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Tory party leader hopeful Kemi Badenoch admitted Brexit has not been as successful as it should have been.Ms Badenoch said the UK is “too scared to take advantage of the opportunities Brexit has presented” when she took part in a Conservative leadership debate against Robert Jenrick on GB News on Thursday (17 October).She said: “One of the reasons it has not been as successful as it should have been is because we didn’t start with a plan.”Ms Badenoch also claimed “everything is blamed on Brexit” despite countries around the world facing the same challenges. More

Conservative Party leader hopeful Robert Jenrick referenced Winston Churchill as he called for Britain to leave the European Convention of Human Rights (EHCR).Mr Jenrick also called for foreign offenders to be deported as he took part in a Tory leadership debate against Kemi Badenoch on GB News on Thursday (17 October).When asked about keeping people safe, Mr Jenrick said his government would build more prisons.Mr Jenrick said: “We need to get the 10,000 foreign national offenders out of prison, that would be a good start.“When Churchill thought of the right to a family life he never thought of the idea of a foreign rapist or murderer having the right to stay in our country.” More

JK Rowling should be given a seat in the House of Lords, Tory leadership hopeful Kemi Badenoch has declared.The shadow housing secretary praised the Harry Potter author, who shares similar views on gender to her.“I don’t know whether she would take it, but I certainly would give her a peerage,” Ms Badenoch told TalkTV.Ms Badenoch went on to praise Baroness Cass, describing the paediatrician who reviewed children’s gender services as a “strong voice in parliament” for “women who have fought for so much [and] need protection”. More

Nigel Farage spent a relaxing Sunday foraging for mushrooms for his lunch.Mr Farage appeared aptly dressed for the occasion, wearing a farmer’s cap and wellington boots.In a video posted to X, formerly Twitter, the Reform MP said: “It’s mid-October, it’s mushroom time. “People don’t really seem to want to go out foraging anymore, but I really do.“Take a look at these little monkeys, these are magnificent. If you don’t know what your pocking, be careful. You can tell a mushroom by how easily it peels and smells.“This is going to be my lunch.” More

Robert Jenrick smiled as he was confronted over his £1bn property approval for Tory donor Richard Desmond.Appearing on the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg show on Sunday (13 October), the former housing secretary was quizzed over his decision to approve a billion pound development of Mr Desmond’s unlawfully.Ms Kuenssberg asked: “Matthew, our viewer, wants to know, why did you rush through reversal of the planning decision regarding Richad Desmond’s project to save him tens of millions of pounds?”The Conservative party leader hopeful said he was acting on his party’s 2019 election manifesto to increase homes.Mr Jenrick added: “The developer in question asked me about it, I told him not to talk about it. I regret obviously that I was subject to the mischarictarisation as to what our motivation was, which was simply to get homes built.” More

Sir Keir Starmer described Labour’s first 100 days in power as “bumpy” but said he is “happy” with what his party has achieved so far.The prime minister referenced “bumps and sidewinds” in the first three months in government, referring to the Labour donation row and the Sue Gray saga, when he appeared on the BBC’s Newcast, released today (12 October).Sir Keir said investment in the UK from companies such as Amazon, is proof that Labour’s “tough decisions” on the economy are beginning to “trigger investment”.The prime minister said: “This is proof to me that the steps we are taking are having effect.” More

In an exclusive interview, prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has backed The Independent and Refuge’s Brick by Brick campaign.The prime minister has vowed that both he and Cabinet would donate to the campaign, which is looking for £300,000 to build a safe house for survivors of domestic abuse.Watch Refuge advocates such as Cherie Blair CBE, KC and other famous faces explain why they’re supporting the campaign here.Be a brick, buy a brick and donate here or text BRICK to 70560 to donate £15. More

Boris Johnson confirmed the exact number of children he has after being questioned on The Diary of a CEO podcast.Host Steven Bartlett directly asked him why the amount of kids he has is such a widely debated subject, to which the former prime minister replied: “Search me.”It was previously believed that Mr Johnson has nine children.He and his second wife, Marina Wheeler, who separated in 2018, have four children.Mr Johnson’s fifth child, Stephanie Macintyre, was fathered as a result of an affair.During court proceedings, it was alleged that Macintyre was one of two children the former prime minister fathered as a result of an affair.He also shares three children with his third wife Carrie Johnson. More