29 h. ago Police leaders say they will struggle to fulfil Labour’s promise to recruit 13,000 officers

Projected £1.2bn police funding shortfall expected to grow after spending review outlined fall in Home Office spending powerPolice forces will struggle to fulfil Keir Starmer’s promise to recruit an additional 13,000 officers and the public will “pay the price”, police leaders have warned, after the chancellor outlined a decline in Home Office spending power on Wednesday.The National Police Chiefs’ Council said it would be incredibly difficult to deliver the prime minister’s election pledge within the lifetime of this parliament, with a projected £1.2bn shortfall in police funding expected to grow. Continue reading...

Events

29 h. ago The Guardian view on Labour’s spending review: the chancellor tightened belts and loosened seams | Editorial

The government offers capital investment and fiscal prudence but real-terms department cuts and grand promises could strain political credibilityBrexit’s ghost haunts a Labour spending review intended to lay the foundations for a second term. Its headlines echo the twin themes of the referendum campaign: control immigration, fund the NHS. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said she would end the use of hotels for asylum seekers “in this parliament” saving £1bn a year, while NHS spending will rise by 3% a year. Ms Reeves framed it as a politics of security and compassion. Yet it reads as Brexit’s populist promises, filtered through Westminster orthodoxy.The risk is that this is all slogan and very little solution. The asylum savings are speculative, and the annual increase in NHS budgets is below its historical average. There are also real-terms cuts or essentially flat budgets for key departments such as transport, education and local government. The Home Office faces cuts deeper than a...

Politics

29 h. ago Labour promised people we would rebuild Britain – and that’s what we’re doing | Keir Starmer

This week’s spending review marks a new stage in the mission of national renewal, built on the foundations laid last yearKeir Starmer is the prime minister of the United KingdomThe mandate we received from the British people could not have been clearer. First, we had to stop the chaos and return Britain to economic stability. Second, we had to turn the page on Tory decline with clear Labour choices. Third, we were instructed to rebuild our country.Wednesday’s spending review turbocharged that rebuilding. It is an investment in Britain’s renewal, so working people have more money in their pocket, more pride in their community and more hope for their children’s future. It’s what people voted for. An NHS cutting waiting lists, with care closer to the community. Wealth and opportunity no longer hoarded by only a few towns and cities. Continue reading...

Politics

30 h. ago Spending review a ‘huge blow’ for police and ‘will hamper efforts to recruit 13,000 neighbourhood police officers’

The government’s £2bn spending plans will cover ‘little more’ than basic pay increases for existing staff, police chiefs have warned

Events

32 h. ago Warnings that police £1.2bn funding shortfall will continue to grow

Police leaders have reacted with dismay to the funding plan set out by the chancellor on Wednesday, as one said ‘the public will pay the price’.

Events

40 h. ago Why did Starmer and Reeves change tack on winter fuel payments? Every Labour U

The Independent looks at all the times Sir Keir Starmer has let voters down or outright U-turned on his promises on the journey from Labour leader to prime minister

Politics

54 h. ago The Guardian view on Labour’s nuclear bet: big promises, but bigger questions remain unanswered | Editorial

A bold state investment signals nuclear revival, but unresolved issues around cost, waste and safety demand urgent ministerial clarityThe government’s decision to invest £14.2bn in nuclear energy, on top of existing funds, marks a return to significant state funding of nuclear power after Hinkley Point C, financed by the private sector, was dogged by delays and cost overruns. It is also a decisive shift in energy policy. Ministers have high hopes of a nuclear energy renaissance. Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, described the prospect of a new reactor in Suffolk, Sizewell C, combined with new money for modular reactor development and fusion research, as a “golden age”. This was a striking choice of words from the greenest voice in the cabinet.The Climate Change Committee’s latest advice to the government took a more restrained view of nuclear, which drew industry ire. Mr Miliband’s commitment to renewable energy is not in doubt. The government has made good...

Events

3 d. ago The Guardian view on Labour’s tough choices: they are costing the government dearly | Editorial

Austerity-era scepticism runs deep – and Labour’s abstract promises are falling flat as Nigel Farage rises in the pollsThe Labour government’s abrupt U-turn on winter fuel payments – restoring the benefit to more than three-quarters of pensioners – reveals less a change of heart than a sobering realisation in Westminster: after years of austerity, the public no longer gives politicians the benefit of the doubt. The irony is hard to miss. Labour set out to prove that “grown-up” economics means difficult decisions – only to find that once trust is lost, voters won’t accept vague promises without tangible results.It turns out many are sceptical that sacrifices will produce better results for society. That’s why ministers are struggling to justify cuts to disability benefits as a way to “fund” public services – or to convince the public that Britain can’t afford to lift the two-child benefit cap even as ministers claim they will reduce child poverty. There may be more conspicuous retrea...

Politics

3 d. ago NIH scientists go public to criticize Trump's deep cuts in public health research

Scores of National Institutes of Health researchers and staffers have come forward to send their Trump-appointed leader a letter challenging policies they say undermine the NIH mission

Science

3 d. ago Police leaders ramp up pressure on Government ahead of spending review

Several figures have called for more funding as the Chancellor prepares to set out her spending plans on Wednesday.

Politics

5 d. ago Former police officer sentenced after lying about leaking info to Proud Boys leader

Enrique Tarrio attended sentencing and called for Trump to pardon Shane Lamond

Events

6 d. ago Tice defends Reform MP’s question on burqa ban after Zia Yusuf resignation

Party’s deputy leader says discussion must not be ‘forced underground’ when it is policy in some European countriesUK politics live – latest updatesReform UK was right to start a debate on banning the burqa even though it triggered the resignation of its chair, Richard Tice, the party’s deputy leader, has said.Tice, who is one of five Reform MPs, said he was “enormously sad” that Zia Yusuf had quit as chair as he was partly responsible for the party’s strong performance in May’s local elections. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago The Guardian view on the Conservatives and international law: a party trapped inside its own destructive obsessions | Editorial

Kemi Badenoch’s European human rights withdrawal plan would weaken Britain, delight authoritarians and achieve none of the goals the Tories imagineKemi Badenoch’s announcement of a Conservative party inquiry into a British withdrawal from the European convention on human rights (ECHR) should fool no one. The working party under the shadow attorney general, David Wolfson, announced on Thursday, will not look dispassionately at whether the UK should withdraw. It will merely try to say why and how. The policy of withdrawal itself is almost, to coin a phrase, oven-ready.This back-to-front policymaking process exemplifies the party’s rudderless drift under Mrs Badenoch. Tory policy is not now in the hands of the leader or the shadow cabinet. It is in the hands of Reform UK and the opinion polls. Mrs Badenoch is a follower of events. Hers is the approach of someone still trapped in a party bubble which is consumed by the belief that withdrawal is the key to regaining the Conservative...

Society

8 d. ago UK politics live: Starmer accused of chaos after Reeves gives winter fuel payment U

Tory leader insists PM should apologise to pensioners ahead of reversing unpopular policy

Politics

8 d. ago Why Geert Wilders’ plan to become Netherlands leader may well backfire

Dutch far-right leader’s withdrawal from ruling coalition has upset allies and misjudged political landscape It is a gamble that Geert Wilders may live to regret. Increasingly frustrated by his coalition partners’ unwillingness to embrace his promised “strictest asylum policy in Europe”, the Dutch far-right leader brought down the government.Wilders’ calculation, if it is more than a fit of political pique, appears simple: if he can turn this autumn’s snap elections into a referendum on immigration and asylum, his Freedom party (PVV) can win it – and he might even become the Netherlands’ prime minister. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago Why Geert Wilders’ plan to become Netherlands PM may well backfire

Dutch far-right leader’s withdrawal from ruling coalition has upset allies and misjudged changed political landscapeIt is a gamble that Geert Wilders may live to regret. Increasingly frustrated by his coalition partners’ unwillingness to embrace his promised “strictest asylum policy in Europe”, the Dutch far-right leader brought down the government.Wilders’ calculation, if it is more than a fit of political pique, appears simple: if he can turn this autumn’s snap elections into a referendum on immigration and asylum, his Freedom party (PVV) can win it – and he might even become the Netherlands’ prime minister. Continue reading...

Events

8 d. ago UK politics live: Starmer accused of chaos after Reeves gives winter fuel U

Tory leader insists PM should apologise to pensioners ahead of reversing unpopular policy

Politics

1 week ago The five key questions that must be answered in the hunt for Pheobe Bishop

Retired detective Charlie Bezzina, who spent 38 years with Victoria Police including 17 years as a homicide investigator and team leader, has been following the case and explains what's going on.

Politics

1 week ago Georgia detains second opposition leader within days as ruling party faces more protests

Georgian police have detained a second top opposition leader within days, as protests continue in the South Caucasus country against the ruling Georgian Dream party

Politics

1 week ago Labour ministers under pressure as viral video shows broken promises to nuclear veterans

A video showing Labour ministers promising compensation to nuclear veterans has gone viral, putting the government under pressure to keep its word

Politics