Category Archives: Politics

Shabana Mahmood accuses asylum seekers of making ‘vexatious, last-minute claims’

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Home Office says it will review modern slavery laws to save PM’s ‘one in, one out’ returns deal with France

Shabana Mahmood has accused asylum seekers of making “vexatious, last-minute claims” to avoid removal to France as the Home Office said it would review modern slavery laws to save Keir Starmer’s returns deal.

After an 11th-hour injunction that scuppered Labour’s “one in, one out” scheme, the home secretary said she would stop claimants “suddenly deciding that they are a modern slave on the eve of their removal”, adding that it made a “mockery of our laws and this country’s generosity”.

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Scottish parliament scraps legal verdict of ‘not proven’

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Third option for juries – blamed for country’s lower conviction rates for rape and sexual assault – abolished

The Scottish verdict of “not proven” – a global legal anomaly thought to be a key factor in the country’s significantly lower convictions rate for rape and sexual assault – has been abolished.

MSPs agreed to scrap the unique Scottish verdict as they voted through a series of major changes that Angela Constance, the justice secretary, said “put victims and witnesses at the heart of a modern and fair justice system”.

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Systemic racism affects maternity care for black women in England, say MPs

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Commons committee finds women’s concerns not taken seriously due to bias, stereotyping and racist assumptions

Black women in England are still facing poorer outcomes in their maternity care due to systemic racism, alongside failures in leadership and data collection, according to a group of MPs.

Across the UK, black women are more than twice as likely to die in childbirth compared with their white counterparts, while babies born to black mothers are at an increased risk of stillbirth.

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Trump has fanned the flames of divisive politics around the world, says Sadiq Khan

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Exclusive: London mayor says US president has ‘perhaps done the most’ to encourage far right

Donald Trump has arrived in the UK on Tuesday night to a barrage of criticism from Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, who has accused the US president of doing more than anyone else to encourage the intolerant far right across the globe.

In what will be considered to be a direct challenge to Keir Starmer’s government to take a more robust stance towards Trump, Khan said the president’s use of the military in cities and targeting of minorities was “straight out of the autocrat’s playbook”.

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Starmer urged to apologise to Epstein victims over Mandelson appointment — UK politics live

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Kemi Badenoch and Ed Davey attack PM’s record over US ambassador during commons debate that was skipped by Starmer

Vikram Dodd is the Guardian’s crime correspondent.

Police expect to arrest 50 more people following Saturday’s large far-right-led march through London, the commissioner of the Metropolitan police said this morning.

If you are Conservative right-minded, then the future is Reform. The country is going to change a lot. The same people who thought that Brexit would not happen think that Reform will not happen. They are in for a shock.

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How huge London far-right march lifted the lid on a toxic transatlantic soup

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Tommy Robinson’s ‘free speech’ protest attracted more than 100,000 people – and it was easy to find links to key political figures and events in the US

A young man in a suit made of union jacks held up a framed photograph of their hero above his head. The crowd loudly chanted the name.

The focus of this acclamation was not Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, better known as Tommy Robinson, the organiser of the so-called “free speech” march in central London last Saturday.

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First ‘one in, one out’ deportation flight reportedly takes off without migrants

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Group of people who crossed Channel by boat understood not to have been on Air France plane after legal challenge

The first flight to France carrying people who crossed the Channel under Keir Starmer’s “one in, one out” deal has not taken place as planned, according to reports.

A small group of individuals were removed from an Air France flight on Monday due to travel from Heathrow to Paris after a legal challenge, according to multiple newspaper reports.

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Reeves to host bosses of UK and US financial firms as Trump visit begins

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Chancellor hosting Downing Street talks with Treasury secretary, which are aimed at securing more US investment

Rachel Reeves will host the bosses of top US and UK financial firms in Downing Street on Tuesday morning, as Donald Trump begins his official state visit.

The meeting, which will be jointly hosted by US Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, will be attended by senior figures from BlackRock, Barclays and Blackstone, who will have roundtable talks with officials hoping to highlight economic cooperation between the two countries.

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Hillsborough law will mean serious wrongdoing is punished, says Lammy

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Deputy PM says legislation will ensure public officials have duty to act with ‘honesty and integrity at all times’

Public servants who deliberately cover up state-related disasters will face up to two years in jail under a new Hillsborough law, David Lammy has promised, following concerns from campaigners that it could be watered down.

Writing in the Guardian, the deputy prime minister and lord chancellor said legislation would ensure that state actors from “the bobby on the beat to the highest office in the land” will face “serious punishments for serious wrongdoing”.

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RAF Typhoon jets ready to shoot down drones over Poland, UK says

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‘Nato is responding with unity and strength’ to Russian threats, says John Healey

RAF Typhoon jets will be deployed within days to shoot down drones over Poland and other Nato allies in eastern Europe if necessary, after last week’s incursion of 19 uncrewed Russian aircraft into Poland.

The British fighters, based at Coningsby in Lincolnshire, will join Nato’s new Eastern Sentry mission working alongside French, German and Danish counterparts who are acting as reinforcements for Dutch F-35s and Polish F-16s.

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Conservative MP Danny Kruger says party is ‘over’ as he defects to Reform – UK politics live

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Nigel Farage announces defection of MP for East Wiltshire and puts him in charge of preparing party for government

Nigel Farage has announced that Danny Kruger has defected to Reform UK from the Tories. Kruger, MP for East Wiltshire, is a leading social conservative, and co-chaired the New Conservatives group in the last parliament with Miriam Cates.

Farage said that Kruger would be in charge of preparing the part for government.

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Starmer urged to make ‘populist case’ for workers’ rights reforms

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Huge survey reveals employment rights policies are popular with public despite many not knowing about bill

Keir Starmer must make the “populist case” for workers’ rights reforms, unions have said, after a new mega-poll suggested the changes were the most popular of almost all policies but have extremely limited public recognition.

The employment rights bill will return to the Commons on Monday with a pledge by senior government figures not to water down changes to zero-hours contracts or new rights at work.

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James’s Tim Booth criticises Tommy Robinson for ‘cynical’ use of song

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Sit Down was played at ‘unite the kingdom’ rally in London but singer says band is ‘antithesis’ of far-right movement

The lead singer of the band James has criticised Tommy Robinson for the “cynical” use of the group’s hit song in a protest video.

Tim Booth said he was “disgusted” that the alternative rock band’s single Sit Down had been played without their permission, as he believed the song was “the antithesis” of the far-right activist’s movement.

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Starmer’s team has ‘gone into the bunker’ since cabinet reshuffle, says Labour MP – UK politics live

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After Angela Rayner resigned and Peter Mandelson was sacked, Labour MPs have begun to ask whether Starmer could be challenged as PM

It is the work shortcut that dare not speak its name. A third of people do not tell their bosses about their use of AI tools amid fears their ability will be questioned if they do.

Research for the Guardian has revealed that only 13% of UK adults openly discuss their use of AI with senior staff at work and close to half think of it as a tool to help people who are not very good at their jobs to get by.

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Can Keir survive? Inside the plot to bring down the prime minister

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With his government mired in scandal, an operation to dethrone Starmer is now under way

There has been a joke going around Labour MPs over the past week about three envelopes in Soviet Russia. “Whenever you run into trouble, open them in order,” the instructions go. Envelope one says: “Blame your predecessor.” So he does – and it works. The party officials are satisfied. A year later, problems arise again. He opens envelope two. It says: “Restructure the organisation.”

He does a big reshuffle, changes some titles, and again buys himself some time. Finally, another crisis comes. He opens envelope three. It says: “Prepare three envelopes.”

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Hopes rise of pardon for Abd el-Fattah as Starmer speaks with Egypt president

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Decision expected soon after reports in Cairo about status of imprisoned dual-national human rights activist

Keir Starmer has spoken to Abdel Fatah al-Sisi amid reports the Egyptian president has directed his officials to study an internal request to grant a pardon to release the British-Egyptian human rights activist and writer Alaa Abd el-Fattah.

Abd el-Fattah’s British-based family are not commenting on developments save to say they are praying for his release.

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Business rates rise would put hundreds of big shops at risk, say UK retailers

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Concern for ‘anchor tenants’ as trade body warns that stores could put up prices or cut jobs to protect profits

Up to 400 large shops are at risk of closure with as many as 100,000 jobs at risk if the government goes ahead with plans to hit stores with higher business rates, retailers have warned.

Some of the UK’s largest retail premises, including supermarkets and department stores, would face higher property tax charges under new rules being considered by the government before November’s budget.

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Hospices ‘on the brink’ financially if assisted dying is legalised

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As House of Lords prepares to debate bill, Hospice UK says sector needs adequate funding for end-of-life care

Hospices are “on the brink” and two in five are making cuts this year despite the importance of end-of-life care if assisted dying becomes legal, the sector has warned before the first House of Lords debate on the legislation.

Hospice UK, which represents the sector, said many were financially struggling and still “in the dark” about how funding for end-of-life care will be improved when assisted dying legislation is passed.

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UK should work with Nato on new missile defence system to counter Russia, experts say

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After Russian drones entered Polish airspace, two authors of the UK strategic defence review said Europe would need to build up its defences

Britain should work with Nato allies in developing an integrated air and missile defence system after the incursion of nearly 20 Russian drones into Poland, according to two authors of the UK strategic defence review.

Fiona Hill, a former White House adviser, said that Russia was “testing the limits” of Europe’s defences at a time when the military commitment of the US to Nato was uncertain.

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No 10 says Starmer found Mandelson’s emails to Epstein ‘reprehensible’ – UK politics live

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Despite being repeatedly asked, No 10 declines to say the PM was ‘misled’ by Mandelson

Stephen Doughty, a Foreign Office minister, is responding to the UQ about Peter Mandelson.

He starts by making the point that it is the anniversary of the “despicable” 9/11 terrorism attacks.

Keir Starmer must sack Peter Mandelson without further delay - and come clean about what he knew when, and whether he sanctioned blocking the publication of damaging material.

UK government documents shouldn’t be hidden from the public just because they are damaging to the Labour party - and by backing Peter Mandelson to the hilt, the prime minister’s own reputation is now on the line.

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