Newslinks for Thursday 28th August 2025

Rwanda says it will open up former Tory plan for Farage’s Reform deportations, for £50m, if he’s PM

“Rwanda became the latest country to declare it’s open to striking a deportation deal with Nigel Farage. A spokesperson for the Rwandan government confirmed they would consider reviving the agreement brokered with the previous Tory administration – but only if Britain settles a disputed £50mn debt. Kigali insists it is owed the cash under the terms of the deal signed by then-Home Secretary Priti Patel, which was later scrapped by Sir Keir Starmer. Yolande Makolo told The Times: “The UK still owes Rwanda outstanding payment from the cancelled deal, clearing this first would help restore trust if the UK wished to re-introduce a partnership.” Responding to the offer, Reform’s DOGE efficiency chief, Zia Yusuf, said: “Within 24 hours of us announcing our plan, Afghanistan and Rwanda have said they would do a deal with Nigel Farage to take illegal migrants from the UK. The ‘no we can’t’ brigade are seething.” – The Sun

• Rwanda open to migrants deal should Nigel Farage become PM – The Times
• Rwanda could revive migrant deal if Nigel Farage is PM (and UK pays up £50m) – after Taliban says it’s ‘ready and willing’ to work with Reform UK on taking migrants from Britain – Daily Mail
• Deals with the Taliban and Iran’s Ayatollah central to Farage’s asylum plan – The i
• Armed escorts and £900 handouts: How Germany sent migrants back to the Taliban – Daily Telegraph
• Nigel Farage softens deportations stance, saying families not priority – The Times
• Ring to hell. Fury as ISIS Beatles beheading gang terrorist Ringo applies to return to UK in ‘outrageous insult’ to victims’ families – The Sun
• Starmer faces growing Labour backlash over ECHR – Daily Telegraph

Comment:

• What would actually happen if we left the ECHR? – Jonathan Ames, The Times
• Welcome to the age of mass deportations – Guy Dampier, Cap X
• Nigel Farage has thrown down the gauntlet – Mary Harrington, Unherd
• The Left’s hysteria over Farage’s deportations plan will only boost Reform – Michael Deacon, Daily Telegraph

Meanwhile, Labour MP condemns migrant hotel protesters as ‘coked-up yobs’

“A Labour MP has accused Britons protesting against migrant hotels in their communities of “coked-up yobbery” in an astonishing outburst. Joani Reid, elected to represent East Kilbride and Strathaven last year, also accused protestors of being “far right thugs” who are attempting to “whip up hatred and division”. While she also branded the use of hotels for asylum seekers as “an unmitigated disaster”, her condemnation of those actively protesting on the streets may spark strong backlash. Ms Reid blasted: “Far right thugs have taken to streets across Britain, trying desperately to whip up hatred and division. They are the ugly face of the immigration debate – no decent person will want to be part of their coked-up yobbery.” – Daily Express

• Under pressure. Migrants being housed in deprived areas where services are at breaking point, documents reveal – The Sun
• Home Office paying civil servants £75 bonus per asylum case they ‘rush through’ – The i
• Labour minister reveals bonkers plan to put asylum seekers in student halls – Daily Express
• Man whose arrest sparked asylum hotel protests tells court he did not touch girls – Guardian
• Epping hotel migrant tells court ‘I’m not a wild animal’ as he denies sexually assaulting schoolgirl – as moment police arrest him is released – Daily Mail
• ‘Moment Epping hotel migrant sobs as he’s arrested for ‘sexually assaulting 14-year-old girl’ – days after arrival in UK – The Sun
• Moment Epping migrant hotel sex attack suspect starts to cry as he asks 3-word question – Daily Express
• Epping hotel migrant ‘sexually assaulted girl, 14, and told her she’d be a good wife’ as court hears he ‘paid £2,155 to get into UK illegally on a dinghy’ – Daily Mail

Comment

• Migrant protests and the twilight of luxury beliefs – Brendan O’Neill, Spectator

Today

• Baroness Warsi is wrong, on several levels, to suggest St. George was ‘raised in Palestine’

Tories round on Miliband’s promise of cheaper bills as energy cap rises, in dash for net zero

“Energy bills are rising to help fund the extra costs of wind farms, Ofgem revealed today as it announced gas and electricity costs will go up by more than expected from October. The regulator said the hike was ‘driven by an increase in electricity balancing costs’ – which relates to the extra expense of paying wind farms in remote areas to turn themselves off because the network cannot take their power to where it is required. This can also mean other generators such as gas plants which are closer to consumers are then paid millions of pounds to fire up to replace the wasted wind. Today, Ofgem revealed the price cap will rise by 2 per cent – double the expected 1 per cent – from October for a typical household in England, Scotland and Wales. The Conservatives said the rising costs were yet another example of how Labour’s policies were costing hard-working Britons more money, as the party accused Energy Secretary Ed Miliband of being ‘not interested in the truth or cutting bills’. – Daily Mail

• Out of gas. Ed Miliband’s plan to slash energy bills by £300 in tatters as families face brutal tax hikes this winter – The Sun
• Octopus Energy founder appointed as UK government adviser – Guardian
• Higher energy bills for years could be result of Miliband’s net-zero dash – The i
• Labour unleash new war on pensioners as energy bills soar to pay for green agenda – Daily Express

Comment

• Why Ed Miliband’s foolish claim he would cut Brits’ energy bills by £300 a year will likely cost him his job – Ross Clark, The Sun
• It’s stifling growth, killing industry and making households poorer. That’s why Net Zero is the most costly self-inflicted wound in modern British history – Andrew Neil, Daily Mail

Former Tory Chancellor and Health Secretary highlights ‘overdiagnosis’ in youth mental health

“Public services have been pushed “to breaking point” by a misguided readiness to diagnose children and young people with mental health conditions, according to a report backed by Jeremy Hunt. Right-leaning think tank Policy Exchange said common definitions of ill mental health and neurodivergence had been “stretched too far”, resulting in “widespread overdiagnosis” among the young. The trend is fuelling a £16bn a year bill for children’s health benefits, special educational needs and disabilities (Send) support, and mental health services. Policy Exchange said “poor incentives” in these systems had prompted “diagnosis-seeking behaviour”, which was putting public services under unsustainable strain. Crucially, the result has been worse support and outcomes for children and young people with the most severe needs, it warned. Jeremy Hunt, Britain’s longest-serving health secretary, endorsed the findings, and said: “Across the political spectrum, and amongst a growing range of practitioners, it is now recognised that there is a level of ‘overdiagnosis’ in our system. Rather than assuming that more money or ‘more of the same’ is the answer, we need to ask more fundamental questions. Is a cash transfer – or a label that means young people are treated and come to see themselves as different – the right way to help them?” – Daily Telegraph

• Cost of child mental health diagnoses ‘hits £16.6bn a year’ – The Times
• Overdiagnosis of children overlooks that growing up is ‘messy and uneven’, says Jeremy Hunt – Guardian
• Only SEND pupils with highest need should have school support, ex-Chancellor says – The i
• Naughty children ‘wrongly being diagnosed with mental illness and special needs’ – Daily Express

Equalities watchdog tells organisations to change single-sex space rules after Badenoch review

“Policies allowing trans people to enter same-sex spaces in policing, education and health and social care must be rewritten, Britain’s equality regulator has said, as it launched action against 19 organisations it found to be breaching the law. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) will demand that the organisations withdraw and rewrite their policies, and could ultimately issue uncapped fines if they are not changed.It follows a review launched in May last year by Kemi Badenoch, then women and equalities minister, who asked for examples of confusion in the law. Some 404 examples of “concerning” policies were passed to the EHRC, which will now tell 19 organisations to withdraw them or face further action. Baroness Falkner of Margravine, the EHRC chairwoman, said the policies “mispresent the law” and “contain specific language that wrongly suggests there is an automatic legal right to access single-sex spaces based on self-identification”. – The Times

• NHS trusts and police forces face fines if they ignore law on single-sex spaces – Daily Telegraph

Comment

• If we can’t trust the BBC to stop calling obviously male criminals ‘women’, we will go elsewhere – Suzanne Moore, Daily Telegraph
• Sam Nicoresti is laughing at women – Jean Hatchet, The Critic

Number shocks for Tories and Labour as polls send harsh message to both parties

“Shocking new graphs have revealed the extent of Labour’s popularity crisis as the party and its leader fail to tackle the economy and immigration. A poll tracker by Britain Elects revealed a lack of trust between Labour and the public when it comes to the economy, with only 20.5% of people saying they trust them on the matter. The Tories were similiarly mistrusted, with just 21.1% of people saying they have faith in them to handle to economy. Overall, 58.4% of respondents said they did not have faith in either party. Sir Keir Starmer is also facing a popularity crisis after just over 400 days in No. 10. The Labour leader’s net favourable ratings were at -37, according to another Britain Elects tracker. He began his time as PM with just 40% of Brits having a favourable view of him, and just slightly less than that having an unfavourable view of him.” – Daily Express

• Enjoying your holiday Keir? Labour sinks to its lowest poll rating in six years in fresh blow to Starmer – as Reform UK enjoys eight-point lead  – Daily Mail

Today

• It’s the hypocrisy that causes Labour’s class war warriors to come unstuck

Yesterday

• If two Tory tribes go to war, a point may be all that they can score

Police say Tommy Robinson won’t face charges over incident at St Pancras

“Tommy Robinson will not face charges over an alleged assault at St Pancras station last month. The Crown Prosecution Service concluded that “there was not a realistic prospect of conviction”, according to the British Transport Police. Police said that after an investigation, the victim of the attack “did not want to provide a statement”. The far-right activist, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, was arrested at Luton airport on Monday, August 4. Hours after the alleged incident at the central London station, he travelled to the Spanish island of Tenerife before police apprehended him. Video circulated on social media showing Robinson walking back and forth near a man who was lying motionless on the floor, steps away from an escalator leading to the Thameslink platform. Robinson took to social media moments after the announcement that he would not be charged. He wrote: “Now I can say it, f*** around & find out.” – The Times

• Tommy Robinson will not be charged over alleged St Pancras assault – Guardian
• In the clear. Tommy Robinson will NOT be charged over St Pancras ‘assault’ after man left ‘bleeding’ on floor – The Sun

News in brief

• Inside the £50,000 gossip row engulfing a tiny rural village – Jan Disely, Times
• France’s budget crisis is a warning for Labour – Peter Franklin, Unherd
• London’s e-bike chaos is hurting its commuters – Saskia Koopman, City AM
• Should we worry about Britain’s ‘hottest summer on record’? – Ross Clark, Spectator
• What Reform could learn from Greece – Aris Roussinos, Unherd
• Why on Earth do people listen to “The Rest Is Politics”? – John Hardy, The Critic

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