Zac Goldsmith to resign over Heathrow expansion plan

 vb
Pic: Zac Goldsmih
Staff reporter(wp/es):
Zac Goldsmith is set to resign his Commons seat within 48 hours after the government backed a third runway at Heathrow, friends said.
The Tory Richmond Park MP, a long-standing opponent of Heathrow’s expansion, immediately branded the decision “catastrophic” and promised to make a statement imminently.
If he steps down as expected, Theresa May faces a dramatic local revolt as local Conservatives backed him to stand as an independent anti-Heathrow candidate in a by-election.
In a tweet posted within minutes of the government announcing its decision, Mr Goldsmith wrote: “Following the Government's catastrophic Heathrow announcement, I will be meeting my constituents later today before making a statement.”
 Theresa May and the Cabinet today announced their backing for Heathrow's expansion, but the decision immediately sparked protests and legal challenges.
 The £16 billion plan will increase the number of flights at Europe’s busiest airport to more than 700,000 a year by 2030. Theresa May told the Evening Standard it was a decision made “for jobs and growth” and showed that post-Brexit Britain will be an “open, global, successful country”.

Speaking to the Standard after the Cabinet met, the Prime Minister said: “After decades of delay we are showing that we will take the big decisions when they’re the right decisions for Britain, and we will ensure they’re right for ordinary working people too.
“Airport expansion is vital for the economic future of the whole of the UK and today also provides certainty to Londoners. Businesses will know that we are building the infrastructure they need to access global markets. Ordinary, working people will know that my Government backs jobs and growth.
 “We want the benefits of a new runway as quickly as possible, but we will also make sure London and taxpayers get a good deal.”

She indicated the third runway plan includes commitments to increase the number of flights to Scotland and regional airports, adding: “By making sure we improve the links between regional airports and our capital city we can use airport expansion as an opportunity to bring the UK closer together.
“This decision demonstrates that as we leave the EU we can make a success of Brexit and Britain can be that open, global, successful country we all want it to be.

Labour hit with £20,000 fine after ‘Ed Stone’ spending probe

Political reporter(wp/es):
The “Ed Stone” — the defining image of Ed Miliband’s disastrous election campaign — has helped land Labour with the largest fine ever handed out by the Electoral Commission.
The then-Labour leader unveiled the 8ft 6in stone plinth carved with election promises in the run up to the 2015 general election, promising it would stand in Downing Street’s garden if the party won.
However, the stunt was ridiculed and became an emblem for Mr Miliband’s failed campaign.
Today the election watchdog issued the Labour party with a £20,000 fine, with a lengthy investigation finding a catalogue of undeclared election payments including two missing returns for the stone tablet.
Bob Posner, director of party and election finance at the Electoral Commission, said it was vital for well-established parties to “comply with the rules” and report their finances correctly.
 Labour’s election spending was first investigated in January this year when it emerged that two payments worth £7,614 for the “Ed Stone” were missing from the party’s campaign spending return.

Labour’s own review found that there were also 24 items of expenditure worth £109,777 missing from the return.
The Electoral Commission then found further missing payments, including 49 payments relating to costs associated with the Labour Express battle bus tour which ferried activists to constituencies to campaign, and the Labour Students tour worth £11,357.
Altogether the watchdog found Labour had missed 74 payments totalling £123,748, as well as 33 separate invoices totalling £34,392.

Labour treasurer Iain McNicol was found to have committed two civil offences under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA) and does not face criminal proceedings.
A Labour Party spokesman said: “Labour has co-operated fully with the Electoral Commission during its investigation into General Election 2015 campaign spending by political parties.
“The Commission’s investigation found that internal procedural errors led to a relatively small number of items of expenditure not being declared properly. The party regrets these administrative errors. However, these amounted to just over one per cent of our total spending of over £12 million during this election.
“We accept the findings of the report and have already tightened our internal recording procedures to address the Commission’s concerns.”
 The limestone slab was broken up shortly after the general election.

Road submerged under water with 20 homes flooded after water main bursts in south London

Staff reporter(wp/es):
A burst water main caused chaos in south London this morning, with flooding in 20 homes and dozens more at risk.
The flood has closed Camberwell New Road between Camberwell Station Road and Medlar Street.
The road is expected to be closed for some time.
Earlier today, the London Fire Brigade gave out sandbags to protect homes however it is believed water has entered 20 properties.
Drivers have been told to aviod the area.
 Many people took to social media to express amazement at the scenes, with some joking they would need a boat service to get to work.

Tesco boss says prices will rise following Brexit slump in pound

Business reporter(wp/es):
The boss of Tesco today braced customers for price rises in the wake of the pound’s slump after the Brexit vote.
John Allan, the supermarket’s chairman, said it was “very likely” that the cost of some products would go up.
Sterling was trading at about $1.22 this morning, some 17 per cent lower than before the shock June 23 referendum result, and has dropped sharply against the euro.
The decline will almost inevitably push up the cost of imported food and ingredients from overseas for products made in Britain.
“We are trying to defend our customers from unjustified price increases but that it is likely there will be some price increases going forward, I think is very likely,” Mr Allan told BBC radio.

He believes inflation may “nudge up” two or three per cent, with food prices contributing to this — but dismissed suggestions food prices could rise on average by between 10 and 20 per cent, insisting it would be “much less”.
Tesco was seen to have won the “Marmitegate” battle with Unilever after it sought to impose a 10 per cent hike in the cost of products supplied to the supermarket giant.
Mr Allan, also chairman of business group London First, declined to comment on the bust-up but appeared to suggest it had not been such a clear-cut rejection, as portrayed, of any price rises.
He added: “We see our role as retailers not to prevent our suppliers from making legitimate cost increases where they think that’s necessary but certainly scrutinising those cost increases very hard.”

The supermarket chief also warned Theresa May against a draconian clampdown on immigration which could harm the British economy.
He said: “Industries like the agriculture industry, picking and packing fruit and veg and meat, are heavily dependent on migrant workers, not just seasonal migrant workers but people who are here 52 weeks a year.
Our fresh food suppliers are very concerned that is properly taken into account.”

Earlier this month, sterling plunged after the Prime Minister appeared to suggest she was prioritising immigration control over economic concerns.
But yesterday she told MPs the UK can curb immigration and get a good trade deal with the EU. She said: “We are going to be ambitious for what we obtain for the United Kingdom and that means a good trade deal as well as control of immigration.”
Meanwhile, French ambassador Sylvie Bermann said “of course” Britons in France would be allowed to remain after Brexit if the same applied to French nationals here.
She said: “I think it will be dealt with on a reciprocal basis because there [are] 300,000 French citizens in this country, almost the same as UK citizens in France.”