Politics

A minister has failed to guarantee people will not have to sell their homes to pay for social care ahead of a possible Tory rebellion over the issue. Paul Scully, the small business minister, told Sky News Boris Johnson’s 2019 manifesto promise was a “single headline” and it is not possible to tackle the problem

After a bruising week for the government, with backbenchers unhappy about sleaze and watered-down rail plans, the prime minister’s authority will be tested again this week. The Health and Social Care Bill is back in the Commons and the fine-print on the social care cap has come under criticism. Under the new plans, from 2023

Sajid Javid has played down the need for more restrictions to be introduced in the coming weeks, telling Sky News that England is “firmly” in Plan A at the moment. Speaking on Trevor Phillips On Sunday, the health secretary said ministers must “remain cautious, not complacent in any way” – but said he hoped people

Health Secretary Sajid Javid has commissioned a review into possible racial bias in medical equipment as he promised to “close the chasms that the pandemic has exposed”. It comes amid fears that thousands of patients from ethnically diverse communities died from COVID-19 when they should have survived. Mr Javid referenced research that has shown that

A government review will look at how to stop migrants crossing the English Channel and entering the UK amid concern that current measures are not working. Downing Street has tasked the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Stephen Barclay with bringing departments together to find a solution. More than 24,700 people have arrived in the

Hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money is at increased risk due to a failure to conduct sufficient checks on the now-collapsed finance firm that David Cameron lobbied for, a committee of MPs has found. A a new report by the House of Commons’ Public Accounts Committee (PAC), on the lessons to be learned

Michael Gove has said he is “confident” that progress can be made in talks with the European Union over the Northern Ireland Protocol without Article 16 needing to be triggered. Speaking at the British-Irish Council summit in Cardiff, the Cabinet minister said “a constructive approach” is being taken by both sides in the negotiations and

The government was not “fully prepared” for the “wide-ranging impacts” of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report, which found that Brexit both helped and hindered preparations for future crises. There was a lack of detailed plans for shielding, job support schemes and school disruption, the National Audit Office found. According to the watchdog,

The eastern leg of HS2 has been scrapped and plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail have been downgraded, Grant Shapps has confirmed. The transport secretary told MPs that a new £96bn Integrated Rail Plan for the north and the Midlands will instead deliver “faster” train journeys both earlier and cheaper than the original HS2 plans would

Northern political leaders have warned the government will pass up huge economic benefits and betray promises to voters if, as expected, it cancels major rail projects including the eastern leg of HS2 and a new Manchester-Leeds line. Boris Johnson will unveil a long-delayed integrated rail plan for the Midlands and the north of England today,

Sir Keir Starmer pressed Boris Johnson on the ongoing sleaze scandal in a heated PMQs, calling the prime minister “a coward, not a leader”. The Labour leader urged the PM to “do the decent thing and just say sorry for trying to give light to corruption” in the wake of the lobbying row which reared

Boris Johnson is to face questioning by MPs about parliamentary standards as the row over sleaze continues. The prime minister will appear in front of the liaison committee, comprised of the chairs of all Commons select committees, from 3pm today. He will face questions on government standards, violence against women and girls, the COP26 summit

Boris Johnson has set out plans to ban MPs from working as paid political consultants or lobbyists in the wake of Westminster’s sleaze row. In a letter to the Speaker of the House of Commons, the prime minister said there was a need to ensure rules for MPs are “up to date, effective and appropriately

Stanley Johnson, the former MEP and father of the prime minister, has been accused of inappropriately touching a senior Conservative MP. Caroline Nokes, a former minister and chair of the Women and Equalities Select Committee, said the incident took place at the Conservative Party Conference in Blackpool in 2003, when she was in her early

Labour will force a Commons vote this week on whether MPs should be banned from taking paid consultancies or directorships, Sir Keir Starmer has said. The Labour leader said his party will aim to “clean up” politics after the lobbying scandal which reared its head following the case of former Cabinet minister Owen Paterson. Sir

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has hailed the “game-changing” agreement made at COP26 but says that countries need to “stand by” the decisions they made in the 11th hour of the talks. The climate talks ended with an agreement on Saturday, after 15 days of deliberations, although, a late disagreement over the wording on fossil fuels

The goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C is in “intensive care” after the conclusion of the COP26 summit in Glasgow, Labour’s Ed Miliband has told Sky News. Speaking to Trevor Phillips on Sunday, the shadow business, energy and industrial strategy secretary said it is now “our job in the next 12 months to show

Two MPs have admitted using their parliamentary offices as part of a paid meeting. Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Layla Moran and senior Conservative backbencher Crispin Blunt both took part in a panel event for Bindmans legal firm regarding the treatment of detainees in Saudi Arabia. According to her register of interests, Ms Moran has

Boris Johnson has insisted sleaze allegations levelled at the Conservatives will not affect voters’ choice in upcoming by-elections. The prime minister visited Sidcup on Friday afternoon ahead of a vote next month to replace former minister James Brokenshire who died of cancer last month. He said the local candidate in Old Bexley and Sidcup was

Boris Johnson has warned the rising COVID cases in Europe could be seen in the UK if people do not get their booster jabs fast enough. Both the Netherlands and Austria today announced fresh lockdown rules in the coming days as cases rise again in some European countries. The prime minister said: “I’m seeing the