Even before Ed Miliband took to his feet in the House of Commons to announce the UK Government’s decision to restrict trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, the Foreign Secretary will have known that the issue is going to drive a major wedge between No 10 and the White House.
As early as last weekend, the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, accused Andy Burnham’s Government of “Jew hate” that “knows no boundaries and knows no facts”. (The ambassador now claims that he knew Miliband is Jewish when he made the incendiary comment.)
In the hours leading up to Miliband’s official pronouncement, Huckabee went even further, telling the BBC that there would “without a doubt” be a reaction from Washington to Burnham’s decision. “Something like this with a partner, Israel” would have a “huge economic impact on British businesses”, he warned.
How the King’s pointed letter ‘surprised’ Harry and Meghan
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were “surprised” by the release of a letter on behalf of King Charles, which clarified their status as “akin to private citizens”, a spokesperson for the couple has said.
It’s not the first time a public briefing has been used as a means of communication within the family.
- The letter was sent by a top Palace official to military officials, Government departments and Harry’s team on Monday.
- It stated that as non-working royals, the Sussexes will not use the titles of “His and Her Royal Highness”.
- The couple, who only learned of the letter when they received it, “were a little surprised not to have been told about this in advance”.
6 min read
Why are the titles important?
The reference to the HRH title was seen as an attempt to slap the Sussexes down amid concerns that the couple may want to monetise their royal status, including via Meghan’s lifestyle products brand, As Ever.
The title was seen in a video Meghan posted accompanying a podcast last year.
2 min read
Not a quiet word in your ear, not a private memo; no, this was a formal, blunt statement of fact sent to Harry on his father’s orders. Ouch! There is to be no doubt: the King is not going to be bounced into accepting any change in the Sussexes’ status just because they have chosen to return to the UK.
2 min read
3 min read
Harry, a ‘private citizen’?
- The letter clarified that “in short, their position is akin to private citizens with commercial and charitable interests”.
- But a friend of the couple previously told The i Paper that Harry, as the King’s son, could never be an entirely private citizen.
- “Some people will say, ‘But they’re private citizens.’ Nonsense. Utter nonsense. They are two of the most high-profile people in the world,” the friend added.
No ‘half in, half out’ option
Charles and Prince William are said to be worried that family members doing business deals alongside official duties for the state opens themselves up to the sort of abuse of position accusations facing the King’s brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
- This led to them clarifying that Harry and Meghan won’t be attending state functions or official engagements.
Who will fund the Sussexes’ security?
The couple returned to the country for what they called an extended period on 26 August, after quitting royal duties in 2020. Their children have reportedly been enrolled in English schools.
The row over who will pay for their security is ongoing, with the couple currently paying for it but lobbying the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec) – which is set to meet this week – for taxpayer-funded police protection.
Watch more from The i Paper
New first-time buyer ISA on the way – here’s what we know
Andy Burnham’s Government is looking at a “new and improved product” to replace the existing Lifetime ISA (LISA), for savers who want to get on the property ladder.
What is a LISA?
- A LISA is an account that allows you to save £4,000 per year tax-free.
- The government tops up the account by 25 per cent a year.
3 min read
No upper age limit or penalties
The current LISA only allows savers to withdraw their money when they reach 60 or when buying their first home. You can only open an account before you are 40 and must stop paying in at 50. These restrictions would be abolished under Labour’s plans, with no withdrawal penalties for using the money for alternative means.
2 min read
When will it be available?
Consultations on a new LISA closed last month, with Burnham’s team confirming interest in launching the accounts. It could come as soon as the Budget on 28 October.
- Any changes to savings limit, the top-up amount and the price cap on properties you can spend your savings LISA on (currently at £450,000) are yet to be confirmed.
Watch more from The i Paper
UK politics
State pension triple lock could be axed – how to replace it
Andy Burnham is facing growing pressure to scrap the triple lock on state pensions to help repair the nations’ finances.
Here’s how the Government could navigate any journey away from the policy – and what could replace it.
Why might the triple lock be axed?
The British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) has, for the first time, called on Chancellor John Healey to abandon the policy, under which the state pension rises by whichever is highest of inflation, wage growth or 2.5 per cent each year.
The BCC argued that replacing it with an inflation-matched raise (a single lock) could save £3.3bn in two years. Currently, the triple lock costs £146bn a year.
Other options to replace triple lock
Smoothed earnings link
Mostly following wage growth but rising with inflation if there’s a temporary price shock.
Double lock
Removing the 2.5 per cent guarantee, rising with the higher of inflation or wages.
People build up credits through work and activities, and retirement age is determined by individual health.
Why is it controversial?
The Labour Party committed to keeping the triple lock in its 2024 manifesto. Going back on this would likely alienate older voters, who are generally more likely to go to the polls in an election than younger generations.
2 min read
3 min read
‘The triple lock has got to go’
There is no longer a financial or moral justification for keeping the triple lock, but scrapping it represents a political risk that no prime minister has felt like taking.
It was only introduced to rebuild the value of the state pension after decades in which it had fallen relative to earnings – not necessarily as a permanent settlement.
The inescapable fact is that most of us are living longer and collecting pensions for longer. Someone has to pay for that, and the bill goes to people of working age.
3 min read
The films men ‘secretly enjoy’ watching with their partner
More than a quarter of men enjoy watching romance films with their partner but view it as a “guilty pleasure” they wouldn’t tell anyone about, a new survey shows.
Here are their top choices for movie night.
What films do male partners like?
Though they would not admit to it,
26%
of male partners surveyed said they “secretly enjoy” watching romance films.
Netflix commissioned a poll of more than 2,000 Brits in relationships.
50%
of men see this as a guilty pleasure and would never tell their friends.
Nine in 10 couples said watching these films brings them closer as a couple.
Top ranked films by men
- 1 – 31%
- 2 – 26%
- 3 – 25%
- 4 – 25%
- 5 – 24%
How the baby bust is devastating primary schools
With birth rates falling across the UK, London’s schools and parents are dealing with the consequences.
What is the baby bust?
Dropping birth rate
In England, declining birth rates have led to over 100 schools permanently closing in the last decade.
Fewer pupils
England’s state schools are largely funded according to the number of pupils they teach; when school rolls fall, so does their income.
Unchanged costs
But operational costs do not shrink at the same rate as pupil decline.
Expert opinion
In London, a pupil will attract £6,000 to £7,000, so each pupil you lose is costing you quite a lot
Jon Andrews, head of analysis at the Education Policy Institute, explained that costs will stay the same despite pupil numbers falling because “you’re still needing a teacher in front of that class – and potentially a teaching assistant, too”.
A growing problem
7 min read
5 min read
The Inbetweeners 3 – what we know as Netflix releases teaser
is making a comeback, with Netflix announcing production has begun on a third film.
Reunion incoming
Netflix announced that the cast of the popular E4 sitcom are due to reunite for another raunchy cinematic romp which is “now in production”, according to a new minute-long teaser trailer.
The cast last appeared on the big screen together in 2014’s The Inbetweeners 2, which saw them take a gap year across Australia.
What we know so far…
Continuing the story
It marks a continuation of the popular series, which aired from 2008 to 2010 followed by films in 2011 and 2014.
The gang’s all back
Actors Simon Bird, James Buckley, Blake Harrison and Joe Thomas will reprise their roles as Will, Jay, Neil and Simon.
Creators to direct
creators Damon Beesley and Iain Morris will return to write and direct the film.
Ooh, friends again!
It’s been super-fun hanging out with our friends again, and we’re going to work hard every week to ensure there are no problemos making this new film for humans.
creators Damon Beesley and Iain Morris
‘I’ve struggled to find a goal since The Inbetweeners’
All James Buckley wanted growing up was to be in a well-loved sitcom. That dream gave him direction and purpose. When he was 20, earlier than he’d ever imagined, it came true. The problem is, when your dream comes true so quickly, it’s hard to come up with another.
Why children are being urged to get flu vaccine
Parents are being urged to ensure their children are vaccinated against flu this winter after a drop in vaccinations last year.
Here’s how to check if your child is eligible.
Why the push for flu jabs?
- In 2025/26, just 55.5 per cent of primary school children had a flu vaccine, according to new figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
- This is around 2.5 million youngsters out of the 4.5 million who were eligible.
- The vaccine, given as a nasal spray, is estimated to have prevented 68 per cent of children from being admitted to hospital last year and kept 52 per cent from having to visit their GP.
How will vaccine rollout work?
Who is eligible?
Toddlers aged two to three, primary school-aged children, secondary school pupils and children aged at least six months with long-term health conditions.
Where can you get it?
At the GP for toddlers, while older children are offered it in school.
When will it start?
Expert opinion
Ensuring children are vaccinated against with a painless and easy nose spray, not only helps to protect them, but also helps stop them spreading it into the wider community.
Dr Suzanna McDonald, UKHSA’s flu programme lead, said ensuring appropriate protection will take a “concerted effort” from parents, school vaccination teams, and head teachers.
“It’s a discrimination against the Israeli government. It’s a discrimination against the Jewish people…it’s like throwing a stone and not having an idea of where it’s going to land.” But he went on to indicate exactly what ripples could follow, predicting Israeli reprisals that could bar the UK from purchasing Israeli-made pharmaceuticals that are widely used in Britain, and the possibility of British businesses even being banned from trading with Florida. Although the latter, of course, would wreak enormous harm on Florida, Donald Trump’s home state, too.
Randy Fine, a Republican with a history of making Islamophobic remarks, who represents Florida’s 6th congressional district in the House of Representatives, warned on Monday that the UK’s “vanity project in support of Muslim terror could cost them billions of dollars” in lost trade with the Sunshine State under anti-boycott laws.
Two far-right Israeli cabinet ministers – already sanctioned by the UK over incitement of violence against Palestinians – have threatened Britain with recognising Argentinian sovereignty of the Falklands Islands, claiming they had been violently stolen by Britain. Itamar Ben-Gvir accused the UK of stealing money from Argentina through oil drilling, and urged Benjamin Netanyahu to impose sanctions. Meanwhile Bezalel Smotrich called for the expulsion of the British ambassador. “We will not be a doormat trampled by an antisemitic government,” he wrote on X.
Trump has already suggested he could rethink neutrality on Britain’s sovereignty of the Falklands, suggesting last week he might not come to Britain’s aid in a potential territorial dispute.
Trump may easily have suggested similarly in his conversation on Monday with Burnham. While the official No 10 readout of their call claims that the Prime Minister merely “set out the UK’s commitment to working towards peace and security in the region, stressing the importance of the two-state solution”, Burnham reportedly warned Trump of his decision to bar trade with Israeli settlers.
After that call, Bloomberg News reported that No 10 started taking steps to portray the Government’s decision as “largely symbolic” and not intended to have a “material impact on the UK’s wider relationship with Israel on trade and security”. The effort may also have been designed to blunt any American response, with every expectation that Trump will vent his fury publicly as soon as microphones are dangled in front of him on Tuesday.
Of course, Trump himself may actually be less than bothered by UK sanctions over the West Bank. Last year he said the United States and Israel did not agree “100 per cent” on the West Bank, when asked if he was concerned about Israeli settler violence. He has shown far more interest in Britain’s policies on the North Sea, free speech, online safety restrictions and migration rather than anything to do with Israel. Yet others in his administration who hold stronger, pro-Israel views on the topic could still make life difficult for Britain.
Even before his first face-to-face meeting with Trump, Burnham may already have been on a collision course with the US leader. It comes at a moment when US officials have already supplied Nato member states with a questionnaire they are required to complete so that Washington can check their degree of public support for Trump’s foreign policy priorities. That move, part of a six-month Pentagon review of US troop presence in Europe, is widely being seen as a loyalty test for Trump’s allies, as the Pentagon checks their “alignment” with the President’s global vision.
While Trump’s relationship with Netanyahu, has been rocky, especially since the two countries launched their fruitless war on Iran on 28 February, the US government remains committed to seeing the Israeli Prime Minister retain power after Israel’s election next month.
Burnham has failed, so far, to deliver on either of Trump’s two major requirements for any UK government: opening up the North Sea for unrestricted fresh drilling for oil and gas and closing Britain’s borders entirely to asylum seekers and other migrants. However, the Prime Minister is expected to approve new drilling at the controversial Jackdaw gas field off the Scottish coast.
Burnham can easily point out an extraordinary degree of hypocrisy at the heart of the American government’s response to London’s announcement on the West Bank, because even while Huckabee was accusing Burnham and Miliband of “Jew hate”, he was delivering a very different message in an interview with published on Monday.
“They’re not settlers. They’re unsettlers…doing things that are intentionally disruptive,” he said of Jews in the occupied West Bank who are increasingly besieging Palestinian villages, attacking their Palestinian neighbours, and launching violent assaults on Israeli, Palestinian and international news crews who have been reporting the growing violence in recent weeks.
“We’ve certainly been very vocal in expressing concerns to the Israeli government,” said Huckabee. “If you want more good behaviour, reward the good behaviour. If you want less bad behaviour, put consequences on it,” he said, without any apparent hint of irony.