Biden calls for the return of power-sharing in Northern Ireland and hints at US investment – politics live

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Britain’s national debt will continue to climb over the next five years, putting at risk one of Rishi Sunak’s key pledges to voters, according to an International Monetary Fund study. Larry Elliott has the story here.

In his pooled broadcast interview, Rishi Sunak was asked by Sky’s Sam Coates about the Labour party advert claiming he did not believe adults who sexually assault children should go to prison.

Sunak refused to respond directly to the smear, and instead stressed he was focusing on delivering for the people. He said:

I said at the beginning of this year I was focused on delivering for the British people.

There were five things I said I wanted to do, which was to halve inflation, grow the economy, reduce debt, cut waiting lists and stop the boats.

And that’s what I’m focused on, day in, day out, delivering for people.

And I think that’s what the British people want to see from their politicians: less talk, more action, making a difference on the things that matter.

The advert was widely condemned as a smear because it stated as fact that Sunak does not think adults convicted of sexually assaulting children should go to prison. There are legitimate questions to ask about why some adults convicted of these offences are not being jailed, but that does not mean Sunak does not believe jail sentences aren’t generally appropriate, as the ad says, and no one in the Labour party has seriously tried to argue that that is what Sunak thinks.

Rishi Sunak has recorded a pooled interview about his meeting with Joe Biden.

Sam Coates, the interviewer, asked why we were not seeing more of Sunak and Biden together. He said Sunak did not even attend the speech.

Sunak said that he had a “very good discussion” with Biden today “about a range of issues, economic investment in Northern Ireland, but also a range of foreign policy issues, importance of economic security”. But he also said they had met last month, and were meeting again next month at the G7.

He said the relationship was “in great shape”.

Joe Biden’s Twitter feed sums up what the White House sees as the key messages from his speech.

Joe Biden posed for a picture with the actor James Martin, whom he mentioned in his speech. (See 1.14pm.)

Biden is now talking about power sharing. He says he hopes it is not “too presumptuous” of him to say that “the democratic institutions” established by the Good Friday agreement are critical to the future of Northern Ireland.

I believe the democratic institution established in the Good Friday agreement remain critical to the future of Northern Ireland. It’s a decision for you to make, not for me to make …

I hope the assembly and the executive will soon be restored. That’s a judgment for you to make, and I hope it happens, along with institutions that facilitate north/south and east/west relations, all of which are vital pieces of the Good Friday agreement.

Biden ends his speech by urging Northern Ireland to recommit to renewal.

Biden praises Northern Ireland for its artistic and creative potential. He says James Martin, Oscar-winning star of An Irish Goodbye, is here.

UPDATE: This is from Bloomberg’s Jennifer Jacobs.

Biden is now delivering the investment message.

He says there is an “unprecedented economic opportunity” in Northern Ireland.

Since the Good Friday agreement, GDP has doubled. If things continue to move in the right direction, it could triple, he says.

There are scores of major American corporations wanting to come here, wanting to invest.

UPDATE: Biden said:

Today’s Belfast is the beating heart of Northern Ireland and is poised to drive unprecedented economic opportunity and investment, from communities across the UK, across Ireland, across the United States. The simple truth is that peace and economic opportunity go together.

The 25 years since the Good Friday agreement, Northern Ireland’s gross domestic product has literally doubled …

There are scores of major American corporations wanting to come here, wanting to invest. Many have already made homes in Northern Ireland.

Biden is changing gear, and the speech is now getting deeper, and more serious.

He says “the American people were with are with you every step of the way”.

He says in America “there is a large population that is invested in what happens here, cares a great deal about what happens here”.

So supporting the people of Northern Ireland, and protecting the peace process, is “a priority” for Americans, he says.

He says America is now very divided. But support for Northern Ireland “is something that brings Washington together and brings America together”.

He says the White House was designed by an Irishman. He goes on:

Your history is our history.

But, even more important, your future is America’s future.

Biden says there were no guarantees the Good Friday agreement would hold. It took “long, hard years of work” to get there, he says.

He pays credit to some of the Northern Irish political leaders from that period.

At the time a peaceful future seemed so distant, he says.

When he first visited Northern Ireland as a young senator, peace did not seem realistic.

He pays tribute to the role played by the women’s coaliton, and to Senator George Mitchell, who chaired the talks leading up to the Good Friday agreement. That was one of the great examples in history of having “the right person in the right job at the right time”, he says.

During the talks, they had 700 days of failure, and one day of success, he says.

Biden says the former US ambassador to the UK brought him back a copy of a book about Captain George Biden.

He says the ambassador used to tell him he was English, not Irish.

George Biden wrote the rules about mutiny in the British navy, he says.

Biden says he came to Belfast in 1991, and in those days you would not have had a glass building here (because of the bombs).

He says he was honoured to welcome the Northern Irish political leaders to the White House recently, and it was good to see them again today.

UPDATE: Biden said:

This very campus is situated at an intersection where conflict and bloodshed once held a terrible sway.

The idea to have a glass building here when I was here in ’91 was highly unlikely.

Where barbed wire once sliced up the city, today we find a cathedral of learning built of glass and let the light shine in and out.

This has a profound impact for someone who has come back to see it.

It’s an incredible testament to the power and the possibilities of peace.

Joe Biden is starting his speech at Ulster University.

Turning away from Northern Ireland for a moment, the Scottish government has confirmed that it is going to court to try to overturn the UK government’s decision to block its gender recognition reform bill. Humza Yousaf, the new first minister, promised to do this during the SNP leadership contest.

Shirley-Anne Somerville, the social justice secretary, has told the Scottish parliament in a written statement that the Scottish government will lodge a petition for a judicial review of the decision.