Boris Johnson has been spending his life after Downing Street reading to his children and building a garage for a quad bike.
The former prime minister said he was “doing stuff for [his constituency] Uxbridge and doing a lot of political work” now he was no longer in No 10, but added he now had more time to spend with his children.
In a clip released before Johnson’s interview on TalkTV tonight with fellow Tory MP and ally Nadine Dorries, the former culture secretary asked whether he had more family time.
He said: “Yes, and it’s fantastic because you know, I’ve got a very full day . . . I’m doing lots of writing. Unless I specifically tell you otherwise, I’m doing stuff for Uxbridge and doing a lot of political work but yeah, it means I can do reading to them . . . building things. It’s great.”
He added: “I’m building a garage for the quad bike. Not a big quad bike, it was a miniature quad bike. They’re too small for quad bikes.”
Johnson also revealed that his political rivals were “actually far nicer” than people might think.
Asked if he would rather be stuck in a lift with Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, or Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish first minister, he said: “Oh brother. Oh actually, it’s like all these things, and I’m sure viewers will understand this, both individuals are actually far nicer and more amusing than you might otherwise imagine.
“The kind of hostility you see between politicians on screen is often not reflected in real life. I think, provided it wasn’t like 50 floors, I wouldn’t mind either of them.”
In a previous clip, Johnson said those who thought he had covered up illicit parties at No 10 during the coronavirus pandemic were “out of their mind”.
• Boris Johnson: Anyone thinking I covered up ‘partygate’ is out of their mind
The full interview will be broadcast on TalkTV at 8pm.
Nursing union suspends planned strikes in Wales
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has suspended its planned strike action in Wales for Monday and Tuesday after receiving a pay offer from the Welsh government.
The offer, which has not been accepted, comprises an additional 3 per cent rise on top of the planned £1,400 pay increase for this year. The RCN had been calling for a 5 per cent pay rise above the rate of inflation, which is at about 10 per cent. The union had previously rejected the offer of a one-off payment by the Welsh government.
Separately, 1500 ambulance workers in Wales belonging to the GMB union have called off their planned strikes for Monday and three other dates in February and March as they consider a pay offer.
A decision on the pay offer will be made by unions soon.
Some ambulance workers represented by the union Unite are still set to strike on Monday and Tuesday. Industrial action is also planned by midwives and physios.
The Welsh government said, “An enhanced pay offer has been made to our health trade unions. On this basis, we are hopeful that the planned industrial action over Monday 6 and Tuesday 7 February will be postponed, allowing trade unions to discuss the proposals further with their members.”
We want a role in negotiations, says UUP
Unionists must not be “bounced on a deal” on the Northern Ireland protocol, the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party has said (Geraldine Scott writes).
Doug Beattie said his party was keen to be involved in negotiations between the European Union and the UK by “raising red flags where we see there are problems and giving solutions”.
But he added: “We cannot be bounced on a deal which is simply not going to work in the long term.”
Colum Eastwood, the SDLP leader, has said that discussions were being kept “very tight, at a very senior level in the British government on the European Commission, and that’s probably a good thing”.
“They’re in the tunnel,” he told reporters in Belfast, referring to the intense, tail-end stage that negotiations can enter.
Michelle O’Neill, Sinn Fein’s leader, said she was “encouraged” by the progress of the talks.
Earlier this week Ursula von der Leyen played down hopes of a breakthrough on Northern Ireland, saying there could be no final agreement until “you give the final signature”. But O’Neill said she hoped the executive at Stormont could be restored by the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday agreement in April.
She said: “I hope that we’re in the executive, I want to be an executive today, I should have been the executive from last May after the election.” She asked the DUP to “stop punishing the public” and to restore the executive to “take on issues like the cost-of-living crisis and fixing our health service”.
Welsh ambulance workers call off strike
Ambulance workers in Wales have called off a planned strike after a new offer was put forward on pay (Geraldine Scott writes).
Members of the GMB union have suspended their planned walk out on Monday after a proposed deal that amounts to both a consolidated and non-consolidated one-off payment for 22-23 — on top of an increase of 4.5 per cent that has already been paid.
Nathan Holman, a GMB official, said: “After intense negotiations, GMB has agreed to suspend strike action while further talks take place. We recognise that the Welsh government and Welsh Ambulance have made concessions and, through social partnership, we appreciate the frank and open dialogue with them over the last few months.
“This has only been made possible because the Welsh government has been prepared to talk about pay — a lesson for those in charge on the other side of the Severn Bridge.
“We are a member-led union, ultimately they will decide.”
Action in England on Monday will still go ahead. Asked about those strikes today, the prime minister’s spokesman said Rishi Sunak believes “the way to resolve these disputes is talking and we want to encourage unions to get round the table without inflicting the disruption that we’ve seen on the British people”.
Sunak has ‘full confidence’ in cabinet secretary
Downing Street has said the prime minister has “full confidence” in the cabinet secretary after The Times revealed that he was personally informed of a written complaint against Dominic Raab.
Simon Case was warned that officials had made documented allegations about the behaviour of the deputy prime minister, The Times has been told.
But No 10 maintained today that Rishi Sunak was not aware of any formal complaints when he appointed Raab.
Sunak’s spokesman was asked how a formal complaint could be raised by civil servants, and said this included through line managers, human resources or by raising it with a permanent secretary.
He said: “As I’ve said, the prime minister was not aware of any formal complaints.”
The spokesman added: “The prime minister has full confidence in Simon Case and he is continuing to work closely with the prime minister.”
Raab denies bullying but fresh allegations emerged about his behaviour overnight. Gina Miller, the anti-Brexit campaigner, said after she appeared on television with Raab he told her she was stupid and shouted at a BBC employee to provide him with a car.
A source close to Raab said her account was “baseless” and “timed to jump on a political bandwagon and give Gina Miller the publicity she craves”.
Sunak’s spokesman said: “The prime minister expects all cabinet ministers to abide by the ministerial code. And again, as I say, there is a formal process ongoing with regard to the deputy prime minister and we think it’s right to wait for that investigation to conclude.”
• Cabinet chief ‘was told of Raab bullying before Sunak brought him back’
Rail strikes ‘could last years’
Rail strikes could continue for the “long haul”, a union boss has said, as he suggested it would be “stupid” for workers to stop industrial action now (Geraldine Scott writes).
Commuters are facing severe disruption today as train drivers hold another strike that has left large parts of the country without rail services. Members of Aslef and the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) are walking out in a long-running dispute over pay and conditions.
Mick Whelan, the general secretary of Aslef, said strikes by train drivers could continue for at least three more years.
Asked how long the strikes would continue for, Whelan told LBC: “I think we’re in this for the long haul. How long is a piece of string? If we don’t get a pay rise for four years will it be five, will it be six, will it be seven?
“Will it be stupid to stop this now then restart it some time in the future, because you’d lose any impetus that you’ve gained?”
Train services across the country have been cancelled today due to the strike. There appears to be little chance of a breakthrough in talks between unions and the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train operators.
The group’s chairman, Steve Montgomery, said negotiations with Aslef were “going backwards”. He told Sky News: “We all understand that we want to give our staff a pay increase, [it’s] naturally important, particularly in these economic climates.
“But drivers’ average wages are £60,000 at this moment. We are offering up to £65,000 over two years. That’s quite a significant increase for people.”
Aslef says the offer would add a “significant” number of contracted hours to drivers.
Further interest rate rises ‘unlikely’: Bank
Interest rates are unlikely to rise again in the near future, the Bank of England’s chief economist has hinted (Geraldine Scott writes).
Huw Pill told Times Radio the Bank recognised it had “done a lot with monetary policy already”. He said: “Interest rates have risen by almost 400 basis points (4 percentage points). It’s also important that we guard against the possibility of doing too much.”
His comments came a day after the central bank hiked interest rates by 0.5 percentage points to 4 per cent but indicated recent rises could slow down.
• Bank of England wary of raising interest rates too high, says Huw Pill
Pill warned that the full effects of interest rate increases had not yet been fully felt. He said there was a need for a continued “watchfulness” but that the Bank had deliberately softened its language.
Yesterday’s increase to the highest interest rate level since 2008 was the tenth consecutive rise by the Bank as it seeks to combat soaring inflation. After the decision, the governor, Andrew Bailey, said that while inflation remained above 10 per cent, it appeared to have turned a corner.
Pressure mounts on Raab to step aside
Dominic Raab is facing calls from his own party to step aside while he is investigated over bullying allegations (Geraldine Scott writes).
Nadine Dorries, the former culture secretary, said if she were in Raab’s position she would stand down and “dedicate my time to clearing my name”. As pressure mounts on Raab, she told TalkTV: “I think Dominic’s probably going to get to that position pretty soon”.
Labour has also said the deputy prime minister and justice secretary should be suspended while Adam Tolley KC carries out his investigation.
Stephen Kinnock, the shadow immigration minister, said: “He should be suspended. If Rishi Sunak had any strength, judgment or leadership qualities, he would do just that.”
But the prime minister told TalkTV he thought it was appropriate for Raab — who denies the claims — to stay in post. He said: “I believe people should have a fair hearing and that’s why we have an independent adviser, and I think as people saw at the weekend that independent adviser who I asked to look into the Nadhim Zahawi situation looked at it quickly, didn’t pull any punches when he wrote his report.
“And immediately after I received that report I acted decisively to remove Nadhim Zahawi from government because there had been a serious breach in the ministerial code.”
Good morning
Welcome to the Times’s live politics coverage, as commuters again face severe disruption from another day of rail strikes, and pressure builds on Dominic Raab to step aside.