Politics

Senior Scottish National Party (SNP) executives have been arrested as police carry out an investigation into the party’s funding and finances. The inquiry was launched in 2021 but ramped up in April as former chief executive Peter Murrell, Nicola Sturgeon’s husband, and SNP treasurer Colin Beattie were arrested. Sky News looks into what police are

Patients have been left waiting up to 65 hours for an ambulance in England – while one patient waited in the back of an ambulance for 40 hours outside A&E. Data collected by Labour from Freedom of Information requests show long waits for ambulances and people waiting hours outside hospitals waiting to be admitted to

The NHS has been accused of “shocking waste” after research by a trade union found it was spending more than £1m a week on private ambulances for emergency calls. Unison – whose members have just accepted a new government pay deal – says it had responses from two-thirds of ambulance trusts in England that paid

Government spending on storing personal protective equipment (PPE) in China increased by £2.35m in the year to January – as households struggle to make ends meet amid the cost of living crisis. According to data revealed by the Labour Party, the taxpayer paid £23.5m to store life-saving protective equipment from February 2021 to January 2022

Controversial Labour attack adverts targeting Rishi Sunak were not a mistake and there are more to come, a senior shadow cabinet member has told Sky News. Wes Streeting argued it was “absolutely right to take the gloves off” and hold the government to account for its record. The social media campaign in which the opposition

The government is now able to play divide and conquer with England’s healthcare unions. There will be delight in Number 10 that three quarters of Unison members accepted the 5% pay offer, while the Royal College of Nursing’s rejection of the deal was far narrower (54%/46%). The two biggest unions now have contrasting strategies: Unison

“We hope you prove us wrong.” “We’re very focused on proving you wrong.” The exchange between Jeremy Hunt and IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva, captured by Sky News in Washington DC, tells you rather a lot about the Chancellor’s week here in Washington. This was Mr Hunt’s first International Monetary Fund meeting since taking on

Boris Johnson quoted Arnold Schwarzenegger in the movie Terminator 2: Judgment Day in his final address to the Commons as prime minister.  “‘Hasta la vista, Baby’ – thank you”, he signed off to MPs last July. The quotation, literally “until the view” in Spanish, is usually taken to mean “until we meet again” – a

Members of the Royal College of Nursing are to go on strike again after they voted against the latest government pay offer. The result comes despite a recommendation from union leaders that they accept it and means there will be a round-the-clock 48-hour strike – without exemptions – from 8pm on 30 April to 8pm

Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of being a “total fraud” and the “wettest Labour leader” on crime by government minister Chris Philp. Mr Philp, who is responsible for policing, attacked the Labour leader’s record on crime, claiming it was “worse” than that of his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn. In response, Labour said Mr Philp “owes

A Tory councillor has been suspended after a recording surfaced appearing to show him say all white men should have a black person as a slave. Andrew Edwards, who represents the party on Pembrokeshire County Council, released a statement on Wednesday saying he had referred himself to the Public Services Ombudsman. But on Thursday, the

Joe Biden said he hoped the Northern Ireland Assembly would be restored as he praised the Good Friday Agreement during a speech in Belfast. In a carefully worded segment of his speech, the US president urged a return to power sharing at Stormont. “As a friend, I hope it’s not too presumptuous for me to

Rishi Sunak says the relationship between the UK and US is “in great shape” after he held talks with Joe Biden, despite strong criticism of the president from one of Northern Ireland’s main parties. Mr Biden arrived in the region late last night for his trip to the island of Ireland to mark 25 years

Liz Truss will warn of a “global battle between free societies and dictatorships” in a speech in the US designed to revive her economic and political agenda. The former prime minister is due to make a speech in which she will question whether Western democracies – including the UK – are currently “match fit to

Anne Keast-Butler will become the first female director of GCHQ, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said. She will succeed Sir Jeremy Fleming as the 17th director of the Cheltenham based intelligence agency. Mr Cleverly said: “Anne Keast-Butler has an impressive track record  at the heart of the UK’s national security network, helping to counter threats posed

Labour will continue with its controversial attacks on Rishi Sunak by turning attention to government “failures” over the cost of living crisis. The Labour leader has described the prime minister as the “chief architect of choices prioritising the wealthiest” as both parties gear up for the local elections next month. In a letter to his

Rishi Sunak has called for a swift return of the Stormont Assembly ahead of President Biden’s visit to Northern Ireland. “We must get on with the business of governance,” the prime minister said. He will meet Joe Biden when the US president steps off of Air Force One on Tuesday evening – not long after

After receiving a slap down from Tory HQ, Douglas Ross has stood by his controversial statements about tactical voting by essentially saying his comments were taken out of context. Earlier, he urged people to do “what’s best for the country” and support the candidate most likely to beat the SNP in their constituency. That could,

Rishi Sunak will welcome President Joe Biden when he arrives in Belfast this week, pledging to fulfil the promise of the Good Friday Agreement as they mark its 25th anniversary and talking of a “better future” for Northern Ireland. The US president’s visit comes amid a heightened terror threat in Northern Ireland, and with power-sharing

Nicola Sturgeon has said she will “fully cooperate” with police after the arrest this week of her husband Peter Murrell, the former chief executive of the Scottish National Party (SNP). The former Scottish first minister broke her silence after Mr Murrell’s arrest on Wednesday as part of an investigation into the SNP’s finances. She said