Category Archives: UK news

Labour gains in leave areas may cut swing needed for overall majority

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Analysis reveals voters switching from the Tories in pro-Brexit seats could make a Starmer election victory easier to achieve

Voters are switching from the Tories to Labour in the most pro-leave parts of the country in such numbers that Keir Starmer may need a far lower overall swing from the Conservatives to win a parliamentary majority than was previously believed, election analysts have claimed.

In their analysis of this month’s local elections, professors Robert Ford of Manchester University and John Curtice of Strathclyde University both noted that the bigger the 2016 vote was for leave in an area, the higher the swing was to Labour.

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Tory Welsh secretary broke ministerial code with social media video, says Labour

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Party accuses Cabinet minister David TC Davies of breaching rules by using Whitehall office to film X post attacking Senedd expansion plans

A Tory cabinet minister has been accused of a blatant breach of the ministerial code after using his government office in Whitehall to film an anti-Labour video that he then posted on social media.

Welsh secretary David TC Davies put the short film on X (formerly Twitter) last week to attack Labour plans to expand the size of the Welsh Senedd and highlight the Conservative party’s opposition to it.

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‘Self-defeating’: senior Tories warn Sunak against clampdown on international students

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Party members say visa restrictions will damage economy and lead to the closure of already-struggling universities

Universities will be plunged into greater financial distress and Britain’s economic recovery dented should ministers proceed with a new “self-defeating” clampdown on international student visas, senior Tories are warning.

Vice-chancellors believe a renewed attempt to reduce visa numbers is just weeks away after ministers ordered their immigration advisers to make an emergency assessment of how a visa designed to attract students to the UK was operating. The report is expected to land on the desk of home secretary James Cleverly next week.

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Teenager dies after being pulled from river in Northamptonshire

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Police say 17-year-old Ronalds Abele got into difficulty while swimming at the Embankment in Wellingborough

A teenage boy has died after getting into difficulty while swimming in the River Nene, Northamptonshire police said.

Ronalds Abele, 17, was swimming at the Embankment in Wellingborough on Friday, and was pulled from the water by emergency services after he got into difficulty.

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UK set for hottest day of year on Sunday at 27C – followed by thunderstorms

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Top temperatures expected, but heavy rain to follow with weather warnings in place for week ahead

Britain will experience its hottest temperatures of the year on Sunday – before thunderstorms and heavy rain bring an end to the sunny conditions that the country has enjoyed over the past few days.

The Met Office forecasts temperatures will peak at around 27C before the wet weather arrives. Western areas, including parts of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, will be the first to encounter the storms.

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Eurovision viewing parties in England cancelled over Israel’s participation

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High-profile parties including London’s biggest viewing event called off amid ongoing offensive in Gaza

Eurovision is one of the biggest nights of the year for many LGBTQ+ venues across the UK, offering an opportunity for a joyful party celebrating music and high camp.

Celebrations will be mixed this year, however, after a number of high-profile events were cancelled in protest at Israel’s participation.

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Three Davids throw off Global Britain bluster and chart new foreign policy course

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Speeches by Cameron, Lammy and Miliband all depicted a darkening world but differed on where to find allies

In a TikTok world it’s rare that three big foreign policy speeches come along all at once, all trying to chart a new course for the UK in a more perilous world, and all written by someone christened David.

But it says something for how foreign affairs dominates so much political thinking currently that speeches this week by David Cameron, the foreign secretary, David Lammy, his shadow, and David Miliband, Labour’s non-resident foreign policy guru, all required attention.

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London’s remaining men-only gentlemen’s clubs discuss female membership

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Club secretaries at some institutions are understood to be consulting lawyers after vote at Garrick

Discussions are under way over whether to admit women at several of London’s remaining gentlemen’s clubs after this week’s vote by Garrick club members to allow women to join after 193 years.

The Travellers Club, the Savile Club, the Beefsteak Club, Boodle’s, Buck’s, Brooks’s, the East India Club and White’s are among a handful of the remaining London clubs that still do not admit female members.

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Man arrested after police officer shot in leg with crossbow in Buckinghamshire

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Officer taken to hospital and later released while suspect, 54, hospitalised under supervision after being shot by police in High Wycombe

A man was shot by police and arrested after an officer was shot in the leg with a crossbow in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, Thames Valley police said.

Police attended School Lane, Downley, around 6pm on Friday after a man in his 60s suffered a stab wound. Asst Chief Const Tim Metcalfe said one of the officers in attendance was shot in the leg with a crossbow and was taken to hospital but had since been released.

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Ministers consider making UK’s carbon targets easier to meet

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Fears Climate Change Committee’s advice not to allow carryover from last carbon budget will be ignored

Ministers are considering plans to weaken the UK’s carbon-cutting plans by allowing the unused portion of the last carbon budget to be carried over to the next period.

This would go against the strong recommendation of the government’s statutory climate advisers, the Climate Change Committee.

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Lake District caravan owners forced out by 60%-plus price rise

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A huge increase in fees means many vulnerable people have to leave the Derwentwater site they call home

Retired and vulnerable holiday homeowners claim they are being priced out of a “breathtaking” waterside campsite in the Lake District after the Camping and Caravanning Club raised one of the main charges by more than 60%.

The row at the static caravan park on the edge of Derwentwater, sometimes called “Queen of the Lakes” because it is cradled by fells, is over the “siting” fee owners pay when ageing vans are replaced.

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Shein ‘steps up plan for London IPO’ amid US listing hurdles

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Sources say Singapore-based online fashion retailer founded in China prefers a float in New York but faces tougher scrutiny than expected

The fast-fashion company Shein is stepping up preparations for a London listing after its attempt to float in New York faced regulatory hurdles and pushback from US lawmakers, sources have told Reuters.

The online clothing retailer plans to update China’s securities regulator on the change of the initial public offering (IPO) venue and file with the London Stock Exchange (LSE) as soon as this month, said one source.

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UK economy escapes recession with fastest growth since 2021, sending FTSE 100 to new high – business live

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Short, shallow recession is over, as UK economy grows faster than forecast in January-March quarter, by 0.6%, fastest quarterly growth in over two years


Labour’s shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has posted that it’s ‘time for change’.

Following this morning’s GDP report, Reeves says:

From no growth to low growth - is that really the scale of the Conservatives’ ambitions?

Food prices are still high, families are paying more on their monthly mortgage bills and working people are worse off.

Construction remains the one area of weakness, particularly in the commercial sector. That’s no surprise.

Real estate is particularly exposed to the effect of higher interest rates, and the upheaval of the pandemic is still rocking the office and retail sector - with increased home working and online shopping permanently changing demand. That’s not a trend that’s unique to the UK.

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UK public warned after huge rise in fires caused by binned batteries

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Fire chief says incorrect disposal of devices powered by lithium-ion batteries are ‘disaster waiting to happen’

Fires caused by batteries in waste have gone up by 71% in the UK since 2022, as the rise of disposable vapes and other portable battery-powered devices leads to more lithium-ion batteries ending up in the bin.

An increase in the number of these devices being thrown in household rubbish bins has led to more than 1,200 fires in the waste system in the past 12 months, compared with 700 in 2022, according to research conducted by the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) and the campaign group Recycle Your Electricals.

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Two Just Stop Oil protesters attack Magna Carta’s glass case

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Group says two women in their 80s took hammer and chisel to protective glass at British Library

Two Just Stop Oil protesters have smashed the glass around Magna Carta at the British Library.

The Rev Sue Parfitt, 82, and Judy Bruce, 85, a retired biology teacher, targeted the protective enclosure with a hammer and chisel on Friday morning.

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First UK deportation flight to Rwanda could take off in June, court papers suggest

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Government sources had indicated flights would begin in July, but order shows first could happen on 24 June

Rishi Sunak’s deportation flights to Rwanda, the cornerstone of the government’s immigration policy, could begin as early as 24 June, court papers seen by the Guardian show.

Government sources had indicated that the first flights carrying asylum seekers would take off in July, but a court order released on Friday has disclosed that the government now says flights could take off in late June.

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John Lewis owner cut 3,500 jobs last year yet hired chief on £1.2m pay deal

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Further job cuts likely as JLP says it is investing in automation as part of ‘simplifying the way we work’

The owner of John Lewis and Waitrose cut 3,500 jobs last year amid efforts to save costs in a tough market – but employed its first group chief executive on a more than £1m pay deal.

The staff-owned group, which has 34 John Lewis department stores and 329 Waitrose supermarkets, said it employed 72,900 people in its annual report published on Thursday, down from 76,400 a year before, helping to reduce its pay bill to £1.79bn from £1.82bn.

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Gang ringleader jailed for life for 2005 murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky

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Piran Ditta Khan, 75, was last of seven men convicted for involvement in Bradford robbery in which Beshenivsky was shot

The mastermind of an armed robbery that ended in a police officer being shot dead has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 40 years.

PC Sharon Beshenivsky’s family watched from court as the last member of the gang responsible for the armed raid that claimed her life was sentenced after almost 20 years.

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Anglo American’s South African investors open to revised BHP offer

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But such a takeover of London-listed mining firm opposed by politicians and unions in South Africa

South African shareholders of the mining company Anglo American have signalled they are open to a revised takeover offer from BHP, despite warnings from South African politicians and unions that a deal could be bad for the country.

Investors, which collectively own more than 15% of the London-listed mining company, told the Financial Times that they were not opposed in principle to an acquisition by its Australian rival but said an improved and less complex offer would be needed.

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Rwandans arrive in Australia after perilous journey to claim asylum

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Hunters reportedly find five Rwandan men in mangroves on Saibai Island, a known crocodile habitat

As the UK government continues its push to forcibly remove asylum seekers to Rwanda, a group of Rwandan nationals has claimed asylum in Australia after arriving by boat on a remote island.

The five men arrived in Australia by an unconventional route, reportedly flying into the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, to be granted visas on arrival, before travelling thousands of kilometres east to Indonesia’s Papua province, where they crossed the land border it shares with Papua New Guinea (PNG).

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