1. Eliminating Threats From The Iranian Regime

2. Stopping Iran’s Nuclear Capabilities

3. A Response To An Israeli Plan

4. A Particular Feeling

5. A Personal Vendetta

Benedict Blythe

3 min read11 min

In the years since his death, we have campaigned for what has become known as Benedict’s Law, a straightforward set of protections: spare adrenaline auto-injectors in every school, proper allergy training for staff, and clear whole-school policies so that everyone knows how to respond in an emergency. These are basic safeguards that most parents assume already exist.

This week, the Government launches a consultation on new statutory guidance for supporting pupils with medical conditions and allergies. That is a significant moment. After years in which allergy safety struggled to gain political attention, Ministers have listened. The commitment to strengthen guidance shows that this issue is finally being taken seriously.

From September, schools in England will be expected to have clearer allergy policies, ensure staff are trained to recognise anaphylaxis, and strengthen arrangements around emergency medication. That will make children safer, it will provide clarity for schools and it marks real progress.

But guidance is not the same as law.

In Benedict’s case, his school did not have spare allergy pens available and the signs of anaphylaxis were not recognised quickly enough. Adrenaline was administered too late to save his life. These systemic gaps were the result of inconsistent standards and unclear expectations, not the failings of individual teachers.

The new guidance addresses much of that ambiguity, and is to be welcomed. But there remains a crucial difference between statutory guidance and legislation.

While statutory guidance sets expectations, they do not create a legal duty and are not legally enforceable. Guidance does not guarantee funding and it does not ensure consistent implementation in every school. Legislation does.

If the core elements of Benedict’s Law are written into statute, schools would be held to a clear, consistent standard. Crucially, funding would accompany that duty. That matters because schools are not operating in equal financial circumstances. Headteachers today are managing SEND pressures, attendance challenges, safeguarding responsibilities and rising costs within increasingly tight budgets. Schools in more deprived communities or carrying existing deficits are under particular strain. Asking them to implement additional medical safeguards without funded support risks creating uneven provision. In those circumstances, even strong statutory guidance can leave gaps.

Some schools will be able to go further and faster. Others may struggle to meet expectations. The result could be a postcode lottery of protection, where children with allergies in more affluent areas are better safeguarded than those in communities already facing disadvantage. We know from Dr Paul Turner’s published research that altering the distribution model of allergy pens -by providing them directly to schools rather than an oversupply of extras to young pupils –  can release enough funding to pay for spare adrenaline devices, meaning no extra cost burden on the treasury. Delivering safer spaces at no extra cost has to be something universally supported.

The recent vote in the House of Lords recognised the need for government to go further. Peers supported an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill that would write the protections of Benedict’s Law into legislation and provide the funding mechanism to support delivery. When that amendment returns to the House of Commons it offers MPs an opportunity to build on this constructive step forward.

We are closer than ever to allergy-safe schools. Progress has been made. The government has showed it takes the protection of children with allergies seriously, the question now is whether we can secure that progress in a way that guarantees equal protection for every child in every classroom, for children like our son. 

Benedict’s life mattered. His death must matter too.

Labour MP’s husband in China spy investigation

“Labour was plunged into a fresh China spying crisis on Wednesday after an MP’s husband was arrested. Lobbyist David Taylor, who is married to Labour MP Joani Reid, was held by Scotland Yard on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service. Police also picked up two other men, believed to have been advisers during the Tony Blair government, during a series of raids. All three suspects were being questioned on suspicion of helping Chinese intelligence amid claims of ‘foreign interference targeting UK democracy’. The shock development threatened to reignite the row over Labour’s relationship with Beijing after the collapse of an unrelated prosecution of a parliamentary researcher and his English teacher friend who were accused of passing on Whitehall secrets.” – Daily Mail

• MP not seen anything to suspect husband has ‘broken any law’ – BBC
• Tories redouble demands on Labour to axe approval for Beijing mega-embassy in London in wake of latest shock spying allegations – Daily Mail

Iran 1) Allies dismay at “weak” UK response

“Britain’s allies in the Gulf and Cyprus have accused Sir Keir Starmer of failing to do enough to protect the region and UK citizens from Iranian missile strikes. The Times has been told that Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have concerns about the UK’s response to the Middle East conflict. At the same time Cyprus’s high commissioner to the UK said the “least” his country expected was for the government to provide a robust defence of the island that is home to two British bases.” – The Times

• US did not share details with the UK before attacking Iran, sources say – The Guardian
• Stock markets and oil prices still volatile over fears Iran war may drag on – BBC
• How attacking Iran may help Netanyahu’s election chances – The Times

>Today: Bob Seely on Comment: Starmer’s standing by his principles and defending them, but he’s confused and not defending us

Iran 2) Badenoch calls for stronger action

“Sir Keir Starmer has defended the government’s approach to the conflict in Iran, saying protecting British nationals is his “number one priority”. It comes after President Trump criticised the prime minister for refusing to allow the use of UK bases in the initial US-Israel strikes on Saturday, saying he is “no Winston Churchill”. During Prime Minister’s Questions Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused Sir Keir of “asking our allies to do what we should be doing ourselves” by not taking “offensive action” after British bases in Bahrain and Cyprus were attacked. But the PM said he was not prepared for the UK to join a war without “a lawful basis and a viable, thought-through plan.” – BBC

• First UK government flight for Britons stuck in Middle East yet to take off – BBC
• Starmer’s slow start in the war against Iran could leave UK playing catch-up – The Guardian
• Iran war has exposed the depths to which our once all-conquering Royal Navy has been allowed to sink – Leader, The Sun
• Britain’s shrunken armed forces are an embarrassment – Leader, The Times

>Today: ToryDiary: Shadow Cabinet League Table: Badenoch may not be popular with Starmer but she’s dominant with Conservatives

>Yesterday: Video: PMQs: Badenoch “The PM is catching arrows not dealing with the archers”

Iran 3) Miliband led Cabinet revolt against war

“Ed Miliband led Cabinet opposition to US military action in Iran and the use of Britain’s bases. In a meeting on Friday ahead of the strikes, Mr Miliband, Rachel Reeves and Yvette Cooper are understood to have strongly opposed British support for pre-emptive military action, which they believed would be illegal. Sir Keir Starmer backed them, and resisted pressure from Donald Trump to allow the US to fly bombing runs to Iran from RAF bases in Gloucestershire and the Chagos Islands. The Prime Minister changed his position less than 48 hours later and American B-2 stealth bombers are due to arrive at Diego Garcia, the military base in the Chagos Islands, in the next few days to fly “limited, defensive” missions.” – Daily Telegraph

Iran 4) US submarine sinks Iranian warship off Sri Lanka

“A torpedo fired by a US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the south coast of Sri Lanka as the Trump administration followed through on its threats to destroy Tehran’s military and political leadership. At least 87 Iranian sailors were killed in the attack on the Iris Dena on Wednesday. The frigate was sailing in international waters as it returned from a naval exercise organised by India in the Bay of Bengal. The torpedo strike prompted questions from former US officials about whether Washington’s aim of eliminating all of Iran’s military breached international law.” – The Guardian

• Ground invasion launched against Iran as thousands of US-backed Kurdish fighters storm border – Daily Mail

Iran 5) Neil: Starmer has made a grave error

“International law may be an opaque, malleable, even mysterious construct with controversial rulings involving judges sometimes appointed by dictators. But when it comes to a choice between international law and the national interest, Starmer chooses international law every time. Request denied, the Americans were told. Cue the biggest crisis in Anglo-American relations of modern times. Donald Trump lashed out at Starmer from the Oval Office on Tuesday. He lumped Britain with the viscerally anti-American socialist government of Spain. He painted us as far worse even than the usually US-sceptic French. Nowhere near as good as the Germans, whose Chancellor was sitting beside him, offering no words in Starmer’s defence. So much for all that cosying up to Europe. Now you don’t have to agree with everything Trump said – far from it – to recognise Starmer had made a grave error.” – Andrew Neil, Daily Mail

Other comment

• What does victory in Iran look like? Here are three possible answers – Tobias Ellwood, Daily Telegraph
• By betraying our allies, Starmer is demonstrating he is our Neville Chamberlain – Dan Hodges, Daily Mail
• As the liberal order dies, Starmer’s Britain is doubling down on its stupidity – Allister Heath, Daily Telegraph
• The Iran war may be lawful, but not for the reasons Trump gives – Geoffrey Robertson, Daily Telegraph
• The cynical opportunities of ‘Epic Fury’ – Martin Wolf, Financial Times
• The terrifying gap in Britain’s defences that means Iran could launch drones at our towns and cities – Jake Wallis Simons, Daily Mail
• The PM must publish the Iran legal advice – Leader, Daily Telegraph
• Women’s celebration of tyrant Khamenei’s death was joy to behold – Janice Turner, The Times
• I am sick of the US bossing us about – Peter Hitchens, Daily Mail
• Trump is pushing Britain closer to Europe – Leader, The Guardian

Ex-Labour mayor and councillor join Reform UK

“Former Labour mayor of Newham Sir Robin Wales and ex-councillor Clive Furness have joined Reform UK. Furness has been selected as the Reform’s candidate for mayor of Newham, while Sir Robin will act as the party’s London director of local government. Announcing the move at a press conference alongside Reform leader Nigel Farage, Sir Robin, who was the UK’s longest serving mayor when he was deselected by Labour in 2018, said the party had “a lot of rough edges” but represented a chance to “transform our society”. Furness said the “balkanisation of Britain”, with people voting along religious and racial lines, was among the reasons he was joining Reform.” – BBC

• Reform pledges to give Wales lowest income tax in UK – Daily Telegraph
• Reform would prioritise Welsh people for social housing, party says – BBC

Mahmood warns Labour MPs to back laws to stop illegal migration or lose trust

“Failing to stop illegal migration will ­demolish trust in the state, the home secretary will warn on Thursday as new legislation to scale back asylum support is introduced in parliament. In a call on ­Labour MPs to back her, Shabana Mahmood says that without changes there would be a rise of “ethno-nationalism” on the “far right”. Despite calls from some backbenchers for a tack to the left after last week’s by-election loss to the Greens, she rejects pandering to “student politics”. Mahmood is expected to acknowledge voters’ frustration with levels of illegal migration after last year became the second-highest on record for small-boat arrivals, at 41,472.” – The Times

• Foreign criminals will be thrown out of taxpayer-funded hotels – Daily Telegraph
• Restoring order at the border speaks to Labour values. Without that, we won’t be able to do anything else at all – Shabana Mahmood, The Guardian

OBR warns Government will struggle to cushion energy price surge

“The UK government is poorly positioned to cushion the blow to households from surging energy prices given the mountain of public debt it is trying to manage, a top economist has warned.  David Miles, a senior official at the Office for Budget Responsibility, said this week’s jump in oil and gas prices driven by the war in Iran was “unambiguously bad” for a major energy importer such as the UK and that it would be “understandable” if there was public pressure for the government to intervene if energy costs continued to spiral upwards. But he added that it came at a “particularly difficult time” given that the government had been attempting to bring borrowing down and stop the debt-to-GDP ratio from continuing to rise.” – Financial Times

• Another gas shock and Europe’s still not ready – Juliet Samuel, The Times

Labour waters down ‘Islamophobia’ definition to head off a free speech backlash

“Labour has watered down its controversial “Islamophobia” definition to head off a free speech backlash. Ministers have struck out references to the “racialisation” of Muslims amid concern it is a vacuous term that could be weaponised to silence critics of the religion. The phrase was included in the original definition drafted by a working group but is not expected to make the final version when it is published as soon as next week. Despite pressure from community leaders, Labour has also refused to use the word “Islamophobia”, opting instead to define “anti-Muslim hatred”. Wrangling over the wording has dragged on for more than a year, despite Labour pledging an Islamophobia definition in its election manifesto.” – The Sun

Other political news

• Phillipson launches review into surging anti-Semitism in schools – Daily Telegraph
• Burnham drops new leadership hint – Daily Express
• Lobbyists send legal threats to councils over anti-wood burner campaigns – The Guardian
• Describing workplaces as ‘competitive’ is too masculine, says Labour – Daily Telegraph
• Green Party faces gender-critical group lawsuit over trans ‘witch-hunt’ – The Times
• BBC to call for permanent charter and end of political appointments to board – The Guardian
• Reeves’s claim of £1,000-a-year boost ‘may be as little as £40’ – The Times
• Councillors scrap 2050 carbon neutral target – BBC
• Police Federation boss is arrested for corruption – Daily Mail
• Asylum seekers waiting over a year for claim in UK may be allowed to work under new measures – The Guardian
• Migrants will have to speak English to A-level standard before they can settle permanently in Britain – The Sun
• 60% of Welsh voters unaware of how new system will work in May elections – The Guardian
• Minister fails to say if Labour will bring down benefits bill – The Times
• Revealed: the student loan reforms backed by Labour MPs – Daily Telegraph

News in brief

• ‘Whose side are you on?’: How Keir Starmer alienated Britain’s allies over Iran – Tim Shipman, The Spectator
• Free trade among free nations – Pierre Poilievre, CapX
• Who is Keir Starmer without Morgan McSweeney? – Ailbhe Rea, New Statesman
• Reform is making a mistake on Iran – Ben Sixsmith, The Critic
• Is this the end of Hezbollah? – Michal Kranz, Unherd

There was something of a coordinated hit job attempted by Labour’s loyalist outriders online yesterday.

Whether upset that Kemi Badenoch had described their backbenchers as ‘a sea of orcs and goons’ or that she simply wouldn’t meekly praise the Prime Minister for the inaction and weakness she felt he has shown over Iran, their instructions and mission were far more obvious than anything he might have given our military:

‘Tweet to denigrate her credentials and style as Leader of the Opposition’.

In Tolkein’s works Orcs “yammer and bleat” so if it was a bit of name calling in the midst of a rather serious session it also reflects their regular behaviour towards her when she stands up each Wednesday at PMQs.

The PM has taken weeks of battering by Badenoch and yesterday seemed surprised and horrified that the leader of the official opposition – that’s the one with an actual Shadow cabinet – does her job and opposes him, and does it bluntly.

It’s partly these performances, but also on the airwaves, and in speeches, that the days last year of her being a Leader stuck in the middle order of our Shadow Cabinet League Table are gone. Our Survey responders are clear, she’s leading from the front.

It’s not just that her former rival Robert Jenrick is no longer there. He placed consistently at the top in the middle of last year but didn’t reach the margin of lead she has now. Interesting that his replacement as Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy comes in second, on his debut to this league table.

That lead at 81.6 is 21.7 points higher than Timothy, a margin alone that’s more than 9 of her colleagues score in their own right. But the good news is that compared to ten months ago where Badenoch was on zero, now no member of the shadow team is on zero or in negative numbers, even those who’ve stayed regularly at the bottom. In May last year half of them were in negative territory.

Sir Mel Stride, who has taken flak from some members for his past close association with Rishi Sunak, and support for his government, has actually, if one looks back over time, been consistently in the top three for months. It’s clear to another set of members, those on our panel, that he’s not just doing a good job but he’s seen to be doing that.

Neil O’Brien, Richard Fuller all do creditably given they are relative newcomers to the team. And team is what Badenoch keeps trying to stress and demonstrate. She has a full shadow cabinet, and though she leads, and is quite clearly seen to by members, she likes to stress that this is a team sport, and she likes it that way.

There is of course still a problem, as this site is often at pains to point out. Whilst you cannot renew a brand with a leader who is unpopular in the party and the country, you cannot renew a brand with a popular leader in the party and the country alone. The work to translate the Badenoch bounce into a Tory bounce, is a grinding toil that will have to continue, however high she charts now.

A senior Cypriot official has accused the UK of not doing enough to defend the island from Iranian attacks.

Kyriacos Kouros, the Cypriot high commissioner to the UK, said “the people are disappointed” by Britain’s efforts since the war began last weekend.

The RAF base Akrotiri, which is sovereign British territory, was struck by Iranian drones on Sunday, while further attacks were intercepted on Monday.

And while Greek forces are on the island and France has pledged support, the British warship HMS Dragon is not expected to arrive in the area until next week.

Kouros told the BBC: “The people are disappointed, people are scared, the people could expect more.

“I represent a practical people. We want to see the results.”

Speaking to Sky News, he said: “Already we have the presence of Greek forces on the island. Two frigates arrived, four aircraft arrived, all of them with abilities to combat drones.

“The French are coming. So… the least we expect is the Britons to also be present since, as I said, we are not only defending Cypriots on the island.”