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The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

Reform and Plaid likely to benefit from polarisation of Welsh politics

Polls suggest Reform could win most seats in Senedd election but party is unlikely to be able to form government UK politics live – latest updates On a sunny but cold evening in a shopping centre car park on the outskirts of Merthyr Tydfil, Reform UK supporters enjoyed free pizza and loud music as they waited for what the party leader, Nigel Farage, said was his last big speech before Thursday’s Welsh Senedd, Scottish parliament and English local elections. Reform could win the most seats unde

PoliticsReform
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

Zack Polanski’s Jewish identity is being erased because his views are too leftwing | Owen Jones

The leader of the Green party has faced antisemitic attacks, and yet his thoughts on the subject don’t count as far as the rightwing UK press is concerned The surge of the Green party has emphasised an iron rule of British politics: those on the left cannot be treated as legitimate political actors. A case in point came at the weekend, when the Green party leader, Zack Polanski, was interviewed by Sky News’ Trevor Phillips, who barely concealed his contempt. Two weeks ago, in an interview with H

PoliticsEnvironment
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

Sudanese asylum seekers challenge Home Office rule changes for refugees

Shabana Mahmood has announced plan to cut leave to remain to 30 months, to concern of UN’s refugee agency Two Sudanese asylum seekers are challenging a key element of Labour’s plans to strip refugees of basic rights, rejecting the home secretary’s accusation that they are “asylum shoppers”. Shabana Mahmood has announced plans to halve refugees’ leave to remain in the UK from five years to 30 months, while refugees will have to wait 20 years before being eligible for permanent stay in the UK. Pre

Immigration
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

A reason to vote Labour tomorrow: we are the only party taking the climate crisis seriously | Katie White

Climate action is something the vast majority of Britons agree on. But even the Greens are blocking the vital infrastructure we need to electrify Britain Katie White is the Labour MP for Leeds North West and minister for climate in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero Strip away the politics, and the climate crisis debate isn’t complicated. We’re changing the planet in ways that are “damaging and dangerous”, and every country will be affected. “No one can opt out.” Those quotes migh

PoliticsEnvironment
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

Zack Polanski says he was wrong to call himself a Red Cross spokesperson

Green party leader also accuses rightwing media of politically motivated attacks as popularity grows UK politics live – latest updates Zack Polanski has said he was wrong to describe himself as a British Red Cross spokesperson, and that intensified media scrutiny of the Green party reflected fears of its rising popularity and support for wealth taxes. Polanski described himself as a British Red Cross spokesperson while campaigning for the party leadership, the Times revealed. The claim was als

PoliticsEconomyEnvironment
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

Proxies carrying out antisemitic attacks in UK could face 14 years in prison

Plans to be included in king’s speech will allow tougher action against proxies for foreign powers such as Iran UK politics live – latest updates Offenders who commit antisemitic attacks backed by foreign powers such as Iran will face 14 years in prison under legislation to be included in the king’s speech next week. Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, will be given the power under the National Security Act to designate proxy groups, such as those thought to be behind the recent attacks on th

PoliticsCrime
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

Polanski accuses Times of ‘scraping the barrel’ over his claim to be charity spokesperson – UK politics live

Green leader said he hosted fundraisers for the Red Cross but accepts he should not have described himself as a spokesperson for it Good morning. Zack Polanski was largely unknown until he became the Green party leader in September last year and since then, as his party has soared in the polls, there has been intense scrutiny of his pre-politics career. The best-known embarrassing revelation about his past is the fact that he once told a woman he could enlarge her breasts if she listened to his

PoliticsEnvironment
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

Apps, activists and an ‘air war’: Essex campaign is test of Reform UK’s professionalisation

Nigel Farage’s party sees local elections as showcase for a sleeker approach borrowing from an unlikely source Nigel Farage was midway through his walkabout of Waltham Abbey when a hunting horn loudly sounded on the Essex market town’s pedestrianised high street. “Oi oiii!” exclaimed the owner of Ouch Tattoos, Rob Chillingworth, putting down the instrument and reaching out a welcoming hand to the approaching Reform UK leader. For Farage, this was the latest stop in a midweek tour of half a dozen

PoliticsDefenceReform
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

EU trade deal could force UK to restrict use of weedkiller linked to cancer

Glyphosate is currently sprayed on cereal and pulse crops to dessicate them and make them easier to harvest A new trade deal with the EU could lead to restrictions on the use of the controversial weedkiller glyphosate on UK food crops. The full-spectrum herbicide, which kills almost every plant it touches, is often sprayed on wheat, oats and other cereal and pulse crops immediately before harvest to desiccate them and make them easier to handle. Continue reading...

Housing
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

May elections: What’s at stake across England, Wales and Scotland?

Will Reform take Sunderland, or the Greens take Hackney? Can Plaid Cymru take a historic victory in Wales, and will Labour be forced into third place in Scotland? We examine the possible outcomes for election night The Scottish, Welsh, and local English elections on Thursday 7 May are a huge test for all the main political parties – and may be existential for Keir Starmer as prime minister and Labour leader. The elections, two years into a Labour government, will see more than 30 million people

PoliticsEnvironment
The Guardian Politics6 May 2026

Labour’s nationwide collapse risks making Nigel Farage the face of the UK’s fragile union | Rafael Behr

Scottish and Welsh nationalism will be further radicalised if Reform UK sets the tone of debate over inclusion in the British state Keir Starmer has neither a heartland nor a stronghold. That is the picture likely to emerge once all the votes in this week’s local and devolved elections have been counted. Council seats in Labour’s traditional northern-English working-class base will fall to Reform UK. Parts of inner London, where the electoral map has been red for decades, will go Green. Rafael B

PoliticsDefenceEnvironmentReform
The Guardian Politics5 May 2026

Reinstate windfall tax on banks after surge in profits, TUC urges

Unions group wants rate returned from 3% to 8% after big four UK lenders reveal £14bn total profit in first quarter An increased windfall tax should be imposed on the UK’s largest banks according to trade union leaders, after the big four lenders reported almost £14bn in first-quarter profits, partly fuelled by market turbulence caused by the Iran war. The Trades Union Congress (TUC) renewed its call for an increase in the current bank surcharge, which was reduced from 8% to 3% of profits above

EconomyDefenceHousing