Political news

• Len McCluskey Had 'No Knowledge' Unite Members Decided Against Ken Livingstone Expulsion

  06-04-2017 23:44
  
  Unite’s Len McCluskey was unaware that the Labour panel which refused to expel Ken Livingstone included two members of his union, sources have told HuffPost UK.
  The party’s National Constitutional Committee (NCC) sparked a backlash from Jewish groups and the Shadow Cabinet on Wednesday when it decided to only suspend the former Mayor of London for remarks he made about Hitler and Zionism.
  Jeremy Corbyn ordered a fresh probe into Livingstone’s other remarks on the issue and gen
  
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• Steve Bell on Xi Jinping's meeting with Donald Trump – cartoon

  06-04-2017 21:58 via theguardian.com
  
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• Pro-Corbyn Group Protests Against New Statesman Magazine Over 'Treachery'

  06-04-2017 21:54
  
  For those who don’t know, the New Statesman is a political magazine with progressive, left leanings.
  Around 35,000 print copies are sold each week, but many more digest its content on a suite of websites, blogs and newsletters.
  Yet despite being more favourable to the Labour Party than any other party in British politics, it is not slavishly devoted.
  This is its most recent front cover. We have a rather spectacular issue this week… Here’s the cover: pic.twitter.com/gKCtTL
  
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• UKIP Overtaken By Green Party In Number Of Council Seats Contested, New Figures Show

  06-04-2017 20:53
  
  UKIP will contest fewer council seats than the Green Party in the coming May elections in England, new figures have revealed.
  In what critics will see as fresh evidence of the ‘post-Brexit vote blues’ for Paul Nuttall’s party, it will stand candidates in just 48% of wards, a dramatic slump from the 73% it fought just four years ago.
  The Greens, in contrast, will put up candidates in 53.9% of wards, up significantly on their 37% showing in 2013.
  Across all seats up for grabs in
  
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• The Guardian view on Labour’s primaries plan: top marks | Editorial

  06-04-2017 20:51 via theguardian.com
  
  Free school meals and VAT on school fees are good ideas in an area where the government flounders. Good opposition looks like thisLabour’s plan to provide free school meals for all primary school children and pay for it by levying VAT on fees at private schools has a great deal to recommend it. It is clear and uncomplicated and sends a strong message about what a future Labour government would look like: in favour of good universal provision and against privilege for a small minority. This
  
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• Putin stands by Assad as firm evidence of chemical attack mounts

  06-04-2017 20:50 via theguardian.com
  
  Calls on Russia to restrain Syrian ally increase after Turkey says postmortems confirm uses of chemical weaponsSyria: US launches 60 missiles in strike on airbase near Homs – liveVladimir Putin has doubled down on his support for the Syrian government despite the release of postmortem results by Turkey that confirmed chemical weapons were used in an attack that killed at least 72 people in north Syria.The Russian president attacked “groundless accusations” that Damascus was res
  
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• UK will not negotiate away Gibraltar sovereignty, May tells Tusk

  06-04-2017 20:42 via theguardian.com
  
  No 10 says PM told European council president there would be no talks on sovereignty without consent of Gibraltar’s peopleTheresa May has told Donald Tusk the UK will not negotiate away Gibraltar’s sovereignty as part of Brexit talks, as she hosted the European council president for the first time since triggering article 50.A Downing Street spokesman said the prime minister told Tusk that the UK’s position had not changed despite draft negotiating guidelines from the EU that p
  
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• In defence of DfID and overseas aid | Letters

  06-04-2017 20:37 via theguardian.com
  
  I was dismayed by Frank Field’s comments suggesting Priti Patel has inherited a department providing poorly targeted aid (Letters, 5 April). The Department for International Development (DfID), contrary to rightwing media misinformation, constantly performs highly on OECD measures of aid effectiveness and transparency – and its officials do an amazing job despite downward pressures on personnel costs.It is very disappointing that Labour is not doing more to defend UK Aid in the face
  
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• Government under fire over new child tax credit form for rape victims

  06-04-2017 20:21 via theguardian.com
  
  Form requiring rape victims to declare they do not live with attacker called ‘inhumane and barbaric’ and a ‘vile policy’The government published a form on Thursday requiring rape victims to declare that they do not live with their attacker if they wish to claim an exemption to a new two-child limit for tax credits.The exemption is supposed to ensure that rape victims do not miss out on benefits under the new rules, but the form makes clear that the changes exclude those w
  
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• Jewish Labour members say Livingstone must go | Letters

  06-04-2017 20:18 via theguardian.com
  
  We are former and current Labour members and supporters, from across the Jewish community and all sides of the party. We may disagree on policy, both domestic and international, but we are united by our unwavering commitment to anti-racism. We collectively feel a sense of disgust and frustration at the decision by the NCC to not expel Ken Livingstone from the party. Livingstone’s comments betray a party that was founded on the values of equality and inclusivity. His history of inflammatory
  
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• Ken Livingstone on Hitler: 1,000 Jewish Labour supporters urge expulsion

  06-04-2017 20:17 via theguardian.com
  
  Letter to the Guardian puts pressure on party to take further action over his comments linking Nazi leader with ZionismMore than 1,000 Jewish Labour members and supporters have written to the Guardian condemning the decision not to expel Ken Livingstone over his comments linking Adolf Hitler with Zionism, in a move putting more pressure on the party leadership to take urgent action.The letter, signed by influential party members including Luciana Berger MP, former deputy mayor of London Nicky Ga
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn Shows Theresa May How It's Done With Photos With School Kids

  06-04-2017 20:10
  
  Jeremy Corbyn has won the most elusive of political victories: to be photographed looking comfortable alongside school children.
  The Conservatives may be enjoying a huge poll lead over Labour but memories of Theresa May’s visit to a Cumbria primary school earlier this year remain fresh.On Thursday, Corbyn and his Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner had a cooking lesson at a children’s holiday club at The Leyland Project in Lancashire. The project uses cookery as an activit
  
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• Social care reviewer condemns UK system and calls for new tax

  06-04-2017 19:48 via theguardian.com
  
  Andrew Dilnot says adult social care system is ‘most pernicious means-test’ in the British welfare stateAndrew Dilnot, who carried out the government review into the funding for care and support in England, has condemned Britain’s social care system as “the most pernicious means-test in the whole of the British welfare state” and called for a new tax to fund adult social care for everyone who needs it.The chair of the Dilnot commission on funding of care and support
  
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• Manchester Gorton by-election: Eleven candidates confirmed

  06-04-2017 19:39 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Nominations close for the by-election to succeed Sir Gerald Kaufman as MP for Manchester Gorton.
  
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• Crashing out of the EU without a deal would be a disaster | Nicky Morgan

  06-04-2017 19:19 via theguardian.com
  
  We must do battle against a hard Brexit. It would hit our living standards, which is something very few people expect – or would tolerateNow that the prime minister has triggered article 50, the biggest economic risk facing the UK would be leaving the European Union with no deal at all. Some members of the cabinet have said we should prepare for such an eventuality. I am concerned, as are MPs from across the political divide, that this extreme form of Brexit is being talked about with incr
  
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• Eurosceptics back May’s softer approach to Brexit

  06-04-2017 19:15
  Johnson and Fox agree to concessions in transitional deal with EU
  
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• What does Labour's school meals policy mean for families, teachers and politicians?

  06-04-2017 19:11 via theguardian.com
  
  Jeremy Corbyn may be on to a winner politically but there are implications for welfare, health and educationJeremy Corbyn’s announcement of a £1bn plan to introduce a VAT tax on private schools to pay for free school meals for all primary children has divided opinion. The Labour policy was greeted warmly by many health, welfare and education experts, while others pointed to potential pitfalls in its logic. Politically, it seems the Labour leader may be on to a winner, but how has the
  
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• Theresa May and Donald Tusk 'seek to lower Brexit tensions'

  06-04-2017 18:25 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The PM says the UK position on Gibraltar hasn't changed as she meets the European Council president.
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn champions universal benefits with free school meals policy

  06-04-2017 18:10 via theguardian.com
  
  Labour leader promises free meals for all primary schoolchildren with proceeds from VAT imposed on private school feesJeremy Corbyn has said he is “strongly wedded to the principle of universalism in benefits” as he launched Labour’s policy of providing every primary school child with free school meals.The party’s plan to impose VAT on private education fees to raise £1bn to pay for the measure was criticised for directing resources to children with wealthy parents
  
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• National Grid warns power plants on emergency cuts

  06-04-2017 18:02
  Proliferation of solar panels has created problem of keeping system stable
  
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• National Grid may pay power plants to cut output

  06-04-2017 18:02
  Proliferation of solar panels has created problem of keeping system stable
  
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• National Grid looks at paying power plants to cut output

  06-04-2017 18:02
  Proliferation of solar panels has created problem of keeping system stable
  
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• May and Tusk agree to 'lower tensions' in Brexit talks when issues like Gibraltar create problems

  06-04-2017 17:41 via theguardian.com
  
  Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happenMay’s speech and Q&A - Summary and analysisAfternoon summary 4.41pm BSTUnfortunately, the proportional representation system we have in Wales doesn’t allow that [fighting a byelection].I would say many of the people who voted Ukip in South East Wales last year, now the Conservatives are delivering Brexit and we are the main opposition in the assembly, I think are, like me, leaving Ukip and coming over to the
  
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• Brexit Briefing: This Just Got Real - Now Comedians Are Being Affected By Brexit

  06-04-2017 17:35
  
   
  All you need to know from the world of Brexit this week.
  You can sign up for this briefing by clicking here, and you’ll receive it straight to your inbox every Thursday afternoon.1) Maybe The Gibraltar Thing Was Just To Distract Us From The EU Refusing Theresa May’s Brexit Demands?‘War with Spain’ is not a story many hacks expected to be writing up on Sunday, but after former Tory leader Lord Howard decide to go full metal jacket in a series of interviews we w
  
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• Four million leaseholders in England 'at risk from rip-off fees'

  06-04-2017 17:19 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Action promised to protect homeowners in England from exploitation by property firms.
  
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• Livingstone has no place in the Labour party

  06-04-2017 16:55
  Allowing him to stay signals a tolerance of anti-Semitism, writes Sebastian Payne
  
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• Mark Reckless leaves Ukip and backs Theresa May

  06-04-2017 16:36
  Ex-Conservative MP who joined populist party in 2014 will sit with Tories in Welsh Assembly
  
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• Liam Fox answers call to help baby in distress on plane

  06-04-2017 16:24 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The international trade secretary went to help when baby suffered febrile convulsion.
  
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• Liam Fox Rushed To Aid Of Baby Suffering Seizure On Flight To The Philippines

  06-04-2017 16:21
  
  Liam Fox came to the aid of a baby suffering a seizure on an plane, it has been revealed.
  The Sun reported that while the international trade secretary was en route to the Philippines earlier this week, flight attendants put out an emergency call for any doctors on the plane to make themselves known.
  A nine-month-old baby was suffering from a febrile convulsion which Fox, who worked as a GP for a decade before entering the world of politics, diagnosed quickly.He put the child in the recovery pos
  
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• Corbyn promises free primary school meals for all

  06-04-2017 16:19 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The Labour leader says charging VAT on private school fees would pay for free meals.
  
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• Peers push to reverse bereavement benefit changes

  06-04-2017 15:53 via theguardian.com
  
  Ministers must accept they have made a mistake in cutting benefits received by parents, says cross-party group in LordsA cross-party collection of peers has called on the government to rethink a cut to bereaved parents’ benefits, which comes into force on Thursday, saying ministers must accept they have made a mistake.Ros Altmann, a Conservative peer, asked a question on the issue in the Lords, and is among a group who have signed a letter to the pensions secretary, Damian Green, asking th
  
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• Sadiq Khan questions George Osborne's ability to be both MP and editor

  06-04-2017 15:39 via theguardian.com
  
  Mayor of London says he now has reservations about new Evening Standard chief staying on in CommonsThe mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has questioned whether George Osborne will be able to edit London’s Evening Standard newspaper while remaining an MP for his north-west constituency.Khan had initially congratulated the former chancellor when his shock appointment was announced last month, but told the radio station LBC he now had reservations about whether the new role was compatible with Osb
  
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• Mark Reckless quits Ukip to join Conservative group in Welsh assembly

  06-04-2017 15:24 via theguardian.com
  
  Decision of former Tory MP had been expected by Ukip after Reckless cut contact with party in recent daysMark Reckless, the former Tory MP who defected to Ukip, has quit the party to support the Conservative group in the Welsh assembly, where he now sits.Reckless’s decision follows the move last month by Douglas Carswell, who defected to Ukip from the Conservatives and remains an MP, to quit the party and sit in the Commons as an independent.Continue reading...
  
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• Ryanair 'will have to suspend UK flights' without early Brexit aviation deal

  06-04-2017 15:21 via theguardian.com
  
  Falling back on WTO rules without a bilateral arrangement would be ‘disastrous’, says airline’s finance chiefRyanair has warned it will have to halt flights from the UK for “weeks or months” if Theresa May does not seal an early bilateral Brexit deal on international aviation.The suspension of flights from Stansted and other airports was “a very distinct possibility”, the company’s chief financial officer, Neil Sorahan, told the Guardian.Continue r
  
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• May's pledge on workers' rights at local election launch

  06-04-2017 14:57 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Theresa May pledges to protect workers' rights as the Conservatives launch their local election campaign.
  
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• Why BlackRock wants to pay George Osborne £650,000 a year | Nils Pratley

  06-04-2017 14:42 via theguardian.com
  
  The ex-chancellor, editor and MP’s £13,000-a-day gig at the world’s largest fund manager makes business sense, albeit one riddled with conflict of interest concernsIt is easy to understand why George Osborne can find a day a week in his busy schedule to work for BlackRock, the world’s largest fund manager. At £650,000 a year, or £13,000 a day, it sounds a more lucrative gig than editing the London Evening Standard on the other four weekdays. The former chancel
  
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• Business cries out for impact assessments

  06-04-2017 14:33
  New policies would add more burdens on the public and private sectors
  
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• May polls

  06-04-2017 14:22 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A guide to the elections taking place in England, Scotland and Wales on 4 May, 2017.
  
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• Mark Reckless Quits Ukip To Rejoin Conservatives

  06-04-2017 14:09
  
  Tory defector Mark Reckless has dramatically quit Ukip and re-joined the Conservatives.
  The former Ukip MP, who famously defected to Nigel Farage’s party from the Tories back in 2014, said he was leaving because “for me it is job done now that Article 50 has been triggered”.
  He is now facing calls from remaining senior Ukip figures to stand down as a Welsh Assembly member, the position he took up after being ousted as an MP at the 2015 general election.Reckless said in a state
  
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• Mark Reckless Quits Ukip To Rejoin Conservative Group

  06-04-2017 14:09
  
  Tory defector Mark Reckless has dramatically quit Ukip and re-joined the Conservatives in the Welsh Assembly.
  The former Ukip MP, who famously defected to Nigel Farage’s party from the Tories back in 2014, said he was switching because “for me it is job done now that Article 50 has been triggered”.
  He is now facing calls from remaining senior Ukip figures to stand down as a Welsh Assembly Member, the position he took up after being ousted as an MP at the 2015 general election.
  
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• Government Releases Form You Have To Fill In If You Want To Claim Child Benefit After Being Raped

  06-04-2017 14:06
  
  Women who get pregnant as a result of rape will have to fill in an eight-page form to prove it before being granted benefits, the government has announced.
  The Department for Work and Pensions and HMRC are the two offices that will asses applications for tax credits for a woman’s third child, if it was conceived without their consent.  Support for a child conceived without your consent by Ned on ScribdCuts introduced by the former Chancellor George Osborne have come into effect today
  
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• Labour MP: I regret 2013 Syria vote

  06-04-2017 13:45 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Labour MP Alison McGovern has said she regrets voting against military action in Syria in 2013 "every day".
  
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• Father loses UK court fight over daughter’s holiday

  06-04-2017 13:35
  Judges rule in favour of education authorities who prosecuted Jon Platt
  
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• Can politicians solve the refugee crisis? – Politics Weekly podcast

  06-04-2017 13:22 via theguardian.com
  
  Heather Stewart is joined by Paul Collier, Alexander Betts and Kate Lyons to discuss potential policy solutions to the global refugee crisis. Is United Nations approach fit for purpose? Does the EU have more of a role to play? And how can the world’s richest countries use their power and wealth more effectively?Subscribe and review: iTunes, Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud, Acast & Stitcher and join the discussion on Facebook and TwitterLast summer, every week seemed to bring more grim
  
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• Arts education deserves to be centre stage

  06-04-2017 13:19
  The jobs of the future will require imagination as well as maths
  
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• Tony Blair Shows Rare Human Side On Matt Forde's 'Unspun' With Anecdote On German Diplomacy

  06-04-2017 13:08
  
  Half decent anecdote from Blair. pic.twitter.com/7Ff2wllmLJ— Ben (@Jamin2g) April 5, 2017
  Tony Blair revealed a rare glimpse of his unpolished, personal side on Wednesday with a hilarious revelation about a fatal lapse of diplomacy soon after he became Prime Minister. 
  The former premier appeared on ‘Matt Forde’s Unspun’ to recount how a plan to let schoolchildren design ties for EU leaders back in 1998 went awry.
  Blair told how a “crazy idea” was adopte
  
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• Tony Blair Shows Rare Human Side On Matt Forde's 'Unpsun' With Anecdote On German Diplomacy

  06-04-2017 13:08
  
  Half decent anecdote from Blair. pic.twitter.com/7Ff2wllmLJ— Ben (@Jamin2g) April 5, 2017
  Tony Blair revealed a rare glimpse of his unpolished, personal side on Wednesday with a hilarious revelation about a fatal lapse of diplomacy soon after he became Prime Minister. 
  The former premier appeared on ‘Matt Forde’s Unspun’ to recount how a plan to let schoolchildren design ties for EU leaders back in 1998 went awry.
  Blair told how a “crazy idea” was adopte
  
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• Liam Fox comes to aid of nine-month-old baby having fit on plane

  06-04-2017 13:01 via theguardian.com
  
  International trade secretary and former GP put infant in recovery position after answering plea ‘is there a doctor on board?’Liam Fox treated a baby having a fit on board a plane as he flew to meet the controversial president of the Philippines, it has emerged.The international trade secretary, who was a GP for 10 years before entering politics, rushed to the aid of the infant after cabin crew asked if there was a doctor on board when a couple from Hong Kong called for help. Continu
  
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• EU council chief Donald Tusk to meet Theresa May for Brexit talks

  06-04-2017 12:56 via theguardian.com
  
  Pair will meet in No 10 on Thursday after EU ruled out striking a deal about a future relationship until Britain has formally leftTheresa May is to meet Donald Tusk to discuss the timing of a Brexit deal after the EU ruled out striking an agreement about a future relationship until Britain has formally left the bloc.The prime minister will host the European council president in Downing Street on Thursday in their first encounter since she formally notified the EU of the UK’s decision to le
  
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• Elections: Theresa May says there are no 'no-go areas' for Tories

  06-04-2017 12:35 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Theresa May accuses Labour and other rivals of being in disarray as she launches Tory local election campaign.
  
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