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Rishi Sunak gave a gracious first speech to parliament as the leader of the opposition in the House of Commons on Tuesday (9 July).Mr Sunak started his speech by congratulating Sir Keir Starmer on his general election victory.The Conservative leader said: “In our politics, we can argue vigorously, as the prime minister and I did over the past six weeks, but still respect each other, and whatever disputes we have in this parliament, I know that everyone in this house will not lose sight of the fact that we are all motivated by our desire to serve our constituents, our country, and advance the principles that we honourably believe in.”Mr Sunak also described being an MP as the “greatest honour, privilege and responsibility”. More

Sir Tony Blair has blasted the lack of focus on real issues during the general election campaign.The former prime minister appeared on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Tuesday morning (9 July) to discuss why the UK should “fully embrace” artificial intelligence, before referencing the coverage of Tory gaffes over the last six weeks.“If you think of this election campaign and how many days we spent on Rishi Sunak and his wet suit, and then how many days we spent on D-Day and him missing that ceremony, and how many days we spent on betting… in the end, none of those things will determine the future of this country,” Sir Tony said. More

Sir Tony Blair has urged the Labour government to “fully embrace” artificial intelligence to fuel growth and productivity.The former prime minister is set to say that the modern technological revolution means “there has never been a better time to govern” in a major speech in London on Tuesday 9 July.He will also set out how a package of measures including private and public sector adoption of AI, preventative healthcare, digital ID and embracing technology in education could boost growth and generate savings.Speaking to BBC Radio 4 ahead of his speech, Sir Tony suggested the “good news” is that Britain is already in a strong position globally when it comes to AI. More

Nigel Farage arrived at parliament on Tuesday 9 July for his first day in the House of Commons at the head of Reform UK’s first elected MPs.The group of five men, including party chairman Richard Tice and former Tory MP Lee Anderson, had been expected to stage a Reservoir Dogs-style entrance to Westminster, referring to the Quentin Tarantino film about a failed diamond heist.The other new arrivals were Rupert Lowe, former chairman of Southampton FC and now MP for Great Yarmouth, and James McMurdock, a 38-year-old former banker who unexpectedly edged the contest in South Basildon and East Thurrock by 98 votes. More

Sir Keir Starmer appeared to swerve a journalist’s question when asked if he accepts there is a problem between the Labour Party and British Muslims.When asked the question during a visit to Wales on Monday (8 July), the prime minister said: “Very many people voted Labour in that General Election who’ve never voted Labour before.“We now hold seats in parts of the country that have never had a Labour MP, so this is an incredibly strong mandate.“Of course, wherever we weren’t able to secure votes, I’m concerned about that.”He added that where his party did not secure the votes it would work to “address that”. More

Newly-elected MPs arrived in parliament on Monday 8 July to familiarise themselves with the historic building on an induction day.Tory MP Benjamin Obese-Jecty described the “fantastic feeling” of standing in Westminster Hall, while Labour’s Adam Jogee explained why he was excited to “hit the ground running” for his constituents.It wasn’t all plain sailing on day one though, as several newly elected Labour MPs criticised the reliability of train services after suffering disruption during journeys to take their seats in the House of Commons.The politicians took to social media platform X – formerly Twitter – to complain as they travelled to London ahead of the parliament sitting on Tuesday for the first time since the general election. More

Removal vans were spotted outside 10 Downing Street on Monday 8 July, following the Labour landslide in the general election.Former prime minister Rishi Sunak addressed the nation from No 10 for the final time last Friday, before Sir Keir Starmer took the keys to the famous residence.Mr Sunak had lived in No 10 for around one year and a nine months, after becoming PM in October 2022 after the disastrous tenure of Liz Truss.He has been ousted after the Tories suffered a devastating defeat in the general election, which saw them reduced to just 121 MPs.Labour, meanwhile, now have 411 seats in the House of Commons. More

Treasury minister Darren Jones took a swipe at the Tories during a live television interview.Appearing on BBC Breakfast on Monday (8 July), Mr Jones discussed Labour’s plan for economic growth, before making a dig at former Tory ministers.He said: “The key thing you’ll see from this Labour government is we are going to return, both to the service of the British people but to the norms, the adults are back in the room.“Announcements we make will be made to Parliament. They will follow proper processes through Parliament. We welcome them to be challenged and scrutinised by colleagues from different parties.” More