Political news

• Eddie Izzard Calls For 'Stain Of Anti-Semitism' To Be Removed From Labour Party

  01-04-2018 22:58
  Eddie Izzard has called on the Labour Party to “stamp out the stain of anti-Semitism” that is being pushed by a “minority” of members as he replaces a senior party official who quit over a “Holocaust hoax” row.The comedian, actor and activist said Labour must “make amends and repair the damage with the Jewish community”, in line with the commitment given by party leader Jeremy Corbyn to crackdown on anti-Semitism.He spoke out as the party
  
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• Tributes Paid To Northern Irish Boy, 9, Killed After Tenerife Hit-And-Run

  01-04-2018 21:49
  A nine-year-old killed in a hit and run in Tenerife has been described a “wee superstar” by his father.Carter Carson, from Newtownabbey near Belfast, had been on holiday when he was hit by a car.He was leaving a shopping centre with his family in Adeje in the south of the island on Thursday.Despite efforts to save him, the Abbots Cross Primary School pupil died in hospital on Friday.A car believed to have been involved in the crash was found abandoned a few miles from the scene. 
  
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• Low estimates of participants undermine gender pay data

  01-04-2018 21:27 via ft.com
  Government out by 60% on number of public bodies required to report
  
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• Eddie Izzard calls for Labour to 'stamp out' anti-Semitism

  01-04-2018 20:30 via bbc.co.uk
  The comedian asks Labour to 'make amends' to Jewish supporters as he joins the party’s ruling body.
  
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• May plans ‘customs partnership’ to unlock Northern Ireland dilemma

  01-04-2018 20:08 via ft.com
  Trade experts say proposed scheme is challenging and would take years to implement
  
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• May plans ‘customs partnership’ for N Ireland

  01-04-2018 20:08 via ft.com
  Trade experts say proposed scheme is challenging and would take years to implement
  
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• We Need To Stop Shaming C-Section Mums

  01-04-2018 20:07
  Let me tell you a story about the very first birth I ever witnessed.I was a student nurse on my maternity placement. The room was tense, with an air of anticipation.It was in hospital and the mother and father had been waiting anxiously and eagerly for this day, the day when they would finally get to meet their precious baby.Doctors and midwives gathered round to help welcome this new life and I was allowed to observe and given a prime spot to witness the miracle. Silence. The sound of suction,
  
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• Why We Need To Talk About The Menopause

  01-04-2018 20:03
  “Hugely positive, solidarity, support, tips. Brilliant, thanks so much.” “So helpful to talk to others - women at all different stages of life. Helped to see the positive side of this time of my life - and the future!”A group of people sat together and talked about the menopause. Is that so unusual? Yes!As Mrs Franklin might have said “Nothing can be said to be certain, except death and menopause”, yet we hardly ever speak about the menopause. All women experi
  
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• Alarm as government rewrites UK 'torture guidance' in secret

  01-04-2018 20:00
  Civil liberties groups fear guidance to prevent human rights abuses may be weakenedA British government guidance paper that is intended to prevent the country’s intelligence officers from becoming involved in human rights abuses is being rewritten in secret, much to the alarm of civil liberties groups.Rights activists are deeply worried that the UK government may be tempted to water down the guidance at a time when the US president, Donald Trump, has said he hopes to restore waterboarding
  
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• In Light Of Transgender Day Of Visibility: Can You See Me Now?

  01-04-2018 19:59
  Saturday was Transgender Day Of Visibility. It happens every year. It was trans day of visibility 365 days ago... so can you now see me?I am trans. I am proud. I am visible. I exist. You may deny it, many do. Yet I wake up in the morning and my substantial hands make breakfast. My feet hit the pedals and I drive a car. I’m heard when I speak to people. I exist. I’m seen, in some ways. And yes, I don’t doubt that on Saturday plenty of cis people turned to their friends and
  
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• Why Autism Awareness Week Is Not Enough

  01-04-2018 19:56
  No one had any inkling that I was autistic. I didn’t have a clue either, until a period of increasing anxiety and depression in my early 30s had me researching potential causes, and I read up on the topic of ‘Autistic Spectrum Disorder’. I completed a few online tests, saw my GP, got referred and within four months I had been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome (a form of autism). Family were surprised, friends shocked… until I told them about the common traits of a
  
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• Ben Jennings on Theresa May's Easter message – cartoon

  01-04-2018 19:32
  Continue reading...
  
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• Good news: tax gap down, tax take up | Brief letters

  01-04-2018 19:16
  Tax collection | Opening bowlers | Pope and hell | Mr Pastry lookalike John Bolton | Size of quick crossword | Ear-splitting WagnerHMRC never settles disputes for any less than the amount of tax we believe is due under the law (Report, 27 March). We subject large businesses to an exceptional level of scrutiny, actively investigating more than half of the UK’s largest businesses at any one time. Last year alone HMRC secured £8bn in additional funding for our vital public services by i
  
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• Nerve Agent Attack: Bishop Of Salisbury Says Spy Poisoning Was A ‘Violation’

  01-04-2018 19:14
  The Bishop of Salisbury has described the Salisbury poisoning as an “act of violation” in his Easter sermon.The Rt Revd Nicholas Holtam said there has been “anxiety, puzzlement and anger” in the community after Sergei and Yulia Skripal were attacked with a nerve agent.“The last four weeks have been very strange in Salisbury,” he added.“Two people were attacked, but Salisbury has been violated.”Bishop Holtam praised the “brilliant” emerg
  
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• Former Speaker Michael Martin calls for Labour conference on antisemitism

  01-04-2018 18:46
  In an exclusive interview, Lord Martin said failure to tackle the problem could cost next electionMichael Martin, the former Commons Speaker, became the latest senior figure to speak out against antisemitism in Labour on Sunday when he called for a special one-day conference to address the problem.In a rare intervention in party politics for someone who had to quit the party whip when he became Speaker, Lord Martin said he was “appalled” by what was happening in Labour and that failu
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn Deletes Personal Facebook Page Amid Anti-Semitism Row

  01-04-2018 18:43
  Jeremy Corbyn has deleted his personal Facebook account that he set up before becoming Labour leader, party sources have confirmed.No reason has been given for the move, which follows criticism he had previously been a member of groups in which people had posted anti-Semitic content.It is understood that his official Facebook page – Jeremy Corbyn MP – will continue to remain active.Jeremy Corbyn’s decision to delete his old Facebook account was taken some time ago, partly over
  
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• Labour MPs urge Corbyn to shut down abusive Facebook groups

  01-04-2018 18:05 via ft.com
  Parliamentary party calls for action against supporters posting abusive and violent comments
  
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• All MPs to be sent Secret Barrister book after campaign

  01-04-2018 17:55
  Mystery author’s surprise bestseller reveals ‘the reality of criminal justice at the coalface’A book by a mystery author about the crisis in the justice system that has become a surprise bestseller will be given to every MP. Continue reading...
  
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• West Midlands Safari Park Tragedy: Baby Girl Dies After Cardiac Arrest

  01-04-2018 17:50
  A two-month-old-girl has died in hospital after going into cardiac arrest at West Midlands Safari Park, West Mercia Police said.Emergency services were called to the incident in Bewdley, Worcestershire, at around 11.20am on Sunday.The baby girl had been airlifted to hospital but police later confirmed she had died.The incident is not being treated as suspicious, the force added.A two-month-old girl has died in hospital after going into cardiac arrest at West Midlands Safari Park in Bewdley this
  
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• This is how companies can close the gender pay gap

  01-04-2018 17:02 via ft.com
  Concrete changes to alter hiring and promotion practices pay off
  
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• UK Easter Weather: Travel Warning As Snow And Heavy Rain Set To Return

  01-04-2018 16:09
  Forecasters have warned of treacherous driving conditions for Easter holidaymakers with snow and torrential rain on the way.A yellow snow alert has been issued for parts of northern England and Scotland on bank holiday Monday.Most of Wales, England and Northern Ireland is covered by a yellow warning for heavy rain, with up to 70mm expected to fall in some areas.More than 100 flood alerts and seven flood warnings were in place across England on Sunday.The Met Office said there is a chance of dela
  
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• PM reflects on Britain's 'dark moments' in Easter message

  01-04-2018 15:42 via bbc.co.uk
  Theresa May praises the "bravery of those facing adversity" after last year's terror attacks and the Grenfell fire.
  
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• Stain of antisemitism must be removed from Labour, says Eddie Izzard

  01-04-2018 15:21
  Comedian and activist says party must unite around Jeremy Corbyn’s ‘platform of hope’The comedian and activist Eddie Izzard has marked his arrival on Labour’s ruling national executive committee by saying the “stain of antisemitism” present among “a minority” of members has to be removed.He said Labour had to “make amends and repair the damage with the Jewish community”, in line with the commitment given by Jeremy Corbyn, the party lead
  
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• PM Announces Fund To End Child Burial Fees After Campaign By Bereaved MP

  01-04-2018 14:23
  Child burial fees are to be waived after a campaign spearheaded by an MP who needed a loan to bury her eight-year-old son after he was killed in a car accident.Carolyn Harris, who represents Swansea East at Westminster, had called on the Government to cover the costs of burials and cremations to help parents struggling to pay for their child’s funeral.The Prime Minister has announced the establishment of a Children’s Funeral Fund which will pay for the costs of the burials and bring
  
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• Major Labour Donor Attacks ‘Blatant Anti-Semitism’ Under Jeremy Corbyn

  01-04-2018 13:26
  One of Labour’s biggest private donors has launched a bitter attack on the party’s failure to deal with anti-Semitism under Jeremy Corbyn.Sir David Garrard, who has donated around £1.5 million since 2003, said he had now left the party having seen it fail to respond to “the most blatant acts of anti-Semitism”.His intervention came as The Sunday Times reported that 12 senior staff working for Jeremy Corbyn and shadow chancellor John McDonnell were members of social m
  
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• Major Jewish private donor ditches Labour over antisemitism

  01-04-2018 12:51
  Sir David Garrard voices dismay at party leadership’s conduct, while top official quits NEC after criticismOne of Labour’s biggest private donors has said he no longer feels “any affinity or connection” with the party, and accuses its leadership of failing in its response to “the most blatant acts of antisemitism”.As Labour struggles to quell a renewed outcry over the issue, Sir David Garrard, who has donated about £1.5m since 2003, said the party he had
  
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• The Best And Worst April Fools' Day Stories And Gags

  01-04-2018 12:43
  It’s one of Donald Trump’s favourite retorts - “fake news” and was the word of the year in 2017, but today is the only day the media takes hoaxes seriously - but its all in the interests of amusement. Companies play along too and a few of them had some decent gags this time around - think seahorse racing, catalogue-smelling scent diffusers and a ‘Dreambird’ plans with flapping wings.But not all of then did, so get ready to cringe. NEWSPAPERS: BE
  
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• Child burial fees waived in England

  01-04-2018 12:41 via bbc.co.uk
  It follows a campaign by an MP who was forced into debt when she had to bury her eight-year-old.
  
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• Government's Easter pay rise is not all it's cracked up to be | Richard Partington

  01-04-2018 12:35
  The Tories finally deliver on Osborne’s living wage promise, but this is a masterclass in political deceit When George Osborne promised Britain a pay rise in the summer of 2015, fresh from electoral victory over Ed Miliband, he pledged a “national living wage” in an attempt to steal a march on his defeated opponent. Three years later, his promise means more than 2 million workers received an inflation-beating pay rise of 4.4% on Easter Sunday as the living wage rose for the sec
  
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• Mel And Sue Hit Back At 'The Generation Game' Detractors Ahead Of New Series

  01-04-2018 12:10
  Mel and Sue have defended their upcoming revival of ‘The Generation Game’, after some purists feared how the show would fare in its latest incarnation.Last year, the pair were confirmed to be hosting a new version of ‘The Generation Game’, after choosing to stick with the BBC, rather than sticking with ‘Great British Bake Off’ when it made the jump to Channel 4.Ahead of the first episode airing on Easter Sunday (1 April), Mel and Sue have now hit back at their
  
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• Is It Really Possible To Have A 'Green Brexit' We Have Been Promised?

  01-04-2018 11:30
  With this week marking one year until Britain officially leaves the EU, HuffPost is running a series of blogs answering big questions still left unanswered about our Brexit future. Today, Greenpeace’s Doug Parr and Rebecca Newsom write on how leaving the EU will impact our environment. Follow the series on #BrexitFutureIt’s often said at green-tinged events that no-one in the Brexit referendum voted for a poorer environment. What they’re saying - correctly - is that there&
  
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• Lena Dunham Hits Back After Being Hounded By Paparazzi Over Beyoncé ‘Face-Biting’

  01-04-2018 11:21
  Lena Dunham has once again insisted that she was not responsible for biting Beyoncé on the face at a party last year.Last month, actress Tiffany Haddish made headlines when she revealed she had been at a party where an undisclosed actress had bitten Beyoncé on the face.Since then, there’s been a lot of discussion about who the mystery face-biter could have been, with Lena having initially been named the bookies’ favourite.Despite having already addressed the matter once
  
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• Young People Look At Brexit With Trepidation. The Government Should Be Listening, But It Is Not

  01-04-2018 11:20
  With this week marking one year until Britain officially leaves the EU, HuffPost is running a series of blogs answering big questions still left unanswered about our Brexit future. Today, OFOC! co-president Will Dry writes on whether young people will be listened to on Brexit. Follow the series on #BrexitFutureTheresa May will only make one good speech as Prime Minister, and it will have been her first. It appeared, on the steps of Downing Street, that she was aware of all of the burning in
  
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• The bitter taste of Theresa May’s BlackBerry crumble | David Mitchell

  01-04-2018 11:00
  The PM has been forced to give up her ageing device and replace it with an iPhone. I can’t help but feel sorry for her…When Peep Show, a Channel 4 sitcom I was in, was first broadcast in 2003, it was watched by a disappointingly small number of people. Over the many years we made the show, that disappointing number crept marginally downwards. However, the vertiginous decline in television viewing figures surrounding it meant that, by the time the programme finished in 2015, it was a
  
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• Rita Ora And Calvin Harris Bury The Hatchet Years After 'I Will Never Let You Down' Drama

  01-04-2018 10:29
  Rita Ora and ex-boyfriend Calvin Harris’s feud appears to be over, after the two shared a brief public exchange on Instagram.On Saturday (31 March), Rita shared a short clip of her 2014 single, ‘I Will Never Let You Down’, which was written and produced solely by Calvin, to commemorate for years since its release.Tagging him in the clip, Rita noted: “Happy 4th anniversary to IWNLYD @calvinharris how time flies.”A post shared by RITA ORA (@ritaora) on Mar 31, 2018 at
  
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• Lara McNeill, Labour's New NEC Youth Rep: I Don't Want To Be An MP

  01-04-2018 09:43
  The newly-elected youth rep on Labour’s ruling executive committee says she does not want to become an MP.Lara McNeill, the Momentum-backed candidate who won the position last month, has already played a key role in choosing the party’s new general secretary and wants to press ahead with reforms to its youth wing. The current vice-chair of Labour Students, McNeill has only been a member of the party since early 2015 and said she only became active after Jeremy Corbyn was el
  
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• Declan Donnelly Admits He Barely Slept Night Before Solo 'Saturday Night Takeaway' Stint

  01-04-2018 09:38
  Declan Donnelly has thanked fans for their support, following his first ever solo presenting stint.On Saturday (31 March), Dec was forced to front ‘Saturday Night Takeaway’ on his own, after regular co-host Ant McPartlin revealed he was returning to treatment, following his arrest for drink-driving.The episode got the thumbs up from viewers on social media, with Dec posting a short message of thanks later in the evening.Admitting he’d been nervous before going live, he wrote on
  
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• "There Was No Golden Age": Two Farmers A Generation Apart Talk Globalisation, Brexit And The Role Of Women On The Farm

  01-04-2018 09:09
  Abi Reader’s favourite moment of the working day comes just before daybreak, when the rest of the world is barely awake and she has her farm almost to herself.   “I love it before 8am, before the phone starts ringing and you can just hear the birds singing,” says this third generation farmer from the hamlet of Wenvoe, in the Vale of Glamorgan. “Everything’s quiet, and perhaps you’ve had a calf born in the night and now it’s bouncing around.&rdq
  
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• Why I Opened The UK's Only Organic Pub

  01-04-2018 08:00
  The wellness boom has made eating more naturally cool. Biodynamic and natural wine has gone big (the RAW wine fair has expanded into New York and LA, as well as London and Berlin; while Ocado has started selling Lanson organic champagne). The Hemsleys got people boiling bones for broth. Sales of organic food are at their highest for a decade.But Riverford at the Duke of Cambridge, Britain’s only certified organic pub, located in Islington, London, has been all this
  
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• Why Cork Accessories Are The Sustainable Fashion Finds Dominating Our Wish Lists

  01-04-2018 08:00
  Turns out cork doesn’t just work well for keeping your wine fresh. It also has an impressive resumé of eco-friendly credentials that could revolutionise our accessories, as well as the packaging they come in.And at a time when the pollutive impact of plastics is difficult to hide from, finding sustainable alternatives is at the forefront of our minds.Legally, cork can only be harvested from the bark of a tree every nine years to prevent stressing and there’s a sustainable etho
  
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• What Works For Me: 'I Planted A Mindfulness Garden To Help Me Leave Stress At Work'

  01-04-2018 08:00
  In ‘What Works For Me’ - a new series of articles considering how we can find balance in our lives - we talk to people about their self-care strategies. If you’d like to contribute your story, email us.A smiling garden gnome, dressed as a firefighter, oversees an unlikely paradise on the rooftop of Brixton Fire Station. The sound of a water feature, made from a repurposed fire hose, can be heard trickling between the neighbouring sirens, while daffodils and herbs try desperatel
  
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• Don’t expect much Leave regret when Brexit hits prosperity | Anand Menon

  01-04-2018 08:00
  The post-departure outlook is not good. But it will be hard to recognise or quantify any damage to the economy if growth is merely lower than it might have beenBrexit has brought the UK and EU closer in some regards. While the prime minister began the letter to the president of the European council that triggered article 50 with “Dear President Tusk”, her missive this March was headed “Dear Donald”. But that’s about it. On the substance of the future relationship, t
  
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• Afternoon Tea Recipes From Masterchef Winner Mat Follas

  01-04-2018 08:00
  I grew up in New Zealand, with all of its wonderful pan-asian influences, and yet, the food I love and come back to time and time again, is traditional English fare. I remember going for afternoon tea with my grandmother in the cafe in Cornwall Park, Auckland. As a child, it felt like entering another world; one where the pace was slower, the tea was served in teapots, and the cakes looked like little works of art - it is a childhood memory I treasure.These days, I’m lucky enough to l
  
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• The fat cat that got the educational cream

  01-04-2018 07:04
  Chris Riddell on academy trusts Continue reading...
  
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• The shame of antisemitism on the left has a long, malign history | Philip Spencer

  01-04-2018 07:01
  The origins of today’s crisis in Labour date back to the 19th century, and ever since Jews have been seen as a problem by a strain of socialist thoughtSo, we’re back to the “Jewish Question”? The current antisemitism crisis on the left has not come out of nowhere. Instead, it has its roots in a tradition on the left itself, which, at best, has always had difficulty in responding swiftly to antisemitism and, at worst, excused or condoned, even promoted it. It is not, of co
  
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• If Corbyn is not to appear a passenger in his own party, he must learn to lead | Helen Lewis

  01-04-2018 07:00
  If Labour is to stamp out antisemitism, its leader must act with integrityHow is British politics like a bad night at the theatre? Well, the leads are hopelessly miscast, the speeches go on too long and the minor roles are crude stereotypes. (I’m not buying this “Jacob Rees-Mogg” character, sorry.) And there’s another echo, too, which the playwright Lucy Prebble identified on 28 March. “I wonder if one of the reasons we get sick of certain issues is directly related
  
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• Labour eyeing historic victory in Tory flagship council Wandsworth

  01-04-2018 06:00 via ft.com
  Low-tax borough targeted by opposition in May local elections
  
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