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Short-lived PM also says she anticipated mini-budget ‘turbulence’ and compares herself to Brian CloughLiz Truss ran for Conservative leader and prime minister despite her husband’s prediction that “it would all end in tears”, according to her book, Ten Years to Save the West, which will be published in the UK and US next week.She agreed with an ally that the mini-budget she planned to...

Alan Cook, former managing director, says he ‘regrets’ that he ‘didn’t pick up earlier’ that Post Office could initiate prosecutionsAll our UK politics newsAlan Cook, who was the managing director of Post Office, has just told the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry that he was not aware until late in his tenure that the Post Office was the prosecuting authority in many of these...

Speaking on LBC this morning the prime minister also defended his handling of William Wragg sexting scandalAll our UK politics newsPushed on LBC this morning about the timing of the next general election, prime minister Rishi Sunak refused to be drawn, and suggested the country should have its focus on the “substance” of issues instead.He told listeners:When I got this job we’d been through...

Former subpostmaster and subject of ITV drama arrives to speak to inquiry in LondonAll our UK politics newsShadow chancellor Rachel Reeves also repeatedly attacked Conservative plans over non-dom tax status. Having defended the status against calls for abolition for years, in March Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt announced it would adopt Labour’s policy and scrap the status. However, the way they are planning to...

Kevin Hollinrake has said in his view ‘people should be prosecuted’All our UK politics newsI mentioned in the introduction that Reform UK are giving a press briefing that they have billed as being about “Labour’s betrayal of the working class”. That will be starting in a few minutes and I will bring you any key lines that emerge …John Harris writes for us today,...

Treasury minister Gareth Davies says William Wragg will remain Tory MP while there is an investigationAll our UK politics newsLabour in Scotland have also been on the attack over taxes, with an ad taking a swipe at the SNP and Conservatives.In comments release to the media, Labour’s leader in Scotland Anas Sarwar criticised what he said was “SNP and Tory mismanagement”, saying:[First minister] Humza...

Levelling up secretary says he should have been upfront with David Cameron about his role in leave campaignMichael Gove has admitted “moral cowardice” during the Brexit campaign by not being upfront with David Cameron about his role in the leave campaign.In an interview for the Political Currency podcast with George Osborne and Ed Balls, the levelling up secretary said he was initially reluctant to...

National Education Union leader says morale among teachers is at ‘an all time low’ in radio interview There is widespread agreement in the UK and the US that Israel has “gone too far” in its war against Hamas, Darren Jones, a Labour Treasury spokesperson, said this morning.In an interview with ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Jones said:I think what we’ve seen from President Biden, from...

Anneliese Dodds says the honour for Mohamed Mansour appears clearly tied to his £5m donation to the ToriesRishi Sunak’s decision to hand a knighthood to a businessman and former Egyptian government minister who donated £5m to the Conservative party is the sign of a prime minister who “simply believes he’s on the way out”, Labour has said.Mohamed Mansour, a senior treasurer of the Tory...

Co-owner of investment management firm called for ‘urgent’ post-Brexit changes to City rules at committee meetingsA senior Tory MP is facing questions over whether he used his Commons Treasury committee role to lobby for post-Brexit changes to City rules, which stand to benefit the industry where he has a second job.John Baron, who in addition to his role as an MP is co-owner and...

Exclusive: Man who has now given party at least £10m copied Steve Barclay into email about problems with bid, documents showThe Conservative mega-donor Frank Hester complained to the NHS and the health secretary last year over problems his IT business had bidding for a contract, documents show.The Leeds businessman, who owns a healthcare tech firm responsible for 60m UK medical records, raised a complaint...

Footage of people panicking, designed to attack the London mayor’s record on crime, was filmed in a New York subway stationThe Conservatives have deleted an online video that used scenes of a panicked crowd at a New York subway station to criticise Sadiq Khan’s record on crime in London.The attack ad, posted on X in support of Susan Hall – Khan’s rival for the...

Minister says ‘labelling ups and downs of life as medical conditions holds people back and drives up benefit bill’ as report comes out into women’s pensionsQ; Are you feeling sorry for the Princess of Wales at the moment?Yes, says Starmer. We should leave her alone. Continue reading...

Shadow chancellor to deliver prestigious Mais lecture and will announce plans to rewire the TreasuryTribune, the long-established paper (now a magazine and website) for the Labour left, is not impressed by Rachel Reeves’ suggestion that Margaret Thatcher delivered a decade of renewal.Rachel Reeves’ claim that Margaret Thatcher ‘delivered a decade of national renewal’ is the latest attempt to justify the suffering caused by her...

Business secretary dismisses reports of plot and rejects calls for her party to return donations from Frank HesterReports of Conservative plots against Rishi Sunak are the work of just “one or two” MPs, and the party needs to unite before May’s local elections, Kemi Badenoch, the business secretary has argued.In a sometimes combative media round, Badenoch also said the Tories did not need to...

Reform UK is making the headlines but tactical voting can power Ed Davey’s party in seats where they are the Tories’ main challengersThe Liberal Democrats gathered this weekend for their final spring conference before the general election. You may be forgiven for not knowing this.The fourth-largest party barely feature in current political discussions lately, and are flatlining in the polls even as the government...

The average time the Commons spends sitting every working day is now at lowest level for quarter of a centuryGood morning. Rishi Sunak has ruled out calling a general election on 2 May. This is no great surprise to anyone working in Westminster (despite what the Labour party claims), but worth knowing anyway, particularly for journalists with holiday plans for April. Here is the...

BMA committee votes in emergency motion after Tory donor’s comments about MP condemned as racist and misogynistGPs are calling on the Tory donor Frank Hester to resign from his health tech company after his remarks about Diane Abbott which have been widely condemned as racist and misogynist.Hester’s company TPP runs the electronic patient records of almost half the medical practices in the UK, making...

Victories in councils won during Boris Johnson’s ‘vaccine boost’ of 2021 face wipeout, leaving Rishi Sunak’s regime in perilSenior Tories are braced for a catastrophic set of local elections that will see a collapse in council seats won at the peak of the “vaccine bounce” enjoyed by Boris Johnson.Rishi Sunak’s allies regard the results as the most dangerous moment remaining for the prime minister...

Shadow cabinet talk with Whitehall officials after Keir Starmer meets head of civil service All members of Keir Starmer’s shadow cabinet are to meet top civil servants in Whitehall departments before Easter as Labour steps up preparations to form the next government, according to senior party sources.The Observer has been told that Starmer recently held a first round of so-called “access talks” with the...

Former PM says she remains committed to supporting Sunak as she decides to ‘pass the baton on’ after 27 yearsTreasury minister Gareth Davies has denied the number of Conservative MPs stepping down signifies a lack of confidence in the party’s electoral prospects.He told Sky News he was “personally sad” to see Theresa May step down after “a pretty good innings” of “27 years of...

Former PM says she wants to focus on causes close to her heart after 27 years in parliament The former prime minister Theresa May will step down as an MP at the next general election after 27 years in parliament.In a statement to the Maidenhead Advertiser, the Maidenhead MP said she wanted to focus on causes close to her heart, including her work on...

Chancellor refuses to disclose number of houses owned but says he will pay higher tax rate on proceeds from salesBusiness live – latest updatesJeremy Hunt has promised to voluntarily pay more capital gains tax on his properties so that he does not benefit from a tax cut he introduced.The chancellor refused to disclose how many houses he owned but said he would pay a...

Exclusive: Team will try to resolve goods and services issues amid fears Delhi is holding out for a Labour governmentBritish negotiators have flown to India in a last-ditch attempt to clinch a trade deal amid concerns that Narendra Modi’s administration intends to hold out for a Labour government.A team of negotiators led by a senior civil servant flew out on Monday with a mandate...