Jeremy Hunt has hinted at an autumn election as speculation continues to grow over when the country will head to the polls. Speaking at the Lords’ Economic Affairs Committee on Tuesday, the chancellor was asked about the government’s spending review – the detailed multi-year plan on how departments will spend their cash – and revealed
Politics
The government’s alternative plans for housing asylum seekers will actually cost the taxpayer millions more than the hotels they seek to replace, according to a public spending watchdog. A report from the National Audit Office (NAO) said accommodating those waiting for asylum decisions on barges or former RAF bases would cost the Home Office £1.2bn
The Conservatives have been fined over £10,000 by the elections watchdog for failing to accurately declare donations. The party under-reported non-cash donations in the form of a member of staff seconded to the party by donor Richard Harpin between April 2020 and December 2023, the Electoral Commission said. Politics Live: ‘Act of folly’ to get
The government has announced its plan for an Independent Football Regulator (IFR) for the professional men’s game. The IFR came about following a review by Tory MP Tracey Crouch, which itself was launched after the attempt by clubs to form the European Super League. But the Premier League has responded by saying they “remain concerned”
Five episodes of GB News programmes that were presented by Tory MPs have been found by Ofcom to have breached broadcasting rules. Two episodes of Jacob Rees-Mogg’s State of the Nation, two episodes of Friday Morning with Esther and Phil – hosted by former pensions minister Esther McVey and her husband Philip Davies, a longstanding
Rishi Sunak hopes three key moments this week will turn around his fortunes after his standing in the party plummeted. The PM is hoping Monday’s speech on the economy, Wednesday’s end of term appearance before Tory MPs and new inflation figures due out the same day, which could be close to the Bank of England
Rishi Sunak will lead the Tories into the next general election, the transport secretary insisted amid reports of a plot to oust the PM. Mark Harper dismissed speculation some Conservative rebels want the prime minister to be replaced with Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt. Politics Live: Rishi Sunak ‘will lead Tories’ into next election Asked on
Vaughan Gething is set to become Wales’s next first minister after winning the Labour leadership race. Mr Gething, who will also become the first black man to hold the post, is expected to be confirmed as the country’s first minister on Wednesday when a vote will be held in the Senedd. He will succeed Mark
On a cold Wednesday night, in the shadows of the Port Talbot steelworks, a group of men is playing football under the floodlights. The game has been arranged by a local group called Marauders Men’s Health, which provides help to those struggling with mental health problems. Increasingly, the team is made up of men from
The Conservative Party is “in talks” about an additional £5m from a Tory donor embroiled in a race row, Sky News understands. Two sources said discussions are ongoing about the extra money from Frank Hester, which if received, would take the amount he has donated since 2019 to £15m. Politics Live: 62 Tory MPs now
There are some weeks in politics where what Westminster needs is a monsoon to wash away the toxicity enveloping this place and clean up the atmosphere – and this week is one of them. Be it the Number 10 agenda this week on better defining extremism, an unruly MP in the shape of Lee Anderson,
The government has unveiled its new definition of extremism as part of a drive to clamp down on Islamist and far-right extremism. Some have warned the change could have a “chilling effect” on free speech, while others have said it doesn’t go far enough. How has the definition changed, why has the government done it,
Michael Gove says he is inclined to “exercise Christian forgiveness” when it comes to alleged remarks a Tory donor made about former Labour MP Diane Abbott. Earlier this week, the Guardian reported that businessman Frank Hester told his staff Ms Abbott made him “want to hate all black women” and “should be shot”. The comments
Diane Abbott has criticised Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle over his failure to call her during Prime Minister’s Questions when it was dominated by a row over comments a Tory donor allegedly made about her. The former Labour MP, who tried to speak during today’s debate but was not called, posted on X: “I don’t
A Conservative minister says he does not believe his party’s biggest donor is a racist, despite alleged comments he made about former Labour MP Diane Abbott – apparently saying she made him “want to hate all black women”. Rishi Sunak took the whole of Tuesday to call out the remarks from businessman Frank Hester –
Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch has said alleged comments made about Diane Abbott by a Tory donor were “racist” – but that there should be “space for forgiveness”. Ms Badenoch is the first cabinet minister to use the term to describe Frank Hester’s reported remarks about the former Labour MP, after government ministers including Graham Stuart