Andy Burnham nears Labour leadership finish line
Labour should ditch the triple-lock pensions promise to help tackle the UK’s straitened public finances, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has urged. Heather Stewart has the story.
I’m afraid we are not going to be able to open comments today for staffing reasons. If you want to contact me directly, it is probably best to get me on on Bluesky at @andrewsparrowgdn.bsky.social.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Andrew Bailey says he does not regret meeting Reform UK leader to discuss cryptocurrency regulation
The Bank of England governor has said he would have put off a meeting with Nigel Farage last autumn had the Reform UK leader’s £5m gift from a crypto billionaire been under investigation at the time.
Andrew Bailey said he did not regret meeting Farage to discuss the Bank’s plans for cryptocurrency regulation last September, months before the controversial donation from the Thailand-based investor Christopher Harborne was revealed by the Guardian in April.
Continue reading...Mayor of London backs calls from unions to update health and safety rules in light of more frequent heatwaves
The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is backing calls for a maximum workplace temperature as pressure grows on the government to protect workers from the impact of repeated heatwaves across the UK.
The extreme heat has left people struggling to cope as temperatures in some workplaces climb above 40C, causing thousands of schools to close and hospital and transport systems to break down.
Continue reading...Annual results show struggling firm’s net debt has risen to £18.5bn, up from £16.8bn a year earlier
Thames Water has said it has sufficient funding to survive until the end of the year but warned of “material uncertainty” over its future as it scrambles to recapitalise to avoid nationalisation.
The UK’s largest water company, which serves 16 million customers in London and the south of England, said it continued to work with creditors, regulators and the government on a recapitalisation plan.
Continue reading...Treaty came into effect at midnight, eliminating border controls on land frontier with British overseas territory
Spain and Gibraltar are celebrating the fall of the last frontier fence in western Europe after the signing of a post-Brexit deal that brings an end to border checks for residents, tourists and the thousands of Spanish workers who cross into the British overseas territory every day.
The agreement, which was signed in Brussels on Tuesday and came into effect at midnight, marks the conclusion of more than four years of negotiations between the UK, Spain, Gibraltar and the EU after Britain’s departure from the bloc.
Continue reading...Outgoing prime minister opens third reading debate on the Hillsborough law bill
In response to a question from Alec Shelbrooke (Con), Campbell said he was “totally unaware” not just of the wording of the Tory opposition day motion planned for tomorrow (see 1.04pm), but of the topic that it was going to cover. In a bid to convince MPs that this was not a lie, he said that he was standing at the despatch box and that MPs knew the importance of a minister “telling the absolute truth when they stand here”.
In the Commons, Alan Campbell, the leader of the house, has just announced there will be a change in parliamentary business tomorrow. Wednesday was set aside for an opposition day debate – a debate on a motion tabled by the Tories. Instead, there will be a general debate on the situation in Iran. There will also be a vote on the regulations banning support for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The government has a majority of more than 150 and it could not trust its MPs to vote the right way on that motion [delaying the recess], and it could not bear the idea of a new prime minister facing any scrutiny before September.
A prime minister, let me remind us all, who has been chosen by a coronation not a contest, with no known platform, almost no known policies, and no idea of his priorities or indeed his cabinet team.
Continue reading...Author Wendy Jones highlighted the trend in an Instagram post: ‘What is going on here?’
Nine of the 10 bestselling fiction paperbacks in the UK this week have one thing in common: a woman is murdered.
The novels, which appear on this week’s Sunday Times bestseller list, include The Secret of Secrets, The Divorce, The Names, The Family Friend, The Widow, The Impossible Fortune, The Hallmarked Man, My Husband’s Wife and Boleyn Traitor.
Continue reading...Defendant pleads guilty to crimes over more than a decade, some of which also involved ‘a person unknown’
A man is facing a life sentence after raping his girlfriend while she was drugged or asleep on multiple occasions over more than a decade – including some attacks he carried out along with other people.
The defendant, who is in his 40s and has not been named for legal reasons, appeared at Northampton crown court on Tuesday to admit to 32 sexual offences committed while his victim was either drugged or asleep. He recorded some of the attacks.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Emmanuel Macron honours outgoing prime minister for leadership role in supporting Ukraine
Keir Starmer has become the first UK prime minister to be presented with the Légion d’honneur by a French president, in recognition of his work with France on the security of Europe.
Emmanuel Macron awarded the historic honour to Starmer for his leadership in setting up the coalition of the willing – a group of countries chaired by France and the UK that have pledged to support Ukraine – at a critical moment for Europe in early 2025.
Continue reading...Andy Burnham expected to vote in favour of home secretary’s changes to legal loophole and asylum system
The home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, will amend the immigration bill to allow the deportation of the Rochdale grooming gang, the first step in removing Shabir Ahmed from the UK.
At present, Ahmed cannot be deported because of a 1971 law applying to Commonwealth citizens who arrived in the UK more than 50 years ago.
Continue reading...After a wild attack on the media, Reform’s deputy leader joins other MPs in the Commons offering tributes rather than speculation
This is the third murder of either a sitting or former MP that I’ve covered in the last 10 years. It doesn’t get any easier or less shocking. Every death diminishes us all. The least you would hope is for politicians to behave with dignity. To set an example. For those who knew Ann Widdecombe to express their personal loss, for party leaders and ministers to convey the horror of her death and offer their condolences to her family and friends. Probably best for everyone else to say as little as possible for now.
The police have asked for everyone to refrain from speculating about the motives of the suspect, who, as of Monday lunchtime, was still being questioned by counter-terrorism officers, and not to politicise the murder if possible. A time for our political class to behave like grownups. And the overwhelming majority have done that. Just for now, even Nigel Farage has stopped acting as if he were the detective leading the investigation by offering his insights to every passing TV crew, and has fallen silent.
Continue reading...Home secretary insists all MPs treated equally but that security of former MPs and non-Westminster politicians is a concern
Shabana Mahmood has offered Nigel Farage a personal meeting with the Home Office unit that works on security for high-profile politicians, insisting all MPs are treated equally in how they are offered protection.
Addressing the Commons after the death of Ann Widdecombe, the Reform spokesperson whose body was found with serious injuries by the ambulance service at her home in Devon, the home secretary said the incident raised questions about the security of former MPs and politicians from smaller parties, including those not in parliament.
Continue reading...Appeal for DNA to help identify bodies as local government leader says ‘we are in a state of climate chaos’
A British couple have been named as two victims of the wildfires in Spain that have killed 13 people, as authorities race to use DNA to identify those who did not manage to escape the blaze.
Pete and Fran Gillam, who lived in Bédar, the village that bore the brunt of the wildfires on Thursday, are believed not to have survived.
Continue reading...Suspension of family reunion route has left many stuck in conflict zones or using people smugglers to reach safety
More than 16,000 refugees have been unable to reunite with families in the UK, leaving them either stuck in conflict zones or resorting to using people-smugglers to reach safety, according to the Refugee Council.
The government suspended the refugee family reunion route last September. It allowed a person granted refugee status to apply to bring immediate family members such as a spouse and their children under 18 to reunite with them in the UK. The indication was that the suspension would last until the spring of this year.
Continue reading...In today’s newsletter: Andy Beckett takes your questions – and mine – about where UK politics is at and where it’s headed, from leadership churn and policy choices to electoral reform and more
Good morning. This week, we anticipate the arrival of Britain’s seventh prime minister in the space of a decade. Barring a sequence of events too freakish to contemplate this early in the day, Andy Burnham will be declared Labour leader on Friday and invited to form a new government thereafter.
Sceptical as I am about doomy predictions on Britain’s chronic ungovernability, I wanted to speak to somebody who could offer some deeper context. Step forward Guardian columnist Andy Beckett, who also writes vivid modern histories about the country’s defining political ideas, and step forward you – First Edition readers – who responded when I asked what contemporary liabilities we should be talking about.
Middle East | The US military has launched a new wave of attacks against Iran amid the escalating standoff over the strait of Hormuz, with Tehran saying the latest strikes had “rendered futile” all the diplomatic efforts of the past few months.
UK news | Senior police figures and politicians have warned against speculation during the murder investigation into Ann Widdecombe’s death, after detectives said there was “nothing to suggest” political motivation.
US politics | Senator Lindsey Graham, a key Trump ally in Washington, died this weekend after a short illness, his office announced.
Far right | Elon Musk’s family foundation took Tommy Robinson to Russia, according to the billionaire X owner’s father. Lib Dem leader Ed Davey said on Sunday the news was a sign Britain “must do more to defend its democracy”.
UK politics | Reform UK would have held just 15% of the donations it received last year if a proposed £100,000 cap on political donations had been in force, according to analysis shared with the Guardian.
Monday | Green MP Hannah Spencer presents her Maximum Workplace Temperature Bill to the Commons, which would establish an independent body to recommend safe working temperatures.
Tuesday | MPs debate capping political donations as they seek to strengthen a new law on party funding.
Wednesday | Sir Keir Starmer will face his final PMQs.
Continue reading...One manager expects takings to treble during England’s semi-final with Argentina on Wednesday; while national sales are up 10%
The beleaguered pub sector is getting a boost from England’s World Cup run, with some landlords reporting roaring sales as anticipation builds for a bumper night on Wednesday for the semi-final clash with Argentina.
Lisa Mayall, the manager of the British Oak in Kingswinford near Dudley in the West Midlands, was jubilant after England’s 2-1 win against Norway on Saturday night and brisk takings at the pub’s till. She expects hundreds more customers for the team’s next game at 8pm BST.
Continue reading...Premium cherry-on-the-vine are poised to take top spot in Britain’s £1bn-a-year tomato market
For a long time the classic round, red tomato has dominated British salads and sandwiches, but its supremacy is coming under threat as sales of rainbow colours and the upmarket rival “cherry on the vine” take off.
“Non-red tomatoes” sales are up 21% this year, a growth rate that far exceeds the overall market, according to Paul Faulkner, of Evesham Vale Growers.
Continue reading...Pair airlifted to hospital in two-hour rescue operation after Guardia Civil searched area for survivors
A British couple have been found badly burned and semi-conscious in a Spanish ravine amid deadly wildfires that have swept through the country’s Almería province, according to local media reports.
The couple were on holiday in the region and were thought to be out hiking when they were caught up in the wildfire, which has so far killed 13 people and burned more than 6,000 hectares (14,800 acres). At least 23 people are missing.
Continue reading...Officers say they are not looking for anyone else after arrest of man, 28, on suspicion of murdering ex-Tory politician
Police have said there is nothing to suggest the death of Ann Widdecombe was politically motivated.
Speaking at a press conference on Sunday morning, the assistant chief constable of Devon and Cornwall police, Matt Longman, said detectives were open-minded about the motive for the killing, but stressed there was no evidence to suggest it had been politically motivated. He also said it was not being treated as terrorism.
Continue reading...Gallery director says collection of 140 paintings will offer a more balanced view of Manchester painter’s work
A new exhibition of work by LS Lowry will “bust a few myths” about the Mancunian artist, who the show’s co-curator says is still wrongly derided for being “naive and uncultured”.
LS Lowry: the Theatre of Life features 140 paintings by the artist, who captured working-class life in the industrial north-west of England during the early and mid 20th century.
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