Politics

The alleged Chinese spy with links to Prince Andrew has said he did “nothing wrong or unlawful” – as he was named publicly for the first time. In a statement, Yang Tengbo added that the “widespread description of me as a ‘spy’ is entirely untrue”. It comes after the High Court lifted restrictions on naming

Naming an alleged Chinese spy who has been linked to Prince Andrew is a “matter for the courts”, a government minster has said. Jim McMahon told Sky News that while he does not know the alleged agent’s identity, he assumes his more senior cabinet colleagues would be aware “depending on their security clearance”. Politics Live:

The prime minister is visiting Norway to launch a new green energy deal before attending a defence summit in Estonia. Sir Keir Starmer will travel to a carbon capture and storage site and meet his Norwegian counterpart Jonas Gahr Store to discuss the new Green Industrial Partnership. Number 10 said both leaders intend to sign

The shadow home secretary said he is “deeply concerned” about allegations of Chinese spies in the UK and warned those in public life to be “extremely vigilant”. Chris Philp told Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips programme the Chinese Communist Party has been “engaging in organised and systemic attempts to influence political life” for

More migrants have been removed from the UK since Labour was elected than in any other six-month period over the past five years, the government has claimed. The Home Office announced today that almost 13,460 people had been removed since Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party won by a landslide in July. It claimed the government

The prime minister and chancellor were in lockstep as they reacted to Friday morning’s GDP figures. “Disappointing”, the PM’s spokesperson said, echoing Rachel Reeves’s words two hours earlier. The UK economy shrunk for a second month, contracting 0.1% in October. Money blog: latest updates Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 2:10

Ed Miliband does not regret voting against the UK taking military action in Syria in 2013, he has told Sky News. His comments to Sky’s breakfast presenter Anna Jones come following the collapse of the Bashar al Assad regime in the region. Back in 2013, when Mr Miliband was Labour leader, UK MPs voted against

It might be tempting, given how much coverage has focused on it recently, to assume the forthcoming changes to inheritance tax regime are the single biggest issue facing farmers these days.  But the reality is these tax changes come at a moment of extraordinary pressure, with farmers having to contend with a swathe of unsettling

Plans to “green” the UK’s power system will protect consumers from future energy crises and has the potential to “bring down bills for good”, the government has said. Achieving clean electricity by 2030 was a key election promise for the Labour party, and reiterated by Keir Starmer last week as he outlined government ‘milestones’. To

The government is today demanding “immediate, mandatory” housing targets from councils as part of its plans to build 1.5 million houses by the next general election. During its election campaign Labour promised to build swathes of new housing to address lack of affordability and supply. And it will today release its latest version of the

Prisons minister Lord James Timpson has told Sky News that he is having “a conversation” with parliament and the public sector about hiring more ex-convicts. Lord Timpson pushed for ex-offenders to get employment at his family’s Timpson chain while CEO – with around 10% of employees being former convicts – and previously chaired the Prison

Puberty blockers for under-18s with gender dysphoria will be banned indefinitely in the UK, the Department of Health and Social Care has announced. The government said that following official advice from medical experts, existing emergency measures banning the sale and supply of the drugs outside of clinical trials will stay in place. Health and Social

A Labour MP hosted a man at the centre of a terror group probe in parliament just weeks before his arrest, Sky News can reveal. Agit Karatas is one of six people who were charged on Tuesday with being members of the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) after an investigation by counter-terrorism police in London.

👉Listen to Politics At Jack And Sam’s on your podcast app👈 Sky News’ deputy political editor Sam Coates and Politico’s Jack Blanchard share their daily guide to the day ahead in politics in under 20 minutes. Rachel Reeves gets Westminster in the Christmas spirit as she launches her spending review – will the chancellor do

Sir Keir Starmer has said UK economic growth was his “number one mission” as he defended his trip to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The prime minister accused predecessor Boris Johnson of “going cap in hand from dictator to dictator” when the former PM met Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in

The government has called on “disruptors, innovators and creative thinkers” to help make the civil service more productive. Senior minister Pat McFadden said he wants Whitehall to have more of a “start-up” mentality as he cited Airbnb, Whatsapp and Spotify as examples of the mindset the civil service should take on to be more productive

The UK government could remove the group that led the Syrian rebellion from its list of banned terror organisations, a senior minister has told Sky News. Pat McFadden told Sky News’ Breakfast with Kay Burley a decision would be made “quickly” about whether to take Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) off the proscribed terror list. Syria

Protecting wildlife shouldn’t come at the expense of building more homes, Angela Rayner has said. Last week, Sir Keir Starmer pledged to build 1.5 million homes and fast-track planning decisions on 150 major infrastructure projects by the end of the decade. Ms Rayner, who is deputy prime minister and housing secretary, was asked if this

Reset, revamp, or repetition? Call the prime minister’s “Plan for Change” what you like, but it clearly puts planning front and centre. The core pledge was one we first heard 14 months ago: 1.5 million homes built in England during this parliament. The government admits it’s a tough ask. It’s not been met since 1972,

Sir Keir Starmer is not accustomed to receiving much praise, so he’ll take it where he can. And on Friday it came from an unlikely source, his political opponents. Speaking at the British-Irish Council summit in Edinburgh, SNP leader and Scottish First Minister John Swinney described a change in atmosphere since Labour took office. Image: