Political news

• The moment the lights went out on MPs

  19-07-2017 22:31 via bbc.co.uk
  
  MPs often complain about being kept in the dark by government but the lights have literally gone out on them.
  
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• Katie Hopkins In Row With Save The Children As MailOnline Article Mysteriously Disappears

  19-07-2017 21:03
  
  Save the Children has strongly dismissed a claim by Katie Hopkins that she “spent time” with the crew of one of the charity’s ships whilst investigating what she believes is their collusion with people traffickers.
  The denial came shortly after the columnist’s first dispatch from Sicily reporting on charities working in the Mediterranean mysteriously disappeared from the internet.
  Hopkins is spending the week in southern Italy where she has been m
  
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• State pension age rise brought forward

  19-07-2017 20:31 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The UK state pension age will now be increased from 67 to 68 by 2039, the government says.
  
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• BBC Salaries Revealed: How Today's Revelation Was 'Very Long Campaign' By Papers Such As The Daily Mail

  19-07-2017 20:15
  
  BBC-bashing reached a high today as the corporation was, after years of pressure from its traditional foes, forced to name its on-screen stars who earn more than £150,000.
  The corporation has been worn down for more than a decade over how it pays its top talent, with right wing MPs and newspapers who often condemn the broadcaster for all manner of things all lining up to apply pressure.
  The broadcaster’s defenders were quick to speak up for it, attacking rival media, particularly The
  
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• Call for vice-chancellors paid more than May to prove their worth

  19-07-2017 20:01 via theguardian.com
  Universities minister Jo Johnson wants clampdown on higher education salaries that dwarf prime minister’s payUniversity vice-chancellors earning more than the prime minister will be asked to prove they are worth it as part of a clampdown on accelerating pay increases among higher education leaders.In a speech on Thursday, the universities minister, Jo Johnson, will tell higher education institutions that in future they will have to justify exceptionally high salaries. Continue reading...
  
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• Theresa May says Tories will not 'go backwards' on gay rights

  19-07-2017 19:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Theresa May vows to defend and extend LGBT rights, despite concerns about the pact with the DUP.
  
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• State pension: David Gauke defends 'common sense' change

  19-07-2017 19:41 via bbc.co.uk
  
  David Gauke tells the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg the proposal to raise the state pension age to 68 between 2037 and 2039, seven years earlier than planned, is a "common sense" move.
  
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• Gauke defends 'common sense' pension change

  19-07-2017 19:41 via bbc.co.uk
  
  David Gauke tells the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg the proposal to raise the state pension age to 68 between 2037 and 2039, seven years earlier than planned, is a "common sense" move.
  
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• English jails are brutal and not fit for purpose

  19-07-2017 19:38
  It is urgent that the government admits the system is not working
  
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• Plots, feuds and summer reading – Politics Weekly podcast

  19-07-2017 19:34 via theguardian.com
  Heather Stewart is joined by Kate Maltby, Steve Richards and Jonathan Freedland to discuss the cabinet infighting threatening to derail the government. Plus we get tips from MPs Keith Simpson and Chris Bryant on summer reading listsAs parliament approaches its summer recess, a period of plots, feuds and political machinations is in store as Conservative cabinet ministers escalate a war of briefings and damaging leaks. Can Labour sit back and watch the mayhem ensue? Joining Heather Stewart to dis
  
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• DUP £1bn deal: 'Fair share' call by Wales and Scotland

  19-07-2017 19:26 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Welsh and Scottish governments claim rules entitle them to extra cash in wake of DUP agreement.
  
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• Tim Farron calls government 'heartless' over child refugees

  19-07-2017 19:09 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Lib Dem leader accuses the government of imposing an 'arbitrary cut off date' for a child refugee scheme.
  
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• PMQs: Theresa May praises public wage cap 'sacrifice'

  19-07-2017 18:36 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The PM clashes with Jeremy Corbyn over wage restraint in the final PMQs before summer recess.
  
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• Rise in state pension age to 68 brought forward by 7 years

  19-07-2017 18:33
  Government accelerates shift to longer working life in response to ‘demographic pressure’
  
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• Theresa May Suggests Churches Should Consider Conducting Same-Sex Marriages

  19-07-2017 18:16
  
  Theresa May has suggested the Church of England should consider marrying same-sex couples.
  The prime minister told LBC this afternoon that the Church should “reflect” on how attitudes towards LGBT rights had changed.
  When same-sex marriage was introduced in 2013, churches were offered an opt-out from having to conduct ceremonies.
  May voted against legalising the age of consent, but said today her attitude towards LGBT rights had “changed over the years” to be more suppor
  
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• Surge in Irish passport applications by UK citizens

  19-07-2017 18:10
  The jump in demand appears to have been spurred by Brexit
  
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• Irish passport applications by UK citizens surge

  19-07-2017 18:10
  Increase of almost 50% appears to have been spurred by Brexit vote
  
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• Tory MPs Slapped Down For Failing To Listen To Labour's Angela Rayner During Debate

  19-07-2017 17:38
  
  Tory MPs were given a slap down for failing to listen to shadow education secretary Angela Rayner during an emergency debate on tuition fees. 
  Speaker John Bercow was forced to intervene after Conservative MPs repeatedly interrupted the Labour politician, who eventually said she would refuse to take any more interventions.
  He told Newark MP Robert Jenrick: “Don’t you smirk at me”, and said other members had to “learn the ropes”.
  He added: “It is normal ma
  
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• Theresa May Warns Cabinet Ministers They Are Not 'Unsackable'

  19-07-2017 17:32
  
  Theresa May has warned her cabinet that none of them are “unsackable” following a series of leaks which revealed internal rows and power struggles.
  The prime minister told LBC this afternoon that she had reminded her ministers that they had a “responsibility” to “deliver for the public”.
  “The message was we need to ensure we can get on with that work that we need to do,” she said.
  “The issue that was came up at the weekend was the issue of re
  
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• BBC pay: Chris Evans tops list of best-paid stars

  19-07-2017 17:26 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The Radio 2 host earned more than £2.2m while Claudia Winkleman was the best-paid female presenter.
  
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• Labour: We never pledged to write off tuition fee debts

  19-07-2017 17:13 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The opposition says it would reduce the financial burden on graduates but not introduce a debt amnesty.
  
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• David Gauke Denies UK State Pension Age Increase An Attempt To 'Bury Bad News'

  19-07-2017 16:45
  
  Work and pensions secretary David Gauke has denied he announced an increase in the state pension age on the same day as the BBC released details of how much it pays its star presenters in an attempt to “bury bad news”.
  Gauke announced today that the pension age would rise from 67 to 68 from 2037 - seven years earlier than planned.
  Today’s news has been dominated by the publication of which BBC presenters earn over £150,000.
  And the BBC’s Simon McCoy questioned Gauke
  
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• Irish passport rush: demand jumps 50% since Brexit vote

  19-07-2017 16:41 via theguardian.com
  More than 100,000 Irish passports issued in the UK in the year to June 2017, up from 65,000 in 2016Demand for Irish passports in the UK has jumped by 50% since the Brexit vote, Ireland’s minister for foreign affairs and trade has revealed.More than 100,000 Irish passports were issued in the UK in the first six months of 2017, up from 65,000 last year, according to figures released on Wednesday.Continue reading...
  
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• Tory Minister Tobias Ellwood Goes Off-Script And Blames Brexit For Drop In EU Students

  19-07-2017 15:46
  
  Tory minister Tobias Ellwood has “let the cat out of the bag” by saying the drop in EU students coming to the UK could be linked to Brexit. 
  Theresa May’s Defence Minister said “uncertainty” over how Britain would exit from the EU bloc was putting off students from Europe during an interview with the BBC’s Andrew Neil. 
  Applications from EU students fell from 51,850 in 2016 to 49,250 this year.
  And when Ellwood was challenged over the figures, he tol
  
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• PMQs: Corbyn and May on UK economy and leadership

  19-07-2017 15:35 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The "divided" government is not able to give the UK the "leadership it desperately needs", says Jeremy Corbyn.
  
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• PMQs: Bercow warns Stratford MP on 'eccentric' behaviour

  19-07-2017 15:34 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The MP for the Bard's home town is ticked off for "gesticulating in a distinctly eccentric manner".
  
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• PMQs: Corbyn and May on living wage and minimum wage

  19-07-2017 15:32 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Jeremy Corbyn says Labour brought in the national minimum wage, and it was opposed by the Conservatives.
  
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• UK State Pension Age Will Rise To 68 From 2037, Government Announces

  19-07-2017 15:13
  
  The state pension age will increase from 67 to 68 from 2037, seven years earlier than planned.
  David Gauke, the work and pensions secretary, announced the move in the House of Commons on Wednesday afternoon.
  He told MPs the increase was the “responsible and fair course of acton” as life expectancy had improved. 
  The change will affect people born after 5 April 1970. The increase had been legislated to come in between 2044 and 2046. The government said bringing th
  
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• Disabled Protesters Block Entrance To House Of Commons In Campaign Against Cuts

  19-07-2017 14:50
  
   Disabled protesters blocked the MPs’ entrance to the Commons chamber to campaign against cuts to care services.
  The group, all members of the Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) pressure group, travelled to Parliament from across the country to raise concerns about slashed care hours and the impact of welfare reform.
  They gathered in Central Lobby, outside the door MPs use to gain access to the House of Commons, immediately after Prime Ministers Questions on Wednesday, but were bloc
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn Schools Theresa May That Labour Introduced The Minimum Wage

  19-07-2017 14:45
  
  Theresa May was ridiculed by Jeremy Corbyn in Prime Minister’s Question Time as she forgot that Labour introduced the national minimum wage – and she voted against it.
  The Prime Minister was on the defensive as the Labour leader hammered home calls for an end to the 1% pay cap on public sector workers.
  Corbyn had raised the case of ‘Sarah’, a nurse who is among millions who haven’t had a pay rise for five years.
  May hit back: “We created the National Living Wa
  
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• A rallying cry to ‘halt Brexit’

  19-07-2017 14:42
  Scottish letter to FT and Herald may have more political traction now
  
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• High Court ruling bans prison officers from industrial action

  19-07-2017 14:35
  British government brought the case after union called for action in February
  
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• Labour MPs Mock 'Interim Prime Minister' Theresa May During Final PMQs Before Summer

  19-07-2017 14:34
  
  Theresa May was mocked as a “interim prime minister” today as Labour MPs hammered her for losing her majority at the election and the subsequent cabinet infighting.
  At the final prime minister’s questions before the summer recess, May was peppered with jokes about her lack of authority amid suggestions her time as Tory leader could end sooner rather than later.
  Labour’s Glasgow North East MP Paul Sweeny made fun of May for having a “new found empathy for those in in
  
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• BBC Top Earners Would Face Huge Pay Cut If Jeremy Corbyn Was Prime Minister

  19-07-2017 14:24
  
  Gary Lineker, Chris Evans and other high earning BBC staff would see their wages slashed dramatically under a Labour government, it was confirmed today.
  Jeremy Corbyn’s spokesman said the party’s pay ratio policy - which means no employee can earn more than 20 times the salary of the lowest paid worker - would apply to the BBC.
  That means the top earning employees at the broadcaster would earn £202,800 a year if the BBC paid an 18 year old the minimum wage of £5.20 an ho
  
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• UK issues coded warning to Brussels over nuclear waste

  19-07-2017 14:17
  Britain highlights right to dispatch atomic material to Europe after Brexit
  
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• MP Hannah Bardell wears Scotland football top in Commons

  19-07-2017 14:07 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Hannah Bardell of the SNP was showing her support for the women's team ahead of their match with England.
  
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• PMQs verdict: Corbyn is transformed, even if the arguments are not

  19-07-2017 13:47 via theguardian.com
  Final exchange before parliamentary recess is a mostly dull affair but the Labour leader increasingly has the upper handJeremy Corbyn opened with a dig at cabinet infighting, wondering if Phillip Hammond’s alleged remark about public servants being overpaid was directed at the chancellor’s ministerial colleagues. Theresa May responded that the plight of the low paid, or just-about-managing, in both the public and private sectors had been a central concern of her leadership and that t
  
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• I'm working class and just dropped out of uni: Don't tell me tuition fees have no effect

  19-07-2017 13:06
  
  Critics of Corbyn's free tuition pledge ignore what it would mean for people in my situation
  
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• Prime minister of secrets: The short, closed premiership of Theresa May

  19-07-2017 11:23
  
  All of May's key decisions have been made in secret
  
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• UK government warned over Brexit and Wales by peers

  19-07-2017 11:06 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Ministers are urged to raise their game and find ways to protect Welsh interests in the negotiations.
  
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• Mishal Husain Grills BBC Boss Lord Tony Hall Over Gender Pay Gap

  19-07-2017 10:50
  
  It’s not often you get to grill your boss about your pay on public radio but due to “the unique way the BBC is funded” that’s exactly what happened to Mishal Husain this morning.
  The Today programme presenter interviewed BBC Director-General, Lord Tony Hall, ahead of the broadcaster publishing a list of 96 stars earning more than £150,000 a year later today.
  Hall has already acknowledged a gender pay gap something obviously of interest to Husain who presents the Ra
  
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• The brutal complexity of Brexit's pensions nightmare

  19-07-2017 10:15
  
  The pensions issue involves deep, system-wide complexity
  
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• The Waugh Zone Wednesday July 19, 2017

  19-07-2017 09:33
  
   
   1. CLASS WAR
  It’s the final PMQs before the summer recess and there’s certainly a ‘last day of term’ feel about Hogwarts, SW1. Although MPs are in theory meant to stick around for tomorrow, many will head off tonight for their six-week break.
  But as Theresa May takes on Jeremy Corbyn for one more high-noon session, she looks more and more like a supply teacher struggling to keep control of her unruly classroom. With all the pupils keenly aware of her pro
  
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• Sikh MP Tan Dhesi: Glass ceiling has been broken

  19-07-2017 09:10 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Newly-elected MP Tan Dhesi speaks of his "huge excitement" at becoming the first turban-wearing Sikh voted into Parliament.
  
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• Donald Trump Held Second, Undisclosed Meeting With Vladimir Putin At G20 Summit

  19-07-2017 08:45
  
  Donald Trump has been heavily criticised after it emerged he had another, previously undisclosed conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a summit in Germany this month.
  No other US officials were present and the pair communicated through a Russian translator meaning only the Kremlin has a record of what was said.
  The head of the widely-respected Brookings Institute think tank has said the President could be “compromised” by the meeting.POTUS compromised. Kremlin has the
  
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• Job rules for departing civil servants 'not applied' properly

  19-07-2017 06:05 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Employers are not being routinely told of conditions when they hire officials, such as lobbying bans.
  
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• Scots 'could have different Brexit deal'

  19-07-2017 01:18 via bbc.co.uk
  
  House of Lords committee says Scotland could set its own EU immigration targets after Brexit.
  
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• Lib Dems Accuse Government Of Creating 'Ghettos Of Poverty'

  19-07-2017 01:02
  
  Workers in the south east of England - the most well-off region in the country - earn up to 25% more than those across the rest of the UK, new research shows. 
  The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has produced a report on poverty, inequality and living standards, which shows that while the gap between the richest and poorest has narrowed, there are still huge disparities between regions.
  Since the late 2000s the incomes of low-income households in London have risen by more 10%, while tho
  
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• George Osborne's Job Is Evidence Of 'Revolving Door' Between Government And Big Business, Labour Claims

  19-07-2017 01:02
  
  Rules to stop civil servants taking jobs in the private sector from abusing their position are not being consistently applied, a new report has revealed.
  The National Audit Office carried out an investigation into Business Appointment Rules, which apply to all civil servants leaving the service for employment in other sectors.
  A survey of government departments found that not one rejected an application for a job in the private sector, while the cabinet office had not taken action to ensur
  
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• Theresa May to hold first meeting of new business council

  19-07-2017 01:01
  Forum to discuss Brexit will involve bosses of several FTSE 100 companies
  
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