Politics

The new health secretary has promised the NHS will remain free at the point of use as long as she is “alive” as the service gears up for another difficult winter. Victoria Atkins, who replaced Steve Barclay in Rishi Sunak’s most recent reshuffle, made the commitment while discussing the “unique” pressures the NHS faces every

You can’t write him off. Boris Johnson has found his way back into the public’s good books before and if his hopes of a political comeback are still alive, the coming week could be a decisive moment. The preparations are under way. The former prime minister has spent many hours with barristers, studying 6,000 pages

Boris Johnson will reportedly tell the COVID inquiry that he “unquestionably made mistakes” during the pandemic, but his decisions helped save tens of thousands of lives. The former prime minister is due to give evidence next week – and according to The Times, he will issue an “unreserved apology” and admit his government was “initially

People who make the rules must abide by them, Matt Hancock has said, as he acknowledged his own infamous lockdown-breaking clinch undermined public confidence in efforts to tackle coronavirus. Giving evidence to the COVID-19 inquiry, the MP said he had taken accountability by resigning as health secretary in June 2021 after leaked footage emerged of

Rishi Sunak has insisted the UK can “stand tall” at the COP28 summit – despite a former minister claiming the country is no longer seen as a “serious partner” in the fight against climate change. Lord Zac Goldsmith, who resigned as an environment minister in June, told Sky News that delays to green targets meant

Rishi Sunak will call for “pragmatic” climate action at COP28, as he seeks to reassure international partners following his climate U-turns earlier this year. Mr Sunak changed a number of plans put in place by his predecessors over the summer – including the phasing out of the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2030.

Alistair Darling, who served as chancellor under then prime minister Gordon Brown, has died at the age of 70. His family confirmed the news about the Labour peer on Thursday. Lord Darling became a household name when Gordon Brown appointed him chancellor after taking the keys to Number 10 back in 2007. He ran the

Rwanda may be getting more than the £140m it has already been paid under the controversial deportation deal, despite no flights taking off, MPs have been told. Sir Matthew Rycroft, the top civil servant at the Home Office, hinted more money would be spent but repeatedly refused to disclose the sum – saying ministers had

The UK’s largest nursing union is calling for the government to reopen pay negotiations after an offer was made to consultant doctors, in a move that has angered other health unions. The Royal College of Nursing – RCN – has suggested new strikes are “more likely in the future” as a result of yesterday’s announcement.

Rishi Sunak hasn’t had many wins in his short premiership. But one he could legitimately claim was being a prime minister who improved Britain’s standing in the world – drawing a line under the bumpy Brexit years and provocative style of his predecessors Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. He was the prime minister who delivered

Government officials have discussed legal ways they could block any export of the Elgin marbles, Sky News understands, as Downing Street cancelled a meeting between the prime minister and his Greek counterpart. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was due to meet Rishi Sunak in London on Tuesday morning, but Number 10 cancelled on Monday evening

A new pay offer has been made to NHS consultants which could end long-running strike action in England. The British Medical Association (BMA) said it would see most senior doctors get an extra 4.95% “investment in pay” for this financial year, on top of the 6% annual rise already awarded. Politics Live: Sadiq Khan tells

James Cleverly will announce he is still reviewing measures to reduce legal migration on Monday, as the government fights to convince its own backbenchers it can exercise control over UK borders. Next month Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will then set out the results of the review alongside details of the new treaty with Rwanda and

Reform UK leader Richard Tice has denied reports that Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson was offered money to defect to his party.  Mr Tice told Sky News that “no money or cash has been offered to any Tory MP whatsoever”. He added: “This is about Lee Anderson using the threat of defecting to Reform to

A cabinet minister has played down the suggestion of a government split on the Rwanda asylum plan after the home secretary said it was not the “be all and end all” of migration policy. Backbench Tory MPs have criticised James Cleverly after he urged people not to “fixate” on the controversial deportation scheme, and said

If the Conservatives thought the autumn statement would bring the party a much needed boost – announcing cuts to national insurance and business taxes – some very big numbers were lurking just around the corner that would ruin the party. The very next day, the Office for National Statistics released figures that showed net migration