Politics

The United Nations’ refugee agency has rebuked Home Secretary Suella Braverman after she claimed the current asylum system is no longer fit for purpose. Ms Braverman called for a reform of the international system in a speech in Washington DC. She outlined how she believed the current system was “outdated”, and branded the number of

Sir Ed Davey will close this week’s Liberal Democrat conference by promising to “fix our economy with care” after the Conservatives “broke” it with “carelessness”. In his first speech at the annual gathering since becoming leader, he will underline a number of health pledges the party has made over recent days – including enabling patients

Home Secretary Suella Braverman will question whether the foundation of modern asylum law is still relevant in a speech in the US on Tuesday. Ms Braverman will ask whether the United Nations Refugee Convention 1951 is “fit for our modern age”. She will be speaking to the American Enterprise Institute, a centre-right think tank in

Twenty-four hours in A&E is now “no longer a documentary”, leading medics have warned, as figures show almost 400,000 patients spent a day or more in an emergency department in England last year. The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) said the very long waits are a “matter of national shame”. Figures uncovered by the

The Liberal Democrats are calling for the government to scrap severance payments for senior figures who break the ministerial code. Research carried out by the party showed a total of £530,000 had been given to ministers after they quit over a breach, despite some of them returning to government within weeks. High profile resignations include

Sir Ed Davey has insisted the Liberal Democrats will continue to support the pensions triple lock under any circumstances. The policy means the state pension has to rise in line with wages, inflation or 2.5% – whichever is higher – each year, with the government taking the decision in the autumn ahead of it being

The northern section of the HS2 high speed rail line looks set to be scrapped by Rishi Sunak, Sky News understands. It comes as a number of Sunday newspapers reported that any decision would be announced before next weekend’s Conservative Party conference. Sky News political correspondent Tamara Cohen said: “The widespread view in Westminster is

Households under financial pressure must be supported ahead of an “inevitable” energy crisis this winter, MPs have told the government. Many in the UK will be paying the same or even more over the winter months than they were a year earlier, despite wholesale market prices dropping. It’s a scenario MPs on the Energy Security

Rishi Sunak’s popularity has plunged to its lowest point since taking office following his watering down of key climate pledges. The prime minister’s net favourability rating has slumped to -45, according to a YouGov survey carried out days after his speech rowing back on net zero pledges. The poll of more than 2,000 adults between

Labour has pledged to bolster the power of the UK’s economic watchdog to prevent a repeat of the “disastrous mistakes” of Liz Truss’s mini-budget. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to introduce legislation that would allow the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to independently publish their own impact assessment of any major and permanent

This week, Rishi Sunak made a surprise speech announcing delays to a number of key Conservative pledges aimed at cutting greenhouse gas emissions. But alongside a five-year delay to the ban on selling new petrol and diesel cars, and various changes to promises on oil and gas boilers, the prime minister also claimed he was

Rishi Sunak’s watering down of climate pledges is not a “cynical ploy” – but is rather the prime minister doing “what is right”, Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch has said. Last night, Mr Sunak announced a raft of changes to the UK’s climate pledges, including delaying the ban on the sale of new internal combustion engine

Today the cross-party climate consensus in place for many years was shattered. Minutes after Rishi Sunak’s press conference concluded, Labour announced they would reverse the most incendiary of all the PM’s promises – to move back the date to ban new petrol cars, from 2030 to 2035. This puts Labour and the Tories differences on

The home secretary has said that “we’re not going to save the planet by bankrupting the British people” in response to reports the government is looking at watering down its green pledges. Among the changes being considering are the pushing back of a ban on the sales of new vehicles with internal combustion engines from

Rishi Sunak looks set to weaken key climate pledges in a move that has drawn heavy criticism from Tory MPs and environmental groups. The prime minister said he remains committed to the net zero target by 2050 but will achieve it “in a better, more proportionate way”. It comes after a report in the BBC

Health Secretary Steve Barclay has criticised the “increasing militancy” and “politically” motivated strikes, and said that is why new legislation to curtail walkouts is being introduced. Mr Barclay was speaking as consultants took industrial action today, with junior doctors set to join them tomorrow in the first joint strike in NHS history. The government is

An unrepentant Liz Truss has sought to blame a left-wing infiltration of thinktanks, the Bank of England and other “institutions” for the market turmoil during her brief premiership. Ms Truss was speaking at an Institute for Government event about what she believes are the issues with the UK economy. Her 49 days as prime minister

Labour will look to build a closer trading relationship with the EU if it wins the next election, Sir Keir Starmer has said. The Labour leader spent the weekend meeting fellow centre-left leaders in Montreal, Canada, including the country’s prime minister Justin Trudeau. The party has long been critical of the deal negotiated by the

Liz Truss is set to urge the government to cut taxes – and insist her plan to grow the economy would eventually have worked. A year on from her disastrous mini-budget, the former Tory prime minister will also say it was unfair to suggest her programme of tax cuts, amounting to £45bn, was unfunded. She

Sir Keir Starmer has refused to guarantee the tax burden – currently the largest since the Second World War –  would not increase under Labour. While the opposition leader told Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme he wanted it to come down “for working people”, his “laser focus” was on growing the economy.