Politics

Boris Johnson is facing more pressure over Downing Street parties as he attempts to cling to power, after receiving a questionnaire from the Metropolitan Police. Senior Tory MPs claim that despite his determination to fight on it will be difficult for him to continue as prime minister if he is fined for breaching COVID lockdown

All children aged five to 11 in the UK will be offered a low dose COVID vaccine after England and Northern Ireland became the latest of the four nations to offer those in that age group the jab. Health Secretary Sajid Javid confirmed that the UK government’s vaccine advisory body – the Joint Committee on

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will hold fresh talks with EU vice-president Maros Sefcovic over post-Brexit arrangements for Northern Ireland ahead of a hoped-for deadline for a deal later this month. The pair will meet at Ms Truss’s official residence in London on Friday morning for their latest discussions over the Northern Ireland Protocol. It brings

COVID passes and the need to wear face coverings in certain venues will be scrapped in Wales later this month. From 18 February, domestic COVID passes will no longer be required to enter indoor or outdoor events including nightclubs, cinemas, or theatres. But venues will still be able to use them if they choose to.

The education secretary has told Sky News he would have been in “big trouble” if he had not been vaccinated against COVID-19. Recounting his experience of the virus, which he contracted at the end of last month, Nadhim Zahawi said he could have ended up on a ventilator. “I think, without the vaccine and the

Former prime minister Sir John Major has launched a stinging attack on Boris Johnson, accusing him of asking the public to “believe the unbelievable” over lockdown parties in Downing Street. In an apparent call-to-action for MPs to move against Mr Johnson, he said “deliberate lies to parliament have been fatal to political careers – and

Police are reviewing their initial decision not to investigate a Christmas quiz in Number 10, held at a time of strict COVID rules, after a picture of Boris Johnson and a bottle of alcohol emerged. Scotland Yard said they would rethink their assessment of the event following the publication of an image of the prime

A minister has warned that “everyone needs to reflect carefully on the language they use” as Boris Johnson faces increasing pressure to apologise over his discredited claim that Sir Keir Starmer failed to prosecute Jimmy Saville. At Prime Minister’s Questions at noon, the PM will make his first House of Commons appearance since Sir Keir

MPs have mocked Boris Johnson’s triple-jobbing chief of staff after he declined to appear in the House of Commons to explain his new role. Following an exodus of senior advisers from Number 10 in the wake of the partygate scandal, the prime minister has appointed Steve Barclay as his new top aide. He has been

Boris Johnson’s new communications chief has said the PM welcomed him into the job with a rendition of ‘I Will Survive’. In his first interview since being appointed as Downing Street director of communications, Guto Harri told Welsh-language website Golwg360 the pair launched into the Gloria Gaynor classic after he asked Mr Johnson if he

Jacob Rees-Mogg has been made minister for Brexit opportunities and government efficiency in a mini-reshuffle as Boris Johnson fights for his premiership. Mr Rees-Mogg, who was leader of the Commons, will remain a member of the cabinet in his new role, Downing Street said. Both of his new jobs have been newly created as the

Boris Johnson is starting a new week hoping that a fresh shake-up of his top Downing Street team will ease the concerns of Tory MPs – some of whom have publicly called for the prime minister to resign over his handling of the partygate scandal. The prime minister made key changes to his staffing over

Carrie Johnson has claimed she is the target of a “brutal briefing campaign” from her husband’s “enemies” after she was accused of meddling in decisions taken by the prime minister. A spokesperson for Boris Johnson’s wife said “bitter ex-officials” were trying to discredit her and insisted she played “no role in the government”. It comes

Boris Johnson has replaced two of the five close aides he lost in less than 24 hours as “partygate” allegations continue to threaten his premiership. Cabinet minister Steve Barclay will be the prime minister’s new chief of staff, replacing Dan Rosenfield. Mr Barclay, a former Brexit secretary, will also be charged with integrating a “new

Downing Street has refused to comment on reports a picture of Boris Johnson holding a beer at a birthday party in Number 10 during lockdown has been handed to the Metropolitan Police’s investigation. According to the Daily Mirror, the photo shows the prime minister standing next to Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who is holding a soft

WhatsApp messages between disgraced former Tory MP Owen Paterson and then-health secretary Matt Hancock have revealed the extent to which he was lobbying on behalf of a firm paying him more than £8,000 a month. Mr Paterson resigned from the Commons in November last year after he was found to have breached lobbying rules through

Four key resignations in Downing Street on Thursday are the result of the prime minister “taking charge”, a government minister has told Sky News. Energy minister Greg Hands said Boris Johnson was making the promised changes to his team in the wake of the highly-critical Sue Gray report into the partygate allegations. Sunak takes swipe

There is only one question being asked in Westminster right now: What is going on in Downing Street? When I put it to one of Boris Johnson’s senior allies, their response was simple… the prime minister is “under siege”. They pointed to the series of chaotic resignations from Number 10 over the space of a

Analysis by Jon Craig, political correspondent It’s being called D-day for the cost-of-living crisis. And Rishi Sunak is determined to be centre stage and show the public and Tory MPs that he has the right measures to tackle it. On a day of good news and bad news, on which the bad threatens to outweigh

Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood has told Sky News he will be submitting a letter of no confidence in Boris Johnson today. The senior Tory, who is chair of the Defence Select Committee, revealed in an interview with Kay Burley that he would be making the move. He said it is “time to resolve this” as

Another Tory MP has revealed he has submitted a letter of no confidence in the prime minister over his handling of partygate allegations – the third today. Sir Gary Streeter, one of the Conservative Party’s longest-serving MPs, is the latest to add his name to the list of those who have publicly announced they are,

Twelve alleged lockdown-busting gatherings are being investigated by the Metropolitan Police as part of the Downing Street partygate row, it has been revealed. The Scotland Yard investigation is the second inquiry to take place into claims Number 10 officials – including Prime Minister Boris Johnson himself – were partying in 2020 and 2021 in breach

The public would “hypothetically” be told if the prime minister was fined for breaking COVID rules, Downing Street has said – reversing an earlier assertion that refused to guarantee that would happen. When asked earlier whether any fixed penalty notices would be made public, the prime minister‘s spokesman said it was for the Metropolitan Police

People who followed COVID rules “will feel like they’ve been taken for mugs” by the prime minster, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has told Sky News. Speaking to Kay Burley, Sir Keir said many members of the public will have felt “anger, grief and guilt” when looking back at how they obeyed COVID-19 restrictions over

Boris Johnson will continue his fightback from the partygate scandal by unveiling plans for a “Brexit Freedoms Bill” to allow retained EU laws to be more easily removed. On the second anniversary of the UK’s official departure from the EU, the prime minister is pledging to “further unleash the benefits of Brexit” with a promise

Boris Johnson is facing more pressure from Conservative MPs to “go back to the drawing board” over a planned tax hike after he recommitted to an increase in National Insurance to help fund the NHS and social care. Senior Tory backbencher Robert Halfon told Sky News the government should instead look at windfall taxes on

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak have doubled down on a controversial hike to National Insurance, following reports the prime minister was having second thoughts about the policy. Mr Johnson is under pressure from some Conservative MPs to scrap or at least delay the increase to win back support as he awaits the findings of Whitehall

Tom Tugendhat has become the first MP to say he would run to replace Prime Minister Boris Johnson in a Tory leadership contest. The ex-soldier and Foreign Affairs Select Committee chairman told Times Radio it would be a “huge privilege”. He said he had not been “canvassing support”, but “of course, you should have a

Theresa May has said she is “angry” at the partygate revelations engulfing Boris Johnson, her successor in Number 10. Mrs May, who was in Downing Street from 2016 to 2019, made her intervention regarding the scandal in a letter seen by her local newspaper. She told constituents that “nobody is above the law”, the Maidenhead

A rise in National Insurance contributions in April “is going ahead”, a minister has told Sky News, amid reports Boris Johnson is considering delaying the increase. Technology minister Chris Philp said funds are needed for the NHS and social care and the move is a “proportionate way” of finding the cash. His comments come after

A senior Conservative MP has called for the government to delay the proposed National Insurance hike amid rising cost of living pressures Mel Stride, who chairs the influential Commons Treasury Select Committee, told Sky News that “for a period of one year, the increase should be jettisoned” as the economy is managing better than the

The wait for Sue Gray’s report into lockdown parties in Downing Street and Whitehall to be published has rolled into another day – with Boris Johnson still yet to receive the findings. Sky News understands the report – which is being compiled by the senior civil servant – is still yet to have been sent

Downing Street has yet to receive a report into lockdown parties in Downing Street and across Whitehall, the foreign secretary has confirmed to Sky News. Speaking to Kay Burley, Liz Truss said the government would release the “findings” from the Cabinet Office inquiry, which is being led by senior civil servant Sue Gray. PM braces