Politics

Labour has said it will oppose plans to abolish the lifetime pensions allowance, calling it a “tax cut for the rich”. Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said the party will force a vote on the policy next week, predicting it could “unravel as quickly as it began”. Ms Reeves compared it to Liz Truss’s doomed attempt

Just six months ago, the economy was on the brink, with markets concerned that the UK would not be able to pay back its spiralling obligations. Debt costs were rising.   Yet fast forward to today, and Jeremy Hunt delivered another heavy spending budget – doling out £21bn a year, funded by yet more borrowing,

Hundreds of thousands of workers will strike today in what could be the biggest walkout since the current wave of industrial action began. Teachers, university lecturers, civil servants, junior doctors, London Underground drivers and BBC journalists will form picket lines around the country to coincide with the chancellor’s budget, amid continuing dissatisfaction with issues including

After the debacle of Liz Truss’s September mini-budget, with all its mega ramifications, and an autumn statement eight weeks later that performed an about-turn so big that the country’s tax burden hit a 70-year-high, Wednesday’s budget will be all about stability and sticking to the plan. “No big bangs in this budget,” is how one

The UK, US and Australia will work together “keeping our oceans free” with a new generation of nuclear-powered attack submarines, Rishi Sunak has said. Mr Sunak met US President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in San Diego to announce the next stage of the Aukus partnership plan. The plan will deliver nuclear-powered

Support for Scottish independence has continued to slide in the country, according to an exclusive YouGov poll for Sky News, with 46% backing an exit from the UK compared to 54% who want to remain part of the union. Support is even lower when those who answered “don’t know” are included in the statistics –

Rishi Sunak has declined to offer his backing to the chairman of the BBC and stressed his appointment was made by his predecessor Boris Johnson. Richard Sharp has been dragged into the BBC row over Gary Lineker because of his close ties to government and the role he played when Boris Johnson was considering taking

The budget will “break down the barriers” to getting people back into work in the face of more than a million vacancies and a sluggish economy, the chancellor has told Sky News. With more than half a million people having disappeared from the UK workforce since the outbreak of COVID-19, tackling economic inactivity will be

Households on prepayment meters will no longer pay more for their energy than those on direct debits, the chancellor is expected to announce this week. The “prepayment meter penalty” will end in July, saving more than four million households around £45 a year at a cost of £200m. It will be managed through changes to

Britain’s prime minister may not – according to some sources – be particularly interested in defence, but the defence community will be very focused on him this week. Rishi Sunak is due to unveil an update of the UK’s defence and foreign policy on Monday – the same day as he meets with the US

The first UK-France summit in five years has concluded, resulting in “unprecedented measures” to tackle illegal migration, as well as joint pledges on Ukraine and energy security. Rishi Sunak and Emmanuel Macron have given the clearest demonstration yet of what has become dubbed “Le Bromance”, as the pair sought to draw a line under post-Brexit

Britain will payout £480m over the next three years in a deal struck between Rishi Sunak and Emmanuel Macron to tackle small boat Channel crossings, including helping fund a detention centre in France. The fresh package agreed between the prime minister and the French president to deal with the migrant crisis will also see hundreds

Rishi Sunak will use talks with President Emmanuel Macron to push for a returns agreement allowing migrants to be sent back to France after crossing the English Channel. The prime minister is set to meet the French president in Paris on Friday where he will prioritise discussing his “stop the boats” plan. Downing Street wants

Matt Hancock was told by the Cabinet Office to tone down claims in his book that a Wuhan lab leak started the pandemic over fears it would “cause problems” with China. The former health secretary wanted to include in his Pandemic Diaries book that the Chinese government’s explanation “just doesn’t fly”, the latest messages leaked

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick has suggested “thousands” of refugees could be sent to Rwanda under the government’s new plan to stop Channel crossings – despite no-one having been deported there since the beginning of the scheme last April The Conservative MP told Sky News’ The Take with Sophy Ridge that the partnership with the east

The home secretary has told Sky News the government’s new plan to stop small boat migrants arriving in the UK is “not breaking the law”. Suella Braverman said she is “very confident” the measures announced on Tuesday “are in compliance with our international law obligations”. The government revealed its new plan to stop migrants entering

Rishi Sunak has said the crackdown on small boats crossing the Channel is needed as the current system that is being exploited is “unfair on the British people”. The prime minister described the new Illegal Migration Bill as “tough, but it is necessary and it is fair”. “This will always be a compassionate and generous

The home secretary has announced a new Illegal Migration Bill that will mean migrants arriving on small boats will be “removed swiftly”. Suella Braverman told the Commons: “They will not stop coming here until the world knows that if you enter Britain illegally you will be detained and swiftly removed back to your country, if

Tory MPs are fighting between themselves over Sue Gray’s decision to leave the civil service to work for Labour, leaked WhatsApp messages reveal – as questions continue to swirl over the controversial job move. In a series of exchanges seen by Sky’s deputy political editor Sam Coates, allies of Boris Johnson clashed with their colleagues

Cabinet Secretary Simon Case described Boris Johnson as a “distrusted figure” during the COVID pandemic and warned the public were unlikely to follow isolation rules set out by him, leaked messages have revealed. Mr Case said to then health secretary Matt Hancock the public needed to be told to isolate by “trusted local figures, not