UK Politics

Labour MP defends Starmer over donor row: ‘He’s an Arsenal fan’Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseMy recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyondEric GarciaWashington Bureau ChiefA Labour minister has been grilled over Sir Keir Starmer’s decision to accept tens of thousands of pounds in gifts and hospitality, amid a row over his late declaration of a donation by a Labour peer to pay for dresses for his wife Victoria.Sir Keir was facing questions over the £5,000 donation from ex-Asos chair Lord Waheed Alli which he initially failed to put on his register of interests. The PM has insisted his team had reached out for advice on what declaration should be made and that rules are being followed.While the commissioner has decided not to investigate, Home Office minister Dame Angela Eagle was repeatedly pressed by reporters on Tuesday about Sir Keir’s acceptance of gifts – totalling more than £65,000 in the nine months to May ahead of cutting the winter fuel allowance for millions of pensioners.Dame Angela told Times Radio she had no opinion on Sir Keir accepting gifts and accused the host of “ranting”. However she conceded to Sky News that she was not sure whether it was “possible to have an explanation” for accepting Coldplay tickets.Show latest update 1726583833Government urged to make ‘this year the last NHS winter crisis’Turning to the NHS, Sir Ed Davey told the Lib Dem annual conference: “We know the terrible state of the public finances thanks to the Conservatives’ shocking mismanagement. There can be no doubt about the scale of the challenge ahead.“Yet that makes it even more important to make the investment we’ve proposed in frontline NHS services – not less. Because if you invest wisely, if you make sure people can get the care they need, when and where they need it, if you bring down waiting lists and get people back to work, if you help people to stay healthy for longer, not only will you dramatically improve people’s lives, but you will actually save taxpayers’ money in the future and give the economy the boost it needs.“The problem is, the Treasury simply isn’t wired to think this way. Instead, we have the short-term negative thinking that leads governments to postpone hospital repairs and cancel new buildings – short-term thinking to save a bit of money now, even though you know it will only cost a lot more in the future.”The Lib Dem leader added: “What if, instead of stumbling from crisis to crisis, instead of throwing more and more money at just plugging the gaps, what if we invested now to make the NHS winterproof?“The government could and should make this year the last winter crisis in our NHS.”Andy Gregory17 September 2024 15:371726582813Ed Davey reveals rejected election stunt ideas Wing walking on a biplane was among the stunt ideas “rejected” during the Lib Dem election campaign, Sir Ed Davey has suggested.He told conference delegates that he is “not supposed to tell you what stunt ideas were rejected – not least because they’re still trying to persuade me to do them for the next election”.He added: “But I’ll let you into a little secret. It was only health and safety rules that stopped me putting my hand up a cow’s behind or wing walking on a biplane.”Andy Gregory17 September 2024 15:201726582266Ed Davey sings to Abba as he arrives for conference speechSir Ed Davey sang along to Abba’s “Take A Chance” as he arrived on stage for his Brighton conference keynote speech.The leader of the Liberal Democrats said: “It’s been joyful, hasn’t it? Getting together to celebrate, and to start planning the future – having fun, but with a serious focus.“It reminds me of our election campaign. Do you know they wanted me to wear a wetsuit today? But I said it was abseiling or nothing, so here we are, having a party after winning our largest number of MPs for over 100 years.”( More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseAs your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn’t have the resources to challenge those in power.Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November electionAndrew FeinbergWhite House CorrespondentThe attorney general is coming under pressure to ask for a legal review of the suspended sentence handed to former BBC presenter Huw Edwards.Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice has told The Independent that he is writing to Lord Hermer asking him to appeal the six-month suspended sentence for the disgraced BBC personality who previously admitted three charges of “making” indecent photographs.The court heard that the 63-year-old paid up to £1,500 to Alex Williams, 25, who sent Edwards 41 illegal images, seven of which were of category A, the very worst kind.Of those images shared over WhatsApp, the estimated age of most of the children was between 13 and 15, while one was aged as young as between seven and nine.Court artist drawing by Elizabeth Cook of former BBC broadcaster Huw Edwards stands in the dock at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, London (Elizabeth Cook/PA) More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseAs your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn’t have the resources to challenge those in power.Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November electionAndrew FeinbergWhite House CorrespondentWatch live as Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey addresses the final day of the party’s conference in Brighton on Tuesday 17 September.He is expected to say the party must “repay” the trust “in full” that was given to them by voters at this year’s general election when he takes to the stage.Sir Ed will also pledge to “finish the job” of defeating the Conservatives after the Lib Dems secured 72 seats in parliament.In his speech, the MP for Kingston and Surbiton is expected to speak again about the NHS – which has been a key topic at the four-day event – as well as those standing to be the next leader of the Conservative Party.The Lib Dems became parliament’s third biggest party again after the general election in July with 72 MPs now sitting in the Commons, including many who won seats from the Conservatives. More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseAs your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn’t have the resources to challenge those in power.Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November electionAndrew FeinbergWhite House CorrespondentThe prime minister will avoid an embarrassing investigation into a failure to declare a donation by a Labour peer that paid for dresses for his wife Victoria.Sir Keir Starmer was facing questions from the Opposition over the £5,000 donation from Lord Waheed Alli, which he initially failed to put on his register of interests. The peer, a leading Labour donor, received a high-level security pass for Downing Street in the weeks after the election and made a donation to Sir Keir of accommodation over several weeks worth more than £20,000.The prime minister has insisted his team had sought advice on what declaration should be made and that rules were being followed.Tory chairman Andrew Griffith asked the parliamentary standards commissioner, Daniel Greenberg, to investigate a potential breach of the rules.Mr Griffith wrote: “There must be a full investigation into this scandal given this is not the first instance of the prime minister failing to declare donations and abiding by parliamentary rules.“It beggars belief that the prime minister thinks it’s acceptable that pensioners on £13,000 a year can afford to heat their home when he earns 12 times that but apparently can’t afford to clothe himself or his wife.Sir Keir faced questions over his alleged failure to register on time high-end clothing given to Lady Starmer by a prominent party donor More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseAs your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn’t have the resources to challenge those in power.Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November electionAndrew FeinbergWhite House CorrespondentWatch live as David Lammy announces Labour’s pledge to have the UK be the first major economy to deliver clean power by 2030.On Tuesday, 17 September, the foreign secretary will position action on the climate and nature crisis as central to his department’s remit as he pledges the Foreign Office’s commitment to the global clean energy transition.Speaking at Kew Gardens in Richmond, Mr Lammy will say Labour is “firing the starting gun” on its pledge to create a global clean power alliance that will facilitate sharing knowledge and technology to help more countries reach net-zero emissions.Of the government’s 2030 pledge, Mr Lammy will say: “We will leverage that ambition to build an alliance committed to accelerating the clean energy transition.“And today we are firing the starting gun on forming this new coalition.“While some countries are moving ahead in this transition, others are being left behind.“We need to accelerate the rollout of renewable energy across the globe in the way that this Government is doing at home.”The alliance also aims to help countries “leapfrog” fossil fuels, transition to renewable power systems with global investment and finance, and speed up the supply of critical minerals needed for energy grids and storage. More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseAs your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn’t have the resources to challenge those in power.Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November electionAndrew FeinbergWhite House Correspondent European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen is expected to unveil the members of her new team for the next five-year tenure at the head of the bloc on Tuesday. But it has been a tumultuous ride to get it ready for office — the search for the 26 members of her college was chaotic and scandal-ridden even before the parliament is to start hearings on whether to accept each proposed candidate. French heavyweight Thierry Breton resigned and openly criticized von der Leyen for allegedly “questionable governance” on Monday and accused her of backroom machinations to oust him. Many saw his shock resignation more as a removal by von der Leyen of one of her most open internal critics after exerting pressure on French authorities. Compounding such problems was the defiance of many of the 27 member states as von der Leyen struggled to get anywhere close to gender parity on her Commission team — they staunchly refused to give her a choice between a male and a female candidate. After days of secret talks with individual European governments about their picks, von der Leyen huddled with the leaders of the political groups at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, to discuss the makeup of her college. Her full announcement was expected later Tuesday. Even if the Commission’s makeup has hardly become the talk of bar rooms or barber shops across the vast EU of 450 million people, it has enthralled the upper echelons of politics and bureaucracy, as they sought to boost one candidate or undermine another.The Commission proposes legislation for the EU’s 27 member countries and ensures that the rules governing the world’s biggest trading bloc are respected. It’s made up of a College of Commissioners with a range of portfolios similar to those of government ministers, including agriculture, economic, competition, security and migration policy.The Commission is to start work on Nov. 1, but speculation is rife that it might not get down to business before January.A former German defense minister, von der Leyen has been pressing smaller countries to change their minds. In recent weeks, a man who was the preferred candidate of the government in Slovenia withdrew and a woman was proposed in his place.She decides which country gets which portfolio, and some of them, like those involving trade or finance or EU enlargement, are coveted by certain countries. Plum jobs like the post of vice president — the commission has seven of these — are also much sought after. More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseAs your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn’t have the resources to challenge those in power.Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November electionAndrew FeinbergWhite House CorrespondentDiane Abbott has accused Sir Keir Starmer of treating her like a “non-person” during a race row over comments made by major Tory donor.In March, The Guardian reported that Frank Hester had told colleagues that looking at Ms Abbott makes you “want to hate all black women” and that she “should be shot”.The veteran Labour MP said she expected more support from the prime minister and the Labour Party, having been left feeling in danger by Frank Hester’s comments.“One of the reasons it made me frightened is two MPs have been killed in recent years,” Ms Abbott said.Diane Abbott was suspended after suggesting Jewish, Irish and Traveller people experience prejudice but not racism More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFind out moreCloseAs your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn’t have the resources to challenge those in power.Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November electionAndrew FeinbergWhite House Correspondent A speech by the Dutch king on Tuesday is to lay out the new government’s plans for the coming year as members of the hard right-led coalition bicker over its plans to drastically slash migration.The day, marked by pageantry as the royals are driven through The Hague in ornate horse-drawn carriages, also brings the first major test of a technocratic new government chosen by the right-wing parties that triumphed in last year’s elections. King Willem-Alexander’s speech to lawmakers from both houses of the Dutch parliament is written by the government and lays out legislative plans and the budget for the coming year.On Monday, a senior member of a party in the coalition said she would oppose the government’s plans to rein in immigration if a key political advisory panel rejects them.The comments Monday by Nicolien van Vroonhoven of the New Social Contract party triggered angry reactions from Geert Wilders ’s populist anti-immigration Party for Freedom, which won national elections last year, and the conservative People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy.The spat underscored the fragility of a coalition that was pulled together after months of negotiations. Prime Minister Dick Schoof was eventually chosen to head a cabinet made up of politicians and civil servants because the leaders did not want the outspoken Wilders as prime minister.While the government seeks consensus on a deal to drastically dial back immigration, a town in the northern Netherlands opened a sports hall overnight to accommodate asylum seekers who otherwise would have been forced to sleep outdoors because of a shortage of space at a reception center.The mayor of Ter Apel accused Margriet Faber, the minister responsible for asylum seekers and migrants, of allowing an accomdation crisis to escalate.“The minister is shunning her responsibility. She is responsible for people who come to the Netherlands for asylum. She has had enough time and sufficient opportunity to accommodate people in a decent way. She consciously does not do this,” mayor Jaap Velema said in a statement Monday.The government is planning to declare an “asylum crisis” to pave the way for tougher measures including reining in visas for family members of people granted asylum and making it easier and quicker to deport migrants who are not eligible for asylum. The government also plans to apply for an opt-out from European Union migration rules and step up border check following similar moves implemented Monday by neighboring Germany. It remains unclear how many of the Dutch government’s plans can be enforced. More