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 ThomasEditorSir Keir Starmer has said that “we must unequivocally stand with the Jewish community” and reiterated his calls for a ceasefire as he marked the first anniversary of the October 7 attacks.Monday is one year since the Hamas attacks in Israel, which triggered Israel’s subsequent conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon.Sir Keir described October 7 2023 as “the darkest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust” and said that “collective grief has not diminished” in the year since.“Over a thousand people were brutally murdered. Men, women, children and babies killed, mutilated, and tortured by the terrorists of Hamas. Jewish people murdered whilst protecting their families, young people massacred at a music festival, people abducted from their homes,” he said.“Agonising reports of rape, torture and brutality beyond comprehension which continued to emerge days and weeks later.“As a father, a husband, a son, a brother – meeting the families of those who lost their loved ones last week was unimaginable. Their grief and pain are ours, and it is shared in homes across the land.“A year on, that collective grief has not diminished or waned.”Writing for the Sunday Times this weekend, the prime minister said that the “sparks” from the conflict in the Middle East “light touchpapers in our own communities” as he called out “vile hatred” against Jews and Muslims.A group of Muslim and Jewish women during a minute silence after lighting a candle an event at St Johns Church, central London, to remember those who have died or are displaced and missing since 7 October 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 ThomasEditorFormer cabinet secretary Lord Gus O’Donnell has said the £200,000-a-year salary for the head of the civil service is “massively underpaid”.Lord O’Donnell is involved in the process of hiring Simon Case’s successor after the current cabinet secretary announced he will stand down at the end of the year on health grounds.Lord O’Donnell told BBC Radio 4’s The Westminster Hour: “It’s massively underpaid in my view – given I’ve been paid a lot more since, to do a lot less.”Senior civil servants’ salary is set based on recommendations from the independent Senior Salaries Review Body.The cabinet secretary acts as the senior policy adviser to the prime minister and is responsible for the efficient running of government.Mr Case was diagnosed with a neurological condition last year, and said that “whilst the spirit remains willing, the body is not”.His resignation came following reports of tensions at the heart of No 10 between Mr Case and Sir Keir’s chief of staff Sue Gray, who quit the role this weekend.Lord O’Donnell said the person who replaced Mr Case would need to have a “good relationship” with the prime minister’s chief of staff.Tony Blair appointed Lord O’Donnell as cabinet secretary in 2005 where he earned a reputation for smoothing tensions at the highest level of government. In his time he had floated ideas about open primaries, which encourage people without political affiliations to stand for Parliament, and the reform of the House of Lords – even though he is now a member.He stepped down in 2011, under the David Cameron-led coalition government.Ms Gray said she was looking forward to continuing to support the Prime Minister in her new role (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 ThomasEditorThe Treasury has confirmed it will go ahead with a controversial VAT tax raid on private schools in what is being seen as a victory for education secretary Bridget Phillipson.The senior minister came out fighting last night as the Treasury initially refused to commit to the Labour manifesto pledge in Rachel Reeves’ budget on 30 October.The Guardian reported government plans to impose VAT on private schools from 1 January next year may have to be delayed, following warnings that meeting the deadline could cause administrative chaos and job losses, as well as putting pressure on the state sector.In response, the Treasury initially failed to confirm that the plan to impose VAT on private schools would go ahead from the start of 2025, instead saying it would be introduced “as soon as possible”.Ms Phillipson said: ‘Our state schools need teachers more than private schools need embossed stationery’ 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 ThomasEditorLabour election guru Morgan McSweeney will take over as Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff after Sue Gray quit, citing fears she was “becoming a distraction” to the government.The ‘Partygate’ report author has been a high-profile figure in Sir Keir’s top team since she was appointed while Labour was in opposition last year. However, in recent weeks Sir Keir’s Downing Street operation has been plagued by reports of infighting, and rows over Ms Gray’s £170,000 salary dominated headlines. Ms Gray’s departure on Sunday triggered a wider reshuffle of Number 10. She will be replaced as chief of staff by Mr McSweeney, one of the key figures in Labour’s election campaign who is reported to have clashed with Ms Gray.Sue Gray resigned as Downing Street’s chief of staff and has taken on a new role 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 ThomasEditorAn independent body must be set up to handle compensation schemes for UK state scandals to stop causing further distress for victims, experts have said.People affected by the Windrush and Post Office scandals are being re-traumatised by the schemes designed to offer redress, according to researchers from King’s College London.Shaila Pal, director and a supervising solicitor at King’s Legal Clinic, who carried out that research, said victims’ voices are not currently being heard.“These people have been failed by the state and it is unacceptable that schemes designed to compensate them are further adding to the damage already caused,” Ms Pal said.“Their experiences are often marginalised, schemes are inconsistent, the compensation offered feels inadequate and many told us they find the whole process traumatising.“We need a system that is fair, collaborative, swift and compensates people fully and appropriately for the serious harms they have suffered.”They are calling for a new public body to ensure fair and independent outcomes for victims and for compulsory guidance to be introduced for setting up inquiries.The Home Secretary and other ministers have received copies of this new report by King’s which is based on insights shared at a recent roundtable involving victim advocates, lawyers and academics. 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 ThomasEditorSir Keir Starmer has been forced to accept the resignation of his chief of staff Sue Gray in the latest attempt by the prime minister to regain control of the political agenda and end the chaos in his government.After less than three months in office since the election, the loss of Ms Gray – who he personally recruited to ensure he could drive through his policies through Whitehall once in power – is a major blow for Sir Keir.But it follows weeks of infighting almost from the moment Labour won a historic election result, coupled with questions over gifts for the prime minister, Ms Gray and senior cabinet ministers, and fears the government has lost control of its own agenda.Sir Keir has already attempted to reset the agenda three times with announcements about restricting gifts in the future and paying back some of them. Now he is being forced to reset his top team.Sue Gray has quit as Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff in Downing Street 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 ThomasEditorSir Keir Starmer’s decision to hand the Chagos Islands over to Mauritius has made Britain look “weak” and “pathetic”, Boris Johnson has claimed.He dismissed the idea that the deal, intended to secure the future of a secretive military base on the island of Diego Garcia, would buy the country influence on the global stage.The agreement has faced criticism after leaving the UK without sovereign territorial control over a piece of land in the Indian Ocean that is deemed crucial to Western security.There are also fears it may open the islands to Chinese interference and undermine Western defence and security in the southern hemisphere.Boris Johnson hit out at the decision to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius on GB News on Sunday 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 ThomasEditorSue Gray, the former senior civil servant who rose to fame when she was handed responsibility for untangling the ‘Partygate‘ saga, has resigned as Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff and will take up a new role in government.Ms Gray said she was standing down because it had “become clear to me that intense commentary around my position risked becoming a distraction to the government’s vital work of change”.Concerns over the power of Ms Gray in government were recently raised when it was revealed she is paid more as chief of staff than the prime minister.The BBC revealed last month that Ms Gray asked for and was given a salary of £170,000 after July’s election – about £3,000 more than Sir Keir.Tensions flared in Sir Keir’s Downing Street operation after the salary revelation, although the party said at the time she “had no involvement in any decision on her pay”.A power struggle had reportedly been playing out between Ms Gray and Sir Keir’s election guru Morgan McSweeney since Labour’s general election win. Mr McSweeney will now replace Ms Gray as the prime minister’s chief of staff.Sue Gray said she looked forward to continuing to support the prime minister in her new role More