Political news

• Theresa May Vows To Keep UK 'Strong And United' During Brexit Countdown Tour

  28-03-2018 23:46
  Theresa May will tour the country to explain how she will deliver a Brexit keeps the UK “strong and united”.Marking one year until the UK quits the EU, the Prime Minister will on Thursday attempt to bridge the gap between Leave and Remain voters and promise to “strengthen the bonds that unite us”.Amid fears of a hard Irish border, she will promise that “no new barriers are created within our common domestic market”. The PM’s bid to heal divisions ca
  
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• Emily Thornberry criticised for 'blah blah' Brexit remarks

  28-03-2018 22:54 via bbc.co.uk
  The shadow foreign secretary suggests a crunch Commons vote will be meaningless.
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn decries abuse of antisemitism protest MPs

  28-03-2018 22:50
  In an interview with Jewish News, Labour leader says he will not tolerate abuse of protestersJeremy Corbyn has condemned the vilification and abuse of Labour MPs who attended Monday night’s demonstration against antisemitism in the party.As leaders of the Jewish organisations that staged the protest told him that they would not meet him until he intervened to halt the attacks on social media, Corbyn said he was profoundly concerned by any abuse.Continue reading...
  
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• Keir Starmer says Labour is prepared to vote down Brexit bill

  28-03-2018 22:31
  Party has six tests the deal must meet in order to gain support, shadow Brexit secretary insistsKeir Starmer has moved to reassure anxious Labour MPs that the shadow cabinet is prepared to vote against the government’s Brexit deal after Emily Thornberry appeared to suggest the agreement could be so vague her party might back it.Parliament has been promised a meaningful vote on the withdrawal agreement and the shadow Brexit secretary has laid out six tests he says the deal must meet. Contin
  
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• Russia will hit back against countries expelling diplomats, says Johnson

  28-03-2018 22:30
  Foreign secretary warns of possible disruption to energy supplies or harassment of diplomatic missions in MoscowBoris Johnson, the British foreign secretary, has predicted Russia will retaliate against countries that have acted in solidarity with the UK over the poisoning of Russian spy Sergei Skripal, suggesting Moscow may interfere with energy supplies, or disrupt the lives of their Moscow-based diplomats and their families.Hailing the courage of the 27 countries that had backed Britain by tak
  
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• Senior Tory MPs accused of accepting money from former Soviet states

  28-03-2018 22:18
  Journalist uses parliamentary privilege to name Liam Fox and John Whittingdale at Russian corruption hearingAllegations about financial links between two Conservative MPs and former Soviet states sympathetic to Vladimir Putin aired during a foreign affairs select committee hearing, prompted the chair to urge witnesses to stop repeating them, saying it was not a kangaroo court.The claims, made under parliamentary privilege on Wednesday, concerned Liam Fox, the trade secretary, and John Whittingda
  
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• Labour 'Doomed' If Jeremy Corbyn's Anti-Semitism 'Fiasco' Continues, Warns David Blunkett

  28-03-2018 22:03
  David Blunkett has hit out at the “fiasco” of how Jeremy Corbyn has dealt with accusations that Labour is riven with anti-Semitism.Lord Blunkett said the problem of anti-Jewish racism within the party had “worsened” under Corbyn’s leadership.Speaking at the British Academy in central-London on Wednesday evening, the former Labour home secretary said the only way Corbyn would now become the next prime minister would be if he “stops being Jeremy Corbyn&rdqu
  
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• Sergei Skripal And Daughter First Came Into Contact With Nerve Agent At Home In Salisbury, Police Reveal

  28-03-2018 21:34
  Police investigating the poisoning of a former Russian spy and his daughter have revealed the pair first came into contact with the nerve agent at their home in Salisbury.Detectives investigating the attempted murder of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, both of whom remain in a critical condition in hospital, said on Wednesday that the highest concentration of the nerve agent was found on the front door of their home.Police said they will continue to focus their enquiries around the ho
  
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• Government Spokesman Lord Keen Blurts Out 'Arse' After Dropping Glass Of Water In House Of Lords

  28-03-2018 21:17
  The House of Lords was left unsure where to look after government spokesman Lord Keen blurted out “arse” after dropping a glass of water during a Brexit debate.The peer used the expletive after he took an intervention from Baroness Altmann during the EU (Withdrawal) Bill committee stage debate and knocked a glass of water all over himself.A doorkeeper later mopped up the water from the floor and surrounding desk.Whoops pic.twitter.com/ZJAGj9QEeK— Esther Webber (@estwebber) Marc
  
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• Council tax bills to rise 5% as social care burden grows

  28-03-2018 20:39 via ft.com
  Local authorities under increasing pressure to finance services
  
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• Nicola Jennings on one year until Brexit – cartoon

  28-03-2018 20:24
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• Tommy Robinson permanently banned by Twitter

  28-03-2018 20:20
  Former English Defence League leader banned for violating rules governing ‘hateful conduct’The former leader of the English Defence League Tommy Robinson has been permanently banned from Twitter.It is understood that the rightwing extremist fell foul of Twitter’s rules governing “hateful conduct”. Continue reading...
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn’s ‘Blind Spot’ On Anti-Semitism Risks Jewish Support, Barnet Council’s Labour Leader Warns

  28-03-2018 20:18
  The leader of Barnet Council’s Labour group has declared that Jeremy Corbyn has a “blind spot” on anti-semitism that risks costing the party crucial Jewish support in its bid to topple the Tories in the local elections.In an exclusive blog for HuffPost UK, Barry Rawlings said the Labour leader should state clearly that his supporters on the Left who compare Israelis to Hitler are “no better than far right fascists”.His hard-hitting words came as Labour MP John Woodc
  
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• Home Office criticised for series of immigration failures

  28-03-2018 20:18 via ft.com
  Five inspection reports find problems with child asylum, exit checks and border controls
  
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• Corbyn Must Explicit In Saying 'Dayenu' To Antisemitism In Our Movement

  28-03-2018 20:07
  This Friday evening, Jewish people around the world will be sitting around their table reciting the story of Passover, which tells the story of their slavery, oppression and deliverance from slavery to freedom in the land of Egypt, and they will all be saying a word: ‘Dayenu’. Enough.The message ‘Dayenu’ was delivered to the leadership of my party this Monday night in an unprecedented rally against antisemitism within my party. It is utterly disgusting that it has come to
  
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• Corbyn Must Be Explicit In Saying 'Dayenu' To Antisemitism In Our Movement

  28-03-2018 20:07
  This Friday evening, Jewish people around the world will be sitting around their table reciting the story of Passover, which tells the story of their slavery, oppression and deliverance from slavery to freedom in the land of Egypt, and they will all be saying a word: ‘Dayenu’. Enough.The message ‘Dayenu’ was delivered to the leadership of my party this Monday night in an unprecedented rally against antisemitism within my party. It is utterly disgusting that it has come to
  
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• May pledges £600m boost for nuclear submarines

  28-03-2018 20:03 via ft.com
  Move seen as attempt to address growing concerns over public spending
  
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• The Guardian view on Brexit: now is the time to change course | Editorial

  28-03-2018 19:31
  Only a year is now left until the UK’s official moment of departure from the European Union on terms almost certainlydecided by a rightwing clique of ToriesWhen a majority of MPs voted a year ago to authorise the activation of article 50, they did so because they felt it was their duty as mandated by the Brexit referendum. But this does not mean parliament has to agree to whatever Brexit Theresa May offers. Democracy demanded that the vote be honoured, but that doesn’t mean everythin
  
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• Elite's 'Obsession' With Identity Politics Drove Brexit, Australia's Top Diplomat Warns

  28-03-2018 19:30
  The metropolitan elite’s “obsession” with identity politics helped drive the Brexit vote as they don’t understand national pride, Australia’s top UK diplomat claimed in his outgoing speech.Alexander Downer, who has represented Australia in the UK for four years, believes MPs, the Civil Service, the BBC are disconnected from the “mainstream” of society and as a result don’t understand the “pride” many have in Britain.The outgoing Austral
  
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• Border exit checks records for 600,000 people missing, watchdog reveals

  28-03-2018 19:20
  Home Office staff say May’s ‘100% departure checks’ system is rushed and flawedTheresa May’s long-promised system of “100% exit checks” at Britain’s borders is so unreliable that it contains no departure records for more than 600,000 people who should have left the country in the past two years, a watchdog has revealed.
  A report by David Bolt, the chief inspector of borders and immigration, said that the system also contains a growing “unmatched po
  
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• Channel 5 Reports 2.85% Gender Pay Gap In Favour Of Women

  28-03-2018 18:59
  Women working at Channel 5 earn an average of nearly 3% more than men, new figures have revealed. The broadcaster is the latest to publish its compulsory report on gender pay, with the figures standing in stark contrast to their rival networks. It has said there is a mean gender pay gap of 2.85% in favour of women, making it the only UK broadcaster so far to report female employees are taking home more than male ones. However, bonuses are still skewed towards men, who earn a mean
  
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• Britain to review wealthy Russians’ visas

  28-03-2018 18:59 via ft.com
  Move comes after the poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal in Salisbury
  
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• Time to end the disastrous experiment in outsourcing | Letters

  28-03-2018 18:54
  The only winners from outsourcing are the wealthy investors, writes Norma Hornby, while Mike Scott says that campaigners in Nottingham finally managed to persuade their local NHS trust to reverse its privatising programmePolly Toynbee’s powerful description of outsourcing as “a dogma that’s run out of road” is very apt (Opinion, 26 March). As a long-serving council employee and former chair of several charities in a deprived community in the north-west, I am only too awar
  
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• Julian Assange's Internet Disabled At The Ecuador Embassy In London

  28-03-2018 18:51
  The Ecuador Embassy in London has disabled Julian Assange’s outside communications, officials have confirmed.The Embassy announced on Wednesday they were taking the measure in response to the WikiLeaks founder’s recent activity on social media.Assange has been living inside the Embassy in the UK capital since June 2012, when he entered the building to avoid extradition to Sweden to face questioning about allegations of sex crimes, which he has always denied.Officials previously cut o
  
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• Pontius Maybot fails to press home her advantage

  28-03-2018 18:49
  Even in this grimmest of weeks for Jeremy Corbyn, victory wasn’t quite within the prime minister’s reach at PMQsWeeks like these. Jeremy Corbyn checked through his notes. Probably not the best week to bring up racism, now that the pockets of antisemitism in the Labour party had been located uncomfortably close to those on his own jacket. Brexit was also a non-starter: he’d never managed to affect the right amount of outrage about something he was secretly quite keen on. Russia
  
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• Labour warned nationalisation plans could break law

  28-03-2018 18:49 via ft.com
  Grayling claims proposals would be blocked by human rights legislation
  
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• Boris Johnson urged to apologise for attending 'racist' campaign launch

  28-03-2018 18:48
  Foreign secretary was pictured at launch of local Tory campaign in Romford that has been accused of ‘dog-whistle racism’Boris Johnson has been urged to apologise after it emerged that he attended the launch of local Tory campaign that has been accused of “dog-whistle racism”.The foreign secretary was pictured on a visit to Romford market, in east London, last December to help launch the “Keep Havering Safe” campaign before the local elections.Continue reading.
  
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• One Day You Will Miss The 2am Feed In The Dead Of Night

  28-03-2018 18:37
  When you are in the midst of the endless night feeds and sleep deprivation is making you slightly crazy, you think the person who tells you that you will miss it someday is either slightly unhinged, or about to be slapped. But they are right. One day you will miss the 2am feed in the dead of night, just you and your precious bundle. Because one day, you too will look back on parenting with a rose tinted haze.You see women with bellies full of babies and you forget the back ache, the sweating, an
  
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• The plastics crisis is more urgent than you know. Recycling bottles won’t fix it | John Vidal

  28-03-2018 18:25
  A deposit scheme for bottles won’t make a scrap of difference. This stuff is in our food, our clothes – and in usWest Wales, last weekend. The old foam mattress lying waterlogged on an otherwise clean beach might have been at sea for months before it was washed up on the tide. A large bit of it had broken off, and the rest was crumbling. It was a clear threat to wildlife, so we heaved what was left of it above the wave line and promised to come back to dispose of it properly when it
  
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• Ireland Abortion Referendum Date Set for Friday 25 May 2018, Government Announces

  28-03-2018 18:21
  A referendum will be held in Ireland on May 25 over the divisive issue of legalising abortion, it has been announced.The date, announced on Wednesday, will be the first opportunity in 35 years for voters to have their say on abortion. Abortion has long been a divisive issue in the once stridently Catholic country, where a complete ban was lifted only in 2013 when terminations were allowed in cases where the mother’s life was in danger.Voters will be asked if they wish to rep
  
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• Don’t dare call me Mrs Moorhead. I kept my own name for a reason | Joanna Moorhead

  28-03-2018 18:12
  Boris Johnson was rebuked for referring to Emily Thornberry by her husband’s name. Good. I wouldn’t have stood for it eitherOccasionally there is an event that makes me want to punch the air joyfully, because it’s proof that some things are headed in the right direction. One of those moments came this week when Boris Johnson was upbraided by the speaker of the Commons, John Bercow, for an example of everyday sexism that Johnson had hoped would subtly damage his “vict
  
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• Corbyn urged to act over abuse of MPs who went to antisemitism protest

  28-03-2018 18:12
  Jewish organisations tell Labour leader they will not accept his invitation to meet them unless he intervenesLeaders of the Jewish organisations that organised Monday night’s protest against antisemitism in the Labour party have told Jeremy Corbyn that until he intervenes to stop the abuse of the MPs and peers who attended it, they will not accept his invitation to meet them.Several of the MPs who went to the meeting are being attacked on social media. Continue reading...
  
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• The Great Barrier Reef Could Be Protected By A Giant 'Sun Shield'

  28-03-2018 18:11
  The Great Barrier Reef has become arguably one of the biggest casualties of global warming with over a third of the reef dying in 2016.The sun’s rays, combined with increasingly warm waters causes the corals to bleach and in severe cases completely die out.Well one solution could be to reduce the effect of the sun on the water and in turn the reef by implementing a giant ‘sun shield’.Developed by the University of Melbourne and the Australian Institute this ultra-thin film woul
  
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• Labour MP Conor McGinn Makes Passionate Case For Same-Sex Marriage In Northern Ireland

  28-03-2018 17:50
  Labour MP Conor McGinn made a passionate case in the House of Commons for same-sex marriage to be extended to Northern Ireland. The Government has faced repeated calls to introduce marriage equality in the region since power-sharing talks at Stormont broke down over a year ago. Backbencher McGinn, who was born and raised in County Armagh, told MPs Theresa May has a “moral and political duty to act” in the absence of devolved government. He presented a Bill in Parliamen
  
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• Amber Rudd signals delay in UK immigration bill

  28-03-2018 17:49 via ft.com
  Policy to be set out after Brexit negotiations, home secretary tells MPs
  
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• Strictly Come Dancing's Kevin And Karen Clifton Vow To Keep Dancing Together

  28-03-2018 17:46
  ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ professionals Kevin and Karen Clifton have vowed to keep on performing together, despite having recently announced they are going through a divorce. The pair opened up about their marriage split during an appearance on ‘This Morning’, just weeks after publicly confirming they were no longer together romantically.While the pair were already committed to touring their theatre show prior to their break-up, they have claimed they will carry on the
  
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• Emily Thornberry Says Labour Will Probably Vote In Favour Of Theresa May's Brexit Deal

  28-03-2018 17:36
  Labour will probably vote in favour of Theresa May’s Brexit deal, Emily Thornberry has said.The shadow foreign secretary said the prime minister would return with such a “blah, blah, blah” agreement that it would likely past Labour’s “six tests”.Speaking at the Chatham House foreign policy think-tank on Wednesday, Thornberry said: “What’s the nature of the divorce? And I think if past evidence of the last few months is anything to go on, it’s
  
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• UK regulators strive to safeguard London’s status

  28-03-2018 17:31 via ft.com
  Bank of England and Financial Conduct Authority make Brexit concessions to EU firms
  
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• Regulators step up efforts to safeguard City of London’s status

  28-03-2018 17:31 via ft.com
  Move offers passporting rights to EU firms during Brexit transition period
  
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• Unsane Is Just Another Film That Fuels Negative Mental Health Stereotypes

  28-03-2018 17:28
  Whether it was the deeply distrubing content, the distracting and edgy direction or the complete lack of entertainment value and story I can’t be sure, but one thing is certain; Unsane is one of the worst films I’ve ever seen and thank goodness for Cineworld Unlimited because if I’d have paid to watch it, I’d be begging for a refund.Going into the film, I tried to keep an open mind because I’d heard and seen some things that made me skeptical, and with much of the f
  
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• Theresa May Threw LGBT+ People Under The Bus Over Outed Whistleblower

  28-03-2018 17:25
  When she addressed the question of why a member of her staff had outed a gay whistleblower, Prime Minister Theresa May clearly picked her words very carefully as she danced around the point with great trepidation. What her response showed, though, was just how out of touch she was with both the situation and the issue of being an open or closeted member of the LGBT+ community.“Can I ask the Prime Minister,” Labour MP for Exeter Ben Bradshaw began, “how is it remotely acceptable
  
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• Grammar schools don’t add any value. So let’s ditch them | Ryan Shorthouse

  28-03-2018 16:49
  Latest analysis shows that grammar schools have a negative effect on social mobility and are no more effective than comprehensivesTheresa May’s style, in her own words, circa two years ago: “I actually look at the evidence, take the advice, consider it properly and then come to a decision.”Good stuff. Especially, you would have thought, for education reform, where – in comparison with other policy areas – there is a significant body of evidence, both in this country
  
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• Tiffany Haddish Hits Back At Beyoncé's Fans Over 'Face-Biting' Claims

  28-03-2018 16:46
  Tiffany Haddish has defended herself after coming under fire from Beyoncé’s die-hard fans over her recent loose-lipped interview.You know, the one where she let slip that Beyoncé was involved with a scuffle with an undisclosed actress at a party, culminating in the singer being bitten on the actual face?Given Beyoncé’s penchant for privacy when it comes to her personal life, the Beyhive (the name given to the Queen Bey’s most devoted army of fans) haven&rsq
  
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• Google Knows Literally Everything About You - Here's How To Delete That Data

  28-03-2018 16:39
  Google, just like Facebook, collects a lot of personal data about its users. While many of us might have put that thought to the back of our minds, this week one web developer reminded us of the true extent of Google’s great data grab with this eye-opening Twitter thread.Want to freak yourself out? I'm gonna show just how much of your information the likes of Facebook and Google store about you without you even realising it— Dylan Curran (@iamdylancurran) March 24, 2018The post went
  
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• Ken Dodd Specifically Requests Funeral-Goers To Donate To Merseyside's Homeless

  28-03-2018 16:32
  Sir Ken Dodd asked that those in attendance at this funeral to donate to help a homeless charity, it has been revealed. The comedian was laid to rest at a service on Wednesday (28 March), with an image of the order of service detailing his last wish to help the charity Homeless On Merseyside. “This was his specific request and we thank you,” it read. A line from the Order of Service at Sir Ken Dodd’s funeral. His “specific request” asking fo
  
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• People Shouldn't Have To 'Prove' They Have An Invisible Illness Or Disability

  28-03-2018 16:25
  Being disabled or having a chronic illness is not always visible from the outside, but that doesn’t mean it affects your life any less. Yet people who have invisible illnesses or disabilities are routinely asked to “prove” their condition to others.Paralympic athlete Sophia Warner, who has cerebral palsy, tweeted about her experience of this on Tuesday, saying she was ordered to “publicly prove” her condition by EasyJet staff at an airport. “I was told &l
  
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• The Grim Truth About Your Child's Rubber Ducks: They May Contain Harmful Bacteria

  28-03-2018 16:14
  Your child’s rubber duck bath toy could be unexpectedly harming them, researchers have found. These plastic toys can be full of bacteria that could spread diseases,Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, ETH Zurich and the University of Illinois, counted microbes [bacteria causing disease] inside 19 bath toys by cutting them open to reveal what the liquid was like inside. They also carried out controlled experiments on six iden
  
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• Labour MPs attack ruling that Dan Jarvis must quit to run for mayor

  28-03-2018 16:10
  Party decision that Jarvis must step down as MP to run in Sheffield criticised as ‘undemocratic’Yorkshire Labour MPs have called demands for the Barnsley MP Dan Jarvis to resign his Commons seat in order to stand as Sheffield mayor “unfair” and “undemocratic”.Labour’s ruling national executive committee decided earlier this month that Jarvis should stand down if he won the nomination to contest the new post of mayor of Sheffield city region. Continue rea
  
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• If you can’t see antisemitism, it’s time to open your eyes | Michael Seagalov

  28-03-2018 16:04
  Jeremy Corbyn isn’t alone – everyone in the Labour party should have recognised how offensive that mural wasSome forms of antisemitism are self-evident in their manifestation: neo-Nazis wielding swastikas, denial of the Holocaust, vile sentiments known as the “blood libel”, which suggest that Jews harvest the blood of Christians with which to celebrate religious festivals year on year. Most of us would recognise these as bigoted and hateful, an attack on a community that
  
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• Ulster Rugby Rape Trial: Verdicts Prompt Outpouring Of Support For Alleged Victim

  28-03-2018 15:55
  The acquittal of two international rugby players of rape has prompted an outpouring of online support for their alleged victim, under the hashtag #ibelieveher. Paddy Jackson, 26, and Stuart Olding, 25, both from Belfast, were accused of rape by a woman who joined them on a night out in June 2016. They denied the charges, with Jackson denying a further charge of sexual assault. The trial, which was described byJudge Patricia Smith as “the most difficult ... that any jury
  
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