Category Archives: UK news

No 10 declines to say Sunak confident Zahawi has always told him truth about his tax affairs – UK politics live

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Downing Street spokesperson also says inquiry into former chancellor’s affairs to be ‘conducted swiftly’

There are two urgent questions in the Commons later. At 12.30pm Caroline Lucas (Green) is asking one about the child asylum seekers who have gone missing from hotel accommodation provided by the Home Office, and that will be followed by Ben Bradshaw (Lab) asking one about the Church of England’s stance on equal marriage.

After those are over Damian Hinds, the justice minister, will deliver a statement about the probation inspectorate.

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Almost one in 10 local bus services axed over last year in Great Britain

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Exclusive: cuts come despite government’s levelling up promise to improve transport connectivity

Almost one in 10 local bus services were axed in Great Britain in the last year despite government promises to improve local transport connectivity being a key pillar of its levelling up agenda.

The reductions – equivalent to more than 1,000 registered routes – follow the publication of a national bus strategy for England in 2021, aimed at improving routes and service frequencies. The figures suggest the “bus back better” strategy, conceived under the then prime minister Boris Johnson, has failed to halt the decline in local bus services.

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MPs to recall Royal Mail boss to parliament to face questions

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Simon Thompson has been summoned back over accuracy of evidence he gave to committee

The chief executive of Royal Mail is to face a rare recall to parliament to face questions over the accuracy of evidence he gave to a committee of MPs.

Simon Thompson, Royal Mail’s boss, has been summoned back by the business, energy and industrial strategy committee, after giving evidence in a sometimes testy exchange last week.

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Primark enjoys bumper festive UK sales thanks to heels and baggy suits

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Owner ABF says its grocery brands such as Twinings and Kingsmill also increased trading

Strong sales of heels, baggy suits and knitwear propelled Primark’s sales ahead of expectations over Christmas as shoppers returned to city centres and consumer spending was more resilient than anticipated.

Sales at the cut-price fashion chain’s established stores rose by 11% in the four months to 17 January, compared with the same period a year before, as the owner, Associated British Foods (ABF), said it had sold more items of clothing while prices had also risen by about 8%.

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New suspect arrested on suspicion of Manchester rape for which man served 17 years

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Andrew Malkinson’s case sent to court of appeal after DNA breakthrough

A man has been arrested on suspicion of committing a rape for which another man served 17 years in prison.

Andrew Malkinson was convicted of raping a 33-year-old woman by a motorway in Greater Manchester in 2003. The case is being sent back to the court of appeal after a DNA breakthrough.

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Couple missing with newborn baby may have been sleeping rough, police fear

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Constance Marten and Mark Gordon last seen on 7 January in east London after buying tent and bedding

Police are growing increasingly concerned for the welfare of a newborn baby whose parents officers believe are sleeping rough in freezing temperatures.

The missing aristocrat Constance Marten and her boyfriend, Mark Gordon, a convicted sex offender, were last seen more than a fortnight ago in east London after buying a tent and bedding. Detectives fear their baby has been exposed to the sub-zero temperatures and has received no medical attention since birth in early January.

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UK government ‘let lawyers bypass sanctions’ to help Putin ally sue journalist

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Documents seen by Open Democracy show UK firm got approval to engage with Wagner group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin

British lawyers were given government dispensation to bypass sanctions in order to help Yevgeny Prigozhin, the controversial Russian businessman and Wagner group founder, sue a journalist, according to documents made available to the website Open Democracy.

The documents concern a libel case brought by Prigozhin against Eliot Higgins, the founder of the investigative group Bellingcat, in 2021. The revelations will raise further questions about the abuse of UK libel law by the super-rich.

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Eurostar trains forced to run with empty seats due to Brexit passport rules

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About 350 out of 900 seats normally left unsold on the first services between London, Paris and Brussels

Peak time Eurostar trains are daily forced to run across the Channel with hundreds of empty seats because border police cannot process passports quick enough.

About 350 out of 900 seats are normally left unsold on the first services between London, Paris and Brussels despite “huge demand” for the greenest form of international travel, Eurostar bosses said.

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Probation service and ministers have ‘blood on hands’, say Zara Aleena’s family

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Watchdog report uncovers series of failings in supervision of Jordan McSweeney, who murdered the law graduate last year

Ministers and the probation service have been accused of having “blood on their hands” after a watchdog uncovered failings which left a violent, woman-hating racist free to murder the law graduate Zara Aleena.

Jordan McSweeney should have been seen by probation officers as a high-risk offender with a long history of misogynistic and racially aggravated incidents and recalled to prison after missing appointments, the chief inspector of probation, Justin Russell, said.

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C of E leaders call for tax rises to fund NHS-style social care system

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Archbishops of Canterbury and York say ‘national care covenant’ needed with stronger role for state

England’s most senior church leaders want tax rises to fund a new NHS-style universal social care system that could cost an extra £15bn a year.

In a challenge to the government to overhaul support for 1 million elderly and disabled people, the archbishops of Canterbury and York have called for a “national care covenant” with a stronger role for the state and citizens delivering more care.

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Poorest in UK have £40 a month less to spare than a year ago, study finds

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Richest have gained similar amount over same period, reflecting differing impacts of inflation

The UK’s least affluent households have almost £40 a month less spare cash than they did a year ago while the richest have gained a similar sum in the same period, according to figures exposing how inflation has hit the poorest the hardest.

The wealthiest 20% of households had £36 a month more in discretionary income in December compared with a year before, as they enjoyed record earnings growth which offset rising energy and food bills, analysts at Retail Economics found.

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Temperatures to reach -9C in southern England as cold snap continues

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Warmer conditions in north contrast with freezing fog and cold warnings in south of UK

Temperatures will plunge to -9C across parts of southern England overnight, the Met Office said on Monday, with the freezing weather expected to last until the end of next week.

Freezing fog will remain in some areas on Tuesday morning, as the cold snap shows no sign of abating.

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Labour will reconnect ‘tarnished UK’ with European allies, says Lammy

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Shadow foreign secretary to mark out diplomatic mission of a future Labour government in landmark speech

Labour will make closer cooperation with Europe across security, trade and foreign policy a central plank of a plan to reconnect “a tarnished UK” with its closest allies, David Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary, will say in a landmark speech designed to mark out the diplomatic mission of a future Labour government.

Addressing the thinktank Chatham House on Tuesday, he will say the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has not been given a clear set of goals post-Brexit. “Ideological leadership and reckless choices have left Britain increasingly disconnected from its closest allies, an economy in crisis, and a tarnished international reputation.”

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‘Wheeler-dealer’ Boris Johnson and his tricky relationship with money

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That former PM secretly secured a loan of up to £800k no surprise as financial reliance on others stretches back many years

Boris Johnson is deeply protective of his personal life – but one thing almost universally acknowledged by those who know him is that he has a tricky relationship with money.

It came as little surprise to them, therefore, that he was alleged to have secretly secured an up to £800,000 loan guarantee while prime minister.

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Minister unable to say whether Zahawi was telling truth when he first said taxes were fully paid – as it happened

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Labour MP asks whether Zahawi statement in the summer was untrue, with Cabinet Office minister saying he does not know the answer

Nadhim Zahawi, the Conservative party chair, has welcomed the decision by Rishi Sunak to ask the No 10 ethics adviser to investigate his case. “I am confident I acted properly throughout,” Zahawi said.

Zahawi seems to be using a narrow definition of “properly”. In the statement he issued yesterday, he accepted that his original decision not to pay the tax that HM Revenue and Customs subsequently concluded he should have paid was down to a careless error. He said:

Following discussions with HMRC, they agreed that my father was entitled to founder shares in YouGov, though they disagreed about the exact allocation. They concluded that this was a ‘careless and not deliberate’ error.

Integrity and accountability is really important to me and clearly in this case there are questions that need answering …

That’s why the independent adviser has been asked to fully investigate this matter and provide advice to me on Nadhim Zahawi’s compliance with the ministerial code, and on the basis of that we’ll decide on the appropriate next steps.

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Six people injured after being hit by car in north London

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Police searching for driver of vehicle after four people were taken to hospital and two treated at scene

Six people have been injured after being hit by a car in north London on Sunday, police have said.

Officers are searching for the driver of the vehicle after four people were taken to hospital and two were treated at the scene. None of the six was thought to have life-threatening injuries.

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Museum seeks Bowie dress for show putting spotlight on Jewish designers

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Museum of London Docklands appeals for missing pieces whose influential creators have been overlooked

Wanted: David Bowie’s dress, Greta Garbo’s hats and the shirts worn by Sean Connery in his first role as James Bond.

They are iconic items of 20th-century clothing – but their whereabouts is unknown. Now the Museum of London Docklands has made a public appeal for help locating these and other garments before a big exhibition scheduled for later this year.

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Energy suppliers to be investigated over Britons forced on to prepayment meters

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Ofgem could look to take legal action if companies are not taking proper care of vulnerable households

Energy companies are to be investigated by the regulator Ofgem after the number of households struggling with their bills being forced on to prepayment meters has increased sharply.

Ofgem could consider taking legal action if it determines that the rise in the number of homes being forced on to prepayment meters is proven to show companies are not taking proper due care of vulnerable households.

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‘The gift of paradise’: how the Hear Me Out Band give a voice to immigration detainees

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The UK charity facilitates music workshops in immigration detention centres – but frequently faces a lack of resources and the deportation of key players

Lamin Joof began making music in the Gambia at the age of 16. He sang in a band called Chossan Bi with three friends until, one by one, everyone but Joof left the country to find work elsewhere. After the group disbanded, Joof began DJing at nightclubs and wedding parties and formed a sound system of reggae artists. But, despite spending a year building a musical career, Joof struggled to sustain himself. In 2015, he left the Gambia to find employment in the UK. There he was detained for nine months in three immigration detention centres.

“Most of the tunes I make now are inspired by that experience,” Joof says today, speaking via video. “When I was at Brook House in Gatwick, the only outside space was a smoking area, which was tiny and [crowded]. Above was a net instead of the sky. Detention centres are similar to prison, but it’s worse than prison because you don’t have a release date. In my music, I want to convey the struggle that I went through, how I was mistreated, and how I fought to get to where I am today.”

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