British Politics

International Trade Secretary Liz Truss is to rule out a Donald Trump-style “Britain First” post-Brexit economic strategy as she criticises “values-free globalisation” in a keynote speech in London. In a speech which appears to show her manoeuvring towards appealing to US president nominee Joe Biden, Truss will say she wants a “values-driven free trade agenda” in […]

A Conservative council leader has been criticised for suggesting parents struggling to feed their children could go to Marks and Spencers. Cllr Mike Bird, who heads Walsall Council, made the remarks after being asked about Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford’s campaign to get free meals to kids in the half-term and Christmas holidays. Speaking to […]

Two-thirds of Britons think the government has failed in negotiations with the EU, while 57% would blame the UK government if the Brexit transition period ended without a deal in place, according to a new opinion poll. The polling, conducted by YouGov, finds that the public thinks that leaving the transition period without a deal in […]

Readers have their say on the furore over the government failure to provide free school meals during the holidays. As many politicians once again demonstrate that they are out of touch with ordinary people by voting against providing free school meals in holidays, is now the time to suggest that all politicians should undertake a […]

A Brexiteer MP has claimed that a 49% drop in positive coronavirus cases in Londonderry was not down to an increase in lockdown restrictions. Appearing on BBC Good Morning Ulster, Sammy Wilson, DUP MP, pointed to a spike in his constituency eight weeks ago which he said was remedied through a targeted intervention at a meat […]

A business minister has sparked concerns about pig semen after his comments on post-Brexit border checks within the UK. Conservative frontbencher Lord Callanan was replying to a question from Labour’s Lord Rooker about how measures in the government’s Brexit legislation would affect pig semen imports, telling the Lords: “I was slightly struggling to understand the relevance […]

Brandon Lewis has been forced to explain himself after being pictured travelling in his ministerial car without a face mask. Downing Street has told ministers that they must cover up when travelling in government vehicles, despite a loophole in the rules for chauffer-driven cars. A source close to the minister said he had removed his mask […]

A political commentator has pointed out that Andy Burnham could have been halfway through his tenure as prime minister right now if Labour had not elected Jeremy Corbyn, and could have even stopped Brexit in the process. Burnham was beaten to the job of Labour leader by Jeremy Corbyn in 2015 after Ed Miliband resigned […]

Former chancellor George Osborne has said that Marcus Rashford has ensured it is “game over” for the Tories over free school meals, and that a U-Turn is now “inevitable”. The ex-Tory MP said that the Manchester United forward has made ministers look like a “school yard football team, all running in a panic after the […]

The Green Party has accused the government of “ripping up” environmental protections in the UK after Brexit. Co-leader Jonathan Bartley said that it was “clear” that the UK leaving the European Union would leave weaker protections from the environment, and the formation of a new Office of Environmental Protection (OEP) watchdog will not alleviate those […]

Dominic Cummings’ unpaid council tax bill could fund thousands of free school meals, a report has found. Figures from the Evening Chronicle show Cummings’ debts could cover more than 23,000 meals in County Durham. Cummings owes £50,000 in unpaid council tax on two homes built in breach of regulations. Instead of the charges being backdated, Cummings will now only […]

The government’s attempts to put sovereignty over cooperation will leave us all worse off from Brexit. As the UK-EU deal or no-deal drama limps on, most attention focuses on the economic consequences of a new trade relationship. But UK health security – in the sense of measures to prevent and mitigate health emergencies such as […]

The Department for International Trade has come under heavy fire after claiming soy sauce, which Britain currently enjoys tariff-free access to as a member of the EU, will be cheaper after Brexit. Liz Truss’ department used a Japanese-themed episode of the Great British Bake Off to claim that the price of soy sauce in the UK […]

With just one week until the US election, we want to know who you think will win the vote? Will we wake up to the horrors of another four years of Donald Trump, or is it the end of populism and the emergence of decency in politics again with the election of Joe Biden? Have […]

A win for Joe Biden in next week’s US presidential elections could force Boris Johnson to water down his Brexit bill. Peers in the House of Lords are set to vote down six clauses in the internal market bill that would undermine Britain’s divorce deal with the EU during a vote on November 9, almost a […]

Politicians from the Liberal Democrats and Labour have called for urgent action from the government over Covid-19 to help “save Christmas”. Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said the government’s failure to use the half-term for a circuit-breaker lockdown means they now need to “do something quickly”. Ashworth said the government have “lost a window of […]

A minister has pleaded ignorance after being accused of leaving children going hungry during the school holidays. Environment minister George Eustice said he did not understand the line of questioning after Sky News presenter Kay Burley put to him that it sounded “ridiculous” that the government could only supply free school meals to pupils during […]

Boris Johnson allegedly “hid in his bedroom” to avoid questions on Brexit days before he was set to become prime minister in July 2019. Former Tory adviser Peter Cardwell claimed in his new book The Secret Life of Special Advisers that Johnson and his team ran upstairs to his bedroom to escape questions from Iain […]

Boris Johnson is under growing pressure to impose heightened coronavirus restrictions as the UK recorded its highest daily Covid-19 death toll since May, as reports claim that chief scientific adviser SIr Patrick Vallance is one of a number lobbying the government to take more action. It comes as fears were raised of the second wave […]

A Conservative MP has been criticised for suggesting “chaotic parents” can be to blame for sending their children to school hungry so they are unable to concentrate. John Penrose, a former minister who is married to NHS Test and Trace chief Baroness Harding, made the remark in a letter to a constituent as he defended […]

Actor and television presenter Danny Dyer has been praised for his latest criticism of the Tories over their handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Dyer, whose previously went viral for calling David Cameron a “tw*t over Brexit, appeared on BBC Breakfast to this time slam Boris Johnson’s government. The Eastenders star used his appearance to call for fewer Etonians […]

Two more Tory MPs who rejected a motion to extend free school meals have been at the receiving end of local protests. Empty plates with messages on them began piling up outside the office of Sutton MP Paul Scully on Monday after it emerged he was one of 322 Tory MP who voted against plans to feed hungry […]

A peer told of the “mounting panic” his family had faced ahead of school holidays when he was a child as he shared his experiences of receiving free meals, as he slammed the “Etonians” in parliament who would not recognise that feeling. Labour’s Lord Griffiths of Burry Port told the House of Lords: “I was […]

A Tory MP who signed a letter to Boris Johnson over Covid-19 measures in the north of England said he wants to “keep the prime minister honest” and delivering on his promises. Simon Fell, the MP for Barrow and Furness, was one of 55 Conservative MPs calling for a roadmap for Northern constituencies out of […]

Piers Morgan has ripped into Boris Johnson’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, describing his approach as “catastrophically wrong” and calling him a “blustering buffoon” on Australian television. The Good Morning Britain presenter said the virus had been a “nightmare” for may across the world, but particularly so in the UK. Appearing on Australian chat show Today, Morgan […]

A Tory MP has criticised his party for continually failing to tackle “burning injustices” and “life chances” because “something else always comes along”. Paul Manyard, the MP for Blackpool North and Cleveys, said that the backlash over free school meals should not have been a surprise and that it was no accident. Writing for Conservative […]

Deloitte and McKinsey are among a raft of private companies awarded £180 million in Brexit-related contracts by the government. Data released by the government and analysed by the Byline Times has revealed that six firms were handed identical contracts worth £30 million each for the provision of “strategic programme management” regarding the end of Brexit transition period. […]

Television presenter and campaigner Esther Rantzen has slammed Boris Johnson’s response to the coronavirus, saying the prime minister should not be proud of his support for children in particular. Asked by Julia Hartley-Brewer about the coronavirus support, she said: “In Boris’ place I don’t think I would be proud of my record, I would be […]

Boris Johnson is acting as a “human shield” for the Tories during Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic, a political commentator has claimed. Benedict Spence, a Telegraph columnist, has said that the prime minister is “soaking up the political flack” during the pandemic, and he has claimed it is unlikely anyone will manoeuvre to replace him […]

Boris Johnson has been warned the Tory majority in parliament will be “wiped out” over his coronavirus strategy in the north of England. The prime minister ignored the wishes of Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and other northern officials when they entered the highest tier of coronavirus restrictions without providing adequate financial support. The government […]

Matt Hancock has found himself at the centre of intense criticism after a video of him promoting government policy in a hospital seriously backfired. Hancock failed to notice he was breaking government guidelines when he was filmed at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading promoting a new review into food standards across the NHS without […]

Britain will not have the same prominence in Washington it has been previously used to be because it is “less useful to the US administration”, a  former senior diplomat and crossbench peer has claimed. Peter Ricketts, who has spent 40 years defending Britain’s interests in the world, believes our interest in the world will be severely […]