Politics

In 1997, Labour told us “Things Can Only Get Better”, before Tony Blair won a landslide general election victory. This year, Rishi Sunak appears to have concluded that things are not going to get any better for the Tories if he delays an election until the autumn. His dash to the polls on 4 July

Rishi Sunak will call a general election for 4 July, Sky News understands. The surprise move comes after days of rumours the prime minister could go to the country earlier than previously thought. Follow the latest politics news live – general election to be confirmed Mr Sunak has been saying for months an election would

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has bowed to pressure from some of his senior cabinet colleagues over proposed changes to the graduate visa scheme. Reports had suggested he planned on either shortening or scrapping the two-year period students could stay in the country after completing their studies, as he faced increasing pressure from the right of

Victims of the infected blood scandal will get £210,000 as an interim compensation payment from as early as this summer, the government has announced. Cabinet minister John Glen told parliament the initial payment will be given to people living with the effects of contaminated blood “within 90 days, starting in the summer”. Infected people who

After decades of denial, gaslighting and a chilling cover-up of the plight that befell thousands of victims of the infected blood scandal, finally an apology that sought to begin to make amends on this “day of shame” for the British state. “I want to speak directly to victims and their families,” said Rishi Sunak. “I

The Downing Street diary has an enormous red ring circled around Wednesday morning when the Office for National Statistics releases its monthly inflation data. The Politics at Jack and Sam’s podcast discuss whether the prime minister can use this week to create an economic turning point. Spreaker This content is provided by Spreaker, which may

Two of Westminster’s best-connected journalists, Sky News’ Sam Coates and Politico’s Jack Blanchard, guide you through their top predictions for the next seven days in British politics. This week the government will be hoping to see the rate of inflation hit the Bank of England’s 2% target as Rishi Sunak aims to claim a victory

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris has said he won’t be standing at the next general election but will keep campaigning for the Conservative Party. In a letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, which he posted on X on Saturday night, Mr Heaton-Harris said after 24 years in politics, it had been an “honour and a

A Tory peer has resigned the government whip after he was found to have bullied and harassed two people while drunk. Lord Kulveer Ranger, a former adviser to Boris Johnson, faces being banned from the House of Lords bars following an investigation into his conduct. He has apologised for his behaviour and given up the

Plaid Cymru has pulled out of its co-operation agreement with the Welsh Labour government. The two parties signed up to the three-year deal in 2021, agreeing to work together in a raft of policy areas in the Senedd. However, the smaller partner has now withdrawn with immediate effect, seven months before the agreement was due

Jeremy Hunt has pledged to cut national insurance again in the autumn “if we can afford” it. The chancellor has lowered the tax twice since he entered Number 11, which the government says has saved people an average of £900 a year. But speaking at an event in London on Friday, he said “we’re not

Jeremy Hunt will promise further tax cuts if the Tories win the next general election and will accuse the Labour Party of not being honest about how it will fund its spending pledges. The chancellor will give a speech in London on Friday in which he will accuse his shadow, Rachel Reeves, of resorting to

The defence secretary has said he is “angry inside” over the infected blood scandal ahead of a long-waited report into the decades-long injustice. Grant Shapps told Sky News he agreed it had been one of the most “shameful failures” of government and said he was dismayed by the “lack of anybody taking responsibility”. The findings

Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer are both facing a historic lack of popularity among ethnically diverse communities, new polling suggests. While ethnically diverse community voting trends are incredibly complex and almost always hard to predict, some polling can give useful indications that can speak to the mood of the country. A comprehensive set of

Sir Keir Starmer will outline his “first steps” for government at a launch event to kickstart the next phase of Labour’s campaign for the general election. The party leader will host the event in the potential battleground of Essex, where he will pledge to build on the five “missions” he set out last year. Among

Age limits are set to be imposed for the first time on when children can be taught sex education, according to reports. Under the proposals, schools will be told not to teach children any form of sex education until year 5, when pupils are aged nine. Other measures due to be announced by Education Secretary

The UK will spend £140m next year helping starving people in Yemen who are suffering one of the most ”acute humanitarian crises in the world”, the deputy foreign secretary has said. Speaking exclusively to Sky News, Andrew Mitchell raised the plight of the Yemeni people, whom he said were living “on the margins of subsistence” following

China’s ambassador has been summoned to the Foreign Office after three people were charged with spying for Hong Kong. The Foreign Office said it was “unequivocal in setting out that the recent pattern of behaviour directed by China against the UK including cyber-attacks, reports of espionage links and the issuing of bounties is not acceptable”.

The House of Commons has approved plans to exclude MPs from the parliamentary estate if they have been arrested on suspicion of a serious offence. The move came despite the government putting forward a motion to recommend that a ban kicks in at the point of charge – a higher bar. MPs voted to reverse

Rishi Sunak has said the government will appeal against a court ruling that provisions of the UK’s Illegal Migration Act – which created powers to send asylum seekers to Rwanda – should be disapplied in Northern Ireland. The High Court in Belfast on Monday morning ordered the “disapplication” of sections of the act as they