Politics

Former education secretary Gavin Williamson has been given a knighthood, Downing Street said. The MP for South Staffordshire was sacked by Boris Johnson during his September 2021 cabinet reshuffle. Mr Williamson was education secretary during most of the pandemic, when he came under heavy criticism for his handling of exams and school closures. A Downing

Voters are going to the polls today in Birmingham Erdington in a parliamentary by-election triggered by the sudden death of Labour Party and trade union stalwart Jack Dromey. Mr Dromey, who was married to the former Labour cabinet minister and interim party leader Harriet Harman, held the seat with a majority of 3,601 in the

Boris Johnson has accused Vladimir Putin of committing “a war crime” as he spoke during a session of PMQs preceded by a standing ovation for Ukraine’s ambassador. As the Russian president’s attempt to invade Ukraine entered a seventh day, Mr Johnson condemned Mr Putin’s “abhorrent assault” on his country’s neighbour. “What we have seen already

Sir Keir Starmer should kick out Labour MPs who back the Stop the War campaign or face losing the next election, according to shadow cabinet ministers. Diane Abbott and John McDonnell are among 11 left-wing MPs who have signed a letter organised by the group last week which was critical of NATO expansion and UK

The UK “stands ready” to take Ukrainians fleeing the Russia’s invasion in “considerable numbers”, Boris Johnson has said. Speaking in Warsaw alongside Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Mr Johnson said he is “more convinced than ever” that Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine will fail. With hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion, the

Boris Johnson has said the UK will “continue to bring maximum pressure to bear” on Russia to ensure Vladimir Putin “feels the consequences” for invading Ukraine. Speaking ahead of travelling to Poland and Estonia on Tuesday, the prime minister said the UK and its allies are united in agreeing “Putin must fail”. Mr Johnson is

A further 100,000 Ukrainians will be able to seek sanctuary in the UK, the home secretary has announced, but Priti Patel has ruled out a visa waiver for those fleeing the conflict with Russia following Vladimir Putin’s invasion. Making the announcement in the Commons, Priti Patel said family members of those who are British nationals

A “hit list” of Russian oligarchs has been drawn up by the Foreign Office as ministers prepare to slap further sanctions on those close to Vladimir Putin’s regime, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has told Sky News. The mansions and private jets of billionaires are to be targeted as the government steps up punitive measures following

The Ukraine conflict could last “a number of years” and the UK needs to be “prepared for a very long haul” in facing down Russian aggression, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has told Sky News. Speaking to the Trevor Phillips On Sunday show, Ms Truss praised the “very, very strong and brave” Ukrainian resistance against Russian

Labour is calling for much tougher sanctions on Russia following the Ukrainian invasion it condemns as a “heinous violation of international law”. In a joint letter, three of the party’s senior MPs are calling on the government to widen already imposed sanctions on Russia and President Vladimir Putin, including a ban on the export of

Measures to expose dirty money stashed in UK property are being fast-tracked in order to target Russian oligarchs, Sky News understands. Boris Johnson has repeatedly promised to “open up the Matryoshka doll of Russian-owned companies” which are often set up offshore so the true owners are not identified. These companies are used to buy vast

A Labour MP has told of receiving a death threat describing her as “Putin’s w***e” amid the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces. Zarah Sultana the comment was contained in an email she received which was “filled with racist abuse”. “I am in no doubt that this horrific and absurd attack is the direct

Boris Johnson has hit Russia with what he called the “largest set of sanctions ever imposed anywhere by the UK government” – targeting individuals including President Vladimir Putin’s former son-in-law. Downing Street confirmed a range of further oligarchs who are particularly close to the Kremlin will be sanctioned, including Russia’s youngest billionaire and former husband

The prime minister rarely addresses the nation, but Russia’s decision to conduct a full scale invasion into Ukraine has made this a moment that will be marked in history – the start of the largest conflict in Europe since the Second World War. “Our worst fears have now come true and all the warnings have

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has made a statement to the nation after Russia’s attack on the Ukraine. Here it is in full: Shortly after 4 o’clock this morning I spoke to President Zelenskyy of Ukraine to offer the continued support of the UK, because our worst fears have now come true and all our warnings

Boris Johnson is like an “edgy, naughty boyfriend”, Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner has declared in an interview in which she admits Sir Keir Starmer is not as “racy” as the PM. She says Mr Johnson is like a “puppy” when he flirts and flatters her as she faces him at Prime Minister’s Questions. And

Home Secretary Priti Patel has received a demand to review the events around the resignation of Metropolitan Police commissioner Dame Cressida Dick. Scotland Yard’s deputy commissioner Sir Stephen House revealed he has written to Ms Patel about the controversial circumstances of his boss’s departure. He claimed that “due process” was not followed over Dame Cressida’s

President Biden, Prime Minister Johnson, President Macron, Chancellor Scholtz and the European Commission President von der Leyen: as the West woke up to Russian incursions into Ukraine, the co-ordinated response began with leaders announcing limited sanctions, with the promise of more. Their aim – outlined by leaders on podiums and in legislative chambers across Western

The UK is sanctioning five Russian banks and three oligarchs, freezing their UK assets and banning travel to Britain, Boris Johnson has announced. The prime minister told the House of Commons it was the “first tranche” and “first barrage” of measures, in response to Russian troops moving into two separatist regions of Ukraine. “We hold

It has dominated his premiership, put him into intensive care, provoked a bitter row and rebellion with his parliamentary party and could – depending on the result of the Met Police investigation – ultimately cost Boris Johnson his job. So you could imagine the prime minister’s sense of relief on Monday when he announced the