Meanwhile, Downing Street plans to hold a Christmas staff party this year – despite the furore over a gathering last December and whether it broke Covid rules.
Boris Johnson’s spokesman confirmed an “intention” for No 10 to have a party in the coming weeks.
As Political Editor Ben Riley-Smith reports, ministers have been forced to defend an event that reportedly took place last Christmas that may have broken restrictions.
Afghans ‘left at mercy of Taliban’ as civil servants worked from home
The Civil Service’s work from home policy left Afghan refugees in danger from the Taliban, a Foreign Office whistleblower has told MPs. Raphael Marshall, a 25-year-old desk officer with no prior knowledge or experience of Afghanistan, was one of the civil servants chosen to monitor an email inbox of applications for emergency evacuation from Kabul airport. He has submitted a dossier of evidence detailing the dysfunctional process used to choose which Afghan civilians to save to the Commons foreign affairs committee. In the evidence, he claims the “work-life balance” culture and work from home directive meant the system of processing refugees was chaotic. Read his testimony.
Can Prince Harry’s rift with his father ever be healed?
It did not always used to be this way. Before Prince Harry’s decision to repeatedly throw his father under a bus, he was arguably closer than Prince William to Prince Charles. Yet the already fragile relationship between the heir to the throne and his youngest son now appears at breaking point after an increasingly isolated Harry claimed he had raised concerns about the donor in the “cash for access” crisis that has engulfed Charles’s household. Associate Editor Camilla Tominey explains how the remarks will only stress the pair’s fractured relationship further.
Daily dose of Matt
View Matt‘s latest cartoon as he finds humour in Britain’s middle-class drugs problem.
Also in the news: Today’s other headlines
Attempts to ‘ban Christmas’ | Pope Francis has compared the EU to a dictatorship in its attempt to impose “woke” rules on language. Brussels last week withdrew a 32-page guide on inclusive language that advised staff to say “human-induced” instead of “man-made” and to avoid reference to Christmas during the holiday season. The pope said the bloc risked falling apart if it became a vehicle for “ideological colonisation”.
Around the world: Ukraine’s plea to UK troops
British soldiers should be visibly deployed near the border with Russia, Ukraine has said, as it suggested Nato’s “Anglo-Saxon” members were more willing to stand up to Moscow than European allies. As Nataliya Vasilyeva reports, Russian troops are building up along the border in a move that has led to fears of an imminent invasion.
