UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailIf the polls are to be believed, Jeremy Hunt’s Godalming and Ash constituency should still be teeming with Tories despite five years of chaos under Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak.The chancellor is plotting a narrow course to victory in the true-blue Surrey seat, which has been Conservative since its creation as South West Surrey in 1983.But on a sunny Tuesday afternoon, with just over a week until polls open, The Independent struggled to see how Mr Hunt can avoid the humiliation of the infamous “Portillo moment” – when the then defence secretary was unseated at the 1997 election in stunning fashion.After spending the afternoon strolling the leafy streets and wandering along the waterways, we were unable to find a single openly Conservative voter. Mr Hunt’s rivals in the race are Lib Dem Paul Follows, Labour’s James Walsh, Reform UK’s Graham Drage, Ruby Tucker for the Greens and Harriet Williams for the Women’s Equality Party. Click here for our live coverage of the general election campaign.Jeremy Hunt is in for a close race in his constituency More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailExam submissions generated by artificial intelligence (AI) can not only evade detection but also earn higher grades than those submitted by university students, a real-world test has shown.The findings come as concerns mount about students submitting AI-generated work as their own, with questions being raised about the academic integrity of universities and other higher education institutions.The data in our study shows it is very difficult to detect AI-generated answersPeter Scarfe, Reading’s School of Psychology and Clinical Language SciencesIt also shows even experienced markers could struggle to spot answers generated by AI, the University of Reading academics said.Peter Scarfe, an associate professor at Reading’s School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences said the findings should serve as a “wake-up call” for educational institutions as AI tools such as ChatGPT become more advanced and widespread.He said: “The data in our study shows it is very difficult to detect AI-generated answers.“There has been quite a lot of talk about the use of so-called AI detectors, which are also another form of AI but (the scope here) is limited.”For the study, published in the journal Plos One, Prof Scarfe and his team generated answers to exam questions using GPT-4 and submitted these on behalf of 33 fake students.Exam markers at Reading’s School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences were unaware of the study.Answers submitted for many undergraduate psychology modules went undetected in 94% of cases and, on average, got higher grades than real student submissions, Prof Scarfe said.He said AI did particularly well in the first and second years of study but struggled more in the final year of study module.Last year Russell Group universities, which include Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College London and other top universities, pledged to allow ethical use of AI in teaching and assessments, with many others following suit.We won’t necessarily go back fully to hand-written exams, but global education sector will need to evolve in the face of AIProf Peter ScarfeBut Prof Scarfe said the education sector will need to constantly adapt and update guidance as generative AI continues to evolve and become more sophisticated.He said universities should focus on working out how to embrace the “new normal” of AI in order to enhance education.Prof Scarfe added that reverting back to in-person sit-down exam assessments, would “be a step backwards in many ways”.He said: “Many institutions have moved away from traditional exams to make assessment more inclusive.“Our research shows it is of international importance to understand how AI will affect the integrity of educational assessments.“We won’t necessarily go back fully to hand-written exams, but the global education sector will need to evolve in the face of AI.”We need to double down on our commitment to academic and research integrityCo-author Professor Etienne RoeschStudy co-author Professor Etienne Roesch, of Reading’s School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, added: “As a sector, we need to agree how we expect students to use and acknowledge the role of AI in their work.“The same is true of the wider use of AI in other areas of life to prevent a crisis of trust across society.“Our study highlights the responsibility we have as producers and consumers of information.“We need to double down on our commitment to academic and research integrity.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSir Keir Starmer has warned striking junior doctors in his strongest words yet that he will not give them the 35 per cent pay rise they are demanding.Junior doctors are set to start their 11th walkout on Thursday morning in a bid to apply political pressure during the general election with a refusal to back down over their pay demands.The latest five-day strike comes during the hottest week of the year and off the back of a cyberattack on London hospitals which has already resulted in thousands of operations being cancelled. This week will also see NHS services deal with major events such as Glastonbury and the London Pride march. The head of NHS England, Amanda Pritchard, and leading health officials have sent warnings about the pressure expected on hospitals over the next week. Labour had appealed to doctors to await the outcome of the election before taking industrial action again, with the polls strongly indicating that Sir Keir and his party will be taking power on 5 July.But the opposition leader used his firmest language yet to make clear he will not bow to pressure for a huge pay rise. He told The Independent: “We’re not going to pay 35 per cent, we’ve told them that upfront. They know that.“With negotiations, we need to find a way through it. But you know, to be absolutely blunt, we’re not going to 35 per cent; they know that and we are being clear about it from the outset.”Starmer will not back down on junior doctors pay demands More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer are set to go head-to-head on Wednesday evening as the BBC hosts the final leaders’ debate before the general election.The televised event will be the last chance the two party leaders have to put their policies before a live audience chosen by pollster Savanta. It comes as ITV and Sky News hosted their own debates throughout the month of June. From a debate stage at Nottingham Trent University, the contenders to be prime minister will face moments of jeopardy and opportunity during 75 minutes. Tonight’s debate will be hosted by Mishal Husain, a senior radio presenter and TV host who has been at the BBC since 1998. Mishal Husain presented the seven-way BBC debate More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak has become so unpopular that many Tory candidates are deliberately keeping him off their leaflets and telling voters they are “different to the prime minister.”An investigation by The Independent has revealed the scale of Conservative candidates rejecting their own leader in a desperate bid to get elected when polling opens on 4 July.The gambling scandal and the D-Day fiasco, when he left the commemorations early in Normandy, appear to have sealed Mr Sunak’s reputation as a vote loser with his candidates.Redfield and Wilton Strategies earlier this month found Mr Sunak’s approval rating with all voters had fallen to minus 27, the lowest the polling firm has ever recorded for him as either prime minister or chancellor.Rishi Sunak has been excluded from many Tory leaflets by candidates More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe Conservative government has given more than £1m of taxpayer funds to a firm that bribed Muammar Gaddafi’s son during the Gaddafi dictatorship.The government awarded a £1.2m contract to AtkinsRéalis, a company that pleaded guilty to bribing the son of Muammar Gaddafi with tens of millions of dollars to win contracts in Libya in the decade before the dictator’s downfall between 2001 and 2011.Department for Transport documents reveal the firm bid for the contract for the provision of specialist technical and commercial advice to support its oversight of rail fares, ticketing and retailing policy.Former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi More