Politics

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

Former Tory MP Scott Benton has been suspended from the Commons over his role in a lobbying sting – creating a further headache for Rishi Sunak. MPs approved the suspension of Mr Benton, who had the Tory whip removed last April after suggesting to undercover reporters at The Times that he would be willing to

Sir Keir Starmer is facing a possible parliamentary investigation over allegations he put pressure on the Speaker in a debate on Gaza last week. Sir Lindsay Hoyle is facing a backlash for allowing a vote on a Labour amendment to an SNP motion calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Parliamentary convention dictates that there

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

A cabinet minister has appeared to leave the door open for Lee Anderson to regain the Tory party whip following an attack on Sadiq Khan that resulted in his suspension. Mr Anderson was suspended at the weekend after he refused to apologise for claiming “Islamists” had got “control” over London and that Mr Khan had

MPs are set to hold another debate on a ceasefire in Gaza after the SNP said it would take up the Speaker’s offer following last week’s chaotic scenes in parliament. It comes after Sir Lindsay Hoyle faced a backlash last week for breaching convention by allowing a vote on a Labour amendment to an SNP

A scheme to allow prisoners to be released early because of a lack of space has been extended indefinitely, Sky News can reveal. Ministers have also expanded the number of jails letting out prisoners before the end of their sentence, according to leaked documents. Originally, the early release scheme – known as the End of

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

New research has revealed a huge lead for Labour in coastal towns and communities. Exclusive polling from the Fabian Society shows that in 108 constituencies in England and Wales that contain at least one coastal town, Labour leads with 52% of the vote. Coastal towns and communities – dubbed the ‘sea wall’ – will be

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

Ahead of our first proper Electoral Dysfunction next week, we thought it’s time to share what Beth, Jess and Ruth have been up to in rehearsals. In this special teaser, they explain what the title is all about and what they’ll be trying to do on every episode. And, they get down to the nitty-gritty

An emotional Sir Lindsay Hoyle said he never wants to pick up the phone “to find a friend has been murdered” – as he defended his actions in the Commons on Wednesday. The Commons Speaker is facing a backlash for allowing a vote on a Labour amendment to an SNP motion calling for an immediate

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 has apologised to MPs after the chamber descended into chaos around a motion calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Wednesday was designated as an opposition day for the SNP, which chose to debate the Israel-Hamas war – and sought to persuade MPs to back its calls for an immediate halt

The Home Office has fired the chief inspector of borders and immigration who claimed UK Border Force had failed to check the occupants of hundreds of private jets at a London airport. The department said it had “terminated the appointment” of David Neal on the grounds he had “lost the confidence of the home secretary”.

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

Sir Keir Starmer called for a “ceasefire that lasts” in Gaza – ahead of a vote in the Commons which risks re-opening Labour divisions on the issue. The Labour leader, fresh from an appearance at a gathering of top politicians in Germany, said every conversation there had focused on what could be done to end

This week’s two by-elections had something for everyone – except Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives. Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party has now broken into the record books with six by-election gains from the Conservatives, beating New Labour’s performance in the run-up to the 1997 Election. Reform UK got more than 10% of the votes in both constituencies.