UK

The Metropolitan Police has asked for “minimal reference” to be made in Sue Gray’s partygate report to the events it is investigating. The senior civil servant is investigating a series of events in Downing Street and across Whitehall which are alleged to have broken lockdown rules. Her report, which is likely to have a significant

Boris Johnson has dismissed claims he approved the airlift of animals out of Afghanistan, saying they are “total rhubarb”, as Sky News obtained more emails which call into question the government’s account. Leaked messages appear to show that the prime minister‘s top parliamentary aide, Trudy Harrison, told Virgin Atlantic her efforts to secure a plane

Limits on visitors in care homes will be lifted as restrictions put in place to slow the spread of the Omicron COVID variant in adult social care are eased. From Monday 31 January, care home residents will be able to receive unlimited visitors while self-isolation periods will be cut from 14 days to 10 for

Whistleblower emails have raised further questions over Boris Johnson’s insistence that he did not intervene to assist animal charities during the evacuation of Afghanistan. Last December the prime minister dismissed claims made by a former Foreign Office official that the government prioritised animals over people as “complete nonsense”. But new emails released by the Foreign

The return to school is driving up Omicron infections in children and could lead to another surge in adults, scientists have warned. The latest results from the REACT-1 study, which is based on around 100,000 random tests across England, show that the infection rate in primary school-age children was 7.8% – and rising – during

Sue Gray has received photos of Downing Street parties which include Boris Johnson and others close together with wine bottles, Sky News understands. The latest revelation comes shortly after a government source said senior civil servant Ms Gray’s report into parties in Downing Street and Whitehall that may have broken COVID rules could be published

A minister has resigned at the despatch box after criticising the government’s record on tackling fraud in the coronavirus business schemes. Lord Agnew, who was both a Treasury and Cabinet Office minister, dramatically quit his role in Boris Johnson’s government in the House of Lords on Monday afternoon, saying the Department for Business, Energy and

Pressure on the NHS created by COVID led to at least 4,000 excess deaths from other conditions and mean that 32,000 cancer patients who should have started treatment are still waiting, according to new analysis. The figures come from a new report published by the CAGE centre at the University of Warwick. It is thought

The Liverpool terror attacker’s asylum claim was dismissed six years before he tried to carry out his strike, court documents show. Emad al Swealmeen died after his homemade bomb detonated inside a taxi outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital on Remembrance Sunday last year. He came to the UK legally in May 2014, with a Jordanian passport.

Boris Johnson met Tory MP Nusrat Ghani in 2020 following her claim she was sacked over her “Muslimness” – and “invited” her to make a formal complaint, Number 10 has said. The prime minister’s official spokesman said Mr Johnson held a meeting with Ms Ghani after she claimed a Tory whip told her her faith

The chief whip has said an MP’s claims that she was sacked as a minister because of her Muslim faith are “completely false”. Nusrat Ghani, the 49-year-old MP for Wealden in East Sussex, was sacked as transport minister in a February 2020 re-shuffle. Ms Ghani said she was told by a whip, who she did

Attempts to pressure Tory MPs trying to topple Boris Johnson are illegal, the head of a Westminster sleaze watchdog has argued. Labour MP Chris Bryant, who is chairman of the Commons Standards Committee, said alleged threats to pull public funding from members’ constituencies amounted to “misconduct in public office” and should be reported to the

Police will meet with a Conservative MP who has alleged that government figures have been engaging in “intimidation” that amounts to “blackmail” against Tories who have questioned Boris Johnson’s position. A Scotland Yard detective will talk with William Wragg next week about his allegation, which comes as the prime minister is under pressure over a

The UK Health Security Agency has designated the Omicron variant sub-lineage, known as BA.2, as a variant under investigation – with current case rates very low. Just 53 sequences of the sub-lineage had been identified in the UK by 10 January, the HSA said. The health body said further analysis will be undertaken. BA.2 does

Fears are growing inside 10 Downing Street that former pub landlady Sue Gray could call time on Boris Johnson in her Whitehall report on partygate. Sky News understands there is nervousness in Number 10 over what the top civil servant’s report on the Downing Street Parties – which some MPs believe could be published as

Conservative MPs who want Boris Johnson to resign have been intimidated by the party and should contact the police if they have been blackmailed, a senior Tory has warned. William Wragg, chair of the public administration and constitutional affairs committee, said a “number of MPs have faced intimidation” after declaring, or assumed to have declared,

A defiant Boris Johnson is clinging on to power, insisting he won’t quit even if his enemies in the Tory party force a vote of confidence in his leadership The prime minister is determined to fight back, boosted by an apparent split among the Tory plotters on when to launch their coup and on who

Work from home guidance, COVID passports and mandatory wearing of face-masks will be scrapped in England, as Boris Johnson announced the lifting of Plan B measures. The prime minister said people will no longer be told to work from home “from now on”, and from Thursday next week mandatory mask-wearing and COVID certification will end.

Boris Johnson will face a confidence vote in his leadership of the Conservative Party after enough MPs submitted letters calling for a contest. It will take place between 6pm and 8pm this evening in the House of Commons and an announcement is expected about an hour after the vote closes. After months of speculation, it

Boris Johnson is set to announce an easing of Plan B coronavirus restrictions in England. The prime minister will go through the latest COVID-19 data on Wednesday morning with his ministers, before making a statement to MPs. Mr Johnson’s Commons announcement comes as pressure continues to mount over parties and gatherings held in Downing Street

Boris Johnson has said “nobody told me” the Number 10 garden party during lockdown was “against the rules”. The prime minister said he “humbly apologises” to people for misjudgements that were made but he would not have gone ahead with the event if he thought it broke the rules. He said: “I’m saying categorically that

No 10 policy bosses have explored the use of powerful sonic weapons to force migrants to turn around in the English Channel, amid a growing row over how to handle the situation. The Long-Range Acoustic Devices (LRAD) are already installed on two Border Force vessels but are used to issue voice commands. They were purchased

Boris Johnson’s former chief adviser has said the prime minister knew in advance about a Downing Street drinks party during the first coronavirus lockdown and agreed that it could go ahead. In an updated post on his Substack page, Dominic Cummings said he raised his concerns about the event in the Number 10 garden in

The time people must spend in isolation for contracting COVID has been reduced to five days in England, as 16 and 17-year-olds have been invited to receive their COVID-19 vaccine booster. People in England can now leave quarantine after five full days providing they test negative on days five and six. Ministers reduced the isolation

Prince Andrew has been accused of “victim blaming” and “gaslighting” after his lawyers asked for Virginia Giuffre’s mental health records – including confidential notes from her counselling sessions. The Duke of York’s legal team want to question Ms Giuffre’s psychologist Dr Judith Lightfoot about her “alleged emotional and psychological harm and damages”. His lawyers have

Prince Harry has filed a claim for a judicial review over a Home Office decision to not to allow him to privately pay for police protection for himself and his family during a visit to the UK. A legal representative for Harry said he wants to bring his son Archie and seven-month-old baby daughter Lilibet

Boris Johnson should be kicked out in the national interest, the Labour leader has said following fresh claims of Downing Street boozing in defiance of lockdown restrictions. Sir Keir Starmer has further ramped up the pressure on the embattled prime minister arguing he had lost his moral authority and was too preoccupied in “defending his

Sir Keir Starmer is turning up the heat on Boris Johnson on Downing Street drinking after new allegations of “wine time Fridays” in Number 10. In a major speech, the Labour leader will claim the partying allegations of the past few days reveal that the prime minister is guilty of “deceit and deception” and unable

Number 10 has apologised to the Queen over two parties held in Downing Street on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral. The prime minister’s spokesperson said it was “deeply regrettable that this took place at a time of national mourning”. Earlier on Friday, the prime minister’s former director of communications apologised “unreservedly” for one of

Downing Street has failed to deny reports that two parties took place at No 10 the night before Prince Philip’s COVID-restricted funeral – at a time when indoor mixing was banned. In fresh claims that will further fuel the “partygate” crisis afflicting the prime minister, it is claimed that Downing Street staff drank alcohol into

The isolation period in England for those who test positive for COVID will be reduced from seven days to five, the health secretary has announced. Revealing the move in a Commons statement, Sajid Javid said data from the UK Health Security Agency shows that “around two-thirds of positive cases are no longer infectious by the

Boris Johnson is battling to survive as prime minister, despite throwing himself on the mercy of MPs and apologising for the “bring your own booze” Downing Street party. With top Tories joining Opposition leaders in calling for him to resign, he faces a perilous few weeks that could see his two-and-a-half-year premiership brought to a

Boris Johnson will face the House of Commons later amid intense pressure from Conservative MPs and Tory donors – and in the face of public anger – to answer questions over a “bring your own booze” event in Downing Street during the first COVID lockdown. The prime minister, who has so far avoided questions over