond price to “whole-life costs,” “social value,” and “wider economic and social impacts.“ Terms that make it far easier to justify the more expensive in-house option on grounds other than cost…
Click here to become a Guido member today.
And if you want £10 off your first month, fill in this survey to receive your coupon code.
You’ll unlock:
And much, much more…
Get all the gossip first…
Every month, we publish the power rankings of all the leading lights in Reform based on our readers’ responses. Click here to fill in the survey, and the results will be published at the end of the month. Here’s how last month played out…
We’re offering £10 off your Guido membership once you complete it. If you’re not a Guido member yet, that’s a whole month as a Co-Conspirator for free. You’ll get instant access to all our exclusive content, including Labour Wars and The Right Angle…
Speaking at his speech on how to achieve “progressive capitalism” Wes Streeting fired a dig and Andy Burnham:
“Bond markets are not bond villains and fiscal rules matter.”