‘The adults are back in the room’: Treasury minister promises new approach as Starmer’s government starts work
Darren Jones says Labour government will ‘return to service of British people’ as Keir Starmer continues his tour of the UK
Local communities will still get say as government changes rules to speed up planning decisions, says minister
Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, is expected to confirm that the new government will relax planning rules in her speech this morning. Giving interviews this morning, Darren Jones, her deputy at the Treasury, said local communities would still get a say in plannng decisions. He told Times Radio:
Local communities will still be involved in the planning process and our policy is not to exclude them.
What we’re talking about today, in which the chancellor will set out in more detail later, is that when in particular it comes to large developments, large national pieces of infrastructure, we need to speed up the decision making process.
That doesn’t mean excluding people’s voices from the decision making process. It just means not waiting years and years and years and then projects being stalled and not delivered as a consequence of inertia in the system.
So people will still be able to contribute their views and they will still be considered within the law in the normal ways but we do want to speed up the delivery of infrastructure.
Starmer holding talks with political leaders in Belfast
Keir Starmer has met Northern Ireland first minister Michelle O’Neill and deputy first minister Emma Little-Pengelly in Belfast, PA Media reports. PA says:
The prime minister is visiting Belfast following his trip to Scotland on Sunday, and will also visit Wales to round off a visit to the three devolved nations.
He arrived at Stormont Castle early on Monday morning as he begins his first full week in office, ahead of travelling to the Nato summit in Washington on Tuesday.
O’Neill and Little-Pengelly greeted Starmer and new Northern Ireland secretary Hilary Benn at the castle entrance before they held a meeting inside. O’Neill congratulated him on his electoral success and they discussed Westminster and Stormont parliamentary schedules.
After half an hour with Stormont’s leaders, the new prime minister then moved on to Parliament Buildings, where he was greeted at the foot of the landmark steps by Assembly Speaker Edwin Poots. He is holding talks with representatives from the main Stormont parties.

‘The adults are back in the room’: Treasury minister promises new approach as Starmer’s government starts work
Good morning, and welcome to the first full working day of the new Labour government. Parliament is not sitting until tomorrow, but many new MPs will be arriving at Westminster in the hope of finding an office (good luck with that – it normally takes a while), and the new cabinet is busy. Keir Starmer is in Belfast, on the latest leg of his tour to meet the devolved governments, Rachel Reeves is making a major speech on growth this morning, Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, is starting the process of setting up a new Border Security Command, Wes Streeting, the health secretary, is meetng the British Dental Association to discuss changes to the dental contract, and Downing Street is holding its first lobby briefing under the new regime.
Darren Jones, chief secretary to the Treasury, was on the media round. Policy-wise he did not really have anything new to say, but in an interview with the BBC he struck a note of confidence that contained a withering put-down to the previous government. Asked if he thought the Tories would not be able to provide a credible opposition given the leadership contest might take a while, he replied:
I expect that we will be challenged in the House of Commons.
Of course the Conservatives suffered a historic loss, but that doesn’t mean there’s no opposition in the House of Commons and of course, we have the House of Lords to get any legislation through as well.
And the key thing that you’ll see from this Labour government is that we’re going to return both to the service of the British people, but also to the norms. The adults are back in the room.
Announcements that we make will be made to parliament, they will follow proper processes through parliament, and we welcome them to be challenged and scrutinised by colleagues from different parties.
That’s the right and proper way to do business and that’s what you will have from this Labour government.
Here is the agenda for the day.
Morning: Keir Starmer is meeting Michelle O’Neill, Northern Ireland’s first minister, and Emma Little-Pengelly, her deputy, in Northern Ireland. There is due to be a press briefing at 10.30am.
9.30am: Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, gives a speech on growth.
11.30am: Downing Street holds its first lobby briefing since Starmer became PM.
1pm: Reeves visits a building site in London with Angela Rayner, the levelling up secretary.
1.30pm: Rhun ap Iorwerth, the Plaid Cymru leader, holds a press briefing at Westminister with the party’s four MPs.
2pm: The Green MPs Carla Denyer and Siân Berry hold a press briefing at Westminster.
Afternoon: Starmer meets Vaughan Gething, the Welsh first minister, in Cardiff.
And at some point today Wes Streeting, the health secretary, has a meeting with the British Dental Association to discuss changes to the dental contract.
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