British Politics

A food and beverage boss has described preparing for Brexit in the middle of a pandemic like “an assault on people’s headspace”.  Ian Wright, chief executive of the UK’s Food and Drink Federation, told a Commons committee on his industry faces a triple whammy of financial hardship if Downing Street proceeds forward with leaving the EU […]

A pro-Brexit caller on the James O’Brien show said he was delighted to be free of EU regulations but struggled to name one he disagreed with. Dave from Epsom told LBC listeners he was a Brexiteer because he did not believe in a “federal Europe”, which at first he struggled to define but eventually described […]

Boris Johnson has said he is still hopeful about reaching a Brexit deal with the EU but that it was proving “very, very difficult” to make progress. Later this week Johnson will head to Brussels for face-to-face talks with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen in an attempt to salvage a deal, with time […]

Matt Hancock has ignored Britain’s medicines regulator to repeat a debunked claim that Britain fast-tracked the approval of a coronavirus vaccine thanks to Brexit. The health secretary doubled down on claims that being outside the EU allowed Britain to “change the law” to allow a speedy approval of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine last week, becoming the first country in the world to […]

Dawn French has revealed she dumped an ex-boyfriend after discovering he was a Tory. The Vicar of Dibley actress opened up about her split with Lenny Henry in 2010 after realising “something wasn’t right”. French, 63, told the How To Wow podcast: “I did have a nice time with one chap. He was quite posh. […]

A television presenter has reminded Matt Hancock that the Covid-19 vaccine – first administered in Britain – was an international effort. The health secretary was rebuked last week after he claimed that Britain was only able to become the first country to approve the jab because of Brexit. He told talkRADIO: “It is absolutely clear that […]

A grandmother has become the first person in the world to receive Pfizer’s Covid-19 jab as part of the NHS’s mass vaccination programme . Margaret Keenan, 90, received the jab at 6.31am in Coventry on Tuesday, marking the start of a phased rollout of the vaccine to older people, NHS staff and care home workers. […]

A joke about Boris Johnson’s former aide Dominic Cummings has topped the list of the top Christmas cracker jokes in the UK. TV channel Gold’s eight annual rankings – chosen by a panel chaired by critic Bruce Dessau – saw 2,000 voters choose a gag about the Vote Leave mastermind. “What is Dominic Cummings’ favourite Christmas song? […]

MPs have voted 357 to 268, a majority of 89, to reinsert a controversial section of the UK Internal Market Bill which enables ministers to breach international law over Brexit. These are the politicians that voted with the government to overturn a House of Lords decision to remove them: Conservative Adam AfriyieAdam HollowayAlan MakAlberto CostaAlec […]

MPs have voted 357 to 268, a majority of 89, to reinsert a controversial section of the UK Internal Market Bill which enables ministers to breach international law over Brexit. The House of Commons restored sections of the Bill removed by peers, as talks between the UK and EU continue in search of a deal […]

The government has been defeated in the Lords over giving parliament a bigger say in the approval of post-Brexit trade agreements. Peers backed by 308 votes to 261, majority 47, a cross-party amendment to the Trade Bill calling for greater accountability and transparency of deals. The legislation will enable the UK to forge new commercial […]

Shadow chancellor of the Duchy Rachel Reeves has put down James Cleverly over his claim that the “oven-ready deal” promised at the last general election had been delivered. Cleverly, appearing on BBC Breakfast earlier, said that Boris Johnson’s comments only related to the Withdrawal Agreement and not a Brexit deal overall. He said: “That ‘oven-ready’ that […]

A charity that advocates for migrant rights’ has launched legal action against Priti Patel arguing the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) causes unlawful discrimination. The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) is calling on the home secretary to scrap or at least extend the scheme beyond June 2021.   They warn failure to do so could result in tens of thousands EU nationals losing […]

The government’s decision to review the country’s human rights laws has been branded “bonkers” by Labour, with campaigners warning it would be a “giant leap backwards” if they were torn up. Former Court of Appeal judge Sir Peter Gross will lead a panel which will consider whether the Human Rights Act needs to be reformed, some […]

Rupert Murdoch’s latest television news channel has been given the go-ahead by Ofcom and could start broadcasting as early as spring 2021. News UK TV is competing against Andrew Neil-backed channel GB News to be first on-air. Both outlets believe there is a gap in the market for right-leaning television news channels aimed at Britons […]

The government has said it is prepared to remove three controversial clauses from the UK Internal Market Bill following discussions in the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee, providing a Brexit deal is agreed with the EU. In a statement, the government said: “Discussions continue to progress and final decisions are expected in the coming days. “If […]

President-elect Joe Biden has become more popular than Donald Trump ever was during his presidency, a new CNN Gallup poll has found. Biden received a 55pc approval rating, having jumped six percentage points since the election, while Trump shrunk to 42pc, down three points since November 3. Trump’s highest rating was 50pc in a Bloomberg […]

David Davis has caused a stir after claiming that Britain has maintained a “civilised approach” to Brexit talks, before saying that the European Union had not. Penning an article for The Sun the former Brexit secretary wrote in support of a no-deal Brexit, claiming current negotiator Lord Frost had “played a blinder” and that Britain “had nothing […]

Downing Street has finally acknowledged for the first time that leaving the EU on an ‘Australia-style’ deal is the equivalent of a no-deal Brexit, but still insists the UK can “prosper” from it. As what is meant by the definition, the prime minister’s official spokesperson said: “As a matter of fact, Australia does not have a comprehensive […]

A Brexiteer MP has been described as “thick as two short planks” after suggesting tariffs on EU goods would help Britain cover export costs after it leaves the trading bloc. Andrew Bridgen has become the centre of ridicule after suggesting Britain could use levies imposed on EU-imported products to reimburse exporters hit with new fees […]

Boris Johnson’s official spokesperson has said that the prime minister has accepted that food prices will rise if the UK leaves the post-Brexit transition period without a trade deal in place. He referred reporters to environment secretary George Eustice saying there would be a less than 2% rise on some products as a result of […]

Brexit Party chairman Richard Tice has been challenged after suggesting Britain fast-tracked a coronavirus vaccine thanks to Brexit. Politics Live presenter Jo Coburn swiftly rebuffed Tice who suggested Britain was able to speedily approve a vaccine because it was no longer part of the EU. Tice was echoing comments made by the health secretary last week that […]

A former Tory minister has told a Twitter user to “get stuffed” after the politician denounced the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. Simon Clarke, a former communities minister until he resigned in September, tweeted in support of environment secretary George Eustice, who refused to criticise Millwall fans when they booed players taking the knee. Eustice told Sky News […]

Labour’s minister for faith has resigned and apologised for making “misjudged” comments relating to gay marriage. Janet Daby said last week that registrars who have a religious objection to same-sex marriages should be protected from losing their jobs if they refuse to certify the partnership. The Lewisham East MP said she “sincerely” apologised for the […]

Former BBC politics presenter David Dimbleby has rated Boris Johnson’s government the lowest of the low. Dimbleby, who covered every general election for the broadcaster between 1979 and 2017 as well as hosting the EU referendum coverage, said it had been the worst administration he had witnessed since he was born in 1938. Asked by Krishnan […]

Nigel Farage has been reminded of his poor record of attending fisheries meetings as an MEP after slamming Boris Johnson’s potential Brexit deal climbdown. The Brexit Party leader was criticised for a tweet he made slamming news of a potential compromise over fishing rights in UK waters, which has been a stumbling block in trade talks. Responding to […]

Jurgen Klopp has complained about new post-Brexit transfer rules after the Football Association (FA) announced Brexit would have ramifications for English football. The FA, alongside the Premier League and EFL, confirmed this week that English clubs cannot sign foreign players until they are 18, or more than three overseas players under 21 in a single […]

James Cleverly has struggled to explain how the UK will access the coronavirus vaccine – which is produced in Belgium – in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Cleverly said stocks of the vaccine would be flown into the UK should a no-deal Brexit occur but stopped short of explaining other methods were being considered by the government. […]

Boris Johnson is reportedly preparing to pull out of Brexit talks in the next 48 hours if the European Union does not agree to his demands. The Sun reports that Johnson will end the negotiations between the United Kingdom and European Union by the middle of the week if there is no further progress. It […]

Piers Morgan had the perfect response to government minister James Cleverly after he was questioned about ministers preparedness for a no-deal Brexit. Answering questions from Morgan on Good Morning Britain, Cleverly dismissed questions about a document showing “reasonable worst-case scenarios” surrounding no-deal Brexit. He was asked who would be held accountable if the document, first […]

Foreign Office minister James Cleverly has insisted that Boris Johnson has delivered his “oven-ready” Brexit deal, and that the UK still “holds all the cards” in talks with the EU. Cleverly appeared on BBC Breakfast amid questions over whether Brexiteers were right with their predictions that it would be the “easiest deal in history” and that the […]

Readers respond to Rishi Sunak’s latest spending review. The biggest public sector debt in history! What sickens me is the failure to acknowledge the outright lies of the coalition government in cutting back services now seen as essential. Health and social care, police, youth clubs, mother and toddler groups and all the multitude of services […]