Political news

• Cornelia Parker produces dark House of Commons film

  02-02-2018 23:57 via ft.com
  Official UK election artist says ‘everything’s in a bit of a mess’ in British politics
  
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• Piers Morgan In Furious Tirade After BBC Airs Graphic Cartoon Of Him With Trump

  02-02-2018 23:34
  Piers Morgan responded with fury after BBC satire ‘The Mash Report’ broadcast a cartoon image of him pleasuring US President Donald Trump.The ‘Good Morning Britain’ presenter, who was granted Trump’s first international broadcast interview last week, tweeted the image on Friday night.He wrote: “The BBC thinks this is OK to broadcast. But if it depicted high profile women, there would be outrage. Why the double standard?”The BBC thinks this is OK to
  
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• May Opens Way For Students To Be Excluded From Tory Immigration Target

  02-02-2018 23:00
  Theresa May has opened up the prospect of students being excluded from the infamous Tory target of getting net immigration to the UK down below 100,000 a year.Speaking on her trip to China, the Prime Minister said that her crackdown on bogus English colleges had largely taken the “abuse out of the system” and students now “wash through the numbers”.She insisted that she still believed it was appropriate to include those in higher education in the statistics, but appeared
  
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• Brexit immigration white paper to be delayed until autumn

  02-02-2018 23:00 via ft.com
  May to claim problem of people using education to stay in UK has been tackled
  
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• So How Explosive Is The Memo Trump Just Declassified?

  02-02-2018 21:32
  US President Donald Trump on Friday approved the declassification of a Republican-authored memo said to allege wrongdoing at the Department of Justice and FBI
  Release was widely seen as a move intended to undermine special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Trump’s campaign
  Nonetheless, it’s an unprecedented decision - and comes as the Mueller investigation zeroes in on key figures in Trump’s inner circle
  FBI ― headed by a Trump appointee ―
  
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• Protesters disrupt a speech by MP Jacob Rees-Mogg

  02-02-2018 21:31 via bbc.co.uk
  The Conservative MP got caught up in a heated exchange with protesters at a university in Bristol.
  
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• Jacob Rees-Mogg Scuffles With Protestors At University Of West England

  02-02-2018 21:13
  Jacob Rees-Mogg has been caught up in a scuffle with protestors at a university event.The Conservative Brexiteer MP addressed the University of West England’s Politics And International Relations Society in Bristol on Friday, but video showed him involved in an altercation beforehand.It was not clear from the footage how events unfolded but one clip shows Rees-Mogg being buffeted by people pushing and shoving. The group were later described by an attendee as “protestors” who re
  
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• Trump's Declassified DOJ Memo Attacks Robert Mueller's FBI Probe Into Russia

  02-02-2018 21:01
  US President Donald Trump on Friday approved the declassification of a Republican-authored memo said to allege wrongdoing at the Department of Justice and FBI
  Release was widely seen as a move intended to undermine special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Trump’s campaign
  Nonetheless, it’s an unprecedented decision - and comes as the Mueller investigation zeroes in on key figures in Trump’s inner circle
  FBI ― headed by a Trump appointee ―
  
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• So How Explosive Is The Memo Trump Just Declassified? - HuffPost Verdict

  02-02-2018 21:01
  K E Y   P O I N T SUS President Donald Trump on Friday approved the declassification of a Republican-authored memo said to allege wrongdoing at the Department of Justice and FBI‘A lot of people should be ashamed of themselves’, Trump saidRelease was widely seen as a move intended to undermine special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Trump’s campaignNonetheless, it’s an unprecedented decision - and comes as the Mueller investigation zer
  
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• UKIP AM Michelle Brown facing week's expulsion over slur

  02-02-2018 20:06 via bbc.co.uk
  Michelle Brown's comment about Chuka Umunna was a "severe breach" of Welsh Assembly code of conduct.
  
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• No charges in ex-UKIP leader Paul Nuttall address probe

  02-02-2018 20:06 via bbc.co.uk
  Police say they conducted a "thorough" investigation into claims former UKIP leader Paul Nuttall misled voters.
  
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• Theresa May under fresh pressure to clarify Brexit strategy

  02-02-2018 19:58 via ft.com
  Cross-party group of MPs table legislative amendments on EU customs union
  
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• Struggling Northamptonshire County Council bans spending

  02-02-2018 19:54 via bbc.co.uk
  Cash-strapped Northamptonshire County Council says it faces a "severe financial challenge".
  
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• UK venture capital firms collect £1bn of Chinese investment

  02-02-2018 19:47 via ft.com
  Deals signed with Liam Fox on Theresa May’s China trip
  
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• Theresa May’s wavering does no favours in Brexit talks

  02-02-2018 19:40 via ft.com
  It makes sense to keep the UK in a customs union for trade in goods
  
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• Both parents' names to be recognised in marriage

  02-02-2018 19:33 via bbc.co.uk
  Only fathers of newly-weds go on the register in England and Wales but ministers say this is outdated.
  
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• Trading Places: How Theresa May Went To China In Search Of A Brexit Bonus

  02-02-2018 19:04
  When Theresa May met Xi Jinping in the grand surroundings of his State Guesthouse this week, the Chinese President knew that imitation was the sincerest form of flattery.“For me, and Shakespeare,” he said, “‘What’s past is prologue’,” The quote from The Tempest is hardly famous, but for Xi it required little translation: all previous contact between the UK and China had been a mere scene-setter for the serious business ahead.It was music to May’s e
  
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• Tory rebels launch bid to keep UK in customs union with EU

  02-02-2018 19:04 via theguardian.com
  Anna Soubry and Ken Clarke seek cross-party support in clear challenge to May’s authority
  Two leading Conservative MPs have launched a bid to make Theresa May keep the UK in a customs union with the European Union, as the prime minister faces cabinet and party splits over the issue. Anna Soubry, a former business minister, and Ken Clarke, the former chancellor, said they would try to get cross-party support for keeping the UK’s current customs arrangements with the EU, in a clear cha
  
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• Theresa May, I fear that both of us will have to get used to disappointment | Marina Hyde

  02-02-2018 18:58 via theguardian.com
  The prime minister has a somewhat rosy view of Britain’s future after Brexit. Her government seems to operate on fact-free messianismI don’t want to spend all my time arguing about Europe,” said the Plymouth MP Johnny Mercer today. “That’s not why I joined the Conservative party.” Really? This is like downloading a movie called Reservoir Dogging and feeling like the dialogue wasn’t as crackling as everyone said it was. Still, have you been mis-sold Conse
  
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• Haringey boss Claire Kober: 'The argument that I’m incompetent would not have been used if I were a man'

  02-02-2018 18:50 via theguardian.com
  The London council leader has resigned amid claims of sexist bullying by Momentum members. Was she just the loser in a local politics row about regeneration – or is this the future of the Labour party?You don’t have to spend long in Westminster to see why politics is called showbusiness for ugly people. The grandeur of office may have faded, but the pomp and glamour of parliamentary power still confer celebrity on often unremarkable old men. Why anyone would want to be a local counci
  
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• Brexit minister Steve Baker in civil service row apology

  02-02-2018 18:42 via bbc.co.uk
  Steve Baker says he has the "highest regard" for officials amid row over comments on independence.
  
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• ‘Sherlock’ Creators Share An Update On When Series 5 Will Arrive

  02-02-2018 18:39
  ‘Sherlock’ creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss have shared an update on when series five is likely to go into production and sadly, it looks like fans are in for a long wait. Season four aired way back in January 2017 and given that Steven and Mark have other commitments - as do Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman - resuming work on the programme isn’t a simple process. Revealing how things currently stand, Steven told RadioTimes.com: “We haven’t got an immed
  
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• London mayor to force councils to ballot on estate demolition

  02-02-2018 18:36 via ft.com
  Khan lays out new housing policy as backlash against lucrative redevelopment schemes grows
  
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• Victoria Beckham Fuels Spice Girls Reunion Rumours As Band Come Together At Geri Horner's House

  02-02-2018 18:27
  Spice Girls reunion rumours have been floating around for so long now that every time we read a new report about it now, we tend to roll our eyes and continue about our daily business. However, it seems like the latest claims the girls are getting back together might just have some legs to them. That’s because all five of them - yes, including Victoria(!) - have met up, following a tabloid reports that claimed the group are set to reunite for TV projects in China, a new tell
  
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• Apple Sold Less iPhones But Then We Just Paid More For Them

  02-02-2018 18:27
  Apple announced its earnings yesterday and the results were a pretty fascinating indicator of how we’ll be spending our money on smartphones in future.The number of phones shipped by Apple fell 1% compared to the last year, and yet it still made record profits of £14bn.How did it manage that? Well there’s the £1000 iPhone X which Apple claims was its top-selling handset every week since it launched. So while Apple was selling less phones, it was making just as much, if no
  
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• Corbyn fest

  02-02-2018 18:26 via bbc.co.uk
  The Labour Party is planning a summer music festival to give their leader a youth platform.
  
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• The Guardian view on May in China: the ‘golden era’ has lost its lustre | Editorial

  02-02-2018 18:14 via theguardian.com
  The prime minister struck a more cautious note than her predecessors on her visit to Beijing. Her approach is sensible – but she has fewer cards in her handWhere’s the beef? Anyone looking at Theresa May’s three-day visit to China would be wise to focus on the substance: such trips have a history of over-promising and under-delivering. Yet it’s a sign of the times that the government has interpreted the question so literally, flagging up among its headline successes the p
  
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• After A Lifetime Of Caring, No Parent Should Be Left Neglected And Living In Fear About The Future

  02-02-2018 18:06
  My daughter, Noreen, is delightful, with a mischievous sense of humour and so loving, but also, because of her disabilities (she has learning disabilities, is quadriplegic, blind, epileptic and without speech), she requires full-time care.Noreen celebrates her 36th birthday this year, and I’ve been her carer for her entire life. It’s been an incredible journey, but I do feel worn down.There is little support, or flexibility from services, especially if there is a crisis situation. I
  
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• Martin Rowson on Theresa May’s troubles home and away – cartoon

  02-02-2018 18:03 via theguardian.com
  Continue reading...
  
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• Our Prison System Is Failing Trans Prisoners - We Need Radical Changes

  02-02-2018 17:56
  Radical changes are needed to protect serving transgender prisoners following a spate of deaths in custody.The  current  prison system in England and Wales is failing and is  putting transgender prisoners in a position where they become victims of verbal abuse, misogyny, physical assault and rape. Radical changes are needed and the current system is failing transgender prisoners, leading to the untimely deaths of four transgender prisoners in little over a year.Following the death
  
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• Our Prison System Is Failing Trans Prisoners

  02-02-2018 17:56
  Radical changes are needed to protect serving transgender prisoners following a spate of deaths in custody.The  current  prison system in England and Wales is failing and is  putting transgender prisoners in a position where they become victims of verbal abuse, misogyny, physical assault and rape. Radical changes are needed and the current system is failing transgender prisoners, leading to the untimely deaths of four transgender prisoners in little over a year.Following the death
  
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• Lustre of Sino-UK ‘golden era’ fades after May’s low-key China visit

  02-02-2018 17:52 via ft.com
  Beijing disappointed by PM’s coolness towards flagship belt and road initiative
  
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• It's Time To Call The Brexit Ultras' Bluff

  02-02-2018 17:48
  If you listen very, very carefully, you might just be able to hear the rustling in the undergrowth. It is the sound of the soft Brexiteers, advancing stealthily through Whitehall.Pitter patter, pitter patter. They don’t want to alarm the ultras, but they are slowly making headway. Their goal: to reach the Downing Street citadel and recruit the prime minister to their cause. The prize: continuing membership of the EU customs union and ― even ― the single market.Every so often, l
  
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• EU's thinking

  02-02-2018 17:46 via bbc.co.uk
  Can the EU reach agreement on key issues with its departing near neighbour?
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn paid nearly £50,000 in tax last year, return shows

  02-02-2018 17:32 via bbc.co.uk
  The Labour leader and shadow chancellor John McDonnell release their annual tax returns
  
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• My Life As A Cancer Mum

  02-02-2018 17:26
  “We have found something not very nice in Amber’s head” were the words that introduced us to the world of childhood cancer. From then our lives were irreversibly changed. Time for us can be divided into two periods; pre-diagnosis and post-diagnosis.For myself and Amber’s Dad, Mark, the future we had foreseen with our first baby, only eight months old at the time, would instead be dominated by appointments, brain surgery and chemotherapy. My sanity would be eaten away at b
  
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• Calais police reinforced after shots fired in migrant clashes

  02-02-2018 16:58 via ft.com
  Five migrants reported wounded in Afghan-Eritrean rivalry at channel port
  
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• Larry Nassar Dodges Attack By Father Of 3 Victims In Court

  02-02-2018 16:55
  The enraged father of three daughters who were sexually abused by Larry Nassar dramatically lunged at the former USA Gymnastics doctor during a sentencing hearing on Friday.Michigan court guards pinned down Randall Margraves before he could attack Nassar.The chaotic scene began after sisters Lauren and Madison Margraves had finished reading their victim statements on the second day of hearings at a court in Eaton County. Standing alongside his daughters and wife, Randall Margraves asked to speak
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn calls on Theresa May to publish full tax return

  02-02-2018 16:52 via theguardian.com
  Labour leader says PM should follow his example and be open and honest with the publicJeremy Corbyn has challenged Theresa May to publish her full tax return after he released his own document showing he paid almost £50,000 in tax on his earnings in 2016-17.The Labour leader received total income of £136,762, which includes his salary as an MP, pay for his role as leader of the opposition and pensions. The 68-year-old had no outside earnings during the year and paid a total of £
  
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• New Schools Built Without Sprinklers Despite Grenfell Shock, Say Unions

  02-02-2018 16:51
  Ministers stand accused of a “shockingly cavalier” approach to fire safety after it emerged some schools are being built without sprinklers. Since 2010, just 35% of new schools have been fitted with sprinklers and union leaders have written to Education Secretary Damian Hinds to demand action. Selsey Academy, in West Sussex, is being rebuilt after it burned down in 2016, but will have no sprinklers fitted because, as a new building, it can be classed as “low risk&rdqu
  
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• Beijing plays its advantage to press Theresa May on trade

  02-02-2018 16:50 via ft.com
  The visit offered the painful sight of Britain’s prime minister under savage attack
  
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• Beijing plays its advantage to press Theresa May on belt and road

  02-02-2018 16:50 via ft.com
  The visit offered the painful sight of Britain’s prime minister under savage attack
  
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• Tory 'Hypocrisy' For Opposing Votes At 16 While Letting Teens Pick Tory Leader

  02-02-2018 16:45
  David Lidington has been accused “hypocrisy” for suggesting 16-year-olds lack the “sufficient maturity” to vote in general elections, despite teenagers aged 15 and over apparently being allowed to vote in Tory leadership contests.Under Conservative Party rules, 16 and 17 year olds are allowed to become full members of the party.“There is no upper or lower age limit on membership, although children under the age of 15 cannot be enrolled as full voting members,”
  
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• MP bids to end 'unfair' civil partnership inequality

  02-02-2018 16:45 via bbc.co.uk
  The government also backs plans to allow mothers' names to be included on marriage certificates.
  
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• Tory 'Hypocrisy' For Opposing Votes At 16 While Letting Teens Pick Party Leader

  02-02-2018 16:43
  David Lidington has been accused “hypocrisy” for suggesting 16-year-olds lack the “sufficient maturity” to vote in general elections, despite teenagers aged 15 and over apparently being allowed to vote in Tory leadership contests.Under Conservative Party rules, 16 and 17 year olds are allowed to become full members of the party.“There is no upper or lower age limit on membership, although children under the age of 15 cannot be enrolled as full voting members,”
  
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• Commons hears emotionally charged account of stillbirth

  02-02-2018 16:36 via bbc.co.uk
  An MP weeps as she tells how not being able to register her stillborn daughter has left her devastated.
  
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• Prince William And Prince Harry Are The Nation’s Most Liked Royals

  02-02-2018 16:35
  Princes William and Harry are the most liked members of the Royal Family, a poll has revealed, with the soon-to-be married Harry enjoying the biggest surge in popularity during the last five years.While three in five people, or 62%, listed Prince William among their two of three top Royals - the same percentage as in 2012 - it was Prince Harry who enjoyed the biggest shift in public favour, from 36% to 58%, the Ipsos MORI data found.So just three months out from his wedding to Meghan Markle, Har
  
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• Emotionally charged Commons hears stillbirth account

  02-02-2018 16:28 via bbc.co.uk
  Labour MP weeps as she tells how not being able to register her stillborn daughter left her devastated.
  
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• Brexiteers Seen As 'Bunch Of Emotional Nutcases,' Says Former Minister

  02-02-2018 15:52
  Passionate Brexiteers are seen as a “bunch of emotional nutcases” outside of the UK, former Tory Treasury minister Lord O’Neill has said.The ex-Goldman Sachs chief economist, who quit his post as a minister last autumn, also hit out at Leave backers “trashing” civil servants in the Treasury, calling their claims “ridiculous nonsense”.Tory MP and hardline Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg said this week he believed there was an “orchestration” of
  
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• Liz Truss and Nick Boles at odds over Labour housing idea

  02-02-2018 15:50 via bbc.co.uk
  Liz Truss says plan to allow state to buy land more cheaply is "sinister" but Nick Boles disagrees.
  
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