Justice secretary Dominic Raab has defended the government’s highly-criticised lack of action to solve the country’s cost of living crisis. Put to him on Sky News that Conservative policies were not doing enough to help families and households, Mr Raab rejected this view. He claimed the Universal Credit taper “saves the relevant families £1,000 a year” and that what the government has done “with the National Living Wage saves £1,000 a year for those eligible full-time workers”. He also branded Labour’s plan for a windfall tax on energy companies “disastrous”, saying it “would damage investment in energy supplies we need and hike bills”. The minister said: “What this shows is they’re coming up with frankly ill-thought through policies, but we have got a plan, a concerted plan, and I think that’s what voters want to see.” While Mr Raab refused to give precise details about Tuesday’s meeting, where ministers were urged to come up with “innovative” ways to address the problem, it has been reported that suggestions included lowering MOT test intervals and reducing the cost of childcare.

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Raab: ‘Perfectly legitimate’ for Patel to attend Bond premiere as home sec

Another snippet now from Dominic Raab’s media round this morning. The justice secretary said it was “perfectly legitimate” for Priti Patel to attend a James Bond premiere in her role as home secretary, pointing to both “fictional” and “factual” links between the security services and the Home Office. His defence comes after Cabinet Office minister Michael Ellis suggested Ms Patel accepted an invite to the latest Bond film premiere in her capacity as home secretary because it had links to her department. The character of James Bond works for MI6 in the movie franchise. Asked if it was part of the home secretary’s role to attend the Bond screening, Mr Raab told LBC: “I think it’s perfectly legitimate – I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.” He added: “I don’t know the circumstances around it, but given how hard the home secretary works, frankly I don’t begrudge her going to see a movie one night – and particularly given, of course, the links with the Home Office in both the fictional but also the factual service that is MI5.” Minister claims Patel accepted Bond tickets as ‘nature of film connected to executive function’ Sam Hancock27 April 2022 09:23 1651046135

PM failing to set out ‘mission success’ in Ukraine as war drags on – senior Tory

A senior Conservative has hit out at Boris Johnson for failing to explain what is “mission success” in Ukraine, as the war drags on into its third month. Tobias Ellwood, a former defence minister, spoke out as the foreign secretary Liz Truss delivers a major speech warning the world “will never feel safe again” if Vladimir Putin is allowed to win. Ms Truss will call for higher defence spending across the West and reverse policy by arguing for Ukraine to be sent fighter planes, as well as tanks and heavy weapons. But Mr Ellwood, the chair of the defence committee, said Nato’s policy must be to force Russia out of the eastern Donbas region, where experts fear a long bloody stalemate now looms. Our deputy political editor Rob Merrick has more: Sam Hancock27 April 2022 08:55 1651045577

Watch: Raab condemns Labour’s plan for windfall tax on energy companies

Dominic Raab condemns Labour’s plan for windfall tax on energy companies Sam Hancock27 April 2022 08:46 1651045458

Sunak says no new money for cost-of-living ideas – and proposals won’t be discussed for weeks

Following my last post, here’s our political editor Andrew Woodcock with more on Tuesday’s meeting, where ministers were urged to come up with ways to solve the cost of living crisis without spending taxpayers’ money. Cabinet ministers are split over suggestions for easing the cost of living crisis at no cost to the government, which include demands to scrap green levies and a plan to lower MOT test intervals from one to two years. Chancellor Rishi Sunak made clear to ministers at a brainstorming session that there was no money available to fund schemes to help hard-pressed households. With Conservatives taking a battering in the run-up to the local elections over the impact of soaring inflation, Boris Johnson called on every minister to produce ideas to help put money back in voters’ purses and wallets. He was said to be particularly keen to cut the cost of childcare, where prices have risen by a third in the past decade from around £102 in 2012 to £137 now for an average part-time weekly nursery place for a child under two. Sam Hancock27 April 2022 08:44 1651044203

Raab defends government inaction on rising cost of living

More from Dominic Raab now, who was asked this morning about the government’s reported inaction to solve the rising cost of living crisis. Pressed for details on Tuesday’s meeting, where ministers were urged to come up with “innovative” ways to address the problem, he told Times Radio: “What the prime minister and the whole Cabinet was discussing is what more we can do – and we will never rest, we will never let up beyond the existing package what more we can do to ease the pressure.” While Mr Raab said he would not get into precise details of the meeting, due to “collective responsibility”, it has been reported that suggestions included lowering MOT test intervals and reducing the cost of childcare. The cabinet minister would, however, say that it was “quite right Cabinet discusses these ideas” and argued “people expect us to test our policies very carefully, to thrash them through, and keep coming up with new ways to ease the pressure”. Put to him separately, on Sky News, that the Tories’ policies weren’t doing enough to help families and households, Mr Raab flat out rejected this view. He claimed the Universal Credit taper “saves the relevant families £1,000 a year” and that what the government has done “with the National Living Wage saves £1,000 a year for those eligible full-time workers”. He also branded Labour’s plan for a windfall tax on energy companies “disastrous”, saying it “would damage investment in energy supplies we need and hike bills”. “So what this shows is they’re coming up with frankly ill-thought through policies, but we have got a plan, a concerted plan, and I think that’s what voters want to see,” the minister added. Sam Hancock27 April 2022 08:23 1651042357

Raab avoids cussing Mail on Sunday for no-show Commons meeting but defends ‘formidable’ Rayner

Justice secretary Dominic Raab is doing the media rounds for the government this morning. On Sky News, the cabinet minister said he thought it was “legitimate” for Sir Lindsay Hoyle to invite the editor of The Mail on Sunday for a meeting following the newspaper’s controversial article about Angela Rayner. However, he quickly argued that it was an editor’s choice to decide how they would respond to such an invitation, after David Dillon refused to attend (see post from 5.50am). “I’m not going to second guess the decisions of editors,” Mr Raab told the news channel, adding: “I think it was a legitimate thing for Lindsay Hoyle to do to invite him and, of course, it’s the prerogative of any editor to decide how they treat that invitation.” He did, however, acknowledge that free speech should not be “abused and used to spread sexism in any shape or form”. Pressed on his position about the article, Mr Raab praised Ms Rayner as a “formidable opponent” and insisted the Conservative Party “will not tolerate any behaviour and smear like this”. If the culprit is found, the government “will take action” against them, he added. Sam Hancock27 April 2022 07:52 1651040645

What’s going on at Westminster today?

Here’s the parliamentary schedule for Wednesday 27 April: 11.30am Northern Ireland questions 12pm Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) 12.40pm Urgent questions/statements A 10-minute rule motion on Import of products of forced labour from Xinjiang (Prohibition) Elections Bill – consideration of Lords amendments Nationality and Borders Bill – consideration of Lords amendments if necessary A short debate on Cotswolds District Council and funding for solar farms 3.45pm Pension Schemes (Conversion of Guaranteed Minimum Pensions) Bill – third reading British Sign Language Bill – third reading Judicial Review and Courts Bill – Lords consideration of Commons amendments Nationality and Borders Bill – Lords consideration of Commons amendments Elections Bill – Lords consideration of Commons amendments Sam Hancock27 April 2022 07:24 1651040498

Food manufacturing giant Kellogg’s is mounting a legal challenge against new government rules that would stop some of the company’s cereals being prominently displayed in food stores. The new regulations come into effect in England in October and restrict promotion of food and drink that is high in fat, salt and sugar. Kellogg’s said in a statement that it has “tried to have a reasonable conversation with government” to no avail, with the company’s UK managing director, Chris Silcock, saying: “We believe the formula being used … to measure the nutritional value of breakfast cereals is wrong and not implemented legally. It measures cereals dry when they are almost always eaten with milk.” A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman argued that breakfast cereals “contribute 7 per cent – “a significant amount” – to the average daily free sugar intakes of children. He said: “Restricting the promotion and advertising of less healthy foods is an important part of the cross-government strategy to halve childhood obesity by 2030, prevent harmful diseases and improve healthy life expectancy, so we can…