Category Archives: Politics

49% of voters believe Kremlin interfered in Brexit referendum

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Opinium poll for the Observer also reveals 47% of public think Putin’s government affected UK’s 2019 general election

Almost half the British public believes the Russian government interfered in the EU referendum and last year’s general election, according to a poll. The latest Opinium poll for the Observer found that 49% of voters think there was Russian interference in the Brexit referendum, with 23% disagreeing. Some 47% believed Russia interfered in the December general election.

The poll findings come after the long-awaited publication of the report into Russian interference by parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee last week. It found that the government had not attempted to investigate potential Russian interference in the referendum. It said the UK had “badly underestimated” the Russian threat.

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Timid, incompetent … how our spies missed Russian bid to sway Brexit

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MPs who compiled the Russia report were incredulous at Britain’s reluctance to tackle Kremlin

In September 2015 a tall young man with jet black hair and a pleasant grin made his way to Doncaster. His name was Alexander Udod. With the EU referendum vote on the horizon, Udod was attending Ukip’s annual conference. In theory he was a political observer. Actually Udod was an undercover spy, based at the Russian embassy in London.

Udod chatted with the man who would play a key role in Brexit – the Bristol businessman Arron Banks. The spy invited Banks to meet the Russian ambassador Alexander Yakovenko. What allegedly followed was a series of friendly encounters between Leave.EU and the Russians in the crucial months before the June 2016 poll: a boozy lunch, pints in a Notting Hill pub, and the offer of a Siberian gold deal. (Banks denies receiving money from Russia and previously stated his only contact with the Russian government in the run-up to the referendum consisted of “one boozy lunch” with the ambassador.)

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Britain will respond to space threat from Russia and China – minister

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‘Provocative test of a weapon-like projectile’ from Russian satellite shows peaceful use of space is under threat, says defence secretary

Britain will boost its ability to handle threats posed by Russia and China in space as part of a foreign, security and defence policy review, the defence secretary, Ben Wallace, has said.

“This week we have been reminded of the threat Russia poses to our national security with the provocative test of a weapon-like projectile from a satellite threatening the peaceful use of space,” Wallace wrote in the Sunday Telegraph, adding that China also posed a threat.

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Extinction Rebellion protesters lock themselves to rig on River Thames

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Activists want London mayor Sadiq Khan to cancel Silvertown road tunnel project

Three Extinction Rebellion activists have locked themselves to a rig in the middle of the Thames to protest against a planned road tunnel underneath the river in south-east London.

The keys to the locks around the protesters’ necks have been delivered to the capital’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, with a note asking him to come and talk to them. However, the mayor’s office issued a statement ignoring the request and confirming plans to build the Silvertown tunnel are continuing.

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Germany calls on UK to show more realism in Brexit negotiations

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Comments will be a blow to No 10, which had hoped Merkel would help break deadlock

Angela Merkel’s government has called for more realism from the UK in the ongoing trade and security talks, after the EU capitals were given a “sobering” update by Michel Barnier following the recent round of Brexit negotiations.

After a presentation by the EU’s chief negotiator to ambassadors from the 27 member states on Friday, a spokesman for the German government, which holds the rolling EU presidency, said the bloc was ready to move negotiations quickly forward but “expressed the need for more realism in London”.

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Boris Johnson says coronavirus could have been handled differently

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PM concedes government did not understand the virus in ‘first few weeks and months’

Boris Johnson has conceded there were “things we could have done differently” over Covid-19, and admitted the government did not understand the virus in the “first few weeks and months”.

In a sometimes combative interview with the BBC, the prime minister repeatedly refused to discuss any lessons that could be learned before a possible second wave of Covid-19 this winter, saying it was not the moment to “run a kind of inquiry into what happened in the past”.

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UK coronavirus live: face masks become compulsory in England’s shops and takeaways

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Police will have power to enforce the rules, which come into effect today

Boris Johnson has said people opposed to vaccinations are “nuts” as he promotes an expanded programme of flu jabs that ministers hope will ease pressure on the NHS if there is a second wave of coronavirus this winter.

It comes after several polls have suggested some Britons are feeling apprehensive about having a Covid-19 vaccine. A coronavirus jab is seen by many experts as a key route out of the pandemic. Last year, the World Health Organisation identified “vaccine hesitancy” as one of the top 10 health threats to the world.

Related: Boris Johnson says 'anti-vaxxers are nuts'

In Liverpool One shopping complex on Friday, signs telling customers to wear masks were up in many of the stores and a vending machine selling face coverings had been installed, PA reports.

The machine had packs of five three-ply masks for £4.75, packets of two for £1.95 or fashion coverings for £5.95.

I think it is a little bit late to have introduced this and lots of people I’ve seen this morning are not even wearing one. It won’t put me off coming to the shops because I’ll be out anyway but it does seem a bit unnecessary.

I’m vulnerable and so is my husband. I think this should have started from day one. I was on the bus this morning and people were getting on with no masks. If you go in to a shop without a mask I don’t think anyone is going to say anything. I think people are more relaxed now.

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UK reputation after DfID merger in ‘safe hands’ under Raab, says Trevelyan

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Outgoing international development secretary says Britain’s ‘world superpower’ status will remain after merger with FCO, despite fierce criticisms

Britain’s status as a world superpower in development is in “safe hands” under Dominic Raab, according to the international development secretary, as she prepares to leave her post.

In an interview with the Guardian, Anne-Marie Trevelyan expressed sadness at leaving the Department for International Development (DfID), whose work is “truly impactful” and “doing good”, she said. But she said she has seen passion and enthusiasm in the foreign secretary towards helping developing countries become stronger.

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Boris Johnson says ‘anti-vaxxers are nuts’

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Prime minister makes comments while promoting extension of free winter flu jabs

Boris Johnson has said people opposed to vaccinations are “nuts” as he promotes an expanded programme of flu jabs that ministers hope will ease pressure on the NHS if there is a second wave of coronavirus this winter.

Visiting a doctors’ surgery in London on Friday, the prime minister said to staff: “There’s all these anti-vaxxers now. They are nuts, they are nuts.”

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Sturgeon accuses Johnson of using Covid-19 as ‘political weapon’

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First minister says no one should be ‘celebrating’ crisis as PM visits Scotland

Boris Johnson was accused of using the coronavirus pandemic “as some kind of political weapon” by Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, against a backdrop of rising tension over the future of the union.

Sturgeon accused the prime minster of “celebrating” the pandemic after Johnson used his first visit to Scotland since last December’s election to hammer home his message that the UK’s response to the virus exemplified the “sheer might” of the union. He claimed it would have spelled economic disaster for Scotland had it not been able to rely on the UK Treasury for assistance.

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Donald Trump’s assault on the WHO is deeply worrying for global health | Peter Beaumont

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A diplomacy shaped around self-serving tittle-tattle now risks lives and undermines America’s standing in the world

The campaign by the Trump administration against the World Health Organization has often seemed faintly preposterous.

Over the months of the coronavirus pandemic its untruths and hyperbole have been dismissed by many as iterations of Trumpspeak, whose main purpose has been to distract from the US’s catastrophic response to Covid-19, which has claimed almost 140,000 lives and devastated the economy.

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‘Enemy of democracy’: Oligarch says Putin wants to harm UK

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Alexander Temerko admits being a Tory activist but not a Kremlin ally as Russia report published

In the wake of the long-awaited publication of the Russia report into interference in UK democracy, one of the most prominent Soviet-born donors to the Conservative party has said he is no “friend of Putin” and called for greater scrutiny of British ex-politicians working for Russian state firms.

In an interview with the Guardian Alexander Temerko said he welcomed the publication of the intelligence and security committee’s (ISC) Russia report, which accused the government of turning a blind eye to Kremlin interference. “Better late than never. They finally published it,” he said.

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Antisemitism settlement plunges Labour party into civil war

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Jeremy Corbyn’s statement caused astonishment among litigants in libel action

Labour’s decision to pay a six-figure libel settlement to ex-staffers who claimed the party was failing to deal with antisemitism has plunged the party back into civil war, with Jeremy Corbyn publicly condemning his successor’s decision to settle the case.

Corbyn’s statement caused astonishment among the litigants in the libel action, with the Panorama journalist John Ware confirming to the Guardian that he was “consulting his lawyers” and raising the prospect of another costly court battle over Labour and antisemitism.

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Brexit negotiations have not broken down, say No 10 sources

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Downing Street officials say there has been neither ‘breakthrough nor breakdown’ on major sticking points

Downing Street sources have denied Brexit negotiations between the UK and European Union have broken down, but admit they are at an impasse.

After two full days of talks in London, No 10 officials described the current state of play as neither a “breakthrough nor a breakdown”. The latest round is expected to end on Thursday without advancing on a deal.

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Test and trace failing to contact thousands in England’s worst-hit areas

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Exclusive: proportion of close contacts being reached is below 80% in high infection areas

The government’s flagship test-and-trace system is failing to contact thousands of people in areas with the highest infection rates in England, raising further questions about the £10bn programme described by Boris Johnson as “world-beating”.

Local leaders and directors of public health are demanding more control over the tracing operation amid concerns that their ability to contain the virus is being put at risk.

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Labour pays out six-figure sum and apologises in antisemitism row

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Party settles with whistleblowers and BBC reporter John Ware over ‘false allegations’


The Labour party has apologised “unreservedly” and paid out a six-figure sum to seven former employees and a veteran BBC journalist, admitting it defamed them in the aftermath of a Panorama investigation into its handling of antisemitism.

The settlement and formal apologies to both the reporter, John Ware, and the ex-employees, which have been read in open court, is believed to have cost the Labour party around £600,000, with about £180,000 in damages agreed for the eight individuals.

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The Guardian view on rethinking China: right, but not because the US says so | Editorial

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The UK’s suspension of the extradition treaty with Hong Kong reflects an international shift. But British and American interests are not identical

Mike Pompeo’s remark that Britain was making its own “sovereign choices” in dealing with China might have sounded better had he not concluded with a pat on the head: “We think – well done.”

The US secretary of state’s visit to London highlighted the complications of the government’s toughened stance. The hardening of attitudes towards China, seen throughout much of the west and elsewhere, has been driven primarily by Beijing’s increasing repression at home and forcefulness internationally. Much of the shift is a sensible recalibration. The government was right to extend the arms embargo on mainland China – which covers equipment potentially used for internal repression – to Hong Kong, and to suspend the extradition treaty with the region. Britain could hardly have done otherwise, given not only its historical responsibility, but also the extraordinary reach and draconian nature of the national security law.

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UK government ‘did not want to know’ about Russian interference in EU referendum – video

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Long-delayed findings on Russia’s influence over UK politics reveals that the British government and intelligence agencies failed to conduct any proper assessment of Kremlin attempts to interfere with the 2016 EU referendum.

Parliament’s intelligence and security committee revealed the findings in a long overdue report that said ministers, in effect, ignored allegations of Russian disruption

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Are official figures overstating England’s Covid-19 death toll?

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PHE figures include deaths of anyone who tested positive, even if it was months ago

Matt Hancock has announced an urgent review into how Public Health England (PHE) counts Covid-19 deaths after discovering what appeared to be a serious issue in how rates are calculated.

Following the health secretary’s move on Friday, Yoon K Loke and Carl Heneghan, of the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine at Oxford University, wrote in a blogpost: “It seems that PHE regularly looks for people on the NHS database who have ever tested positive, and simply checks to see if they are still alive or not. PHE does not appear to consider how long ago the Covid test result was, nor whether the person has been successfully treated in hospital and discharged to the community.”

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Russia report reveals UK government failed to investigate Kremlin interference

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Intelligence and security committee publishes long-delayed findings on Russian influence over UK politics

The British government and intelligence agencies failed to conduct any proper assessment of Kremlin attempts to interfere with the 2016 Brexit referendum, according to the long-delayed Russia report.

The damning conclusion is contained within the 50-page document from parliament’s intelligence and security committee, which said ministers in effect turned a blind eye to allegations of Russian disruption.

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