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
Politics
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
Cherie Blair has revealed the advice Hillary Clinton gave to her before her husband’s landslide victory at the 1997 general election. Speaking to Sky’s Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge, Tony Blair‘s wife said Mrs Clinton became her mentor when the Labour politician became leader of the opposition in 1994 and is “still a dear friend”.
Jeremy Hunt’s budget is unlikely to win back many Tory supporters from the last election, the Sky News Voters Panel suggests. We have spent the last fortnight interrogating the views of our YouGov-run online community of more than 50 voters who backed the Tories in the 2019 general election. Today they deliver their verdict on
The chancellor has said that the current tax system for non-doms will be abolished – and confirmed a 2p cut to national insurance. In the budget, Jeremy Hunt said “permanent cuts in taxation” were possible because of the progress made in bringing down inflation – with forecasts suggesting it will fall to the target level
Graduates in their 20s are earning less in real terms than they were before the 2008 financial crash, and are £1,200 worse off than they were at the start of the pandemic on average, despite recent cuts to national insurance. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has teased further national insurance cuts in his upcoming budget, following on
Britain’s electoral map could look dramatically different after voters go to the polls this year. Labour is on course for a majority but in parts of the North of England and the Midlands, the battle is by no means straightforward. Galloway met with silence in Commons – politics latest Here, there are a number of
Rishi Sunak has suffered a number of sizeable defeats in the House of Lords over his controversial bill to rescue the stalled Rwanda plan. Peers have voted through five amendments which, if enacted in law, would make it harder for parliament to declare the African nation ‘safe’ and would require the government to comply with
George Galloway has been sworn in as an MP, following his successful election last week. He will represent Rochdale following a by-election, triggered by the death of Labour’s Sir Tony Lloyd. Mr Galloway romped to victory with a majority, with independent runner David Tully finishing in second place, the Conservatives in third and Labour in
Any tax cuts made during this budget will “one way or another be undone after the election”, according to one economist. Speaking to Sky News, Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, explained that – if it were not an election year – it is unlikely that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt would be
The chancellor has played down expectations of tax cuts in Wednesday’s budget, telling Sky News his spending plans will be “prudent and responsible”. Speaking to Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, the cabinet minister it would be “deeply unconservative” to take decisions that were unfunded and increased borrowing. Jeremy Hunt is under pressure to deliver tax
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has tempered expectations of tax cuts in Wednesday’s budget as he announced an £800m package of technology reforms designed to free up time for frontline public sector workers. As part of Treasury reforms, police will use drones to assess incidents such as traffic collisions and artificial intelligence will be deployed to cut
Rishi Sunak has railed against “extremist forces trying to tear us apart” during a Downing Street address to the nation. The prime minister said there has been a “shocking increase in extremist disruption and criminality” and added that “now our democracy itself is a target”. He described the Rochdale by-election result on Thursday night as
A reduction in national insurance would be a “union tax cut”, the prime minister has said ahead of the budget next week. Rishi Sunak told journalists at the Scottish Conservative conference in Aberdeen on Friday that while he could not comment on what the chancellor Jeremy Hunt will announce on 6 March, he could see
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