A "secret" meeting between Boris Johnson and Sue Gray was held to discuss "practical questions" relating to the publication of the partygate report, a minister has claimed.

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, suggested the meeting had taken place to hammer out issues like who could be named and whether photographs would be included.

       Mr Clarke insisted the private meeting had not damaged the integrity of the report, telling Sky News: “There are lots of practical questions here which need to be bottomed out in terms of for example who can be named in this report and the extent to which photographic evidence can be included.

       “It is important that those practical dimensions are resolved. Do I think in any way that the integrity of this report should be questioned? No, because as I say Sue Gray has a reputation which dates back decades in terms of her ability to make judgements without fear or favour and I think she will absolutely deliver on that basis.”

       He added: "I do not believe that this meeting was anything other than a discussion of the technicalities of the process."

       Mr Johnson is under growing pressure to explain the circumstances of the meeting and to set out what was discussed, with Labour arguing that "people deserve to know the truth". The report is widely expected to be published this week.

       ？？Follow the latest updates below.

       It is the question everyone in Westminster wants answered but at the moment we simply do not know for certain when the Sue Gray report will be published.

       Senior officials who are due to be named in the report had until 5pm last night to raise any objections. That would suggest Ms Gray is now likely to be in the final stages of finalising the document.

       Downing Street has committed to publishing the report as soon as possible after it has been received from Ms Gray. Some believe it could be published as soon as today or perhaps tomorrow or Wednesday.

       Boris Johnson has committed to addressing MPs after the report is published and you would think No 10 would want to do it all in one day. Wednesday could make the most sense because that is when the weekly meeting of the 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPs takes place - the PM could head there after speaking in the Commons.

       The latest twist in the partygate saga happened on Friday night last week when Sky News reported that Sue Gray and Boris Johnson had a private meeting to discuss the handling of the report.

       That revelation prompted Labour to call for answers as the party argued people “deserve to know the truth” about the meeting as it questioned the independence of the probe. The exact circumstances of the meeting remain unclear.

       Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi insisted during a round of broadcast interviews yesterday that he did not know who called the meeting, or what was discussed, while maintaining Ms Gray had “complete control” over what would be published in the document.

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said this morning that he believed the meeting was a “discussion of the technicalities of the process” as he insisted it had been “instigated” by Ms Gray.

       We are expecting Boris Johnson to speak to broadcasters during a visit later today and he will almost certainly be asked if he interfered in the report.

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, has backed the Bank of England to tackle inflation amid mounting criticism of its recent record on forecasts.

       The Bank has been accused of being too optimistic in its forecasts and of acting too slowly to combat rising prices.

       But Mr Clarke told LBC Radio: "We absolutely have confidence in the independent Bank of England to get this right and it's vitally important that we don't compromise that independence.

       "They have a mandate, which is very clear, to deliver two per cent inflation. We are going to deliver that by the end of next year on the central forecast."

       A ￡20 a week increase in the value of Universal Credit will not be reinstated to help families struggling with the cost of living crisis, a minister has said.

       The extra cash was put in place to help people during the coronavirus pandemic but it was removed in October 2021. Some Tory MPs have urged the Government to increase the value of Universal Credit now to help families cope with rising food and energy prices.

       But Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, has ruled out bringing the uplift back, telling the BBC: “On that question, we were always explicitly clear that was a temporary response to the pandemic.

       “That is not going to return. The question is how we best now look at the next range of solutions to deal with the challenges we’re facing.”

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, has insisted the Government is “not going to rush into" making a decision over imposing a possible windfall tax on energy firms.

       Asked when Rishi Sunak might decide on the matter, Mr Clarke told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "That is a question for the Chancellor. We obviously recognise that we are in a situation which is fast developing and we want to make sure that we are supporting people ahead of what will likely be a challenging autumn and winter ahead."

       Mr Clarke said the Chancellor is looking at the cost of living situation "with real urgency and intent" and people can be reassured that the Government is "on the case".

       “We are not going to rush into action, but at the same time nor are we going to sit here and not provide the support that is needed given the severity of the situation," he said.

       Jesse Norman, the former Treasury minister, said it is “perfectly clear” the Government is going to need to do more to support people in the next few months.

       Mr Norman said governments treat taxes with "extreme caution”, particularly windfall taxes as they tend to be “unexpected responses to situations”,

       But he said the country is "not in ordinary times" and is actually facing "absolutely extraordinary times at the moment”.

       He said his fellow Tory MPs needed to recognise that "even Mrs Thatcher passed a couple of windfall taxes quite early on in her time in office, in her more pragmatic, less ideological phase, because she recognised that she needed to raise the money and that there were some sectors that in particular could afford to make a contribution to the wider public good”.

       More on a potential windfall tax from Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury (see the post below at 08.47).

       Mr Clarke told Sky News: "The Chancellor is very clear. We are not philosophically attracted to this but if the situation doesn’t improve in terms of them stepping up to the plate, we can’t rule it out.”

       Many in Westminster - and in the industry - are likely to pore over the reference to oil and gas giants needing to "improve" their investment plans for new UK energy sources. That would suggest the Government has some kind of metric for determining what is a sufficient level of investment and what is not.

       There is a growing feeling in Westminster that the Government will eventually change tack and impose a tax on the excess profits of oil and gas giants to address the cost of living crisis amid mounting political pressure.

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, today gave the firmest hint yet that the Government may be reconsidering its position as he said the nation is facing "extraordinary circumstances".

       He told Sky News: “We are certainly not ruling it out. What I would say is obviously I am not ever instinctively drawn to increasing taxes insofar as it risks deterring investment in new capacity and new jobs.

       “But look, these are extraordinary circumstances. We recognise there are extraordinary pressures on family finances and the industry needs to hear the message loud and clear: If investment doesn’t go in, we can’t rule out having to do a windfall tax.”

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, has insisted no political pressure has been put on Sue Gray over the contents of the partygate report.

       He told Sky News: "I do not believe that this meeting was anything other than a discussion of the technicalities of the process.

       “As I say, it would be genuinely wrong to impugn that there has been any pressure put on the nature of this report, in any way.”

       It would have been "churlish" for Boris Johnson to turn down a meeting with Sue Gray, a minister argued this morning.

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, was asked why Mr Johnson would attend a meeting with Ms Gray before the publication of the partygate report.

       Told that the PM could have turned down an invitation, Mr Clarke said: "Ultimately he could have done. But look, the point here is, I don't think that in any way it would have been improper, indeed it would have been somewhat churlish I think to have declined to have met."

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, suggested the meeting between Boris Johnson and Sue Gray had taken place to examine "practical questions" relating to the partygate report.

       Asked about the meeting, he told Sky News: “There are lots of practical questions here which need to be bottomed out in terms of for example who can be named in this report and the extent to which photographic evidence can be included.

       “It is important that those practical dimensions are resolved. Do I think in any way that the integrity of this report should be questioned? No, because as I say Sue Gray has a reputation which dates back decades in terms of her ability to make judgements without fear or favour and I think she will absolutely deliver on that basis.”

       There have been conflicting accounts over the circumstances that led to the meeting between Boris Johnson and Sue Gray.

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, claimed this morning that the meeting had been "instigated" by Ms Gray.

       He told Sky News: “My understanding is that the meeting was instigated by Ms Gray but… it matters only insofar as that explains that he [Boris Johnson] wasn’t the one instigating it."

       Good morning and welcome to today's politics live blog.

       We are expecting the Sue Gray report on partygate to be published at some point this week and Westminster is braced for what will be a major moment.

       A "secret" meeting between Boris Johnson and Ms Gray is dominating the agenda this morning as the PM faces growing pressure to set out why the meeting took place and what was discussed.

       Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, is on the morning media round and has been setting out the Government position. Let's start with his key quotes.

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