Politics

Sir Keir Starmer could have “serious questions to answer” if he was talking to Sue Gray while she was advising the MPs investigating partygate, a senior minister has told Sky News. Foreign Secretary James Cleverly was speaking as the cabinet office is set to publish an “update into the circumstances leading to the resignation of

Labour says there is an emerging “pattern of behaviour” after a company partially owned by the prime minister’s wife was revealed to have received taxpayer cash. It comes after it was revealed that Akshata Murty held shares in a childcare company which stands to benefit from policy announced in the budget. Ms Murty, who is

Nurses could keep holding strikes “up until Christmas” if the current dispute is not resolved, the leader of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has told Sky News. Pat Cullen, the head of the RCN union, was speaking as her members picket today – although the period of action is truncated after judges ruled the

Striking rail staff should want to stand in solidarity with fellow Ukrainian workers rather than “cynically target” the Eurovision Song Contest, which the UK is hosting on behalf of the war-torn nation, the transport secretary has said. Speaking to Sky News’ Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme, Mark Harper argued the stricken country’s train network has

A senior MP has accused police of giving the “green light” to internet trolls after a vexatious complaint saw her subjected to a social services investigation. Stella Creasy was told her harasser would not face criminal sanctions because he was “entitled” to his view her children should be taken into care because of her “extreme”

Sir Keir Starmer has denied that a Labour attack advert aimed at Rishi Sunak is racist. A series of recent ads, which have been described as “gutter politics” and criticised by some of Labour’s own MPs, have targeted the prime minister personally. In an interview with Sky News, Sophy Ridge questioned the party leader about

Labour will perform strongest in the Midlands and north of England next week, according to an exclusive new local election projection for Sky News, which suggests the “Red wall” is starting to abandon the Conservatives. The Tories are also likely to struggle in key bellwether seats elsewhere in England – although the pollster did not

More than 3,000 people eligible to come to the UK are trapped in Afghanistan, the government has admitted. In 2021, the UK organised a hurried evacuation to get vulnerable Afghans and British citizens out of the country after the Taliban seized control of Kabul. But responding to a damning report from the Commons’ defence committee

Labour insiders have expressed concern about Tory plans to ramp up attacks on Sir Keir Starmer’s tenure as director of public prosecutions, Sky News can reveal. The Labour leader has repeatedly referenced his time leading the Crown Prosecution Service between 2008 and 2013 as a core part of his political pitch to voters. At PMQs

A new tax on gambling firms and maximum stakes for online slot machines are being considered under government plans to crack down on online addiction. The government is due to publish its highly anticipated gambling review on Thursday following a number of delays. Among the measures expected to be confirmed in the report is a

The behaviour of people arriving in the UK on small boats is “at odds with British values”, the home secretary has claimed. Speaking exclusively to Sky News, Suella Braverman said people making the dangerous Channel crossing – who include asylum seekers – were “behaving unacceptably” by “breaking our rules” and “abusing the generosity of the

Rishi Sunak must stand up for the civil service after Dominic Raab’s resignation over bullying complaints from his staff, a former Foreign Office chief has said. Mr Raab quit his roles in government last week after two complaints were upheld against him for acting in an “intimidating way” and being “unreasonably and persistently aggressive” in

Nicola Sturgeon has admitted she could not have imagined “in her worst nightmares” the controversy currently engulfing the SNP. The former Scottish first minister refused to comment on the £100,000 campervan removed from outside her mother-in-law’s home and denied the police investigation was the reason behind her decision to step down. Speaking to journalists at

Malcolm Cameron-Lee thought he was doing the right thing when he decided to invest his lifesavings into property twenty years ago to fund a comfortable retirement. At the time, “pension schemes were being mismanaged” and, as an electrical contractor, he believed “the way things were working it was better to fend for yourself”. But the

The government will take a nursing union to court next week in an attempt to stop its latest strike action. Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) are due to walk-out for 48 hours from 8pm on Sunday night until 8pm on Tuesday 2 May after rejecting the latest pay offer from the government.

The deputy prime minister has said police will “take all necessary steps” to prevent any disruption to the King’s coronation by anti-monarchist campaigners. Activists are planning to disrupt the ceremony by setting off rape alarms and throwing them at horses taking part in the procession, according to a report in The Mail on Sunday. The

Labour MP Diane Abbott has apologised for remarks in which she suggested Jewish people do not face racism but instead face prejudice similar to “redheads”. In a letter to the Observer in response to an article which had the headline “Racism in Britain is not a black and white issue. It’s far more complicated,” Ms

Dominic Raab says he left office with his “head held high” after resigning over a report which found he had bullied staff. The former deputy PM believes he was forced out by civil servants who were opposed to Brexit and his attempts to reform human rights legislation. A report conducted by Adam Tolley KC upheld

The Scottish National Party (SNP) has appointed MP Stuart McDonald as its new treasurer following the resignation of Colin Beattie on Wednesday. Mr Beattie stepped down after he was arrested in connection with an investigation into the party’s finances. He was subsequently released without charge pending further enquiries. His arrest came after the party’s former

Viewers of Sky News might have noticed the tone of the coverage of Dominic Raab’s resignation evolve as the morning went on. At the point of the announcement of his departure, all we had was Mr Raab’s resignation letter. Bluntly, it appeared about as graceless as possible by the standards of most resignation letters. The

Dominic Raab has resigned after allegations he bullied staff members while working as a cabinet minister across different departments. In a letter posted on Twitter, the deputy prime minister and justice secretary revealed a report into his behaviour upheld two claims against him. But he took issue with the findings, calling them “flawed” and claiming

Dominic Raab’s fate is in the hands of Rishi Sunak after a long-awaited investigation into bullying claims by his deputy concluded. A report on the findings, which is understood to be “very lengthy”, was handed to Number 10 on Thursday morning, with the prime minister said to be “carefully considering” its conclusions. Senior lawyer Adam

A long-awaited report into bullying allegations against Dominic Raab has been handed to Number 10 – with the prime minister “carefully considering” its findings. Mr Raab, the deputy prime minister and justice secretary, has been subject to an independent investigation by senior lawyer Adam Tolley KC since November last year. Rishi Sunak’s spokesperson said the

Voters heading to polling stations in England on 4 May will need to provide photo ID for the first time.  There are fears some people could lose out on their right to vote as up to 3.5m people don’t have existing photo ID – and only around 50,000 people have applied for voter ID. Here’s

The Scottish National Party (SNP) is being investigated by police who are looking into where funds meant for a second independence referendum have gone. The inquiry, named Operation Branchform, was launched in 2021 but ramped up in April as former chief executive Peter Murrell, Nicola Sturgeon’s husband, and SNP treasurer Colin Beattie were arrested. Launched

The American statesman who brokered the Good Friday Agreement has urged the people of Northern Ireland to have more self-confidence. George Mitchell told Sky News it was “not beyond the competence or ability” of the political leaders to resolve difficulties preventing the restoration of power-sharing. The retired US Senator, who returned to Belfast to mark

When Tony Blair concluded the deal ahead of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement 25 years ago, he famously declared: “A day like today is not a day for soundbites, we can leave those at home.” But then he added, in one of the most famous and often ridiculed quotes of his premiership: “But

Hundreds of thousands of people could be denied their right to vote unless new compulsory voter ID rules are delayed, a former Conservative cabinet minister has warned. Raising the alarm about the impact of forcing voters to produce ID in England for the first time at May’s local elections, Tory grandee David Davis urged the

A fundamental change to the voting system in England is coming. Brought in with little fanfare but potentially huge consequences, a new requirement for voters to show photo ID for the first time could disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of people. The rule change was a Conservative manifesto pledge, and parliament approved the change. But as

Rishi Sunak has criticised vaping companies for appealing to children – and revealed he is looking forward to US singer Katy Perry performing at the King’s coronation concert. In an interview with Sky News’ children’s programme, FYI, the prime minister hit out at vaping companies for targeting children with colourful adverts and characters. He told

Parliament’s standards watchdog has opened an investigation into the prime minister over possible failure to declare an interest. The probe by the standards commissioner, Daniel Greenberg, was launched on 13 April and cited paragraph 6 of the MPs code of conduct, which governs how MPs should behave. The code states that “members must always be

Government spending on storing personal protective equipment (PPE) in China increased by £2.35m in the year to January – as households struggle to make ends meet amid the cost of living crisis. According to data revealed by the Labour Party, the taxpayer paid £23.5m to store life-saving protective equipment from February 2021 to January 2022

Controversial Labour attack adverts targeting Rishi Sunak were not a mistake and there are more to come, a senior shadow cabinet member has told Sky News. Wes Streeting argued it was “absolutely right to take the gloves off” and hold the government to account for its record. The social media campaign in which the opposition