UK Politics

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorRobert Jenrick is closing in on Kemi Badenoch in the race to become the next Tory leader, a new poll has indicated.Six weeks ago, YouGov put Ms Badenoch 15 points ahead of Mr Jenrick, with party members backing the former business secretary by 48 per cent compared to Mr Jenrick’s 33 per cent if the two went head-to-head in the final round.But the latest polling puts Ms Badenoch just four points ahead of the ex-immigration minister. Conservative Party leadership contenders Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch, waiting to appear on Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg (Jeff Overs/BBC/PA) More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorOne of Boris Johnson’s most outspoken Conservative critics has called on the party to ban those who put personal ambition above public duty from becoming Tory MPs.Ex-Tory minister Jesse Norman warns the party risks an even bigger defeat at the next election unless it takes “drastic remedial action”.Among his proposals designed to win back voters’ trust is a refusal to allow anyone to stand as a Tory at the next election without a proven track record of “meaningful public service”.Jesse Norman said the Tories should not stand candidates without ‘a track record of public service’ More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditor Albanian opposition lawmakers violently disrupted a Parliament session Monday to protest the imprisonment of a fellow legislator for alleged slander.The conservative Democratic Party of Albania has long accused the ruling Socialist Party of usurping all the powers, including the judiciary, and staged violent protests against the government since 2013. Democrats shoved microphones off tables, hurled objects at the seats of the Parliament’s speaker and government ministers and burned chairs, saying Ervin Salianji’s prison sentence was politically motivated. They have also called for protests they say will block the capital, Tirana, starting next week. In 2018, Salianji demanded the resignation of the Socialist Party’s then-governing interior minister Fatmir Xhafaj after a video circulated where two men claimed his brother was involved in illegal activities. The files and recordings they offered turned out to be fabricated and they have since fled the country. Salianji was accused of slander and last week the appeals court confirmed his sentence of a year in prison. He has to petition the supreme court to appeal the verdict while in jail. Parliament Speaker Elisa Spiropali of the left-wing ruling party said the burning of chairs was a sign of “disrespect of the citizens, the law and the institutions of the democratic state.”Democrats’ leader Sali Berisha, who is under house arrest on corruption charges, said the protest was the start of the opposition’s battle to reclaim power ahead of next year’s parliamentary election.“Technical Cabinet. Free elections. Rotation. Opposition’s victory,” Berisha said, citing his party’s demands while speaking from his apartment’s window in downtown Tirana where a small group of supporters gather every night.The opposition has been harshly divided after Berisha and his family members were barred from entering the United States in 2021 and the United Kingdom in 2022 because of alleged involvement in corruption. The opposition lawmaker has denied the accusations repeatedly, saying Prime Minister Edi Rama was behind them, without providing evidence. The Socialists have 73 lawmakers in the 140-member chamber and easily pass almost all draft laws.Post-communist Albania has struggled to fight corruption, which has impeded the country’s democratic, economic and social development.Albania has launched full membership negotiations with the European Union in 2020.___Follow Llazar Semini at https://twitter.com/lsemini More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorThe four candidates for Tory leadership have abandoned the centre ground as they embark on a right-wing arms race to win over the party faithful. On the second day of the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham, Robert Jenrick ramped up his anti-migration rhetoric, Tom Tugendhat said he doesn’t accept the term “climate emergency”, Kemi Badenoch re-emphasised her support for family values following a row over maternity pay, while James Cleverly waded in on trans issues. The four candidates are parading themselves in front of party members at their annual conference – attending leadership hustings, Q&A sessions, fringe events, and drinks receptions – in what has been described as a beauty contest to shore up support.The rightward turn came despite a warning from former prime minister Theresa May that the party must not try to be like Nigel Farage and to remember it lost more seats to the Liberal Democrats. She urged the candidates to try to win back the centre ground but her appeal appears to have fallen on deaf ears. The four candidates are parading themselves in front of party members in order to shore up support in the leadership race More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorTom Tugendhat said he doesn’t accept the term “climate emergency”, dubbing Ed Miliband’s plan for state-backed energy company “completely insane”.Great British Energy will provide £8.3m of funding for renewable power projects across the UK and shield consumers from international market shocks. the new Labour government has said.But speaking on the main stage at Monday’s Conservative Party conference, Mr Tugendhat claimed Mr Miliband’s policies were going to “destroy Britain”, adding: “Every single project he’s got is designed to make electricity and power more expensive, harder to get and to make us more vulnerable to foreign dictators.”Tom Tugendhat said ‘we need to rebuild trust in the Conservative Party’ (Stefan Rousseau/PA) More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorAttendees of the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham have seen the four leadership hopefuls wanting to replace Rishi Sunak handing out all manner of merchandise – from lollipops to beauty products.Although freebies and gifts have left Sir Keir Starmer and his government under increased scrutiny recently, the potential future leaders of the opposition have not been able to give merch away quickly enough to draw in Tory support.While the usual fare of pens, badges and stickers are all available, each one – Robert Jenrick, Tom Tugendhat, Kemi Badenoch and James Cleverly – has tried to beat the competition with eye-catching gimmicks.Tory leadership merchandise being handed out throughout the conference More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorCabinet secretary Simon Case has announced he will stand down at the end of this year on health grounds but only after The Independent revealed that ministers had told Sir Keir Starmer he should be sacked. The UK’s top civil servant, who was diagnosed with a neurological condition last year, said that “whilst the spirit remains willing, the body is not”.His resignation came just days after a row broke out after revelations that ministers told Sir Keir to remove him immediately, leading to protests by the trade union representing top civil servants.One senior minister had accused Mr Case of “poisoning the well” of government.In a letter announcing his decision to step down, he insisted that it had nothing to do with reports he had been accused of failing to prevent leaks about donations from Lord Alli, as well as being accused of briefing against Sir Keir’s chief of staff, Sue Gray. Cabinet Secretary Simon Case (James Manning/PA) More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorKemi Badenoch has said people are “scared to have families” due to the cost amid an ongoing row about her comments on maternity pay.On Sunday, the Tory leadership contender had said the government was doing “too much” on statutory maternity pay, before backtracking on the remarks. Speaking at a Conservative Women’s Organisation event on the fringes of the Tory conference in Birmingham on Monday, Ms Badenoch said “there are things that we have to do to make sure that we make life comfortable for those people who are… starting families”.Asked about the declining birth rate, she said: “A lot of people have fewer children because they start having children later.“And so they just can’t have as many as perhaps they might have liked. Some people feel that they can’t afford children, I often think that too many people are worried about the money more than they need to be.Kemi Badenoch (Jeff Overs/BBC/PA) More