Rishi Sunak faced an end-of-term grilling today as senior MPs quizzed the under-fire PM on stretched public services. During an appearance at the Liaison Committee, Mr Sunak denied there was a crisis in local government funding - despite some councils effectively declaring bankruptcy. He also pledged to keep the triple lock on pensions in the Tories' general
election manifesto after his own Chancellor raised the possibility of being axed last week as he appeared before peers. Mr Sunak was then quizzed on the divisive Rwanda deportations plan after his flagship bill on the issue was delayed last week. Here The Mirror looks at the key moments from the 90-minute hearing. Rishi Sunak gives cryptic response to Liz Truss's claim the 'deep state' sabotaged her
Sadiq Khan blasts Tory 'lies' over campaign video showing
New York instead of
London Crisis, what crisis? The PM appeared to deny there was a "crisis" in local government funding, only admitting that there are "challenges" during a tetchy exchange with
Labour MP Clive Betts. Pressed on whether was a crisis with some councils having declared effective bankruptcy in recent months, Mr Sunak told the Liaison Committee: "I wouldn't characterise it that way. Of course there are challenges, particularly with inflation, which is why... the overriding economic priority of the Government was to bring inflation down because that will help local councils with their finances too, as well as helping families up and down the country. "And if you look at what's happened from central government to local government over this Parliament, since 2019, the grant in cash terms has more than doubled." Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee chairman Mr Betts pointed out this was in the context of a 30% cut in councils' spending power since 2010. Dodges questions over Rwanda deportations airline The PM refused to say whether the Government has struck a deal with an airline to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda. The controversial scheme has been on ice since the
Supreme Court ruled it unlawful last year. Ministers are trying force legislation through Parliament to declare Rwanda a safe country but the Bill has been torn apart by the House of Lords. No10 insists flights could still take off in the Spring - but in reality the timetable has slipped. Dame Diana Johnson, the Labour chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, grilled the PM on whether the Government had struck a deal with an airline or if the RAF would be providing the flights instead. The Prime Minister refused to be drawn on "commercial conversations". He told the Committee: “The Home Office are making all the appropriate arrangements. There is a range of options that they are considering. You wouldn’t expect me to get into the detail of those because they may well involve, as you would expect, commercial conversations." He added: “What I can say is the preparations are all being made and have been made for a while to operationalise the Bill.” Rishi Sunak's commitment to "stop the boats" has been mired in legal wrangles ( Image: PA Wire) No timetable for WASPI
Women The PM failed to give any clarity to hundreds of thousands of women who suffered when the state pension age was raised after a bombshell report said they should finally be paid compensation. It suggested compensation of between £1,000 and £2,950 per victim - far short of the sums campaigners hoped for. MPs urged Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride on Monday to provide details of a compensation scheme for WASPI women - but he failed to give any timetable for a full government response to last week's report. Asked if he had the timescale for the Government's response, Mr Sunak said today: "No, I don't, as you know it was a detailed report which dates back some years." Swerves infected blood scandal claim At the end of last year, the PM suffered a humiliating Commons defeat over calls for a new body to help victims of the infected blood scandal. During the Committee hearing the Home Affairs Committee chairwoman Dame Diana Johnson asked Mr Sunak whether whips had warned Tory MPs if they voted to pay compensation for the victims then the Budget tax cuts could be at risk. The PM told MPs this was not something he was aware of and insisted the government is committed to paying compensation. Swipe at Liz Truss over 'deep state' rants Tory MP William Wragg put Mr Sunak on the spot about his predecessor Liz Truss's claim that her mad premiership was derailed by the "deep state". Mr Sunak repeatedly said "that is a matter for her". Mr Wragg then asked if Mr Sunak was a member of the deep state. The PM drew laughs when he retorted: "I probably wouldn’t tell you if I was." Swerves question over Budget leak inquiry Earlier this month key Budget measures - including a 2p cut to national insurance contributions - were leaked to the press before the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivered his statement to Parliament. The PM told MPs on Tuesday he could not recall whether a leak inquiry was launched afterwards and instead said he "deplores" leaks that he also suffered while Chancellor in Boris Johnson's government. Mr Sunak said: "I can't recall the specific situation around that leak inquiry... in general leak inquiries are instituted when there is a leak of sensitive information. Obviously it has historically proved difficult to identify the culprits of those, but... it's certainly not in the Government's interest to have sensitive Budget measures leaked in advance." Pensions triple lock promise Last week the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt suggested the pensions triple lock could be axed but was forced to backtrack as he was grilled on the
BBC ’s Laura Kuenssberg programme on Sunday. Now Mr Sunak has said the public could "safely assume" the pensions triple lock, which ensures the state pension rises each year in line with the highest out of 2.5 per cent, wage rises or inflation, will remain in place throughout the next Parliament. Asked whether he thought that was affordable, the PM told the Liaison Committee: "I do, because the track record of the Government is that we make priorities, and making sure that if you have worked hard all your life you have the dignity that you deserve in retirement is important to me, it's important to the Government, and the triple-lock is an expression of that. "So I'm actually proud that as a result of the triple-lock pensioners are much less likely to be in poverty." Join our Mirror Politics
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