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The Guardian Politics12 Aug 2026

UK heatwave live: Met Office issues extreme heat warning as government convenes emergency Cobra meeting

Parts of country face fifth heatwave of the summer with highs of 38C forecast this week We have some comments from the Liberal Democrats and Green party on the Cobra emergency meeting scheduled for later today. While welcoming the government’s announcement, the Lib Dem environment spokesperson Pippa Heylings said emergency meetings were not enough to put out fires or protect our communities, saying “we urgently need a national strategy to make the UK climate-ready”. Continue reading...

DefenceEnvironment
The Guardian Politics12 Aug 2026

Nigel Farage looks trapped and rattled - now the nationalist tide can be turned | Rafael Behr

There are more votes in tolerance and decency than in toxic division. It doesn’t take a great leap of political courage to fight back against Reform Nigel Farage can be confident of victory against a man posing as an ennobled space traveller with a dustbin on his head. At least, in Clacton he can. The refusal of major parties to contest this week’s byelection sets the bar low. But even if the competition were more serious than Count Binface, the Reform UK leader would be the favourite to win on

PoliticsDefenceReform
The Guardian Politics11 Aug 2026

How viable are plans to free up prison space in England and Wales?

The PM is proposing three ways of increasing jail capacity – but none offer a quick or straightforward solution Andy Burnham said on Monday he was “increasingly confident” that PC Andrew Harper’s killers would not be freed in the new year. Determined to ensure that Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole, who were jailed for 13 years in 2020 for manslaughter, serve their full sentences, he has asked the justice secretary, Alex Norris, to examine three options for increasing prison capacity. Continue read

DefenceReformCrime
The Guardian Politics11 Aug 2026

Burnham rough-sleeper pledge at risk from failures in housing ex-prisoners, charity warns

Analysis finds nearly one in six people leaving jail last year in England and Wales were released into homelessness Andy Burnham’s pledge to end rough sleeping is under threat from a failure to find accommodation for a growing number of newly released prisoners, a charity has warned. An analysis by the social justice charity Nacro has found that nearly one in six people leaving jail in England and Wales last year were released into homelessness, reaching the highest rate for five years. Continu

DefenceReformHousingCrime
The Guardian Politics11 Aug 2026

MPs shouldn’t face abuse. Neither should their staff – but here’s what we deal with every day | Estelle Warhurst

Some constituents are traumatised, others violent. It’s time the House of Commons protected the people who work at the grassroots of our democracy Before most people have finished their morning coffee, an MP’s staffer might have already dealt with a suicidal caller, a victim of domestic abuse or a threat of violence. We’ve been yelled at, cried at and sometimes even physically attacked, all in the course of managing a heavy caseload of constituents’ most intractable problems. So, when I read the

PoliticsDefence
The Guardian Politics10 Aug 2026

PM urged not to change scheme to stop PC Andrew Harper killers’ early release

Manslaughter exemption would mean more releases would be needed within 18 months, Prison Service officials say What could Andy Burnham do to block early release of PC Andrew Harper’s killers? Andy Burnham has been warned that changing the terms of the prisoners’ early release scheme so PC Andrew Harper’s killers are kept behind bars would force another spate of early releases before the next general election. Prison Service officials have told No 10 that adding an exemption so that those convi

PoliticsDefenceCrime
The Guardian Politics10 Aug 2026

A TikTok PM may seem laughable – but reaching young people like me might just keep Labour in office | Lucy O’Brien

Andy Burnham and his social media team know how to connect with us. We’re no fools, though – this has to be backed by serious policies Strapped up in his navy suit, blue tie and charmingly nerdy glasses, Andy Burnham entered No 10 newly appointed as our fifth prime minister in four years. I didn’t watch this historic scene live on BBC News. Instead, I saw a 10-second clip on TikTok, with a viral Love Island soundbite: “A hot new bombshell has entered the villa.” Not exactly the introduction you

Defence
The Guardian Politics9 Aug 2026

Pilot pulls off Count Binface stunt for Clacton byelection

Plane spends 30 minutes off the Essex coast marking out shape of a bin in apparent tribute to Nigel Farage’s rival A pilot has traced the shape of a bin with their flight path near Clacton before Count Binface challenges Nigel Farage in a byelection on Thursday. The light aircraft spent around half an hour between 2,100ft and 4,150ft above the sea near the Essex coastal town zigzagging to mark out the shape of a bin, according to data from Flightradar24. Continue reading...

PoliticsDefenceReformHousing
The Guardian Politics7 Aug 2026

Millions in England face longer waits for mental health care as NHS providers plan cuts

Exclusive: Seven in 10 survey respondents expect services to be reduced or shut, while more than half anticipate job losses Millions of adults and children in England face being forced to wait longer for mental health care, with more than two-thirds of NHS providers planning to cut services and half expected to axe jobs, the Guardian can reveal. With mental health services already under extraordinary pressure amid soaring demand for support, experts warned the proposed cuts – drawn up by trusts

DefenceHealthcare
The Guardian Politics7 Aug 2026

Kemi Badenoch’s weird week: defence of ex-neo-Nazi raises questions over Tory direction

Some in party are delighted by leader’s tack rightwards but opponents have savoured latest Conservative controversy There was a moment in the middle of this week when a news alert raised eyebrows among the politically committed. It read: “Kemi Badenoch: Former neo-Nazi candidate would just be sorting out bins.” It was a collection of words that might prompt palpitations in the most sanguine of communications professionals, followed by panicked advice that retreat was necessary. But as a deeply w

PoliticsDefence
The Guardian Politics6 Aug 2026

Heatwave Britain: why are politicians so slow to act? – podcast

As another summer of extreme heat rumbles on, warnings about excess deaths, ageing infrastructure and potential food shortages are growing louder. So how well prepared is the UK to cope, both now and in the years ahead? Jessica Elgot and Alexandra Topping examine why politicians have been so slow to act. Plus, Kemi Badenoch has distanced herself from the former neo-Nazi turned Tory council candidate Joshua Bonehill-Paine, only to offer him him an advisory role instead. What was she thinking? Yo

Defence
The Guardian Politics6 Aug 2026

Reform to unveil controversial plan to fine firms and jail bosses who employ illegal workers – UK politics live

Reform say employers would be held responsible even if they were unaware of the worker’s immigration status Hello and welcome to the UK politics live blog. Reform UK says it will fine firms 10% of their global revenues and imprison bosses who employ illegal migrant workers under the party’s latest plans to bring down immigration. Under a Reform government, Britain will have the harshest penalties in the world for employing illegal migrants. Bosses of companies employing illegal migrants will be

PoliticsImmigrationDefenceReformCrimeRestoreRemigration