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Labour is facing wipeout in its final stronghold. Why? It’s housing, housing, housing | Aditya Chakrabortty

In the 1980s, Labour-controlled London built 52,000 council homes. During the Tony Blair decade, just 280. It’s brought this local-election catastrophe on itself Over the week to come, journalists will repeat three things until they, and you, are sick: that local elections fall next Thursday; that the results will decide the fate of Keir Starmer; and that he is set to do badly. But just how badly, and where? Last week, Starmer’s own party dropped a big clue. The most popular politician in Britai

<a href='https://news.sky.com/video/kemi-badenoch-defends-record-as-tory-leader-and-says-golders-green-attack-is-a-national-emergency-13538163'>Era of two-party politics 'has gone', Badenoch tells Cathy Newman</a>

The Guardian view on assisted dying reform: now try a citizens’ assembly | Editorial

Parliament’s failure to change the law on a difficult issue should be the spur to democratic innovation The prorogation of parliament on Wednesday signals the end of the road for the terminally ill adults (end of life) bill. The proposal to allow some patients in England and Wales, under very specific circumstances, to have medical assistance in ending their own lives was still at committee stage in the Lords when the house rose. Since it was introduced as a private member’s bill, it cannot be c

Rachel Reeves’s plan to mandate how pension funds invest was always a mistake | Nils Pratley

You can understand the motivation – more UK investment by UK funds means faster UK growth – but fiduciary duty trumps all A simple principle lies at the heart of pension investment: the pension manager must invest in the best interest of the client. UK ministers have often wished UK funds would show more home bias by channelling more pensioners’ cash towards domestic assets in the interests of economic growth, but the fundamental rule of the game has always been understood. You don’t mess with t

Leasehold ban in England and Wales unlikely before next general election, minister says

Matthew Pennycook says ending system must be done slowly to avoid hitting housing supply and legal pitfalls A ban on new leasehold properties in England and Wales is unlikely to come into force until after the next election, the housing minister has said, as he defended the government’s piecemeal attempts to dismantle the system. The long-promised end would take years to “switch on”, Matthew Pennycook said, even though the ban of leaseholds on new houses was passed in 2024 and the government int

Nigel Farage referred to standards watchdog over undisclosed £5m gift

Rival parties demand investigation as Tory party chair refers Reform UK leader to commissioner over gift from crypto tycoon Exclusive: Farage given undisclosed £5m by crypto tyoon Analysis: Farage’s attempt to get ahead of story raises more questions Nigel Farage has been referred to parliament’s standards watchdog after the Guardian revealed he received an undeclared £5m gift from a party donor. The referral was made by the Conservative party citing rules that require MPs to declare any “per

Leasehold ban 'unlikely to come into force' before next general election, housing minister says

It's "highly likely" the ban on new leasehold properties won't come into force until the next parliament, Matthew Pennycook has said.

How King Charles’s speech was written – and how to read it

King’s carefully crafted address to US Congress was the result of close liaison with aides, No 10 and Foreign Office Donald Trump called it “fantastic”, Democrats cheered references to Magna Carta, while the joint session of the US Congress came together in giving it a standing ovation. King Charles’s address to US lawmakers, while non-political, did not shy from politics. And, though the president did not take offence – “He made a great speech, I was very jealous” – its pointed mentions of subj

<a href='https://news.sky.com/story/politics-latest-keir-starmer-peter-mandelson-vetting-commons-iran-war-olly-robbins-12593360?postid=11607973#liveblog-body'>Tories refer Farage to parliamentary watchdog over seven-figure gift from British businessman based in Thailand</a>

Given bonus PMQs tilt at Keir, Kemi fails to land a blow | John Crace

PM was supposed to be preparing his election excuses but took no damage from mediocre end-of-session clash Today was never meant to have been this way. The plan had been to prorogue on Tuesday night ahead of next week’s elections and the state opening the week after. No need for Keir Starmer to face a last prime minister’s questions of the parliament. Time to catch his breath. Put his feet up. Recover from the near constant noise of the Peter Mandelson scandal and leadership challenges. Start to

Farage’s attempt to get ahead of £5m gift story only raises more questions

Reform leader went public after approach from Guardian, but does his claim stack up that money was for his security? Nigel Farage was given undisclosed £5m by crypto billionaire in 2024 Nigel Farage has admitted he received a personal gift of £5m from the Reform UK mega-donor Christopher Harborne shortly before the general election in 2024. He did not disclose that gift at the time. And he made no mention of it in the year since. That is, until Wednesday morning, when the Daily Telegraph publi

Simon’s Sketch: Starmer Survives but Scandal, Sackings and Spin Speak for Themselves

One of the horrible sights of the year must be the Chancellor ‘gaily laughing’. She was doing it in full view there on the front bench, tossing her well-dressed hair for the bond markets and pressing her key election messages on wavering Labour. The government was strong, and so was she. Both were solid, confident…