2 hours ago Trump’s defense pick Pete Hegseth faces scrutiny over sexual assault claims and attacks on UN and Nato – US politics live

Hegseth comments on the Geneva conventions and new sexual misconduct allegations raise questions over suitability to lead PentagonTrump Pentagon pick urges US to ignore Geneva conventionsIn the last three days president-elect Donald Trump finished up making his major cabinet announcements.If you missed them, here is a quick roundup.Trump chose Brooke Rollins, president of the America First Policy Institute, to be agriculture secretary.Trump named Scott Bessent, a longtime hedge-fund investor who taught at Yale University for several years, to serve as Treasury secretary.Trump picked Russ Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget. Vought was OMB chief during Trump’s previous term in office and has been deeply involved in Project 2025 in recent years.Trump announced Sebastian Gor...

Events

4 hours ago UK politics live: Starmer dismisses online petition calling for new election

PM says it has been driven by people who never backed Labour anywayQ: Are you feeling the pressure? There is a petition signed by 2 million people calling for another election.Starmer says he is not surprised that people who did not support Labour in the first place want the election to be re-run. But that is not how the system worked.I’m not surprised, quite frankly, that as we’re doing the tough stuff, there are plenty of people who say, ‘Well, I’m impacted.’I think anybody who’s turned around an organisation or a business will tell you, and they’re right, if you’re really going to turn something around, you have to do the hard yards upfront. Don’t look at a tough decision and then leave it for a year or two.So we’re doing the tough stuff. But in the budget, which is probably the toug...

Politics

5 hours ago UK politics live: Tax rises like this must never be just done to business, CBI chief tells Reeves

Rain Newton-Smith said ‘tax rises like this must never again be simply done to business’

Politics

5 hours ago UK politics live: safeguarding minister Jess Phillips urges people to intervene if women are being harassed in public

Phillips says people have to be mindful of their own safety but ‘you can definitely ask if someone is alright’Asked what his experience of government has been like, Starmer says he is taking the hard decisions first.I think anybody who’s turned around an organisation or a business will tell you, and they’re right, if you’re really going to turn something around, you have to do the hard yards upfront. Don’t look at a tough decision and then leave it for a year or two.So we’re doing the tough stuff. But in the budget, which is probably the toughest, I’m really pleased that we were able to put so much money into the National Health Service Anybody watching this who uses the NHS will know we absolutely had to make that a priority. Continue reading...

Politics

6 hours ago Trump to kick transgender troops from military as Republicans defend intel nominee Tulsi Gabbard: Live updates

President-elect planning to reinstate ban on trans soldiers as GOP senators back Gabbard despite past expressions of support for Vladimir Putin and Russia

Politics

6 hours ago Trump to kick transgender troops from military as Republicans defend intel pick Tulsi Gabbard: Live updates

President-elect planning to reinstate ban on trans soldiers as GOP senators back Gabbard despite past expressions of support for Vladimir Putin and Russia

Politics

7 hours ago UK politics live: Rachel Reeves to defend Budget to CBI after stark warning over tax rises

The chancellor is expected to tell the group there was ‘no alternative’ to tax rises

Events

7 hours ago UK politics live: vote on assisted dying bill impossible to predict, says minister

Jess Phillips says ‘we do not know how this vote is going to go’ with the views of many MPs still unclearGood morning. There is plenty happening today. Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, and Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, are both speaking at the CBI conference, where the CBI chief executive Rain Newton-Smith is warning about the impact of the budget on business. Keir Starmer is hosting a meeting at Downing Street about plans to protect women from spiking. “My government was elected on a pledge to take back our streets, and we will never achieve this if women and girls do not feel safe at night,” he says. There will be tributes to John Prescott in the Commons this afternoon. But one issue is going to dominate the week, the vote on the assisted dying bill on Friday, and already that...

Politics

14 hours ago Blackout risk warning as scorching temperatures forecast for parts of NSW

Power supplies will become tight in New South Wales and Queensland this week, with parts of western Sydney tipped to approach 40CFollow our Australia politics live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPower supplies will become “tight” in New South Wales and Queensland later this week as the season’s first major heatwave coincides with outages at big coal-fired power stations.Parts of western Sydney are forecast to approach 40C on Tuesday and Wednesday during a pre-summer hot spell spanning a week of 30C-plus days. Heatwave conditions in eastern parts of NSW will be in the low- to severe-intensity range, the Bureau of Meteorology said.Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

Events