Political news

• City minister in push to boost UK-EU financial services co-operation

  14-01-2026 01:01
  Lucy Rigby tells FT that London and Brussels can increase investment and drive growth
  
  Read more

• Government sets out plans for north of England rail investment

  13-01-2026 23:31 via bbc.com
  The scheme will be delivered in phases, starting with upgrades to lines between Leeds, York, Bradford and Sheffield.
  
  Read more

• Government drops plans for mandatory digital ID to work in UK

  13-01-2026 21:22 via bbc.com
  There will still be digital checks on those starting a new job, but people will not need to hold a digital ID.
  
  Read more

• Starmer set to drop plans to make digital ID mandatory for UK workers

  13-01-2026 21:08
  Latest U-turn comes after Labour MPs expressed concern about compulsory nature of proposed scheme
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Lying ban for politicians in Wales prompts free speech fears

  13-01-2026 20:09 via bbc.com
  A report says the proposed bill, which passed its first hurdle on Tuesday, would be "extraordinary as drafted".
  
  Read more

• Income tax changes and mansion tax on £1m homes in Scottish Budget

  13-01-2026 19:06 via bbc.com
  Finance Secretary Shona Robison unveils the government's tax and spending plans for the coming financial year.
  
  Read more

• South East Water bosses recalled by MPs over outage

  13-01-2026 19:05
  About 25,000 properties remain without water in Kent after new supply issues
  
  Read more

• Starting gun fired on crucial election as Wales' parliament returns

  13-01-2026 18:18 via bbc.com
  There were heated exchanges in the Senedd as party leaders sketched out their election campaigns.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• New Birmingham-Manchester rail link to be proposed

  13-01-2026 18:17 via bbc.com
  Previous plans for a high-speed rail line between the cities were scrapped by Rishi Sunak's government.
  
  Read more

• Cover-up law delayed after concerns it will not apply fully to MI5

  13-01-2026 17:53 via bbc.com
  The law would create a new legal duty on public bodies to tell the truth during investigations.
  
  Read more

• Scottish government to impose ‘mansion tax’ and private jet levy

  13-01-2026 17:50
  SNP administration says last Budget before elections asks wealthiest ‘to contribute that little bit more’
  
  Read more

• Starmer considers joining Trump's Gaza peace board

  13-01-2026 17:32 via bbc.com
  The new body is part of the White House's 20-point plan to end the war between Israel and Hamas.
  
  Read more

• Starmer under pressure amid growing talk of leadership challenge

  13-01-2026 17:27
  Labour Party awash with talk of coup against prime minister in run-up to May elections
  
  Read more

• MPs step up calls to block Chinese mega-embassy

  13-01-2026 17:03 via bbc.com
  The government insists no decision has been made as MPs on all sides warn of athreat to national security.
  
  Read more

• UK summons Iranian ambassador over 'brutal' killings

  13-01-2026 16:58 via bbc.com
  Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper also says the government will implement "full and further sanctions" against Iran.
  
  Read more

• MP's school visit cancelled over pro-Palestinian protests

  13-01-2026 16:03 via bbc.com
  Damien Egan, Labour MP for Bristol North East and vice chair of Labour Friends of Israel, cancelled the appearance.
  
  Read more

• I'm not racist, says Reform MS who used Chinese slur

  13-01-2026 14:10 via bbc.com
  Laura Anne Jones apologised for using the slur, saying it was a term "used for a takeaway" when she was a child.
  
  Read more

• Fortnum & Mason to rebuild European sales on hopes of new UK-EU trade deal

  13-01-2026 14:00
  British grocer seeks to grow exports of hampers, teas and jams that were hammered by Brexit
  
  Read more

• Stop saying we can't make things work, Streeting urges Labour

  13-01-2026 13:39 via bbc.com
  The health secretary warns a growing "excuses culture" is damaging Labour in a speech to a think tank.
  
  Read more

• Starmer signals tougher stance on children’s social media access

  13-01-2026 13:00
  Prime minister tells Labour MPs he is watching impact of Australia’s ban
  
  Read more

• Ministers to announce new rail link between Birmingham and Manchester

  13-01-2026 12:56
  Government will reveal much-delayed plans for major new and upgraded rail links in north of England
  
  Read more

• Lib Dems set out plan to end 12-hour A&E waits

  13-01-2026 12:39 via bbc.com
  Party leader Ed Davey calls for £1.5bn to be spent on ending a "deadly corridor crisis" in the NHS.
  
  Read more

• Crackdown on illegal working leads to surge in arrests

  13-01-2026 11:32 via bbc.com
  Raids on businesses such as nail bars and takeaways have increased by 77% since Labour took office, the government says.
  
  Read more

• Minister will not be drawn on police chief future

  13-01-2026 10:50 via bbc.com
  An independent report into the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans is expected this week.
  
  Read more

• Nadhim Zahawi joining Reform shrinks the Farage ‘fear’ factor

  13-01-2026 10:30
  Defection helps rightwing party by making it less scary and more viable in era of bloc-based politics
  
  Read more

• Mandelson makes personal apology for continuing Epstein friendship

  13-01-2026 09:08 via bbc.com
  The former ambassador apologises "unequivocally" for maintaining links with Epstein after 2008 conviction
  
  Read more

• Why is HS2 so expensive?

  13-01-2026 06:00
  Line set to cost more per kilometre than any other rail project in the world as total bill could surpass £100bn
  
  Read more

• How the UK ended up building the world’s most expensive railway

  13-01-2026 06:00
  HS2 is set to cost more per kilometre than any other rail project in the world as total bill could surpass £100bn
  
  Read more

• X could 'lose right to self regulate', says Starmer

  13-01-2026 04:34 via bbc.com
  It is currently illegal to share deepfakes, but the law against creating them has not yet come into force.
  
  Read more

• Starmer and Reeves talk up the UK’s economic prospects ahead of Davos

  13-01-2026 00:16
  British ministers aim to secure foreign investment at the World Economic Forum
  
  Read more

• Is UK immigration set for ‘net zero’?

  12-01-2026 23:55
  The surge in net migration that came after Brexit and Covid-era lockdowns has eased, its effects compounded by clampdowns
  
  Read more

• Tories vow to defend ‘vital’ role of UK fiscal watchdog

  12-01-2026 23:00
  Shadow chancellor Mel Stride will also propose reforms to OBR aimed at ‘fully capturing’ impact of tax cuts on growth
  
  Read more

• Tories say Zahawi peerage request turned down before defection to Reform UK

  12-01-2026 21:50 via bbc.com
  Zahawi is the latest former Conservative MP to join Nigel Farage's party, as a Tory source claims he had approached Kemi Badenoch seeking a nomination for the Lords.
  
  Read more

• What a new law and an investigation could mean for Grok AI deepfakes

  12-01-2026 20:38 via bbc.com
  Elon Musk's chatbot is under fire for altering images of women to remove their clothes without their consent.
  
  Read more

• UK looks at ways to soften jury trial reform after backlash

  12-01-2026 20:30
  Move is attempt to defuse growing rebellion by Labour MPs over proposed changes
  
  Read more

• UK looks at watering down jury trial reform after backlash

  12-01-2026 20:30
  Ministers to consider whether magistrates should sit alongside a judge in criminal cases
  
  Read more

• New Lord Speaker announced as Lord Michael Forsyth

  12-01-2026 19:32 via bbc.com
  Peers had a choice between Lord Forsyth and ex-ballet dancer Baroness Deborah Bull in a vote earlier this month.
  
  Read more

• Nick Eardley: Former Tories joining Reform is not without risk for Farage

  12-01-2026 19:20 via bbc.com
  Former Tory Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi is the latest - and most senior - figure to defect to Reform UK.
  
  Read more

• UK not as ready as we need to be for conflict, says military chief

  12-01-2026 18:50 via bbc.com
  Sir Richard Knighton refuses to confirm the existence of a £28bn shortfall in defence spending plans.
  
  Read more

• Law making creation of nonconsensual, intimate images illegal to come into force this week – UK politics live

  12-01-2026 18:38 via theguardian.com
  Liz Kendall says decision by X last week to restrict the Grok AI deepfake tool to subscribers did not go far enoughZahawi says he accepts that the Conservatives are to blame for some of the problems facinng the country.Since leaving parliament, I have been reflecting on the successes and failures of my old party’s time in government, and I rue the timidity, even at times the weakness, with which we try to deal with the problems of the country.My analysis is that a huge culprit is the over-
  
  Read more

• Labour MPs urge minister to reject Chinese mega embassy

  12-01-2026 18:22 via bbc.com
  Nine MPs raise security concerns about the proposed site, just days before the deadline for a decision.
  
  Read more

• Why London’s lowest murder rate in more than a decade is drawing attention

  12-01-2026 17:59 via theguardian.com
  Data for 2025 will be good news for the Met and the mayor Sadiq Khan as they bat away claims of a lawless city• Capital’s murder rate drops to lowest in more than a decadeThe number of murders in London in 2025 is drawing attention for being the lowest in more than a decade. Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan police commissioner, and Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, say figures show their policies and plans are working, which are best summed up as tough on crime, tough on the complex cause
  
  Read more

• Nadhim Zahawi failed in bid for peerage from Tories before Reform defection, sources say

  12-01-2026 17:24 via theguardian.com
  Ex-chancellor asked Badenoch’s team for seat in Lords but was apparently rebuffed over sacking for tax affairsUK politics live – latest updatesNadhim Zahawi was rejected for a peerage by the Conservatives just weeks before he defected to Reform UK, Tory sources have told the Guardian.The former chancellor asked Kemi Badenoch’s top team for a seat in the House of Lords but was rebuffed because he had been sacked as Tory chair in 2023 over his tax affairs. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• UK armed forces not ready for ‘full-scale’ conflict, says military chief

  12-01-2026 16:43
  Richard Knighton warns MPs of budget shortfall and the need for difficult decisions
  
  Read more

• Is Nadhim Zahawi’s defection to Farage’s Reform a bombshell? No, it's just naked opportunism | Henry Hill

  12-01-2026 16:39 via theguardian.com
  The former chancellor’s criticism of the Tory government is indisputable – but so is his role in its dire recordDefections always pose a messaging dilemma for political parties. Heap too much ordure on the turncoat, and you invite the question of why you were happy to share a tent with them in the first place; praise them too highly, and you exacerbate whatever damage the defection is doing to you.In the Conservatives’ case, this problem is compounded for journalists by the hyp
  
  Read more

• Imprisoned hunger striker linked to Palestine Action tells friend: ‘I’m dying’

  12-01-2026 16:36 via theguardian.com
  Francesca Nadin visited Heba Muraisi, 31, in a Wakefield prison at the weekend and says ‘her body is shutting down’UK politics live – latest updatesA prisoner linked to Palestine Action who is on day 71 of a hunger strike has told a friend: “I’m dying.”Francesca Nadin visited Heba Muraisi, 31, at HMP New Hall, in Wakefield, on Saturday for the first time since the protest began and said she was taken aback by her friend’s appearance. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• X rated: Ofcom investigates Grok – podcast

  12-01-2026 13:52 via theguardian.com
  Ofcom has launched an investigation into X over its AI tool Grok – but what does it mean when the platform is widely used by the government? Plus, Pippa and Kiran discuss Nadhim Zahawi’s defection to Reform UK, and why it could both help and hinder the party Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• It’s not ‘fantasy’: I know Nigel Farage abused people for their nationality – because I was one of them | Rickard Berg

  12-01-2026 12:57 via theguardian.com
  I remember him as a racist, obnoxious bully, and his allegation that other ex-Dulwich boys and I are liars tells me he hasn’t changedThe new year has delivered a new position from Nigel Farage on the multiple and detailed accounts of his alleged racism and antisemitism during his time as a pupil at Dulwich College.We had outright denial when the Guardian first published its investigation. As further witnesses came forward, we had excuses: it was “banter”, there wasn’t any
  
  Read more

• Nadhim Zahawi defects to Reform UK

  12-01-2026 12:26
  Former Conservative chancellor is latest figure to join Nigel Farage’s populist party
  
  Read more

• HMRC accepted ‘tolerable’ risk of harm in child benefit fraud crackdown

  12-01-2026 11:31 via theguardian.com
  Internal documents show tax officials withdrew funds without warning families despite concerns about dataUK politics live – latest updatesUK tax authorities believed that withdrawing child benefit payments from parentswithout prior consultation as part of an anti-fraud drive carried a “tolerable” risk, with only a “remote” chance of inflicting harm, according to internal documents.The revelations come just weeks after it emerged that at least 63% of those who had th
  
  Read more

Follow @political_UKnws on Twitter!