9 h. ago Readers’ letters: Labour rebels were elected with a welfare reform mandate

A reader says Rachel Reeves’ tears would be understandable if they were about Labour rebels wrecking her work to reform the benefits system

Politics

14 h. ago Sir Keir Starmer under mounting Labour rebel pressure to scrap two

Sir Keir Starmer is coming under mounting pressure from within his own Cabinet to scrap the two-child benefit cap, despite Treasury warnings over a lack of funding to ditch the policy.

Events

31 h. ago Readers Letters: If UK Government will support English refinery, why not Grangemouth?

A tale of two refineries puzzles reader

Politics

68 h. ago The Guardian view on Labour’s welfare rebellion: Starmer must learn from his mistakes | Editorial

A poorly devised cuts policy was mis-sold as reform and MPs were dismissed when they pointed out the problemA clash between the government and Labour MPs over disability benefits was foreseeable long before this week’s Commons rebellion. That doesn’t mean a crisis was inevitable. Compromise might have been reached before the 11th-hour climbdown that averted a defeat in parliament.The conflagration that burned a lot of Sir Keir Starmer’s authority was all the greater because trust had broken down. The twin causes were failure of political judgment in Downing Street and bad policy. The prime minister underestimated the potency of MPs’ objections to the withdrawal of personal independence payment (Pip) from disabled people, and overestimated the capacity of his whips to bully and cajole his party into accepting the changes.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to...

Politics

69 h. ago 'I'm under so much pressure': What Rachel Reeves said before mystery tears as markets tumble and No10 frantically denies Starmer bust

The Chancellor is said to have made the admission to Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle before taking her seat for an extraordinary session of Prime Minister's Questions.

Events

2 d. ago Rachel Reeves' mystery tears send markets tumbling as No10 frantically denies Starmer bust

Chancellor Rachel Reeves was sitting next to Keir Starmer as he insisted the smoking ruin of his benefits reforms would still make things better.

Politics

2 d. ago How Starmer went from defiant to defeated as he scrambled to get his bill over the line

The debacle over the welfare reforms has stripped Keir Starmer of his authority and left his government damaged. David Maddox tracks how the prime minister lost control

Politics

2 d. ago Rachel Reeves 'had row with Starmer' minutes before bursting into tears in astonishing moment at PMQs... and now markets drop amid chaos fears

Chancellor Rachel Reeves was sitting next to Keir Starmer as he insisted the smoking ruin of his benefits reforms would still make things better.

Events

2 d. ago Voices: Only Angela Rayner has emerged from the welfare debacle with her reputation intact

It took the intervention of the deputy prime minister to persuade the prime minister that the game was up – now some Labour MPs are wondering if she’ll replace him, writes John Rentoul

Politics

2 d. ago The Chancellor's teary PMQs: How Rachel Reeves arrived in the Commons with puffy eyes...  before tears rolled down both cheeks and her bottom lip wobbled as she sat by Keir Starmer

The Chancellor's position is under intense scrutiny following the Government's humiliating U-turn on welfare cuts in the face of a rebellion by Labour MPs.

Politics

3 d. ago Rachel Reeves in TEARS as Starmer refuses to guarantee she will stay in her job in astonishing  PMQs after PM's benefits humiliation

Chancellor Rachel Reeves was sitting next to Keir Starmer as he insisted the smoking ruin of his benefits reforms would still make things better.

Politics

3 d. ago Starmer fails to guarantee chancellor’s future and does not rule out tax rises to fund welfare concessions – UK politics live

Kemi Badenoch tells PM the welfare bill is a ‘pointless waste of time’ after climbdown heads off Labour revoltWelfare bill climbdown will have ‘a cost’ at budget, says ministerOn Wednesday, Angela Rayner sought to reassure people who had been “scared” about the proposed benefits changes, reports the PA news agency.Speaking to ITV’s Lorraine, the deputy prime minister said:Anyone listening to your show today, they know that there will be no changes to their welfare.I want to make sure that people are reassured by that, because a lot of people have been scared about what’s going to happen. Continue reading...

Economics

3 d. ago Rachel Reeves WEEPS as Starmer refuses to guarantee she will stay in her job during brutal PMQs

Chancellor Rachel Reeves was sitting next to Keir Starmer as he insisted the smoking ruing of his benefits reforms would still make things better.

Politics

3 d. ago Starmer on the brink after just a year in power: Angela Rayner twists the knife as rivals circle PM in wake of humiliating welfare humbling

Keir Starmer's authority has been left in tatters after his extraordinary surrender to avert defeat at the hands of Labour rebels.

Politics

3 d. ago What benefits have changed after Keir Starmer's Parliament humiliation? Everything you need to know as Labour rebels force PM into farcical U

What happened in the largest revolt so far of Sir Keir Starmer's premiership; what does it mean for the personal independence payment (Pip) and Universal Credit; and what comes next?

Politics

3 d. ago Starmer on the brink after just a year in power: Rivals circle PM after welfare humbling

Keir Starmer's authority has been left in tatters after his extraordinary surrender to avert defeat at the hands of Labour rebels.

Politics

3 d. ago Readers' Letters: If Glastonbury chants aren't a race crime, what is?

Glastonbury band’s political protest has readers divided

Events

3 d. ago Poorly led, strategically inept and shorn of democracy. Now I truly fear for this Labour government | John McDonnell

The welfare bill passed, but it was chaos. A party this dysfunctional and divided cannot escape the wrath of voters at the next electionThe welfare bill has gone through, but what is on the minds of most Labour MPs and supporters is how did we get into this appalling mess over disability benefits? A key factor has been the immense lack of judgment of the party’s real decision-makers, the team in the leader’s office, fuelled by their overweening arrogance. The egos of the young men cloistering Keir Starmer have clearly been inflated by the multitude of articles written by sycophantic commentators desperate to secure access to the new regime.However, the seeds of this debacle were sowed by the Treasury’s capture of the incoming government, enabling officials to bring back the same old austerity agenda of benefit cuts that they developed for George Osborne.John McDonnell is the independent MP for Hayes and Harlington. He was shadow chancellor for Labour from 2015 to 2020 Continue readi...

Politics

3 d. ago Labour welfare bill latest: Starmer’s benefits climbdown heaps pressure on Reeves as it will deliver ‘no savings’

Rebel Labour MPs have also lost their attempt to halt the Government’s welfare reforms

Economics

3 d. ago Keir Starmer hit by new major rebellion as 49 Labour MPs refuse to back his government's welfare cuts

Ministers had taken drastic action as furious MPs lined up in the Commons to attack the plan to make it harder to claim Personal Independence Payments (Pip) and health-related universal credit.

Politics