British Politics

The EU is to blame for British musicians not being able to tour in Europe, Jacob Rees-Mogg has attempted to claim. Rees-Mogg shrugged off accusations Downing Street rejected an offer to extend the EU music visa scheme that allowed artists to perform freely in Europe for up to 90 days. Earlier this week, culture minister Caroline […]

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has suggested Priti Patel may have broken the ministerial code by advocating border closures against government policy. In comments first reported by political website Guido Fawkes, Patel is said to have told the Conservative Friends of India group: “On ‘should we have closed our borders earlier’, the answer is yes. I was […]

A Tory MP has complained Brexit has meant there is less scrutiny of trade deals struck by the UK government than when the country was part of the European Union. Jonathan Djanogly was appearing in the debate on the government’s trade bill where he warned that there must be “meaningful scrutiny” of future trade deals […]

Michel Barnier has become the first foreign winner of the European of the Year award given by the European Movement Ireland group thanks to his work on Brexit negotiations. The EU negotiator was given the award via a virtual ceremony for his role in defending the Republic of Ireland’s interests during Brexit negotiations. Barner also received praised […]

EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen has said Joe Biden’s inauguration represents a new chapter in transatlantic cooperation, adding that Europe finally “has a friend in the White House”. Von der Leyen said that “after four long years”, Europe could now breath a sigh of relief and begin patching up an alliance that came […]

Shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds has launched an attack on Rishi Sunak’s handling of the pandemic, claiming his policies have costs job and left the UK with the highest death toll in Europe. Dodds has accused her Tory opposite number of repeatedly taking the wrong policy options, with the government setting up a “false choice” between protecting public […]

Liz Truss has said it is a “matter for the courts to decide” what genocide is, and not the government, despite having voted to scrap an amendment giving judges the power to do so. The international trade minister said British courts were best placed to determine the definition of genocide. The comments come after the government […]

A Tory Brexiteer has claimed that the Electoral Commission “hated Leave campaigners'” claiming he had never before encountered “an organisation that was maliciously undermining the democratic process and attacking individuals because of their political views”. Peter Bone made an intervention as MPs were asked to approve the appointment of Alex Attwood, an SDLP former environment minister in the […]

The UK and French governments must make a joint commitment to support struggling Eurostar, the chairman of the Transport Select Committee has said. Tory MP Huw Merriman said the cross-Channel train operator plays a vital role in enabling low-carbon international travel. Eurostar has been hit hard by the coronavirus crisis, with a 95% fall in […]

The UK and the EU have clashed over the status the trading bloc’s ambassador in London should have. The UK government is refusing to grant Joao Vale de Almeida full diplomatic status offered to other ambassadors. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is insisting he and his officials should not have privileges and immunities afforded to […]

Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan has called on Gavin Williamson to resign as education secretary for being a “catastrophe”. The interviewed started with co-presenter Susanna Reid claiming that he had “failed” many children. She told him: “I remember we talked to each other early on in the pandemic when you cancelled two sets of […]

Downing Street has insisted Boris Johnson’s exchanges at Prime Minister’s Questions fit the criteria of ‘kind and civil’ politics which the PM had called for days before. Johnson’s press secretary Allegra Stratton was asked if nicknaming Keir Starmer “Captain Hindsight” was rude or unpleasant, something she denied. Stratton said it was a way of making […]

Boris Johnson has declared “there’s nothing wrong with being woke”. The prime minister was asked if he considered Biden to be woke – defined as being alert to societal injustices – after Labour’s Lisa Nandy praised Joe Biden as a “woke guy” who is a possible model for electoral success for the Labour Party. “I can’t […]

A minister has finally accepted that Brexit has contributed to shortages on supermarket shelves in Northern Ireland. International trade secretary Liz Truss acknowledged that Brexit had caused issues while appearing on the Peston programme, but claimed that “predictions of armageddon” had not happened. Ireland’s foreign affairs minister Simon Coveney denied the government’s original assertion that Covid-19 was […]

A Donald Trump supporter abruptly hung up on a national radio presenter after failing to cite examples of the former US president telling the truth. Steve from Islington rang James O’Brien to tell him there was a lot in the media which were lies about the outgoing US president. Steve then accused O’Brien of unfairly […]

Downing Street has rebuked Theresa May over an accusation that Boris Johnson has abandoned Britain’s position of “global moral leadership”. May used a Daily Mail article saying that while the UK was well placed to play a decisive role in shaping a more co-operative world, she suggested it had not been helped by her successor’s actions. Number […]

With Donald Trump having officially vacated the White House, Twitter users wasted no time in bidding him their version of a farewell. Trump left 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue around 1pm GMT and made a final address at Joint Base Andrews airbase before leaving for his Florida home in Air Force One. The outgoing US president told supporters […]

Outgoing US president Donald Trump has given his strongest indication yet of returning to the political scene, telling supporters at a farewell rally that he would “be back in some form”. Trump thanked followers in his final official speech as US president at Joint Base Andrews airbase before departing for his Florida home in Air Force One. […]

The Northern Ireland secretary has urged MPs not to “overstate” issues at the border which have led to supply issues in supermarkets.  Brandon Lewis said that whilst there have been “challenges” to overcome in the first few weeks since the end of the Brexit transition period, “goods are moving” to and from the island. Responding to […]

Today, President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris will be inaugurated in one of those grandiose ceremonies which America still does so well. Sure, the pomp and circumstance will be much pared-down because [checks] Biden’s predecessor two weeks ago urged his supporters to march on Capitol Hill and overturn an election result through force. But […]

The SNP’s leader in the Commons has questioned Boris Johnson over his ability to be a “moral” leader following remarks by Theresa May. Blackford also asked Johnson if he would overturn cuts to Britain’s foreign aid budget during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs).  “This morning the former prime minister accused the current prime minister of abandoning moral […]

Labour MP Ben Bradshaw has called out the prime minister over his false promises made over Brexit. Speaking at the latest session of Prime Minister’s Questions, Bradshaw asked Johnson: “When the prime minister told the fishermen in the South West that they would not face new export barriers or unnecessary form filling. And when he […]

Prime minister Boris Johnson is keen to relax England’s lockdown in time for Easter, reports claim. Johnson is said to be making “top secret” plans for an Easter relaxation of rules, which could – at least – allow families to mix outside again. Lockdown regulations are currently set to end on March 31 – just […]

Roger Daltrey has been accused of being a hypocrite after signing a letter calling on No 10 to help British bands tour EU countries after having previously dismissed concerns about the impact of Brexit on the UK’s music industry.  Daltrey, the lead singer of the rock band the Who, famously downplayed the effect of Brexit on bands touring Europe, once […]

Home secretary Priti Patel has claimed that she argued for the UK border to be shut to international visitors in March when the pandemic first emerged. In comments first reported by political website Guido Fawkes, Patel is said to have told the Conservative Friends of India group: “On ‘should we have closed our borders earlier’, […]

Priti Patel has shrugged off suggestions Downing Street is to blame for Britain’s high Covid death toll, saying now is not the time “to talk about mismanagement”. The home secretary said there were “a range of reasons” for the UK’s appalling death toll but said it was not right to draw attention to them at the moment. […]

The highest death toll from coronavirus in the world and an economic fallout leaving millions jobless has compounded the turmoil of a bitterly-divided nation where democracy itself at times seemed in jeopardy. It falls to Joe Biden to begin a repair job on a gargantuan scale when he enters the White House as the 46th […]

Piers Morgan has urged Priti Patel to resign after 400,000 criminal records disappeared from the national crime database. The home secretary has come under mounting pressure to take responsibility for an error that led to hundreds of thousands of police records being deleted from UK-wide databases. Data was wiped from the Police National Computer (PNC) – which […]