Politics

A union leader has told Sky News “the jury’s out” on whether schools in England will have to close again. Asked if she was confident that pupils would not have to go back to remote learning at some point in the future, Dr Mary Bousted replied: “No, I’m afraid I’m not.” Live COVID updates from

The prime minister has defended a proposed 1% pay rise for NHS staff. “What we have done is try to give them as much as we can at the present time,” Boris Johnson said during a visit to a COVID-19 vaccination centre in north London. Live COVID-19 updates from the UK and around the world

Longer school days, shorter summer holidays and five-term years are all options under consideration to help pupils catch up on lost learning, the education secretary has told Sky News. Speaking to Sophy Ridge on Sunday, Gavin Williamson said the government is looking at a “whole range of different” proposals to help children amid the COVID-19

Boris Johnson has said the reopening of schools marks a “truly national effort” to beat coronavirus, as pupils prepare to return to classrooms across England. The first stage of the country’s lockdown easing begins on tomorrow, with indoor visits at care homes also part of the first lifting of restrictions. “The reopening of schools marks

The government has been accused of “snatching away” a previously suggested pay rise of 2.1% for NHS workers, as four major unions expressed their dismay at the 1% increase on offer. NHS Providers, which represents NHS trusts in England, said a long-term plan set out years ago by the government had assumed a pay rise

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is to set up a £35 million industrial action fund in response to the government’s recommendation of a 1% pay rise for NHS workers. RCN chief executive and general secretary Dame Donna Kinnair condemned health minster Nadine Dorries’ claim that 1% was “the most” the government could afford, calling

A 1% pay rise for NHS workers is “the most” the government can afford due to the economic cost of the COVID crisis, a health minister has told Sky News. The government is facing a furious backlash after calling for healthcare staff in England to be restricted to a pay rise of 1%. But Nadine

A former top civil servant at the Home Office has settled his employment tribunal claim against the government. Sir Philip Rutnam resigned from his role as the department’s permanent secretary last year, amid bullying allegations against Priti Patel. Announcing his departure, Sir Philip accused the home secretary of a “vicious and orchestrated briefing campaign” against

Loyalist paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland have withdrawn their support for the Good Friday Agreement in protest at post-Brexit border arrangements. In a letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the Loyalist Communities Council (LCC) said they no longer backed the 1998 peace deal due to the impact of the Northern Ireland Protocol. They called for

The European Union has said it will take legal action over Britain’s “unilateral action” over the Northern Ireland protocol. European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic said Britain’s decision to unilaterally continue Irish Sea border grace periods until October amounted to a violation of the agreement. “Following the UK government’s statement today, vice-president Sefcovic has expressed the

The Commons speaker has told Sky News he hopes the chancellor does not dash off for his post-budget press conference too quickly after addressing MPs. “I’m hoping he’s not going too quickly, because I expect him to sit through,” Sir Lindsay Hoyle said regarding Rishi Sunak’s economic set piece in the chamber on Wednesday. “I

The biggest question of the budget could be when changes announced by Rishi Sunak are introduced, rather than what they are. Speaker Lindsay Hoyle has signalled he may reprimand the chancellor after so much of today’s budget appeared to have leaked or dripped out in advance. But does that mean all the budget’s true secrets

The chancellor is expected to give £408m to help museums, theatres and galleries to reopen in England as coronavirus restrictions ease. Rishi Sunak will announce the support for the badly-hit culture sector in his Budget on Wednesday, as many theatres mark a year of forced closure this month. The Budget will also include a “significant

David Cameron has admitted his government made a mistake in planning for future pandemics during his time in office. The former prime minister, who was in Number 10 from 2010 to 2016, told a committee hearing that the 2013 Ebola outbreak in west Africa had focused minds on the threat posed by pandemics. But he

A huge boost in spending on the UK’s COVID-19 vaccine programme will be announced by the chancellor in the Budget on Wednesday. Rishi Sunak will pledge a further £1.65bn for jabs, a cash injection hailed by the Treasury as a “shot in the arm” for the vaccine roll-out. The chancellor will also promise to invest

There are two ways of telling the Rishi Sunak story of the past 12 months. The widespread narrative is of a chancellor who was brought in to do the prime minister’s bidding but ended up out-performing his boss. In this tale, Mr Sunak’s competent response to the coronavirus pandemic, alongside eye-catching policies like “eat out