5 h. ago Starmer declines to say if he will sack Rayner if she is found to have broken ministerial code – UK politics live

Keir Starmer has said that he expects to get the report from his ethics adviser on Angela Rayner quickly Reeves has ‘full confidence’ in Rayner after stamp duty errorKitty Donaldson from the i says Keir Starmer may get the report from his ethics adviser about Angela Rayner tomorrow.NEW: Senior Government sources are playing down reports ministerial watchdog Sir Laurie Magnus could send Sir Keir Starmer his report into Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s tax affairs as soon as today. One Whitehall source said tomorrow is more likely. Continue reading...

Politics

8 h. ago No 10 says Starmer ‘kept updated’ on Rayner tax issue but ‘final advice’ only arrived on Wednesday – UK politics live

Downing Street spokesman will not say when PM realised his deputy had not paid her full stamp duty liabilityReeves has ‘full confidence’ in Rayner after stamp duty errorKitty Donaldson from the i says Keir Starmer may get the report from his ethics adviser about Angela Rayner tomorrow.NEW: Senior Government sources are playing down reports ministerial watchdog Sir Laurie Magnus could send Sir Keir Starmer his report into Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s tax affairs as soon as today. One Whitehall source said tomorrow is more likely. Continue reading...

Politics

12 h. ago Reeves has ‘full confidence’ in Rayner, and thinks deputy PM can keep her job – UK politics live

Chancellor offers unequivocal backing to colleague following stamp duty errorRachel Reeves, the chancellor, was also asked in her Sky News interview if the Rayner controversy showed that the stamp duty regime was “way too complicated”. Reeves sidestepped the question, saying:Well, look, Angela tried to do the right thing, and of course it is incumbent on all of us to try to properly understand the rules, and she is now working to make sure that the correct tax is paid.Well, the definitive advice came in on Wednesday morning, and that’s when Angela put out the statement.On Tuesday as well some court injunctions were lifted related to her disabled son and those circumstances, and that’s why Angela was able to make a full statement on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Politics

35 h. ago PMQs live: Keir Starmer to face Kemi Badenoch after confirming exact Budget date

One man who won't be asking questions to Keir Starmer today is Nigel Farage, who has skipped Westminster yet again, this time for a right-wing conference in America

Economics

36 h. ago Streeting says hate speech laws are having ‘unintended consequences’ after arrest of Father Ted writer – UK politics live

Health secretary says government needs to balance legislation so police are ‘not just policing tweets’ following detention of Graham Linehan over posts on transgender issuesAt the Downing Street lobby briefing yesterday the PM’s spokesperson was reluctant to comment directly on the arrest of Graham Linehan. But he did say that Keir Starmer thought the police should be focusing on “antisocial behaviour, shoplifting, street crime, as well as reducing serious violent crimes like knife crime and violence against women”. The Daily Telegraph has interepreted that as an attack on the Met.Wes Streeting, the health secretary, was on the media round this morning and in some respects he adopted the same line. Asked about the arrest, he told Times Radio:I think the prime minister and the home secretary have been very clear that with the law and order challenges we’ve got in our country, we want to see people being kept safe by policing streets, not just policing tweets.One thing I would say, be...

Politics

37 h. ago Farage condemns UK’s ‘authoritarian censorship regime’ ahead of giving evidence at US congress

Reform UK leader to speak about Online Safety Act at House judiciary committee; government set to announce date of budget at PMQs later Good morning. It is the first PMQs, and with the government set to announce the date of the budget today (Wednesday 26 November, if HuffPost UK is right), you would expect Keir Starmer and Kemi Badenoch to get stuck into a debate about the economy, and taxation.But it might end up as a free speech day at Westminster, as a result of the conflation of two related issues.On the question of civil liberties, Britain has, unfortunately, now lost her way.I will do my part, as a participant in UK democracy, to help our country find its way back to the traditional freedoms which have long bound together our two countries in friendship. In the meantime, Congress should draw bright lines: British free speech rules, applicable to Britons, are made in Britain, and American speech rules, applicable to Americans, are made in America. Continue reading...

Culture

37 h. ago UK politics live: Starmer considers digital ID cards in crackdown on small boat migrants

Sir Keir Starmer chaired a cabinet meeting as he looked into plans to introduce digital ID cards to tackle illegal immigration

Politics

58 h. ago Cooper suggests asylum seekers could be moved into warehouses instead of hotels – UK politics live

Home secretary says government aims to ‘shrink the whole asylum system’ and is looking at ‘military and industrial sites’Lamb says the Greens are “the antidote to Reform”.That gets a big round of applause.We’re a home for all those people across the country holding their heads in their hands as the Labour government lets them down again and again and again, whether it is switching from the aid budget or from people with disabilities and not bringing in taxes we need.And that is why, in reaction, a new Green wave is sweeping the country as people turn to us.It’s already become a bit of a cliche, but we are really moving into a multi-party system, with the Greens poised to help create the next government.And, like all the best cliches, it has the distinct advantage of also being for true. Continue reading...

Society

60 h. ago Cooper rejects claims Reeves has been sidelined on economic policy by No 10 mini

‘Quite the reverse’, says home secretary, amid reports Starmer’s reorganisation is aimed at freezing chancellor out ahead of autumn budgetIn an interview with Sky News this morning Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, declined to guarantee that migrants will definitely be sent back across the channel this month as part of a returns agreement with France.Asked for the exact date of the first returns, Cooper replied: “It will be later this month.”We expect the first returns to take place this month. But I’ve always said from the very beginning on this, it’s a pilot scheme and it needs to build up over time.If you submit an asylum claim that lacks merit, it will be swiftly and robustly refused.Any request for asylum support will be assessed against destitution criteria. If you do not meet the criteria, you will not receive support.If nothing has changed in their country, people should not be claiming asylum at the end of a student course. We need to clamp down on that and that’s why we’r...

Economics

8 d. ago Starmer’s EU negotiator gives stronger backing to youth mobility scheme

Nick Thomas-Symonds indicates closer ties with Europe in future and promises to agree agriculture dealUK politics live – latest updatesKeir Starmer’s lead negotiator on Europe has enthused about how excited he is by the prospect of an EU youth mobility scheme, as he signalled a broader government shift towards embracing closer ties with the bloc.Nick Thomas-Symonds, the Cabinet Office minister in charge of negotiating Britain’s relationship with the EU, said on Wednesday he was looking forward to signing a deal to let young people travel and work more freely across Europe. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Government to appeal against court ruling blocking asylum seekers being housed at Epping hotel – as it happened

This blog is now closed In an interview on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme on Friday, MSP Jeremy Balfour who has resigned from the Scottish Conservatives (see 9.13am BST), said he feels the party has “lost its way in Scotland” and “I don’t think it represents true Conservative values”.According to the PA news agency, when asked if Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay is the right person for the job and whether he should stay in the post, he said:Clearly I’m no longer a member of the party so that’s no longer a decision for me to make.I get on very well as an individual with Russell, I think he’s a good individual. Whether he’s the person to lead the Scottish Conservatives is obviously for MSPs, for the membership, to decide.What I’m very clear about is that those with disabilities, other minorities and the people of Lothian need a voice for people to hear what we require within our country.I’m not sure any party is actually offering that at the moment but whethe...

Events

1 week ago Government to appeal against court ruling blocking asylum seekers being housed at Epping hotel – UK politics live

Security minister says Labour will close asylum hotels by the end of this parliament but it needs to be done ‘in a managed and ordered way’In an interview on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme on Friday, MSP Jeremy Balfour who has resigned from the Scottish Conservatives (see 9.13am BST), said he feels the party has “lost its way in Scotland” and “I don’t think it represents true Conservative values”.According to the PA news agency, when asked if Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay is the right person for the job and whether he should stay in the post, he said:Clearly I’m no longer a member of the party so that’s no longer a decision for me to make.I get on very well as an individual with Russell, I think he’s a good individual. Whether he’s the person to lead the Scottish Conservatives is obviously for MSPs, for the membership, to decide.What I’m very clear about is that those with disabilities, other minorities and the people of Lothian need a voice for people t...

Politics

1 week ago Government to appeal court ruling blocking asylum seekers being housed at Epping hotel – UK politics live

Security minister says Labour will close asylum hotels by the end of this parliament but it needs to be done ‘in a managed and ordered way’In an interview on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme on Friday, MSP Jeremy Balfour who has resigned from the Scottish Conservatives (see 9.13am BST), said he feels the party has “lost its way in Scotland” and “I don’t think it represents true Conservative values”.According to the PA news agency, when asked if Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay is the right person for the job and whether he should stay in the post, he said:Clearly I’m no longer a member of the party so that’s no longer a decision for me to make.I get on very well as an individual with Russell, I think he’s a good individual. Whether he’s the person to lead the Scottish Conservatives is obviously for MSPs, for the membership, to decide.What I’m very clear about is that those with disabilities, other minorities and the people of Lothian need a voice for people t...

Politics

1 week ago Dozens of protests planned outside asylum hotels as Labour defends record on immigration – UK politics live

Labour has pledged to end the use of hotels to house asylum seekers by the end of this parliament in 2029The mayor of South Yorkshire said there has been “interest from companies” who may want to “take on” steel sites after the government had to take control of the operation, reports the PA news agency.The high court confirmed on Thursday that Speciality Steel – previously part of Sanjeev Gupta’s Liberty Steel business – would face a compulsory liquidation. It has plants in Rotherham and Stocksbridge.We’ve got a team that we’ve stood up in my office, we’ve been working with the government’s steel team to make sure that we know exactly what’s going on here in terms of the assets that are on the table.We’ve had interest from companies who we know who want to take on these sites.The government stepping in to take control now is good news because it just brings to an end the uncertainty that we’ve seen on the sites.I think that was the thing that was killing the business slowly, we now ...

Events

2 w. ago Government’s deal with Iraq to return illegal migrants will ‘deter small boat arrivals’, says Starmer – UK politics live

Prime minister says ‘strengthened partnership with Iraq will secure our borders’ as more councils in England plan to challenge asylum hotelsTrain fares in England are now expected to rise by a higher-than-expected 5.8% next year, causing concern among passenger groups.Rail ticket increases are usually calculated by adding one percentage point to July’s inflation reading on the retail prices index (RPI), which came in 0.2 points above forecasts on Wednesday at 4.8%. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Ed Davey calls for review of terrorism legislation after Palestine Action arrests – UK politics live

The Lib Dem leader is seeking a review of the laws to prevent the ‘en masse’ arrestsIt is “absolutely essential” for the US to be part of European security guarantees for a potential Ukrainian peace deal, but there is “lots more work to be done” on what they will entail, a minister has said.“The really important progress yesterday was on the security guarantees, these issues that the prime minister and president Macron have been leading on within Europe, with 30 countries involved in planning with a coalition of the willing to make sure we can provide those guarantees.Those guarantees are really important. You’re right to say that there’s now lots more work to be done on the nature of those guarantees. That’s what is now under way.You’ve seen that happening immediately. It was already under way, as I say, across 30 countries, and now the United States is going to be involved in that.In the House of Commons, we abstained [from the decision to make Palestine Action a proscribed organi...

Events

3 w. ago Watch live: Starmer welcomes Zelensky to Downing Street ahead of Trump

Watch live as Sir Keir Starmer welcomes Volodymyr Zelensky to 10 Downing Street on Thursday, 14 August, a day before Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin are due to meet.

Politics

3 w. ago Palestine Action is a ‘violent organisation’, Downing Street says after mass arrests over the weekend – UK politics live

Anyone showing support for Palestine Action ‘will feel full force of the law’, says justice minister as government defends decision to proscribe protest groupRichard Adams is the Guardian’s education editorStudents in England are expected to receive A-level grades that are closer to normal for the first time since the Covid pandemic triggered school closures and exam cancellations.If the student, for instance, needed three As [and] gets AAB, as long as the B is not in something that’s absolutely crucial for the course, I think there’s a very strong possibility the student would find they’d be getting a place. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Anyone showing support for Palestine Action ‘will feel full force of the law’, justice minister says – UK politics live

Government defends decision to proscribe protest group after mass arrests at a demonstration in Westminster over the weekendIn other news, a hostile environment era deportation policy is being expanded by Labour as the government continues to try to limit the threat from Reform by talking and acting toughly on migration.Foreign criminals from 15 more countries, including India, Bulgaria and Australia, face deportation before they have a chance to appeal against the decision to remove them, in a widening of the government’s “deport first, appeal later” scheme.Richard Dannatt wrote privately to two separate Home Office ministers asking them to address the “threat” posed by the group after its activists targeted a factory in 2022.The activists caused extensive damage to the factory which is run by Teledyne, a US multinational that sells technology for military, aerospace and other applications. Lord Dannatt has been a paid adviser to the company since 2022. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Vance says UK and US have ‘disagreements’ over Gaza, as he confirms Trump does not back Palestinian state recognition – as it happened

David Lammy is hosting the US vice-president at Chevening, his grace-and-favour residence in Kent, where they will discuss the Middle EastThe SNP is calling for the recall of parliament so that MPs can approve sanctions against Benjamin Netanyahu in the light of his decision to extend the occupation of Gaza. In a statement Stephen Flynn, the SNP leader at Westminster, said:A genocide is happening before our eyes in Gaza. Words of condemnation aren’t anywhere near enough - if we have any hope of stopping this genocide strong actions are desperately needed, now. That means Keir Starmer needs to recall Westminster and take concrete steps to sanction the Israeli government. Those sanctions must include ending all arms sales to the Israeli military, stopping all training, logistical and military support to the IDF, directly and personally sanctioning Netanyahu and his ministers and finally and immediately recognising the state of Palestine before it is brutally wiped off the map. If the ...

Politics