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Nigel Farage brought up his banking row in a speech to American conservatives at CPAC, eight months after first accusing Coutts, which is owned by NatWest, of deciding to close his account because it did not agree with his political views.The debacle resulted in the resignations of NatWest’s and Coutts’ bosses, Dame Alison Rose and Peter Flavel.NatWest admitted to “serious failings” in its treatment of Mr Farage and issued an apology, but said its decision to shut down his account was lawful and had been made predominately for commercial reasons.”Woke corporate culture is keen on cancelling people, and this includes our banking system,” Mr Farage said on Friday (23 February). More

Liz Truss hit out at Joe Biden for “intervening” in her economic policies during her short time in 10 Downing Street.Speaking at CPAC in Washington DC on Thursday, 22 February, the former prime minister defended her controversial tax-cutting plans from Kwasi Kwarteng’s disastrous mini-budget which prompted the pound crashing to an all-time low against the dollar.”I’m not saying I’m a perfect person or I did everything exactly right, but I faced the most almighty backlash … from people that were meant to work for the government,” she said.”Even president Biden intervened to have a go at my policies. Now can you imagine being attacked on your economic policies by the inventor of Bidenomics?” More

Sir Keir Starmer said he did not threaten Sir Lindsay Hoyle “in any way” to ensure Labour got its way on a vote on Gaza on Wednesday night (21 February).The Labour leader insisted he “simply urged to ensure we have the broadest possible debate” as he spoke to reporters the following day.Sir Linsday has faced calls to resign after taking an exceptional decision to allow multiple Commons votes on the Israel-Hamas conflict.Sir Keir has been accused by Penny Mordaunt of using the Speaker for political gain over the vote.The Commons leader accused him of putting “the interests of the Labour party before the interests of the British people”. More

Islamist extremists are being allowed to intimidate Britain’s MPs and must be stopped, former Home Office minister Robert Jenrick has said.The senior Conservative MP said the “real issue” of the last 24 hours in Parliament was not the “party political shenanigans” but that the House of Commons “appears cowed by threats of violence and intimidation”.A Commons row erupted on Wednesday (21 February) over Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle’s handling of an SNP-led Gaza ceasefire debate, after he took the unusual step of selecting a Labour amendment, saying this came as he was “very, very concerned about the security” of MPs and wanted all sides to vote. More

Sir Lindsay Hoyle apologised to MPs again on Thursday 22 February, after the House of Commons descended into chaos on Wednesday evening during a Gaza ceasefire debate.The speaker admitted he made a “mistake” as he faces accusations he helped Sir Keir Starmer avoid another damaging revolt over the Middle East issue by upending parliamentary convention in approving Labour’s bid to alter an SNP motion calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.“I made a judgement call that did not end up in the position where I expected it to. I regret it, I apologise to the SNP and I apologise to the House,” Sir Lindsay said.“I made a mistake.” More

Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt blamed the Labour Party for chaotic scenes in the Commons on Wednesday (21 February) over a vote on Gaza.Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle broke with convention to allow a vote on Labour’s Gaza ceasefire amendment.Hoyle apologised to the House of Commons after the chamber descended into chaos, with MPs walking out in protest at his handling of the debate.Ms Mordaunt today claimed Hoyle was a victim of “weak and fickle” Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.She told the Commons on Thursday: “I would never have done to him what the Labour Party have done to him.” More

Tory former justice secretary Sir Robert Buckland has said he won’t ask for a vote of confidence in Sir Lindsay Hoyle.Sir Lindsay apologised to the House of Commons after chaos ensued during a debate over a ceasefire in Gaza on Wednesday evening (21 February).The Commons Speaker faced shouts of “resign” from both sides of the House after selecting Labour’s bid to amend an SNP motion calling for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza and Israel.Speaking on the Robert Peston Show on Wednesday, Sir Robert said: “We’ve been down this road before with the previous speaker and votes etc. I’m not going to nail my colours to the mast. I think he made a fullsome apology, I thought that was heartfelt. I listened to it carefully, I know the man and I know he cares very deeply and will be reflecting tonight.” More

Aid to Gaza has been loaded and dispatched as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues to raise international concern.The UK-funded consignment of aid, delivered by the Jordanian Air Force, was dropped on Wednesday 21 February into the Tal Al-Hawa Hospital in northern Gaza.Four tonnes of vital supplies were provided in the air-drop, including medicines, fuel, and food for hospital patients and staff.The Tal al-Hawa Hospital, set up by the Jordanian Armed Forces, is located in Gaza City and has treated thousands of patients since the start of the crisis. More