Politics

Short-term policy making and a decade of underinvestment has left the NHS in a “critical condition” as it turns 75, health experts have warned. Three leading thinktanks said the service may not reach its 100th birthday without more resources being pumped into it and fundamental reforms. Separately, NHS Providers – which represents hospital trusts –

Nigel Farage has had his account with prestigious bank Coutts closed. The Brexit campaigner has been told by his exclusive bank Coutts – a favourite of the Royal Family – that they no longer want him as a customer. Mr Farage claimed in a video on Twitter this was due to him being a “politically

For the senior MPs on the Liaison Committee, it was an opportunity missed. Apart from one explosive clash that left a shifty-looking Rishi Sunak totally skewered. Coming six months to the day since the prime minister announced his five priorities for the year, the committee should have put him under pressure on the progress so

Members of the Armed Force are using food banks because of “personal decisions around how people are budgeting”, according to the UK veterans minister. Sky News’ defence editor, Deborah Haynes, reported last month that some military personnel and their families had been forced to use the centres as high inflation and rising costs tipped them

Ofcom has launched an investigation into an episode of Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg’s GB News show in which he covered a breaking news story about a court case involving Donald Trump. The media watchdog said it received 40 complaints objecting to the MP for North East Somerset acting as a newsreader during his State Of The

Sue Gray broke the Civil Service code by discussing a job with Labour, a Cabinet Office investigation has concluded. In a written ministerial statement, Cabinet Office minister Jeremy Quinn said the “undeclared contact” between her and the party constituted a breach. “The rules and guidance that govern the conduct of civil servants are clear and

Right-wing Tory MPs have urged Rishi Sunak to take action to reduce immigration, saying the system is “too lenient”. The New Conservatives group, made up of 25 MPs on the right of the party, will put forward a number of proposals to the prime minister in a report released on Monday, including ending the temporary

Health Secretary Steve Barclay has criticised junior doctors, accusing them of “walking away” from talks over pay and conditions. The British Medical Association – the union representing many from the profession – has called a five-day strike in July and is demanding a rise of 35% to restore their wages to 2008 levels. It has

A minister has ordered a local council to end its experiment with a four-day week “immediately” over concerns about the “value for money” for local taxpayers. South Cambridgeshire District Council, the first local authority in the UK to undertake such a trial, had announced plans to extend it until April. Local government minister Lee Rowley

In a barbed resignation letter, Lord Goldsmith has accused the government of withdrawing leadership on climate change and the prime minister of being “uninterested” in the environment. Rishi Sunak was quick to reject the claims, pointing to the UK’s recent involvement in the successful Montreal biodiversity summit, and highlighting that the UK continues to maintain

A Tory minister named in a Privileges Committee report for interfering in Boris Johnson’s partygate probe has resigned from government. Lord Zac Goldsmith, a former MP, has quit his environmental role, claiming Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was “simply uninterested” in the issue. ‘Hugely important day for NHS’, minister says – politics latest On Thursday, the

The government will be in court today as it fights an order from the COVID inquiry to handover unredacted messages from Boris Johnson. The probe was set up by the former prime minister to look into the handling of the pandemic, and hearings have already begun. But its chair, Baroness Hallet, became frustrated with the

The privileges committee’s special report on “sustained interference” into the partygate probe names seven MPs and one peer, accusing them of “improper pressure”. Nadine Dorries is named four times and Mark Jenkinson, Michael Fabricant, Brendan Clarke-Smith, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Andrea Jenkyns, Priti Patel and Zac Goldsmith are all also cited in the report for criticising the

Defeats in the House of Lords mean the government will need to make the case about why it should not be legally bound by international refugee conventions. The government suffered a series of setbacks on its Illegal Migration Bill in the House of Lords on Wednesday, amid fierce opposition from peers. One of the amendments

Thames Water has appointed industry veteran Sir Adrian Montague as chairman as the troubled utility provider seeks to shore up public and investor confidence. The former chairman of Anglian Water and insurance giant Aviva, Sir Adrian will replace current chairman Ian Marchant, who announced in April that he would stand down at the end of

A formal complaint has been made against London Conservative mayoral hopeful Daniel Korski following a groping allegation. TV producer and screenwriter Daisy Goodwin has made a formal complaint against the Tory London mayoral hopeful. Mr Korski has strenuously denied the claim against him. Ms Goodwin alleged in an article for The Times that she was