Category Archives: Politics

Friedrich Merz looks likely to be Germany’s next leader but how will he defuse the AfD?

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The CDU chief has had a smooth lead but he must act to halt the march of far-right voters before the general election

• Everyone is terrified of a far-right return in Germany. Here’s why it won’t happen

Friedrich Merz, Germany’s mercurial conservative opposition chief and a passionate hobby pilot, should be flying high these days as the country’s hotly tipped next leader.

One year before the next general election, his Christian Democratic Union (CDU) has enjoyed a comfortable lead for months with about 32% support, nearly double the score of its nearest competitors, as the fractious government led by Social Democrat Olaf Scholz plumbs new depths of disfavour.

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UK music industry presses government to solve post-Brexit limits on touring

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As documents reveal EU ‘not prepared’ to change, Keir Starmer is reminded of Labour’s manifesto pledge

Industry insiders have urged the UK government to find a solution to post-Brexit restrictions on live music touring, after EU documents suggested Brussels was “not prepared” to change regulations.

In Labour’s manifesto, Keir Starmer pledged to improve trade and investment relations with the EU to “help our touring artists” . Since Brexit, musicians touring the EU have faced barriers introduced in the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA). They can work up to 90 out of every 180 days, which causes problems for longer tours, musicians who work in multiple bands or orchestras, and crew required on site before and after performances.

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More than a million British workers not having a single day of paid time off, says TUC

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Employees have lost out on holiday pay worth £2bn, according to new trade union research

Workers across Britain have lost out on holiday pay worth £2bn, with more than a million people going without a single day of paid time off, according to new research.

With unions gathering in Brighton this weekend for the first TUC conference under a Labour administration for 15 years, the body revealed new research showing the extent to which workers are being denied holiday pay. Workers are entitled to 28 days paid leave for a typical five-day week.

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Antony Blinken to visit UK for talks on Ukraine and Middle East

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US secretary of state will be most senior US official to have travelled to London since Labour’s election victory

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, will head to London next week to discuss the Middle East and Ukraine, the state department announced on Saturday, in advance of a US visit by prime minister Keir Starmer.

Blinken’s visit to London on Monday and Tuesday will be the most senior by a US official since the Labour party won the general election in July, ending 14 years of Conservative rule.

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Tory health reforms left UK open to Covid calamity, says top doctor’s report

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Britain’s pandemic response was among the worst and the NHS had been ‘seriously weakened’, says leading surgeon

• Three reports lay bare scale of NHS malaise, but will Reeves fund a remedy?

Britain was hit far harder by the Covid-19 pandemic than other developed countries because the NHS had been “seriously weakened” by disastrous government policies over the preceding decade, a wide-ranging report will conclude this week.

An assessment of the NHS by the world-renowned surgeon Prof Ara Darzi, commissioned in July by the health secretary, Wes Streeting, will find that the health service reduced its “routine healthcare activity by a far greater percentage than other health systems” in many key areas during the Covid crisis.

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Former Welsh first minister Vaughan Gething to stand down at next election

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MS for Cardiff South and Penarth, who stood down after 140 days as first minister, will not seek re-election in 2026

Vaughan Gething, the Labour former first minister of Wales who stood down after a series of scandals, has announced he will not seek re-election for the Senedd.

Gething, the MS for Cardiff South and Penarth, said it had been “an immense honour” to serve his constituents, and in the Welsh government, as he made the announcement.

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Keir Starmer optimistic for ‘deep’ reset of relations with Ireland

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Starmer to hold talks with Irish counterpart on first official visit of a British PM to country for five years

Keir Starmer has said he believes there can be a “deep” reset of relations with Ireland after arriving in Dublin for his first official visit, with Northern Ireland, Brexit and joint international interests on the agenda.

It is the first official visit of a British prime minister since Boris Johnson visited in 2019 to try to salvage a Brexit deal after years of strained relations.

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‘À la carte’ new Brexit deal with EU not on table, Micheál Martin warns

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Ireland’s deputy PM welcomes warmer relations as Keir Starmer arrives for official visit – but cautions UK cannot ‘cherrypick’ issues

The UK cannot have an “à la carte” reset of the Brexit agreement, Ireland’s deputy prime minister has said, just hours before Keir Starmer headed to Dublin for his first official visit to Ireland.

The tánaiste said the EU wanted an improved EU-UK relationship but that the UK could not “cherrypick”.

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Starmer leads with compromise for new family pet – and gets ‘dog-like’ cat

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Siberian kitten at No 10 may get frosty reception from chief mouser Larry, who took on George Osborne’s cat, Freya

On the face of it, the kitten that joined Keir Starmer’s family appears to have had a peaceful first week at an address where feline and human rivals have been known to get their claws out.

The arrival of the Siberian cat – as yet unnamed in public – was revealed on Monday by the prime minister, who said his children had been pushing for a dog to join them at Downing Street.

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Sixth-generation wire-maker blames Brexit for shredding its business

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Owner of Ormiston Wire in London urges Keir Starmer not to forget small manufacturers in his dealings with EU

The head of a family-owned company that has made specialist wires and cables for six generations for clients ranging from naval vessels to film sets has blamed Brexit for shredding its business.

Mark Ormiston, the owner of Ormiston Wire, said small businesses such as his had been flushed “down the toilet” by the masterminds of Brexit who gave little thought to the real-life consequences for UK manufacturing.

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Wrongly denied Windrush payments causing ‘further harm and injustice’

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Home Office has paid more than £430,000 extra compensation after watchdog investigations of complaints

The Home Office has wrongly denied compensation to numerous Windrush victims, a watchdog report has found, concluding that “further harm and injustice” has been caused as a result of systemic problems with the scheme.

More than £430,000 of extra compensation has been awarded to people affected by the scandal as a result of investigations by the parliamentary and health service ombudsman.

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Tony Blair told to ‘take responsibility’ after Grenfell criticism

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Campaigners call for apology after inquiry report makes several criticisms of decisions made during Blair’s tenure

Grenfell campaigners have called on Tony Blair to apologise and take responsibility for decisions made by his government that contributed to the fire that killed 72 people.

The former prime minister said on Thursday that tragedies such as the west London fire, which came after years of missed opportunities to regulate combustible cladding, were a result of unavoidable mistakes.

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Campaigners press US to ban Israel arms sales after UK’s partial halt

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Activists say Britain’s decision bolsters case for Congress to follow suit and may embolden opposition to Biden policy

The UK decision to suspend some arms exports to Israel has bolstered the case for Congress to follow the example of its ally, US campaigners for a ban have said.

The campaigners are pressing the US Senate and the house to pass a joint resolution of disapproval blocking authorisation for an unprecedented $20bn (£15.2bn) weapons sale. The massive transfer was notified to Congress last month when it was in recess.

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Labour eager for progress on special tribunal to try Russia over Ukraine

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Exclusive: Lord chancellor says she wants to ‘inject energy’ into stalling efforts to set up Nuremberg-style trial

The new Labour government wants to inject renewed energy into the two-year-long international effort to set up a special tribunal with the authority to try Russia’s leadership for the crime of aggression, the lord chancellor, Shabana Mahmood, has said.

Discussions have been dogged by disputes over the appropriate body to set up the special tribunal, and fears in the US that if an organisation were empowered to strip the Russian leadership of immunity from prosecution in a foreign court, western leaders might face the threat of legal action in the future.

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The final Grenfell inquiry report and what it means for families – Politics Weekly UK

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The 2017 Grenfell Tower fire in London was the result of ‘decades of failure’ by central government, the public inquiry into the catastrophe has found. The Guardian’s John Harris looks at the findings of the report with the social affairs leader writer Susanna Rustin. And, as Labour continues to warn ‘things will get worse before they get better’, we are joined by the economists James Meadway and Ann Pettifor to discuss whether a painful period of austerity-lite is the only way through the storm

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Priti Patel knocked out of Tory leadership race with Robert Jenrick securing most votes in first round – UK politics live

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Former home secretary finishes behind Mel Stride after only securing 14 votes

PMQs is starting soon. Here is the list of MPs down to ask a question.

Kemi Badenoch is the clear favourite of Conservative members for next leader, and will be very hard to beat if she makes it into the final ballot of two, according to a survey by ConservativeHome.

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Woman, 86, told she no longer has to repay £13,000 in benefits in DWP U-turn

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Exclusive: Case of Sia Kasparis, who has dementia, had been highlighted in Guardian investigation into unpaid care

An 86-year-old woman with advanced dementia has been told by the government she no longer has to repay a £13,000 benefit debt after her case was highlighted by the Guardian.

Sia Kasparis, who is partially blind and has been bed-bound for two years, was ordered to repay the huge sum after officials said she had failed to notify them her son had taken up caring duties.

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Priti Patel knocked out of Tory leadership contest in first round

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Former home secretary got two fewer votes than Mel Stride, while Robert Jenrick leads race to succeed Rishi Sunak

Priti Patel has been knocked out of the race to succeed Rishi Sunak as Conservative party leader in the first round of voting by Tory MPs.

The former home secretary received 14 votes from her colleagues, leaving her two behind the fifth-placed candidate, Mel Stride.

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Family of British aid worker killed in Gaza call for independent inquiry

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James Kirby was among seven WCK staff killed when an Israeli airstrike targeted their marked vehicle in April

The family of James Kirby, a World Central Kitchen aid worker killed in Gaza, have called for an independent investigation into his death and said neither British nor Israeli diplomats had been in touch, even though an internal Israeli inquiry said his death had been a tragic accident.

Kirby was among seven aid workers, including Britons John Chapman and James Henderson, who were killed when an Israeli airstrike targeted their clearly marked vehicle on 1 April. The Israeli inquiry led to the dismissal of two officers.

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Councils in England draining reserves to stay afloat, leaders say

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Survey of 24 city authorities finds two in five plan to sell off assets and reduce services

Local authority leaders say they are having to drain their financial reserves to keep services afloat and avoid effective bankruptcy.

A survey of the mid-tier group of English city councils, which includes Southampton, Hull, Sunderland and Norwich, found that many that had previously avoided financial difficulties during periods of austerity were close to running out of funds.

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