Political news

• Nigel Farage Should Be A Role Model For Remain Voters Who Want To Rejoin The EU, Says Nick Clegg

  11-10-2017 23:30
  
  Nick Clegg has said Nigel Farage should be the “role model” for committed Remain voters who want to see the UK rejoin the EU.
  The former deputy prime minister said while Britain was on course to leave the EU in March 2019, there was no reason that had to be the end of the “dream”.
  In his new book, How To Stop Brexit, due to be published on Thursday, Clegg said Farage’s “sheer bloody-minded refusal to give up” on achieving Brexit should be seen as a
  
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• Dublin taxman questions ‘virtual’ frontier after Brexit

  11-10-2017 22:38
  ‘Completely open border is not possible’, says Irish revenue service paper
  
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• Grenfell fire: One year immigration amnesty can become permanent

  11-10-2017 20:06 via bbc.co.uk
  The Home Office also said relatives who came to the UK to help survivors can stay for six months.
  
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• Labour Will Vote Against A 'No Deal' Brexit If Theresa May Returns Empty Handed From Brussels

  11-10-2017 19:47
  
  Labour has dramatically raised the stakes over Brexit by warning that Jeremy Corbyn and his MPs will vote down any attempt by the Government to quit the EU without a trade deal.
  If a “no deal” Brexit looked likely, the Opposition would instead force Theresa May to keep talking to Brussels until an agreement was sorted, a senior party spokesman said.
  The intervention raises the prospect of a Parliamentary showdown for the PM if her negotiations with the other 27 EU leaders break down
  
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• London seeks £240m boost from higher business rates

  11-10-2017 19:28
  Mayor and councils want greater control over taxes raised in the capital
  
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• Grenfell Survivors Offered 'Route To Permanent Settlement' In The UK

  11-10-2017 19:22
  
  Grenfell Tower fire survivors whose immigration status was uncertain are to be given the chance to become permanent residents of Britain, the Government has announced.
  The move by Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis follows a torrent of criticism that the one-year immigration amnesty initially granted to foreign national survivors left them in limbo. 
  In a written statement to the House of Commons, Lewis has now said survivors of the June 14 inferno will have a route to permanent residence.
  
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• UK 'concerned' as Hong Kong denies Benedict Rogers entry

  11-10-2017 19:05 via bbc.co.uk
  Benedict Rogers has been a vocal critic of Chinese-ruled Hong Kong's human rights record.
  
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• Liz Truss Tells Families On Welfare To Visit Job Centre If They Can't Afford 55p-A-Minute Helpline

  11-10-2017 18:52
  
  "If it's a landline its cheaper, I understand, but many people know don't have a landline" @afneil "Why are you charging them 55p a min?" pic.twitter.com/xyf9zxdOkA— Daily&SundayPolitics (@daily_politics) October 11, 2017
  A Government minister has suggested hard-pressed families visit a job centre to avoid a controversial 55p-a-minute charge for advice on a major benefits reform, sparking questions over Theresa May’s party being out-of-touch.
  Liz Truss was appearing on the BBC&r
  
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• UK universities retirement fund ‘weaker’ than claimed, fears watchdog

  11-10-2017 18:38
  Pensions Regulator questions valuations from scheme’s trustees
  
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• DexEU Disputes NHS Claim It Has Not Been Asked To Plan For No Brexit Deal

  11-10-2017 18:30
  
  The Brexit department has insisted that “every department” in government is planning for the exit talks with the EU to fail, despite the head of the NHS having said the health service had not been asked to prepare for a no deal outcome.
  Brexit minister Steve Baker said on Wednesday all of Whitehall was preparing for “all potential outcomes” including “the unlikely eventuality of not securing a deal”.
  Baker made the claim in a letter to Labour MP Chuka Umunna,
  
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• Peer wants review of Sir Edward Heath abuse investigation

  11-10-2017 18:18 via bbc.co.uk
  The former PM's private secretary says Wiltshire Police's conclusion leaves a 'cloud of suspicion'.
  
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• Grenfell Tower Survivors WIth Uncertain Immigration Status Could Become Permanent UK Residents

  11-10-2017 18:15
  
  Grenfell Tower survivors with an uncertain immigration status could become permanent UK residents, the Government announced on Wednesday.
  This latest announcement is a change to the one-year amnesty originally offered to survivors of the fire, which was condemned by lawyers and campaigners representing victims.
  The Home Office said on Wednesday that those affected by the blaze, which killed about 80 people in June, will have a chance to obtain permanent residence, subject to security and crimina
  
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• UK will spend what is needed to prepare for Brexit - No 10

  11-10-2017 18:01 via bbc.co.uk
  The PM spoke after her chancellor said it was too soon to start spending on plans for "no deal".
  
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• Young people 'not engaged' in local elections, Electoral Commission warns

  11-10-2017 17:55 via bbc.co.uk
  The Electoral Commission says there is a "clear disparity" between young and old voters.
  
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• Diplomats owe £105m in congestion charges

  11-10-2017 17:53 via bbc.co.uk
  The US embassy owes the highest amount - £11.5m - in London congestion zone fees.
  
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• Harvey Weinstein Could Be Stripped Of British Honour, No.10 Downing Street Says

  11-10-2017 17:52
  
  Movie mogul Harvey Weinstein could be stripped of his British honour following the allegations of sexual assault and harassment against him, Downing Street has suggested.
  The Hollywood producer was awarded an honorary CBE in 2004 for services to the British film industry as he worked on a string of films that won Oscars and BAFTAs.
  But as Weinstein faced new claims of serial rape, Theresa May’s spokesman signalled on Wednesday that he could lose the honour if found to have brought the sys
  
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• Donald Trump's Twitter Suggests News Networks Should Have Licences 'Challenged'

  11-10-2017 16:29
  
  Donald Trump appears to have launched a direct challenge to the American First Amendment by asking if news networks he disagrees with should have their licenses “challenged”. 
  The President made the dictator-esque suggestion in a tweet in which he claimed organisations running articles he doesn’t like are “bad for the country”.With all of the Fake News coming out of NBC and the Networks, at what point is it appropriate to challenge their License? Bad for countr
  
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• Hammond will wait to fund Brexit contingency plans

  11-10-2017 16:09
  Treasury is preparing for ‘no deal’ but won’t approve ‘nugatory spending’
  
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• Hammond to refuse ‘no deal’ Brexit funding until last moment

  11-10-2017 16:09
  Treasury is preparing for scenario but will not approve early contingency spending
  
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• Hammond refuses big spending on ‘no deal’ Brexit for now

  11-10-2017 16:09
  Treasury is preparing for scenario but will not approve early contingency funding
  
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• PMQs: Corbyn tells May to 'wake up' on universal credit complaints

  11-10-2017 15:45 via bbc.co.uk
  The Labour leader and a Conservative MP both call for changes to the way universal credit is run.
  
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• MPs Say Schoolgirls Are Being Forced Back Into Classrooms With Boys Who Have Raped Them

  11-10-2017 15:27
  
  Schoolgirls who have been raped or sexually assaulted by fellow pupils are being forced to carry on sharing classrooms with the perpetrators, MPs said today.
  Schools minister Nick Gibb admitted to the women and equalities select committee that current guidance does not state specifically that children who sexually abuse other children at school should not be put back in the same class as their victims.
  Members of the committee quizzed Gibb and fellow government minister Anne Milton on what actio
  
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• PMQS: Theresa May Slaps Down Philip Hammond Over 'No Deal' Brexit Funds

  11-10-2017 15:13
  
  Theresa May slapped down her Chancellor today by promising to spend cash now in preparation for a Brexit ‘no deal’ – just hours after Philip Hammond ruled out any such splurge.
  Speaking in the Commons this afternoon, the Prime Minister revealed £250million of taxpayers’ money had already been set aside to help departments plan for the UK leaving the EU without a trade deal.
  She also announced the Treasury will soon set out how ministers can apply for extra cash to h
  
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• Three questions about Whitehall’s Brexit planning

  11-10-2017 14:58
  Demands are growing for more details about the extra costs and bureaucracy the UK faces
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn Demands Theresa May Scrap 55p-A-Minute Universal Credit Helpline Charge

  11-10-2017 14:05
  
  Jeremy Corbyn has told Theresa May to “show some humanity” and make it free to call the Universal Credit helpline.
  Speaking during prime minister’s questions on Wednesday, the Labour leader said people were being “driven into poverty” by the new benefits system.
  Calls to the Universal Credit helpline can cost up to 9p a minute from a landline, or between 3p and 55p a minute from a mobile. In Wales the calls are free.
  “The prime minister talks about helping the
  
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• Donald Trump 'To Visit UK In 2018' - But Won't Stay With The Queen

  11-10-2017 13:04
  
  Donald Trump is set to visit the UK in early 2018 - but for a ‘stripped-down’ trip that won’t involve getting the full ‘red-carpet’ treatment from the Queen.
  Fears of mass protests have led diplomats to discuss downgrading the US President’s plans from a full-blown State Visit, according to the London Evening Standard.
  Instead of receiving a Royal banquet at Buckingham Palace, the revised programme would see Trump embark on a “working” trip as par
  
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• Donald Trump 'To Visit UK In 2018' - But Won't Meet The Queen

  11-10-2017 13:04
  
  Donald Trump is set to visit the UK in early 2018 - but for a ‘stripped-down’ trip that won’t involve taking tea with the Queen.
  Fears of mass protests have led diplomats to discuss downgrading the US President’s plans from a full-blown State Visit, according to the London Evening Standard.
  Instead of receiving a Royal reception at Buckingham Palace, the revised programme would see Trump embark on a “working” trip as part of a tour of other European states.
  T
  
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• How to solve the Irish Brexit problem

  11-10-2017 12:17
  Let Northern Ireland decide which customs union it wants
  
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• Philip Hammond Warns No Deal Brexit Could Ground Flights Between UK And EU

  11-10-2017 12:12
  
  Philip Hammond has suggested it is “theoretically conceivable” flights could be grounded on the day the UK leaves the EU if no Brexit deal is reached.
  The chancellor’s warning came as he risked escalating a row with eurosceptic Tories on Wednesday morning when he told the Commons Treasury committee he would not spend money planning for Brexit talks to fail until the last minute.
  Hammond told MPs the Brexit talks were leaving a “cloud of uncertainty” over the economy
  
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• Brendan Cox: Donald Trump Has Shone A Light On Cancer Of Hatred In Our Communities

  11-10-2017 11:55
  
  President Trump has shone a light on the “cancer” of hatred within global communities, the widower of murdered MP Jo Cox has said. 
  Addressing the No2H8 Crime Awards in London on Tuesday evening, Brendan Cox said it was the job of those tackling hatred to “be better organised” and help to rebuild communities. 
  “I think there is a danger when we talk about hatred to imagine it is created in a vacuum,” he said. 
  “The hatred that is taking m
  
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• Sion Simon's kidney donation to Labour MP Khalid Mahmood

  11-10-2017 11:45 via bbc.co.uk
  Khalid Mahmood had previously refused to say who had given him the life-saving donation in 2014.
  
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• No-deal is political disaster porn for Brexit extremists

  11-10-2017 11:45
  
  The reality of no-deal is worse than most members of the public could ever imagine
  
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• The SNP's political stardust is starting to fade

  11-10-2017 10:41
  
  Sturgeon gave a flat speech to a flat conference
  
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• The Waugh Zone Wednesday October 11, 2017

  11-10-2017 10:36
  
  1. HAMMOND EGGS
  It’s PMQs day again and as Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn square up at the despatch box, you can bet the issue of ‘leadership’ gets an airing. Labour will want to build on their party conference, while the Tories will want to quickly forget theirs. May could point to the continuing march of Momentum, but Corbyn may declare this is a Government that lacks any forward movement at all. We could even see coughing gags (‘the final nail in her coughing&rsqu
  
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• Sarah Sanders Explaining Donald Trump's False Tax Claims Is Peak White House Absurdity

  11-10-2017 10:17
  
  Donald Trump gets very exercised about taxes - he thinks there’s too much paperwork involved... Signing a recent tax return- isn't this ridiculous? pic.twitter.com/UdwqF4iZIZ— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 25, 2016
  And he thinks public officials should definitely disclose their tax returns...Mitt Romney didn't show his tax return until SEPTEMBER 21, 2012, and then only after being humiliated by Harry R! A bad messenger for estab!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonald
  
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• Damian Green Says UK Would Still Be Better Off Inside The European Union

  11-10-2017 10:09
  
  Asked by @maitlis if he still thought it would have been better had the country voted Remain @DamianGreen replies: "It would have been" pic.twitter.com/epXIv1bm6Z— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) October 10, 2017
  Damian Green has said he still believes the United Kingdom would be better off as a member of the European Union.
  The first secretary of state, Theresa May’s de-facto deputy, was asked by BBC Newsnight if the country would be better off remaining inside the EU. “It
  
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• Facebook and Twitter could face 'online abuse levy'

  11-10-2017 09:26 via bbc.co.uk
  The government wants firms such as Facebook and Twitter to publish annual reports on abuse.
  
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• Donald Trump Urged Not To Renege On Iran Nuclear Deal By Boris Johnson And Theresa May

  11-10-2017 09:00
  
  The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have both separately urged the US not to tear up the international nuclear deal with Iran which “undoubtedly made the world a safer place”.
  Boris Johnson spoke by phone with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Tuesday, days ahead of an expected announcement by Donald Trump that he will refuse to certify the 2015 deal.
  Meanwhile Downing Street said Theresa May had spoken to the President directly to “reaffirm the UK’s strong comm
  
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• UK accused of £122m ‘failure’ in nuclear clean-up contract

  11-10-2017 01:01
  Public spending watchdog says decommissioning agency and government bungled £6bn project
  
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