Kemi Badenoch has criticised the "fake conversation" on Brexit trade benefits as she suggested people need to be patient to see the economic fruits of the UK leaving the European Union.
The Business and Trade Secretary argued that demands to see immediate improvements in trade are like asking a newly married couple "where's the baby" as she said "some things will take time and some things will happen quickly".
Asked about post-Brexit trade volumes, Ms Badenoch told Sky News: "What I can't do is get in a time machine and go back into the EU and what I find frustrating is that we spend loads of time trying to relitigate Brexit rather than focus on solving new issues that are coming up.
"That is what I am here to do. I am not here to go back to 2017, 2019, and do that. We wasted so much time and I am not here to waste time, I am here to fix problems for business.
"Having a long discussion around 'oh but it was better with this year and not that year and it has gone up and it has gone down', it is the long term trend that I need to work towards rather than what happened this year, last year.
"I think that that is actually, it is what I would call a fake conversation, it is like asking people who just got married 'where's the baby, where's the baby?'. Some things will take time and some things will happen quickly."
Ms Badenoch made the comments as she heads to Mexico for a two day visit hoping to make progress on "post-Brexit wins" by pushing for new trading arrangements for the UK.
You can follow the latest updates below.
09:55 AM
Making energy bill protection less generous in April would be 'national act of harm'
A failure to postpone a planned increase to the energy price guarantee would amount to a "national act of harm", Martin Lewis has said.
The consumer champion said that making energy bill protection less generous in April would push another 1.7million people into fuel poverty.
He told the BBC: "Where we are right now, the Treasury is going to spend tens of billions of pounds less than it was predicted to last November when it announced the energy price guarantee was going to go up because wholesale rates have come down very significantly.
"You heard my language. I said postpone the rise. Because the likelihood, nothing is certain, but the likelihood is if we postpone the rise in April, from July onwards the energy price guarantee won't exist anymore because the price cap will be lower, that is what all the current predictions are, the price cap will undercut the energy price guarantee at its level now."
He added: "To put this sort of national act of harm of increasing the price guarantee for just three months to throw another 1.7million into fuel poverty, taking it to 8.4million, it seems unnecessary."
09:43 AM
Martin Lewis urges Jeremy Hunt to delay increase in energy price guarantee
Consumer champion Martin Lewis has written to the Chancellor today to call for April's planned rise in the energy price guarantee to be postponed.
The guarantee currently means that the average household's energy bills will not exceed £2,500. However, as of April the cap is due to increase to £3,000, leaving families with less protection than they have now.
Mr Lewis told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I pressed send about one minute ago although I warned them yesterday that it was coming and this letter is supported by major charities like Citizens Advice, National Energy Action, StepChange, Fair By Design.
"What we need to understand is wholesale prices have come down very substantially but we are due because the Chancellor said it would happen last autumn when wholesale prices looked a lot worse for almost every household in England, Scotland and Wales to receive a letter in April telling them that their prices, their rates, are going up and going up by 20 per cent.
"That is damaging to people's pockets, it is also damaging to people's mental health, yet another major bill going up when the nation is already shivering with the damage of the cost-of-living crisis.
"It just seems to me there is no need to do this. I would ask the Chancellor to postpone this rise. If we postpone this rise it is likely from July, by that point wholesale prices will have got into the price cap and if the energy price cap which is set by the regulator… is lower than the energy price guarantee we pay the lower amount and that is likely to happen from July."
09:13 AM
Sir Lindsay Hoyle jokes he could wear Ukrainian fighter pilot helmet in House of Commons
Sir Lindsay Hoyle has joked he could wear the fighter pilot helmet he was given by Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday in the House of Commons when things "get a bit out of hand".
LBC Radio presenter Nick Ferrari joked the Commons Speaker could put the helmet on when things get a bit "rambunctious".
Sir Lindsay replied: "Absolutely. We were actually going to put it on display in Speaker's House so when I am walking into the chamber I can quickly put it on... I have got to tell you there will be a lot of jealousy in my family.
"My son in law is a pilot, my grandson is mad about planes. When they visit Speaker's House it is going to have pride of display.
"But as you say, when it gets a bit out of hand in the chamber I can always put the helmet on as well."
08:50 AM
Minister disagrees with Lee Anderson on death penalty but is a 'big fan' of new deputy Tory chairman
Lee Anderson, the new deputy Conservative chairman, has supported the death penalty, saying it had a "100 per cent success rate" (you can read the full story here).
Children minister Claire Coutinho said she is a "big fan" of Mr Anderson but she disagreed with him on the return of the death penalty.
Asked about Mr Anderson's comments, Ms Coutinho told LBC Radio: "I don't agree with Lee all the time. I don't back the return of the death penalty, for example, but I do support Lee... what I think people respond to when it comes to Lee is he does speak his mind. And I think it's really important that we have people who have lots of different opinions.
"And that's one of the things I like about the Conservative Party frankly, because we are very good at living alongside each other even when we disagree."
She added: "I'm a big fan of Lee and I think he's a very good thing for the party."
08:31 AM
£300m for 'family hubs' is 'all new money'
The Government's new "family hubs" will be subject to "rigorous" evaluation to make sure the £300million programme is actually helping people and improving lives, the children minister said.
Asked how the hubs will be evaluated, Claire Coutinho told LBC Radio: "We are going to do rigorous outcomes evaluation."
Ms Coutinho also insisted that the £300million is "all new money".
08:19 AM
'Family hubs' will focus on helping deprived communities - minister
The Government's new "family hubs" will be focused on helping deprived communities, the children minister has said.
Asked what the difference was between the hubs and Labour's Sure Start centres, Claire Coutinho told Sky News: "The difference with family hubs is we're very much targeting them in areas of deprivation.
"So today, we're announcing 75 areas who will be benefiting from the rollout of family hubs."
She continued: "Sure Start was nought to five and we know that early years are very important. But actually family hubs are nought to 19 because we want to have a one-stop-shop for parenting, which looks at the whole family needs."
08:16 AM
Government unveils £300m 'family hubs' programme
The Government today announced a new £300million programme of "family hubs" which will be rolled out in communities to help people with things like infant feeding, mental health and relationship building.
Officials said the hubs will benefit 75 different areas up to 2025 and they will act as a "one-stop shop" to offer guidance and advice to parents.
As well as family advice, the hubs will also provide advice on things like getting into work and offer stop smoking services.
08:12 AM
Fire chief says members will not be 'over the moon' with below inflation pay offer
Matt Wrack, the general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, said his members will not be "over the moon" about the increased pay offer (see the post below at 08.07) because it is still below inflation.
He told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "It is a below inflation pay rise yet again. I don't think people will be jumping for joy.
"I think people have had 12 years of attacks on their pay. They won't be over the moon. Our members are intelligent people, they will make an assessment about whether they should go on strike. Whether they (employers) have gone far enough I'll reserve my own views on that for due course."
Mr Wrack said it is "too early" to judge what members will decide.
08:07 AM
Fire Brigades Union postpones strike action after increased pay offer
Strikes by firefighters have been postponed after an increased pay offer from employers, the Fire Brigades Union announced early this morning.
The FBU said it has been offered a seven per cent pay rise backdated to July 2022, and then five per cent from July this year.
The union had warned of strikes if a previous five per cent pay offer was not increased following a huge vote in favour of industrial action.
The union's executive decided to put the new offer to a ballot of its members, and has postponed the announcement of strike dates pending the outcome.
08:04 AM
Business and Trade Secretary heads to Mexico in pursuit of 'post-Brexit wins'
The Business and Trade Secretary is heading to Mexico today for a two-day visit hoping to make progress on "post-Brexit wins" by pushing for new trading arrangements for the UK.
Kemi Badenoch is due to hold talks with her Mexican counterparts to discuss the UK's accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
Joining the CPTPP - an 11 country bloc which includes Australia, Canada, Japan and Mexico - is viewed as one of the biggest post-Brexit trade moves the UK could make.
The Department for Business and Trade, which was created this week as part of Rishi Sunak's carving up of Whitehall departments, said the UK was "nearing the final stages" of talks to join the £9trillion gross domestic product (GDP) trading bloc which stretches across the Indo-Pacific.
Ms Badenoch, the former international trade secretary who was handed extra responsibilities as part of the Prime Minister's shake-up, will also look to renegotiate Britain's free trade agreement with Mexico.
07:59 AM
Kemi Badenoch criticises 'fake conversation' on Brexit benefits
Kemi Badenoch has suggested people need to be patient to see the economic benefits of Brexit as she said demands for immediate trade improvements are like "asking people who just got married 'where's the baby'".
Asked about trade volumes during an interview with Sky News, the newly appointed Business and Trade Secretary said: "What I can't do is get in a time machine and go back into the EU and what I find frustrating is that we spend loads of time trying to relitigate Brexit rather than focus on solving new issues that are coming up.
"That is what I am here to do. I am not here to go back to 2017, 2019, and do that. We wasted so much time and I am not here to waste time, I am here to fix problems for business.
"Having a long discussion around 'oh but it was better with this year and not that year and it has gone up and it has gone down', it is the long term trend that I need to work towards rather than what happened this year, last year.
"I think that that is actually, it is what I would call a fake conversation, it is like asking people who just got married 'where's the baby, where's the baby?'. Some things will take time and some things will happen quickly."
