Starmer says Tories should take action now against MP accused of watching porn on phone in chamber Keir Starmer has told ITV that the Conservative party should take action now against the MP accused of watching pornography on his phone in the Commons chamber. The party has said it wants the matter to be resolved through the independent complaints and grievance scheme (ICGS) – even though that would require one of the female MPs who saw their colleague watching porn to submit a formal complaint, which is not thought to have happened yet. Starmer said the Tories should act more quickly. He said: This is an unusual case because the Tory party knows who this individual is. I think that they should deal with it, and deal with it sooner rather than later … They know who this is. They should take action now. Asked about the report that a member of his own shadow cabinet told an MP that she was an asset because women voters wanted to be her friend and men wanted to sleep with her, he said he was “deeply concerned” about this allegation. He said Labour had a complaints procedure and he hoped the woman would have the confidence to use it. “I would want to get to the bottom of this and do something about it,” he said. Summary Suella Braverman claims sexual misconduct at parliament part of wider problem linked to ‘coarsening of behaviour’. She said that watching pornography on a phone in the Commons chamber was “absolutely reprehensible”. She added that she did not know the identity of the male Tory MP accused of doing this, and that she was not at the meeting on Monday night when a colleague first spoke about witnessing this. Conservative MP Jamie Wallis charged with failing to stop after a car crash last year. The MP for Bridgend and first openly transgender MP was arrested on suspicion of “driving whilst unfit” following the late-night collision when a car hit a lamppost in Llanblethian on 28 November. At the time Wallis said he was “assisting police with their inquiries”. Liam Byrne says he is ‘profoundly sorry’ for bullying member of staff. The Labour MP Liam Byrne has issued a statement saying he is “profoundly sorry” for bullying a member of his staff. He said he was glad that the panel that investigated the complaint, and recommended a two-day suspension as punishment, recognised his remorse. Parliament prorogues. This involves a ceremony that sees MPs attending the House of Lords (as they do for the Queen’s speech), where they listen as a royal commission (five peers, wearing robes and bicorne hats) announces that the current session of parliament is over. Sturgeon says society will lose out if sexism means women are discouraged from entering politics. Asked at FMQs about sexist attacks on Angela Rayner, the Labour frontbencher, Sturgeon said that she was “absolutely appalled both by the male Conservative MP who thought it was okay to make these pathetic and derogatory comments, but also by the fact that we still live in a society that is deemed acceptable for a story like that to be published in a major newspaper”. The Cabinet Office says UK firms will save at least £1bn from the decision to delay some planned post-Brexit checks on food imports. Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Brexit opportunities minister, has confirmed that the UK is delaying the introduction of physical checks on fresh food being imported into the country from the EU. As my colleague Lisa O’Carroll writes, it is the fourth time the introduction of these measures – part of the new post-Brexit border controls – has been delayed. Starmer says Tories should take action now against the MP accused of watching porn on his phone in the chamber. Keir Starmer has told ITV that the Conservative party should take act immediately. Boris Johnson has said allegations that a Tory MP watched pornography in the Commons chamber are “obviously unacceptable”. That’s it from us for today. For the latest live news updates, you can follow our Ukraine blog: Boris Johnson has said allegations that a Tory MP watched pornography in the Commons chamber are “obviously unacceptable”. Asked by broadcasters during a visit to Burnley whether the parliamentarian would lose the Conservative whip if the allegations are proven, the prime minister said: I think it’s obviously unacceptable for anybody to be doing that kind of thing in the workplace. It would be the same for any kind of job up and down the country, let’s be absolutely clear about that. What needs to happen now is that the proper procedures need to be gone through, the independent complaints and grievances procedure needs to be activated and we need to get to understand the facts, but, yeah, that kind of behaviour is clearly totally unacceptable.” Imran Ahmad Khan has said he has now resigned as Wakefield’s MP and will no longer be a parliamentarian from this Saturday, two-and-a-half weeks after being found guilty of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy. Helen Pidd reports that Ahmad Khan told the Guardian he had submitted his resignation on Monday and that it was effective from 30 April. That means he will be paid his salary in full for April. The Conservative party will then choose a date for a byelection, which will probably take place in late June, after the jubilee bank holidays and local elections. The Treasury has received his resignation letter, the Guardian understands. The UK government has acknowledged that processing problems within the Home Office have led to delays between the approval of visas for Ukrainian refugees and emailed notification that the visas have been granted, preventing many vulnerable people from swiftly making their way to safety. Politicians from all parties highlighted a variety of serious problems with the Homes for Ukraine visa scheme during an urgent question in the Commons on the Home Office’s handling of the refugee crisis. Amelia Gentleman’s report looks at the latest figures, which show that just one in five people issued visas under the Homes for Ukraine scheme had arrived in the UK. Some of Britain’s biggest seaports are considering legal action against the government to recover the costs of building border control posts they fear will never be used, after confirmation that post-Brexit import checks will be delayed for a fourth time. Controls on food and animal products would not be introduced until at least 2023, said Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Brexit opportunities minister, in a written statement published on Thursday. Senior ministers hit out at Westminster’s “shameful” culture in which some men act like “animals”, as a Tory MP faces the prospect of being thrown out of parliament for watching pornography in the Commons chamber. The allegations against the MP are set to be examined under parliament’s independent complaints and grievance scheme (ICGS), which investigates allegations of harassment and sexual misconduct. Suella Braverman, the attorney general, said if the subject of the complaint was found to have been watching pornography it should result in them “no longer holding their privileged position as a member of parliament”. She added said that while the men she had worked with had been “respectful, courteous and supportive” there was a “very small minority of men – and it is men – who fall short and there are some bad apples who are out of order, who behave like animals, and are bringing parliament into disrepute to be honest”. Sajid Javid, the health secretary, said: “There have been several instances of inappropriate and sexist behaviour recently in parliament. It is shameful. “Parliamentarians are public servants and it is their duty to set an example of character and integrity. The culture of Westminster needs to change.” Caroline Nokes has said that that calls from the chief whip for the complaint to be referred to parliamentary authorities amounted to “kicking it into long grass”. Speaking to the PoliticsHome podcast, Nokes said she was “disappointed” that no action was taken swiftly against the accused MP the following day. “I thought I would wake up on Wednesday morning to find somebody had had the whip withdrawn, and that didn’t happen,” she told PoliticsHome. “We’ve seen the whip withdrawn from colleagues for a variety of reasons over the years. I thought this seemed to be fairly straightforward. It was raised by one colleague, it was corroborated by another. That seems to me perfectly enough to withdraw the whip.” The government has said that it has dropped its plans to impose further checks on goods entering the UK from the European Union. The Brexit opportunities minister, Jacob Rees-Mogg, said it would be “wrong to impose new administrative burdens and risk disruption at ports” and added that no further import controls would be imposed on EU goods this year. The change means restrictions on the imports of chilled meats from the EU and border checks on plant and animal products will not be introduced in July. Port operators expressed frustration that time and money spent preparing for the new checks has been “wasted”. Rees-Mogg said a “new regime of border import controls” will be established by the end of 2023. Ed Miliband MP, Labour’s shadow climate change and net zero secretary, has responded to the chancellor conceding the case for a windfall tax, saying: “As energy prices for families rocket, Rishi Sunak’s words show that the government is simply running out of excuses to oppose a windfall tax on oil and gas companies. “The truth is that oil and gas companies are spending their record profits on billions in dividends and share buybacks. “All the while that the government resists a windfall tax, the British people pay the price in the energy bills crisis they face. “It’s time the government dropped their threadbare excuses, did the right thing, and put a windfall tax on oil and gas producers to bring real help to the British people.” Sajid Javid, the health secretary, has joined those saying the work culture at Westminster needs to change. That is all from me for today. My colleague Tobi Thomas is taking over now. The Cold Chain Federation, which represents many firms that transport food goods, has welcomed the government’s decision to further delay the introduction of physical checks on EU food imports. (See 1.44pm.) These are from Shane Brennan, its chief executive. In a thread that continues from these tweets, Brennan says he hopes the government will take the time it now has to rethink the way these controls are implemented. Starmer says Tories should take action now against MP accused of watching porn on phone in chamber Keir Starmer has told ITV that the Conservative party should take action now against the MP accused of watching pornography on his phone in the Commons chamber. The party has said it wants the matter to be resolved through the independent complaints and grievance scheme (ICGS) – even though that would require one of the female MPs who saw their colleague watching porn to submit a formal complaint, which is not thought to have happened yet. Starmer said the Tories should act more quickly. He said: This is an unusual case because the Tory party knows who this individual is. I think that they should deal with it, and deal with it sooner rather than later … They know who this is. They should take action now. Asked about the report that a member of his own shadow cabinet told an MP that she was an asset because women voters wanted to be her friend and men wanted to sleep with her, he said he was “deeply concerned” about this allegation. He said Labour had a complaints procedure and he hoped the woman would have the confidence to use it. “I would want to get to the bottom of this and do something about it,” he said. Cabinet Office says UK firms will save at least £1bn from decision to delay some planned post-Brexit checks on food imports Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Brexit opportunities minister, has confirmed that the UK is delaying the introduction of physical checks on fresh food being imported into the country from the EU. As my colleague Lisa O’Carroll writes, it is the fourth time the introduction of these measures – part of the new post-Brexit border controls – has been delayed. In a statement, the Cabinet Office says British importers will save at least £1bn from the move – an effective admission that the Brexit controls planned by government have been a burden for business. The Cabinet Office says: The remaining import controls on EU goods will no longer be introduced this year, the government has announced today. Instead, traders will continue to move their goods from the European Union to Great Britain as they do now. Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, and the recent rise in global energy costs, have had a significant effect on supply chains that are still recovering from the pandemic. The government has therefore concluded that it would be wrong to impose new administrative requirements on businesses, who may pass on the associated costs to consumers already facing pressures on their finances. The change in approach is expected to save British importers at least £1bn in annual costs. The government says it will now look at how to introduce the remaining checks “in an improved way”. After Brexit, the UK and the EU both had to introduce regulations and checks for imports that were not required when Britain was in the single market. Britain has been phasing in its new checks over time, to give businesses a chance to prepare, and in 2022 physical checks on meat were due to come into force from 1 July, on dairy from 1 September and on other food products from 1 November. But now there will be no further changes this year. Sturgeon says society will lose out if sexism means women are discouraged from entering politics Nicola Sturgeon has told MSPs that she stands in solidarity with Angela Rayner and called on men to reflect on the impact of misogynistic behaviour. Asked at FMQs about sexist attacks on the Labour frontbencher, Sturgeon said that she was “absolutely appalled both by the male Conservative MP who thought it was okay to make these pathetic and derogatory comments, but also by the fact that we still live in a society that is deemed acceptable for a story like that to be published in a major newspaper”. Referring to a previous Mail article that compared her to the then prime minister Theresa May under the headline “Legs-it”, she added: Unfortunately, I am all too familiar with – in my case – the Daily Mail’s tactics of attempting to reduce women politicians to their legs, a tactic which, to the best of my knowledge, is never used to dismiss and degrade male politicians. Sturgeon added that the story highlighted “deep-seated sexism and misogyny in society”, and said she was pleased that her government was now committed to consult on draft legislation to tackle misogyny following the report by Helena Kennedy’s working group on improving the legal system for women facing abuse of all kinds. Calling on men, specifically, to change their behaviour, she concluded: We will rue the day we make it more difficult and less attractive for women to come forward for election to public office. It is time to draw a line in the sand and it’s time for men – not all men are misogynist, but misogyny comes from men – to change. Parliament prorogues Parliament has just prorogued. This involves a ceremony that sees MPs attending the House of Lords (as they do for the Queen’s speech), where they listen as a royal commission (five peers, wearing robes and bicorne hats) announces that the current session of parliament is over. In her Mansion House speech last night Liz Truss, the foreign secretary, said that Britain and its allies wanted Russia to leave “the whole of Ukraine”. In interviews this morning Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, said this included Crimea, which was occupied by Russia in 2014. He insisted this was not a new demand. He said: The international community believes Russia should leave Ukraine, the international community has condemned Russia for its invasion of Crimea, which was illegal in 2014. We’ve constantly said that Russia should leave Ukraine sovereign territory, so that hasn’t changed. But, speaking to Sky News, Wallace also stressed that Crimea was not an immediate priority. He said: There’s a long way to go before Ukraine pushes into Crimea. I think what I would certainly say is, we are supporting Ukraine’s sovereign integrity. We’ve done that all along. That of course includes Crimea. But you know, first and foremost, let’s get Russia out of where they are now in its invasion plans and help Ukraine resolve … and actually remember the Minsk agreement, which Russia has basically ripped up, was all about trying to resolve those two occupied territories. In a separate interview, Wallace said that the more violently the Russian invaders behaved, the more the west would support Ukraine with arms. He told Times Radio: What we were always careful to do is make sure that we calibrated whatever weapons we sent in. It’s important to link Russian behaviour with the response. If they do horrendous things, they must recognise that there will be an increase in weapons to the Ukrainians to see them off. And so, you know, if Russia continues to bomb indiscriminately people from the air – look what it’s done in Mariupol, for example – destroyed the city, then of course the west will respond more to Ukrainian requests for self-defence, and sometimes that will include planes and tanks. He also said that if possible the UK would supply Ukraine with anti-ship missiles. Liam Byrne says he is "profoundly sorry" for bullying member of staff The Labour MP Liam Byrne has issued a statement saying he is “profoundly sorry” for bullying a member of his staff. He said he was glad that the panel that investigated the complaint, and recommended a two-day suspension as punishment (see 11.30am), recognised his remorse. He said: Two years ago at the beginning of lockdown, following a workplace dispute that led me to send the complainant home … I did not resolve the dispute correctly with a proper disciplinary process, and having nevertheless extended the complainant’s contract, thereby failed to fulfil my obligations as an employer and parliament’s behaviour code. This constituted an ostracism which was a breach of parliament’s behaviour code which I strongly support, and caused distress for which I am profoundly sorry. I have apologised in full to the individual concerned. I’m incredibly grateful to the panel for recognising the genuine remorse I felt about the impact on the individual concerned, the steps I have already taken to ensure this never happens again, along with the work still to do, and for concluding that I did not deliberately act to delay the investigation. This has been a valuable lesson for me and one I am determined to learn, as me and my team seek to offer the best possible service and voice for the residents of Hodge Hill. A Labour spokesperson said: “The Labour party fully supports the recommendations of this independent report, including the proposed sanction.”