Political news

• Donald Trump Defends Charlottesville Rally Attendees In Most Batsh*t Press Conference Of His Presidency

  15-08-2017 23:28
  
  In February, we told you Donald Trump gave the most insane press conference of his career and maybe even in the history of politics.
  Six months later, we have a new champion.
  After a tough few days of a presidency that hasn’t had many good ones, Trump held a press conference in New York on Tuesday where he equivocated when journalists questioned how sincerely he condemned white supremacists. He even appeared to defend them at times.He was under fire for taking two days to condemn Neo
  
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• Donald Trump Defends Charlottesville Rally Attendees In His Most Shocking Press Conference

  15-08-2017 23:28
  
  In February, we told you Donald Trump gave the most insane press conference of his career and maybe even in the history of politics.
  Six months later, we have a new champion.
  After a tough few days of a presidency that hasn’t had many good ones, Trump held a press conference in New York on Tuesday where he equivocated when journalists questioned how sincerely he condemned white supremacists. He even appeared to defend them at times.He was under fire for taking two days to condemn Neo
  
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• Steve Bell on the UK's Brexit negotiations – cartoon

  15-08-2017 21:44 via theguardian.com
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• Rail fare increase signals light at the end of the tunnel for UK inflation

  15-08-2017 21:20 via theguardian.com
  The 3.6% hike is steep and prices are still rising faster than wages, but the prospect of inflation going well over 3% looks remoteRail commuters facing a steep 3.6% increase in ticket prices might find it tough to accept but there is light at the end of the tunnel for UK inflation.Rising prices have been one of the big economic stories of the past 12 months, but for the past two months the financial markets have been surprised by the weakness of cost-of-living pressures. Continue reading...
  
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• Government pulls all Learndirect contracts and funding

  15-08-2017 21:03 via theguardian.com
  Move comes after privatised adult training agency accused of paying owners millions despite ‘catastrophic’ decline in standardsThe government is to cancel all contracts with Learndirect, the adult training provider that tried to suppress a damning regulator’s report into its poor standards.The Department for Education said on Tuesday that it would withdraw all funding from the organisation, which is responsible for almost 73,000 trainees, by July 2018 and that it had already ba
  
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• Defend Europe Falsely Claims Victory As Fewer Migrants Cross The Mediterranean

  15-08-2017 20:33
  
  Over the past week three NGOs have suspended operations assisting in the rescue of migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean from Libya, coinciding with a 76% drop in the number of people making the perilous journey in the first 10 days of August.
  In response, the Defend Europe group immediately declared its mission to stop the flow of people from North Africa to Europe a “victory” and was widely praised by its supporters. The #CStar has arrived in front of the Libyan coasts, wh
  
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• Two-stage Brexit strategy derided by UK and EU politicians

  15-08-2017 20:29 via theguardian.com
  Government plan to keep UK in near identical customs union at interim and final stages criticised by all except business
  A government plan to copy European customs controls after Brexit has run into immediate difficulties in Brussels and the UK, with ministers being accused of making unrealistic promises in pursuit of “frictionless trade”.The long-awaited policy paper proposes to keep Britain in a near identical customs union with the EU for an unspecified period after departure whil
  
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• Donald Trump's Scottish Golf Course Expansion 'Threatens Environmental Disaster', Warns Petition

  15-08-2017 20:28
  
  Tens of thousands have signed a petition calling for plans to expand Donald Trump’s Scottish golf course to be halted, saying they threaten “environmental and economic disaster”.
  Trump wants to build a second 18-hole course at Trump International Golf Links Scotland, north of Aberdeen, and nearly 39,000 people have signed a petition calling for authorities to stop it, saying it would breach rules on sewage pollution and environmental protection.
  Aberdeenshire County Counci
  
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• Publish Prince Charles lobbying letters, Scottish government urged

  15-08-2017 20:27 via theguardian.com
  Pressure comes after the Guardian revealed ministers withheld or redacted documents from prince’s office on behalf of Teach FirstOpposition leaders have called on Scottish ministers to publish secret correspondence about lobbying by the Prince of Wales to reform Scotland’s teacher training system.The Guardian disclosed on Monday that ministers have withheld or redacted documents showing the prince and his officials lobbied them on behalf of a charity called Teach First, of which whic
  
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• Scottish parliament hit by cyber-attack similar to Westminster assault

  15-08-2017 20:07 via theguardian.com
  MSPs and Holyrood staff warned hackers trying to access numerous email accounts in ongoing ‘brute force cyber-attack’Hackers have mounted a “brute force” cyber-attack on the Scottish parliament’s computer systems, weeks after a similar attack on email accounts at Westminster.MSPs and Holyrood staff were warned on Tuesday that hackers were attempting to access numerous email accounts by systematically and repeatedly trying to crack their passwords.Continue reading...
  
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• Britain’s Brexit papers aim to fast-track customs talks

  15-08-2017 19:52
  Businesses in UK and the rest of EU seek clarity to plan for a new relationship in 2019
  
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• Grenfell fire: Terms of reference published

  15-08-2017 19:40 via bbc.co.uk
  The inquiry will look at Kensington and Chelsea Council, but not broader issues of social housing.
  
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• The Guardian view on the EU customs union: stay, don’t shadow | Editorial

  15-08-2017 19:34 via theguardian.com
  The government’s Brexit position papers are not focused on what’s best for Britain but on trying to survive this autumn’s Tory party conferenceIt is impossible not to be both cynical and angry about the government’s “future partnership paper” on customs arrangements with the EU, which was published on Tuesday. Like the other papers on Brexit themes that are expected from Whitehall in the coming days, this one seems less concerned with its ostensible purpose, U
  
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• 'A fantasy': EU leaders dismiss UK's post-Brexit customs plan

  15-08-2017 19:07 via theguardian.com
  Proposals for new arrangement given short shrift, with Czechs unhappy at idea of UK signing trade deals in transition periodEU leaders have poured cold water on Britain’s hopes of being able to sign trade deals with non-EU countries during a Brexit transition period, with one describing the UK’s opening gambit for trade negotiations as a “fantasy”.The British government published proposals on Tuesday for “a new customs arrangement that facilitates the freest and mos
  
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• Britain shows only a glimmer of Brexit sense

  15-08-2017 19:04
  The UK has shown destructive ambivalence, not creative ambiguity
  
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• Commuters told to avoid Waterloo for second day after derailment

  15-08-2017 18:37
  Incident comes as many of the station’s platforms are closed for upgrades
  
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• Scottish Parliament targeted in 'brute force' cyber attack

  15-08-2017 18:26 via bbc.co.uk
  The Scottish Parliament is targeted in a "brute force" cyber attack, Holyrood's chief executive confirms.
  
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• Brexit: UK suggests 'untested' customs system with EU

  15-08-2017 18:17 via bbc.co.uk
  The EU says it is too soon to discuss trade and customs with other Brexit issues yet to be settled.
  
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• Injunction lifted on critical Ofsted report

  15-08-2017 18:15 via bbc.co.uk
  The future of a major adult-training provider is in question after it fails to block a critical report.
  
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• Shadow Minister Fails To Set Out Labour's Policy On Brexit In Embarrassing Interview

  15-08-2017 17:40
  
  .@EmmaBarnett asks Shadow International Trade Minister @Bill_Esterson five times if Labour would leave the customs union #5liveDaily pic.twitter.com/5D94dQZ6Kw— BBC Radio 5 live (@bbc5live) August 15, 2017
  A shadow minister was unable to set out Labour’s position on Brexit during an uncomfortable radio interview.
  Bill Esterson was asked five times by the BBC’s Emma Barnett whether his party would take the UK out of the customs union if it were in power and was unable to give a
  
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• Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Social Housing Left Out Of Terms Of Reference

  15-08-2017 17:17
  
  Social housing will not be considered as part of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, despite the “contempt” with which tenants were treated contributing to the disaster, a lawyer has said.
  John Cooper QC, who is representing survivors and bereaved families, said that his clients are “very disappointed” with the omission of social housing policy from the inquiry’s terms of reference, which were released on Tuesday.
  Sir Martin Moore-Bick, the judge heading the inquiry, wrote
  
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• Brexit: Farming union leader backs temporary customs union

  15-08-2017 17:00 via bbc.co.uk
  "Cliff-edge" Brexit would hit sectors like sheep farming particularly hard, union leader warns.
  
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• More Than Half Of Young Voters Are Worried About Brexit, New Poll Finds

  15-08-2017 16:39
  
  More than half of young voters are worried about the impact of Brexit, according to new research.
  Quarterly data from the QT consumer tracking survey, analysed by media agency the7stars to assess how much confidence people have in the government and found just 19% of participants responded positively in August, compared to 32% in a pre-general election survey. 
  Confidence in the UK’s political system as a whole suffered a similar drop, declining from 26% to 15% as election fatigue an
  
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• Farage criticises post-Brexit temporary custom union plan

  15-08-2017 16:36 via bbc.co.uk
  Former UKIP leader Nigel Farage criticises government's post-Brexit temporary custom union plan.
  
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• Clock watching

  15-08-2017 16:26 via bbc.co.uk
  Big Ben is one of the UK's most photographed landmarks - but it's notoriously difficult to capture.
  
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• Nick Clegg book will reveal How to Stop Brexit

  15-08-2017 15:49 via theguardian.com
  The ex-deputy prime minister’s ‘resistance handbook’, out in October, explains how the EU referendum decision can be reversed while reuniting the UK – and seems destined to fill many remoaners’ Christmas stockingsAlongside tips on household management from Mary Berry and help with home cooking from Nigella Lawson, a different kind of guide is also due to land on bookshop shelves this Christmas: How to Stop Brexit, by the former deputy prime minister Nick Clegg.Publi
  
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• Post-Brexit customs plan threatens to increase obstacles to trade

  15-08-2017 15:38
  Companies face greater red tape under proposals set out by the UK
  
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• Brexit customs plan threatens to increase obstacles to trade

  15-08-2017 15:38
  Business faces greater red tape under proposals set out by UK
  
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• Article 50 talks latest: how the negotiations stand

  15-08-2017 15:17 via theguardian.com
  Negotiations on the UK’s withdrawal from the EU are happening on several fronts simultaneously, with multiple seemingly contradictory positions being stated almost daily. At least on the UK side. Find out what the latest state of play is, and how the mood is changing Continue reading...
  
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• Customs proposals: what does the UK government want?

  15-08-2017 15:04 via theguardian.com
  Little would change under ‘continued close association’, but the plan is ambitious, untried and relies on EU goodwillThe government’s new proposals can appear confusing, some might say deliberately so. Britain will be leaving the customs union of the EU after the article 50 negotiating phase expires in March 2019. But this is because participation is only available to EU member states and Britain will not be a member after this point. It will however be seeking to negotiate new
  
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• Instead of strengthening Scottish politics, Alex Salmond plays the funny man | Gerry Hassan

  15-08-2017 15:03 via theguardian.com
  The SNP and the independence movement both need major reappraisals in these unsure times. But is their former leader becoming a problem?Alex Salmond is one of the big beasts not just of Scottish, but British politics, and the defining figure of modern Scottish nationalism and the SNP. He has been leader of the SNP for a total of 20 years (between 1990-2000 and 2004-2014), first minister of Scotland for seven years, and in 2014 took the SNP closer than any of its opponents thought possible to the
  
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• Shadow minister asked five times on leaving customs union

  15-08-2017 14:54 via bbc.co.uk
  The Shadow International Trade Minister Bill Esterson was asked five times by BBC 5 live's Emma Barnett about Labour's position on leaving the customs union.
  
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• Nigel Farage: Why Hollywood is interested in TV series about me

  15-08-2017 14:54 via bbc.co.uk
  A US studio is reported to be considering a TV mini-series about Nigel Farage's Brexit campaign.
  
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• Tory MP Craig Mackinlay to face trial over election expenses fraud charges

  15-08-2017 14:46 via bbc.co.uk
  Craig Mackinlay is one of three to face trial over alleged false election expenses declarations.
  
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• Keith Vaz fights off Momentum challenge to keep place on NEC

  15-08-2017 14:41 via theguardian.com
  Relief for veteran Labour MP after Asghar Khan’s campaign for more ‘grassroots’ black, Asian and minority ethnic voicesKeith Vaz has seen off a challenge from a Momentum-backed candidate to replace him on Labour’s ruling body, despite a widespread social media campaign to oust him.The veteran MP’s challenger, Asghar Khan, a Leeds councillor and postal worker, had the backing of several of the largest trade unions, including Unite, GMB, TSSA and CWU. Momentum, the gr
  
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• Who has fanned the flames of fascism? Our politicians and newspapers | Owen Jones

  15-08-2017 14:26 via theguardian.com
  We mourn a brave hero like Bernard Kenny, while the rightwing racists boldly rise. Blame those marching in Charlottesville, but look to the real perpetratorsThey pour the petrol and then wonder why it burns. Fascism is on the rise in the west, and it is emboldened, legitimised and fuelled by “mainstream” politicians and newspapers. When we mourn a hero like Bernard Kenny – who courageously tried to stop a fascist terrorist murdering Jo Cox – we have to ask ourselves: who
  
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• Big Ben is falling silent. It’s our final warning to save the Houses of Parliament | Caroline Shenton

  15-08-2017 14:15 via theguardian.com
  The government should stop dragging its feet on repairs. If the buildings crumble, with them goes part of our identity – and billions in tourist income• Caroline Shenton is a former director of the Parliamentary ArchivesBig Ben, the great hour bell of the Houses of Parliament, is to stop chiming from noon on Monday until 2021. It’s not the first time this has happened, but it will be the longest, beating even the silence during the first world war due to fears of attack from low
  
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• UK will 'mirror' much of EU customs system for Brexit, plans reveal

  15-08-2017 13:58 via theguardian.com
  EU Brexit coordinator dismisses British strategy as ‘a fantasy’ after long-awaited policy paper is unveiledBritain expects to “mirror” much of the existing EU customs system both during and after Brexit, according to government plans that could prevent Liam Fox from immediately implementing new trade deals.This first detailed look at Whitehall’s negotiating strategy also reveals new reporting requirements for businesses as a way to minimise delays at international b
  
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• Brexit Britain has displaced Germany as the land of dreamers

  15-08-2017 13:47
  The UK was viewed as the home of liberty and rationality – but now it’s goodbye
  
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• The government's customs union plan is an absolute dog's breakfast

  15-08-2017 13:43
  
  After a year of preparation, the Brexit department's offering on the customs union is a mess of unrealistic expectations and untested IT solutions.
  
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• Hard-Left 'Trying To Brand Labour Centrists As Racist Sympathisers'

  15-08-2017 13:40
  
  The hard-left is on a new mission to paint UK centrists as terrorist sympathisers in the wake of the Charlottesville violence, according to a senior Labour campaigner. 
  Blogging for HuffPost UK, Richard Angell, director of Progress - a group on the New Labour wing of the Labour Party - said “a concerted effort” is underway to discredit the centre ground of British politics.
  He was responding to claims by writer Laurie Penny that those responsible for unrest in the USA, which le
  
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• David Davis's Customs Union Plan Is 'Fantasy', Says European Parliament's Brexit Spokesman

  15-08-2017 13:31
  
  UK plans to enter into a customs partnership with the EU after 2019 have been dismissed as “fantasy” by the European Parliament’s Brexit coordinator.
  Former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt made the comments just hours after the Brexit Secretary David Davis revealed the UK could seek a “customs partnership” with the EU.
  That plan would mean no border checks on goods traveling between the UK and the continent.
  The Government admitted such a system is “in
  
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• Anti-Islam UKIP leadership candidate 'demonised'

  15-08-2017 13:26 via bbc.co.uk
  UKIP group leader Neil Hamilton says Anne Marie Waters does not look "that out of the ordinary".
  
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• North Korea's Kim Jong-Un Decides To Postpone Nuclear Armageddon - For Now

  15-08-2017 13:02
  
  Kim Jong-Un has said he will hold off from annihilating the Pacific island of Guam and potentially sparking a global nuclear conflict whilst he watches the “foolish and stupid conduct of the Yankees” a little more.
  On Tuesday the North Korean leader was presented with proposals to “wring the windpipes of the Yankees” as he inspected the army’s Strategic Forces.
  He praised the military for drawing up a “close and careful plan” to launch nuclear missiles i
  
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• Brendan Cox Leads Tributes To Bernard Kenny, The Man Who Tried To Save Murdered MP Jo Cox

  15-08-2017 12:44
  
  Brendan Cox has led the tributes to Bernard Kenny, the pensioner who tried to save murdered MP Jo Cox, who has died at the age of 79.
  His son Phil Kenny told the Huddersfield Examiner that his father had been diagnosed with cancer in June.
  Cox called the former miner a “hero”, praising that he “personified the best of our country.”Bernard Kenny was a hero, he personified the best of our country;risking his own safety to help others.Our thoughts&love are with
  
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• Date set for Conservative MP's trial over election expenses

  15-08-2017 12:05 via theguardian.com
  Craig Mackinlay faces trial in May next year charged with knowingly making false expenses declarationsA Conservative MP will go on trial in May next year on charges relating to his 2015 general election expenses.Craig Mackinlay, who faces a jury trial, is accused of offences under the Representation of the People Act 1983, alongside Marion Little, a campaign director, and Nathan Gray, an election agent. Continue reading...
  
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• Breitbart Editor Joel Pollak Uses Bizarre Nazi Analogy To Defend The Rights Of White Supremacists

  15-08-2017 11:45
  
  A Breitbart editor has defended the right of white supremacists to demonstrate in Charlottesville by arguing that Nazis were allowed to march through the neighbourhoods of Holocaust survivors.
  Joel Pollak, the senior editor-at-large of the far-right news website, said Donald Trump was “absolutely correct” to blame all sides following violence at a far-right rally in Virginia over the weekend, accusing left-wing protesters of “looking for a fight”. 
  The president came
  
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• Grenfell fire inquiry to consider cause and council response

  15-08-2017 11:29 via theguardian.com
  Campaigners welcome widening of scope but have concerns broader social issues have been excluded despite PM’s promisesThe public inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire will examine the actions of Kensington and Chelsea council but will not deal with broader questions of social housing policy, the government has said. No 10 said the decision not to include social housing policy in the terms of reference, published on Tuesday, was taken by the inquiry chair, Sir Martin Moore-Bick, but added th
  
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• Grenfell Tower Inquiry Terms Of Reference Announced

  15-08-2017 11:26
  
  The actions of Kensington and Chelsea Council, the refurbishment of the tower and the response of the fire brigade are among the issues to be covered in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, the Government announced on Tuesday.
  The “adequacy” of the regulations, the spread of the fire and whether relevant regulations relating to high-rise buildings will also be considered.
  The terms of reference for the inquiry has been announced two months after the blaze ripped through the 24-storey building
  
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• UK rail fares set to rise by 3.6% from January

  15-08-2017 11:16
  Ticket price increase is biggest in five years and is based on RPI inflation figure
  
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