Politics

Northern Ireland’s politicians are being told to “get back to work” by Boris Johnson, keen to resolve the deadlock over post-Brexit trade. The prime minister is due to travel to Belfast on Monday for crisis talks after the DUP blocked the election of a Speaker at the Stormont Assembly, preventing it from sitting. Powersharing in

The first group of illegal migrants have been told they will be sent to Rwanda within a fortnight under the government’s controversial new immigration plans. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said 50 “illegal entrants into this country” have been served notice and will be relocated as part of a deal new signed by Home Secretary Priti

A bottle of champagne that Conservative Party Chairman Oliver Dowden donated to a fundraising auction was labelled as being “hugely valuable as a souvenir of partygate”. A picture of the gift, shared by food critic Jay Rayner on social media, shows the bottle’s label stating: “A bottle of champagne signed by Boris. Hugely valuable as

Jacob Rees-Mogg has said that plans to cut more than 90,000 civil service jobs in order to free up billions of pounds for measures to ease the cost of living crisis does not amount to the return of austerity. During an away-day with cabinet ministers in Stoke-on-Trent on Thursday, the prime minister asked cabinet ministers

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has said Vladimir Putin was “humiliating himself on the world stage” as she called on international allies to go “further and faster” in supporting Ukraine and restraining the Russian leader. Ms Truss urged fellow G7 foreign ministers meeting on Thursday evening to commit to renewed waves of sanctions for as long

At least 50 more fines have been issued as a result of the police investigation into lockdown-breaking parties in Downing Street and Whitehall during coronavirus restrictions. But Number 10 has confirmed Prime Minister Boris Johnson is not one of those who have received a new fixed penalty notice (FPN). In the latest update on its

Emergency talks between the UK and EU over the Northern Ireland Protocol are due on Thursday as ministers consider whether to override parts of the post-Brexit deal. The UK’s Attorney General Suella Braverman is said to have approved the scrapping of swathes of the agreement, giving Boris Johnson legal cover to make the move, despite

Tory backbenchers are pushing for tax cuts after Boris Johnson was said to have shown “more than a bit of ankle” on doing so to address the cost of living crisis. Jake Berry, the Conservative MP who leads a group of Tories representing northern constituencies, said it was “now or never” for Mr Johnson to

New legislation aimed at cracking down on foreign spying and interference are being introduced by Home Secretary Priti Patel today. The proposals aim to give law enforcement and intelligence agencies the tools to tackle threats such as the use of cyber attacks, drones, and “interference in our economy and democracy”. MI5 director-general Ken McCallum said

Labour is confident it can prove Sir Keir Starmer did not break lockdown rules after he pledged to offer his resignation if issued with a fixed penalty notice by police. Sir Keir has come under pressure over an event in Durham in April 2021 with party colleagues when he was filmed having a drink and

Priti Patel has said her plan to send migrants to Rwanda sends a “clear signal” that those who arrive illegally have no right to remain – but admitted it will “take time” to implement. The plan has been described as “cruel and nasty” by charities and “opposite the nature of God” by the Archbishop of

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to offer his resignation if he is issued a fixed penalty notice for breaking COVID rules. Sir Keir has come under pressure over an event in Durham in April 2021 with party colleagues when he was filmed having a drink and a takeaway curry was ordered. Durham Police

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has pulled out of a keynote speech he is due to give today – as pressure mounts on him over so-called ‘beergate’ claims. After being a hugely vocal critic of Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the ‘partygate’ Downing Street gatherings during COVID lockdown, Sir Keir is now facing allegations that

Fixing the Northern Ireland Protocol “cannot be put off”, the deputy prime minister has said amid fears that progress on power sharing will remain stalled after last Thursday’s elections. Dominic Raab told Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday that stability was being “imperilled” by problems with the protocol, which governs Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trading arrangements.

Boris Johnson will reshuffle his cabinet before the summer recess, according to allies of the prime minister. Following dismal local election results for the Conservatives allies of the prime minister have indicated a reshuffle is not imminent. However, they told Sky News Mr Johnson is expected to change his top team before the summer recess,

It has been a “tough night” for the Conservative party, after the loss of some key local councils in London to Labour – but the opposition party has seen mixed results outside the capital. The Tories have lost Wandsworth, Margaret Thatcher’s “favourite council”, Westminster and Barnet to Labour. Boris Johnson faces losing his Commons majority

This is not an easy election to analyse: the picture is mixed and messy. As dawn breaks on Friday, nobody – perhaps with the exception of the Lib Dems – should be overly happy with the results. Tories suffered losses – perhaps not as many as they might. Two losing council leaders, one in the

Wandsworth, the site of Labour’s sensational overnight win, was one of few councils to change hands. Overall, the fortunes of the parties varied geographically as votes from the first English councils were counted. Although the Conservatives lost more than 100 seats, and control of some key councils, this didn’t translate into a completely triumphant night

Northern Ireland’s new first minister-elect, Michelle O’Neill, says being a teenage mother made her the person she is. The Sinn Fein deputy leader has spoken candidly about becoming pregnant with her daughter Saoirse at the age of 16. She said: “Being a young mum, well it’s my life experience, it made me what I am,

Labour is likely to advance in key battlegrounds in the local elections but may struggle to win significant numbers of new councils outright, according to a major new results projection by YouGov for Sky News. Labour looks set to make slower progress tomorrow in the north of England than elsewhere in the local council elections,