Markus Andrews

Sir Keir Starmer is prepared to support a peace deal in Ukraine without a ceasefire being in place, No 10 has indicated, as the prime minister reiterated that he is prepared to put “boots on the ground” to ensure security in the event of an agreement being struck.Downing Street on Monday called for “an end to the killing in Ukraine” but stopped short of reiterating the government’s previous position, that a ceasefire was needed before peace talks could take place. Vladimir Putin has resisted calls to accept an unconditional ceasefire before entering talks about a long-term peace deal with Volodymyr Zelensky. And, following a summit between Putin and Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday, the US president dropped his demands for an immediate ceasefire in the conflict. Sir Keir Starmer is travelling to Washington DC More

Britain’s first transgender judge has begun the process of taking the government to the European Court of Human Rights over the Supreme Court’s ruling on biological sex. The judgment from the Supreme Court, which ruled that trans women are not legally women under the Equalities Act, has led to warnings it would “exclude trans people wholesale from participating in UK society”. But gender critical campaigners have hailed the ruling as a victory for women. Lawyers acting on behalf of Dr Victoria McCloud, 55, who stood down last year, filed an appeal in the ECHR arguing a breach of her rights under article six of the European Convention on Human Rights – the right to a fair and impartial hearing by an independent tribunal. Dr Victoria McCloud has filed an appeal in the ECHR arguing a breach of her rights under article six of the European Convention on Human Rights More

Sir Grant Shapps has been cleared to join a defence startup by parliament’s standards watchdog, as long as he promises not to work on defence-related matters. In a move which has been criticised by MPs and experts, the former defence secretary has been allowed to become chairman of Cambridge Aerospace.He was given the go-ahead by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba), which oversees the jobs given to ministers and special advisers when they leave office. Sir Grant told the watchdog the firm, which was founded after the Conservatives left office, will “develop technologies to reduce risks to aviation”.Acoba agreed, allowing him to offer “strategic direction and high level advice”, but said he cannot work on defence-related issues. Former defence secretary Sir Grant Shapps has been allowed to join a defence startup More

Rachel Reeves is preparing to strip back environmental protections in an attempt to accelerate infrastructure building and boost the economy, according to reports.The chancellor is considering major reforms that would make it more difficult for wildlife concerns to hold up developments, according to The Times.Treasury officials are said to be drafting another planning reform bill, the publication reported.The move reportedly involves tearing up parts of European environmental rules, which developers have argued slow down crucial projects.While Labour ministers have previously insisted their current planning overhaul would balance growth with nature, Ms Reeves is understood to believe that the government must go further.The Planning and Infrastructure Bill going through Parliament overrides existing habitat and nature protections, which, if passed, would allow developers to make general environmental improvements and pay into a nature restoration fund that improves habitats on other sites. But Ms Reeves is considering more contentious reforms that are likely to trigger further backlash from environmental groups, according to The Times.Reeves is preparing to strip back environmental protections in an attempt to accelerate infrastructure building and boost the economy, according to reports More

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has expressed a willingness to meet Donald Trump, even as he warned that the US President could be “inadvertently radicalising people” and is “not a force for good”.The Labour politician dismissed the US President’s recent jibes, made during a visit to Scotland, where Trump labelled him “a nasty person” who has “done a terrible job”. Sir Sadiq stated such remarks were “water off a duck’s back”.However, speaking at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, he admitted that the exchanges sometimes made him feel like he was “nine years old again” and “in the school playground”.But Sir Sadiq, speaking at the Political Party show with comedian Matt Forde, hit back at the US President, saying: “Somebody who has views like he does about black people, about women, about gays, about Muslims, about Mexicans, thinks I’m nasty.“Really. He is the leader of the free world, arguably the most powerful man in the world, and really.”He spoke out as he said that records showed since the middle of January this year – when Mr Trump began his second term in the White House – and July “there have never been more Americans applying to British citizenship and living in London”.The Mayor said: “So I think Americans have got good taste by and large.”He added that he hoped the President would come to London during his state visit to the UK next month, with Sir Sadiq stressing the “diversity” of the capital was a “strength, not a weakness”.Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan speaks with police officers during a walkabout in the West End of London More

A housing project in Kent that could provide 3,500 homes to support Angela Rayner’s housebuilding drive has been paused amid claims that dangerous lead pollution from a neighbouring refinery could put future residents at risk. The project, which comes as the government plans to fast-track new developments and build 1.5 million homes, would see thousands of homes built next to one of Europe’s leading lead refineries on brownfield land in Gravesham. Planning permission was initially granted by Gravesham Borough Council following a planning application in October 2022, but the project is now under review due to fears its location would make it dangerous for residents, with Britannia Refined Metals (BRM), the owner of the refinery, itself saying the area is “a lead pollution hotspot”. The developers have pointed to the government’s drive for new housing, saying that a “radical response is required, including by approving development that may be controversial”. Britannia Refined Metals, in Gravesham, say the area is a ‘lead pollution hotspot’ More

An adviser who helped Nigel Farage to boost his social media presence has suggested that the UK would have been better off had it not got involved in the Second World War, rather than deciding to fight Nazi Germany. In his personal blog, Jack Anderton also suggested Britain should not support Ukraine in its fight against Putin’s illegal invasion, saying: “Russia is not our enemy”. The 23-year-old, who helped to run Mr Farage’s TikTok account, has never been an official Reform UK employee. The blog, first revealed by The Observer, also saw Mr Anderton claim the UK could “regain” former colonies such as Australia, Canada and South Africa, as well as suggesting the UK should copy the policy of mass incarceration carried out in El Salvador, which has been condemned as a breach of human rights. ‘We get nothing in return for our support of Ukraine,’ wrote Anderton More

Angela Rayner has warned Nigel Farage and Reform UK that their plan to scrap online safety laws could “fail a generation of young women” by removing protections against issues such as revenge porn.The deputy prime minister demanded Mr Farage explain how his party would ensure young women’s online safety, given Reform’s vow to repeal the Online Safety Act.Her warning is the latest in a series of interventions by senior Labour figures regarding the act. Under rules introduced in late July, the legislation requires online platforms, including social media and search engines, to prevent children from accessing harmful content like pornography or material encouraging suicide.Reform has vowed to repeal the law and replace it with a different means of protecting children online, though the party has not said how it would do this.Among their criticisms of the act, Mr Farage and his colleagues have cited freedom of speech concerns and claimed the act is an example of overreach by the government.This prompted backlash from technology secretary Peter Kyle, who claimed people like Jimmy Savile would use the internet to exploit children if he was still alive, and insisted anyone against the act – like Mr Farage – was “on their side”.Nigel Farage has not revealed plans to replace current online safety laws More