Political news

• Theresa May To Defend Syria Bombing As 'In Britain's National Interest' In Commons Showdown

  15-04-2018 23:31
  Theresa May will say military intervention in Syria was in “Britain’s national interest” as she defends the early morning bombing raid in a showdown with MPs in Parliament.In a highly unusual step for a Prime Minister, May will on Monday apply to Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, for an emergency debate on the joint British, US and French missile strikes that took place on Saturday in response to the chemical attack that killed at least 70 people.It comes amid repor
  
  Read more

• Worthing Murder: Woman Found Dead In House With Another Man Was Wonderful Mother, Says Husband

  15-04-2018 23:09
  The husband of a woman found strangled alongside the body of another man has described her as a “wonderful mother”.Police launched a murder investigation after a woman in her 30s and a man in his 40s were found dead in a house in Worthing, West Sussex, at 1.51 am on Friday.They are believed to be 35-year-old Maryna Kavaliauske and Viasia Chernoff, also known as Alex, 43, a Sussex Police spokeswoman said on Sunday.The pair knew each other, but were not related and are yet to be formal
  
  Read more

• Wolverhampton Park Murder: Boy, 16, Charged Over Viktorija Sokolova Death

  15-04-2018 22:12
  A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder after the body of Viktorija Sokolova was found in a park.The 14-year-old’s body was discovered in Wolverhampton’s West Park just before 7am on Thursday.A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as a blunt force trauma to the head, West Midlands Police said.The Wolverhampton teenager accused of killing Viktorija is due to appear at Dudley Magistrates’ Court on Monday. Viktorija’s family has paid tribute to their &
  
  Read more

• Ben Jennings on the reconvening of the Commons after Syria – cartoon

  15-04-2018 21:05
  Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• May has tied us to Donald Trump. She must face the consequences | Polly Toynbee

  15-04-2018 20:45
  The missile attack on Syria was a pointless, dangerous gesture. If given the chance, MPs must vote to condemn itMission accomplished!” The presidential tweet was beyond ominous, reprising as it did George W Bush’s ill-fated banner 15 years ago. As his Iraq war dragged on its bloody course, Bush later admitted it had “conveyed the wrong message”. Now Trump’s crass ignorance of history should serve as a warning he may be destined, or “locked and loaded”, t
  
  Read more

• Diplomacy, and not bombing, is the way to end Syria’s agony | Jeremy Corbyn

  15-04-2018 20:00
  More legally questionable and reckless military interventions are not what British people want from their governmentThese are serious times. Following the missile attacks on Syria, now is the moment for a powerful push for peace. Boris Johnson’s blithe acceptance on Sunday that the conflict will now continue on its current course and that peace negotiations would be an “extra” is an unconscionable abdication of responsibility and morality.Already this devastating conf
  
  Read more

• Brexit: 'People's Vote' campaign group launched

  15-04-2018 19:52 via bbc.co.uk
  Actor Sir Patrick Stewart says X-men leader Charles Xavier would oppose Brexit as he calls for a new vote.
  
  Read more

• The Guardian view on QE: the economy needs more than a magic money tree | Editorial

  15-04-2018 19:37
  Quantitative easing succeeded in staving off disaster but it was not enough to regenerate a fair economy. This could have been achieved by a redistributive, expansionary fiscal policy which ministers were ideologically resistant toWhen running for the Labour leadership, Jeremy Corbyn wanted a “people’s quantitative easing” to boost the economy. It was frostily dismissed in 2015 as being forbidden by provisions in the Lisbon treaty. If we leave the European Union, those strictur
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• The Guardian view on bombing Syria: a decision for parliament | Editorial

  15-04-2018 19:37
  Theresa May has decided to break with parliamentary convention and not seek approval from MPs for military action. This is a mistakeTheresa May’s decision to authorise British military action over the skies of Syria by royal prerogative rather than obtaining the backing of parliament was the wrong thing to do. Even if the prime minister thinks it was done for the right reasons. It was wrong because the government’s plans should have been articulated so that MPs could have had a chanc
  
  Read more

• Theresa May will have to convince MPs of case for Syrian airstrikes

  15-04-2018 19:12
  Prime minister will be hoping she can defuse MPs’ anger over lack of consultationConservative whips were contacting backbenchers this weekend, warning them to be ready to lend their support to the prime minister as she makes the case for last weekend’s Syrian airstrikes.Theresa May’s tendency to reserve judgment until she has studied all the evidence are sometimes a political handicap, serving her badly in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire, for example, whose enormity she app
  
  Read more

• Hither Green: Family Of Stabbed Burglar Hold Birthday Vigil Outside House Where He Died

  15-04-2018 19:01
  Friends and relatives of a burglar stabbed to death during a botched raid on a pensioner’s home have laid tributes close to the scene to mark the dead man’s 38th birthday.Around 20 women from the travelling community arrived at South Park Crescent in Hither Green to lay flowers near the spot where Henry Vincent, 37, fell after being fatally injured in the home of 78-year-old Richard Osborn-Brooks.Osborn-Brooks was arrested on suspicion of murder following the death of Vincent on Apri
  
  Read more

• Dress mutton up as lamb for the best shepherd’s pie | Brief letters

  15-04-2018 19:00
  Mo Mowlam | Gillian Ayres | Felicity Cloake | Bridge puzzleIn 1998 Mo Mowlam (My stepmother Mo helped to achieve peace, 13 April) was made an honorary freeman of the City of Sheffield, not only in recognition of who she was and of her political career, but particularly for her role in helping to secure peace in Northern Ireland. Doing the same for Tony Blair wasn’t even considered.
  Dr Sylvia Dunkley
  (Former Sheffield city councillor), Sheffield• I was moved to tears reading the a
  
  Read more

• Can the Commonwealth provide Britain’s trading future?

  15-04-2018 19:00 via ft.com
  Two experts debate how best to develop a more global UK after Brexit
  
  Read more

• State Pension Age: Health And Hardness Of Jobs Must Be Taken Into Account

  15-04-2018 18:56
  The argument for extending working lives, was (and still is) that people must work longer because they are living longer. One result of this policy was that state pension ages would be increased – to reduce pension costs and in effect, force people to work longer.As things stand, in 2028 the state pension age (SPA) for men and women will rise to 67. An independent review has recommended that it should then rise to 68 and to 69 by 2039. This will probably be accepted – so it is not to
  
  Read more

• 'The Defiant Ones', And The ‘Major Blemish’ Of Violence Towards Women

  15-04-2018 18:53
  Netflix’s latest star-studded documentary,‘The Defiant Ones’, is getting its fair share of conversational airtime at the moment. The four-part documentary tracks the unlikely intertwining of Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine’s careers, culminating in their joint billion-dollar business venture, Beats by Dr. Dre. A compelling account covering four decades’ of music history and the power of nurturing creative talent, and yet I was left with a rather sour taste in my mouth.Now,
  
  Read more

• Minister Says Government Has 'No Intention' Of Deporting 'Windrush Generation' As Anger Grows

  15-04-2018 18:31
  A Government minister has said the Home Office has “no intention” of deporting undocumented ‘Windrush generation’ migrants to the UK as anger grows over the uncertain status of potentially thousands of British citizens.An online petition calling for an amnesty for those who arrived in Britain from Commonwealth countries in the Caribbean as children following the Second World War has now attracted more than 100,000 signatures and could trigger a debate in Parliament.It com
  
  Read more

• Government Branded A 'Disgrace' After Rejecting Caribbean Request To Discuss 'Windrush Generation' Amnesty

  15-04-2018 18:31
  Downing Street has rejected a formal diplomatic request to discuss fears over of deporting ‘Windrush generation’ migrants to the UK as anger grows over the uncertain status of potentially thousands of British citizens.Reports suggest that many who answered the call to come to the UK to work in essential services in the 1950s and 1960s are being denied access to state healthcare, losing their jobs and even being threatened with deportation.While a Government minister has said the Home
  
  Read more

• MP Chris Davies could face fraud probe over expenses claim

  15-04-2018 16:22 via bbc.co.uk
  Chris Davies says he made "an honest mistake" with a claim and has since repaid £450.
  
  Read more

• Wandsworth in play as Labour targets Thatcher's favourite council

  15-04-2018 16:00
  Activists say they have real chance of taking control of council that has been Tory for four decadesHalf a mile from where Sadiq Khan grew up on the Henry Prince estate in Wandsworth, a small gaggle of Labour activists are gathering in Earlsfield, with the real prospect of taking back a council that has been Conservative since the London mayor was at primary school.Wandsworth, famously Margaret Thatcher’s favourite borough, has been a flagship Tory council for 40 years, pioneering the outs
  
  Read more

• Donald Trump Says His Lawyers Are 'Deflated And Concerned'

  15-04-2018 15:30
  Donald Trump has launched an astonishing tirade against James Comey, claiming once again that he is a “slime ball” and saying his lawyers are ”deflated and concerned”.Despite also stating he has “too many” lawyers, it’s not clear which ones specifically he is referring to as many of them have recently quit.The outburst appears to have been prompted by the former FBI Director’s interview broadcast on Saturday where he said his assumption that Hillar
  
  Read more

• Theresa May to offer Commonwealth post-Brexit bonus

  15-04-2018 15:28 via ft.com
  London hosts summit of 2.4bn ‘Anglosphere’ for first time in 20 years
  
  Read more

• Russian spy attack: Incontrovertible evidence needed on Russia - Corbyn

  15-04-2018 15:25 via bbc.co.uk
  Labour's leader wants to see "incontrovertible evidence" before accusing Moscow of the attack.
  
  Read more

• Raise UK household incomes by ending austerity, say Fabians

  15-04-2018 14:57
  Labour MPs co-author report urging public investment and a bigger role for unions Stronger trade unions, improved regional policy and an end to austerity should form part of a plan to return growth in living standards to its pre-crisis levels, according to a leading leftwing thinktank.Calling for a fairer tax system and a less flexible labour market, the Fabian Society said a comprehensive strategy was required to boost household incomes. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Planning tweaks won’t tackle UK housing crisis

  15-04-2018 14:57 via ft.com
  Land market reform offers a chance to boost number of affordable homes
  
  Read more

• Building more homes requires more than planning tweaks

  15-04-2018 14:57 via ft.com
  Land market reform offers a chance to boost number of affordable homes
  
  Read more

• Jeremy Corbyn backs 'One Yorkshire' devolution deal

  15-04-2018 14:43 via bbc.co.uk
  A plan to give Yorkshire more devolved powers is backed by 18 of the region's 20 local authorities.
  
  Read more

• Boris Johnson defends remarks on Russian role in novichok case

  15-04-2018 14:22
  UK foreign secretary tries to clarify apparent claim that Russia was behind nerve agent attackBoris Johnson has for the first time defended his apparent claim that Porton Down scientists had told him Russia was responsible for deploying a military grade nerve agent to poison Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury last month.Making the first defence of this claim since Porton Down scientists said they could only describe the agent as novichok, but not ascertain its country of origin,
  
  Read more

• Labour sets its sights on the only Tory borough in Greater Manchester

  15-04-2018 14:00
  Andy Burnham’s mayoral success leads party to believe it can retake Trafford after 14 yearsIt is a source of great irritation to many in the Labour party that the political map of Greater Manchester is a sea of red polluted by one pesky blue patch in the south.Trafford – the wealthiest of the 10 boroughs, home to more footballers and Coronation Street stars than all the other nine put together – has been controlled by the Conservatives since 2004 and Jeremy Corbyn is determined
  
  Read more

• Tory MP Charlie Elphicke 'confident' of proving his innocence

  15-04-2018 13:27
  MP reacts to reports police interviewed two female staff members about alleged sexual offencesThe Conservative MP Charlie Elphicke has said he is “completely confident” he will be able to prove his innocence after reports that police were investigating him for alleged sexual offences involving two female members of his staff.Elphicke was suspended by his party five months ago after what the Tory chief whip, Julian Smith, described as “serious allegations” that had been pa
  
  Read more

• These Videos Of Adele Getting Down To Beyoncé's Coachella Set Are Giving Us So Much Life

  15-04-2018 13:19
  Beyoncé superfan Adele could simply not hold in her excitement during her Coachella set it seems. The ‘Someone Like You’ singer was quite literally dancing around her living room in glee as her hero headlined the US festival - and there’s videos to prove it. Adele posted clips of herself getting down as she enjoyed Beyoncé’s performance to her Instagram page. And after years of simply standing on stage while performing, it seems Adele has been
  
  Read more

• Sunday Show Round-Up: Syria, The Skripals And The Commonwealth

  15-04-2018 12:56
  The news agenda this weekend has been dominated, unsurprisingly, by Theresa May’s decision to join the USA and France in launching air strikes in Syria. It has sparked a huge political row, with many MPs appalled the PM did not seek the backing of Parliament before pressing ahead with military action against the Assad regime. We’ll hear more from the government tomorrow, when May makes a statement in the Commons.But for now, here’s all you need to know from Sunday&rsq
  
  Read more

• LGBT Lawyer David Buckel Sets Himself On Fire In 'Protest Suicide'

  15-04-2018 12:27
  A prominent LGBTQ civil rights has died after setting himself on fire in a busy New York park on Saturday morning.David Buckel, 60, left a suicide note saying he had used “fossil fuel” to ignite himself to symbolise what humans are doing to Earth.He added: “Pollution ravages our planet, oozing inhabitability via air, soil, water and weather.“Most humans on the planet now breathe air made unhealthy by fossil fuels, and many die early deaths as a result — my early dea
  
  Read more

• LGBT Lawyer David Buckel Sets Himself On Fire In Climate Change Protest

  15-04-2018 12:27
  A prominent LGBTQ civil rights has died after setting himself on fire in a busy New York park on Saturday morning.David Buckel, 60, left a suicide note saying he had used “fossil fuel” to ignite himself to symbolise what humans are doing to Earth.He added: “Pollution ravages our planet, oozing inhabitability via air, soil, water and weather.“Most humans on the planet now breathe air made unhealthy by fossil fuels, and many die early deaths as a result — my early dea
  
  Read more

• Theresa May faces backlash over Syria air strikes

  15-04-2018 12:07 via ft.com
  Government tries to frame ‘limits’ of involvement as MPs return to debate missile attacks
  
  Read more

• Corbyn calls for 'war powers act' as check on military intervention

  15-04-2018 11:46
  Labour leader questions legal basis for strikes and says act needed to hold governments to accountJeremy Corbyn has questioned whether humanitarian intervention can ever be a legal justification for launching military action, and called for a “war powers act” that would force future UK governments to seek approval from parliament.Speaking on BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show, the Labour leader repeated his assertion that the bombing raids launched by the UK early on Saturday morning,
  
  Read more

• Dover and Deal MP Charlie Elphicke investigated for alleged sex offences

  15-04-2018 11:42 via bbc.co.uk
  Charlie Elphicke, MP for Dover and Deal, is "completely confident" of clearing his name.
  
  Read more

• Jeremy Corbyn Claims Theresa May's Decision To Bomb Syria Is 'Policy Made Up By Twitter'

  15-04-2018 11:31
  Jeremy Corbyn has claimed Theresa May’s decision to launch air strikes in Syria is “policy made up by Twitter”.The Labour leader told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show he believed Parliament should have been given a vote on military intervention and that the prime minister had been too keen to “follow Donald Trump’s lead”.“She could have recalled Parliament last week or she could have delayed until tomorrow when Parliament returns itself,” he said.&
  
  Read more

• Beyoncé Shocks Fans With Destiny's Child Reunion During Epic Coachella Set

  15-04-2018 11:12
  Beyoncé pulled out all the stops as she headlined Coachella, staging a surprise Destiny’s Child reunion. The singer delighted fans by bringing former bandmates Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams out on stage with her during her set at the US festival on Saturday (14 April) night. A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on Apr 15, 2018 at 12:49am PDTThe trio performed some of their biggest hits, including ‘Lose My Breath’, ‘Say My Name’ and &lsqu
  
  Read more

• 'Rayman Adventures' Is A Game That Will Always Leave You Smiling

  15-04-2018 10:35
  Game of Phones: Every week I’ll pick a new game for iOS or Android that’s perfect for long journeys, the commute or just when you want to switch off from the outside world.Everyone remembers Rayman, whether it’s directly, through a friend or a sibling. Like Crash Bandicoot and Mario before him these characters came to define the last great generation of platforming games on the Nintendo N64 and PlayStation.It is with enormous glee then that I can happily report that you ca
  
  Read more

• Ed Sheeran Angrily Slams Claims He's Installing Railings Outside Home To Stop Rough Sleepers

  15-04-2018 10:22
  Ed Sheeran has furiously shot down claims he is installing railings outside his home to prevent rough sleepers.On Sunday (15 April), The Sun published a report stating the singer had submitted a planning application to build railings “to keep out homeless people”. An angered Ed, who has been a vocal supporter of homeless charities in the past, blasted the “bollocks” story in a post on Instagram. “Your story is bollocks, I have done lots of work in the past
  
  Read more

• ‘You Work Like A Robot’: A Postman And A Courier, A Generation Apart, On the Loss Of Human Connection

  15-04-2018 10:03
  When Maggie Dewhurst calls the office, she doesn’t give her name. She is identified, instead, by a number. It’s a small thing, but still oddly dehumanising.  “I’m basically just a dot on a screen,” says the 30-year-old cycle courier. “It can be quite a culture shock when you move into a really insecure workplace, the way people are treated. You are processed like a robot, you work like a robot, and eventually we will be replaced by robots.” Mag
  
  Read more

• I’ll sue No 10 for outing me, says sacked EU vote whistleblower

  15-04-2018 09:05
  Shahmir Sanni, who questioned Vote Leave referendum spending, threatens legal actionEU vote whistleblower Shahmir Sanni says he wants to take legal action against No 10 Downing Street for outing him as gay. The 24-year-old volunteer last month revealed that spending rules may have been manipulated by the Vote Leave campaign during the EU referendum.On 23 March, an official spokesperson for the prime minister issued an announcement on behalf of one of her advisers, Stephen Parkinson. The statemen
  
  Read more

• What Works For Me: 'After Jo Cox Was Killed I Made The Choice To Spend More Time With My Female Friends'

  15-04-2018 08:01
  It’s Friday morning and Labour politician Jess Phillips, 36, has finished the school run and is now sat in a local coffee shop to meet her five best female friends to catch up. Every week without exception the group of women spend an hour together, in the same location, with the same drink order. “But don’t put the name of the place, because then someone might come along and ask me about Brexit and that would ruin it,” she laughs.Phillips, who has been the MP for Bir
  
  Read more

• Kids At Weddings: The Parents' Guide To Making The Experience Less Painful For All Involved

  15-04-2018 08:01
  You catch your breath as the bride walks down the aisle. Not because of her beautiful dress, however, but because the flower girl, your darling daughter, has got her fingers stuck firmly up her nose. Attending a wedding with your kids is a very different experience from going as a child-free guest. Rather than letting your hair down, you’re braced to spend the day acting as usher and entertainer rolled into one. And while Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge 
  
  Read more

• NHS 'Unable To Protect Patient Data' From Immigration Enforcers, MPs Say

  15-04-2018 01:01
  The NHS is unable to keep confidential patient data safe from immigration enforcers thanks to an information-sharing agreement with the government, MPs have ruled. Members of the health select committee have called for a second time for an end to a Memorandum of Understanding between the Home Office and NHS Digital, which allows officials to request information from medical records as part of their investigations. Experts have warned it is putting many migrants off seeking urgent treat
  
  Read more

• NHS Digital accused of failing to protect patient data

  15-04-2018 01:01 via ft.com
  MPs criticise IT provider for sharing information with immigration officers
  
  Read more

Follow @political_UKnws on Twitter!