UK News
Starmer arrives in Saudi Arabia for talks with Gulf leaders on resolution to Iran war – UK politics live | Politics
Starmer arrives in Saudi Arabia for talks with Gulf leaders on resolution to Iran war
Keir Starmer has arrived in Saudi Arabia as he visits Gulf allies to push for a long-term resolution to the Iran conflict, the Press Association reports. PA says:
The prime minister is set to hold talks with Gulf leaders on how best to support the pause in fighting and ensure passage is permanently restored through the key oil and gas shipping route.
He is also expected to thank armed forces from the UK and allied countries who are posted in the region.
Key events
Libby Brooks on Reform UK’s Scottish press conference – and Ipsos poll giving SNP 24-point lead
Libby Brooks
Libby Brooks is the Guardian’s Scotland correspondent.
It’s a beautiful spring day in the north east, and the Reform UK press conference was of similarly sunny tone. Scottish leader Malcolm Offord employs a cheerful eyeroll strategy with media. Asked if he was a part-time leader because he took time off over the Easter weekend to take part in a yachting event, he guffawed: “Heaven forbid a man has a holiday”.
And he dismissed questions about historic offensive or Islamophobic tweets by Holyrood candidates saying it was a “slipperly slope” delving into Twitter accounts from 10 years ago and that he took the decision not too.
Interestingly, Nigel Farage told the Guardian in January that vetting had been “piss poor in the past and it won’t be in the future”, insisting the party was “doing everything we can to make sure these candidates for the Scottish parliament are vetted, and are fit and proper people to put before the electorate.” It remains moot whether historic offence falls into the “fit and proper” category or not – Offord himself likely hopes it doesn’t after that disgusting George Michael joke he made at a Burns Supper in 2018.
Many of the media questions related to the latest Ipsos polling for STV, which is really interesting to delve into. It’s pretty terrible news for Scottish Labour: they are down 5 points to 15% on constituency voting intention, neck and neck with Reform. The SNP lead on constituency VI on 39%, up 3 points from March, while SNP leader John Swinney’s approval rating has improved by 4 points.
Meanwhile Offord’s ratings have worsened, down 4.5 points since March, and not a great sign since the obvious conclusion is that this is the result of his increased visibility on the campaign trail over recent weeks.
Given the potential for tactical voting and broader voter volatility, it’s worth noting that in both constituency and regional list votes, 42% of voters say they may still change their mind before polling day. And also keep in mind that those who say they’ll vote Reform or SNP are surer of their vote than supporters of any other party.
With the prospect still very live of some sort of minority or coalition government arrangement after 7 May, I’d also draw attention to the fact the least divisive option for the public appears to be the Scottish Liberal Democrats – 32% say they would be happy to see the Liberal Democrats having influence over the Scottish government. With the Scottish Lib Dems working away to secure a few more seats beyond their heartlands this campaign, I’ve been thinking for a while that their role could be pivotal next month.
Starmer arrives in Saudi Arabia for talks with Gulf leaders on resolution to Iran war
Keir Starmer has arrived in Saudi Arabia as he visits Gulf allies to push for a long-term resolution to the Iran conflict, the Press Association reports. PA says:
The prime minister is set to hold talks with Gulf leaders on how best to support the pause in fighting and ensure passage is permanently restored through the key oil and gas shipping route.
He is also expected to thank armed forces from the UK and allied countries who are posted in the region.
Offord defends Reform UK’s stance on Scottish independence, after Tories claim they’re not pro-union enough
At the Reform UK press conference in Aberdeen my colleague Libby Brooks asked about Reform’s position on Scottish independence, and whether it would be sustainable if the May elections lead to parties in favour of breaking up the UK in power in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.
Malcolm Offord, the Reform UK leader in Scotland, replied:
In Scotland we are saying that we’re the party of enough talk of referendum. We don’t want to talk about it, people have get no interest in it, there’s no appetite for it, and therefore can we just not talk about it and get on with making Scotland the most successful part of the UK.
Offord is vulnerable on this because in the past he has implied he is not 100% opposed to a second independence referendum. At their campaign launch yesterday, the Scottish Conseratives used this as an attack line, claiming they were the only party that would fully protect the union.
Asked how many Reform candidates have in the past backed independence, Offord said there were three, out of 73, “who have had that tendency in the past”.
This is from Paul Hutcheon from the Daily Record referring to what Malcolm Offord said about the Record’s story about his yachting trip. (See 1.14pm.)
Malcolm Offord responds to our story on him missing campaigning to compete in a yachting race:
“Heaven forbid a man has a hobby, right, and takes a day off at Easter.”
Records state he was skipper on all three days of the competition.
Starmer joins other European leaders and Japan in calling for ‘substantive negotiated settlement’
Keir Starmer has released a joint statement on the Middle East also backed by the leaders of France, Italy, Germany, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain, Japan, and the EU.
They say:
The goal must now be to negotiate a swift and lasting end to the war within the coming days. This can only be achieved through diplomatic means.
We strongly encourage quick progress towards a substantive negotiated settlement.
This will be crucial to protect the civilian population of Iran and ensure security in the region. It can avert a severe global energy crisis.
We support these diplomatic efforts. To this end, we are in close contact with the United States and other partners.
We call upon all sides to implement the ceasefire, including in Lebanon.
Our governments will contribute to ensuring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
Offord rejects claims Reform UK did not vet Scottish candidates properly, suggesting tweets from 10 years ago don’t matter
Q: Do you think you should have vetted your candidates more carefully, given how many have had to stand down? And was it a mistake to choose some candidates who in the past have backed independence.
Offord says he believes in free speech.
He says some of his candidates have said things he would not have said personally. But he says the candidate are “real people who are on their journey to public life”.
He says, as long as people support the Reform project, he is not here judge people by their previous opinions. He goes on:
It’s a slippery slope going down into everybody’s Twitter account over the last ten years. And I took a decision – we’re not going to do that.
(This rather contradicts what Nigel Farage has said in the past about the party conducting a very thorough vetting exercise ahead of these elections.)
Tice says there are people who may have backed Scottish independence in the past, just as they are people who opposed Brexit who now think it is a good idea “as long as you do the job properly”.
(There are some people who opposed Brexit but are now in favour. But there are far more people who have changed their mind on Brexit in the opposite direction.)
Q: Did Nigel Farage throw you under the bus by blaming you for the appointment of Simon Dudley, the housing spokesperson who had to be sacked for his comment about the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
Tice claims the reporter got it wrong. He claims that he was the person who decided to sack Dudley, and he then told Farage about it. They are incredibly close, he says.
(This is what Farage said too. But it was Farage who actually announced the sacking. And earlier in the day Tice had reposted a tweet from Dudley saying he was sorry about how he expressed himself. But Dudley did not say in that tweet he had been sacked, and Tice did not announce that either on social media.)
Tice defends Offord’s leadership of Reform UK in Scotland, while admitting there have been ‘bumps’ in campaign
Q: [To Offord] It has been reported that you missed campaigning to take part in a yachting race in the English channel over the weekend. Are you a part-time leader?
Offord says a man is allowed a hobby.
Q: [To Tice] Given the chaos with Reform’s campaign in Scotland, do you regret making Offord leader?
Tice says Offord is doing an “incredible”.
But he seems to acknowledge there have been problems. He says:
The job of the press is to scrutinise us. And, of course, there are potholes in the road. Some call them bumps; potholes in council campaigns [are] a key thing. And we just, we know we drive through the polls and we will fill them in.
Tice says oil and gas has worked for the UK. There is a saying, “If if ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
He says claims that renewables are cheaper are contradicted by the price being paid for renewables contract.
Q: There is a poll out today suggesting you won’t win any constituency seats. Are you worried by that?
Offord says polls have shown Reform UK in second place.
He says he is not making predictions. But he is aiming to win constituencies (as well as just getting seats through the regional list part of the electoral system).
Tice and Offord are now taking questions.
Q: [From the BBC’s Ben Philip] How quickly would these policies bring down prices?
Tice says the owners of the Jackdaw and Rosebank fields say they could be increasing supply within 12 months.
But he says he would like to get supply (of oil and gas) back to where it was 15 years ago.
As a condition of granting a licence, the government could insist on oil or gas being sold domestically.
Tice says in the US the domestic gas price has not been affected by the Iran war. The UK should learn from that, he says.
Tice claims other parties are starting to copy Reform UK on energy policy. He claims that is a form of flattery.
Tice says his final proposal would be regulatory reform.
We all want smart and safe regulations across all of our industries, and oil and gas is absolutely critical. We understand that.
What businesses tell me is they don’t want the daft, the dither and the delay at every level – unproductive regulation that just adds costs and achieves the square root of zero.
Tice says Reform UK would also get rid of the windfall tax on energy companies. That is the second of the four points in his plan.
Third, he says the party would get rid of what he calls “net stupid zero”, which he says would include the emissions trading scheme introduced by the Tories.
And if Labour takes the UK into the EU version, Reform UK would come out of it, he says.
UK News
European stock markets hit record high and oil price falls to three-month low after US-Iran peace deal – business live | Business
European stock markets hit record high
European stock markets have hit a record high at the start of trading, as relief over the US-Iran peace deal ripples across global markets.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index has jumped by 0.9% to 639 points, over the previous record high set just before the Iran war started, with shares rising in London, Frankfurt, Paris, Madrid and Milan.
Mining and travel companies are driving the rally, while oil company shares are sliding.
That follows sharp gains in Asia-Pacific markets overnight, where Japan’s Nikkei surged by 5% on hopes that the strait of Hormuz will reopen within days.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, says global equity markets are starting the week firmly on the front foot after President Trump announced that a deal with Iran had been reached, adding:
The move has given investors a clear reason to dial back some of the geopolitical risk premium that has hung over markets, especially as the Strait of Hormuz is expected to reopen and oil prices move sharply lower.
Energy prices have been one of the clearest transmission channels from Middle East tensions into inflation, bond yields and equity sentiment, and there is likely to be a concerted effort to get prices down even further once this deal is finalised.
There are still details to be ironed out before markets can fully trust the agreement, but for now the direction of travel is clear: lower oil, calmer nerves and a renewed appetite for risk.
Key events
Peace deal should keep mortgage rates down
Mortgage borrowers can breathe a sigh of relief at the news of a peace deal in Iran, says Adam French, head of consumer finance at Moneyfactscompare.co.uk.
While we are far from being out of the woods yet, a lasting peace deal should dramatically reduce the risk of the Bank of England’s worst-case scenario for inflation and interest rates becoming a reality.
“Under that scenario, Base Rate could have risen to 5.25%, potentially pushing typical rates on new mortgages towards 6.75%. Instead, today’s news means mortgages rates, which have already been slowly falling for several weeks, have likely already passed their peak – at least until the next unwelcome crisis.
“Borrowers can be optimistic but with a word of caution, as inflation and economic data will continue to influence the outlook. However, a lasting peace should remove one of the biggest risks to mortgage costs and may help restore a more stable environment for hard-pressed remortgage borrowers and prospective buyers.”
Even before this morning’s drop in UK bond yields (see earlier post), average mortgage rates have dipped slightly.
Moneyfacts reports:
-
The average 2-year fixed residential mortgage rate today is 5.61%. This is down from 5.62% the previous working day.
-
The average 5-year fixed residential mortgage rate today is 5.58%. This is down from 5.59% the previous working day.
Why it may take months for oil flows to return to normal
Donald Trump excitedly declared: “Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!” last night, but the reality is that it will take some time for oil flows through the strait of Hormuz to return to pre-war levels.
One reason is that many oil tankers are simply in the wrong place, after the long closure of the strait.
Another is that some production and refining facilities have been damaged by the conflict, while others were mothballed after storate facilities filled up to the brim.
A third factor is that insurers could still be wary of the conflict reigniting, and price their cover accordingly.
Neil Shearing, group chief economist at Capital Economics, explains:
Even if ships now have safe passage, tankers are in the wrong place, oil production/refining facilities need to get up to full capacity, and questions over the cost and availability of insurance for ships traversing the Strait will remain.
Our current working assumption is that ~80% of energy flows will resume by the end of Q3. Natural gas flows will be slower to return, following the damage to Qatari facilities earlier in the conflict, which according to local officials has put 17% of production offline for two to three years.
US crude drops below $80
US crude oil has dropped to its lowest level since the second week of the Iran war.
The cost of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) light sweet crude has dropped by 6% today to $79.72 per barrel, the first time since 10 March that it has been under $80/barrel.
That could help to pull down US gasoline prices, which climbed after the conflict began, hitting consumer confidence.
UK bond yields fall
Today’s relief rally is also driving up government bond prices, pushing down the cost of borrowing.
The yield (or interest rate) on 10-year UK government debt has dropped by 6.5 basis points (0.065 of a percentage point) to 4.775%.
Two-year bond yields are down 8bps to 4.16%.
Lower bond yields indicate that that the cost of issuing new government debt has fallen, which will be a relief for the UK Treasury after the Iran war drove up borrowing costs.
Copper mining company Antofagasta is now the top riser on the FTSE 100, up almost 8%.
Trader will be concluding that an end to the Iran war will boost the world economy, leading to more demand for raw materials such as copper.
European stock markets hit record high
European stock markets have hit a record high at the start of trading, as relief over the US-Iran peace deal ripples across global markets.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index has jumped by 0.9% to 639 points, over the previous record high set just before the Iran war started, with shares rising in London, Frankfurt, Paris, Madrid and Milan.
Mining and travel companies are driving the rally, while oil company shares are sliding.
That follows sharp gains in Asia-Pacific markets overnight, where Japan’s Nikkei surged by 5% on hopes that the strait of Hormuz will reopen within days.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, says global equity markets are starting the week firmly on the front foot after President Trump announced that a deal with Iran had been reached, adding:
The move has given investors a clear reason to dial back some of the geopolitical risk premium that has hung over markets, especially as the Strait of Hormuz is expected to reopen and oil prices move sharply lower.
Energy prices have been one of the clearest transmission channels from Middle East tensions into inflation, bond yields and equity sentiment, and there is likely to be a concerted effort to get prices down even further once this deal is finalised.
There are still details to be ironed out before markets can fully trust the agreement, but for now the direction of travel is clear: lower oil, calmer nerves and a renewed appetite for risk.
BP and Shell’s shares slide
Shares in oil companies are falling, though – BP and Shell are both down 3.7%, as investors anticipate an end to their earnngs boost from the Iran war.
FTSE 100 index hits eight-week high
Boom! Britain’s stock market has hit a near-two month high at the start of trading, as investors welcome the breakthrough between the US and Iran to end the Middle East conflict.
The FTSE 100 blue-chip share index has jumped by 99 points, or almost 1%, at the start of trading to 10,570 points, its highest level since 21 April.
Engineering firm Rolls-Royce, which makes and services jet engines, is the top riser on the FTSE 100, up 5.5%, followed by British Airways parent company IAG, up 4.8%.
UK house prices dip in June
Gwyn Topham
Two bits of good news for Britons who don’t own their homes have been revealed, with data showing a drop in house prices in June as well as fewer tenants facing rent hikes last month.
Figures from Rightmove showed the average price of property coming on the to market fell by 0.6% or £2,113 to £376,191, the biggest June fall in fourteen years, with prices 0.5% below this time in 2025. The biggest drops were seen in southern England and Wales, and in asking prices for flats rather than houses.
The property site said the number of homes for sale was still at historically high levels for summer, making it more of a buyer’s market. Mortgage affordability has also improved slightly this month, with the average two-year fixed rate deal dropping about 0.1 percentage points to 5.07%, it said.
Meanwhile, figures suggest that the introduction of the Renters Right Act may already be seeing results in terms of keeping rents down for tenants.
The new law came into force at the start of May and means landlords can only increase rents for sitting tenants once a year. According to Hamptons monthly lettings index, the number of tenants who saw their rent rise was down 23% from the same month last year. Hamptons said if the rest of the year saw similar change, it would expect only 31% of sitting tenants to face increases, compared to 40%-50% in previous years.
However, the agency warned that rent rises in Scotland, where landlords have been operating under a similar system for longer, exceeded the national average. Sitting tenants who faced rent rises had an average increase of 5.4% in May, but the figure reached 7.7% in Scotland, albeit for a lower absolute rent – £952 – than the Great Britain average of £1375.
Speaking of the ECB, their president Christine Lagarde has been warning that inflation pressures are spreading in the euro area.
In an intervew with broadcaster France Culture, Lagarde warned that high energy prices are starting to feed through to other parts of the economy, saying:
“Indirect effects of inflation, we have absolutely started to see that more or less everywhere in recent weeks.”
The US-Iran agreement is well-timed for the Bank of England, which is due to set UK interest rates on Thursday.
If the strait of Hormuz does reopen, and oil flows return towards pre-war levels, there will be less inflationary pressure – and thus less need for interest rate rises.
The European Central Bank raised its interest rates last week, but this week is the turn of the BoE, the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan.
Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, says:
Over the past month, the price of oil is down by more than a fifth, and the Brent crude price is now back at levels from early March. This is good news for inflation, which should start tumbling monthly from June, and it could ease concerns about price pressures as we lead up to some major central bank action this week. The decline in the oil price also raises questions about whether the ECB was too hasty in raising rates last week.
European stock markets are on track to jump when trading begins, in just over 20 minutes.
Germany’s DAX share index is up 1.65% in the futures market, Reuters reports, with the UK’s FTSE 100 0.75% higher.
The US dollar is weakening, as investors shift into riskier currencies.
The pound is its highest in over a week, at $1.3438.
Markets rally across Asia
There are strong gains across Asia-Pacific markets today, as investors welcome the deal between the US and Iran.
Japan’s Nikkei share index has leapt by 5%, as has South Korea’s KOSPI, while China’s CSI300 index is 1.9% higher.
Jim Reid, market strategist at Deutsche Bank, says:
Whilst the deal is very good news for markets it looks like tough conversations will have occur in the 60-day window to ensure the peace is sustainable. As an example, the Senate needs to approve any extensive sanction relief for Iran.
For now the can kicking exercise has been very well received by markets even after a strong US close on Friday where hopes were raised of a weekend signing
Introduction: Oil falls to three-month low
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets, and the world economy.
The peace deal agreed between Iran and the US is sending a wave of relief through the markets today.
Oil has tumbled 4%, and markets across the Asia-Pacific region have jumped, as investors anticipate the reopening of the strait of Hormuz.
Although it is unclear exactly what has been agreed – with the final text of their memorandum of understanding unpublished – Donald Trump’s claim that “oil will flow on both ends again for the region, and the world” is pushing down energy prices – a relief for busineses, consumers, politicians and central bankers alike.
Brent crude has fallen as low as $83.04, its lowest since 10 March, after the prime minister of Pakistan announced the US and Iran will sign a memorandum of understanding in Switzerland on Friday.
That still leaves Brent above its pre-war price of $72.48 a barrel, though.
Trump has indicated that the opening of the strait is contingent upon the signing of the peace deal, scheduled for Friday.
Iran’s Mehr state news, though, reported that the agreed memorandum of understanding calls for the reopening of the strait within 30 days under “Iranian arrangements” – an indication that Tehran hasn’t surrendered its control of the waterway.
Chris Weston of IG points out that there are still obstacles to overcome:
The probable reopening of the Strait of Hormuz later this week would represent a significant positive development. Markets had increasingly questioned how long inventory draws could offset supply disruptions and whether physical dislocations would begin weighing more heavily on risk assets. The focus now shifts towards understanding what normalisation of logistics could realistically look like, and how quickly shipping volumes can return to pre-conflict levels of 120 to 140 commercial vessels transiting eastbound and westbound each day.
There are still obstacles to overcome. Mines may need to be cleared, and there may be structural damage to refineries and export facilities around the region that will take time to repair and come back to pre-conflict capacity.
The agenda
Paying tribute, Sir Keir Starmer said Lord Hattersley “was a giant of the Labour movement”.
Source link
My partner and I paid £2,150 for a week’s all-inclusive break in Marrakech with easyJet Holidays.
We chose the Jaal Riad Resort Hotel because of its pool and spa. When we arrived, we were told that use of the heated pool cost £24 a person an hour, the Jacuzzi £24 for 20 minutes, and the hammam was £16 for 20 minutes.
Nowhere were these extra fees listed when booking. EasyJet Holidays rejected my complaint and referred me to a line buried at the bottom of the list of facilities that said charges may apply. We were planning on using the pool regularly but could not afford it. If we had known, we would have booked elsewhere.
DP, Cambridgeshire
Hidden charges can hugely inflate the cost of holidays. Resort fees are the most pernicious – some hotels charge up to £50 a person a day for facilities whether or not they are used.
Then there’s the daily tourist tax levied via the accommodation provider during the stay in some countries, and ancillary fees for upgraded wifi for sun loungers.
EasyJet Holidays makes a big deal of the pool – it’s a prominent photo on the webpage for the hotel.
No asterisk refers potential bookers to the crucial caveat that a couple, wishing to avail themselves once a day during a week’s stay, would have to pay almost £350 extra.
Even the eagle-eyed who alighted on the paragraph of small print at the bottom of the page, would be none the wiser.
Only after declaring that the facilities are subject to height and weight restrictions, seasonal availability, opening times, and age and dress code, does it mention that they “may” attract additional charges. These are not listed.
This is potentially unlawful, according to consumer lawyer Gary Rycroft.
“The facilities were prominently marketed as part of the holiday experience, and extra charges were not clearly disclosed before purchase,” he says. “Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act 2024, businesses must not omit material information that would influence a consumer’s decision about whether to enter into a contract.”
EasyJet is defensive. “We always strive to make it clear that use of hotel facilities may incur additional charges,” it told me.
The company said then that it was reviewing the description to “further highlight that the use of the spa facilities is chargeable”, although, at the time of writing, three weeks later, the webpage remained unchanged. It has also now offered a £500 goodwill payment.
As the holiday season begins, you need to read the small print to avoid nasty surprises.
We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at consumer.champions@theguardian.com or write to Consumer Champions, Money, the Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number. Submission and publication of all letters is subject to our terms and conditions.
Slow down, you crazy child: What Oxford student theatre can learn from garden plays
Oxford business wins award for its apprentice support
European stock markets hit record high and oil price falls to three-month low after US-Iran peace deal – business live | Business
-
Crime & Safety4 weeks agoWhat happens to Halifax customers if Lloyds makes changes?
-
Crime & Safety4 weeks agoFlock of clay birds set to take flight in special exhibition
-
Crime & Safety4 weeks agoOxfordshire bridge closure comes as management ‘weaknesses’ found
-
Oxford News4 weeks agoActor steps down from major role in new Harry Potter series
-
Oxford News4 weeks agoHenley pub once owned by Russell Brand reopens after 6 years
-
Crime & Safety4 weeks agoFriends of the Ridgeway appoint Matthew Barber as president
-
Oxford News4 weeks agoNHS fracture service helps support extra 1,000 patients
-
UK News4 weeks agoBurnham seeks to calm markets by committing to fiscal rules