Politics

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick has been disqualified from driving for six months after travelling at almost 30mph over a temporary speed limit on the M1. The MP for Newark, Nottinghamshire, was also fined a total of £1,639 at a court hearing on Tuesday. Mr Jenrick admitted to travelling at 68mph in a temporary 40mph zone

A giant barge could be used to house more than 500 asylum seekers, under controversial plans to reduce the government’s reliance on hotels. The Home Office hopes in the coming days to announce a leasing agreement to use the Bibby Stockholm “floatel” in Portland, Dorset, in what could start a fresh Tory row. Details of

New strike dates have been announced after teachers from the National Education Union (NEU) overwhelmingly rejected a government pay offer. Some 98% of members who voted rejected the offer, with strikes now scheduled for 27 April and 2 May. The union had called the offer “insulting” and advised members to reject it. It said it

A new grooming gangs taskforce will be launched to stop the exploitation of children and young women, the government has announced. Specialist officers will help police forces with child sexual exploitation and abuse investigations “to bring more of these despicable criminals to justice”, Downing Street said. The new taskforce will be made up of officers

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has refused to confirm if deportation flights to Rwanda will begin this summer. The policy to deport migrants arriving in the UK on small boats to Rwanda is one of the home secretary’s key pledges. But since the scheme was introduced in April 2022, no flights have taken off due to

The Home Secretary has announced people working with children in England will have a new legal duty to report “signs or suspicions” of child sex abuse. Suella Braverman will announce new measures to beef up child protection on Sunday. Writing for the Mail on Sunday in an article published this evening, Ms Braverman set out

A leaked government report has revealed some teachers are working 60 hours or more a week, with a quarter considering leaving the profession altogether because of the “unacceptable” high workload. The findings from a survey conducted by the Department for Education (DfE), and seen by Sky News, said eight in ten were working upwards of

Voters across much of England will head to the ballot box for local and mayoral elections on 4 May. It will be the first time people in England will have to show photographic identification at voting stations before they can cast their ballot. Sky News takes you through all you need to know about the

Conservative MPs defending slim majorities have accused colleagues of “gaming the system” to try and move to safer seats and maximise their chances of keeping their jobs. There is “fury” at the “ultra-confidential” process which will allow some Tories to switch constituencies ahead of the next election. Around 15 parliamentarians have applied to be declared

The UK is set to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership – known as CPTPP – in what the government says is its biggest trade deal since Brexit. The CPTPP is a free trade agreement between 11 countries across the Indo-Pacific – namely Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand,

Sir Keir Starmer says he is “prepared to be ruthless” to ensure Labour wins the next election, including when it comes to his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn. Earlier this week, Sir Keir put forward a motion to Labour’s ruling body, the National Executive Committee (NEC), to block Mr Corbyn from running for the party at the

Sir Keir Starmer will promise “lower taxes for working people”, as he launches Labour’s local election campaign on Thursday. Speaking in Swindon, the party leader will try to highlight the different choices a Labour government would make if it was in power – saying he would freeze council tax for a year as a priority.

Local Tory councils have threatened to take legal action against the government over its plans to house asylum seekers in disused military bases in their areas. Immigration minister Robert Jenrick confirmed the scheme today, saying “thousands” would be accommodated at former RAF sites in Essex and Lincolnshire. But Braintree District Council said it was planning

The author of a damning report into the Metropolitan Police has called on the force’s chief to accept its problems with racism, sexism and homophobia are “institutional”. Baroness Louise Casey published her conclusions last week, pointing to widespread bullying, racist attitudes and “deep-seated homophobia” in the force. But despite saying he accepted the “diagnosis” of

Humza Yousaf has won the SNP leadership contest and is set to be named as Scotland’s new first minister, replacing Nicola Sturgeon. The explosive leadership contest was sparked following Ms Sturgeon’s shock resignation last month. Lorna Finn, the SNP’s national secretary, stated that the total turnout in the leadership election was 70% with 50,490 of

The route of a proposed new bus network built to help people living in outer London cope with the expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) has been published by Sadiq Khan. In tweets on Tuesday, the Mayor of London said the ‘Superloop’ “will make it easier for Londoners to get around the capital

The leader of the UK’s largest teaching union has refused to rule out fresh strikes which disrupt exams after recommending that members reject an “insulting” pay rise. The government has offered teachers in England a £1,000 extra cash payment this year and an average 4.5% increase next year in a bid to end the long-running

Labour’s governing body has voted to ban Jeremy Corbyn from standing as a candidate for the party at the next general election. The National Executive Committee (NEC) voted 22 to 12 to approve a motion from Sir Keir Starmer to prevent his predecessor from being endorsed. It means it is now down to Mr Corbyn

Afghan refugees who were housed in hotels after fleeing the Taliban takeover of Kabul will be given at least three months’ notice to leave their accommodation from the end of April. Veterans’ minister Johnny Mercer said the government would “step up our support to help resettled and relocated Afghans access independent settled accommodation and end

The last governor of Hong Kong, Lord Patten, has said it is “demeaning and delusional” for the UK to not call out China’s behaviour over trade fears. Lord Patten, who is now chancellor of Oxford University, said China is a threat “we have to engage with in order to deal with global problems like climate