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Police say Widdecombe murder inquiry suspect is white male, and inquiry ‘moving at significant pace’
The police say their suspect in the Ann Widdecombe murder investigation is a white male.
DCI Ilona Rosson from Devon and Cornwall police said:
This is an extremely tragic incident and our thoughts are very much with the family and friends of Ann Widdecombe at this difficult time.
Our murder enquiry is in its early stages but moving at a significant pace. We are deploying all of the necessary resources to find out exactly what has happened and to locate the person responsible who we believe to be a white male.
I would appeal to anyone who may have information about this incident, however insignificant it may seem, to come forward and speak with us.
We are particularly keen to hear from anyone who may have seen anything suspicious in the vicinity of Haytor Vale, Haytor, or anyone with CCTV, doorbell or dashcam footage which could assist with our investigation.
We have an increased uniformed police presence in the area to both support the investigation and provide reassurance to residents. Anyone with concerns can speak with our officers at the scene.
We will release further information when we are able to do so. In the meantime I would ask people not to speculate about what might have happened, particularly on social media. This is not only potentially harmful to our investigation but also deeply distressing for family and friends of Ann Widdecombe.
Key events
Some of Ann Widdecombe’s friends and admirers think she should have been given a seat in the House of Lords. Earlier, before the police announced a murder investigation was underway, Tim Montgomerie posted this on social media. Montgomerie, like Widdecombe, spent many years as a Tory (he founded the ConservativeHome website), but then defected to Reform UK.
He said:
Year after year the Conservative Party elevated nobody after nobody to the House of Lords but it refused to enoble Ann Widdecombe despite her popularity amongst party members and tireless service on the frontbench. She was simply too willing to criticise Tory ministers doing a bad job and shs was far too independent-minded full stop.
We loved her in Reform and so sad there won’t now ever be an opportunity to celebrate a Baroness Widdecombe.
But Ann’s faith was so strong and she’s now in the loving arms of her Creator…. and she’s undoubtedly giving him a piece of her mind. Or soon will be!
RIP Ann.
Ann Widdecombe’s management team, Cloud9 Management, said they were “absolutely devastated” by the news the police had launched a murder investigation into her death.
The statement said:
We are absolutely devastated by this news following a very traumatic and upsetting 24 hours.
We fully support the police in their investigations and we reiterate the family’s desire not to be contacted at this difficult time. We implore anyone who may have relevant information to contact Devon and Cornwall police.
Most of the public tributes to Ann Widdecombe today have come from former colleagues in the Conservative party, which she represented in the Commons, or from the Brexit party, which is now Reform UK, which she briefly represented in the European parliament.
But Downing Street paid tribute earlier. At the lobby briefing, a No 10 spokesperson said:
She was a distinctive figure in British politics for many years and he pays tribute to the conviction and dedication with which she served her country.
And the Labour MP Stella Creasy, whose views on issues like abortion are very different from Widdecombe’s, has posted this on social media within the last few minutes.
No one can deny Ann Widdecombe was a towering presence in our politics who fought for what she thought was right with determination and eloquence.
You don’t have to agree with those views to recognise that contribution and feel for those who have lost a friend, as well as be shocked to hear of these developments.
Shabana Mahmood says circumstances of Widdecombe’s death ‘extremely distressing’
Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, has said the circumstances of Ann Widdecombe’s death are “extremely distressing”. But she has urged people not to speculate online.
Mahmood says:
I am deeply saddened to hear of the death of Ann Widdecombe. The circumstances of her death are extremely distressing and my thoughts are with Ann’s family and loved ones.
Ann’s dedication to public service was decades long, and she was a true servant of her constituents.
I have spoken to the chief constable of Devon and Cornwall police today. The Home Office stands ready to provide whatever support they need with their ongoing investigation.
I urge everyone to avoid speculation and allow the police investigation to progress.
Police say Widdecombe murder inquiry suspect is white male, and inquiry ‘moving at significant pace’
The police say their suspect in the Ann Widdecombe murder investigation is a white male.
DCI Ilona Rosson from Devon and Cornwall police said:
This is an extremely tragic incident and our thoughts are very much with the family and friends of Ann Widdecombe at this difficult time.
Our murder enquiry is in its early stages but moving at a significant pace. We are deploying all of the necessary resources to find out exactly what has happened and to locate the person responsible who we believe to be a white male.
I would appeal to anyone who may have information about this incident, however insignificant it may seem, to come forward and speak with us.
We are particularly keen to hear from anyone who may have seen anything suspicious in the vicinity of Haytor Vale, Haytor, or anyone with CCTV, doorbell or dashcam footage which could assist with our investigation.
We have an increased uniformed police presence in the area to both support the investigation and provide reassurance to residents. Anyone with concerns can speak with our officers at the scene.
We will release further information when we are able to do so. In the meantime I would ask people not to speculate about what might have happened, particularly on social media. This is not only potentially harmful to our investigation but also deeply distressing for family and friends of Ann Widdecombe.
Police say they have launched murder investigation into death of Ann Widdecombe
Devon and Cornwall police say they have launched a murder investigation into the death of Ann Widdecombe.
In a statement, the force says:
A murder investigation has been launched following the suspicious death of former MP Ann Widdecombe at her home on Dartmoor in Devon.
Police officers were called to an address at Haytor by the ambulance service at around 11.40am on Thursday 9 July.
Sadly, 78-year-old Miss Widdecombe was located deceased within the property. She had sustained serious injuries.
Her next-of-kin have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers.
Detectives from the Force Major Crime Investigation Team have launched a murder investigation and are conducting extensive enquiries into the circumstances surrounding Miss Widdecombe’s death.
A cordon remains in place at the property while specialist officers continue forensic examinations. There are road closures in place around the scene.
Police investigating death of Ann Widdecombe
Police are investigating the death of the former MP Ann Widdecombe, who was found dead at her home in Dartmoor at the age of 78.
Here is our obituary of Ann Widdecombe.
Starmer to spend part of his final week as PM at meetings and events in Paris, No 10 says
Keir Starmer will begin what is likely to be his final full week in No 10 with a trip to Paris, the Press Association reports. PA says:
The prime minister will join allies of Ukraine for a meeting of the “coalition of the willing” on Monday before joining Bastille Day events on Tuesday.
The outgoing Labour leader has been criticised in office for the amount of time he has spent on diplomatic missions overseas, with critics labelling him “never here Keir”.
A Downing Street spokeswoman said: “The prime minister will travel to Paris on Monday for a meeting of the coalition of the willing to discuss continued support for Ukraine’s defence.
“On Tuesday, he will join Bastille Day commemorative events with other leaders.”
The coalition of the willing is the initiative established by Starmer and French president Emmanuel Macron to bring together countries willing to provide security support to Ukraine if there is an end to the hostilities.
Starmer’s support for Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s country has been one of the main elements of his foreign policy during his time in office.
Defending his trip, a No 10 spokesperson told reporters: “One of the defining things about this prime minister’s time in office has been the work he has done to shore up Ukraine and its defences in the face of [Vladimir] Putin and his barbaric attacks on them, so this marks a moment for him to continue that in his final week in office.”
Andy Burnham is expected to become Labour leader unopposed in a week’s time and will then become prime minister on 20 July.
Britons would rather see Count Binface win the Clacton byelection than Nigel Farage, according to a poll from Ipsos released today.
Commenting on the findings, Keiran Pedley, research director at Ipsos, said:
Of course, it is the people of Clacton that will vote in the upcoming by-election and not the public overall.
But the fact that just one in five Britons would prefer Nigel Farage win reflects how his personal poll ratings have fallen over the past year – even if Reform supporters remain very much behind him.
Elsewhere in the poll we see strong support for parliamentary standards investigations continuing even if Mr Farage wins the by-election, suggesting his assumed victory will not make these issues go away.
Polanski says new report shows rent controls could cut poverty and save state billions, with minimal impact on landlords
Zack Polanski, the Green party leader, has welcomed research out today arguing that a well-designed rent control policy could save the government billions of pounds and lift hundreds of thousands of people out of poverty.
The report, produced by the Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose at UCL, says that if rents in England had been frozen in November 2022, the government would now be saving £2bn a year – and average renting households would be saving £2,400 a year.
The report also dismisses claims that rent controls would collapse the private rental market because they would lead to landlords refusing to carry on renting their property.
In his speech, Polanski said:
If Andy Burnham is serious about ending rip-off Britain, fixing our broken system and putting money back in the pockets of ordinary people – rent controls simply must be at the top of his agenda.
We hear plenty of scare stories about landlords being bankrupted by rent controls. But this research exposes that as nonsense. Over the last three and a half years, we could have saved households on average £2400 a year – while still allowing landlords to enjoy profit margins four and a half times larger than the average UK business.
We need a prime minister who is willing to control the rental market, lower prices – and doesn’t fear the bond markets. No half measures: it’s time for our next prime minister to show us what he’s made of.
The report, by Beth Stratford and Joe Beswick, says:
We conclude that the risks associated with rent controls, though significant, are manageable – and pale against the cost of inaction: spiralling housing benefit spending, rising homelessness, and entrenched poverty and inequality.
The authors say that rent controls have worked in the past.
England’s private renters face some of the worst affordability pressures in the developed world. The evidence makes clear that neither new house-building nor increased housing subsidies can realistically address the full scale of the problem. By contrast the historical record across Europe shows that the most decisive improvements in housing affordability in the 20th century came from the direct regulation of rents.
On potential savings, the authors say that if the government had frozen rents in November 2022, it would have been able “to restore housing support payments to cover the cheapest 30% of local rents and would still be saving an estimated £2bn a year in housing benefit spending by now”.
That would save the average renting household £2,400 a year, “boosting the disposable income of renters in the poorest quintile by 22%”, they say.
As for claims that rent controls would put landlords out of business, the authors say even with rent controls landlords would still be making healthy profits.
For mortgaged landlords, a 20% reduction in rent reduces mean pre-tax profit margins from 70% to 64% – which means they would still be 4.5 times bigger than the mean pre-tax profit margin for UK businesses. Profit margins for unmortgaged landlords (58% of all unincorporated landlords) would be higher still. These figures do not take account of capital gains from house price appreciation.
This chart illustrates these figures.
The authors say:
A 10% reduction in rents would cause 2.3% of landlords to become unprofitable – significantly fewer than the 4.8% of landlords tipped into lossmaking by changes to mortgage interest tax relief (MITR) and interest rate rises since 2021-22.
The report recommends combining rent controls with a policy giving tenants a minimum six months to find alternative accommodation if a landlord decides to sell, and giving tenants, and then councils and housing associations, first refusal to buy.
It also says rent controls could lead to many properties being sold off and acquired by councils for social rent.
Crucially, if accompanied by the right fiscal and legal framework, landlord exit presents a historic opportunity: a managed transfer of homes out of the insecure private rented sector and into permanently affordable ownership.
Richard Tice dismisses police investigation into Reform UK donations as linked to ‘politically-motivated smear campaign’
Richard Tice, the Reform UK deputy leader, has dismissed the police investigation into donations worth £500,000 made to Reform UK by Fiona Cottrell as being linked to a “politically-motivated smear campaign”.
Speaking on Times Radio this morning, he said he did not know about the police investigation until it was reported today. He went on:
I’ve known the Cottrell family, my family have known the Cottrell family, and the broader Hesketh family for 50 years, a very successful aristocratic family.
And, as far as I’m concerned, she’s a permissible donor. And that’s the end of it.
And this is a politically-motivated smear campaign by people who wish us ill.
Boris Johnson pays tribute to Ann Widdecombe, saying she could ‘move Tory audiences to ecstasy’
Boris Johnson, the former Tory PM, has joined those paying tribute to the former minister Ann Widdecombe, who has died.
In a post on social media, he said:
I am sad to hear about the loss of Ann Widdecombe, a heroic Brexiteer and a great speaker who could move Tory audiences to such ecstasy that she was a very hard act to follow.
(When a politician praises a colleague who has died, sometimes what they say is revealing about how they would like to be remembered themselves. This may be a good example.)
This is from William Hague, who had Widdecombe as his shadow home secretary when he was Tory leader.
So very sorry this morning to hear of the death of Ann Widdecombe. She was a great friend and a unique personality. Her enthusiasm, clarity and warmth will be much missed.
And this is from Priti Patel, who was home secretary under Johnson.
Ann Widdecombe was a much-loved member of the Conservative family. She was principled, always stayed true to her values and her faith and had a great sense of humour. Her authentic and no-nonsense approach to politics has stood the test of time and she will be remembered as one of the most captivating, engaging and memorable politicians of her generation.
It was a privilege to work closely with her while she was in William Hague’s Shadow Cabinet and to call her a friend. May she rest in peace.
There are more tributes to Widdecombe, including from Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch, in our story.
Count Binface ‘carrying hopes of nation’ in Clacton byelection, Burnham jokes
Andy Burnham has jokingly endorsed Count Binface, the joke candidate who seems to be Nigel Farage’s main opponent in the Clacton byelection. “Count Binface, you are carrying the hopes of a nation,” Burnham said at an awards ceremony. The Sun has video footage.
On X, the rightwing social media platform, there are a lot of Nigel Farage supporters claiming that Binface is the establishment candidate in the byelection. Here is an example from Rael Braverman, whose wife Suella is Reform UK’s education spokesperson (and who has held the posts of home secretary and attorney general, which is about as establishment as anyone can get).
Binface is an establishment tool.
Don’t be fooled by the act.
Burnham’s comment will no doubt encourage these claims.
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