Politics

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the Ukrainian people “are truly thankful” for US support, hours after talks with Donald Trump descended into a row at the White House. During a disastrous meeting with Mr Trump, the Ukrainian president was asked by vice president JD Vance, “have you said thank you once?” In a lengthy social media

Anneliese Dodds has quit as international development minister over Sir Keir Starmer’s decision to slash the overseas aid budget to pay for an increase in defence spending.  Ms Dodds, who is also women and equalities minister and attends cabinet, said she was resigning from both posts “with great sadness” but would continue to support the

“Relieved is an understatement”. That’s how one senior government figure described their mood as the prime minister, his foreign secretary and the Number 10 team left the White House having cemented Sir Keir and President Trump’s personal relationship; secured a commitment to NATO; the prospect of a trade deal that could spare the UK from

With Donald Trump, it’s all about relationships. Going into this bilateral summit, those around Sir Keir Starmer were stressing that these guys genuinely got on well, they liked each other, and that the prime minister could say things to Mr Trump in private and not get his head blown off. What we saw today was

The prime minister has refused to say whether further tax rises will be imposed in the spring statement. Sir Keir Starmer said the government was in the “early stages” of looking at whether tax rises or spending cuts were needed to meet Labour’s self-imposed fiscal rules. He would not say if Ms Reeves is looking

Income taxes will have to rise in order to plug Britain’s financial blackhole and allow for reforms, the former Bank of England governor has told Sky News. Lord Mervyn King told Sophy Ridge’s Politics Hub programme we should all recognise “the very difficult position” that Chancellor Rachel Reeves has “inherited”, as he pointed to slow

Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of failing to guarantee the recently announced uplift in defence spending will not be spent on the contentious Chagos Islands deal. After initially refusing to set out a timeline to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP, the prime minister confirmed on Tuesday the threshold would be met by

Sir Keir Starmer has admitted his decision to increase defence spending was “accelerated” by Donald Trump taking office. The prime minister said today’s announcement was “three years in the making” after Russia invaded Ukraine – but a “very changed context” pushed him forward. Politics Live: PM warns ‘everything has changed’ after announcing defence spending boost

Kemi Badenoch has said the US is acting in its national interest and the UK also needs to, ahead of Sir Keir Starmer’s meeting with Donald Trump. The Conservative leader, giving a foreign policy speech in London on Tuesday, told Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby the US is “not an authoritarian regime” and shares

The former leader of Reform UK in Wales has appeared in court after he was accused of making favourable statements about Russia in the European Parliament in exchange for bribes. Nathan Gill, 51, has been charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bribery under the Criminal Law Act 1977, and with eight counts of

👉Listen to Politics At Jack And Sam’s on your podcast app👈 Sky News’ deputy political editor Sam Coates and Politico’s Anne McElvoy have their guide to the day ahead in British politics. On the third anniversary of Ukraine’s invasion, Sam and Anne take stock on the milestone’s significance for global politics. With transatlantic tensions remaining,

The prime minister has announced £200m for Grangemouth ahead of the closure of Scotland’s last oil refinery. Sir Keir Starmer, speaking at the Scottish Labour conference on Sunday, said the cash would come from the National Wealth Fund for an “investment in Scotland’s industrial future”. Grangemouth oil refinery, on the banks of the Firth of

Sir Keir Starmer has said the United States “is right” about the UK and Europe needing to take more responsibility for defence and security. The prime minister, speaking at the Scottish Labour conference in Glasgow on Sunday, said he is clear Britain “will take a leading responsibility” in protecting the continent. “Instability in Europe always

For a prime minister who has spent so much of his time in office out of the country, this week’s high-stakes trip to Washington DC may well be the one for which Sir Keir Starmer ends up being most remembered. At a time when the Western alliance seems close to fracturing over Donald Trump‘s verbal

Cliff Nicholls runs two trampoline parks and indoor play centres: one in Tamworth in the West Midlands, the other in Bolton, Greater Manchester. He’s already feeling the pressure from the government’s latest budget measures and has been forced to abandon further investment plans. “The national minimum wage increases coming in April, combined with the reduced

Jess Phillips has said “there is no place” where violence against women and girls “doesn’t happen” – as a new law is set to make spiking a criminal offence. Earlier on Friday, the government said spiking will now be its own offence with a possible 10-year prison sentence as part of the Crime and Policing