Political news

• Election debate: reaction and analysis after Jeremy Corbyn and party leaders spar – as it happened

  31-05-2017 23:45 via theguardian.com
  
  This live blog is closed. Click here for today’s live blogThe Snap: sign up for our daily election email – and read today’s
  Jeremy Corbyn’s press conference - SummaryMay offers four alternative reasons for not debating CorbynBBC debate - Snap verdictBBC debate - Verdict from the Twitter commentariat 10.45pm BSTHere is our main story about the debate. Related: Corbyn confronts Rudd over spending cuts in fractious TV debateRelated: The Hand is left to do the heavy lifting w
  
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• Plan To Renationalise Railways Will Cut Costs For Commuters, Says Labour

  31-05-2017 23:30
  
  Renationalising the railways will cut costs for commuters, Labour has promised. 
  The party says its plan to bring the system into public ownership will see passengers save an average £1,014 on their season tickets a year. 
  Rail costs have risen by 27.1% over the last seven years and Labour says a decision by the Tories to cap fares at the Retail Price Index rather than the Consumer Price Index means inflation is over-estimated and consumers pay more. 
  It has promised to cap
  
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• The Hand is left to do the heavy lifting while Maybot reboots | John Crace

  31-05-2017 22:42 via theguardian.com
  
  With the PM at No 10 preparing for Brexit, it was left to Amber Rudd to face the Tories’ rivals on the BBC general election debateSpeak to the Hand. AKA the home secretary. The Maybot was clear that there was a reason she wasn’t taking part in the BBC leaders’ debate. She was above it all and was choosing to take part in her own Supreme Leaders’ debate instead. Just her and her very own echo chamber reverberating with deathless soundbites. Continue reading...
  
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• Sean Spicer Says Covfefe Is Basically Some Kind Of Secret Code

  31-05-2017 22:25
  
  Sean Spicer has waded into the ongoing debate surrounding the word “covfefe” by implying it is a super-special word, it’s true meaning only known to a select few people.
  During a press briefing which the White House unsurprisingly decided to hold without cameras present, a reporter pressed him on the matter.They said: “Do you think people should be concerned that the President posted somewhat of an incoherent tweet last night and that it then stayed up for hours?”
  S
  
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• BBC Election Debate 2017: 5 Times Theresa May Was Burned For 'Not Bothering' To Turn Up

  31-05-2017 22:05
  
  Theresa May was mocked by rival party leaders on Wednesday evening after she decided to send Home Secretary Amber Rudd to take part in the live BBC election debate in her place.
  Jeremy Corbyn decided at the last minute to take part in the Cambridge debate having initially said he would stay away if the prime minister did not turn up.
  Corbyn was joined on stage by Lib Dem leader Tim Farron, Ukip leader Paul Nuttall and Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood. The SNP’s deputy leader Angus Robertson
  
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• BBC Election Debate 2017: House Of Cards Trolls Theresa May On Twitter

  31-05-2017 21:56
  
  Theresa May’s no-show at the BBC Debate became a bigger story once Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn dramatically announced on Wednesday morning he would be taking part.
  It left Amber Rudd, the Conservative Party minister, to face-off with the leaders of most of the main national parties, and suggestions the Prime Minister was running scared.
  In his opening statement, Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron wasted no time, asking where Theresa May is and suggesting she might be “outside, sizing
  
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• Theresa May says 'absolutely nothing' in Plymouth Herald interview

  31-05-2017 21:43 via theguardian.com
  
  Deflated reporter at loss to fish out anything of substance in PM’s campaign interview at Devon portThe prime minister, Theresa May, has been accused by some of sounding monotonous on the campaign trail. And the latest source is the Plymouth Herald, which has accused her of managing to get through a whole interview without saying anything.The paper sent its reporter to interview May as she “chatted with fishermen and nodded earnestly at nets and buckets” on the Devon coast. Con
  
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• Labour paper leak: Corbyn denies wanting 'uncontrolled migration'

  31-05-2017 21:37 via theguardian.com
  
  Theresa May had said Labour leader favours unlimited immigration after policy document was reported in Daily MailGeneral election 2017: live updatesJeremy Corbyn dismissed Theresa May’s claim that he wants “uncontrolled migration” after a leaked Labour policy paper proposing a visa route for unskilled workers found its way to the Daily Mail and the Daily Telegraph.The document indicates that Labour could create a US-style green card scheme and suggests the party does not consid
  
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• UK Election Countdown: Amber light

  31-05-2017 21:22 via ft.com
  8 days to go: the importance of tonight’s TV debate
  
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• Why is one polling firm projecting a hung parliament in the UK election?

  31-05-2017 19:46 via ft.com
  YouGov model shows Theresa May falling short of a majority
  
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• Theresa May ducks live debate as Jeremy Corbyn seizes opportunity

  31-05-2017 18:49 via ft.com
  Prime minister’s no-show fuels sense of Tory campaign under siege
  
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• Russell Brand Endorses Jeremy Corbyn In Latest Repeat Of 2015 Election

  31-05-2017 18:43
  
  In a blog for HuffPost UK, Russell Brand has urged the public to back Labour to allow Jeremy Corbyn to stage a British “revolution”.“Whether it’s the Iraq War or badger-baiting, Corbyn has been allied with common sense and compassion in pretty much every Parliamentary argument,” the comedian and author wrote when declaring for the first time that he wanted Corbyn as Prime Minister.
  For some, it had the ring of the familiar.
  Russell Brand Has Endorsed Corbyn - And th
  
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• Labour dominating election conversation on Twitter, study finds

  31-05-2017 18:15 via theguardian.com
  
  Authors of social media report say party pulling in highest proportion of tweets despite not leading in the pollsGeneral election 2017 – live updatesThe Labour party dominates the conversation on Twitter, with almost 40% of tweets on election-related hashtags, according to a study by the Oxford Internet Institute about social media in the run-up to the general election.By contrast, tweets about the Conservative party made up just 26% of traffic, with the Scottish National party, Ukip and L
  
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• Election 2017: The safer bet of a Conservative vote

  31-05-2017 18:02 via ft.com
  Choosing Theresa May does not mean a blank cheque on Brexit
  
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• Eli Aldridge Is The 18-Year-Old Labour Schoolboy Who Wants To Become The Youngest MP In 350 Years

  31-05-2017 17:17
  
  An 18-year-old schoolboy is attempting to topple Tim Farron in the General Election to become the UK’s youngest MP for 350 years. 
  Born on Christmas day 1998, Labour Party candidate Eli Aldridge is thought to be the election’s youngest parliamentary hopeful, with his A Level exams starting one day before the polls open. 
  But despite being just six when rival candidate Farron won the Westmorland and Lonsdale seat, the sixth form student believes he’s in with a real sho
  
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• Russell Brand Backs Jeremy Corbyn For Prime Minister; Says Voting Tory Is 'Sadomasochism'

  31-05-2017 17:04
  
  Russell Brand has urged the public to back Labour to allow Jeremy Corbyn to stage a British “revolution”.
  In a blog for HuffPost UK, the comedian and author declared the first time that he wanted Corbyn as Prime Minister.
  “Whether it’s the Iraq War or badger-baiting, Corbyn has been allied with common sense and compassion in pretty much every Parliamentary argument,” he wrote.
  Theresa May, in contrast, was leading a Tory party that is “so hungry for power tha
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn on Wenger, grassroots football and Labour's Istanbul moment

  31-05-2017 16:39 via theguardian.com
  
  Copa90 met the Labour leader to discuss Arsène Wenger’s future, Arsenal’s hopes of winning the title and how this election could be reminiscent of 2005By Copa90 for the Guardian Sport NetworkWhen we read that Jeremy Corbyn had made a commitment to investing in grassroots football, we reached out to his team to see if the Labour leader would like to talk football to Copa90 about sport. He accepted our offer and, on the morning of the FA Cup final, he joined us at Hackney Marshe
  
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• Labour Dossier Reveals Ten Times NHS Repairs Backlog Hit Patient Care

  31-05-2017 16:35
  
  A Labour Party dossier has revealed a catalogue of incidents in which hospitals were left struggling under a huge NHS repairs and maintenance backlog.
  Jeremy Corbyn, shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth and shadow education secretary Angela Rayner held a joint press conference to highlight the impact of ‘Tory cuts’ on the health services and schools.
  Labour also unveiled a new campaign poster warning there could be 5.5 million people on NHS waiting lists in England by 2022 - 1.
  
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• 'Theresa May Has Totally F*cked It Up' Tory Candidate Lets Rip At Dire Election Campaign

  31-05-2017 16:22
  
  Tory candidates are “fucked off” with Theresa May for running a campaign that has “shattered” confidence in her ability to be Prime Minister.
  The stark warning comes from a Conservative candidate seeking re-election in a marginal seat, and they told HuffPost UK that other colleagues across the UK share their frustration.
  Another candidate seeking re-election was even more damning, saying that if Jeremy Corbyn wasn’t Labour leader, the Tories would definitely lose t
  
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• Charities 'scared to speak out' during election campaign

  31-05-2017 15:44 via theguardian.com
  
  Vicky Browning who represents charity bosses says some are too worried about repercussions to join political debateGeneral election 2017: live updatesA charity leader has said voluntary organisations are too frightened to speak out about key policies during the election campaign and called on politicians to urgently “reset the negative environment” facing her sector.Vicky Browning, who heads Acevo, which represents more than 1,000 charity chief executives, said many of her members ha
  
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• Tory candidate's blogposts on rape 'absolutely shocking'

  31-05-2017 15:20 via theguardian.com
  
  Darlington candidate, Peter Cuthbertson, wrote about rape, homosexuality and morality in prominent blog in early 2000sA Conservative candidate in a key marginal seat has said a woman’s “promiscuity” is relevant in determining how likely it is that she consented to sex in alleged rape cases.Peter Cuthbertson, who is seeking election as the Tory candidate in Darlington, expressed a series of controversial views in a prominent blog he wrote in the early 2000s. Continue reading...
  
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• Sean Spicer Press Briefing Praising Donald Trump's Middle East Trip Was Quite Something

  31-05-2017 15:06
  
  Sean Spicer began his first press briefing in a fortnight with a gushing nine-minute monologue praising the US President’s inaugural trip abroad.
  The speech, more reminiscent of a North Korean news bulletin than a White House script, asserted the “unprecedented” event had essentially united the world against terrorism and made the lives of all citizens around the world safer and more prosperous.
  But poor Sean didn’t look like he quite meant it.Heard in Mother Jones DC bur
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn to join TV election debate

  31-05-2017 14:36 via ft.com
  Labour leader challenges Theresa May to take part, saying there is ‘no hiding place’
  
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• Germany’s declining respect for the UK

  31-05-2017 14:12 via ft.com
  Cold-blooded view has been taken that Britain is losing international influence
  
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• Covfefe Meaning Tweet From Donald Trump Just Leaves Everyone Even More Baffled

  31-05-2017 14:08
  
  Donald Trump left everyone utterly bemused overnight with a tweet in which he appeared to coin his own term - now he’s upped the ante.
  In a now-deleted tweet, the social media-loving US president, wrote: “Despite the constant negative press covfefe.”Cue all sorts of speculation which showcased Twitter at its finest.
  But hours after the tweet appeared, it was removed and a new - and possibly even more cryptic - message appeared in its place:Who can figure out the true meaning of
  
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• Whitehall fears ‘demanding’ Conservative manifesto during Brexit

  31-05-2017 13:58 via ft.com
  Civil service warns that 100 promises will require legislation
  
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• BBC Election Debate 2017: Jeremy Corbyn Confirms He Will Take Part As He Challenges Theresa May To Head-To-Head

  31-05-2017 12:39
  
  Jeremy Corbyn has confirmed he will take part in tonight’s BBC debate as he renewed calls for Theresa May to face him head-to-head.
  The Labour leader urged the Prime Minister to ‘come and have a chat’ and answer his questions face-to-face.
  He told activists in Reading: “There is a debate in Cambridge tonight I invite her to go to Cambridge debate her record. And let the public make up their mind.”
  In an official statement, he added: “I will be taking part in t
  
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• Pound reverses losses on YouGov study indicating tight UK election

  31-05-2017 12:25 via ft.com
  Sterling falls 0.7% on survey predicting close race before regaining ground
  
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• Young voters matter - but it's Kippers who count

  31-05-2017 12:21
  
  The breadth of Corbyn's young support and the intentions of Northern Ukippers will decide this election
  
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• Pound To Euro Exchange Rate: Sterling Slips After Predictions Of Hung Parliament

  31-05-2017 12:16
  
  The pound has slid against the euro and the dollar following the publication of a new poll which predicted the Tories could lose their majority at the General Election.
  Sterling slipped to a low of 0.8738 pound per euro, near Friday’s eight-week low of 0.8750, following the publication of the YouGov survey commissioned by the Times .The pound was down 0.3% at $1.2816 after falling as low as $1.2791 earlier, Reuters reported.
  Pound falls below $1.28 as new election poll suggests a
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn's BAME Poster Mocked By Conservative Politicians

  31-05-2017 12:03
  
  Jeremy Corbyn has been criticised by ethnic minority Conservative politicians after the Labour leader said that only his party “can be trusted to unlock” BAME talent.
  In a poster, which Corbyn tweeted an image of on Tuesday, he said: “Only Labour can be trusted to unlock the talent of black, Asian and minority ethnic people, who have been held back by the Conservatives. 
  “We will guarantee equality is at the heart of our programme for government.”Only Labour ca
  
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• ‘She’s a liar, liar’: anti-Theresa May song heads to top of charts

  31-05-2017 11:46 via theguardian.com
  
  Remix by anti-austerity band Captain Ska mocking May’s claims of ‘strong and stable leadership’ tops Amazon UK downloadsGeneral election 2017: live updatesA protest song that repeatedly accuses Theresa May of lying and mocks her claims for strong and stable leadership is heading to the top of the charts, days after it was released and a week before the general election. Liar Liar was released last Friday as a remix of a reggae song by Captain Ska, a six-piece anti-austerity ban
  
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• YouGov's poll predicting a hung parliament is certainly brave

  31-05-2017 11:36 via theguardian.com
  
  The polling firm is employing a new ‘controversial’ methodology only 10 days before the general electionIn language echoing Yes Minister’s Sir Humphrey Appleby, leading pollsters have described YouGov’s “shock poll” predicting a hung parliament on 8 June as “brave” and the decision by the Times to splash it on its front page as “even braver”.It is certainly rare for a polling company to produce a seats prediction. They usually leave tha
  
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• NHS faces £500m bill for UK expats after Brexit, says report

  31-05-2017 11:16 via ft.com
  Care cost for pensioners likely to double without reciprocal deal, warns Nuffield Trust
  
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• 'What Is Covfefe? Donald Trump's Twitter Typo Has Set Social Media Alight

  31-05-2017 10:27
  
  He’s already well-known for his...er...mastery of Twitter but now Donald Trump has taken his social media usage to the next level.
  The US president, who is so often nimble-fingered on the site, tweeted out one of his now-regular criticisms of the media on Wednesday. 
  Well at least we *think* that’s what he was tweeting...Despite the constant negative press covfefe— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2017
  At the time of writing the tweet had not been removed.
  N
  
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• The Waugh Zone May 31, 2017

  31-05-2017 10:12
  
  The five things you need to know on May 31…
  1) SCHOOLS ’N’ HOSPITALS
  As the parties gear up for the final week of campaigning in the general election, there’s a curiously Blairite feel to Labour’s policy pitch today. Armed with his ‘for the many, not the few’ manifesto, Jeremy Corbyn will revert to that Blair theme of ‘schools ’n’ hospitals’ that worked so well in the 1990s and early 2000s.Who could forget the ’24 hours to
  
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• A handy guide on responding to terror for Australian media and politicians | First Dog on the Moon

  31-05-2017 08:47 via theguardian.com
  
  This is handy guide will help politicians and the media respond to a terrorist attack without ever having to actually do anythingSign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are published
  Get all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and printsContinue reading...
  
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• Paddy Ashdown 'horrified' by parallels between UK and 1930s Germany

  31-05-2017 07:05 via theguardian.com
  Former Lib Dem leader tells Hay festival he fears for his country and criticises Theresa May for refusing to take part in live debatePaddy Ashdown has said he sees horrifying parallels between 1930s Germany and what is happening in the post-referendum UK.
  The former Liberal Democrats leader told the Hay festival in Wales on Tuesday that he feared for his country, with a huge number of people left “voiceless” as Labour moved further left and the Conservatives further right. Continue r
  
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• Theresa May struggles to win hearts in the capital

  31-05-2017 06:00 via ft.com
  London is proving the exception in the national swing towards the Conservatives
  
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• Theresa May struggles to win hearts in London

  31-05-2017 06:00 via ft.com
  UK capital is proving the exception in the national swing towards the Conservatives
  
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• Brexit Could Cost NHS Extra Half A Billion If Expats Return Home, Warns Nuffield Trust

  31-05-2017 01:02
  
  The NHS could be landed with a bill of nearly half a billion pounds if retired British expats decide to return home if their right to healthcare in Europe is withdrawn after Brexit. 
  And the figure could even be higher if the health service has to pay to replace staff lost due to curbs on EU migration, a report by the Nuffield Trust has revealed.
  The research also calculates that care homes and home-care agencies could end up with a staff shortage as high as 70,000 in the next eight years,
  
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• UK Election Polls 2017: Shock As Pollster Points To Tory Losses And Hung Parliament

  31-05-2017 00:46
  
  The Conservative Party is at risk of losing its majority at the election according to a shock projection by a leading pollster.
  A YouGov constituency-by-constituency survey commissioned by the Times indicates the Tories could lose 20 of the 330 seats they hold, and Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour gain nearly 30 MPs.
  The new modelling by one of the country’s leading pollsters suggests the Conservative Party would fall short of an overall majority by 16 seats, meaning a hung parliament and pote
  
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• Election Shock: Pollster Points To Tory Losses And Hung Parliament

  31-05-2017 00:46
  
  The Conservative Party is at risk of losing its majority at the election according to a shock projection by a leading pollster.
  A YouGov constituency-by-constituency survey commissioned by the Times indicates the Tories could lose 20 of the 330 seats they hold, and Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour gain nearly 30 MPs.
  The new modelling by one of the country’s leading pollsters suggests the Conservative Party would fall short of an overall majority by 16 seats, meaning a hung parliament and pote
  
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• Election 2017 debate: Welsh leaders go head-to-head

  31-05-2017 00:00 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Politicians from the five main parties in Wales clashed over Brexit in the BBC Wales TV Leaders' Debate.
  
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