Election latest: Tom Tugendhat says Nigel Farage sounds like 'Putin's poodle' on Ukraine - but Reform leader doubles down in war row (2024)

Tom Tugendhat says Sir Keir Starmer is "currently front running for prime minister", as he dodges a question on Reform UK's threat to Tory support.

Asked why he thinks the Conservative Party appears to be losing voters to Reform, the security minister instead turns to the Labour leader, accusing him of "playing constitutional games".

Mr Tugendhat does not directly answer when pushed on the question by Ali Fortescue, as he says people should be "focusing on what the real challenges are today".

He cites security threats posed by Moscow and cyber attacks on British institutions as examples of such challenges.

First up on the show is security minister Tom Tugendhat.

Asked first about Nigel Farage's comments that the West "provoked" the Ukraine war, he says that for a man who "always claims to speak like Winston Churchill, he sounds an awful lot more like Neville Chamberlain".

He calls the Reform leader's remarks "appeasem*nt" and accused him of repeating Kremlin propaganda.

"During the Cold War, we had a word for people like that. We called them useful idiots. And it sounds to me like Nigel Farage is just being Putin's poodle on this," he says.

Questioned about members of his own party who've suggested Mr Farage should be welcomed into the Tories, MrTugendhat says there is "no place in Parliament or indeed in the Conservative Party for anybody who sides with our enemies".

Pressed on the issue that some Conservatives have been open to the idea of Mr Farage joining their party, the minister says "people who represent the British people in Parliament should put the virtues and interests and strengths of the British people first".

"They shouldn't undermine that by repeating the propaganda of those who are trying to undermine us," he adds.

Unpatriotic, an apologist for President Putin – they're not the claims you want against you in the last weeks before polling day.

Is this Nigel Farage's first big blunder? Tonight he's doubled down on his claim the West "provoked" Russia's invasion of Ukraine - telling The Telegraph "don’t blame me for telling the truth".

"If you poke the Russian bear with a stick don't be surprised if he responds." He did say he's never sought to justify Putin's invasion.

It may be may be there's no such thing as bad publicity for a man who wants to be outside the political mainstream.

But as his party gains ground you sense Nigel Farage is trying to smooth his harsher edges and will not want to scare off shy wavering Reform voters with less than two weeks to go.

Our daily politics showPolitics Hubis live now on Sky News with ourpolitical correspondentAli Fortescuehosting this evening.

The fast-paced programme dissects the inner workings of Westminster, with interviews, insights, and analysis - bringing you, the audience, into the corridors of power.

Joining Ali tonight:

• Tom Tugendhat, security minister
• Scarlett Maguire, director at JL Partners polls

And on her panel are:

• Ava Santina Evans, political correspondent at PoliticsJOE
• Charlie Rowley, former special adviser to Michael Gove

Watch live on Sky News, in the stream at the top of this page, and follow live updates here in the Politics Hub.

WatchPolitics Hubfrom 7pm every night during the election campaign on Sky channel 501, Virgin channel 602, Freeview channel 233, on theSky News websiteandappor onYouTube.

Sir Keir Starmer has defended Labour's record on gender equality after JK Rowling accused the party of "abandoning women".

The Downing Street hopeful said he was "proud" of his party's history on the subject after the Harry Potter author wrote a 2,000 word essay in The Times criticising his views.

Ms Rowling has been outspoken in her belief that biological women should be able to have separate spaces, which trans women - who were born male - should not be allowed access.

In the article, she said she would "struggle" to vote for Labour at the election, having donated to the party in the past, because of its "dismissive" stance on the issue and had a "poor opinion" of the party leader's character.

Read the full story here...

Our daily politics showPolitics Hubwill be live on Sky News from 7pm with ourpolitical correspondentAli Fortescuehosting this evening.

The fast-paced programme dissects the inner workings of Westminster, with interviews, insights, and analysis - bringing you, the audience, into the corridors of power.

Joining Ali tonight:

• Tom Tugendhat, security minister
• Scarlett Maguire, director at JL Partners polls

And on her panel are:

• Ava Santina Evans, political correspondent at PoliticsJOE
• Charlie Rowley, former special adviser to Michael Gove

Watch live on Sky News, in the stream at the top of this page, and follow live updates here in the Politics Hub.

WatchPolitics Hubfrom 7pm every night during the election campaign on Sky channel 501, Virgin channel 602, Freeview channel 233, on theSky News websiteandappor onYouTube.

Our live poll tracker collates the results of opinion surveys carried out by all the main polling organisations - and allows you to see how the political parties are performing in the run-up to the general election.

It currently shows a drop in support in recent days for Labour and the Tories - with a jump for Reform and the Liberal Democrats.

Read more about the tracker here.

By Gurpreet Narwan, political correspondent

Reform UK bills itself as the party "for the left behind" but its flagship tax policy disproportionately benefits those on higher incomes, analysis for Sky News shows.

Nigel Farage hailed the plan to raise the threshold at which workers start paying tax to from £12,571 to £20,000, saying it would lift millions of low-paid workers out of paying tax altogether.

However, Reform's plan to raise the higher rate threshold from £50,271 to £70,000 would amount to a tax cut worth almost £6,000 for the top 10% of earners, vastly overshadowing the benefit to the lowest earners.

The top 10% of households, by disposable income, have £3,000 a month to spend after housing costs, council tax and direct taxes. A couple in this category would have £5,290 to spend.

These people would gain almost £5,983 in disposable income each year as a result of the changes.

The bottom 10% of households have less than £693 to spend on things such as heating and food each month. The figure rises to £1,195 for a couple. These households would gain an extra £221 per year.

Despite the vast discrepancy, Reform UK has repeatedly framed this as a policy for the lowest paid.

At the party's manifesto launch in South Wales, Mr Farage said: "I think the most innovative policy that we've put out in here is to raise the level at which people start paying tax to £20,000 a year.

"Why? Well, number one, it would take seven million people out of the tax system altogether, a devilishly complicated tax system. That would be a good thing, of course, for those on low pay."

Read the full analysis here:

Nigel Farage has doubled down on his comments about the Ukraine war, saying he was "telling the truth" when he said the West "provoked" the Russian invasion.

In an opinion piece forThe Telegraph, the Reform UK leader insisted he was not a supporter of Vladimir Putin and called the Russian president's actions "entirely wrong".

But he claimed he saw the conflict coming "a decade ago" and said the West has spent the last 10 years "playing into Putin's hands".

Mr Farage said he warned in 2014 that a war would emerge and has "made clear on multiple occasions since then, if you poke the Russian bear with a stick, don’t be surprised if he responds".

He said the West had failed to "tackle Putin's mix of paranoia and assertiveness" and suggested it had pursued a dangerous foreign policy.

"There is no easy solution to the war. But facing up to the truth about the causes and consequences must be a start," he said.

Rishi Sunak said Mr Farage's earlier comments were "completely wrong", while Sir Keir Starmer branded the remarks "disgraceful".

Scottish First Minister John Swinney has also weighed in, calling the Reform leader a "traitor to the interests of the people of these islands".

By Rob Powell, political correspondent

The architect of the government's delayed reforms to social care has told Sky News politicians need to "grow up" and tackle the crisis in the sector.

Amid a bitter election row over public spending, Sir Andrew Dilnot said he believed the two main parties were reluctant to discuss care reform for fear of being accused of plotting future tax hikes.

Sir Andrew - whose 2011 report laid out several key measures adopted by the government - described social care as the "biggest risk that isn't managed" that the country faces.

He said: "Four out of five people are going to needsocial carebefore they die, we should grow up and face it."

"I think politicians are reluctant to talk about it firstly because they're worried about anything that means an increase in public spending and therefore possible taxation," he added.

You can read more below: