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123 headlines found — Page 4 of 11

The Guardian Politics15 Apr 2026

Government’s 1.5m housebuilding target in England is suffering subsidence | Nils Pratley

As the country’s biggest housebuilder cuts land buying and the Iran war pushes up costs, setting an ambitious figure appears even more foolish This is what the government didn’t want to hear when its target to build 1.5m new homes in England during this parliament already looked out of reach. The country’s biggest housebuilder is trimming its purchases of new land because the Iran war has created “a less certain backdrop”. Barratt Redrow’s “disciplined approach” isn’t a downing of tools, it shou

PoliticsDefenceHousing
The Guardian Politics15 Apr 2026

UK’s largest housebuilder to buy less land, in blow to Labour’s homes target

Barratt Redrow blames effects of Iran war, and likely impact on mortgage rates and costs, for further reduction Business live – latest updates Britain’s largest housebuilder is planning to dramatically cut back on buying new land, blaming the impact of the conflict in the Middle East and putting Labour’s ambitious housebuilding target under more pressure. Barratt Redrow said it intends to approve between 7,000 and 9,000 plots of land for purchase in its current financial year, far lower than p

DefenceHousing
The Guardian Politics14 Apr 2026

Scottish Greens pledge free bus travel and basic income in election manifesto

Party says plan for ‘radical change’ will be funded in part through higher taxes on aviation, gambling and landlords UK politics live – latest updates The Scottish Greens have called for free bus travel, thousands of extra teachers and doctors and a universal basic income among hundreds of uncosted manifesto pledges. The party is enjoying a bounce in Scottish opinion polls, with some putting it ahead of Labour, driven partly by the surging support for the Green party of England and Wales under

PoliticsEconomyEducationEnvironmentHousingHealthcare
The Guardian Politics13 Apr 2026

Founder of Starmer’s legal chambers condemns Labour plans to cut jury trials

Geoffrey Robertson says proposals to reduce backlog are betrayal of party’s values and a ‘cure worse than the disease’ The founder of Keir Starmer’s barristers’ chambers has condemned the planned restriction of jury trials in England and Wales as “a betrayal of the values for which Labour purports to stand”. Geoffrey Robertson KC, founding head of Doughty Street Chambers, where the attorney general, Richard Hermer KC, and the justice secretary, David Lammy, also had their professional homes, has

ReformHousing
The Guardian Politics13 Apr 2026

Anas Sarwar asks voters in Scotland to give Labour five years to ‘fix SNP’s mess’

Scottish Labour leader pledges more homes and tax cuts as party tries to reverse slump in support before May elections UK politics live – latest updates Anas Sarwar has appealed to voters to give Labour five years “to fix the Scottish National party’s mess” as he pledged more homes, tax cuts and a smaller public sector. The Scottish Labour leader is fighting a last-ditch attempt to reverse a steep slump in support. Recent polls put Sarwar’s party third or fourth behind Reform and the Scottish

PoliticsEconomyDefenceHousing
The Guardian Politics13 Apr 2026

In the UK, Keir Starmer has few fans. I learned that in China it’s a very different story | Martin Rowson

The prime minister’s meal in a Yunnan restaurant in Beijing has spawned a national menu. The man has, bizarrely, become a phenomenon It’s always heartening when people agree with you. I had Keir Starmer down as a non-ideological technocratic centrist dad the moment I first clocked him, with a tin ear for both simple human interaction and the darker subtleties of the political arts. So despite carrying his famous “Ming vase” over the line in the 2024 election, I’ve been wholly unsurprised by him

PoliticsHousing
The Guardian Politics12 Apr 2026

Mauritius vows to ‘decolonise’ Chagos Islands after Starmer shelves handover

Mauritian foreign minister pledges to ‘spare no effort’ to regain control of islands, as US fails to give approval of deal A senior official in Mauritius’ government has vowed that the Chagos Islands will be “decolonised” after Keir Starmer was forced to shelve legislation to hand the islands back to Mauritius. On Friday, UK government officials acknowledged that they had run out of time to pass legislation within the current parliamentary session, which ends in the coming weeks, after a lack o

PoliticsHousing
The Guardian Politics12 Apr 2026

Shoplifting rife, police overwhelmed, an angry public … the trail leads back to one person: Theresa May | Dal Babu

I have seen up close the fallout of the disastrous policing decisions May made as home secretary. We urgently need to restore the force to what it once was Dal Babu is a former chief superintendent in the Metropolitan police No, the world isn’t going to hell in a handcart. But yes, a good many items are being stolen – in plain view, with apparent impunity – from the shelves at Tesco, M&S and all the major high-street stores. It’s a huge loss for the shops, and as political types discuss whethe

PoliticsHousingCrime
The Guardian Politics11 Apr 2026

UK forced to shelve legislation to return Chagos Islands to Mauritius

Officials accept that time has run out to pass law after US dropped its support for plan The UK government has been forced to shelve its legislation to hand the Chagos Islands back to Mauritius, after the US dropped its support for the agreement. On Friday, UK government officials acknowledged that they had run out of time to pass legislation within the current parliamentary session, which ends in the coming weeks. Continue reading...

PoliticsHousing
The Guardian Politics10 Apr 2026

Met police accused of favouring Tommy Robinson far-right rally over Palestine march

Celebrities including Annie Lennox and Miriam Margolyes sign letter to force after pro-Palestine march route rejected Annie Lennox and Miriam Margolyes are among artists who have accused the Metropolitan police of giving preferential treatment to a far-right demonstration led by Tommy Robinson over a pro-Palestine protest in London on the same day. The pro-Palestine movement has had its preferred route through central London for its annual commemoration of Nakba – the mass expulsion of Palestini

HousingCrime
The Guardian Politics10 Apr 2026

Home Office starts crackdown on EU citizens’ post-Brexit rights to live in UK

Concerns raised over use of travel data in determining whether people are ‘continuously’ in UK, after HMRC fiasco Ministers are to start removing post-Brexit residency rights from EU citizens who are no longer “continuously” living in the UK. The initiative is legal under the 2020 Brexit withdrawal agreement but the decision to use travel data to partially determine absences has raised concerns following the HMRC fiasco that saw almost 20,000 parents stripped of child benefits because of inaccu

Housing
The Guardian Politics9 Apr 2026

The Iran war is a warning: Britain must build resilience – at home and with our allies in Europe | Keir Starmer

We should not be at the mercy of events abroad. That’s why, from energy to defence to key social policies, we aim to remake our country Britain has been buffeted by crises for nearly two decades now. And from the 2008 financial crash, through austerity, to Brexit, Covid, the Ukraine war and Liz Truss, the response from Westminster has always been the same. Manage the crisis, find a sticking plaster and then desperately try to reassert the status quo. This time, it will be different. The war in I

PoliticsDefenceHousing