Tories attack 'barely disguised' hints at tax rises - as minister reveals 'guiding principle'

Streeting to meet with medics union this week

The progress that Health Secretary Wes Streeting had hoped he had made on relations with junior doctors - now known as resident doctors - seems to have evaporated.

The medics union has said they are going to strike in two weeks' time, despite agreeing a close to 30% pay rise last year.

Streeting says he is not going to discuss a change to pay again, but may discuss things like working conditions.

The striking union, the British Medical Association, has confirmed they will be meeting with Streeting at some point this week.

Tariffs of 10% on UK goods in US 'here to stay', ambassador Mandelson suggests

Lord Peter Madelson has spoken to The Sunday Times, giving his views as the UK's ambassador to the US.

Speaking on the tariffs that President Donald Trump has imposed worldwide, the former Labour minister said: "I think the 10% universal tariff is here to stay.

"But there is plenty of scope in different sectors," he added.

The same newspaper reports that the UK wants to do a deal on the technology sector, having earlier come to an agreement on steel.

However, there is still confusion about when any easing of steel tariffs would come into effect.

Visit from Trump

Trump is also set to come to the UK for a state visit, with reports suggesting this could happen later this month.

"He should expect a warm reception because he really does love Britain. He hugely admires it," Mandelson said.

He added: "He trusts Keir Starmer. 

"It's not a question of expressing our gratitude. My lodestar here is to demonstrate respect, not sycophancy. 

"I don't think the administration has any problem with that."

Mandelson says he does not expect the state visit to happen with parliament still sitting - something that would avoid Trump addressing parliament and MPs, some of whom are not his biggest fans.

Shadow minister doesn't think any Tory MPs will defect to Reform

In the wake of last week's double defection of two former Tory cabinet ministers to Reform, shadow home secretary Chris Philp is asked if he thinks any of his current colleagues will make the same switch.

Philp says he doesn't "have a defection watch list" - but he imagines the "answer is zero".

Trevor reminds Philp that what he says is recorded - and confirms he does not think any MPs will defect.

The shadow home secretary says he would be "astonished" if it happened - as he claims Reform have got "no specific, concrete policies", which he says is not the position of the Conservatives.

Tories attack 'barely disguised reference to tax rises'

Earlier this morning, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander danced around whether Labour would be raising taxes.

She said that, when it comes to taxation, "fairness is going to be the guiding principle".

Speaking to Trevor Phillips, shadow home secretary Chris Philp, who was briefly a Treasury minister under Liz Truss, says: "That sounds to me like a barely disguised reference to tax rises coming in the autumn."

He then goes on to repeat the Conservative attack lines that Labour are "crashing the economy".

Trevor asks Philp why the Tories did not support the government's attempts to reform the welfare system, after the shadow minister brings the topic up.

The shadow minister said his party set out "conditions" for the government to meet on proposed reforms to get their support, and they were not met.

Trevor suggests the conditions would never be met.

Philp counters that the bill was "gutted" by Labour's backbenchers.

"The bill which Labour finally presented to parliament was actually going to cost more money because Keir Starmer is so weak he can't even stand up to his own backbenchers," Philp adds.

London court already has 100 cases listed for 2029

Speaking to Trevor Phillips, Met Police chief Sir Mark Rowley has explained just how stretched the justice system is.

It comes in the wake of the Leveson report, which has proposed reducing jury trials in a bid to get the system going.

Rowley tells Trevor Snaresbrook Crown Court already has 100 cases listed for 2029.

"Imagine you've been a victim of a crime, Trevor," Rowley says.

"We've caught the person, we've charged him, 'great news Mr  Phillips, we've got him charged, they're going to court'. 

"And then a few weeks later, I see the trial's listed for 2029. That doesn't feel great, does it?"

Asked about the fact that suspects will still be on the streets for four years before going to trial, Rowley concedes it's "pretty awful".

He says he won't get into the justice system in detail, but adds that Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan are "fighting hard for police resourcing".

"It's not where I'd want it to be, but it's better than it might have been without their efforts," Rowley says.

The Met chief says he wants to see the Leveson reforms brought in "really quickly".

Government needs to address 'why' young men are being drawn into crime

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is asked by Trevor Phillips for her opinion about Met Police chief Sir Mark Rowley saying it's "shameful" young black boys are "far more likely"to die than white boys in London.

She tells Trevor that the names of the young black men killed in her constituency when she was an MP in London will "stay with me for the rest of my life".

She adds: "Young black men are disproportionately victims of crime in London, and I think we have to do all that we can, to make sure... we are effectively policing our streets.

"And of course, the Labour government has committed to 13,000 extra police officers, £200m this year to get extra PCSOs and police officers onto the streets. "

"But we have also got to address why these young men, and they are predominantly young men, are being drawn into crime in the first place."

She adds that "one of the saddest" moments of her career as an MP was being told that some school workers can tell which five or six-year-olds are likely to end up in a pupil referral unit in ten years' time.

Ministers 'confident' migrant deal with France is 'workable'

Last week, Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron announced a new deal to trial a return of small boat migrants to France in exchange for asylum seekers coming back.

Trevor Phillips asks if the agreement will pass muster with the European Union, and members like Spain and Italy.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander says ministers "strongly believe and are confident that we have got a workable deal with France".

However, she does not confirm if France can unilaterally make an agreement with the UK on migrant returns.

How many people will be returned?

On the subject of how many people will be returned, Alexander says the government is not putting a number on it.

Sky News understands the pilot will begin with around 50 people a week being sent back to France.

She says it is the government's "aspiration" to ramp up the returns once the pilot has finished - but the government has first "got to learn how this works and take it step by step".

More hints from transport secretary that tax rises could be on the way

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips this morning.

She is asked about the general assumption that taxes are going to have to rise to pay for the government's failed welfare reforms, which were shot down by their own MPs.

Trevor Phillips asks specifically if tax rises were discussed among the cabinet last week - including on an away day on Friday.

Alexander says such rises were not discussed "directly" then, but ministers were "cognisant" of the challenges facing them.

Asked what this means, Alexander says: "I think your viewers would be surprised if we didn't recognise that at the budget, the chancellor will need to look at the OBR forecast that is given to her and will make decisions in line with the fiscal rules that she has set out. 

"We made a commitment in our manifesto not to be putting up taxes on people on modest incomes, working people. We have stuck to that."

This lack of a denial is very much what a yes can look like in political parlance.

But Alexander says she won't comment directly on taxes and the budget at this point.

-SKY NEWS