Austerity is not going to happen, of course Labour will spend....

Austerity is not going to happen, of course Labour will spend. There is no other way out of the mess that's left. Tories never spend as those with moats just don't see it that way...

A Conservative MP who claimed expenses to clean the moat on his country estate is to return to Parliament to vote on laws again.

Douglas Hogg, former MP for Sleaford and North Hykeham, caused public outrage after claiming £2,200 on one of the most extravagant symbols of the 2009 expenses scandal.

Separately don't believe all the misinformation spread about everywhere by those who have serious vested interests in keeping this all from happening.

46m ago 09.31 BST

Electric car sales grow 'robustly' in June

The UK new car market has hit the half-year million motors mark for the first time in five years, after new car registrations rose in June by a modest 1.1% to reach 179,263 vehicles, according to new figures published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

As a result, 1,006,763 new cars have been sold so far this year, up 6% year-on-year but still down 20.7% on 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.

June’s market growth was driven primarily by the fleet sector, where uptake rose by 14.2%, while demand from private buyers fell for the ninth consecutive month, down 15.3%.

Demand for electric vehicles grew “robustly” in June, with plug-in hybrid volumes up by 30% to reach a 9.3% market share, while hybrid electric vehicles rose by 27.2% to take 14.9% of the market.

Both powertrains also outpaced battery electric vehicle growth, which rose by 7.4% and took its highest monthly share this year, accounting for 19% of all new vehicle registrations.

Mike Hawes, the SMMT’s chief executive, said:

The year’s midpoint sees the new car market in its best state since 2021 – but this belies the bigger challenge ahead. The private consumer market continues to shrink against a difficult economic backdrop, but with the right policies in place, the next government can re-energise the market and deliver a faster, fairer zero emission transition.

All parties agree on the need to cut carbon, and replacing older fossil fuel based technologies with new electrified powertrains is the essential step to achieving that goal.