As well as being deeply symbolic, the move is also a major foreign policy shift for the Labour government
The UK’s formal recognition of Palestinian statehood is deeply symbolic on the world stage, but the major foreign policy shift is also a significant political step for the Labour government at home. The announcement followed mounting pressure on Keir Starmer from within the Labour party and beyond.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Ex-minister being tried in absentia in Bangladesh claims ID card and passport tendered as evidence not hers
The former City minister Tulip Siddiq has said she fears prosecutors could be planning to use “fake” documents to secure her conviction in her trial in Bangladesh on corruption charges.
The Labour MP, who is being tried in absentia, spoke out after images of a Bangladeshi national identity card and a passport said to be in her name were published in newspapers in the UK and in Bangladesh.
Continue reading...Keir Starmer expected to confirm move after concluding the situation has worsened significantly in recent weeks
The UK is expected to recognise a Palestinian state on Sunday after Israel failed to meet the conditions set out by Keir Starmer in July.
The prime minister is to make the announcement after concluding the humanitarian situation has deteriorated significantly in the past few weeks. The move comes despite pressure from the US and the families of hostages held by Hamas.
Continue reading...Home Office figures for Friday end a spell of more than a week with no new arrivals in Dover due to poor weather
More than 1,000 people crossed the Channel in small boats on Friday, according to Home Office figures, ending a spell of more than a week with no new arrivals.
Thirteen boats carrying 1,072 individuals made the crossing on Friday, which averages more than 80 people a boat. It is the third time this year the figure for a single day has surpassed 1,000 and brings the total number this year to a record 32,103.
Continue reading...Deputy leadership candidate says party needs to be ‘clear that our objective is to lift children out of poverty’
Labour should consider raising taxes on gambling firms to cover the cost of lifting the two-child benefit cap, the party’s deputy leadership candidate Lucy Powell has suggested.
The Manchester Central MP, who is battling with the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, to succeed Angela Rayner as Labour’s deputy leader, also acknowledged the public was “exasperated” because of “some mistakes” Labour had made in office.
Continue reading...‘How dare the nationalists steal our flags?’ asks Tim Farron at party conference in Bournemouth
People who use the union jack or St George’s cross as a form of aggressive nationalism do not love their country, a senior Liberal Democrat has said, as he hit back at a wave of hard-right activism based around the flags.
In a strongly worded speech to a rally opening the party’s annual conference in Bournemouth, Tim Farron, a former leader who now speaks for the party on the environment and rural affairs, said national flags should never be “used to intimidate”.
Continue reading...Event comes a week after the largest far-right event in decades took place in London
Anti-immigration protesters have clashed with anti-racist counter-protesters in tense scenes in Glasgow this afternoon, a week after the largest far-right event in decades took place in London.
The statue of Scottish statesman Donald Dewar, father of the Holyrood parliament, was surrounded by union flags bearing the words: “Stop the boats” and “Unite the kingdom”.
Continue reading...Chancellor’s invitation criticised as ‘strange timing’ with Treasury looking at whether to raise duties on £12bn sector
The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has been urged to cancel plans to be the guest of honour at an event hosted by the chief lobbyist of the gambling industry while the Treasury is in the midst of a review of taxes on the £12bn sector.
Reeves is slated to appear at a “private reception” for business leaders, organised by the corporate communications company Brunswick, at the forthcoming Labour party conference in Liverpool.
Continue reading...Calls for sanctions on Israel and ban on trade that aids international law violations among snubbed motions
Labour has ruled out motions about Palestine being debated at its party conference later this month, triggering accusations that it is trying to stifle debate.
The conference arrangement committee, made up of Labour elected reps and officials, has ruled about 30 motions about Palestine from local parties out of order.
Continue reading...Trump had refused to grant visas for Palestinian delegation due to attend conference and UN general assembly
The United Nations general assembly has voted to allow the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, to address next week’s annual gathering of world leaders next week in New York via video link after Donald Trump said he would not give him a US visa.
The resolution received 145 votes in favour and five votes against, while six countries abstained.
Continue reading...Former Scottish Tory leader alleges Hepburn grabbed him amid row over SNP’s apparent failure to tackle gull attacks
A Scottish minister has resigned after a row over aggressive gulls spilled over into an angry altercation with the former Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross.
Jamie Hepburn, the Scottish government’s minister for parliamentary business, tendered his resignation after Ross accused him of assault outside the parliament chamber on Wednesday.
Continue reading...Portugal has also made extradition request for Diogo Santos Coelho, who is facing cybercrime charges
A high court judge has quashed a Home Office decision that paved the way for a vulnerable autistic man to be extradited to the US on cybercrime charges carrying a possible 52-year sentence.
The UK government has accepted that Diogo Santos Coelho, 25, a Portuguese national, was groomed and exploited online by adults from the age of 14, leading to him setting up the website RaidForums, to which the alleged crimes relate.
Continue reading...Committee to conclude review of bill by 7 November. This live blog is closed
The UK is preparing to recognise the state of Palestine imminently, after Israel failed to meet conditions that would have postponed the historic step, including a ceasefire in Gaza, Patrick Wintour reports.
YouGov has relased polling today suggesting that Britons are in favour of this by more than two to one, although a large minority of people do not have a view.
Continue reading...PM cannot afford for US president to walk away from Ukraine crisis and must persuade him to publicly support specific Gaza plans
With bear traps avoided and fireworks unlit, Keir Starmer will be delighted that his press conference with Donald Trump lent credence to his claim to be America’s first partner in defence, trade and now technology.
Trump, for his part, got the “great pictures” he wanted and was on his best low-wattage behaviour. He said he did not disagree with his host about much, save Starmer’s plan to recognise a Palestinian state. And he teetered on the edge of being diplomatic, at least until he advised Starmer to use the military to stop small boats crossing the Channel.
Continue reading...Move comes after Israel fails to meet UK conditions that would have postponed step
The UK is preparing to recognise the state of Palestine as early as Friday, after Israel failed to meet conditions that would have postponed the historic step, including a ceasefire in Gaza.
Keir Starmer insisted the timing of the UK announcement had nothing to do with Donald Trump’s visit, even though the US president said at a press conference that he disagreed with Britain’s decision, without elaborating.
Continue reading...Starmer says deals worth £250bn are ‘flowing both ways across the Atlantic’
President Trump is now leaving Windsor Castle. He will be flying to Chequers by helicopter.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian president, has thanked King Charles for what he said at the state banquet last night strongly supporting the Ukrainian cause.
I extend my deepest thanks to His Majesty King Charles III @RoyalFamily for his steadfast support. Ukraine greatly values the United Kingdom’s unwavering and principled stance.
When tyranny threatens Europe once again, we must all hold firm, and Britain continues to lead in defending freedom on many fronts. Together, we have achieved a lot, and with the support of freedom-loving nations—the UK, our European partners, and the US—we continue to defend values and protect lives. We are united in our efforts to make diplomacy work and secure lasting peace for the European continent.
Our countries have the closest defence, security and intelligence relationship ever known. In two world wars, we fought together to defeat the forces of tyranny.
Today, as tyranny once again threatens Europe, we and our allies stand together in support of Ukraine, to deter aggression and secure peace. And our Aukus submarine partnership, with Australia, sets the benchmark for innovative and vital collaboration.
Continue reading...Report shows 334 companies backed by Future Fund, set up in May 2020 by then chancellor, have since gone under
UK taxpayers have lost £400m following the collapse of hundreds of startups backed by a heavily criticised Covid-era investment fund launched by Rishi Sunak when he was chancellor.
The Future Fund spent £1.14bn backing 1,190 companies, some of them of types not usually associated with government portfolios such as the sex party organiser Killing Kittens and the now defunct festival tickets business Pollen.
Continue reading...Agreement reached with France allows for removal of asylum seekers who arrive on small boats
The first Channel migrant has been deported to France under the controversial one in, one out deal, the Home Office has confirmed.
It follows three days of cancellations of tickets of asylum seekers due to fly and a high court challenge that halted the imminent removal of a 25-year-old Eritrean man to France on Tuesday evening. He was granted more time to gather evidence relating to his claim that he is a victim of trafficking.
Continue reading...Other nations including France, Australia and Canada plan to take the same step at next week’s UN summit
Keir Starmer will reportedly recognise a Palestinian state over the weekend after Donald Trump concludes his state visit to the UK.
The prime minister has previously said he plans to recognise Palestinian statehood before the UN general assembly in New York this month if Israel does not meet a series of conditions to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Continue reading...Politicians, dignitaries and high-profile tech entrepreneurs attend feast
Lucy Powell has hit out at the “sexist” framing of her deputy Labour leadership campaign, with people claiming she and her rival, Bridget Phillipson, are standing as “proxies” for two men, Aletha Adu reports.
Most of Donald Trump’s policies horrify progressives and leftwingers in Britain, including Labour party members and supporters, but Keir Starmer has said almost nothing critical about the Trump administration because he has taken a view that maintaining good relations with the White House is in the national interest.
I understand the UK government’s position of being pragmatic on the international stage and wanting to maintain a good relationship with the leader of the most powerful country in the world. Faced with a revanchist Russia, Europe’s security feels less certain now than at any time since the second world war. And the threat of even higher US tariffs is ever present.
But it’s also important to ensure our special relationship includes being open and honest with each other. At times, this means being a critical friend and speaking truth to power – and being clear that we reject the politics of fear and division. Showing President Trump why he must back Ukraine, not Putin. Making the case for taking the climate emergency seriously. Urging the president to stop the tariff wars that are tearing global trade apart. And putting pressure on him to do much more to end Israel’s horrific onslaught on Gaza, as only he has the power to bring Israel’s brazen and repeated violations of international law to an end.
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