Politics

The prime minister was never going to lose the two amendment votes, but the results tonight would have been hard to hear. On both rebel amendments, up to 60 of his own MPs told Rishi Sunak that his flagship illegal immigration plan doesn’t go far enough. In parliament’s central lobby after the vote tonight, one

Two deputy chairs of the Conservative Party have resigned from their roles after they both supported rebel amendments to Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda bill. Lee Anderson and Brendan Clarke-Smith both said they would support proposed changes designed to toughen up Mr Sunak’s bill, which seeks to declare Rwanda a safe country to deport asylum seekers to.

Rishi Sunak has said the strikes conducted against Houthi rebels in Yemen were intended as a “single, limited action” amid questions about the UK’s long-term strategy. The British military joined forces with the US on Thursday night as it launched attacks against Houthi bases in Yemen, in retaliation for the group’s targeting of international trade

Rishi Sunak is gearing up for a potential rebellion among his backbenchers when his controversial Rwanda bill returns to the Commons on Tuesday. The prime minister is facing a dilemma over the question of whether to toughen up the bill to appease those on the right of his party. If he does, he risks losing

Tory MPs plotting the Rwanda rebellion are resigned to securing minimal changes to the legislation – despite some belief senior figures are poised to quit party roles over the bill. Almost 60 MPs have publicly backed the bill and some rebels hope that Lee Anderson, deputy chair of the Conservative Party, may resign and back

Former Labour MP Luciana Berger is making a comeback in the party to lead its mental health strategy review – five years after she quit over antisemitism within its ranks. Ms Berger was one of seven MPs to resign back in February 2019 amid anger over Jeremy Corbyn’s handling of antisemitism complaints, saying she was

Britain could strike Houthi targets in Yemen again if the rebel group continues to attack ships in the Red Sea, the foreign secretary has suggested. Lord Cameron warned the Iran-linked fighters could force up prices in Britain if they are allowed to block the passage of container ships in the busy trade route. The US

Ministers are “failing to act” on the lessons from the Post Office scandal by refusing to change laws around public contracts, union leaders have said. The TUC said the Procurement Act, passed last October, was a “huge missed opportunity” to tighten up rules governing the awarding of taxpayer-funded contracts to private companies. The legislation was

Sir Tony Blair was warned the Horizon IT system could be flawed before it was rolled out across the Post Office, a document shows. A letter sent to the then-Labour prime minister on 9 December 1998 by a Downing Street special adviser said pressing ahead with the project was a risk because of spiralling costs

Lord David Cameron has not ruled out the possibility of further strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen, arguing the UK must do “what is necessary” to protect its ships. Speaking to NBC, Sky News’s sister outlet in the United States, the foreign secretary said “warnings” issued to the rebels – who had been attacking UK

Brexit has cost the UK £140bn so far, according to new analysis, and could see the nation £311bn worse off by the middle of the next decade, according to a new report. Economists and analysts at Cambridge Econometrics – commissioned by London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan – have modelled how the UK’s economy would have acted

The Conservatives are facing yet another set of by-elections in February, with voters in Kingswood and Wellingborough set to pick their new MPs. The contests follow the resignation of former minister Chris Skidmore in protest at the government’s watering down of green policies, and the ousting of Peter Bone over allegations of bullying and sexual

The longest strike in NHS history, during which junior doctors walked out for six days, led to more than 113,000 patient operations, appointments and procedures being postponed, new figures show. The industrial action started last Wednesday and continued until yesterday, with 25,446 staff absent from work at the peak, which was the day the strike

When nine million people watch a TV drama that then provokes a national outpouring of anger over the postmasters’ fight for justice, a prime minister would do well to acknowledge the public mood and act. And that’s exactly what we have seen Rishi Sunak do this week. PM accused of seeking ‘glory’ from scandal –

More than 30 Tory MPs are poised to back amendments aimed at “toughening” Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda bill when it returns to the Commons next week. The prime minister is braced for yet another showdown with the right-wing faction of his party, which believes the legislation in its current form will not stop further legal challenges

Israel “might have taken action” in breach of international law in Gaza, the foreign secretary has said during a tense exchange with MPs on the conflict in the Middle East. Lord Cameron also confirmed two British nationals are still being held hostage by Hamas, as he made his first appearance before the Foreign Affairs Committee

Rishi Sunak began 2023 hounded by the contamination of the Johnson and Truss premierships, and kicks off 2024 weighed down by what happened on David Cameron’s watch, as the hundreds of Post Office managers wrongly criminalised and convicted comes back to haunt his new year.  Travelling to Accrington in the marginal seat of Hynburn on

Rishi Sunak kicked off the election year trying to sell to voters that his five pledges were on track, and they should vote for him to finish the job rather than “going back to square one”. But look at his record, and it’s a pretty flimsy argument: • NHS waiting lists are almost 500,000 higher

Labour says it will introduce additional mental health counsellors to secondary schools as part of its plans to tackle rising pupil absences. The party says the UK is facing a “generational challenge”, as more than 88,000 secondary school students missed at least half of their education last year. Labour’s education pledge comes as a poll

The partner of disgraced ex-Tory MP Peter Bone has been chosen as the Conservative candidate to replace him in the Wellingborough by-election. Helen Harrison, who is a Conservative councillor in Wellingborough’s North Northamptonshire area, was selected by members of the party on Sunday afternoon, according to party chair Richard Holden. An election is being held