Politics

Michael Gove has been placed under investigation by parliament’s standards watchdog. It relates to the housing secretary’s register of financial interests. Further details will remain confidential until the inquiry is concluded – and those under investigation are barred from discussing the allegations. Although the cause of investigation has not been published, last week the Guardian

Nestled in the foothills of the Pennines, Rochdale is a town with a proud history. It was once home to the world’s foremost cotton processing centres and is widely known as the birthplace of the modern co-operative movement. But in recent years the town has been marred by child exploitation scandals, poverty and deprivation. According

The ousted Post Office chairman has insisted it was the company’s chief executive who was the subject of an internal investigation, not him. Former chair Henry Staunton was dismissed last month by business secretary Kemi Badenoch who said bullying accusations had been made against him. But on Tuesday, Mr Staunton told MPs on the Business

Rishi Sunak has “made the calculation” that he doesn’t need Muslim voters for his “political purposes”, a former minister has claimed. Tory MP Rehman Chishti told Sky News’ Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge that during the last leadership election, Mr Sunak promised he was “committed” to engaging with the community and told him: “We will

The spring budget on 6 March is likely to be the last major fiscal event before the next general election, expected later this year. The Tories have been hinting at further tax reductions in a bid to woo over voters as the party continues to languish behind Labour in the polls. But as the country

Labour has called on Rishi Sunak to consider removing the whip from Liz Truss after her appearance in the US sparked controversy. Anneliese Dodds, the chair of the Labour Party, accused the former prime minister of “propagating conspiracy theories” and “associating with individuals who have actually praised the far right in our country”. “That’s deeply

Tory MPs have complained that suspending Lee Anderson may have been a mistake, WhatsApp messages leaked to Sky News have revealed. After one of the most toxic weeks in Westminster, the Sky News and Politico podcast, Politics at Jack and Sam’s, examines the attitude of all sides to the controversies of the last few days.

The deputy prime minister has refused to say on Sky News whether Lee Anderson is “racist” as he backed the decision to suspend him from the Conservative Party following his attack on Sadiq Khan. Mr Anderson claimed “Islamists” had “got control” of the London mayor whom he claimed had “given our capital city away to

Sir Keir Starmer has accused the prime minister of harbouring extremists in his party after a senior Tory MP was suspended for “Islamophobic” comments. The Labour leader said Rishi Sunak’s “weakness” allowed Lee Anderson “to act with impunity” and that he “needs to get a grip and take on the extremists in his party”. Sir

Lee Anderson has been suspended from the Conservative party after “Islamophobic” comments. A spokesperson for Chief Whip Simon Hart said: “Following his refusal to apologise for comments made yesterday, the Chief Whip has suspended the Conservative whip from Lee Anderson MP.” Speaking on GB News this week, Mr Anderson, MP for Ashfield, said: “I don’t

Conservative MP Lee Anderson has been criticised for making “divisive and dangerous” comments about London mayor Sadiq Khan – with calls for him to be kicked out of the party. Labour’s shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said the former Tory deputy chairman had engaged in “outright racism and Islamophobia”, while ex-Tory MP Gavin Barwell said

For weeks – months even – we’ve been watching a beauty parade on the Conservative benches preparing for life after Rishi Sunak as various MPs hook up with various groupings of Conservative backbenchers hoping to garner support for the moment when the ball comes out of the scrum. On the right, we have seen the

The Speaker changing the “usual ways in which parliament works” was “very concerning”, according to the prime minister – who did not say whether he accepted Sir Lindsay Hoyle’s apology. Sir Lindsay’s role has been thrown into jeopardy after he allowed both Labour and government amendments to be voted on, on an SNP debate –

Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle is being urged to “come clean” about whether Labour tried to influence his handling of a debate on Gaza which descended into chaos. Sir Lindsay, who is facing calls to resign, is meeting with Leader of the House Penny Mordaunt and party chief whips later today in a bid to

Sir Keir Starmer started the day facing the prospect of a very sizeable rebellion and possibly even a shadow cabinet resignation or two as dozens of MPs warned that they wouldn’t be able to vote against the SNP motion calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. And yet he ended it becoming the first political

Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle is facing a backlash from Tory MPs over his decision to select both the Labour and government amendments to the SNP’s Gaza ceasefire motion. It is highly unusual to allow an opposition party – in this case Labour – to amend a motion from another opposition party. Usually, only a

Three people have been charged with criminal damage after a Greenpeace protest at Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s home. A statement from North Yorkshire Police said the man and two women facing the charges were Mathieu Soete, 38, Amy Rugg-Easey, 33, and Alexandra Wilson, 32. It comes after the climate change group carried out a demonstration

Labour has called for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza for the first time, saying the situation there is “intolerable”. The party leadership has been under pressure to back an immediate end to the fighting in the strip, with Sir Keir Starmer previously only calling for a “sustainable ceasefire” or “humanitarian pauses”. Shadow foreign secretary David

Ofcom has launched an investigation into Rishi Sunak’s recent appearance on GB News. The prime minister answered questions on a range of topics from an audience on the show, but complainants alleged that no alternative view was offered. In a statement, the UK’s communications and broadcast regulator said: “We have received around 500 complaints about

Ministers have urged police forces to use “robust” measures to tackle protesters who “intimidate and harass” MPs over their stance on the Israel-Gaza conflict. In a letter to chief constables, seen by Sky News, security minister Tom Tugendhat and policing minister Chris Philp said the demonstration outside the home of Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood was