Politics

The prime minister will herald the “next generation” in the UK’s nuclear industry as he unveils new investment to create jobs and boost skills. Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria will get £20m of public money to start with and £180m a year over the next decade. The town is where four new Dreadnought-class submarines – designed to

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has warned the UK should “absolutely” be concerned about the threat of Islamic State following the terror attack in Moscow. At least 133 people died in the massacre in the Russian capital on Friday. Islamic State Khorasan (IS-K), which is a branch of the militant group operating in central Asia, has claimed

The chancellor has claimed that earning £100,000 a year is “not a huge salary”. Jeremy Hunt made the remark on social media platform X, in a post which was aimed at his constituents in Surrey. He will be campaigning hard as he is changing seats for the next general election after the boundaries were redrawn

Rishi Sunak has warned against “messing with” the national flags after Nike changed the colour of the St George’s Cross on a new England football shirt. Wading into the controversy, the prime minister argued the standards are “a source of pride, identity, who we are and they are perfect as we are”. His comments came

Home Secretary James Cleverly used a private chartered flight to visit Rwanda at a cost of £165,561.53 to the taxpayer, government documents have revealed. The latest transparency data from the Home Office showed Mr Cleverly took the flight in December last year as he headed to Kigali to sign a new treaty with the African

Harry Maguire says he did not give permission for the Conservative Party to use an image of him and his partner on social media. The photo is of the footballer talking to his then girlfriend – now his wife – Fern Hawkins after England‘s penalty shootout win over Colombia in the 2018 World Cup in

Back in the 1990s, a row was brewing over the state pension. After it was introduced for everybody back in 1948, men were entitled to receive it when they hit 65, but women started getting the payments from the age of 60. Politics live: Tories suffer another defection to Reform With more women heading to

A long-awaited report on how women born in the 1950s were affected by increases to their retirement age has recommended they are owed compensation. The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman has been looking at potential injustices resulting from the decision to raise women’s retirement age to bring it into line with men’s. Women Against State

A government bill centred on deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda has been sent back to MPs after peers rejected it. The Safety of Rwanda Bill had been debated in the House of Lords after their previous changes were dismissed by the Commons earlier this week. In the upper chamber, the government lost seven votes by

What was Jeremy Hunt up to? Was he aiming to snatch the headlines from his Labour rival Rachel Reeves on the evening of her weighty and well-trailed lecture on the economy? Almost certainly. Was he also aiming to tease Labour MPs about an October election when he and the prime minister are really planning for

Jeremy Hunt has hinted at an autumn election as speculation continues to grow over when the country will head to the polls. Speaking at the Lords’ Economic Affairs Committee on Tuesday, the chancellor was asked about the government’s spending review – the detailed multi-year plan on how departments will spend their cash – and revealed

Campaigners and MPs are calling for a parliamentary inquiry into the Loan Charge scandal – accusing HMRC of “airbrushing” its approach to a harsh tax crackdown linked to several suicides. The Loan Charge Action Group (LCAG) has hit out at the Treasury Committee after it wrote to the tax office requesting information on its approach

Rishi Sunak said he is “not interested in Westminster politics” and insisted his party is “united” as he brushed off rumours of a plot to oust him. Asked during a visit to the West Midlands why he did not let one of his “disloyal colleagues” have the “poisoned chalice” of being prime minister, Mr Sunak

The government has “drawn a line” under the Frank Hester race row and shouldn’t have to give back the money he donated, Kemi Badenoch has said. The business secretary, who was the first cabinet minister to break ranks and label his reported comments about Diane Abbott as racist last week, suggested she would be comfortable

Rishi Sunak hopes three key moments this week will turn around his fortunes after his standing in the party plummeted. The PM is hoping Monday’s speech on the economy, Wednesday’s end of term appearance before Tory MPs and new inflation figures due out the same day, which could be close to the Bank of England

Rishi Sunak will lead the Tories into the next general election, the transport secretary insisted amid reports of a plot to oust the PM. Mark Harper dismissed speculation some Conservative rebels want the prime minister to be replaced with Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt. Politics Live: Rishi Sunak ‘will lead Tories’ into next election Asked on

Vaughan Gething has been elected leader of Welsh Labour – and is set to become the next Welsh first minister and first black leader of any European country. Currently serving as minister for the economy, Mr Gething, 50, has been in politics since he was a teenager. But he rose to prominence as health minister

The result of the race to become the next first minister of Wales will be revealed today. Jeremy Miles, the current minister for education and Welsh language, and Vaughan Gething, the minister for the economy, have been competing to see who will lead Welsh Labour and the country. Which of the two has succeeded will

The Conservative Party is “in talks” about an additional £5m from a Tory donor embroiled in a race row, Sky News understands. Two sources said discussions are ongoing about the extra money from Frank Hester, which if received, would take the amount he has donated since 2019 to £15m. Politics Live: 62 Tory MPs now

There are some weeks in politics where what Westminster needs is a monsoon to wash away the toxicity enveloping this place and clean up the atmosphere – and this week is one of them.  Be it the Number 10 agenda this week on better defining extremism, an unruly MP in the shape of Lee Anderson,

The government has unveiled its new definition of extremism as part of a drive to clamp down on Islamist and far-right extremism. Some have warned the change could have a “chilling effect” on free speech, while others have said it doesn’t go far enough. How has the definition changed, why has the government done it,

Michael Gove says he is inclined to “exercise Christian forgiveness” when it comes to alleged remarks a Tory donor made about former Labour MP Diane Abbott. Earlier this week, the Guardian reported that businessman Frank Hester told his staff Ms Abbott made him “want to hate all black women” and “should be shot”. The comments

Rishi Sunak appears to have ruled out returning money to a Tory donor who allegedly said Diane Abbott made him “want to hate all black women” and “should be shot”.  Asked at Prime Minister’s Questions by Labour MP Marsha De Cordova if he would hand back one of the specific donations from Frank Hester’s company

Growth returned in the UK economy in January, according to official figures. The measure of everything produced in the UK – a metric called gross domestic product (GDP) – rose 0.2%, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. It’s the first official economic growth announcement since a recession was declared last month as there were

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch has said alleged comments made about Diane Abbott by a Tory donor were “racist” – but that there should be “space for forgiveness”. Ms Badenoch is the first cabinet minister to use the term to describe Frank Hester’s reported remarks about the former Labour MP, after government ministers including Graham Stuart

A minister has refused to say if the Conservatives should return money to one of its biggest donors, after reports Frank Hester said former Labour MP Diane Abbott made him “want to hate all black women”. The allegations about the chief executive of The Phoenix Partnership – who donated £10m to the Tories last year

Former Conservative deputy chair Lee Anderson has defected to Reform UK, becoming the party’s first MP in the Commons. Mr Anderson, who took the seat of Ashfield in 2019, was kicked out of the parliamentary Conservative Party for refusing to apologise after alleging that London mayor Sadiq Khan was controlled by “Islamists”. And while some

Michael Gove is poised to unveil a new definition of extremism amid jitters in government at his plan. The Politics at Jack and Sam’s podcast discusses the big announcement by Rishi Sunak‘s government this week – designed to update and increase the number of organisations that are classed as “extremist” and put new limits on

Labour will not bail out bankrupt councils, the shadow chancellor has said. “I’m not going to be able to fix all the problems straightaway,” Rachel Reeves said during an interview on Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips. Her comments follow Birmingham City Council effectively declaring bankruptcy after being hit with a £760m bill to

Politicians have condemned a “moronic act of vandalism” after pro-Palestine activists damaged a portrait of Lord Balfour. Palestine Action shared a video on social media of a demonstrator defacing and slashing the historic painting, which hangs at the University of Cambridge’s Trinity College. In the clip, a woman can be seen spraying red paint before

This week a Welsh government minister announced he would delete his X account once he steps back from his transport role, after facing significant abuse on social media. Lee Waters, the Welsh government’s deputy minister for climate change, said he would now receive “a pile of malign comments for even the most innocuous posts”. Sky

Lord David Cameron has said the lack of aid getting into Gaza is “frustrating” as he revealed the UK’s involvement in US plans to increase the flow of humanitarian relief into the beleaguered territory. The foreign secretary was speaking after US President Joe Biden announced the US military will establish a temporary port on the

Former Prime Minister Theresa May has announced she will stand down as an MP at the next general election, it has been reported. In an exclusive statement to her local paper, Mrs May said she had taken the “difficult decision” to quit the Commons after 27 years representing her Maidenhead constituency. The 67-year-old also pledged