Good morning. Andy Burnham is taking PMQs this afternoon, but he will regard his most important engagement as the meeting he has with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian president, later in No ۱۰. Peter Walker has a preview.
When Keir Starmer talked about his best achievements, he said one of the things he was most proud of was being able to embrace Zelenskyy outside No ۱۰ only ۲۴ hours after President Trump humiliated him in the Oval Office as an unequivocal show of UK support for Ukraine. The circumstances are not exactly the same today, but Trump called for Zelenskyy to be replaced at the weekend, and Burnham is signalling he does not agree.
In an overnight statement, Burnham said:
Our rock-solid support to Ukraine is vital for keeping us safe here in the UK and ensuring those on the frontlines have the equipment they need to push back Russia.
My message to the Ukrainian people could not be clearer, we are with you for as long as it takes, and we will go further and faster in our support to back your courageous fight for peace in Europe.
It is not just the right thing to do, but it’s the necessary thing to do. Russia’s aggression cannot be allowed to succeed on our continent.
Burnham is also announcing that the UK will “accelerate deliveries of British Lightweight Multirole Missiles (LMMs), which have proven extremely effective against jet-powered drones that are being used to strike far beyond the front lines in Ukraine, including Kyiv and beyond.” No ۱۰ says:
The [Russian] drones are faster and can fly far higher than propeller-driven Shaheds, making them harder to detect and destroy before they hit targets.
The UK has already committed £۱.۶ billion to deliver more than ۵,۰۰۰ LMMs to Ukraine over the next four years and will accelerate £۱۰m of the £۴۵m package of missiles announced today to meet Ukraine’s most urgent winter requirements.
Here is the agenda for the day.
۱۰.۳۰am: Dominic Cummings, Boris Johnson’s former chief adviser, gives evidence to the Lords constitution committee on constitutional safeguards.
Noon: Andy Burnham faces Kemi Badenoch at PMQs.
After ۱۲.۳۰pm: MPs debate a Tory opposition day motion saying that the government should not place asylum seekers in a military camp near Piddington, and that it should “withdraw from the European convention on human rights in order to deport illegal migrants”.
Afternoon: Burnham hosts Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian president, in Downing Street.
۳pm: Miatta Fahnbulleh, the energy secretary, gives evidence to the Commons energy committee.
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