Latest news with #IainDuncanSmith
The Independent
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Tory MP pleads not guilty to sexual assault at London's Groucho Club
A Tory MP has pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual assault at London's Groucho Club. Patrick Spencer, the MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, allegedly cupped the breasts of two women over their clothes at the famous private members' club on an evening in August 2023. He has been suspended from the Conservative Party and had the whip withdrawn over the charges. When the charges were made public last month, Mr Spencer 'categorically denied' the allegations against him and vowed to defend them 'robustly' in court. Mr Spencer is the son of Michael Spencer, a billionaire Conservative peer and founder of finance firm NEX Group. Lord Spencer was Tory treasurer between 2006 and 2007, having donated millions of pounds to the party, and was awarded a peerage by Boris Johnson in 2020. Mr Spencer was first elected to Parliament last year with a majority of 4,290. Prior to entering Parliament, he worked in finance for a private equity firm chaired by his father, IPGL. He later took a job at the Centre for Social Justice think tank, founded by the former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith and then became a senior adviser at the Department for Education. He made his maiden speech in the Commons in July last year during a debate on the MPs' code of conduct relating to second jobs, during which he said the "most important thing to the people across my constituency" was "restoring a sense of moral probity and public spiritedness to our political system". He had been told by Tory whips to stay away from the parliamentary estate while inquiries were ongoing. The 37-year-old, from Suffolk, appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court, where he confirmed his name and date of birth before pleading not guilty to the offences.
Belfast Telegraph
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Belfast Telegraph
Demonstrators set to gather for multiple protests in London on Saturday
A protest against proposals for a new Chinese embassy will take place from 2pm at Royal Mint Court, near the capital's financial district, while pro-Palestinian demonstrators are expected to gather in Parliament Square at the same time. Police have set out conditions for the first protest under the Public Order Act which demands that any person taking part in the procession must not deviate from a specified route and that participants in the static portion of the protest must remain in a specified area. The assembly must conclude by 5pm, the Met added. The Hong Kong Democracy Council, which describes itself as a non-partisan, non-profit organisation for Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement and Hong Kongers, posted about Saturday's protest on its social media. The group shared an image of a poster for the event, which read: 'Say 'no' to China mega embassy'. It also said: 'No more CCTVs from China. No more surveillance from China.' The protest comes days after former leader of the Conservative Party, Sir Iain Duncan Smith, said plans for the embassy have become a 'walk of shame' for the Government. On Monday, he said a response by the Government to the proposed embassy had become 'Project Kowtow', as he criticised the Government for 'one denial after another (and) one betrayal after another'. Sir Iain referred to the warnings reportedly issued by the White House and Dutch government to Downing Street over the plans, which are set to be scrutinised by ministers. The worries stem from the close proximity of the proposed embassy's Royal Mint Court site to data centres and communication cables. We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. The Sunday Times said the US was 'deeply concerned' about the plans, quoting a senior US official. In response, planning minister Matthew Pennycook said he could not give a full response as the matter was still to come before the department for a decision, and any verdict could be challenged by the courts. Sir Iain said: 'Beijing has a recent history of cutting cables and confirmed infrastructure hacks, including embedding malware capable of disabling all that infrastructure.' There are 'currently' no conditions in place for the protest organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), Stop the War and other groups but 'there will be a police presence', the Met said. Organisers labelled the demonstration an 'emergency protest' which will issue calls to stop bombing Iran and stop arming Israel. 'As it commits genocide against the Palestinians Israel is now bombing Iran,' PSC posted on social media. 'Join us to demand our government stop arming genocidal Israel.' Police said they have not been informed of any planned counter protests.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Demonstrators set to gather for multiple protests in London on Saturday
Demonstrators are set to gather for multiple protests in London on Saturday, according to the Metropolitan Police. A protest against proposals for a new Chinese embassy will take place from 2pm at Royal Mint Court, near the capital's financial district, while pro-Palestinian demonstrators are expected to gather in Parliament Square at the same time. Police have set out conditions for the first protest under the Public Order Act which demands that any person taking part in the procession must not deviate from a specified route and that participants in the static portion of the protest must remain in a specified area. The assembly must conclude by 5pm, the Met added. The Hong Kong Democracy Council, which describes itself as a non-partisan, non-profit organisation for Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement and Hong Kongers, posted about Saturday's protest on its social media. The group shared an image of a poster for the event, which read: 'Say 'no' to China mega embassy'. It also said: 'No more CCTVs from China. No more surveillance from China.' The protest comes days after former leader of the Conservative Party, Sir Iain Duncan Smith, said plans for the embassy have become a 'walk of shame' for the Government. On Monday, he said a response by the Government to the proposed embassy had become 'Project Kowtow', as he criticised the Government for 'one denial after another (and) one betrayal after another'. Sir Iain referred to the warnings reportedly issued by the White House and Dutch government to Downing Street over the plans, which are set to be scrutinised by ministers. The worries stem from the close proximity of the proposed embassy's Royal Mint Court site to data centres and communication cables. NEW LOCATION 🚨 Emergency Protest: Stop Bombing Iran – Stop Arming Israel⏰ Saturday, 14 June, 2PM📍 Parliament Square, London As it commits genocide against the Palestinians Israel is now bombing Iran. Join us to demand our government stop arming genocidal Israel. — Palestine Solidarity Campaign (@PSCupdates) June 13, 2025 The Sunday Times said the US was 'deeply concerned' about the plans, quoting a senior US official. In response, planning minister Matthew Pennycook said he could not give a full response as the matter was still to come before the department for a decision, and any verdict could be challenged by the courts. Sir Iain said: 'Beijing has a recent history of cutting cables and confirmed infrastructure hacks, including embedding malware capable of disabling all that infrastructure.' There are 'currently' no conditions in place for the protest organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), Stop the War and other groups but 'there will be a police presence', the Met said. Organisers labelled the demonstration an 'emergency protest' which will issue calls to stop bombing Iran and stop arming Israel. 'As it commits genocide against the Palestinians Israel is now bombing Iran,' PSC posted on social media. 'Join us to demand our government stop arming genocidal Israel.' Police said they have not been informed of any planned counter protests.
The Guardian
12-06-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
MPs call for inquiry into how RedBird Capital is funding £500m Telegraph deal
A cross-party group of MPs and peers has called on ministers to investigate how a US private equity company is funding its £500m takeover of the Telegraph. In a letter sent to the culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, last week, the MPs said there was a risk of 'potential Chinese state influence' in RedBird Capital. They said the firm's chair, John Thornton, sat on the advisory council of China's sovereign wealth fund and had high-level meetings with Chinese Communist party figures in 2024 and this year. RedBird Capital announced last month it had agreed a deal to buy the Daily and Sunday Telegraph, ending two years of uncertainty over the future of the titles. The MPs' letter said there was 'a lack of transparency regarding the source of the funds behind this acquisition' and that it was 'conceivable, and increasingly likely, that funds could be sourced directly or indirectly from foreign state actors' including China. A source close to RedBird said there were no Chinese state funds involved in the deal. The letter to Nandy was signed by six Conservative MPs including Iain Duncan Smith and Tom Tugendhat, the Labour MPs Alex Sobel and Marie Rimmer, the Liberal Democrats' Christine Jardine and the Scottish National party's Chris Law. The Tory peers Kevin Shinkwin and Catherine Meyer and the crossbenchers Frances D'Souza and David Alton were also among the signatories. They called on Nandy to 'initiate a full and transparent investigation into the acquisition', consider its national security implications and review Thornton's 'suitability in owning and controlling a UK media outlet'. It is understood that although the proposed deal will eventually need regulatory approval, no proposal has been submitted to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) for review yet. Only a commercial agreement in principle has been reached. While RedBird Capital has been in talks with additional investors in the US and UK, the deal is fully funded and not contingent on them coming onboard. RedBird Capital will become the sole controlling owner. The US private equity group is buying the Telegraph titles from RedBird IMI, which took control of the newspapers in November 2023 after agreeing to pay debts owed by the previous owners the Barclay family. RedBird Capital contributed a quarter of the funding to RedBird IMI, with the other three-quarters funded by International Media Investments (IMI), a company owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the owner of Manchester City. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Sheikh Mansour is vice-president of the United Arab Emirates, and concerns over the consortium's links to Abu Dhabi prompted a campaign against the takeover that culminated in the UK government introducing a law in March last year blocking foreign states or associated individuals from owning British newspaper assets. This forced RedBird IMI to put the titles back up for sale. Under the legislation, which is still going through parliament, ministers said they would allow foreign states to own stakes of up to 15% in British newspapers. Subject to the legislation, under RedBird Capital's acquisition IMI would be reduced to a minority stake in line with the new cap. The MPs and peers' letter said allowing the sale to go through would make a mockery of the legislation, adding: 'Those who have invested in RedBird should surely be known before any final sale approval can be allowed.' The DCMS was contacted for comment.
Telegraph
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
MPs fight to criminalise pills-by-post abortions
MPs are seeking a law change to ban the unsupervised use of abortion 'pills by post' to prevent women being coerced into terminations. Nearly 30 MPs including Sir Iain Duncan Smith, the former Tory party leader, are backing an amendment to the Government's policing Bill which would crack down on the pills-by-post scheme to prevent it being abused by coercive partners or result in mistaken terminations. The postal scheme enables women who are fewer than 10 weeks pregnant to access abortion medication after a phone or video consultation with a doctor. It was introduced in the pandemic to ensure women could continue to access terminations during early pregnancy. The scheme was made permanent in March 2022. Critics have said the removal of the requirement for an in-person medical appointment leaves the process open to abuse. Last year, a 40-year old man from Norfolk was jailed for 12 years for administering pills obtained by post to a woman without her knowledge after he crushed up the medication in a glass of orange juice. Stuart Worby's victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, suffered a miscarriage in hospital within hours of the assault, which happened in 2022. Worby obtained the medication from a friend, who posed as a woman in need of an abortion. Require medical checks Caroline Johnson, a Tory MP, is tabling an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill which would bar a woman from securing abortion pills for use at home without a prior in-person appointment with a doctor or appropriate medical professional. This would allow medics to check for any health risks, the woman's gestational age and the possibility of a coerced abortion. The move has already been backed by 27 MPs across six political parties and, according to new polling, has support from the public. Two-thirds of women backed a return to in-person appointments with 4 per cent in favour of the status quo, according to a poll of 2,103 adults by Whitestone Insight. Prevent 'coerced or dangerous abortions' Ms Johnson said: 'Since its introduction, the safeguarding risks caused by the 'pills by post' scheme have been evident, with one man able to obtain pills by a third party to induce a woman to have an abortion against her will or knowledge. 'Other women have taken the pills later in pregnancy, in some cases because they were mistaken about their gestation, putting themselves in danger. 'Women would continue to be able to take abortion pills at home but, in line with public support, my amendment would reinstate prior in-person consultations so medical professionals are able to accurately assess a woman's gestational age, any health risks and the risk of coercion before abortion pills can be prescribed. 'This would protect women and prevent further cases of coerced or dangerous abortions arising as a result of the pills by post scheme.' Cross-party support Among MPs backing the law change alongside Sir Iain are Tim Farron, the former Lib Dem leader; Neil O'Brien, the former health minister; Sir Edward Leigh, the Father of the House; Bob Blackman, the chairman of the Conservative 1922 Committee; Mary Glindon, the former Labour opposition whip and Rachael Maskell, the former health and social care select committee member and Labour shadow minister. Catherine Robinson, of the pro-life group Right to Life UK, said: 'The controversial amendment that made at-home abortions permanent passed by a razor-thin margin of just 27 votes. A large number of MPs raised serious concerns about the negative impact these schemes would have on women. Since then, we have seen these concerns tragically borne out.' Ms Robinson noted the case of Carla Foster, who was jailed in 2023 for taking abortion pills after the legal cut-off time during lockdown. She said: 'Women such as Carla Foster have performed at-home abortions well beyond the 24-week time limit, putting their health at serious risk. 'Had Carla Foster been given an in-person consultation, where her gestation could have been accurately determined, she would not have been able to access abortion pills, and this tragic case would have been prevented. 'The solution is clear. We urgently need to reinstate in-person appointments. 'This simple safeguard would prevent women's lives from being put at risk from self-administered late-term abortions, a danger that would be exacerbated if abortion were 'decriminalised' right up to birth.'
