Politics

The government is facing calls to crack down on a hunting loophole after figures suggested that hundreds of suspected illegal incidents took place in just five weeks. The League Against Cruel Sports said there were 303 combined incidents of hunt havoc (trespass, road interference and disturbing animals) and illegal fox hunting between 1 November and

To say 2022 was an eventful year in British politics is certainly an understatement. Luckily (or unluckily), politicians gave us some memorable quotes to remind us of all the year’s tumultuous events. From the bizarre to the poignant and the outrageous, here they are: January Boris Johnson: “Categorically nobody told me it was against the

The UK education secretary’s Twitter account appears to have been hacked, with its profile picture changed to an image of Elon Musk and several posts promoting a cryptocurrency once backed by the billionaire. While Gillian Keegan’s page still describes her as MP for Chichester and secretary of state for education, and has retained its banner

2022 has been a tough year, in which the UK has often been hit harder than its peer countries in the G7 – the club of the world’s wealthiest democracies. Russia’s bloody attack on Ukraine led to dramatic spikes in energy costs. A global cost of living crisis has been driven by soaring inflation and

Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner has branded Rishi Sunak’s visit to a shelter “excruciating” after he asked a homeless man if he works in business. Mr Sunak visited the homeless shelter in London run by The Passage on Friday and praised the “fantastic” work that the institution is carrying out during the festive period. The

Rishi Sunak has hired the Spectator’s political editor, James Forsyth, as his political secretary. The move comes as the PM continues bolster his top team in Downing Street in the hope of overturning recent negative polling results for the Conservative Party. It is understood that Mr Forsyth’s role will be to act as a link

Rishi Sunak has said he is “sad and disappointed” that strikes are threatening to disrupt Christmas getaways. The prime minister admitted setting public sector pay was a “difficult question” but insisted that “the government has acted fairly and reasonably in accepting all the recommendations of the independent public sector pay review bodies”. However, he did

It would be “completely reasonable” for the UK government to consider blocking new gender reforms in Scotland, Rishi Sunak has said. On Thursday, the Scottish parliament voted to make it easier for people to change gender – but within hours Westminster made clear it could stop the changes from going ahead. Speaking during a visit

Rishi Sunak has appointed a new ethics adviser after a six-month vacancy – but the prime minister is facing criticism for maintaining the power to veto any investigation into ministers. Mr Sunak was under pressure to fill the role after promising to bring “integrity, professionalism and accountability” to government when he entered Downing Street. The

People aged 16 will be able to apply to change their gender in Scotland, while the time required for someone to live in their acquired gender is to be slashed to three months after a controversial bill was passed. After two long days of debate in the Scottish Parliament, the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill

Rishi Sunak has warned the Taliban the “world is watching” after it banned women in Afghanistan from attending university. Taliban security forces in Kabul have been blocking women from entering universities after the group instructed public and private universities across the country on Tuesday to immediately suspend access to female students until further notice. The

The government’s Brexit scheme that means EU citizens must reapply for the right to live and work in the UK is unlawful, the High Court has ruled. The EU Settlement Scheme opened in March 2019 and meant all EU citizens who wanted to remain in the UK after the Brexit transition period ended on 31

Rishi Sunak has repeatedly refused to say whether the UK would have to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to deliver his government’s plan for removing asylum seekers who arrive illegally. Making his debut appearance at the Commons Liaison Committee, the prime minister was asked by the SNP’s Joanna Cheery whether the UK

The lowest paid NHS workers had to be given a salary top-up this year to avoid breaching national minimum wage laws, the head of a union said as she pleaded with ministers to negotiate pay. Rachel Harrison, national secretary of the GMB union, told MPs that NHS staff had to be given more money this

Conservative MP Bob Stewart has said he made “a mistake” after he was caught on video telling a human rights activist to “go back to Bahrain”. In video footage obtained by Sky News, Sayed Alwadaei, the director of the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (Bird), confronts the veteran Tory MP outside a reception hosted

Suella Braverman has defended the government’s plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda after the High Court ruled earlier today that the scheme is lawful. Making a statement in the Commons, the home secretary said the Rwanda policy is a “humane” and “practical alternative” for those who come to the UK through “dangerous, illegal and

Strikes will continue across a number of industries this week in an escalating campaign of industrial action, with Border Force workers among those expected to walk out. The strike by more than 1,000 Border Force employees will affect passport control desks at Heathrow, Gatwick, Birmingham, Cardiff and Glasgow airports from Friday until Boxing Day, and

The government’s outgoing adviser on violence against women has accused the home secretary of “normalising hate” that black people get on Twitter with her rhetoric on immigration. Nimco Ali, who announced she was leaving her role as an independent adviser at the Home Office earlier this month, accused Suella Braverman of “normalising hateful rhetoric”. Asked

Former Conservative cabinet minister Robert Buckland has called on Rishi Sunak to “chart a middle course” with striking nurses after the first NHS-wide walkout took place on Thursday. The former justice secretary told Sky News there is “a big gulf” between the NHS pay review body’s (PRB) July recommendation of around 4% pay increases for

Parents have been assured that the Online Safety Bill will not just hold social media companies responsible for illegal content on their platforms, but any material which can “cause serious trauma” to children. In an open letter, Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan sought to assuage fears that the long-delayed legislation had been watered down after finally