Politics

The House of Commons has approved plans to exclude MPs from the parliamentary estate if they have been arrested on suspicion of a serious offence. The move came despite the government putting forward a motion to recommend that a ban kicks in at the point of charge – a higher bar. MPs voted to reverse

A health minister has apologised after a new report concluded that poor care in maternity services is “frequently tolerated as normal”. The parliamentary inquiry found there was “shockingly poor quality” in maternity services, which resulted in care that lacked compassion and a system where “poor care is all too frequently tolerated as normal”. Led by

Rishi Sunak is “absolutely right” to hold off calling an election because it gives voters time to see “the plan is working”, the foreign secretary has said.  Lord Cameron told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips that the prime minister is a “good man, doing a great job at a difficult time” after a bruising set

Accusations MP Natalie Elphicke lobbied the justice secretary in 2020 to interfere in her then-husband’s sex offences trial are “nonsense”, her spokesperson has said. It is claimed the Dover MP, who recently defected from Conservative to Labour, approached Sir Robert Buckland when he was lord chancellor and justice secretary before the hearing of Charlie Elphicke’s

A cut in VAT and a new levy on arena and stadium tickets are urgently needed to stop grassroots music venues from closing, MPs have said. A report by the Culture, Media and Sport Committee said artists are facing a “cost-of-touring crisis”, with venues stopping live music or closing entirely at a rate of two

No deportation flights to Rwanda will take off under a Labour government, Sir Keir Starmer has told Sky News. The Labour leader told Sky News political editor Beth Rigby “there’ll be no flights” as he wants to “scrap the scheme”, which aims to send asylum seekers entering the UK illegally from a safe country, such

“I am ruthless”. That was Sir Keir Starmer’s account of himself and his decision to let Natalie Elphicke into the Labour Party on our trip to Dover on Friday to unveil his plan to stop the small boats. Because for all the controversy her arrival on the Labour benches caused this week, for Sir Keir it

Sir Keir Starmer has said he has no doubt the government will get flights off the ground to Rwanda but Labour would “cancel the scheme straight away” if they win the next general election. The Labour leader, announcing his party’s policy on illegal immigration in Dover, said the government’s flagship policy of sending asylum seekers

The MP who defected from the Tories to Labour yesterday has apologised for comments she made supporting her ex-husband after he was convicted of sexual assault. After former Tory MP Charlie Elphicke was jailed for two years in 2020 for assaulting two women, Natalie Elphicke told the Sun the fact he was “attractive” and “attracted

Former COVID vaccines minister and chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has announced he will not be standing at the next general election. The Conservative MP for Stratford-on-Avon since 2010 quoted his “most famous constituent” as he wrote: “Go to your bosom; knock there and ask your heart what it doth know.” He said: “The time is right

Conservative MP Natalie Elphicke has defected to the Labour Party. The Dover MP said the change in the Tory Party since she entered parliament in 2019 “has been dramatic and cannot be ignored”. She hit out at the “broken promises of Rishi Sunak’s tired and chaotic government”, adding that Labour “looks to the future –

John Swinney has been legally sworn in as Scotland’s seventh first minister. The 60-year-old is now Keeper of the Scottish Seal, also known as the Great Seal, after taking the oath of office and pledging his allegiance to the King. The seal allows the monarch to authorise official documents without having to sign each one.

John Swinney will become Scotland’s new first minister after being backed by a majority of MSPs. Following his victory in the SNP leadership race on Monday, the 60-year-old faced a vote at Holyrood to confirm him as Humza Yousaf’s successor. The Scottish Greens abstained from the vote, with Mr Swinney able to fend off challenges

The Chinese state has hacked the Ministry of Defence, Sky News understands. MPs will be told on Tuesday of a massive data breach involving the MoD, targeting service personnel. It is understood investigations have not shown any data has been taken. The government will not name the country involved, but Sky News understands this to

The government is “gaslighting” the public about the state of the economy, the shadow chancellor will say on Tuesday. Rachel Reeves is set to attack the Conservatives in a speech in the City of London, as the opposition takes the fight to the government on their own turf ahead of the general election. Running a

The government at one point considered using Iraq to process asylum seekers – like the Rwanda scheme – according to documents seen by Sky News. This could have seen people sent from the UK to a country the government advises against all travel to. The two countries already have a returns agreement – but only