Daily Update – 24rd August

Politics Live

5:10pm – And that’s all from us!

Join us tomorrow for more news and updates.

5:00pm – Johnson responds to Biden

Joe Pike here summarising the prime minister’s response to Biden’s decision to not extend the withdrawal:

4:41pm – Reaction to Biden

What that means for the UK is currently unclear. Will Johnson try and secure a direct agreement from the Taliban? Considering what they’ve said throughout this week, it is unlikely to go down well.

4:34pm – US President Joe Biden sticks to 31st August deadline

A US administration official has announced that Joe Biden has agreed with a recommendation from the Pentagon to stick with his exit deadline of August 31st to pull out remaining US troops from Afghanistan.

This is despite the UK requesting for an extension to the withdrawal.

4:10pm – ‘Number of arrests’ made at XR protest

Police have confirmed that a ‘number of arrests’ have been made at the Extinction Rebellion protest.

52 arrests were made yesterday, police said earlier, in addition to the 10 arrests made on Sunday night.

XR have blocked a junction at Cambridge Circus, prompting police action against the protestors.

XR have promised to protest for 2 weeks, saying they will continue to do so until the government promises to “stop all new fossil fuel investments”.

3:40pm – ‘Credible’ reports of executions by Taliban

The UN have said there are ‘credible’ reports that the Taliban have been carrying out executions since coming to power in Afghanistan.

The militants have been trying to show a more restrained, liberal image to the world, but reports suggest that inside Afghanistan there is a very different picture.

Other rights violations, including restrictions on women and recruiting child soldiers, were also reported, according to UN human rights high commissioner Michelle Bachelet.

1:48pm – Tories refuse to reveal billionaire donor dinners

According to the Mirror, the Conservative party have refused to reveal the billionaires who donated to the party.

In 2020, the Conservative party said it was “committed” to publishing the list of Leader’s Group meals “in due course”. However it has never appeared and the party is now is refusing to reveal any details.

1:20pm – Sharon Graham expected to win Unite leadership race

Sharon Graham is expected to be named as the new leader of Unite, the UK’s second largest trade union.

She was initially labelled as an outsider, and her expected victory will come as a shock to many.

Graham’s victory is now being described as “pretty certain” from sources in rival camps. She is thought to have won a large majority of the female vote.

A member of her team said: “Of course we will only get the result when the count is finished tomorrow. But we are confident Sharon is going to win it. If she does it will be an historic victory for the campaign and the workers in Britain and Ireland.”

12:45pm – Sturgeon warns she could impose new lockdown rules

Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon has warned that Scotland could be placed under lockdown if cases begin to rise once more.

She also announced that an inquiry into the pandemic would start this year.

Sturgeon said: “If the surge continues and accelerates, and if we start to see a substantial increase in serious illness as a result, we cannot completely rule out having to reimpose some restrictions.

“Of course we hope not to have to do that and if we did, we would be as limited and as proportionate as possible.

“However… what happens in the next few weeks will depend… on all of us. This is yet another fragile and potentially very pivotal moment in our journey through this pandemic.”

12:34pm – Israel cases rise among double vaccinated

Yesterday the UK ordered 35 million more Pfizer vaccines to help as booster jabs in coming months.

The situation in Israel may be one reason for that, as people who were vaccinated 6 months ago are showing decreasing signs of immunity to covid.

The FT’s John Burn-Murdoch is typically well positioned to take us through the stats on the situation.

10:49am – ‘That’s bo*****s Nick’

Defence secretary Ben Wallace firmly denied claims that a former royal marine has been cut off by the ministry of defence. The clip is worth watching.

9:45am – Johnson to hold G7 meeting this afternoon

Boris Johnson will hold a G7 meeting this afternoon, urging countries to increase their support to the Afghan people.

The call is due to happen at 2.30pm, and the prime minister is expected to ask Biden to delay evacuation withdrawal despite pressure from the Taliban.

Biden will then make a speech at 5pm, announcing his decision on the Aug 31 deadline.

8:30am – Main headlines of the day

  • US under pressure to extend evacuation deadline despite Taliban pressure
  • PM to urge world leaders to step up Afghan support
  • No-fly evacuee arrived in UK during Kabul evacuation

8:15am – Today’s newspaper headlines

  • The Times: Britain faces airlift deadline – The Times is one of many papers to report the Taliban’s warning that delaying troops would be a ‘red line’ and would bring ‘consequences’. Johnson is trying to convince Biden to extend the deadline.
  • Financial Times: Biden squeezed between allies and Taliban over evacuation deadline – The FT looks at the ‘humiliating prospect’ that the Taliban could veto any attempts to delay an evacuation deadline.
  • The Daily Telegraph: Security suspect escaped to UK from Kabul – The Telegraph focuses on an Afghan citizen placed on a no-fly watchlist who arrived in the UK. He was flagged as a potential threat but released after undergoing checks.

8:00am – Welcome back to another day of Politics Live!