Kemi Badenoch has accused the prime minister of "dithering" over defence spending, amid a battle within government over how new kit will be paid for. The Conservative leader said Sir Keir Starmer had been "paralysed" over the issue due to Labour MPs' unwillingness to cut back "bloated" spending on welfare. She pressed him to rule out further tax rises to pay for a funding boost to the Ministry of Defence (MoD), which is seeking extra cash to fund a much-delayed investment plan originally due last autumn. Sir Keir Starmer said the plan would be published before a Nato summit next month, and accused the Tories of failing the armed forces in their 14 years in power. The defence investment plan is due to set out how new equipment and defence infrastructure will be funded over the coming decade, following a review of Britain's capabilities in June last year. But publication of the blueprint has been delayed after the MoD reportedly asked for an extra £28bn over the next four years, following an internal assessment last year. Reports have suggested the prime minister is preparing to unveil an additional £13.5bn after negotiations with the department, possibly in the coming days. Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle warned ministers against publishing the plan when MPs are not in Westminster, saying it would be a "disgrace" for MPs not to be able to question ministers immediately. At the start of an urgent question he told the Commons: "There are strong rumours that the government is going to produce its defence investment plan on Friday. That would be an utter disgrace and an utter kick in the face to the members of this House." But Defence Secretary John Healey has suggested the defence investment plan would not be published this Friday when Parliament is not sitting. Speaking after a meeting with the Australian defence and foreign ministers, Healey emphasised that he was a parliamentarian before he was a minister. "The Speaker asserts the right of Parliament," he told reporters. "Parliament is there for the people and when we publish really significant reports from the defence investment plan, we respect parliament." This means the earliest the plan could be published may be next Monday before the prime minister heads to France for a summit of G7 nations. Earlier, at Prime Minister's Questions, Badenoch called on Sir Keir to rule out raising taxes to pay for any potential funding boost, after Chancellor Rachel Reeves said on Tuesday that government borrowing "cannot always be the answer". The Tory leader told MPs: "He has only three options: cutting spending, more borrowing, or higher taxes. We know that the chancellor wants to put up tax to pay for it". "The reason that he's dithering is because he doesn't know where the money is coming from," she said. She added that ex-Labour defence secretary Lord Robertson had suggested cuts to benefits as a route to fund extra funding, but the prime minister was "too weak to face down his backbenchers" to deliver the savings. Turkey summit In response, the prime minister accused the Conservatives of failing the armed forces during their time in office, pointing to cuts to the Navy's minesweeping capabilities and missed Army recruitment targets. "When they were in office, they didn't reform welfare or invest in our armed services," he added. He said officials were still "working through the details" of the investment plan, which would be published before a Nato summit in Turkey next month. The MoD's budget is due to rise by 3.6% in real terms by 2029, under departmental spending plans fixed last year. At the time, Reeves insisted that these departmental spending settlements would not be renegotiated. However, she now says global instability means extra defence spending will be required. According to the Times, Downing Street has asked departments to identify cuts of at least 1% to their long-term investment budgets, risking a clash with cabinet ministers over how extra defence spending is found. The investment plan is meant to replace annual decade-long "equipment plans" which were released on a rolling yearly basis until 2022, when the previous government halted publication amid rising inflation. An analysis published by the MoD in December 2023, under the previous government, found the department's most recent equipment plan was forecast to exceed its budget by £16.9bn. A report by MPs published the following year said the biggest cause of that shortfall came from spiralling costs from maintaining the UK's nuclear weapons system, which has been paid from the MoD budget since 2010. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg4rknndjeo

'Have you lost control?' - BBC sports editor Dan Roan asks Gianni Infantino  Listening to Fifa president Gianni Infantino and you would think the controversy surrounding the 2026 World Cup in recent days had been insignificant. "Just, you know, chill, relax," Infantino told a news conference at the Azteca Stadium on the eve of Thursday's opening match between Mexico and South Africa. After all, it is not as though one of his referees was refused entry to the United States. Or Iraq striker Aymen Hussein was questioned for several hours at a Chicago airport before being allowed into the country. Nor that Iran have been forced to switch their base to Mexico, their fans have had all their tickets cancelled by US authorities, and members of the delegation refused visas. Of course, those incidents did all occur, and this was Infantino's chance to stand up for Fifa, to back Somali referee Omar Artan who had seen the pinnacle moment of his career ripped away from him. To criticise or question, if not condemn, the US government for the way the tournament has been handled before it has begun. It did not happen. Africa's number one referee being turned away by immigration was just "unfortunate". And there was a robust defence of US President Donald Trump, with Infantino claiming a World Cup that will be largely played in the United States would have been "impossible" without the 79-year-old. Nothing to see here. 'Chill, relax, we can’t control everything' - relive Infantino news conference on eve of World Cup Gianni Infantino was first elected as Fifa president in 2016 When Infantino sat down at the Azteca he knew exactly which questions would be coming his way. How could he not? The expulsion of Artan after an 11-hour interrogation at Miami International Airport had come just hours earlier, accused by a US official of having links to terrorists in his homeland. "It is unfortunate what happened to the referee from Somalia," Infantino said. "But again, we don't control everything. "We try, we'll discuss, we'll speak, we'll see. Maybe sometimes it's good as well to just, you know, chill, relax." Those words will have been of little comfort to Artan, who touched down back in the Somali capital of Mogadishu on Wednesday after seeing his World Cup dream die. There were no words of support for the official, no regrets expressed. It was just "unfortunate". When questioned about other visa issues, which have affected fans and team delegates too, Infantino deflected attention to the 2035 Women's World Cup - which is almost certain to be awarded to the United Kingdom. "Would you find it normal that Fifa would dictate to the British government who to let in the country and who not to let in the country?" Infantino asked. When England hosted the World Cup in 1966, a strikingly similar situation happened. The UK government feared the presence of communist North Korea could cause diplomatic shockwaves and it considered denying entry. After a letter from the Football Association warned the government that the country risking losing the World Cup, concessions were made to allow them to take part. Indonesia, due to be hosts of the 2023 U-20 World Cup, were stripped of hosting rights after saying Israel would not be permitted entry. Yet when the United States makes similar decisions which affect competing World Cup nations, such as Iran, Fifa says it is powerless. "Unfortunately, our world is, you know, a very aggressive world, and security goes above everything," Infantino said. "You need to respect the decisions which are taken, and when I say to chill, I don't mean to chill and do nothing. "We need to respect that we are not the kings of the world who can rule over governments and police forces. "We are a sports organisation. We try to do our best with the means that we have." 'I don't know who else would ensure Iran could come' Iran have been granted permission to enter the US to play their three World Cup group games. But that was only after being told they could not stay in America and would have to be based in Mexico. And they would have to go into and out of the US within 24 hours each time to play their three games. Nothing can truly be taken for granted until they get through US immigration for their opening match against New Zealand in Los Angeles on Monday (Tuesday 02:00 BST). But rather than question the war, or the barriers placed in the way of a competing nation, it is a triumph for Infantino. "When people were saying it would be impossible for Iran to come to the World Cup, I promised them that they would come," Infantino said. "I don't know who else would have been able to ensure in these circumstances - which we could not influence - Iran could come and play." Infantino turned his attention to ticket prices. Of course, there was nothing to see here either. That is despite Fifa facing accusations of "artificially inflating prices" and claims that it has been "misleading fans". "We check what we do with the best lawyers, with the best experts," Infantino insisted. "If we do something wrong, probably everyone selling tickets in North America is doing something wrong as well." Questions about investigations over Fifa's ticket prices - launched by the attorneys general of California, New Jersey, New York and now Texas - were batted away. Infantino dismissed the investigations as based on "three, not 3,000" complaints. Fifa, he said, only had one chance every four years to raise money for the world. He defended the pricing structure as "accurate" for the North American market, insisting that demand had been "unprecedented by a factor of 10 or more". That will be of no comfort to the thousands of fans priced out of this World Cup. World Cup in the US 'impossible' without Trump Fifa president Gianni Infantino has ingratiated himself with US President Donald Trump over the past two years Fifa has faced accusations that it has lost control of its own World Cup. That it has been unable to achieve any real, tangible concessions from a Trump government which has anti-immigration polices as the pillar of the administration. Given the opportunity to at least question how things have been handled, Infantino instead doubled down on his support for Trump. "I don't regret anything," Infantino said when asked about the World Cup being held by the United States. "I have a great relationship with President Trump. I'm very happy about that. "Without his engagement and his involvement, I think it would have been impossible to organise a World Cup in the United States." Perhaps Infantino's last comment was most telling. "He understood immediately the magnitude of the World Cup, the impact of the World Cup, and instructed the administration to help and assist," said the Fifa president. "To be able to exchange with the president on important topics with his administration, to put everything on the table without asking for anything, is probably the key to having a positive relationship." For Artan and all the others who have faced serious complications getting into the United States, perhaps it does not feel like they have been assisted. Maybe Fifa and Infantino actually should have been asking for a few things. https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/articles/cvgj40vymlyo

US F-35 Lightning II fighter jet pictured in California this month The US military has launched new strikes on Iran after President Donald Trump said US forces would hit the country "hard" as Tehran has taken "too long to make a deal" to end the war. The US Central Command (Centcom) said it began "additional self-defense strikes" on Wednesday against "multiple targets in Iran". It added: "The strikes are in response to Iran's unwarranted and continued aggression." Both sides have targeted military and surveillance sites this week in a marked escalation of tit-for-tat airstrikes. On Tuesday, a US helicopter was downed in an attack that was blamed on Iran. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) responded by targeting US bases across the Middle East. Explosions have also been heard on the island of Qeshm in the Gulf, as well as a number of other cities, including Bandar Abbas and Sirik. Hours before the attack was launched, Trump had warned: "We hit them hard yesterday and we're going to hit them hard again today." Trump wrote on Truth Social that Iranian leaders have "taken too long to negotiate a deal", while the Iranian foreign ministry accused the US of "damaging the diplomatic process through the contradictory message it sends". In response to Trump's comments Iran's president Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran "will stand firm against any pressure or threat". US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth later said bombs would be "dropping on key facilities in Iran". Hegseth said Iran had been given a chance to make a deal but had not taken it, and Trump had said Iran would be attacked again if no peace deal was secured. In April, the US and Iran agreed a ceasefire that was initially meant to last for two weeks. Both sides have since exchanged intermittent fire, without returning to full-scale hostilities. However, recent efforts to broker negotiations between Washington and Tehran have stalled and attacks have ramped up. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gyp9v0e93o

Voted. 🥶