British Politics

Russian media mogul Evgeny Lebedev has taken his seat in the House of Lords. The 40-year-old, who owns the Evening Standard and the Independent, is a long-time friend of Boris Johnson. His appointment to the unelected chamber along with the prime minister’s brother Jo Johnson and Brexiteer cricketer Sir Ian Botham, fuelled accusations of “cronyism” […]

Dominic Cummings has used a column in The Spectator‘s magazine Christmas special to launch a veiled attack on Boris Johnson and his fiancée Carrie Symonds. Cummings used a slot in a publication where his wife works to say politicians had become “more focused on Twitter and gossip-column stories about their dogs”. Johnson’s former top aide is set to […]

Despite refusing to provide an economic analysis for Brexit, throwing millions on unusable coronavirus PPE, giving special advisers large pay rises, Jacob Rees-Mogg has accused Labour of wasting money. Speaking in front of MPs, leader of the House of Commons Rees-Mogg said it was a “well-known fact that socialists” run out of other people’s money. It […]

Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg has told MPs Unicef should be “ashamed” of itself over its pledge to feed UK children during the coronavirus pandemic after a Labour politician asked him to get his “super-rich chums to pay their fair share”. The Commons leader told MPs it was “a scandal” that the charity had said it […]

Big Ben is to be reconnected so that it can ring in at 11pm on New Year’s Eve – the moment the UK leaves the European Union’s single market and customs union. The famous bell has been largely silent since 2017 due to repairs on the clock and Parliament’s Elizabeth Tower which houses it, only […]

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey has clashed with a former Tory minister for suggesting his party may not back Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal. Former home secretary Amber Rudd, appearing on Politics Live, told the pro-European that he should have originally backed a soft Brexit which Theresa May proposed. She explained: “I’m very very sad that […]

Footage of Priti Patel being schooled on her support for the death penalty by Ian Hislop has resurfaced on social media. In the clip from 2011, Patel is seen clashing with Private Eye editor over the use of the death penalty in innocent cases. Debating the reintroduction of capital punishment on Question Time, Hislop said: “For 50 years, Private […]

A Tory MP who broke coronavirus rules to attend a Christmas party after advising others to be cautious has been slammed on Twitter. Bournemouth East MP Tobias Ellwood is under fire for attending a Christmas bash with 27 guests at a London club. Ellwood, who chairs the Commons defence committee, gave a speech at the Cavalry […]

Home secretary Priti Patel has said there have been “many, many changes” at the Home Office after the inquiry into claims that she bullied civil servants working for her. An investigation by the prime minister’s adviser on ministerial standards, Sir Alex Allan, last month concluded that her behaviour towards staff could be described as bullying, […]

Health secretary Matt Hancock has told MPs Tier 3 restrictions will be extended across a wide area of East and South East England. Which tier are you in? Find out below. Tier 3 No mixing indoors. People can only meet outdoors in limited places such as parks and public gardens. Pubs and restaurants must close, […]

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage has admitted there might not be “appetite” amongst the public for him to run in an election again – even if Boris Johnson delivers a ‘Brexit in name only’. The politician – who lost in all seven elections he stood in and dropped out of the latest – said although […]

Priti Patel has sparred with a Sky News presenter after he suggested Britain could be “less safe” after Brexit. The home secretary threw aside claims Britain’s security and intelligence operations would be jeopardised by a no-deal Brexit. She appeared on Sky News to assuage concerns. Presenter Niall Paterson asked: “As things stand we do not […]

French president Emmanuel Macron has tested positive for Covid-19. The Elysée palace announced that Macron took a test for coronavirus on Thursday and received a positive result, meaning he will now self-isolate for seven days. Macron is “still in charge”, an official said, and will now work remotely. He follows other world leaders including Boris […]

Brexiteers in government – along with the prime minister – have been accused by former Brexit Party MEPs of ‘selling out’ to Brussels. In a sign of discontent over any Brexit agreement with the EU, Alexandra Phillips and Ben Habib have penned a column in the Daily Telegraph accusing the biggest proponents of the project in the Tory […]

Donald Trump is looking to secure a series of ‘mini’ Brexit trade deals with the UK, his trade chief has claimed. Trade representative Robert Lighthizer suggested that the US and UK could agree deals which reduce tariffs on items such as Scotch whisky if a pact is successful. The government hopes to broker a full free trade […]

An SNP MP has been suspended from a House of Commons sitting after he protested against the approval of controversial Brexit legislation. The party’s business spokesman Drew Hendry shouted “this is an outrage” as proceedings on the UK Internal Market Bill came to a conclusion following a lengthy parliamentary battle in recent weeks. Deputy speaker […]

The British government has been called a “disgrace” after UNICEF was forced to intervene in the country’s food crisis for the first time ever. The UN agency said Covid-19 had left British youngsters facing the biggest crisis since the Second World War and donated £25,000 to a charity feeding Britain’s hungry children. Since the first national lockdown […]

Tory MP Michael Fabricant was cut-off by the House of Commons speaker after he branded Labour leader Keir Starmer a “smarmy lawyer”. The Conservative politician for Lichfield used his question at Prime Minister’s Question to claim the Labour leader was looking to change the rules on Christmas. He told MPs: “Look, on the subject of […]

Emergency stop-gap Brexit legislation is set to be rushed through the House of Lords in a day to ensure the UK is ready for its final departure from the EU at the end of the year. The “panic stations” bill has led to accusations of “chaos” being levelled at the government. The criticism came as […]

A BBC factchecker has debunked Boris Johnson’s claims that coronavirus infection rates were falling across England. Politics Live‘s Joel Massey said government data showed the majority of local authority areas reported an increase in cases over the past week. Johnson had declared that a “huge amount of progress” had been made to bringing down infection rates. His comments comes as […]

The gender pay gap has significantly widened at the Department for International Trade (DIT) run by women and equalities minister Liz Truss, new figures reveal. Labour said the growing divide “raises serious questions” about the government’s commitment to close the gender pay gap when Truss’s department is “clearly going backwards”. The gap in the DIT, […]

Downing Street has defended Dominic Cummings being handed a pay rise of around £45,000 as taking the senior aide to the “correct level of salary” for his role. The prime minister’s press secretary Allegra Stratton said: “This was a matter for the Cabinet Office special adviser pay committee, that’s where the decisions are taken. “It’s […]

Today’s PMQs was  – definitely? maybe? – the last of 2020. That makes the session technically the Christmas special, and while, unlike most TV spectaculars, this gratifyingly wasn’t twice the usual length, at least it provided all the catchphrases you’ve come to know and love since Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer came to occupy the […]

Sir Keir Starmer has chided Boris Johnson during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) after he granted Dominic Cummings a £40,000 pay raise while at the same time enforcing a pay freeze on public sector workers.  In his return to the chamber since self-isolating, Sir Keir said: “Another major mistake of the past 12 months is losing public trust. “We all know what […]

The SNP’s Ian Blackford has demanded an economic analysis of Boris Johnson’s Brexit plans. The party’s Westminster leader a “detailed economic assessment of the cost to the UK of his extreme Tory Brexit plans” before MPs are asked to vote on any possible deal. The Scottish politician claimed at Prime Minister’s Questions that the Tory […]

Subscribers of a Tory Party newsletter in Northamptonshire have been advised to campaign like Donald Trump by “weaponising fake news”. Activists were told they could “learn lessons” from Trump, adding: “A lie can go round the world before the truth can get its boots on.” It calls on members to “fight woke-ism” and attacks Labour’s landmark […]

England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will press ahead with a relaxation of coronavirus restrictions over Christmas. Boris Johnson urged people to “exercise extreme caution” as they celebrate Christmas amid fears about the spread of coronavirus but up to three households will still be allowed to mix between December 23 and 27. Talks involving the UK government […]

The government is to press ahead with the easing of coronavirus restrictions over Christmas even though it will lead to an increase in the infection rate, a senior minister has said. Communities secretary Robert Jenrick said that it would be up to people to make a “personal judgment” whether they wanted to meet up with […]

The TV broadcasting watchdog is looking into the comments Emily Maitlis made about Dominic Cummings after he broke lockdown earlier this year. The Newsnight coverage centred on the former senior adviser to Boris Johnson’s trip from London to Durham during the first lockdown. The BBC previously ruled that the presenter’s comments about Dominic Cummings, breached impartiality rules.  […]

A former prime minister of the Republic of Ireland said a Brexit deal was inevitable “as long as” Boris Johnson does not get involved. Bertie Ahern, who helped broker the Good Friday Agreement, said striking a deal was only a matter of time and trade-offs. Ahern told POLITICO the EU could give into Britain’s demands on fishing […]

A minister in Boris Johnson’s government has claimed he will “miss” Donald Trump, claiming he was “quite a good friend”.  Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, has insisted that the president has always fought Britain’s corner on the world stage. He told The Sun: “I’ll miss Donald Trump, because he was quite a good friend to Britain.” Speaking during a […]

Boris Johnson has told Eurosceptic members of the Tory party’s European Research Group that they should ignore the messages coming from the European Union about a Brexit deal. According to the Express, Conservative backbenchers were told by the prime minister to ignore the “propaganda” and “fake news” from Brussels which has left Brexiteers unhappy. It […]