5 d. ago Panic stations for Kemi Badenoch as Tories slump to FOURTH in poll

YouGov research found the Conservatives on just 16 per cent support, down two points over the past week.

Politics

5 d. ago Badenoch accused of wearing transphobia as ‘badge of honour’ by Labour MP

A spokesman for the Conservative leader said she has ‘always defended the rights of trans people’.

Politics

5 d. ago How Starmer managed to have his cake and eat it with new Brexit deal

During the Brexit negotiations after the referendum, the notion that Britain could have a trade deal with the US or India while still having favourable access to the EU was sneered at as impossible. But in a single month Sir Keir Starmer has achieved it, explains The Independent’s political editor David Maddox

Economics

8 d. ago Fact check: Unemployment figures row and NHS appointments error

Round-up of fact checks from the last week compiled by Full Fact.

Politics

1 week ago Kemi Badenoch to tell Labour not to make UK a 'supplicant' to the European Union with fears Starmer will look to unpick the Brexit referendum

Kemi Badenoch will take aim at Labour's 'surrender' on Brexit with a hard-hitting speech in Brussels today.

Politics

1 week ago Simon Cowell thinks we should have a second Brexit referendum

Simon Cowell believes the UK should hold a second Brexit referendum, saying the public didn't really understand what they were doing in 2016. Do you think a new vote would provide clarity, or just deepen the divide?

Politics

1 week ago Starmer says Tories are ‘dead party walking’ as Badenoch dismisses trade deals

The Opposition leader said agreements with Narendra Modi and Donald Trump’s governments are ‘tiny tariff’ deals.

Economics

2 w. ago Tory extinction ‘can’t be ruled out’, says Jeremy Hunt – UK politics live

Former chancellor says he does not expect the Conservatives to die out as a party but he says it is a possibilityKeir Starmer starts by saying rising tensions between India and Pakistan will be of serious concern for many across Britain. The government is enouraging de-escalation, he says.He says tomorrow the nation will fall silent to commemorate VE Day. The armed forces protect our freedom, he says. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Streeting admits Reform could be main opposition by next election – UK politics live

Health secretary tells Sky News that the party are ‘definitely a threat’ following byelection and council resultsLabour targets international students claiming asylumThe Conservatives will come back from their poor results in the local elections but it will have to be a “slow and steady” effort, party leader Kemi Badenoch has said, PA reports.She told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: “I am sorry to all of those councillors who’ve lost their seat”. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Starmer urged to change course after Reform’s success in local elections

Labour MP Rachael Maskell said her party has ‘special responsibilities’ to serve the needs of people.

Politics

3 w. ago Tories hail ‘significant’ mayoral election win after widespread losses

Party leader Kemi Badenoch previously warned the local elections would be tough for the Conservatives.

Politics

3 w. ago Polls close in contests which could see Labour and Tories suffer losses

A parliamentary by-election, more than 1,600 council seats across 23 local authorities, four regional mayors and two local mayors are up for grabs.

Politics

3 w. ago Labour faces first electoral test since taking power as voters head to polls

Kemi Badenoch has conceded the scale of the Conservative victory when these councils were last up for election in 2021 means losses are likely.

Politics

3 w. ago Starmer and Badenoch clash as Labour and Tories brace for tough elections

Nigel Farage’s Reform UK hopes to take the Runcorn and Helsby seat in the Commons off Labour and scores of councillors off the Tories.

Politics

3 w. ago Tony Blair’s climate crisis views ‘absolutely aligned’ with government policy, Starmer says – UK politics live

PM says he and Blair aligned ‘if you look at the detail of what he said’PMQs is starting soon.Here is the list of MPs down to ask a question. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Phasing out fossil fuels ‘doomed to fail’, says Tony Blair as he calls for rethink of net zero policy – UK politics live

‘Any strategy based on either phasing out fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail,’ says former PMSeverin Carrell is the Guardian’s Scotland editor.Keir Starmer is not expected to campaign in the Hamilton byelection, a critical contest for Scottish Labour which takes place in early June, Anas Sarwar has confirmed.I wouldn’t expect Keir to be campaigning in the byelection. That’s not to say he won’t, but I’m not expecting Kier to campaign in the byelection.I’ll be on the stump campaigning for a Labour win. I’m the candidate for first minister next year. I’m the one that wants to remove the SNP from government.Next year, we’ve got to demonstrate to people that for all Nigel Farage might want to come here with his easy answers and create a bit of a circus, the reality is a vote for Reform only helps the SNP. If you want to get rid of the SNP, only Scottish Labour can beat them. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Plan to phase out fossil fuels ‘doomed to fail’, says Tony Blair as he calls for rethink of net zero policy – UK politics live

‘Any strategy based on either ‘phasing out’ fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail,’ says former PMSeverin Carrell is the Guardian’s Scotland editor.Keir Starmer is not expected to campaign in the Hamilton byelection, a critical contest for Scottish Labour which takes place in early June, Anas Sarwar has confirmed.I wouldn’t expect Keir to be campaigning in the byelection. That’s not to say he won’t, but I’m not expecting Kier to campaign in the byelection.I’ll be on the stump campaigning for a Labour win. I’m the candidate for first minister next year. I’m the one that wants to remove the SNP from government.Next year, we’ve got to demonstrate to people that for all Nigel Farage might want to come here with his easy answers and create a bit of a circus, the reality is a vote for Reform only helps the SNP. If you want to get rid of the SNP, only Scottish Labour can beat them. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Why is Labour getting bolder on Europe? It knows even leave voters can now see the benefits | Gaby Hinsliff

With Labour losing votes to pro-European parties, an intriguing new deep-dive makes clear that the public mood has shiftedIt’s nearly nine years now since Britain lost its collective mind.More than enough time, then, to put the Brexit referendum into perspective. Leavers have moved on to the point where only 11% of British voters still kid themselves that it’s turned out brilliantly. It’s remain politicians who had started to look strangely stuck in the past, still frightened of sounding too pro-European in case they somehow woke the monster. But joyfully – now there’s a word I haven’t typed much lately – it looks like something is finally shifting.Gaby Hinsliff is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Thursday’s elections will be ‘tough’, PM admits as campaigning enters final week

The upcoming Runcorn and Helsby by-election will run alongside local elections and it is expected to be a tight contest between Labour and Reform UK.

Politics

3 w. ago Political parties enter final campaign push ahead of local elections

Voters will go to the polls in 23 council areas across England on Thursday May 1, and will choose a new MP in Runcorn and Helsby.

Politics