Politics

Tony Blair wanted Vladimir Putin to have a seat at the international “top table” during his time as prime minister, according to newly released official files. The Labour PM from 1997 to 2007 believed the Russian president was at heart a “Russian patriot” and it was important to encourage him to adopt Western values, the

There are no plans to introduce mandatory COVID-19 tests for arrivals to the UK from China, after a series of other countries said they would impose controls. The news comes after China announced it was abandoning its COVID-zero policy and was preparing to reopen its borders in January. There are fears that the end of

Government targets to curb the number of smokers in England by 2030 will not be met, according to new analysis. In 2019 ministers set out an ambition for England to become “smoke-free” by 2030 – which is said to be achieved when adult smoking rates fall to 5% or less. But Cancer Research UK said

The North East of England could be the latest region to get a directly elected mayor as part of a new £1.4bn devolution deal. Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove said the new deal would bring fresh powers over skills, transport and housing to people across areas including Northumberland, Newcastle and Sunderland. It would also see

More than one million thefts were left unsolved across England and Wales last year, according to analysis from Labour. The party has said it is “disgraceful” 1,145,254 cases were dropped because the police failed to find a suspect. The analysis also shows the average cost of a domestic burglary for a family was £1,400, meaning

A warning has been issued to rail passengers for the New Year period as more strikes are set to cause further travel chaos. Network Rail said journeys would be “significantly disrupted” for the rest of the month and into January as industrial action continues. The Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) became the latest union to

The government is facing calls to crack down on a hunting loophole after figures suggested that hundreds of suspected illegal incidents took place in just five weeks. The League Against Cruel Sports said there were 303 combined incidents of hunt havoc (trespass, road interference and disturbing animals) and illegal fox hunting between 1 November and

To say 2022 was an eventful year in British politics is certainly an understatement. Luckily (or unluckily), politicians gave us some memorable quotes to remind us of all the year’s tumultuous events. From the bizarre to the poignant and the outrageous, here they are: January Boris Johnson: “Categorically nobody told me it was against the

The UK education secretary’s Twitter account appears to have been hacked, with its profile picture changed to an image of Elon Musk and several posts promoting a cryptocurrency once backed by the billionaire. While Gillian Keegan’s page still describes her as MP for Chichester and secretary of state for education, and has retained its banner

2022 has been a tough year, in which the UK has often been hit harder than its peer countries in the G7 – the club of the world’s wealthiest democracies. Russia’s bloody attack on Ukraine led to dramatic spikes in energy costs. A global cost of living crisis has been driven by soaring inflation and

Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner has branded Rishi Sunak’s visit to a shelter “excruciating” after he asked a homeless man if he works in business. Mr Sunak visited the homeless shelter in London run by The Passage on Friday and praised the “fantastic” work that the institution is carrying out during the festive period. The

Rishi Sunak has hired the Spectator’s political editor, James Forsyth, as his political secretary. The move comes as the PM continues bolster his top team in Downing Street in the hope of overturning recent negative polling results for the Conservative Party. It is understood that Mr Forsyth’s role will be to act as a link

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has sent Christmas wishes to the UK and thanked Rishi Sunak’s government and the public for their support as Ukraine’s war against Russia continues. In an earlier message, the prime minister had posted a short video on social media with the message: “This Christmas, we’re with you Ukraine.” Responding, Mr Zelenskyy posted:

The plan to slash local authority funding to house Ukrainian refugees is “short-sighted” and must be “urgently reviewed”, the government has been told. Michael Gove, the communities secretary, announced earlier this month that councils will receive £5,900 – down from £10,500 – for each Ukrainian refugee who arrives in their area. He said this was

Rishi Sunak has said he is “sad and disappointed” that strikes are threatening to disrupt Christmas getaways. The prime minister admitted setting public sector pay was a “difficult question” but insisted that “the government has acted fairly and reasonably in accepting all the recommendations of the independent public sector pay review bodies”. However, he did