Millions of public sector workers are set for an above-inflation pay rise due to be announced by Rachel Reeves next week after more than a decade of austerity. The chancellor is expected to accept the recommendations of public sector pay bodies for pay increases on Monday – a move economists believe could cost up to … Read more
Labour has announced its biggest step yet in overhauling the UK’s approach to the Middle East, dropping its opposition to an international arrest warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu despite pressure from Washington not to do so. Downing Street announced on Friday that the government would not submit a challenge to the jurisdiction of the international criminal … Read more
The Conservatives have set the spending limit in their leadership contest at £400,000, as the beaten and skint opposition party tries to use the race to cover costs. Robert Jenrick, a frontrunner who has been preparing for the contest for some time, had pressed for a higher cap. The £400,000 limit is £100,000 more than … Read more
MPs and candidates who faced abuse on the campaign trail have pressed ministers to act over intimidation around polling stations and via social media algorithms that push incendiary material. Half a dozen MPs and candidates attended a roundtable meeting with Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, Dan Jarvis, the security minister, and Angela Rayner, the deputy … Read more
The pub is empty when we arrive. “Can you fit us in?” Jess Phillips asks the barman, followed by the familiar smirk. She can’t help herself. Phillips has never been your regular MP. She’s a warm, wise-cracking, potty-mouthed, deeply serious showoff. She’s political Marmite. Lots of people love her, while a fair few hate her … Read more
A pair of gas-guzzling Bentleys are not the most obvious candidates to burnish the monarch’s green credentials. But news that King Charles is converting his chauffeur-driven luxury vehicles to run on biofuels was this week billed as a small step in a bigger plan to reduce emissions – perhaps the equivalent of lesser mortals separating … Read more
Even in a room full of generals from around the world decked in military braid, the arrival of the prime minister causes a stir. At the Farnborough international airshow this week, knots of advisers and armed police surrounded Keir Starmer as he walked through the stalls, occasionally allowing a favoured chief executive or a nervous … Read more
BBC The parliamentary Conservative party is dazed and confused, even grief-stricken. Many knew a big defeat was coming, though some were in denial. All agree that the reality of life in opposition is even worse than expected. “It’s like Lehman Brothers around here,” one Conservative MP muttered, as he saw yet another ousted colleague wander … Read more
Getty It’s been a busy first week for Labour, with a raft of announcements including plans to tackle prison overcrowding, get people back into work and build 1.5 million new homes. But what are the hurdles that lie ahead? Finding the cash for wind power Wind is a key engine of change for Labour, who … Read more
BBC Sir Keir Starmer is now trying to turn his missions into reality “Oh god! We’ve got a Labour government!” A delighted member of the Cabinet told me reality only finally hit them when driving through their constituency on Friday, more than a week after voters sent the Tories packing. In the prime minister’s first … Read more