Politics

Boris Johnson says he believed “implicitly” that he was following COVID rules after a committee of MPs said it would have been “obvious” the rules were being broken around him at Downing Street gatherings. He also suggested that Sue Gray, who led an earlier civil service report into parties and has just been appointed Sir Keir

Evidence strongly suggests it would have been “obvious” to Boris Johnson COVID rules were being breached at Downing Street gatherings he attended, an inquiry into whether he misled parliament has said. MPs on the cross-party Commons Privileges Committee were tasked with investigating whether Mr Johnson misled parliament over partygate allegations after Sir Keir Starmer tabled

Sue Gray has been appointed by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer to serve as his chief of staff. The senior civil servant became a household name during the partygate scandal, authoring the report which found “a failure of leadership and judgement” in Number 10 during Boris Johnson’s premiership. Conservative MPs and former cabinet ministers have

Matt Hancock has denounced what he said was a “massive betrayal and breach of trust” following the leaking of lockdown WhatsApp messages. The exchanges were published in The Daily Telegraph after he shared them with journalist Isabel Oakeshott, who worked with the former health secretary on his Pandemic Diaries book. In a lengthy statement, Mr

Sir Gavin Williamson accused teachers of looking for an “excuse” not to work during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to leaked messages from Matt Hancock published by The Daily Telegraph. In May 2020, as teachers prepared for classrooms to reopen, the then education secretary had messaged Mr Hancock asking for help in securing personal protective equipment

Matt Hancock allegedly rejected COVID-19 testing advice for residents going into England’s care homes while he was health secretary during the worst of the pandemic, according to a report based on thousands of leaked WhatsApp messages. The Daily Telegraph claims that chief medical officer Professor Sir Chris Whitty had told Mr Hancock in April 2020

Rishi Sunak has said his new post-Brexit deal puts Northern Ireland in an “unbelievably special position” because it gives it access to both the UK and European Union markets. The prime minister said implementing the newly negotiated Windsor Framework would create “the world’s most exciting economic zone” with international companies “queuing up to invest” in the

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has outlined details of the “new Windsor Framework” agreed with the European Union to overcome trade barriers in Northern Ireland following Brexit. The prime minister said the agreement was a “historic” and a “decisive breakthrough” that “delivers smooth-flowing trade within the whole of the United Kingdom, protects Northern Ireland’s place in

Rishi Sunak will continue to push forward with his new post-Brexit deal today as he seeks to convince politicians from Northern Ireland it will solve ongoing issues with trade and sovereignty. The prime minister signed the Windsor Framework on Monday, alongside European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, to make changes to the much debated

Ursula von der Leyen will meet with the King this afternoon as she discusses changes to the Northern Ireland Protocol in Windsor with the prime minister, Sky News understands. Charles and the European Commission president will sit down for tea late on Monday after she is expected to sign off on a Northern Ireland Protocol

Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will meet today for “final talks” about the Northern Ireland Protocol. The prime minister and president are expected to meet late lunchtime in Berkshire to discuss the Brexit treaty, Downing Street said as it released details of the meeting. Cabinet ministers will be updated on

Justice Secretary Dominic Raab has told Sky News he would resign from the cabinet if bullying claims against him are upheld. The deputy prime minister is being investigated by senior lawyer Adam Tolley KC over a string of formal complaints by civil servants about his conduct. Speaking to the Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme, Mr

The UK and EU are “inching towards a conclusion” on revising post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland, the Irish prime minister has said. An agreement is possible “but by no means guaranteed”, Leo Varadkar added. Momentum has been building through weeks of fraught talks and a deal to ease checks on trade introduced under the

Conservative MPs have been told they must be in Westminster on Monday – leading to speculation a new Brexit deal is to be announced. Tory MPs will be on a three-line whip on Monday, meaning all 355 of them must be in parliament for a possible important vote. If they defy the order, they could

King Charles was lined up by Number 10 to meet European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday – just as highly contentious negotiations over the Northern Ireland Protocol were poised to come to a head. After weeks of fraught talks and growing anger among Tory backbenchers and unionists, a deal between the UK

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has led a minute’s silence from the steps of Downing Street as the UK showed solidarity with Ukraine on the anniversary of the start of the war. Standing alongside Ukrainian ambassador to the UK, Vadym Prystaiko, and members of the Ukrainian armed forces, Mr Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murty, observed

Rishi Sunak is to urge fellow world leaders to “move faster” to arm Ukraine’s troops as he leads a minute’s silence on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion. The prime minister is expected to use a G7 meeting on Friday to call on allies to supply longer-range weapons to Ukraine as there is an urgent

Sir Keir Starmer has promised to “give Britain its future back” with a “mission-driven government” as he set out his priorities if he wins power at the next election. The Labour leader set out five goals which will be at the core of his manifesto. They are: Secure the highest sustained growth in the G7

Rishi Sunak is poised to launch a major crackdown on the asylum seeker backlog in the coming days by invalidating applications if they fail to return a new questionnaire within 20 working days, Sky News can reveal. A leaked Home Office letter shows that asylum seekers, who often speak little or no English and have

A senior Tory MP has dampened down the prospect of a Brexit deal on Northern Ireland, telling Sky News the powersharing crisis will not be resolved because the negotiations are “too narrow”. Sir Bernard Jenkin, a veteran Eurosceptic, also suggested there should be a “customs frontier” between the north and south of Ireland to fix