Politics latest: Tax rises expected in 'grim' budget - and poll suggests public not on chancellor's side (2024)

We're bringing the Politics Hub to a close for the evening.

For a round-up on the day's news from Westminster, take a look at our latest bulletin from 5pm or the key points above.

We'll be back tomorrow morning for GCSE results, the Home Office's latest immigration statistics, and more.

Have a nice evening.

Official data shows government borrowing in July was above expectations and at its highest since the pandemic.

TheOffice for Budget Responsibility (OBR) expected borrowing to be£46.6bn - insteadit reached £51.3bn.

Our economics and data editor Ed Conwayjoins Niall Patersonto talk aboutthe unexpected rise ingovernment borrowing and Chancellor Rachel Reeves' options for the October budget.

Plus, chief political correspondentJon Craig discusses howlongLabour's blame game can last.

A "costly con" and a "political gimmick": Labour's verdict on the Tories' Rwanda plan. Sound familiar?

This blame game is getting rather repetitive. Earlier this week, Sir Keir Starmer slammed a "terrible inheritance" left by the Tories on prisons.

Now Labour is claiming a "dire inheritance" on border security.

Let's not forget, either, Rachel Reeves' claims of a "black hole" in the nation's finances and Wes Streeting declaring "the NHS is broken".

Okay, we get the message.

PM doesn't have forever to deliver results

But the battle to "stop the boats" is potentially the toughest political fight Sir Keir will face against whoever becomes the new Tory leader.

Yvette Cooper is vowing to "clean up the mess the Tories made", accusing the Tories of incompetence and a "staggering waste of taxpayers' money".

Yet facing such a daunting challenge, the new government – understandably - admits there are "no quick fixes" on border security and asylum.

But voters will only put up with Labour's blame game for so long. On stopping the boats, possibly more than on any other issue, they want results.

An MP who represents a constituency where Labour plans to reopen a detention centre has accused the government of avoiding scrutiny over its plans to tackle illegal immigration.

The Home Office has today announced a number of measures to increase the deportation of illegal migrants and failed asylum seekers, including reopening Campsfield House in Oxfordshire, which closed in 2019, and Gospar, Hampshire, which closed in 2015.

'A huge disappointment'

Calum Miller, the Lib Dem MP for Bicester and Woodstock, where Campsfield House is located, told Sky News he expects local opposition to the plans.

"The government has had plenty of time to consider how it wanted to approach these issues," he said.

"But to bring something out in the middle of the summer, when it can't be held to parliamentary accountability for something that it would have known would be highly controversial and widely opposed locally, is a huge disappointment."

He said he would raise concerns with ministers when parliament returns in September, noting there was cross-party opposition to the reopening of the centres when the previous government proposed it - including from Labour MPs.

Today the Politics Hub has been a mixture of grim economic predictions and controversial immigration policy - not quite sunshine and rainbows.

Here's what you need to know:

• Chancellor Rachel Reeves looks set to raise taxes and cut spending in the Labour government's first budget on 30 October;
• Our economics and data editor Ed Conway warned of "a lot of bad news to come" when the "grim" fiscal event arrives;
• It comes after figures showed government borrowing hit £3.1bn last month, higher than expected and the most for July since the pandemic - driven by the cost of public services and benefits.

• The government has announced more plans for tackling illegal migration, seeking the removal of more illegal migrants and failed asylum seekers;
• Two immigration detention centres will be re-opened and there will be a staffing increase at the National Crime Agency;
• But a former Border Force director general told Sky News those measures alone wouldn't stop small boat crossings, and our chief political correspondent Jon Craig said voters would eventually run out of patience should the government not make progress;
• Shadow home secretary James Cleverly said none of the ideas matched the Tories' Rwanda plan, while a Lib Dem MP accused the government of avoiding scrutiny by announcing their plans during the summer break.

That's all from your teatime bulletin - have a safe journey if you're on your way home from work.

Tory leadership candidate Robert Jenrick has said he would welcome Boris Johnson into his cabinet.

Mr Jenrick was housing secretary under Mr Johnson, who quit as an MP last year after an investigation into whether he misled parliament about the partygate scandal.

"The Conservative Party right now needs all of its talent involved," the right-wing candidate told The Telegraph.

"And so if Boris wanted to return to parliament, I would be pleased to welcome him."

How could Johnson return?

Were Mr Jenrick to win the Tory leadership race and then a general election, bringing Mr Johnson back would require the former PM to either return as an MP himself, or potentially be put into the Lords like Rishi Sunak did for David Cameron to make him foreign secretary.

Mr Johnson played a minor role in the Tories' disastrous 2024 election campaign, with relations with Mr Sunak having soured after the latter resigned from his old boss's cabinet when he was chancellor.

An emergency plan to try to ease prison overcrowding has been started by the government – as courts continue to hear cases involving those accused of rioting earlier in the month.

Across northern England and parts of the Midlands, those waiting for a court appearance will now be held in police cells until there's a prison place for them.

Operation Early Dawn was started on Monday morning.

On this episode of Sky News Daily, Niall Paterson assesses the potential impact on courts and the police.

He speaks to Mark Fairhurst, national chair of the Prison Officers' Association, Philip Jones, custody lead at the National Police Federation, and Sky communities correspondent Becky Johnson.

Becky also explains the context and longer-term plan for the prison system.

👉Listen to the Sky News Daily every at at 5pm - follow here👈

Unsurprisingly, the government's plans to tackle illegal immigration haven't won fans among Tory MPs.

James Cleverly, the former home secretary, has said the Labour administration's aspirations are "too low".

A reminder that today we've had the announcement of more money and specialist officers for the National Crime Agency, and the reopening of two immigration detention centres - tap the link below for more:

Cleverly pines for Rwanda scheme

Mr Cleverly, who's running to replace Rishi Sunak as Tory leader, said nothing announced matches his party's scrapped Rwanda plan, something that he reportedly described as "batsh*t" while in office.

"The first thing the government did upon entering office was to scrap that very deterrent," he said.

He also pointed to the Home Office having still not recruited a leader for its new Border Security Command, which is being set up to work closely with partner organisations in other countries to combat international people smuggling gangs.

Mr Cleverly said it was nothing but "rhetoric" and Labour's actions "are falling well below what the country needs".

Amnesty International, the human rights organisation, has criticised today's announcements on how the government plans to crack down on illegal immigration.

The Home Office has said it will reopen two detention centres, plough more money into the National Crime Agency, including providing 100 new specialist officers, and also target businesses with illegal employees.

The director of Amnesty's refugee and migrant rights programme has accused the government of "reheating" the previous Tory administration's rhetoric without providing safe routes for those at risk.

Steve Valdez-Symonds said: "People in urgent need - including those fleeing war and persecution in places like Sudan, Afghanistan, Syria, and Iran - will keep coming to the UK and other countries.

"The government needs to establish safe routes that reduce the perils of dangerous border crossings and the risk of exploitation by smuggling gangs."

The UK government has pledged £3.1m to help tackle mpox in a move that will "ultimately benefit us all".

Lord Collins, the Africa minister, announced the funding package as the Democratic Republic of Congo suffers a fast-growing outbreak of a more virulent variant of the virus.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), some 15,000 clinically compatible cases of mpox have been detected there this year, with 500 deaths reported.

Last week saw the first case reported in Europe (Sweden), and on Monday ministers met to discuss the UK's preparedness.

Professor Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer who became a famous public figure during the COVID pandemic, attended the talks.

Watch: What is the risk from mpox?

UK 'closely monitoring' mpox spread

The new funding package aims to support the more than 4.4 million people living in the most affected parts of the Congo, such as through providing vaccines, and prevent the virus spreading further.

Lord Collins said by "helping contain these outbreaks", the government can help reduce the risk of wider spread.

"This will ultimately benefit us all," he said.

The government said it remains in regular contact with the WHO and Africa's Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, while the UK's Health Security Agency is "closely monitoring the situation".