United front is short-lived as Zia Yusuf and Chris Philp bicker in front of residents and cameras
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp and Reform UK home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf in Piddington. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenShadow home secretary Chris Philp and Reform UK home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf in Piddington. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty ImagesFrom 46m agoA news conference in Piddington has descended into a shouting match between Reform’s Zia Yusuf and the Conservative’s Chris Philp.
The two men, who are both home affairs spokespeople for their respective parties, appeared alongside Piddington parish council leader Tim McNally at a media event designed to outline local opposition to government plans to for a local accommodation site for asylum seekers.
But the united front did not last long and soon ended up with the pair bickering in front of the cameras. Yusuf asked Philp:
Would you like to actually apologise for the things that you did in government to bring hundreds of thousands of people into this country illegally?
Are you going to take the opportunity to apologise to the people of Piddington and to the country?
Philp responded by saying that the residents of the military base would be asylum seekers who had arrived recently.
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp and Reform UK home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf, address local residents at Piddington village hall Oxfordshire. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PAHe said that “rather than engaging in point scoring”, Yusuf should “read the room”. However, Yusuf said the Tories failed to “secure our borders” during their 14 years of government.
Before that, McNally had accused prime minister Andy Burnham of “failing to step up”. He said:
[Burnham hasn’t] extended to us as simple as courtesy of consideration of what we are going to have to consider, to receive here as our new incumbent guests that you have targeted for us – 1,250 men.
Meanwhile, Downing Street has defended plans to convert the site at MoD Bicester near Piddington into asylum seeker accommodation.
Responding to questions around public safety, a spokesperson said such sites are “designed to be self-contained with 24/7 security and CCTV to minimise the impact on the local community”, the Press Association reported.
The spokesperson added: “As the prime minister himself has said, we do not want a situation where it’s only the poorest communities in the country that receive all of the dispersal of refugees and asylum seekers who believe all parties to play their part.”
The spokesperson said the safety of the public “will always be our top priority”.
Tensions were clearly running high in Piddington, as Philp and Yusuf faced off in a heated exchange and made their feelings known, as evidenced in these pictures:
View image in fullscreen Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreen Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty ImagesA news conference in Piddington has descended into a shouting match between Reform’s Zia Yusuf and the Conservative’s Chris Philp.
The two men, who are both home affairs spokespeople for their respective parties, appeared alongside Piddington parish council leader Tim McNally at a media event designed to outline local opposition to government plans to for a local accommodation site for asylum seekers.
But the united front did not last long and soon ended up with the pair bickering in front of the cameras. Yusuf asked Philp:
Would you like to actually apologise for the things that you did in government to bring hundreds of thousands of people into this country illegally?
Are you going to take the opportunity to apologise to the people of Piddington and to the country?
Philp responded by saying that the residents of the military base would be asylum seekers who had arrived recently.
View image in fullscreenShadow home secretary Chris Philp and Reform UK home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf, address local residents at Piddington village hall Oxfordshire. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PAHe said that “rather than engaging in point scoring”, Yusuf should “read the room”. However, Yusuf said the Tories failed to “secure our borders” during their 14 years of government.
Before that, McNally had accused prime minister Andy Burnham of “failing to step up”. He said:
[Burnham hasn’t] extended to us as simple as courtesy of consideration of what we are going to have to consider, to receive here as our new incumbent guests that you have targeted for us – 1,250 men.
The Home Office underspent its Prevent counter-terror scheme budget by nearly a third last year, despite the number of referrals reaching record levels, the public spending watchdog has said.
The National Audit Office (NAO) said the Home Office underspent its £23.4 million Prevent budget by 28% for 2025-26, continuing a six-year pattern in which it underspent by an average of £5.6 million (17%) a year in real term, PA reported.
The government-led, multi-agency programme aims to stop individuals becoming terrorists. It has faced significant criticism after it failed to intervene in the case of Southport attacker Axel Rudakubana, who had been referred three times.
Demand for Prevent has grown significantly with referrals increasing year on year since 2020, and reaching a record 10,293 in the year ending September 2025.
Officials believe the referral spike might be down to more awareness of Prevent after the Southport Attack in July 2024.
Ministers will face a legal challenge over plans to convert a Ministry of Defence site near the Oxfordshire village of Piddington into accommodation for more than 1,200 detained asylum seekers.
It emerged on Thursday that Angela Rayner, the housing and communities secretary, has approved full planning permission, a decision welcomed by the Home Office, who want to end the use of asylum hotels.
Tim McNally, the local parish council chair, told BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme there would be “many actions” by villagers, and that ministers should “absolutely” be braced for a legal challenge, which would need to be lodged within the next six weeks.
Ministers have faced opposition over the plans from villagers, who even made a symbolic attempt to declare the village independent from the rest of the country after a referendum of its 350 residents. Asked how the village would respond, McNally said: “There’s going to be many actions, you will see. We will disclose that as we move forward.”
Asked if ministers should be braced for a legal challenge, he said: “Absolutely, absolutely.”
Campaigners could also apply the new Hillsborough law, which is being considered by parliament. Once passed, the law would create a legally enforceable duty of candour that compels public officials and authorities to act transparently when investigations and inquiries take place.
The food and farming deal alone could generate at least 780 pieces of in-scope EU law every year, the committee said.
“This may sound like a technical issue, but the rules in question can affect everyday matters, from food standards and consumer prices to business costs and household budgets.
“That is why effective parliamentary scrutiny is essential to ensure such changes do not pass without proper oversight.
“The procedures, institutional arrangements and resources that are needed for this must be provided, so that parliament can undertake its scrutiny thoroughly and transparently,” Stirrup said.
After the summit, Burnham plans to go further in exploring options for the UK’s future ties.
The prime minister’s remarks in recent weeks have fuelled questions about the prospect of the UK returning to the EU or adopting its freedom of movement rules, but he has insisted voters would ultimately be “the boss” of any changes.
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There will be a “growing pressure” for parliament to scrutinise EU legislation under new deals on food and emissions to be sealed ahead of the UK’s summit with the bloc next week, a Lords’ committee has warned.
Prime minister Andy Burnham is due to meet EU leaders in Brussels next week and sign agreements that he says could raise GDP by 0.4%. This includes a sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) deal on food and farming, as well as one on emissions trading and another for a youth mobility scheme.
A deal is also expected to be struck on a health security agreement to help address shortages of drugs such as antibiotics and ADHD medication, which have got worse since Brexit, according to a draft text seen by the I newspaper.
It will mark a significant shift in the Britain’s post-Brexit relationship with the EU as they will require dynamic alignment, the process of matching laws to the bloc’s evolving legislation, the House of Lords European Affairs Committee said in a new report.
The committee of peers says this will mean parliament needs to set up a “robust, consistent and adequately resourced cross-departmental system” to manage the UK’s dynamic alignment commitments. See the published report here.
The committee chairman, Jock Stirrup, said:
Although important details remain to be determined of the legal and institutional form that dynamic alignment will take, its introduction will mark a major change to the nature of the UK-EU relationship as it exists under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
As the UK aligns with more EU law, parliament will face growing pressure to scrutinise significant volumes of EU legislation.
The food and farming deal alone could generate at least 780 pieces of in-scope EU law every year, the committee heard.
Meanwhile, the I reports that the government is close to securing a deal with Europe to help tackle post-Brexit medicine shortages, including antibiotics, ADHD medication and epilepsy drugs.
Experts on post-Brexit health policy have reportedly described the deal as “significant’” and a “good first step” in addressing shortages that have hit both sides in recent years.
It comes as prime minister Andy Burnham said he believes a “win-win” deal could be done with the EU that could be “more like the Brexit that people thought they were voting for in 2016”.
The prime minister was meeting fellow leaders at the European Political Community summit in Dublin, ahead of the summit next week, where he hopes to bring Britain closer to Europe.
I believe there is a good deal to be done that could be a win-win for Britain and Europe.
The deal is not done, and there’ll be some long nights ahead in the next seven days.
Some young people with disabilities will lose their personal independence payments and will have to apply instead to a local fund for short-term expenses and equipment, Alan Milburn’s review will recommend.
Sadiq Khan has become the most high-profile Labour figure to weigh into the increasingly fractious debate over what the government should do with its electric vehicle targets.
Nigel Farage appeared on Russell Brand’s US podcast nine months after the comedian was investigated by police over allegations of sexual assault, the Guardian has learned.
The UK government has appointed the world’s first special representative for climate security, in the strongest sign yet of fears that climate breakdown will bring chaos to the country.
Fox Style News Syndicate. Sourced from broadcast reporting: Read Full Source Coverage.