Evening summary Here’s a roundup of the key developments from the day: Since the introduction of the two-child policy – which limits benefits payments to the first two children born to the poorest households –exactly five years ago today, the fertility rate for third and subsequent children born to poorer families has barely fallen. Instead, the main impact of the policy has been to become the biggest single driver of child poverty. The financial pressures on many UK households and businesses have intensified today, as national insurance rates are lifted to raise funds for the NHS and social care. Despite the cost of living crisis, the government has pressed on with its manifesto-busting 1.25 percentage point rise in national insurance, announced last September. The increase in national insurance payments for millions of people already struggling to deal with the cost of living crisis is both right and fair, the health secretary has said. Sajid Javid said the levy of an extra 1.25 percentage points, due from Wednesday, was needed to pay for health and social care as a result of the Covid pandemic. Keir Starmer says the national insurance rise is “the wrong tax at the wrong time”. The Labour leader said: People are really, really struggling to pay their bills. And this is just going to impact on them very, very hard. Increasing national insurance for millions of workers is unfair and comes at the wrong time as the nation faces a cost-of-living crisis, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has said. He told BBC Breakfast that “the NHS and the care system does need money but it needs to be done in a fair way”. Boris Johnson said he had “absolutely no problem” with hiking national insurance to help fund the NHS. He did, however, acknowledge households would face choices to help make ends meet. Rishi Sunak’s popularity with voters has plunged amid continuing debate over the government’s reaction to surging living costs, according to a poll. His net favourability was down 24 points since just before his spring statement on 23 March, to reach minus 29, the survey by YouGov found. Hospitals and ambulance services across England are under “enormous strain” fuelled by “heavy demand”, “severe” staff shortages and soaring Covid cases, health leaders have warned after NHS trusts covering millions of patients declared critical incidents. Dr Layla McCay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation, which represents the whole healthcare system, said the situation had become so serious that “all parts” of the health service were now becoming “weighed down”. The Scottish Conservatives today diverged from the Westminster party as they committed to voting for a ban on conversion practices – including a ban on trans conversion therapy – in forthcoming Holyrood legislation. Divisions in the Conservative party over the privatisation of Channel 4 are bursting into the open, with the plans likely to face a bumpy ride in parliament. After the government made the announcement, it became clear that privatisation plans were not sitting well, not only with media personalities but also with senior figures in the Conservative party. Sewage has become a major battleground in the local elections in so-called “blue wall” seats, where the Liberal Democrats are challenging the Conservatives, from Guildford to Cambridgeshire. The Lib Dems have put eliminating sewage dumps at the heart of their campaign, with the party leader, Ed Davey, launching their fight today in Wimbledon. Chronic worker shortages in the food and farming sector as a result of Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic could push food prices even higher and lead to more having to be imported, MPs have warned. Parliamentarians on the environment, food and rural affairs committee reported that the sector had half a million vacancies in August last year, representing an eighth of all roles. The government will unveil its long-awaited energy strategy tomorrow, with rising bills one of the main pressures on household finances. Boris Johnson told reporters in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, that there was a “limit to the amount of taxpayers’ money” that could be used to address the problem. The job of keeping the UK’s electricity and gas flowing will be returned to public control by 2024, under government plans for the effective nationalisation of a division of National Grid. A new public body, the “Future Systems Operator” will have responsibility for planning and managing energy distribution, with a focus on the challenges posed by decarbonisation. That’s it from me today. Thanks for joining me. Hospital trusts in Yorkshire have warned patients they may have to wait for up to 12 hours to be seen at accident and emergency (A&E), after a sharp increase in demand. The West Yorkshire Association of Acute Trusts (WYAAT), which covers six hospitals in West Yorkshire and Harrogate, has issued a plea for patients to attend their local A&E only in “genuine life-threatening situations”. The warning came after the clinical director of a hospital in Lancashire said patients were routinely waiting more than two days for a bed, with staff left “crying with frustration and anger”. “For the past few months we have on a regular basis had more than 50 patients waiting for a bed and that wait being in excess of 60 hours,” Graham Ellis, the clinical director of Royal Preston hospital told the hospital trust’s executive team in a letter leaked to the Health Service Journal. He added: We have witnessed senior experienced staff crying with frustration and anger as they have had to resuscitate patients in the waiting room, examine in the viewing room and CT changing room, seen patients leave the department as they have been pulled out of a cubicle to allow someone more unwell to be treated in their former space and patients die without the dignity of privacy. Boris Johnson has said he does not “think that biological males should be competing in female sporting events”, amid the fallout from his decision not to ban conversion practices for people questioning their gender. Speaking on Wednesday, the prime minister said the issue “wasn’t something I thought that I would have to consider in great detail”. Johnson also said that women should have spaces in hospitals, prisons and changing rooms which were “dedicated to women”. “That’s as far as my thinking has developed on this issue,” Johnson told a journalist during a visit to a hospital in Hertfordshire. “And if that puts me in conflict with some others, then we have got to work it all out.” He added: That doesn’t mean that I’m not immensely sympathetic to people who want to change gender, to transition, and it’s vital that we give people the maximum possible love and support in making those decisions. But these are complex issues. And I don’t think they can be solved with one swift, easy piece of legislation … it takes a lot of thought to get this right. He also insisted it was right to exclude people who were questioning their gender from a long-promised ban on so-called conversion “therapy”. After the resignation of a senior equality adviser and cancellation of the government’s flagship international LGBT conference in the face of a mass withdrawal of support from stakeholders, the prime minister said he was “sad” at their response. The UK has imposed a sweeping set of sanctions on Russia in response to the atrocities committed in Ukraine. Asset freezes have been imposed on Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank, and the Credit Bank of Moscow. All new outward investment to Russia has been banned and the UK has also committed to end all imports of Russian coal and oil by the end of the year, with gas to follow as soon as possible. Imports of Russian iron and steel products will be banned and a further eight oligarchs have also been added to the sanctions list. Liz Truss said the package was “some of our toughest sanctions yet”. The foreign secretary said: Our latest wave of measures will bring an end to the UK’s imports of Russian energy and sanction yet more individuals and businesses, decimating (Vladimir) Putin’s war machine. Together with our allies, we are showing the Russian elite that they cannot wash their hands of the atrocities committed on Putin’s orders. We will not rest until Ukraine prevails. The job of keeping the UK’s electricity and gas flowing will be returned to public control by 2024, under government plans for the effective nationalisation of a division of National Grid. A new public body, the “Future Systems Operator” will have responsibility for planning and managing energy distribution, with a focus on the challenges posed by decarbonisation. The government said the plan, announced on the eve of the publication of its long-awaited energy strategy, would “drive progress towards net zero while maintaining energy security and minimising costs for consumers.” BEIS said the National Grid, a stock market-listed company since 1995, would be “appropriately compensated” in a transaction that will see the government take control of its Electricity System Operator, the part of the business that keeps the lights on. Gas distribution assets will also be taken into state ownership. The National Grid’s chief executive, John Pettigrew, said National Grid “has a critical role to play in the decarbonisation of the economy to reach net zero, while continuing to ensure security of supply at the lowest cost to consumers.” He said: We have been working closely with government, industry and the regulator to create a Future System Operator that enables long-term holistic thinking, drives progress towards net zero, and lays the foundations for the regulatory reform necessary to deliver a clean, fair and affordable energy transition. We will continue to work closely with all relevant parties to ensure a smooth transition, subject to parliamentary approval and conclusion of the transaction process. PA reports that divisions in the Conservative party over the privatisation of Channel 4 are bursting into the open, with the plans likely to face a bumpy ride in parliament. Tory MP and Father of the House Sir Peter Bottomley told the PA news agency the House of Lords will take out any clause that privatises the network, and announced he will make a speech shortly after the Queen’s speech in the Commons explaining why he deems the plans “unconservative”. The government confirmed on Monday that it will proceed with plans to privatise Channel 4, which has been publicly owned since it was founded in 1982 and is funded by advertising. The culture secretary, Nadine Dorries, said that while Channel 4 held a “cherished place in British life” she felt that public ownership was holding the broadcaster back from “competing against streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon”. Plans for the sale will reportedly be set out in a white paper later this month and will be included in a new media bill for next spring. After the government made the announcement, it became clear that privatisation plans were not sitting well, not only with media personalities but also with senior figures in the Conservative party. A string of Tory MPs and peers, including Sir Peter, former Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson, chair of the digital, culture, media and sport (DCMS) committee Julian Knight, and former cabinet ministers Damian Green and Jeremy Hunt publicly questioned the plans. Sir Keir Starmer has said ministers should honour their promises to ban all forms of conversion therapy. Speaking during a visit to Bacup in Lancashire, the Labour leader said: “Conversion therapy in all its forms should be banned. That used to be the government’s position. “They have been flip-flopping on this over the last few days. The need to stick to their promises.” Sir Keir accused ministers of using the issue to try to distract from the cost-of-living crisis as the rise in national insurance contributions kicked in. “They know that what is keeping people awake at night is the cost of living, whether they can pay their bills or not,” he said. “In order to try to distract from that the government wants to create an argument about conversion therapy. It is not going to wash.” Hospitals and ambulance services across England are under “enormous strain” fuelled by “heavy demand”, “severe” staff shortages and soaring Covid cases, health leaders have warned after NHS trusts covering millions of patients declared critical incidents. Dr Layla McCay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation, which represents the whole healthcare system, said the situation had become so serious that “all parts” of the health service were now becoming “weighed down”. This will have a “direct knock-on effect” on the ability of staff to tackle the care backlog, she added, as well as the current provision of urgent and emergency care. She sounded the alarm after a major ambulance trust, South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS), which covers 7 million people across Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Sussex and Surrey, declared a critical incident after “extreme pressures” forced it to prioritise patients with life-threatening illnesses. Following on from the post about Rishi Sunak’s waning popularity, a separate poll from Ipsos Mori also shows that his favourability ratings have dropped to the lowest since he became chancellor. It found that: 26% of Britons are favourable towards the chancellor and 44% unfavourable. 56% think country heading in the wrong direction – highest number this parliament. 52% think Johnson should resign if issued with a fixed penalty notice over partygate. The Scottish Conservatives today diverged from the Westminster party as they committed to voting for a ban on conversion practices – including a ban on trans conversion therapy – in forthcoming Holyrood legislation. In January, a Holyrood committee published a report calling for an immediate ban on the “traumatising” practice in Scotland, with the recommendations being welcomed as a fully comprehensive prohibition, with no exemptions. But the Scottish party also announced that “supporting women’s spaces in council-run venues including schools, parks and swimming pools” would be a key plank of its manifesto for the May council elections. Welcoming the recent EHRC guidelines on same-sex spaces – which have caused much concern and distress amongst the LGBTQ+ community – as providing “necessary clarity”, the Scottish Conservative spokeswoman on gender reform, Meghan Gallacher MSP, said: Our local government manifesto will include a commitment to protect women’s same-sex spaces. It is essential that we continue to respect women’s safety. We cannot allow long-held rights to be eroded.” Many women feel that their place in society and their safety is under threat. Those views should be heard and respected, not dismissed, as they have been on too many occasions. Rishi Sunak’s popularity with voters has plunged amid continuing debate over the government’s reaction to surging living costs, according to a poll. His net favourability was down 24 points since just before his spring statement on 23 March, to reach minus 29, the survey by YouGov found. The poll put the Chancellor’s support below that of Keir Starmer (minus 25) for the first time since the Labour leader took office, PA News reports. Minus 29 is Sunak’s lowest ever result and is a 24-point decrease since 22-23 March, and a 14-point drop since immediately after the spring statement, the figures showed. The poll found more than half of Britons (57%) have an unfavourable opinion of the chancellor, compared with 28% who view him in a positive light. Sunak’s net favourability with 2019 Conservative voters was 6, a fall of 23 points from March 23-24, and a drop from 41 just before the spring statement. The prime minister’s net favourability among Britons was minus 34, down 8 points from March 23-24. Boris Johnson’s favourability among 2019 Conservative voters was 7. Starmer’s net favourability of minus 25 is down from minus 21 on 23-24 March, while his net favourability among Labour voters is 20 – 13 points higher than that of Johnson among conservative voters. The findings were based on a survey of 2,120 British adults on 4-5 April, YouGov said. YouGov says: The aftermath of the spring statement and the ongoing cost-of-living crisis seem to be continuing to have a devastating effect on Rishi Sunak’s popularity among the British public. The chancellor’s spring statement has been criticised as failing to support lower-income households through the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades and caused widespread anger among those who stand to suffer most from spiralling prices.