Political news

• British MPs seek access to detained Saudi activists amid torture claims

  02-01-2019 20:47
  All-party group and lawyers concerned for eight women allegedly mistreated in Saudi Arabia prisonA cross-party group of British parliamentarians and international lawyers is requesting the right to visit eight female activists detained in Saudi Arabia, following allegations that they have been subjected to ill treatment, including torture.The lawmakers and advocates, who have convened a detention review panel, intend to produce a detailed document on their findings, following claims that the act
  
  Read more

• Martin Rowson on Jeremy Hunt's vision for a post-Brexit Britain – cartoon

  02-01-2019 20:11
  Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Corbyn defies calls from within Labour to back second Brexit referendum

  02-01-2019 19:56
  Party leader says Theresa May should return to Brussels to secure new deal with full customs unionJeremy Corbyn will defy calls to change course on the party’s Brexit policy ahead of parliament’s vote on the deal, insisting that the government should secure a new deal with the EU if MPs reject Theresa May’s agreement.Under increasing pressure from Labour members and MPs to reconsider his approach as preparations for the delayed “meaningful vote” ramp up over the nex
  
  Read more

• Why the Singapore model won’t work for the UK post-Brexit

  02-01-2019 19:47
  The city state has a strange appeal to some Tories yet even its prime minister doubts its approach would work in BritainThe foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, on a visit to Singapore to learn how such a relatively isolated city state has become so successful is only the latest, but most explicit, of a long line of Tory ministers to extol it as the model for the UK post-Brexit.Quite how Singapore, an authoritarian state capitalist economy akin to China, has become the pre-eminent Tory model for the
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• May to press EU leaders for Brexit concessions

  02-01-2019 19:30 via ft.com
  PM seeks assurances backstop plan in withdrawal agreement is time-limited
  
  Read more

• Javid questions whether Channel migrants are ‘genuine’

  02-01-2019 18:56 via ft.com
  Home secretary says UK authorities likely to reject asylum applications
  
  Read more

• Sajid Javid under fire over Channel migrant comments

  02-01-2019 18:55 via bbc.co.uk
  The home secretary is criticised after asking why "genuine" refugees have not sought asylum elsewhere.
  
  Read more

• The politics of tax are as complex as the system

  02-01-2019 18:53 via ft.com
  Politicians have made bodges and choices that now weigh on attempts to raise revenue
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• May to provide clearer language on Brexit backstop, says Hunt

  02-01-2019 18:11
  Foreign secretary confident deal will be approved as PM holds phone talks with MerkelTheresa May will present MPs with new “clearer language” on the nature of the backstop agreement, the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has claimed, as the prime minister held telephone talks with the German chancellor and other EU leaders.Talks with the heads of EU countries and the DUP have been quietly going on during the festive period, Whitehall sources have confirmed, as May prepares to face muti
  
  Read more

• Chris Grayling blames unions for rail fare hike

  02-01-2019 18:07 via bbc.co.uk
  The price hike comes into force on Wednesday despite a 13-year low in punctuality across the network.
  
  Read more

• Cameron's Commons pass 'expires'

  02-01-2019 17:11 via bbc.co.uk
  The ex-prime minister is no longer among former MPs with special access to the Palace of Westminster.
  
  Read more

• David Cameron barred from parliament after failing to renew pass

  02-01-2019 16:14
  Former prime minister loses access to Westminster facilities including subsidised barThe former prime minister David Cameron is no longer able to access parliament after not renewing his pass, it has been reported.Cameron was among more than 400 former politicians with a security pass for the parliamentary estate, allowing him to use the subsidised facilities, including part-funded food and drink in the exclusive Strangers bar. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Jeremy Hunt warns of second referendum fallout

  02-01-2019 15:33 via ft.com
  UK foreign secretary seeks to boost support for Theresa May’s EU exit deal
  
  Read more

• Javid under fire over 'illegal' cross-Channel asylum seekers claim

  02-01-2019 14:03
  Refugee Council calls home secretary’s comments ‘deeply concerning’Lawyers and campaigners have criticised Sajid Javid after the home secretary appeared to suggest asylum seekers should be deterred from crossing the Channel in small boats by making it harder to gain asylum, a right enshrined in international law.The Refugee Council called the comments “deeply concerning” and said the suggestion of denying asylum was unlawful. The criticism was echoed by the shadow h
  
  Read more

• Hunt warns against ‘devastating’ new Brexit referendum

  02-01-2019 13:32 via ft.com
  UK foreign secretary seeks to boost support for Theresa May’s EU exit deal
  
  Read more

• Ireland in push on post-Brexit business moves to Dublin

  02-01-2019 13:21 via ft.com
  Regulators expect to approve applications from 100 financial institutions
  
  Read more

• Forced marriage victims asked to pay rescue costs

  02-01-2019 12:51 via bbc.co.uk
  MPs criticise the Foreign Office for making women take out a loan to cover the cost of getting them home.
  
  Read more

• Grayling defends no-deal Brexit ferry contract

  02-01-2019 12:37 via bbc.co.uk
  The transport secretary says awarding a ferry contract to Seaborne Freight, which has no ships, is "supporting business".
  
  Read more

• Brexit: Jeremy Hunt says UK 'can learn lessons' from Singapore

  02-01-2019 12:20 via bbc.co.uk
  The foreign secretary says the city-state is an economic example but the UK has its own "social model".
  
  Read more

• Christmas at a foodbank: How austerity-hit Britain celebrated the holidays

  02-01-2019 11:28
  
  Away from the eyes of broadcasters, a very different kind of Christmas took place.
  
  Read more

• Grayling defends giving Brexit ferry contract to company with no ships

  02-01-2019 11:16
  Transport secretary says Seaborne Freight’s £13.8m deal is support for new UK businessChris Grayling has defended his decision to award a £13.8m contract to charter extra ferries to a “start-up” company that has no ships, as part of no-deal Brexit preparations.The transport secretary said he would “make no apologies for supporting a new British business” after widespread criticism of the award of the contract to the British firm Seaborne Freight, which h
  
  Read more

• Factories in Brexit Britain boosted as stockpiling surges

  02-01-2019 10:37 via ft.com
  Survey shows industry executives braced for uncertainty as UK heads for exit door
  
  Read more

• Tata Steel Europe chief upbeat about Port Talbot’s future

  02-01-2019 05:00 via ft.com
  Turnround of Welsh steelworks not yet complete, cautions Hans Fischer
  
  Read more

• Nuclear submarines threaten to sink UK defence budget

  02-01-2019 05:00 via ft.com
  National Audit Office warns of £15bn funding gap in equipment programme
  
  Read more

• Business chiefs fear deteriorating conditions in UK

  02-01-2019 01:02 via ft.com
  Increasing pessimism for 2019 as Brexit undermines confidence
  
  Read more

• Most Labour members believe Corbyn should back second Brexit vote

  02-01-2019 01:01
  Nearly 90% of party members would opt to stay in the EU in a ‘people’s vote’, finds surveyLabour members are significantly more opposed to Brexit than Jeremy Corbyn is, with 72% of them thinking their leader should fully support a second referendum, according to a study of attitudes in the party.The polling, part of an ongoing wider academic study into attitudes in various parties, found that only 18% opposed Labour campaigning for a second referendum, while 88% would then opt
  
  Read more

• Grayling seeks to quell fares fury with new railcard 

  02-01-2019 01:01 via ft.com
  Discount travel for 16-17 year olds as train companies impose 3.1% average rise
  
  Read more

• Brexit drives wedge between Labour members and Corbyn

  02-01-2019 01:01 via ft.com
  Almost three-quarters of party want second referendum, research shows
  
  Read more

Follow @political_UKnws on Twitter!