Political Headlines – EEA membership, gender pay gap, Russia and Jewdas

Today’s Political Headlines include the Commons committee calling on the Government not to rule out EEA membership, the ‘burning injustice’ of the gender pay gap, May battling to preserve alliance against Russia and Corbyn defending his decision to attend the Jewdas event. 

Commons committee calls on Government not to rule out EEA membership
The Commons Exiting the European Union Committee has published a report calling on the Government not to rule out continued membership of the European Economic Area, the BBC says. The report outlines 15 tests for the Government to meet, based on pledges made by Theresa May and David Davis. The conclusions have caused a split on the committee, with Conservative Brexiteers led by Jacob Rees-Mogg voting against the report.

Prime Minister describes gender pay gap as a ‘burning injustice’
The Prime Minister has warned that the country’s gender pay cap is a ‘burning injustice’ which must be tackled, in an article for The Daily Telegraph. Today is the deadline for larger firms to publish the average pay gap between male and female employees. So far, 8,330 of the 9,000 businesses and public sector bodies required to publish their pay gap have done so, with an average median hourly gap of 18%.

May battling to preserve alliance against Russia
The Times claims that Theresa May is battling to preserve the alliance against Russia, after Gary Aitkenhead, head of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down, said that he had not identified the ‘precise source’ of the nerve agent used in the Salisbury attack. Downing Street said that the Prime Minister had drawn on a ‘comprehensive intelligence assessment’ before she blamed Russia.

Corbyn defends decision to attend Jewdas event
According to the BBC, Jeremy Corbyn has defended his decision to attend a dinner organised by the left-wing Jewish group Jewdas, despite criticism from mainstream Jewish leaders. A spokesman said that Corbyn had attended the event in a personal capacity, and not on behalf of the party. The Times adds that Corbyn has accepted an invitation to meet the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish leadership Council.

Dan Jarvis can stay as MP if he is elected as mayor, Labour decides
The Financial Times says that Labour’s National Executive Committee has decided that Dan Jarvis can remain as an MP, even if he is elected as mayor of the Sheffield City Region next month. The NEC has granted him an exemption from a resolution passed last month which would have prevented party members from holding two elected positions.

Passport firm in Estonian security scandal over ID cards
The Daily Telegraph reports that Gemalto, the Franco-Dutch firm set to produce the new UK passports, is currently caught-up in a national security row in Estonia after hundreds of thousands of identification cards that it produced were found to be vulnerable to hackers.

UKIP saved from bankruptcy
According to The Guardian, UKIP has been saved from bankruptcy after it raised £175,000 to settle a bill for costs resulting from a libel action brought by three Labour MPs and an additional £350,000. To avoid the cost of another leadership election, the party is also planning on keeping interim leader Gerard Batten in place for the next year.

Increase in childcare costs outstrips wage growth
The Daily Mirror reports that analysis by the Labour Party has found that the cost of childcare has grown by up to 47% since 2010, but wages only grew by 17% over the same period. Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner said this showed that the Government was ‘failing to deliver affordable, sustainable childcare for families across the country’.

Daily Political headlines curated by Vuelio political services.