Month: May 2022

The man tipped to win the presidency is Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr, the son of the nation’s former dictator.

Polls suggest he may see a landslide victory, meaning the Marcos clan ousted by a people’s revolt 36 years ago could reclaim power.

His main rival is Leni Robredo, a liberal who narrowly beat Mr Marcos in the 2016 vice-presidential race.

But polls this campaign have consistently shown the Marcos heir ahead with a commanding 30-percentage-point lead.

A high turnout is expected of the nation’s eligible 67.5 million voters – with many lining up pre-dawn on Monday to cast their votes at polling booths at schools and community centres.

There have been reports of ballot issues, with some voters at a school in Manila telling the BBC they were having trouble feeding their papers into the counting machines. Others reported that they were told to leave their votes with booth officials.

Comelec Commissioner George Garcia had earlier told the BBC “there will always be allegations of irregularities” but there were no significant breaches so far.

He also said reports of violence were “minimal” and “the police are in full control of the situation”.

Whoever wins Monday’s presidential race will take over from Rodrigo Duterte, a hardliner who’s come to the end of his six year term in office.

Mr Duterte’s government has been condemned for its brutality in cracking down on drugs and crime, though the administration has always rejected allegations of wrongdoing.

Critics also say democratic institutions have come under attack in his presidency, pointing to the shutdown of Philippines’ broadcaster ABS-CBN, a channel which – like other some other independent media outlets – has angered Mr Duterte in the past.

A long line of exasperated voters watched us as we walked into the polling station in Makati in Metro Manila.

“Are you media?”, asked one onlooker. “It’s good that you’re here.”

The polling station, which is expected to handle more than 25,000 voters today, has experienced three malfunctioning vote counting machines.

Across the country, 1,867 machines have malfunctioned, according to the Philippine elections commissioner George Garcia, but he said the problems have been resolved.

But one of the machines at our polling station was still malfunctioning. A heated argument had broken out. An elderly woman said to us she had been waiting for more than four hours to feed her ballot paper and receive an official receipt.

Election officials were urging her to leave the paper and they would feed it when the machine started working, but she remonstrated, saying she wanted to witness her vote being counted.

Elsewhere the elections have been running smoothly, but there are reports of some violent clashes and claims of vote buying. The relevant authorities say they are investigating the allegations.

Bongbong Marcos, 64, is the son of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos whose regime lasted 21 years.

On Monday, he and his family – including his mother Imelda – cast their votes at a school polling booth in Batac in the country’s north, his family’s heartland.

Ferdinand Marcos’ rule saw him plunge the country into martial law and take control of the country’s courts, businesses and media. The army and police arrested and tortured thousands of dissidents and political opponents were murdered.

Mr Marcos, his wife Imelda – infamous for her lavish designer wardrobe – and their cronies plundered an estimated $10bn (£8.1bn) from public funds. Public anger over his regime saw him forced out in the People’s Power Revolution of 1986 and he died soon afterwards.

Upon his family’s return from exile in the 1990s, Bongbong used his family’s wealth and connections to resume political ambitions, becoming a province governor, congressman and senator.

When he lost the 2016 vice-presidential race to Ms Robredo, he contested the result – and has vowed that he won’t be “cheated” this time around.

His running mate is Sara Duterte, daughter of the incumbent president. The pair have promised to “unify” the nation but they rarely discussed any policies during their election rallies.

Ms Robredo is a former human rights lawyer who has consistently led campaigns against Duterte’s drugs violence and gender inequality.

She has vowed to tackle corruption, with her campaign slogan being: “Honest government, a better life for all”.

Her rallies have drawn significant turnouts recently – particularly among engaged, generally young “Pink Shirt” supporters who launched door-knocking campaigns to win her votes.

The other candidates have trailed Marcos and Robredo in polls. They include boxing champion and national hero Manny Pacquiao who has promised to tackle corruption and poverty, and Manila’s city mayor Isko Moreno who has promised infrastructure spend and a harsher line on China.

Critics say the election has been plagued by rampant misinformation on social media.

“I have described it as a cesspool of disinformation and it just gets worse every election cycle,” Richard Heydarian, a politics professor at Polytechnic University of the Philippines told the BBC.

Bongbong has denied accusations that he’s launched online operations to whitewash his family’s history. However, his campaign consistently paints his father’s dictatorship as a false “golden period” for the country – despite widespread poverty and an economy heavily indebted to foreign banks.

He has also steered clear of debates or forums where he might have to face independent questioning.

For Ms Robredo, tracker groups have reported an escalation in online campaigns harassing and vilifying her with misogynistic messages.

The Asian Network for Free Elections – a monitor – has found past Philippines votes to be generally free and fair.

Polls will remain open until 19:00 (1100 GMT) locally, although this may be extended for Covid restrictions and if voters are still waiting in line. Many are wearing masks to the polls.

Filipinos are not only voting on the president but also the vice-president, senators, lower house legislators and thousands of lower-ranking officials across the whole archipelago’s 7,600 islands.

A turn-out of about 80% – as seen in previous elections – is expected.

Counting will start the moment polls close and it may become clear in a few hours which candidates are pulling ahead. However the process could also take days before a winner is announced, as was the case in 2016.

The Labour leader, who drank beer and ate curry in an MP’s office while restrictions were in place last year, has cancelled an appearance on Monday.

Mr Streeting told the BBC Sir Keir was a man of “decency and honesty” and was not “dodging” scrutiny.

But the Conservatives have accused Sir Keir of double standards.

Sir Keir – who has previously called for Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak to resign over attending Downing Street lockdown events – himself drank beer and ate curry in the constituency office of City of Durham Labour MP Mary Foy during a visit in April last year.

Durham police have launched an inquiry into whether Covid rules were broken, having previously ruled this out.

Sir Keir was due to make a speech and take questions from journalists on Monday afternoon at an event organised by the Institute for Government (IoG) think tank, but he has cancelled his appearance.

The IoG said it had received no explanation for this.

Mr Streeting told BBC Breakfast: “I have no idea why he cancelled the event and I certainly didn’t ask before I came on because I think it’s such a trivial issue.

“The idea that Keir has been dodging questions… I mean he’s been out all weekend, even after a local election campaign where we did very well, he’s been out thanking Labour teams, particularly in the places that we did particularly well in these elections.”

“The idea that Keir is somehow ducking scrutiny is simply not true,” he added, saying he would not “even entertain the idea” that the Labour leader would be found to have broken Covid rules and fined for this.

Sir Keir has said the visit in Durham in April 2021 had been within the rules as it was a work event, and food and drink had been consumed in between doing work.

But an internal memorandum for the trip, obtained by the Mail on Sunday, scheduled time for “dinner”, after which the visit would conclude.

Asked on Sky News whether Sir Keir should resign, Conservative MP and Universities Minister Michelle Donelan said: “This is a decision for him. He’s going to have to search his soul after making this a top priority over the last few months at the expense of key issues like the rising cost of living.”

“My takeaway is that it does smack of sheer hypocrisy,” she added.

The coronavirus rules in place when the drinks took place in Durham on 30 April last year meant it was illegal in England to socialise indoors with people from outside one’s own household or support bubble.

There was an exemption for “work purposes”, although working from home was recommended in the guidance, but the rules did not mention socialising at work.

Keith Anderson, chief executive of Scottish Power, told the BBC that another expected rise in energy bills in October to between £2,500 and £3,000 a year could see huge losses for suppliers and many customers unable to pay their bills.

He warned regulator Ofgem that setting the new price cap too low could risk suppliers collapsing or the foreign owned firms leaving the market.

Mr Anderson has put some flesh on the bones of a plan he first mentioned in a frank exchange with a committee of MPs three weeks ago.

He has called for ten million households to have their energy bills reduced by £1,000 this October.

He said the government’s plan to give each household £200 towards their energy bill – a sum that will need to be paid back – would not be enough.

“We need to be realistic about the gravity of the situation – around 40% of UK households, potentially 10 million homes, could be in fuel poverty this winter,” Mr Anderson explained.

The price cap is set to be increased again in October.

To date, the government has said it will offer extra relief of £150 in April via the council tax system in England, and in October customers in England, Scotland and Wales will receive a £200 rebate on their energy bills.

They will have to repay this at £40 a year for five years, starting in April 2023.

However, Mr Anderson said a £10bn tariff reduction fund could be paid for by adding £40 annually to all household energy bills for the next decade. He said this would be the most effective to avoid fuel poverty for the most vulnerable.

Mr Anderson said that such a fund would directly tackle the biggest cause of the cost of living crisis in a way that other measures – such as the recent 5p cut to fuel duty or a possible cut to the frequency of MOT testing – do not.

Households on pre-payment meters and those in receipt of benefits would be eligible for the discount.

Mr Anderson also said more energy companies could collapse if their customers were unable to pay their bills.

Scottish Power is owned by Spanish firm Iberdrola and Mr Anderson fears that foreign owned energy suppliers – including EDF, Eon and his own – might struggle to persuade their parent companies to continue to subsidise loss-making UK subsidiaries and exit the UK market.

Scottish Power is also concerned that energy companies will sustain further big losses if Ofgem sets the new energy price cap – due to take effect in October – too low.

Wholesale gas prices have fallen sharply since the all time records set in March.

However, many energy companies bought the gas they will supply this winter at prices much higher than current levels.

If Ofgem does not recognise this when it sets the new cap, some firms will have to sell at a significant loss threatening them with further distress or collapse which would further destabilise the market, according to Scottish Power.

“We need to find a way to help to those that need it in time for winter in a way that doesn’t exacerbate the issues we’ve already seen in the industry with supplier failures and very real concerns about billpayers running up unsustainable debts,” Mr Anderson continued.

Energy suppliers concede that further government support would help them as well as their customers.

Meanwhile, government officials privately say that it is hard to distinguish between genuine potential financial distress for the energy companies and intense lobbying.

Ofgem responded that it is “too soon” to predict the level of the price cap from October. However, it said that new measures earlier this year will allow it in “exceptional circumstances”, to update the price cap more frequently than once every six months, to “ensure that the price cap continues to reflect the true cost of supplying energy”.

“This was introduced in the interests of stabilising the market and making sure both consumers and suppliers pay a fair price,” Ofgem added.

The Treasury has said it is monitoring the situation and would review the level of support needed when the level of the new price cap became clear in late summer.

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The goal of levelling up is to provide equal opportunities across the UK.

A news Panorama investigation raises questions about whether money is reaching the most deprived areas in England.

Mr Gove said his department was helping councils to ensure bids are effective.

Levelling up was a key part of the Conservatives’ 2019 election campaign.

The government recently set out its 12 “missions” for the policy – ranging from improving education to faster broadband capability to local transport – with a deadline for delivery in 2030.

“Unless we stick to those missions, then the cost of living issues that we face at the moment will deepen inequality,” said Mr Gove.

Labour’s Lisa Nandy, the Shadow Levelling Up Secretary, said the government should begin by getting inflation under control. “By their own admission, their mismanagement of the economy is going to make levelling up harder,” she told Us.

For the first round of the so-called Levelling Up Fund, £1.7bn has been allocated to towns and cities across the UK.

When Panorama sent freedom-of-information requests to councils in the 100 most deprived areas in England, it found that 28 councils had all their bids rejected. This included 18 areas that were on the government’s top priority list, including Knowsley and Blackpool.

Meanwhile, 38 councils won all, or some, of the money they requested, and 34 councils did not submit a bid in this round.

A second round for the fund will open for applications at the end of May.

Former government economist Nicola Headlam said asking councils to bid against each other was not the right approach. “A beauty contest around who gets the money, that’s not really how I would do it,” she said. She also said that affluent places could have more resources to write better proposals.

Mr Gove said his department was deploying levelling up directors, who live in the relevant areas, to assist with bids.

Data methodology: Data gathered under Freedom of Information requests to lower tier local authorities. We have excluded any bids made at a county council or combined authority level as these had more limited eligibility criteria for the Levelling Up Fund. We used the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2019 ‘rank of average ran’ summary measure. Corby has been excluded due to boundary changes, so we included the 101st-ranked local authority Nuneaton and Bedworth.

The day after his party dropped to third place in Scotland , he said he would “try to do better” and continue fighting against the SNP.

The Moray MP told BBC Scotland he heard “loud and clear” the anger from voters over the Westminster party scandals.

His comments came as parties began to negotiate working together on councils.

Mr Ross told BBC Scotland: “I am absolutely determined to continue as the leader of the Scottish Conservatives because there is a lot of work we have to do to continue to fight the SNP to stop their distraction of national politics onto their obsession about independence and deliver for the people of Scotland.

“I also understand and accept criticism from colleagues. As leader of the party I am someone who hopefully listens when concerns are raised and I there are always issues where I can do better and I will always seek to do that going forward.”

He added: “It’s disappointing and we have lost some great councillors and some outstanding candidates haven’t had the opportunity to serve their area but in parts of Scotland we have made gains.”

Earlier, Conservative MSP, Craig Hoy, told BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland programme that he retained absolute confidence in Douglas Ross.

He said: “I don’t think we should be apportioning blame directly at this stage.

“The results are very disappointing. It was quite clear when I was making calls and on the doorsteps that Scottish voters, particularly Scottish Conservative voters, are very frustrated and quite angry at what they’ve seen coming out of Downing Street over the last five months or so.

“I think they were ready to give us a bit of a bloody nose and that, to some extent, is what happened.”

He added: “I have absolute confidence in Douglas Ross as the Scottish leader. We couldn’t have done any more to put out a positive campaign and message here in Scotland. Unfortunately, the drumbeat of what was going on elsewhere meant we couldn’t get that message over on the doorsteps.”

Losing more than 60 seats and slipping from second to third place in these elections is a significant setback for the Scottish Tories and their leader Douglas Ross.

While he has no intention of quitting, one MSP told me there was now an “undercurrent of unhappiness” with his leadership at Holyrood and that he would have to work hard to overcome that.

The senior MSP Liz Smith has publicly questioned his flip-flop over Boris Johnson’s resignation, telling The Times he has to “explain why he is defending him as prime minister but blaming him for the result”.

Former MSP Adam Tomkins has previously said Douglas Ross must “own the consequences” of backing the PM.

While there’s disquiet, his predecessor Ruth Davidson has pointed out that the result is the second best the Tories have got in Scottish local government for decades and urged the party to “pull together”.

There does not appear to be an organised attempt to topple Douglas Ross. No potential challenger has emerged. As one MSP put it: “if there’s a plot to oust him, no one’s asked me to join”.

Saturday saw the start of negotiations between parties to work together on Scotland’s councils.

Most councils are not in the overall control of one party, and it could take weeks before the full picture of who will run Scotland’s local authorities becomes clear.

The SNP finished as the biggest party, with Labour moving into second after the Conservatives suffered big losses.

Nicola Sturgeon’s party took control in Dundee, while Anas Sarwar’s Labour won a majority in West Dunbartonshire.

The first minister hailed the result as an “incredible outcome” for her party. She met the new SNP councillors in Dundee on Saturday morning.

On council arrangements, she said: “That’s for local council groups to determine what’s in the best interests of the areas they serve, but I’m in a partnership agreement in government in Holyrood with the Greens, so clearly I’d be very open to seeing that replicated in council areas in Scotland.

“But I think it’s important that these decisions are driven locally and that we see parties that are prepared to recognise where they disagree but focus more on where they agree (and) come together to try to put arrangements in place that are in the best interest of the areas they serve.”

Westminster leader Ian Blackford told Good Morning Scotland that the SNP was willing to work with parties with a “progressive” outlook.

He said: “I think that when I use the word progressive there is one party that doesn’t fit that mould and that is the Conservative party. We will be extending the hand of friendship to others where we can work collaboratively and consensually to make sure that we put the interests of the voters and the communities first.”

Scottish Labour said the election marked the start of its recovery.

The party’s health spokeswoman, MSP, Jackie Baillie, told BBC Scotland there would be meetings this weekend on the way forward.

But she said there would be no formal coalitions.

“As the person who chairs this process over the course of this weekend, we will be bringing together councillors, their proposals, alongside the Scottish executive committee of the party to consider wat arrangements work best at a local level,” she said.

“What we have ruled out are formal coalitions but there are a lot of other arrangements that people come to and have been enjoying in the past that make a lot of sense to those local communities. We want to reflect on those and do what is right for the local community.”