UK Politics

Sir Ed Davey has called for Sir Robbie Gibb to be ousted from the BBC board. The Liberal Democrat leader said that Sir Robbie – who served as Theresa May’s director of communications – should have “no role in appointing the new director general” following the departure of Tim Davie. It follows claims that Sir Robbie “led the charge” in claims over systemic bias in the corporation, which was followed by the resignation of Mr Davie and the head of BBC News, Deborah Turness.Writing in The Guardian, the Lib Dem leader said that “to ensure the BBC’s independence, impartiality and trust, Sir Robbie should have no role in appointing the new director general”.He wrote: “The government should remove him from the board immediately – and end the practice of political appointments, which so badly undermines the BBC, altogether.” Davie and culture secretary Lisa Nandy ahead of the concert celebrating the 80th anniversary of VE Day, London, May More

Labour is reportedly considering scrapping the two-child benefit cap following pressure from backbenchers, campaign groups and political opponents.Ahead of the Budget on 26 November, Rachel Reeves has given the strongest hint yet that Labour could abolish the controversial policy, saying she does not think it is right that children are “penalised” for being part of large families.Speaking on BBC 5Live, the chancellor said it was important not to let the “costs to our economy in allowing child poverty to go unchecked”. She added: “In the end, a child should not be penalised because their parents don’t have very much money.”The chancellor’s comments suggest that action will be taken on the cap, likely either at the Budget or as part of the government’s delayed child poverty strategy, which is due before the end of the year.Rachel Reeves said it was important not to let the ‘costs to our economy in allowing child poverty to go unchecked’ More

David Lammy has been urged to end the “scandal” of people imprisoned for their own protection while they await trial – just days after Britain’s overcrowded jails were blamed for prisoners being wrongfully released. Sir Keir Starmer hit out at the strain on the system, which he said had been caused by the last Tory government, as he denounced the wrongful releases as “intolerable”.Now more than 40 leading experts and organisations have written to the justice secretary calling on him to use the government’s Sentencing Bill to remove the courts’ power to remand defendants in custody for their own protection, or their welfare in the case of children. They warn the law comes from a “mistaken belief that prisons are suitable places for people at risk of harm”. Manhunts have been launched after prisoners were mistakenly released More

Rachel Reeves has given her biggest hint yet that the government could break its manifesto promises on tax at the Budget.The chancellor has said that it would be “possible” for ministers to stick with their election pledges, but warned that doing so would mean “deep cuts” in other areas of spending. Speculation has been rampant in recent days that the chancellor is preparing to increase income tax in the Budget at the end of this month as she looks to balance the country’s books. Labour’s manifesto for the 2024 general election campaign pledged that the party would not raise income tax, VAT or national insurance. Labour’s manifesto for the 2024 general election campaign pledged that the party would not raise income tax, VAT or national insurance More

A historic appointment has been made in the House of Lords, with a woman taking its most senior position for the first time in over 700 years. Chloe Kilcoyne Mawson is set to become the 66th Clerk of the Parliaments, a prestigious role established in the 13th century. She will assume the post in April 2026, succeeding Simon Burton upon his retirement.Ms Mawson said: “It is an absolute honour to have been appointed as the next Clerk of the Parliaments. I feel privileged to have been trusted to take forward this historic and important role that dates back over 700 years.“I’d like to pay tribute to Simon Burton for his years of public service and for everything he has achieved during his term of office. I am excited to build on his values-based approach.“I look forward to working with the talented teams across the administration and bicameral services to develop the ways we support the House and its members to fulfil their important constitutional role.”Chloe Kilcoyne Mawson has been appointed the 66th Clerk of the Parliaments and is the first woman to take up the post More

Cuts to funding for victims’ services is a “false economy” which costs more to the taxpayer than it saves, a charity has warned, saying that services are now at a “crisis point” in Britain. Analysis by Victim Support, which helps people affected by crime across England and Wales, suggests that for every £1 invested in the charity’s services up to £10.80 is saved such as through reduced cost to health services, keeping people in work and better wellbeing.The organisation warned that fewer victims will receive support this financial year after cuts have left services on the brink of crisis, on top of rising costs and increased employers’ national insurance contributions, according to a new report.The Ministry of Justice announced that core police and crime commissioner budgets, , which commissions victim services, would be slashed by 4.2 per cent, as well as announcing a freeze to ring-fenced domestic abuse and sexual violence funding, in December last year – cuts that have been branded “ethically wrong and economically reckless”.Victims minister Alex Davies-Jones had said the government inherited a criminal justice system under immense pressure and “a black hole in the nation’s finances”.“We must now make difficult decisions to ensure we can deliver the justice victims deserve, through our courts and across the system,” she said.But the chief executive of Victim Support, Katie Kempen, said the cuts are “ethically wrong and economically reckless”, telling the PA news agency: “What I’m seeing when I’m out in my services is that my staff are stretched, that our services are stretched, that everything is just stretched to the point where we’re really on the brink.Victims minister Alex Davies-Jones said the government inherited a criminal justice system under pressure More

Zack Polanski said Sir Keir Starmer “is not a man I would be willing to work with” when asked if the Green Party would make a deal with Labour to defeat Reform UK.The self-described “eco-populist” suggested he doubts whether the Prime Minister will be an MP at the next election but did not rule out working with another Labour leader, depending on who is in the role.He told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips on Sky News that Nottingham East MP Nadia Whittome would be “excellent”, but: “I don’t think it’s something she’s necessarily (got) in her ambitions right now.”He said: “A poll out yesterday showed the majority of the population have completely lost trust in Keir Starmer, now this is a man who ran on the coattails of Jeremy Corbyn but ditched every single pledge before he was even in power.“We’ve got the two-child benefit cap, the disability cuts, the genocide in Gaza – no, Keir Starmer is not a man I would be willing to work with.Zack Polanski suggested he doubts whether Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will be an MP at the next election More

HMRC is reviewing decisions to strip child benefit payments from 23,500 people after using individuals’ travel data to conclude that they had emigrated from the UK. The benefit is normally stopped if someone spends more than eight weeks living outside the UK, but many of the people affected complained the tax body stopped their payments after they went abroad for a holiday. It comes after the government began a new crackdown on child benefit fraud as part of an attempt to save £350m over the next five years. The system, which was being piloted, allows HMRC to use Home Office international travel data to assess whether people are still living in the UK. But all the affected cases are now being reviewed after a growing number of complaints from people who briefly left the UK and returned to find their payments had been stopped. The problem was first identified in Northern Ireland after some families had flown out of the UK from Belfast and then returned to Dublin, in the EU, before driving home over the border.According to the Guardian, almost half of the families initially flagged as having emigrated were still living in the UK. The newspaper reported that the scheme saved HMRC £17m but left 46 per cent of the families targeted incorrectly suspected of fraud. In Northern Ireland, 78 per cent were incorrectly identified as not having returned from trips abroad. Some 129 families were flagged during the pilot as having left the country when only 28 had actually done so.HMRC told The Guardian it will no longer use data on travel through Dublin airport to assess fraud because it is part of the common travel area, and will not stop benefits before cross-checking with the person concerned and looking at PAYE records. The decision to review the system comes after MPs on the Treasury Select Committee demanded answers from the tax authority.A spokesperson for HMRC said: “We’re very sorry to those whose payments have been suspended incorrectly. We have taken immediate action to update the process, giving customers one month to respond before payments are suspended.“We remain committed to protecting taxpayers’ money and are confident that the majority of suspensions are accurate.” More