Newslinks for Thursday 27th August 2025

Taliban: We’re ready to work with Farage on migrants

“The Taliban has said it is “ready and willing” to work with Nigel Farage to accept Afghans who have been deported from the UK. A senior Taliban official said they would “embrace” any Afghans sent back under the Reform leader’s plan, unveiled on Tuesday, to deport 600,000 illegal migrants. Mr Farage said he would meet his deportation target by striking deals with countries such as Afghanistan, Iran and Eritrea and tearing up treaties including the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).” – Daily Telegraph

• ‘We are ready to work with Farage,’ says Taliban – Daily Express
• Reform unveils plan to deport hundreds of thousands – FT
• Farage attacked for ‘ugly’ rhetoric of plan for mass deportation of asylum seekers – Guardian
• Farage promises unprecedented measures to halt illegal migration – Daily Mail
• How Farage could kick 600,000 migrants out of Britain – Daily Telegraph
• Starmer’s migrant boats plan thrown into chaos as French government on verge of collapse – Daily Express
• French interception of small boats at sea threatened by confidence vote – The Times
• How feasible is Reform’s plan to deport migrants? – The Times
• Farage aims for hardline vibes with his mass deportation plan – Guardian
• The moral and economic costs of Farage’s plan to deport up to 600,000 asylum seekers – Guardian
• Burnham’s attack on Reform could backfire spectacularly – Daily Telegraph

Comment

• Farage is in tune with Middle Britain – Editorial, Daily Mail

>Yesterday:

• Comment: John Wall: Smash the gangs by all means but slash the boats as a priority

Typical energy bill to rise to £1,755

“Energy costs will rise for millions of British households this autumn after the price cap for a typical annual dual-fuel bill increased by 2% to £1,755. The energy regulator for Great Britain, Ofgem, will raise the cap on gas and electricity charges from October by the equivalent of just over £35 a year for the average home, following a rise in European gas prices. The modest increase follows a brief reprieve from rising energy bills over the summer when the energy price cap fell by 7% to £1,720 from July because of lower market prices.” – Guardian

• Household energy bills to rise £35 – Daily Mail
• Energy bills to rise for millions of households – The Sun

More pain for Reeves as government borrowing cost nears 27-year high

“The cost of UK government borrowing has jumped to near a 27-year high, piling pressure on Rachel Reeves to reveal how she will tackle the deficit in the public finances before the autumn budget. The yield, or interest rate, on the UK’s 30-year bond rose by eight basis points on Tuesday to 5.62%. That pushed the UK’s long-term borrowing costs close to a spike in April of 5.66%, when 30-year bond yields reached their highest since 1998. UK borrowing costs have risen sharply in recent months, increasing the cost of financing UK government debt to more than £100bn a year – almost 10% of the annual budget.” – Guardian

• Rise in government borrowing costs puts Reeves in a bind – The Times
• Reeves turns to controversial hard-Left tax-and-spend zealot to help write Budget – Daily Mail
• UK unemployment rate ‘set to hit 5%’ – FT

Comment

• Reeves is wrecking hospitality businesses – Editorial, Daily Telegraph

Rayner urged to come clean over where she lives

“The Tories have demanded that Angela Rayner come clean over her council tax arrangements after neighbours said they “barely saw her” at the home designated as her primary residence. The Deputy Prime Minister has listed a house in her Ashton-under-Lyne constituency as her primary residence, where she pays the normal level of council tax. However, the council tax on her grace-and-favour apartment in London is paid for by the state because it is designated her second home. It emerged this week that she had bought a third home, an £800,000 seafront property in Hove, East Sussex, on which she will pay double council tax.” – Daily Telegraph

No ‘cash for questions’ investigation into former minister

“Conservative MP George Freeman has been told he will not face a parliamentary standards investigation for lobbying. The MP for Mid-Norfolk had referred himself to the standards commissioner in June, when claims emerged that a company that he worked for helped him write questions to government. As a former science minister, Freeman had previously been advised that lobbying the Labour government could be a conflict of interests. Freeman said he was “delighted” with the decision there were not sufficient grounds for a formal investigation and labelled the claims “unfounded”. – BBC News

Musk promises to fund legal cases against UK officials ‘who failed over grooming gangs’

“Elon Musk has said he is willing to fund legal action against “corrupt officials” who he claims covered up the crimes of grooming gangs. Writing on X, the US tech billionaire said he would donate to help cases against those who “aided and abetted the rape of Britain”. He wrote: “I would like to help fund legal actions against corrupt officials who aided and abetted the rape of Britain, per the official government inquiry.” It came as an unofficial inquiry into grooming gangs, led by former Reform UK MP Rupert Lowe, claimed it had found child sexual exploitation in 85 local authorities across Britain.” – Daily Telegraph

Other political news and comment

• The tide is finally turning on the outdated ECHR – even the Left admit it – Isabel Oakeshott, Daily Telegraph
• France may need IMF bailout, warns finance minister – Daily Telegraph
• 67 people now charged over Palestine Action support, says Met – BBC News
• Woman, 86, among dozens charged with supporting Palestine Action – Daily Telegraph
• Peers who do not participate enough in House of Lords face sack – Guardian
• Elections chief says children need lessons from 11 to be ready to vote at 16 – Guardian
• The welfare bill is spiralling out of control – Editorial, Daily Telegraph
• Major Labour donor Vince has £3.5m contract with City Hall – The Times
• Straw says the UK should ‘decouple’ from the ECHR – FT

News in Brief

• The real significance of Farage’s deportation plan – Andrew Tettenborn, The Spectator
• Farage has thrown down the gauntlet – Mary Harrington, UnHerd
• Britain’s debt crisis is a danger to democracy – Mani Basharzad, CapX
• Inside Your Party’s rival factions – Megan Kenyon, New Statesman
• Does Sturgeon believe women? – Victoria Smith, The Critic

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