UK Politics

Labour is taking the fight to Trumpian critics of diversity and equality, with the tech secretary vowing to “smash the glass ceilings” holding women and people of colour in the tech industry back. With Reform UK threatening to sack diversity officers in councils across the country, Liz Kendall is taking the fight to Nigel Farage and ramping up the government’s efforts to boost representation. On current trends, it would take 283 years for women to make up an equal share of the tech workforce, according to the BCS Chartered Institute for IT. Meanwhile 92 per cent of start-up investment from wealthy individuals went to all-white teams, according to the British Business Bank Investing in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurs. Liz Kendall is taking the fight to Reform and backing a diversity scheme for women in tech More

Young people who have been out of work for 18 months will be given jobs under new plans to tackle unemployment, Rachel Reeves will announce on Monday.The chancellor is set to use her speech at the Labour Party conference to unveil a “youth guarantee”, meaning every young person who has received universal credit (UC) benefits for 18 months without “earning or learning” will be offered paid work, an apprenticeship or a place at college. It is understood claimants will face sanctions such as losing their benefits if they refuse to take up jobs under the scheme without a reasonable excuse.The guarantee forms part of a pledge of “nothing less than the abolition of long-term youth unemployment”, Ms Reeves will say, as she vows to build an economy that works for working people – and rewards them.The chancellor will also outline her approach to the Budget in November with many in her party demanding she breaks the manifesto promise of not hiking income tax, VAT or employee contributions to national insurance.Many more are demanding she brings in wealth taxes on the super rich and biggest corporations – something she will hint at as she makes it clear she wants everyone to pay their fair share.She is expected to say Britain must be built on the principles of doing “our duty for each other” and “hard work matched by fair reward”.“I believe in a Britain founded on contribution – where we do our duty for each other, and where hard work is matched by fair reward,” she will tell the conference in Liverpool. “I believe in a Britain based on opportunity – where ordinary kids can flourish, unhindered by their background.Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves visit a careers hub in Liverpool More

Social media giants will be ordered to crack down on cyberflashing on their platforms or face hefty fines.Technology Secretary Liz Kendall will use her speech to the Labour Party conference to order firms to detect and remove unsolicited explicit images being sent online.Firms that fail to comply could be fined up to 10% of their qualifying global revenue and potentially see their services blocked in the UK.Ms Kendall will tell activists in Liverpool that cyberflashing will be made a priority offence under the Online Safety Act, placing extra duties on firms to protect users from seeing unsolicited nude images or videos.She will say: “Keeping children safe online is non-negotiable.“That is why my first act as Secretary of State was to force social media companies to find and remove content that promotes suicide and self-harm.“And today I can announce I will go further. Making cyberflashing a priority offence.“So platforms will be required – by law – to detect and remove this material. Because what is illegal offline, must be illegal online.”Cyberflashing became a criminal offence in England and Wales in January 2024.Perpetrators can face up to two years in prison.The scale of the problem was illustrated by a YouGov study suggesting a third (32%) of girls aged 12-18 in England received unsolicited pictures of male genitals, with one in 20 (5%) of the same age affected. More

Shabana Mahmood is set to announce a major crackdown on migration through a radical overhaul of the main route for immigrants gaining British citizenship in the UK. Under tougher measures set to be unveiled by the home secretary, migrants who want to remain in the UK will have to learn English to a high standard, have a clean criminal record and volunteer in their community to be eligible for indefinite leave to remain. They will also have to be working, paying national insurance and not be claiming benefits under the proposed changes.Ms Mahmood will lay out the plans while billing herself as a “tough home secretary” and admitting that some Labour members “won’t always like what I do”.But speaking on the second day of Labour’s annual party conference in Liverpool, she will also say she is “fighting for a vision of this country that is distinctly our own”.Labour’s latest announcement comes just days after Nigel Farage announced plans to abolish indefinite leave to remain, meaning tens of thousands of people who have legally settled in Britain could be at risk of deportation – a policy Sir Keir Starmer branded both “racist” and “immoral” on Sunday morning. Home secretary Shabana Mahmood More

Labour turned its fire on Reform on the first day of its annual conference – branding the party’s policies “racist” and warning Nigel Farage as prime minister would “create a cultural wasteland” in Britain.Sir Keir Starmer accused Mr Farage of peddling an “immoral” policy after the Reform UK leader pledged to scrap settled status for all non-EU migrants, a move which would threaten with deportation those who have been granted indefinite leave to remain. In an explosive interview with the BBC as the Labour event got underway in Liverpool, the prime minister – whose party trails Reform in the polls – said the policy to abolish indefinite leave to remain “needs to be called out for what it is”, adding: “I do think that it is a racist policy. I do think it is immoral.” Culture secretary Lisa Nandy doubled down on Sir Keir’s remarks, warning Reform is “trying to redefine what it means to be British in a narrow way” and would destroy Britain’s cultural landscape.In an exclusive interview with The Independent, she claimed Mr Farage’s assaults on so-called “woke” culture, plans to use an Elon Musk-style Doge to slash spending, and narrow, nationalistic view of what it means to be British would threaten arts and culture up and down the country.Culture, media and sport secretary Lisa Nandy spoke exclusively to The Independent More

A defiant Andy Burnham has hit out at those demanding he make “simplistic statements of loyalty” to Sir Keir Starmer, saying they are underestimating “the peril” facing Labour. The Greater Manchester mayor also warned of a “climate of fear” in Labour as he called for a “debate on our direction” on the first day of the party’s conference in Liverpool.Mr Burnham was greeted with multiple rounds of applause as he criticised the Labour leadership’s handling of dissent, attacking a situation where party members were “suspended for liking a tweet by another political party” or “a Member of Parliament loses the whip for trying to protect disability benefits”.The Greater Manchester mayor came out fighting after the prime minister compared him to the former PM Liz Truss last week, suggesting his economic plans would be disastrous for the country. Speaking on Sunday as the Labour Party’s conference got underway in Liverpool, Mr Burnham did little to play down the growing rift between the two politicians as he hit out at Sir Keir’s decision to suspend Labour MPs over the two-child benefit cap. And, in remarks which inflame rampant speculation over his leadership ambitions, he also said he wanted to reform the whips system at Westminster – which only a PM could attempt. He warned of the difficult elections facing Labour in Scotland and Wales, which it is on course to lose next year. Speaking at a fringe event, he said: “I would say those out there making calls for simplistic statements of loyalty… are underestimating some of the peril that the party is in in those elections next year.”Andy Burnham speaks at a fringe event in Liverpool on Sunday More

For many Labour MPs, this year’s conference is one they would not have minded missing. The party is sitting far behind Nigel Farage’s Reform UK in the polls and their leader is more unpopular than ever.So it will have been a welcome break from an otherwise somber gathering in Liverpool to play in the traditional journalists v MPs football game. The Lobby XI drew 1-1 with the Labour MPs after a late equaliser More

Starmer brands Reform’s indefinite leave to remain plans ‘racist’A defiant Andy Burnham has hit back at those who have demanded he make “simplistic statements of loyalty” to Sir Keir Starmer, saying they are “underestimating some of the peril” Labour is in.The Manchester mayor warned of the difficult elections the party faces in Scotland and Wales, which it is on course to lose next year.As speculation continues to grow over a challenge to Starmer’s leadership, Mr Burnham told a fringe at the Labour conference,: “I would say those out there making calls for simplistic statements of loyalty… are underestimating some of the peril that the party is in in those elections next year.”Sir Keir has tried to rally Labour MPs at the start of party’s annual conference in Liverpool on Sunday, but is still facing questions from within Labour over his leadership.Labour chairwoman Anna Turley acknowledged it had been “quite a challenging couple of weeks” for the party.However, Starmer dismissed the idea that he is in political trouble, telling the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Keunssberg: “In politics, there always can be comments about leaders and leadership, particularly at times like conference”.Eluned Morgan warns of Reform UK threat Welsh First Minister Eluned Morgan said her nation had “seen this play before”, as she warned of the threat of Reform UK at the Senedd elections.“We’ve seen this play before in Wales.“Nigel Farage’s Ukip party elected seven members in 2016 and by the end of the term, six of them had left, drawn by infighting, broken promises and internal chaos.“And just this week, their former Welsh leader admitted taking Russian bribes.“And right now they’re attacking our support for Ukrainian refugees.“This lot are… not putting Wales first. They’re putting Putin first.”( More