Markus Andrews

Wes Streeting has said he will consider leaning more heavily on the private sector as he bids to clear NHS waiting lists.The health secretary said he will not be “bound by outdated ideological battles” when tackling the crisis in the service, where 7.39 million people are currently waiting to be seen by doctors. He said it would be “foolish to turn away” from the private healthcare sector, but cautioned that “we must see it for what it is”. Wes Streeting said he would not be ideologically opposed to expanding the use of the private sector in the NHS More

Sir Keir Starmer has indicated he will not agree to recognise a unilateral Palestine as a state, as a civil war over the issue threatens to erupt in his party.With tensions mounting in the Middle East, given the ongoing blockade of Gaza by Israel and the region on the brink of all-out war between Israel and Iran, Sir Keir made it clear that the UK government will not budge.The prime minister said: “Our position on recognition of Palestine as part of the process hasn’t changed for us. I hold very strongly to the belief that the only long-term solution to the conflict in the Middle East is a two-state solution. However hard that may seem at the moment in the current circumstances, that is the only way to peace. So that continues to be our position.”His comments came as the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Labour’s biggest financial backer, issued a joint statement with its Canadian and French counterparts calling on the UK government to change its position.The prime minister is not currently planning to change his position on Palestinian recognition More

Rachel Reeves has insisted Britain is not at war despite sending more RAF jets to the Middle East amid devastating strikes between Iran and Israel. The chancellor said the UK could play a military role defending Israel from ongoing Iranian attacks, but said moves so far “do not mean we are at war”. Speaking to Sky News, she said: “We have, in the past, supported Israel when there have been missiles coming in. I’m not going to comment on what might happen in the future, but so far, we haven’t been involved, and we’re sending in assets to both protect ourselves and also potentially to support our allies.” Rachel Reeves said Britain is not at war More

Keir Starmer is to put trading relations with Canada back on track with a rebuke to Donald Trump and the tariffs which have sent global trade into turmoil.The prime minister has flown out to Ottawa for a bilateral meeting with newly elected Canadian PM Mark Carney ahead of a G7 summit in Alberta next week.Downing Street has made a point of wanting to “retain Britain’s status as a free and open trading nation”, as Sir Keir flew across the Atlantic.The line was a direct rebuke to the strategy pursued by Donald Trump with his tariffs ahead of an expected bilateral meeting with the US president at the summit.Sir Keir Starmer welcomed Prime Minister of Canada Mark Carney to 10 Downing Street More

Keir Starmer is to launch a statutory national inquiry into the grooming gang scandal, following months of mounting pressure over the issue.The prime minister told journalists on the flight to the G7 in Canada that he had accepted the new recommendation from Louise Casey, who led the original review into the grooming gang scandal, which has hit communities all around the UK.Sir Keir and Labour ministers, including Jess Phillips, the minister for domestic abuse, have faced criticism for previously refusing to commit to such an inquiry. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer spent Friday speaking to world leaders about the situation in the Middle East More

There may not be enough maple syrup in Canada to sugarcoat any diplomatic misstep by Keir Starmer as he joins arguably the most important international summit of his premiership so far.The last time the word “Canada” passed the prime minister’s lips on a trip to North America, it caused a diplomatic storm with one ally even as he was carefully trying to get another one on side.This weekend, the prime minister joins fellow leaders from the world’s biggest economies, including Donald Trump, for the G7 summit in Alberta.While the leaders, hosted by recently reelected Canadian PM Mark Carney, will discuss a number of issues, top of the real agenda will be the hot topics of US tariffs, the war in Ukraine and now the combustible situation in the Middle East with Israel’s America-backed attacks on Iran.Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump announced a UK-US trade deal at the start of May More

There are growing fears Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying bill could be defeated when it returns to the Commons next week, as MPs claim confidence in it is rapidly being lost. The warning comes as Ms Leadbeater suffered her first major defeat on Friday, after MPs voted to introduce new safeguards to prevent health professionals raising the subject of assisted dying with children. They voted 259 in favour and 216 against an amendment tabled by Labour MP Dame Meg Hillier stating “no health professional shall raise assisted dying with a person under 18”.It is understood Ms Leadbeater didn’t support the amendment because she agrees with the British Medical Association, which has said doctors should not be put in the position where they are barred from raising it with patients.Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying Bill is back in the Commons for further debate (Jordan Pettitt/PA) More