Guardian Politics

Ed Davey’s critics want headlines, but their leader’s strategy wins seats. Undermining him could help the rightwing parties into power Will the first victim of the political conference season be the Liberal Democrats’ Sir Ed Davey? It might seem quixotic, given that he is the most successful liberal parliamentary leader in a century. Yet a meeting of Lib Dem MPs on Tuesday night could see them collect the 18 signatures needed for a confidence vote. It’s hard to see what a putsch would achieve, a

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Andy Burnham has started an almighty row by claiming that Russia interfered in the 2016 Brexit referendum. He also says he wants the UK to have closer ties to the EU. The row is one of three major headaches for the prime minister ahead of his crucial budget at the end of October, with migration and Donald Trump’s erratic response to Ukraine and Russia being the other two You can watch this episode on Politics Weekly on our YouTube channel here You can read Jessica Elgot’s article referencing Lab

On the Today programme, his comments were disconnected, cliche-riddled and unremittingly stupid. But to clog the collective consciousness with nonsense is exactly the point Had Reform merely announced its intention to suspend the asylum system for an entire parliamentary term, I’d have just ignored it. Even to dignify its policy platform with a response is to enter its alternate universe, in which it’s preparing for government. I prefer, if only fractionally, this universe we’re in, where the pa

Exclusive: Chris Bruni-Lowe used Redfield & Wilton Strategies role to develop potential campaign tactics, sources say A close adviser to Nigel Farage had an influential role at a national polling company despite not being publicly associated with the firm, the Guardian can reveal. Chris Bruni-Lowe, Farage’s private pollster for many years, played an important role in the operations of Redfield & Wilton Strategies and used it to develop potential campaign strategies, according to several sources

PM to give speech calling for ‘calm, clear-eyed look’ at possibility of new deal with EU as he says Brexit has done more harm than good Burnham to urge MPs to embrace closer ties with EU Good morning. The last time Andy Burnham gave a statement to MPs after a recess, it went on for more than three hours. This prompted Kemi Badenoch to make a lewd joke later about the PM’s stamina (which she repeated at a party conference reception with an additional line about how she just had to “sit back and l

Exclusive: Some of £2bn savings needed from energy budget expected to come from boiler upgrade scheme, sources say Ministers are preparing to slash the amount of money available to subsidise heat pumps as they look for ways to fund higher defence spending, sources have told the Guardian. Miatta Fahnbulleh, the energy secretary, has been tasked with finding more than £2bn in savings from her budget to help pay for defence investment under a plan drawn up by the previous government. Continue readi

Post-recess statement will focus on damage caused by Brexit and the need to cooperate on immigration and trade Andy Burnham will put Brexit back on the Commons agenda as MPs return from recess, warning that failing to pursue a better deal with the EU would be a “major dereliction of duty”. The prime minister will use a statement to the Commons on the first day back after the party conference break to urge MPs to face up to the damage caused by Brexit, and embrace closer ties with the EU to incre

Thinktank’s influential pre-budget report urges key decisions to be made now and not put off until next year John Healey has been warned by Britain’s leading tax and spending experts that his budget risks being a “work of fiction” unless he sets out plans to cover £35bn in spending pressures. As the war in the Middle East rattles the public finances, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said the damage from higher inflation meant the chancellor would need to either top up funds for his current

We must now have unity and a discussion about party democracy. And let me be clear: as leader, I will never tolerate antisemitism When I stood for leader of the Greens in 2025, our party was at a crossroads. The transformative leadership of Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay had taken us to an electoral success we’d never seen before. I knew we had even greater potential – and that the country was crying out for the bold politics we could offer. We have seen unprecedented wins this year – from our f

Ministers reportedly seeking to halve time for Lords scrutiny of voting and donations changes amid election speculation Andy Burnham is facing questions over plans to speed up sweeping changes to Britain’s electoral system amid speculation that some of his closest advisers are pressing for an early general election. Ministers reportedly want to at least halve the time available for peers to scrutinise legislation that would make it possible to vote without photographic identification, lower the

Defence secretary backs Ukrainian president and says priority is to maintain western unity over Russia conflict Britain stands behind Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the defence secretary has said, after Donald Trump called for the Ukrainian president to be replaced and the US announced a controversial agreement to buy Russian diesel. Wes Streeting said Ukrainians alone should be able to decide who leads their country as he indicated Trump was facing domestic political pressure over fuel prices before next

UK classifies Syria as safe to return to despite UN refugee body’s advice A Syrian plastic surgeon is facing deportation from the UK after the Home Office revoked his refugee status, declaring it is now safe for him and his family to return to their home country. Despite Foreign Office guidance advising against all travel to Syria because of the “volatile” security situation, the government has classified it as a safe place for refugees to return to. Continue reading...

Although there is scepticism about Tehran’s capabilities, it has become clear it wants Britain to feel it poses a risk Britain may have been only peripherally involved in the bombing of Iran that Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu started, but in the past fortnight it has become clear that Tehran wants to pose a threat inside the UK in response. In the aftermath of the confused incident near RAF Fairford, western officials are weighing up whether to warn publicly that Iran now has US military t

Are we really living through ‘end-times fascism’? Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor think so. In a new series from the Guardian, the pair speak to Radical Thinking with Aditya Chakrabortty in an extended interview. From Trump 2.0 and the rise of the tech billionaires to Gaza and the climate emergency, Klein and Taylor argue we are not just lurching from crisis to crisis but are in a new and dangerous moment in history. But they haven’t given up hope of a fightback You can watch the full interview wit

Ellie Chowns says vote for ‘Zionism is racism’ policy by 0.4% of members shows party processes are not working A Green Party MP has said she wants to make sure her party is not “vulnerable to capture by extremists and racists” amid the continuing fallout from the “Zionism is racism” vote. The party faces a political maelstrom over its policy decision last week to treat Zionism, the movement for a Jewish state, as any other form of racism, and to back a single Palestinian state over a two-state s

Extremists are on the rise globally – but UK activists have seen them off in the past in everything from football, politics, music and more. How did they do it? Tariq Mehmood encountered the far right early – at primary school. “When white children surround you in the playground and sing, ‘God made little black people, he made them in the night, he made them in a hurry, and forgot to paint them white’, and the school doesn’t clamp down on that, then you’re living within the far right. It’s not o

Everywhere the PM turns, he finds generous adversaries. They have made his early days in No 10 so much easier I don’t know where Andy Burnham found his magic lamp, but I hope he’s taking good care of it. In the early hours of Friday morning, the genie that’s looked so kindly on him these past few months granted him yet another wish, with a byelection win in Holborn and St Pancras. It was just the latest gift for a prime minister for whom things keep going right – and who is especially blessed in

A byelection win is a fillip for Andy Burnham and shows Zack Polanski must confront the failures damaging his party’s credibility and appeal By holding Holborn and St Pancras, Andy Burnham’s Labour has shown it can attract liberal and left-leaning voters. The seat has substantial numbers of young adults, students, professionals and Muslims – offering fertile ground for the Greens’ ecopopulism. However, Labour prevailed. Having won leave-voting Makerfield in June, Mr Burnham can now claim an appe

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