Politics

Alistair Darling, who served as chancellor under then prime minister Gordon Brown, has died at the age of 70. His family confirmed the news about the Labour peer on Thursday. Lord Darling became a household name when Gordon Brown appointed him chancellor after taking the keys to Number 10 back in 2007. He ran the

Rwanda may be getting more than the £140m it has already been paid under the controversial deportation deal, despite no flights taking off, MPs have been told. Sir Matthew Rycroft, the top civil servant at the Home Office, hinted more money would be spent but repeatedly refused to disclose the sum – saying ministers had

The UK’s largest nursing union is calling for the government to reopen pay negotiations after an offer was made to consultant doctors, in a move that has angered other health unions. The Royal College of Nursing – RCN – has suggested new strikes are “more likely in the future” as a result of yesterday’s announcement.

Rishi Sunak hasn’t had many wins in his short premiership. But one he could legitimately claim was being a prime minister who improved Britain’s standing in the world – drawing a line under the bumpy Brexit years and provocative style of his predecessors Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. He was the prime minister who delivered

Former health secretary Matt Hancock played a key role in the UK’s response to the COVID pandemic – and his decisions will now be scrutinised during the official inquiry. Mr Hancock was a familiar face at the regular press conferences that took place during that period, giving updates to the public about social distancing measures,

Government officials have discussed legal ways they could block any export of the Elgin marbles, Sky News understands, as Downing Street cancelled a meeting between the prime minister and his Greek counterpart. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was due to meet Rishi Sunak in London on Tuesday morning, but Number 10 cancelled on Monday evening

A new pay offer has been made to NHS consultants which could end long-running strike action in England. The British Medical Association (BMA) said it would see most senior doctors get an extra 4.95% “investment in pay” for this financial year, on top of the 6% annual rise already awarded. Politics Live: Sadiq Khan tells

James Cleverly will announce he is still reviewing measures to reduce legal migration on Monday, as the government fights to convince its own backbenchers it can exercise control over UK borders. Next month Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will then set out the results of the review alongside details of the new treaty with Rwanda and

A cabinet minister has played down the suggestion of a government split on the Rwanda asylum plan after the home secretary said it was not the “be all and end all” of migration policy. Backbench Tory MPs have criticised James Cleverly after he urged people not to “fixate” on the controversial deportation scheme, and said

If the Conservatives thought the autumn statement would bring the party a much needed boost – announcing cuts to national insurance and business taxes – some very big numbers were lurking just around the corner that would ruin the party. The very next day, the Office for National Statistics released figures that showed net migration

The government has given one of its strongest indications yet that it is going cold on hydrogen for home heating. The energy minister Lord Callanan told The Climate Show with Tom Heap: “It will not play a major role in home heating. “There’s no way that could be practically achieved”. When hydrogen burns, it gives

Boris Johnson has heaped further pressure on Rishi Sunak over the UK’s “all-time high” net migration figures, as he suggested “demographic change” had led to “race riots” in Dublin. The former prime minister criticised net migration numbers released this week as “way too big” and suggested imposing a minimum income of £40,000 for those who

A metro mayor spent £10,000 of taxpayers’ money covering a double decker bus with three massive pictures of himself with his dog, a report has revealed. Former Labour MP Dan Norris, the elected mayor for the West of England Combined Authority (WECA), approved the spending for the advertisement to promote a free bus travel scheme

Rishi Sunak said he plans to continue with his smoking ban after New Zealand reversed its own flagship policy. New Zealand’s new coalition government has announced its intention to revoke legislation passed by the previous liberal administration designed to make it a smoke-free nation. Last year the country became the first in the world to

Nicola Sturgeon is among senior figures accused of “misfeasance” in former first minister Alex Salmond’s fresh legal action against the Scottish government. Mr Salmond took the government to court in 2019 and was awarded £512,000 over its mishandling of harassment complaints against him. The former SNP leader – who was first minister between 2007 and