Markus Andrews

Every adult in the country will be required to have a new government-issued digital identity card as part of a fresh attempt to tackle illegal migration. The prime minister will reportedly announce his backing for the scheme in a speech on Friday, which would verify an individual’s right to live and work in the UK. The so-called “Brit card” is expected to undergo a consultation and would then require legislation to implement it. Sir Keir Starmer has been under pressure after two high-profile Government departures (Leon Neal/PA) More

Slovenia on Thursday said it was banning Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from entering the European Union country to underscore its defense of international law.The decision was linked to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against the Israeli prime minister, Foreign Ministry official Neva Grasic said, according to the official STA news agency. The EU nation of some 2 million people, which recognized a Palestinian state last year, has been a vocal critic of Israeli actions in Gaza and Thursday’s move against Netanyahu was apparently designed to underscore the country’s policies. Slovenia already had barred Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich from entering the country and imposed an arms embargo on Israel.“All countries that are bound by the international court, including Slovenia, must not recognize the situation resulting from Israel’s illegal presence in the occupied Palestinian territory, and must not offer any support in maintaining this situation,” she added.The Slovenian government said on X that the decision sends “a clear message to the state of Israel that Slovenia expects consistent respect for the decisions of international courts and international humanitarian law.”By doing so, Slovenia “confirms its commitment to international law, universal values of human rights and a principled and consistent foreign policy,” the government added. More

Sir Keir Starmer has lost another top aide after his head of communications confirmed she is leaving Downing Street on the eve of Labour’s conference. Steph Driver is the latest of several of the prime minister’s closest staff to depart No 10 in recent weeks. She follows Paul Ovenden, who stepped down earlier this month over a series of sexually explicit messages he had exchanged about Labour’s Diane Abbott. Steph Driver was Keir Starmer’s communications director More

Andy Burnham fuels leadership speculationSir Keir Starmer’s allies have said Andy Burnham’s would be Labour’s Liz Truss after the Manchester mayor shared his vision of how to “turn the country around”The Manchester mayor revealed on Thursday that MPs had asked him to challenge Starmer’s leadership, in an intervention that has fuelled speculation he could be seeking a return to Westminster.But a Labour figure told Bloomberg that Burnham’s policy suggestions are “unserious and irresponsible” and would risk triggering a bond market rout, saying he would be the party’s Liz Truss.Burnham told The Telegraph that he wanted £40 billion extra borrowing to pay for new council homes and also told the New Statesman that the government must stop being “in hock to the bond market”.He has denied he sought out MPs to ask if he should challenge the prime minister for the Labour leadership on Thursday morning, and urged the party to focus on a plan to “beat Reform”.“I’ve not gone out there, me on my own, people have been getting in touch with me and I’ve said to them its not a matter for me,” he told the BBC.“This is ultimately a matter for the party in Westminster to decide.”BREAKING: Every UK adult will need ‘Brit card’ digital ID under Starmer plan to tackle illegal migrationEvery adult in the country will be required to have a new government-issued digital identity card as part of a renewed attempt to tackle illegal migration.The prime minister will reportedly announce his backing for the scheme in a speech on Friday.The ‘Brit card’ would verify an individual’s right to live and work in the UK.You can read the full story from Millie Cooke below…Nicole Wootton-Cane25 September 2025 15:39Unite boss says neither Powell nor Phillipson bring change neededThe UK’s biggest union announced it would not back either contender in Labour’s deputy leadership contest on Thursday afternoon, saying neither would bring the change it believes the country needs.Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Britain needs change, not more of the same.“Workers are leaving Labour in droves and tinkering will not stem the tide.“Unfortunately, this election does not offer the alternative that Britain needs. For everyday people, it is irrelevant.“Labour must deliver real change. We need huge investment into our crumbling infrastructure and our public services, a pay rise for British workers and an end to the private profiteering that helps drive inflation.“Until the Government makes different choices, they will continue to haemorrhage support.”Veolia is taking legal action against the union Unite (Jacob King/PA) More

Andy Burnham has called on Sir Keir Starmer to scrap the two-child benefit cap, becoming the latest high profile Labour figure to call on the prime minister to change the policy.In the clearest sign yet that the Greater Manchester mayor is considering a return to Westminster to challenge the prime minister for the leadership, he said the benefit cap is “arbitrary” and could not be justified.He described the policy as “the worst of Westminster” and said he “never supported it”. Burnham appears to be mounting a challenge against Keir Starmer More

Andy Burnham has revealed his key focus for Labour amid mounting speculation that the Manchester mayor could challenge Sir Keir Starmer for party leadership.Appearing on BBC News on Thursday (25 September), said that his main goal is to support the government in building a plan to beat Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. In an interview with The Telegraph on Wednesday, Mr Burnham said MPs have been privately urging him to challenge Sir Keir to become prime minister.Discussing this further, Mr Burnham said: “It’s not a matter for me. This is ultimately a matter for the party in Westminster to decide”, saying that his role is to “support the party in whatever way I can”. More

Boris Johnson has effectively ruled out joining Reform UK, raising fears about Nigel Farage’s approach to the economy and Britain’s national security. The former prime minister said Mr Farage’s party is “extremely dangerous” and that “we need a Conservative government that is strong on defence and doesn’t believe that the problem in Ukraine was that Nato provoked Putin”. Mr Johnson also attacked Reform’s plans to scrap the two-child cap on benefits, warning “we have got to spend less on public services”. Speaking to The Sun’s Harry Cole Saves the West, Mr Johnson said: “That party [Reform] was on zero when I was prime minister… and that was because we got Brexit done.Boris Johnson: ‘Who is to say whether that party will even exist before the next election?’ More

Low-income families will find it “near impossible” to afford food, heating and bills as UK faces a decade of falling incomes, a charity has said in a stark new warning.New analysis from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation claims that by the end of this parliament, disposable incomes in Britain will be on average £550 lower per year than in September 2024 – a fall of 1.3 per cent – and £570 lower than today. This would represent the worst fall in living standards seen by any parliament since detailed records began in 1961, with the foundation warning that such a decline will prompt voters to punish Labour at the next election. Low-income families will find it “near impossible” to afford food, heating and bills, a new report has warned More