Two MPs ‘astounded’ after being denied entry to Israel
Two Labour MPs who were denied entry to Israel have said they are “astounded” by the decision.
Abtisam Mohamed and Yuan Yang have said it is “vital” that parliamentarians are able to “witness first-hand” the situation on the ground in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The current war in Gaza began on 7 October 2023, when Hamas fighters launched an attack inside Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza. Since then, Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says more than 50,000 people have been killed in Israel’s retaliatory military offensive.
The MPs were refused entry because they intended to “spread hate speech” against Israel, the nation’s population and immigration authority claimed.
In a joint statement posted on X, Ms Mohamed and Ms Yang on Sunday said: “We’re astounded at the unprecedented step taken by the Israeli authorities to refuse British MPs entry on our trip to visit the occupied West Bank.
“It is vital that parliamentarians are able to witness first-hand the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory.”
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch backed Israel’s decision, arguing that “countries should be able to control their borders” and expressing “concern” about the rhetoric of some MPs around Israel. But foreign secretary David Lammy said Ms Badenoch’s support of the Israeli decision was “disgraceful”.
He said: “It’s disgraceful you are cheerleading another country for detaining and deporting two British MPs. Do you say the same about Tory MPs banned from China?
“This government will continue to stand up for the rights of our MPs to speak their mind, whatever their party.”
The foreign secretary added that it was “deeply concerning” that they had not been allowed into the country.
The Israeli immigration authority said interior minister Moshe Arbel had denied entry to all four passengers after they were questioned. It accused them of travelling to “document the security forces”.
The Foreign Office said the group was part of a parliamentary delegation – however Israel’s immigration authority contested this claim, saying the delegation had not been acknowledged by any Israeli official. The MPs said the trip had been organised with UK charities that had “over a decade of experience in taking parliamentary delegations”.
“We are two, out of scores of MPs, who have spoken out in parliament in recent months on the Israel-Palestine conflict and the importance of complying with international humanitarian law,” they said in their joint statement. “Parliamentarians should feel free to speak truthfully in the House of Commons, without fear of being targeted.”
Emily Thornberry, chairman of parliament’s foreign affairs committee, said Israel “will rue the day that they did this to British parliamentarians”.
She told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “These are two women who are potential leaders, people listen to what they say… and Israel is badly advised to try to alienate and humiliate them and treat them in this way.
“Israel really needs to start making friends as opposed to alienating people. It’s an insult to Britain, it’s an insult to parliament and I am outraged.”
Ms Yang represents the constituency of Earley and Woodley, in Berkshire, while Ms Mohamed represents Sheffield Central. Both were elected to Parliament last July.
The foreign secretary said he had “made clear” to his counterparts in the Israeli government that it is “no way to treat British parliamentarians”.
Mr Lammy said: “It is unacceptable, counterproductive and deeply concerning that two British MPs on a parliamentary delegation to Israel have been detained and refused entry by the Israeli authorities.
“I have made clear to my counterparts in the Israeli government that this is no way to treat British parliamentarians, and we have been in contact with both MPs tonight to offer our support.
“The UK Government’s focus remains securing a return to the ceasefire and negotiations to stop the bloodshed, free the hostages and end the conflict in Gaza.”
Father and daughter who died in caravan fire named
A father and his 10-year-old daughter who died in a caravan fire on Saturday have been named as Lee and Esme Baker.
Lee Baker, 48, and his daughter Esme, from the Nottingham area, were excited to spend the first weekend of the holidays together, their family said in a statement.
They added: “We are all utterly devastated at what’s happened. This loss is incomprehensible at the moment, and we ask for people to give us space to process this utterly heartbreaking loss.”
Police were called to Golden Beach holiday park in Lincolnshire at 3.53am on Saturday morning to reports of a fire at the site.
Detective Inspector Lee Nixon of Lincolnshire Police, senior investigating officer, said: “We believe we might be close to arriving at a working hypothesis. We are working hard to validate the facts available to us to be able to provide answers for the family and loved ones of those who were very tragically taken by this fire. Yet the evident intensity of the fire has made this task incredibly challenging.”
Dan Moss, area manager for prevention and protection at Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue, said: “Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the family at this time. Our fire investigation team is working with colleagues from Lincolnshire Police, and a full investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.
“Once investigations are complete, local fire crews and our community fire safety team will be on hand to talk to people in the area and address any fire safety concerns they may have, at what will be an upsetting time.”
Record cost of first class stamps ‘unfair’ say two thirds of Brits
Two-thirds of people think the increase in the price of a first-class stamp over the past five years is unfair, new data suggests.
The cost of a first-class stamp is set to reach £1.70 on Monday, more than double the 76p cost in 2020.
This latest 5p increase marks the eighth price hike in five years, a period during which Royal Mail has consistently failed to meet its annual delivery targets.
The rising costs are causing a significant financial strain for many, with one in three people surveyed admitting they would struggle to afford a book of eight first-class stamps, now priced at £13.60.
The poll, conducted for Citizens Advice, further highlights the impact on household budgets, with 16 per cent of respondents stating they would find it difficult to afford even a single first-class stamp at the new price.
With second-class stamps rising by 2p to 87p from Monday, almost a quarter of people (22 per cent) said they would struggle to buy a book of eight, now costing almost £7, with 9 per cent saying they would find it hard to afford a single second-class stamp.
However, the charity found that a third of those polled (32 per cent) had used a premium product, as opposed to a basic first or second-class stamp, to make sure an important letter or card arrived on time.
Regulator Ofcom is consulting on the Universal Service Obligation (USO) held by Royal Mail, which could see 2nd class letter deliveries reduced from six days a week to alternate weekdays.
Almost a third of people (29 per cent) said they would like Royal Mail to keep delivering 2nd class letters six days a week while 37 per cent said they could accept the reduction to alternate weekdays but only if the company met its delivery targets.
Ofcom is also considering relaxing Royal Mail’s annual delivery targets, which would mean 90 per cent of first-class mail would have to be delivered next-day, instead of the current 93 per cent target.
Under the plans, 95 per cent of second-class mail would need to be delivered within three days, instead of the current 98.5 per cent.
Some 86 per cent said they have received an important letter or document in the post in the last six months and half (50 per cent) have sent one.
Previous research by Citizens Advice suggests that an estimated 10.7 million people suffered delays to their post over Christmas, with 3.4 million of those missing vital letters for health appointments, bills, legal documents and fines.
Tom MacInnes, director of policy at Citizens Advice, said: “Royal Mail’s unfair price hikes are making post less affordable, and will hit low-income households and older people the hardest. People from these groups are more likely to be digitally excluded and rely on mail.
“These price increases are worsened by the fact people simply can’t rely on their first or second-class mail being delivered on time – proven by Royal Mail’s failure to meet any annual delivery targets for half a decade.
“Ofcom must act. The regulator is considering slashing deliveries and relaxing targets but these moves must go hand-in-hand with a curb on price increases. Otherwise, Royal Mail has no incentive, as a monopoly provider, to deliver the service consumers deserve.”
A Royal Mail spokeswoman said: “UK households on average spend less than £7 a year on stamps, and customers have the choice to post letters second class for just 87p nationwide or pay more if they want a next-day service.
“Royal Mail carefully considers prices and seeks to keep them as low as possible given the increasing cost of delivering mail.
“A complex and extensive network of trucks, planes and 85,000 posties is needed to deliver across the country for a single price.
“Ofcom has recognised that reform is urgently needed to protect the one-price-goes-anywhere universal service which requires Royal Mail to deliver letters to around 32 million UK addresses six days a week.”
Guardiola condemns Man Utd fans over ‘lack of class’ for Foden chants
Pep Guardiola condemned Manchester United supporters who made derogatory chants about Phil Foden’s mother, saying they lacked class and should be ashamed of themselves.
Manchester City were shocked and disgusted by the choruses during the Manchester derby, both the number of them and how many United fans joined in.
Manager Guardiola stressed the problem goes beyond United as he said it is a wider issue in world football.
He explained: “Lack of class. But it’s not United, it’s the people, you know? We are so exposed, people who are on the screen in world football – managers, owners, and football players especially. Honestly, I don’t understand the mind of the people involving the mum of Phil, it’s a lack of integrity, class, and they should be ashamed.”
United sources stressed they condemn abusive chants against all players.
Foden, who comes from Stockport in Greater Manchester, played the first 58 minutes of the 0-0 draw at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Island hopping in Dubrovnik: from nature to adventure, your itinerary
There’s more to the area around Dubrovnik than just the beautiful, UNESCO-heritage city which has been drawing crowds for decades. So while you shouldn’t miss the chance to explore its medieval City Walls, take in its Baroque cathedrals and churches, or simply stroll along the Stradun, consider an island-hopping adventure, which will bring you back to nature and make you forget urban life…for a while, at least. The Croatian archipelago lies along the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea and has 1,244 natural formations, of which 78 are islands; so, where on earth to begin?
Start with Mljet, known as the ‘Green Island’ due to its dense forest. It takes around one hour and forty minutes to reach by ferry from Dubrovnik and also boasts Mediterranean landscapes, aquamarine seas, and soft, sandy shorelines. At its western end you’ll find 13,000 acres of tranquil National Park, criss-crossed with sheltered walking and cycling tracks, a ruggedly beautiful coastline, ancient ruins and saltwater lakes. Look out for the sprawling remains of a vast, 5th century Roman palace on the waterfront of nearby Polače village. If you enjoy hiking, one of the most popular trails leads to the summit of Montokuc, the highest point in the National Park, which will reward you with a stunning panorama of the island’s lush greenery, the Veliko Jezero and Malo Jezero lakes, and the Adriatic Sea that surrounds it.
However, if you prefer to explore on two wheels, there are several trails which take you through forests, along the lakeshore, and past beautiful viewpoints. These lakes (Velike means ‘Big Lake’ while Malo is ‘Small Lake’) are perfect for swimming and snorkelling – just dive right into their calm, crystal-clear waters. Alternatively, you can explore them by kayak, taking in the scenic forest and cliff views at your own pace; look out for the small islet of St Mary’s in the middle, home to an ancient Benedictine monastery.
Bigger, and a bit busier, is Korčula, whose unspoiled landscapes are reached by a two-hour ferry journey from Dubrovnik. The island got its name after the Ancient Greeks saw its dense oak and pine forests and called it Korkyra Melaina, meaning ‘Black Corfu’.
The medieval main town offers picturesque cobbled streets, crenellated walls and a 15th century Gothic Renaissance cathedral, which houses works by Venetian artist Tintoretto. Head to the top of its bell tower for magnificent views out to sea. Away from its quiet charm, you’ll also find unspoiled beaches and coves, and acres of vineyards and olive groves which produce the island’s excellent local olive oil and wine. Don’t miss the archaeological site of Vela Spila, on the west coast, a large, domed cavern which housed prehistoric communities over 18,000 years ago.
If it’s beaches you’re after, make a beeline for Lumbarda, a small fisherman’s village with the best – and only – sandy beaches on the island. Vela Pržina has year-round warm seas, while neighbouring Bilin Žal is popular with families thanks to its shallow water, ideal for paddling.
Korčula also has an archipelago of its own, called Škoji; hop on a water taxi from the old town’s marina to explore the idyllic isles of Badija, home to a 15th century Franciscan monastery and a herd of fallow deer, busier Stupe, home to buzzy beach clubs, restaurants and bars, and small, delightful Vrnik, with a pebbled beach perfect for paddling and sunbathing.
If all that feels like too much civilisation, head for Lastovo, a tiny paradise which is Croatia’s most remote inhabited island. With a population of less than a thousand people, this is where to visit when you want absolute quiet and seclusion. Here you’ll find thick forests, craggy coastline, and peaceful walking trails, where the only sounds you’ll hear are the waves rolling in, and occasional birdsong.
Together with its surrounding archipelago, it makes up the Lastovsko Otocje (Lastovo Nature Park), one of the best-preserved marine areas in the Adriatic. Think clifftop views, woodland hikes, and swimming around sea caves and coral reefs, all within a chain of small islands.
Whichever one you choose – and why not choose them all? – you can guarantee a truly magnificent holiday.
For more Dubrovnik travel inspiration and information, head to Visit Dubrovnik
Trump has made China appear a beacon of free trade
The Chinese Communist Party, apostle of free trade. In a strange new world, that was the strangest thing, as shares crashed in reaction to President Donald Trump’s opening salvo of tariffs in a global trade war.
“The market has spoken,” said the foreign ministry spokesperson, Guo Jiakun, writing in English on Facebook – which is, by the way, banned in China. No double standards there, then. Beijing can always keep a straight face when it matters.
Politically, the Chinese government can scarcely believe its luck. It has stepped forward as a voice of reason and stability in a chorus of discord to promote the false narrative that it has been a model of good behaviour since it joined the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on 11 December 2001, a date that seems destined to live in the textbooks as the peak of globalisation.
The Trump tariffs “are a typical act of unilateral bullying”, complained a spokesperson for China’s Commerce Ministry.
“This approach disregards the balance of interests achieved through years of multilateral trade negotiations and ignores the fact that the US has long gained substantial profits from international trade,” the spokesperson added.
The official news agency, Xinhua, said the tariffs were “a weapon to suppress China’s economy and trade” and told the United States to stop undermining “the legitimate development rights of the Chinese people”.
It would be a mistake to write off Chinese rhetoric. The regime of Xi Jinping is serious and its actions speak louder than words.
Clue: China has listed “legitimate development rights” as one of its “red lines” in dealing with the US. The term is code for the export-led economic model which has propelled the country to the rank of second largest economy on earth since it joined the WTO.
Understand that and you understand that for China this is existential. There could be no greater contrast to the whirlwind in Washington than the disciplined, efficiently executed responses announced by Beijing in nine statements outlining reprisals that went beyond mere numbers.
Xi himself did not deign to speak publicly, let alone do anything as vulgar as posting on social media in capital letters. The Chinese public would have thought it beneath his dignity.
Untroubled by such niceties, Trump swiftly posted to his followers online that “CHINA PLAYED IT WRONG, THEY PANICKED.”
With all due respect to the American president, that is exactly what they did not do. The Xi hit list is ominous because it is well-planned and researched. The “Red Emperor” rules a mandarin class of sophisticated operators who do nothing else but study China’s opponents using every intelligence tool at their disposal.
The easy part for China was to impose reciprocal 34 per cent tariffs on all American imports from 10 April. It also suspended six American firms from exporting to China, launched anti-dumping actions in the medical sector and targeted the US giant DuPont with a probe into potential monopoly practices.
The hard part showed just how thoroughly the Chinese had done their work. No penguin islands or weird mathematics here. They banned the export of “dual use” items, which could have military or civilian applications, to 16 US firms, all in the technology sector.
Their key move was to put export controls on seven rare earth elements “to safeguard national security”. It’s on the public record that some of these are vital to US weapons systems.
The list of rare earths included terbium, which is used to enhance the properties of specialised magnets used in guidance systems, satellites and radar. The magnets are integral to the state-of-the-art F-35 fighter, Predator drones, cruise missiles and nuclear submarines.
Then there’s dysprosium, a rare-earth element of which China controls nearly all the world’s supply. It is used to make high-grade magnets that work in super-heated conditions and is found in the newest semiconductors. Other rare earths on the list are vital to jet engine turbine blades. All will now require special export licences.
China and America are thus in a new kind of war over technology and artificial intelligence. Both Joe Biden and Trump tried to choke the supply of advanced semiconductors to Chinese manufacturers, while China is seeking to choke the supply of raw materials to America’s tech champions.
It’s not hard to see how dangerous this could get. The founder of free-trading modern Singapore, the late Lee Kuan Yew, once told me in an interview that “World War Two was caused because of empires and protectionism”.
He recalled that in the 1940s an oil embargo on Imperial Japan pushed its military leaders into war and he warned that if the West tried to isolate China economically “that is bound to lead to conflict”.
Lee was talking in the 1990s, when China stood on the threshold of globalisation. It joined the WTO only after hard-fought talks. But Charlene Barshevsky, who sealed the deal for the United States, later lamented that the Americans failed to use the WTO to punish Beijing when it broke the rules.
That created the belief that appeasement and elite inertia condemned the American working class to decline, the foundation story of Trump’s movement to Make America Great Again. So it is some irony that the Chinese have just filed a formal complaint about Trump’s tariffs – with the World Trade Organisation.
Michael Sheridan, longtime foreign correspondent and diplomatic editor of The Independent, is the author of The Red Emperor published by Headline Press at £25
Starmer is right to maintain dignity – and avoid upsetting Trump
The prime minister’s insistence that, in framing the UK’s response to the Trump tariffs, “We will always act in the national interest” was wise and reassuring. The mood at the moment is to “keep calm and carry on negotiating”, and if there is to be a response, it needs to be weighed, and to represent a fully informed choice. Hence the meeting of business leaders convened in Downing Street in the immediate aftermath of the US president’s announcements.
In the coming days, the full scale and nature of international retaliation will become clearer; so too will Donald Trump’s thinking. From his rambling presentation of the new tariff schedules in the White House Rose Garden, it is not obvious whether these punitive import taxes are designed to kickstart a more benign process involving a global relaxation of trade restrictions, or if they are part of a permanent policy shift aimed at restoring American manufacturing and providing trillions of dollars for the US Treasury. There is, in other words, no need for a rush to action.
Sir Keir Starmer is right to try to maintain the dignity of the nation, as well as to avoid upsetting the combustible Mr Trump, by limiting himself to vague remarks about having “levers at his disposal”. Businesses are being consulted on possible retaliatory actions, but that is all – at least for the time being.
However, with the US economy approximately seven times as large as that of the UK – and Britain still heavily reliant on America for its defence – those levers are not especially powerful ones. Unlike, say, China (in concert with Japan and South Korea), the European Union, Mexico or Canada, the UK lacks the necessary heft to inflict much material damage on American producers and exporters. Any effort to join in with an international assault on Mr Trump’s policy would risk attracting the imposition of even higher tariffs on UK exports, with the corresponding harm to British jobs and economic growth – and to European security and the Ukraine peace talks.
Far better, then, for the British government to keep a “cool head”, as Sir Keir suggests: not only does it suit the prime minister’s general demeanour, but it will help to preserve his unusually warm relationship with a man almost precisely his ideological opposite. Britain is set to watch how things develop, and will continue to engage with American officials on trade, investment, and wider economic relations. If an old and valued friend unexpectedly decides to have a spat, the most rational response is not to hit them back and escalate an argument into a violent rift.
Fanciful as it may seem, this crisis can be turned into an opportunity. As the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, told the Commons, a trade deal of some sort could be mutually beneficial, even if that isn’t immediately apparent to President Trump, who is more “zero sum” in his approach to life (as might be expected from his time in real estate).
Sir Keir says that talks are continuing. He should be encouraged by the fact that the UK is to be subjected only to the lower “baseline” tariff of 10 per cent, albeit with the higher charges on cars, steel and aluminium bringing the trade-weighted average up to 13 per cent. When the two leaders met in the White House, Mr Trump expressed the hope that a deal could be done. Despite intense activity, such an agreement couldn’t be reached in time to avoid the new tariffs, but the process – which has been in train since Theresa May launched post-Brexit talks with the US – has begun.
The outlines of such a deal can already be discerned. Negotiables could include a radical cut in the tariffs on US goods, such as cars and agricultural produce, and easier access for qualified, skilled workers through mutual recognition. The UK might have to compromise on its high standards of animal welfare, hygiene, and environmental protection, but that is a tough choice that could be made, in the expectation that consumers would exercise their right to choose.
More difficult, if not impossible, would be meeting the usual demands for improved – inflated – prices to be paid by the NHS to the US pharmaceutical giants. The American negotiators would also have to be properly briefed on the reality of free speech in the UK, which is protected as a human right by law, save for incitement to hatred against specified vulnerable groups.
The real question is whether the achievement of some sort of economic agreement with America – an outcome that would certainly yield benefits – is worth the sacrifices and concessions that are likely to be demanded by Mr Trump. That includes the effect that any such pact would have on our relationship with the EU, in light of the “reset” promised by Labour at the general election.
Even the possibility of such an agreement with the United States is being touted as a “Brexit bonus”, as is the “favourable” 10 per cent tariff. Needless to say, this is highly debatable. Were it still part of the EU, the UK would probably have been treated more harshly, but it would have had the full weight of the largest single market in the world behind it, along with better access to the EU markets that it has lost since Brexit.
As a member state, the UK would also have been able, ironically, to control its own laws on free speech, as well as to protect the NHS and farmers. In other words, a trade deal with America would have to be radically better than currently envisaged in order to make Brexit remotely worthwhile, even in purely financial terms.
And there remains the terrible truth that the US has downgraded its commitment to Nato, and “switched sides” to align with Russia on the matters of Ukraine and European security.
On balance, Sir Keir can best serve the British national interest by pursuing closer relations with Europe, while declining to enact futile retaliatory measures against America and salvaging as much as possible of the US-UK special relationship. The hope is that the Trump era might ultimately pass more smoothly. In any case, balancing and nurturing Britain’s most crucial relationships won’t be easy.