Political news

• 'McMafia' Episode 7 Review: The 8 Questions The Penultimate Instalment Left Us With

  04-02-2018 23:00
  We’re hurtling towards the end of BBC’s big budget drama ‘McMafia’, and while we’ve loved every second of it, we have to admit, we’re definitely ready for it to be over.With all the goings-on over the last six episodes, our heads are a bit scrambled, but finally the strands are all coming together in time for next week’s finale.The penultimate episode, which aired on Sunday (4 February), dealt with the fall out of Rebecca’s shooting, and while she
  
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• Democrat Memo Release To Be Considered On Monday

  04-02-2018 22:19
  The US House Intelligence Committee will consider on Monday whether to release the Democratic rebuttal to a Republican memo that alleged bias at the FBI and Justice Department against President Donald Trump, two sources told Reuters.The four-page Republican memo, made public on Friday, has fueled a battle between Trump and top leaders at the FBI and Justice Department over Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.The
  
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• Plastic-Free – Are We Missing The Bigger Picture?

  04-02-2018 21:09
  The plastic-free debate that has been gaining momentum in the UK is hugely encouraging. Not only since Blue Planet do we know that plastic pollution is a massive problem for our environment. We see plastic bags on beaches, mountains of plastic in landfill and are reading horror stories on micro-plastics in fish.Many pubs and bars are now avoiding plastic straws and there has been an outcry over increasingly ridiculous plastic packaging in supermarkets.And with good reason. Conventional plastics
  
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• Are We Missing The Bigger Picture?

  04-02-2018 21:09
  The plastic-free debate that has been gaining momentum in the UK is hugely encouraging. Not only since Blue Planet do we know that plastic pollution is a massive problem for our environment. We see plastic bags on beaches, mountains of plastic in landfill and are reading horror stories on micro-plastics in fish.Many pubs and bars are now avoiding plastic straws and there has been an outcry over increasingly ridiculous plastic packaging in supermarkets.And with good reason. Conventional plastics
  
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• Trump's Nuclear Posture Review Makes War More Likely

  04-02-2018 21:03
  This week sees the release of the latest - and already leaked - US nuclear posture review. These reviews can be a powerful indicator of a president’s intentions and this one will, no doubt, be a taste of things to come. The 2002 version included President Bush’s demand for contingency plans for the use of nuclear weapons against at least seven countries – not only the so-called Axis of Evil, but also Russia, China, Libya and Syria. It also revisited some of the ideas of the ear
  
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• Downing Street rules out EU customs union to placate Brexiters

  04-02-2018 21:03 via ft.com
  Prime minister seeks to hold fractured cabinet together ahead of key meetings
  
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• Downing Street rules out EU customs union to assuage Brexiters

  04-02-2018 21:03 via ft.com
  Prime minister seeks to hold fractured cabinet together ahead of key meetings
  
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• A Future Where Only Smiles And Patience Exist: Mum Guilt

  04-02-2018 21:02
  Like many other mothers-to-be, I had an image of myself as a parent. I’d rub my ever-swelling belly, fast forwarding to a future where only smiles and patience existed; there were no cross words, and frustration simply wouldn’t exist in my household. I read blogs on creating a wonderful, enriching environment from birth, filled with sensory activities galore. I researched the best, and most nutritious, ways to wean and, even before my baby appeared, I knew exactly how I was going to
  
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• Children's Mental Health Week: The Five Things Every Kid Needs

  04-02-2018 20:59
  “Soaring numbers of children seeing psychiatrists amid anxiety epidemic”“Stress and social media fuel mental health crisis”“UK children who need mental health services face postcode lottery”These are just some headlines that illustrate how low mental health has sunk on the agenda. The problem is, however, that while they do highlight facts, they also scaremonger. Terms like ‘crisis’, ‘epidemic’, and ‘breaking point’ are used
  
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• PFI: hard lessons on growing cost of public-private deals

  04-02-2018 20:41 via ft.com
  The contracts that were meant to build schools and hospitals on a budget
  
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• Hard lessons: The growing cost of PFI

  04-02-2018 20:41 via ft.com
  The public-private deals that were meant to build schools and hospitals on a budget
  
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• Piers Morgan Explains Why He Didn't 'Press Harder' In Donald Trump Interview

  04-02-2018 20:40
  Piers Morgan has explained he didn’t press Donald Trump on issues such as climate change and gun crime simply because he wants to interview the President again.Responding to a Twitter user who claimed the content of last week’s controversial encounter in Davos was “worthless”, the Good Morning Britain host dismissed asking probing questions as a “stunt”.People would have had so much respect for you if you pressed harder and then we're able to say, Preside
  
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• BoE deputy warns against ‘bonfire of the regulations’ after Brexit

  04-02-2018 19:52 via ft.com
  Supervisor cautions on push for more competitive banking regime
  
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• Sunday Shows Round-Up: 'Snake Oil Salesmen', Ministers' Rift Over Customs Deal And Katie Price

  04-02-2018 17:15
  As reports emerge that Theresa May is set to face a Brexiteer challenge to her premiership, her ministers went before the cameras to do battle - with each other.Home Secretary Amber Rudd and Housing Minister Dominic Raab offered opposing views on what the UK would reach a customs deal with the EU within minutes of one another.Rudd insisted Theresa May was “open minded” on a deal “within the customs framework”, on the Andrew Marr Show, while Raab told Robert Peston later t
  
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• Katie Hopkins Collapses In South Africa, Blames It On Ketamine

  04-02-2018 16:56
  Katie Hopkins has tweeted a shocking photo of herself lying on a road in South Africa being attended to by medics.The controversial former-columnist can be seen receiving an injection and oxygen while face down.Hopkins offered a cryptic explanation for the picture, tweeting: ”(ketamine 1 / Hopkins 0)”. HuffPost UK has contacted the former Apprentice candidate for further comment.Grateful thanks to the South African emergency services for putting me back together. Leaving it all on th
  
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• ‘Great British firewall’ helps block 54m cyber attacks

  04-02-2018 16:25 via ft.com
  GCHQ’s ‘active defence programme’ leads to removal of more than 120,000 fake websites
  
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• UK Weather: 'Coldest Week Of Winter' Ahead But At Least It Will Be Sunny(ish)

  04-02-2018 16:11
  The coldest week of the winter could be just around the corner, with most of the population likely to see a few flakes of the white stuff.A series of weather warnings are in place, forecasting snow and ice from Sunday and throughout next week, the Met Office said.The mercury could plummet as low as minus 7C (19.4F) in some parts of the UK, while the bulk of the population can expect to shiver through sub-zero temperatures.Good evening UK! Angie here tonight for weather questions. Staying mainly
  
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• Another Carter Page Revelation Has Further Undermined The Russia Memo

  04-02-2018 15:44
  The controversial Republican-authored memo, declassified by Donald Trump on Friday, has been thrown into further doubt after it was revealed the man at the centre of it bragged about being an adviser to the Kremlin as far back as 2013.According to Time, former Trump campaign official Carter Page told a book editor he had had the “privilege” of working “informally” for Russia “over the past half year”.The claims were made in a letter he wrote dur
  
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• Brexiters prepare for battle with May on customs union

  04-02-2018 15:42 via ft.com
  Prime minister seeks way to hold fractured cabinet together ahead of key meetings
  
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• Brexiters battle May over plans for UK to join EU customs union

  04-02-2018 15:42 via ft.com
  Cabinet split ahead of crucial meetings on approach to future UK-EU relations
  
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• Theresa May plans to criminalise abuse of political candidates

  04-02-2018 15:20 via ft.com
  Speech marking centenary of women’s vote to call for ‘decency and respect’
  
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• Government plans to criminalise abuse of political candidates

  04-02-2018 15:20 via ft.com
  Move comes after inquiry found some candidates in last general election were subjected to ill-treatment
  
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• Ex-top civil servant likens Tory Brexiters to snake oil sellers

  04-02-2018 15:11 via theguardian.com
  Gus O’Donnell says accusations of impartiality are ‘completely crazy’ and ‘ridiculous’The former cabinet secretary Gus O’Donnell has compared Brexiter ministers and MPs to snake oil sellers after sustained attacks upon senior civil servants for lacking impartiality. Lord O’Donnell, who served under Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and David Cameron, said attacks on Whitehall officials were “completely crazy” and “ridiculous”. Continue rea
  
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• ‘Sunday Brunch’ Viewers Blast Chef Tim Maddams After He Says He’s Been ‘Feeding Game To Poor People’

  04-02-2018 15:02
  ‘Sunday Brunch’ viewers were left unimpressed by chef Tim Maddams’ choice of words on today’s (4 Feb) edition of the Channel 4 show.Tim was a guest on the show alongside hosts Tim Lovejoy and Simon Rimmer this morning when he made a comment about “poor people”.When the hosts asked him what he’d been up to, the chef replied: “Usual stuff, lots of teaching, working for a charity feeding game to poor people. Or people who are in need of food. I’
  
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• Two Freemasons' lodges operating secretly at Westminster

  04-02-2018 15:00 via theguardian.com
  Exclusive: Lodges for MPs and journalists are so covert even lobby reporters do not know membersIntegrity or influence? Inside the world of modern FreemasonsTwo Freemasons’ lodges set up for members of parliament and political journalists are continuing to operate secretly at Westminster, the Guardian has learned.New Welcome Lodge, which recruits MPs, peers and parliamentary staff, and Gallery Lodge, established for members of the political press corps known as the lobby, both remain activ
  
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• 'Shambolic': women's groups accuse government over vote centenary funding

  04-02-2018 14:56 via theguardian.com
  Just 4% of money for grassroots groups allocated in time for anniversary of 1918 suffrage actIt was supposed to be the moment that kickstarted a year of centenary celebrations around the act of parliament which gave some women the vote and paved the way for universal suffrage 10 years later.But the government has been accused of undermining celebrations in a crucial year for gender equality, after groups were given just four days to bid for funds to mark 6 February, the anniversary of the day th
  
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• Gerry Adams: Brexit will be a disaster for the island of Ireland

  04-02-2018 14:53 via theguardian.com
  Outgoing Sinn Féin president calls for Northern Ireland to be granted special statusSinn Féin’s outgoing president, Gerry Adams, has labelled Brexit a “disaster” for the island of Ireland.Adams called for Northern Ireland to be granted special status to allow the region to remain within the customs union and single market after the UK leaves the EU. Continue reading...
  
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• Jacob Rees-Mogg recognises a Tory party ripe for capture

  04-02-2018 14:32 via ft.com
  A lack of competition means there is a chance for almost anyone to break through
  
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• Cabinet is united on Brexit trade strategy, insists Amber Rudd

  04-02-2018 14:00 via theguardian.com
  Claim of ‘dream team’ challenge to Theresa May’s leadership over customs union membership Amber Rudd has tried to quell threats by Brexiters of a challenge to Theresa May’s leadership following reports that Eurosceptic MPs are getting ready to move against the prime minister if she tries to keep the UK in a customs union.After claims that Boris Johnson, Michael Gove and Jacob Rees-Mogg could form a “dream team” to stop the prime minister’s alleged plan,
  
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• Katie Price Reveals Internet Trolls Made 'Sex Videos' Of Her Disabled Son

  04-02-2018 13:49
  Katie Price has revealed how internet trolls made “sex videos” of her disabled son Harvey.The reality TV star is campaigning to make online abuse a specific criminal offence and will this week give evidence to a Commons committee.Her 15-year-old son Harvey - who is partially blind, autistic and has Prader-Willi syndrome - was hit with abuse on Twitter last year by an unnamed 19-year-old who received a caution from Sussex Police.Price won the backing of MPs Stella Creasy and John Whit
  
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• Jack Whitehall Reveals Regret Over Crude Joke About The Queen Which Upset His Family

  04-02-2018 13:25
  Jack Whitehall has said he regrets making a crude joke about the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.The comedian said the remark about The Queen catching a urinary infection from the Duke Of Edinburgh on 2012’s Big Fat Quiz Of The Year had upset his family.Appearing on BBC Radio 4′s ‘Desert Island Discs’ he admitted he is now a “lot more careful” about what he says and “self-censor[s] more”.He said: “I have a relatively thick skin but I nev
  
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• Marine cuts would 'undermine UK security'

  04-02-2018 13:19 via bbc.co.uk
  MPs describe rumoured cuts as "militarily illiterate" and warn the Treasury "has got to cough up".
  
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• UK Met Office Weather Forecast: Brits Urged To Brace For ‘Coldest' Winter Week

  04-02-2018 13:06
  The coldest week of the winter could be just around the corner, with most of the population likely to see a few flakes of the white stuff.A series of weather warnings are in place, forecasting snow and ice from Sunday and throughout next week, the Met Office said. The mercury could plummet as low as minus 7C (19.4F) in some parts of the UK, while the bulk of the population can expect to shiver through sub-zero temperatures.(PA Graphics)Met Office forecaster Craig Snell said the first full w
  
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• Theresa May's plan to end intimidation in politics

  04-02-2018 12:57 via bbc.co.uk
  Theresa May will consider new legislation to protect candidates, 100 years after women got the vote.
  
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• Amber Rudd hits back at Tory Brexiteers

  04-02-2018 12:37 via bbc.co.uk
  The home secretary says ministers are more united on Brexit than critics claim.
  
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• South Carolina Train Crash - At Least Two Dead, 50 Injured, Reports Say

  04-02-2018 12:31
  At least two people have died and more than 50 injured after an Amtrak train collided with a freight locomotive in the US state of South Carolina.The accident occurred at 2.55am near Cayce, SC, around 63 miles north-west of Augusta, officials said.The Lexington County Sheriff’s Department tweeted to confirm the two fatalities.Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher has confirmed two deaths in passenger train versus freight train. Please follow and share official sources for such informati
  
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• Claire Kober accuses Labour members of sexism and bullying

  04-02-2018 12:27 via bbc.co.uk
  Haringey Council's leader, Claire Kober, has accused sections of the Labour Party of "sexism" and "bullying".
  
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• Amber Rudd Slaps Down Jacob Rees-Mogg Over Civil Servants 'Fiddling The Figures' Claim

  04-02-2018 12:18
  Home Secretary Amber Rudd has slapped down Tory backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg over his astounding claim Treasury officials are “fiddling the figures”.Rudd said she was “surprised” that the Brexiteer backbencher “used that language” and that his attack on UK civil servants “is wrong”.The Theresa May-ally also dismissed reports of a Brexiteer coup when she appeared on the Andrew Marr Show on Sunday.Rees-Mogg has said he is “suspicious” of h
  
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• Brendan Cole Admits Shirley Ballas Comments Could Have Cost Him His Job On ‘Strictly Come Dancing’

  04-02-2018 12:04
  Brendan Cole has admitted his differences with head judge Shirley Ballas on the last series of ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ could have played a part in his contract not being renewed.Earlier this week, the professional dancer revealed he had been axed from the BBC dance show.Although the BBC have given no official reason for his departure after 13 with the show, Brendan thinks he made his own bed after being “disrespectful” to Shirley when she critiqued one of his dances with
  
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• Scottish Government Minister Humza Yousaf Speaks Out About Racist Abuse

  04-02-2018 11:59
  Scottish Transport Minister Humza Yousaf has said racist threats had left him so “worried” about his family’s safety that he carries a personal attack alarm, describing the measure as “par for the course”.Yousaf has also beefed up security at his house and his constituency office, and no longer conducts surgeries alone.The politician, who was the first Holyrood minister to come from an ethnic minority background, told how he had received a private briefing from the
  
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• Sir Vince Cable: 'Corbyn crucial' to second Brexit referendum

  04-02-2018 11:45 via bbc.co.uk
  Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable denies that a second Brexit referendum is "a dead duck".
  
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• Amber Rudd: Jacob Rees-Mogg 'wrong' to attack civil service

  04-02-2018 11:44 via bbc.co.uk
  Amber Rudd says the Brexiteer should not have accused Treasury officials of fiddling figures.
  
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• John Worboys Moved Back Out Of Capital After Prison Transfer Outrage

  04-02-2018 10:44
  Black cab rapist John Worboys has been transferred back to HMP Wakefield from HMP Belmarsh following uproar at his move to the London jail.The Prison Service faced a backlash in January after the serial sex offender was moved to the city where he committed his crimes.The Press Association reported he has been moved back to the category A prison in West Yorkshire while legal proceedings take place over his release on parole.Worboys’ return to HMP Wakefield emerged as a lawyer said she had p
  
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• Royal Marines cuts would undermine security, say MPs

  04-02-2018 10:39 via theguardian.com
  Reducing ability to carry out amphibious operations would be dangerous, a report has warnedCuts to the Royal Marines and the ability to carry out amphibious operations would significantly undermine the UK’s security, MPs have said in a strongly-worded report.The capability of the Royal Marines must not be sacrificed to the demands of “Treasury bookkeeping”, the defence select committee said in response to speculation that amphibious capabilities could be reduced in a Whitehall
  
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• Brexit attacks on civil service are reminiscent of 'pre-war Nazi Germany’

  04-02-2018 10:31 via theguardian.com
  Ex-cabinet secretary attacks tactics of leading Brexiters who have accused Whitehall of sabotaging UK’s exit from EULeading Brexiters who accuse civil servants of sabotaging Britain’s exit from the EU are adopting dangerous tactics similar to those of rightwing German nationalists between the two world wars, a former head of the civil service has warned.In a stark assessment of the acute tensions developing over the issue, Andrew Turnbull, who led the civil service under Tony Blair,
  
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• Liverpool Bar Murder Probe: Three Men Arrested Over Death Of Reveller, 29

  04-02-2018 10:16
  Three men have been arrested on suspicion of murder after a man was fatally injured in a bar.Anthony Condron, 29, died in hospital following an incident in the Maya Bar in Liverpool city centre in the early hours of Saturday morning.Merseyside Police said the men – a 22-year-old from Liverpool, a 24-year-old from Aigburth and a 23-year-old from Mossley Hill – are being questioned by detectives and appealed for revellers at the bar to come forward.Merseyside Police have arrested three
  
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• World Cancer Day: Five People Affected By Cancer Share Their Moving Stories

  04-02-2018 10:00
  Almost 360,000 people are diagnosed with cancer in the UK every year and each one of their stories is different. In the run up to World Cancer Day, five people affected by the disease, either personally or through family, have shared their stories in a series of blogs on HuffPost UK.Their insights lift the lid on the realities of diagnosis, treatment and life after the all clear, revealing that while cancer is never easy, it is possible to find happiness again. “My dog jumped on
  
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• From Nest to Hive to Homekit: Smart Home Devices Explained

  04-02-2018 10:00
  If there’s one term that has been thrown around a lot in the last 12-18 months it is the smart home. In simple terms, this refers to a new range of products which connect to the internet to allow you to control your home in a way that’s potentially more energy efficient and convenient.You may even have the makings of a smart home without realising it. Products like Nest and Hive have grown in popularity, and you may have had one installed the last time your boiler died. But what
  
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• May Told She Must Deliver ‘Clean Brexit’ To Keep Support Of Tory Party

  04-02-2018 09:57
  Theresa May must defy Chancellor Philip Hammond and deliver a “clean Brexit” if she is to hold the Conservative Party together, a leading Tory backbench Brexiteer has warned.As senior ministers prepare for two days of discussions on Britain future relationship with the EU, Bernard Jenkin said Tory MPs “overwhelmingly” wanted an end to the current uncertainty.Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, he warned the Prime Minister would only continue to command a majority in Parliame
  
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• A Reflection On This Week’s Headlines, On World Cancer Day

  04-02-2018 09:57
  This week, in the lead up to Sunday’s World Cancer Day, we have unsurprisingly seen a great number of headlines about the disease. They have painted a mixed picture about breast cancer in this country. We’ve welcomed fantastic news -  Perjeta, a truly life-changing drug for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer was approved by NICE for routine NHS use in England and Wales.This long-awaited victory means that women with incurable metastatic breast cancer could be offered over
  
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