Politics

Sir Keir Starmer has branded the prime minister “inaction man” over the problems facing the UK’s schools and prisons. Mr Sunak has been greeted with a number of problems on returning to Westminster from the summer recess, including a crisis involving concrete in public buildings, the escape of a terror suspect from prison and allegations

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Health Secretary Steve Barclay will today meet health experts as they seek to “mitigate winter pressures” hitting the NHS this year. The pair will hold a roundtable with clinical leaders in Downing Street, aiming to “improve performance and drive forward planning” to ease the impact on the health service in

Angela Rayner declared the battle to win over voters at the next general election is “getting started” as she revealed Labour’s vision to boost workers’ rights. In a speech at the TUC conference in Liverpool, Labour’s deputy leader gave a “cast iron commitment” to push through an employment rights bill in the party’s first 100

Collapse-prone concrete has been found in the Houses of Parliament. Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete, known as RAAC, was a common building material used in the post-war era as it was cheaper and lighter than traditional concrete. But it is now proving a nightmare for the government as it has been found to have a 30-year

A parliamentary researcher who has been arrested on suspicion of spying for China has said he is “completely innocent”. In a statement released by his lawyers, the man – who they did not name – said: “I feel forced to respond to the media accusations that I am a ‘Chinese spy’. It is wrong that

The Conservatives will be accused of having “broken Britain” in a keynote speech by the new leader of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) attacking the state of the economy and public services. In his first speech as head of the union federation, Paul Nowak will highlight that “nothing works in this country anymore and no

About 40 prisoners have been moved out of Wandsworth prison after the escape of terror suspect Daniel Khalife. Justice Secretary Alex Chalk told Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips that inmates were moved “out of an abundance of caution”. Khalife, 21, was arrested on Saturday after 75 hours on the run. Politics Live: Justice

Two men have been arrested under the Official Secrets Act amid reports that a parliamentary researcher spied for China. The researcher has links to several senior Tory MPs and has been arrested on suspicion of spying for China, according to The Sunday Times. He was arrested along with another man by officers on 13 March,

Rishi Sunak says he is confident a trade deal will be struck between the UK and India after meeting with Narendra Modi at the G20 summit. The meeting came as the Indian prime minister said a consensus had been reached on a G20 leaders’ declaration and it has now been adopted. The wording around the

Rishi Sunak has denied his party is preparing for election defeat and insists his team is “fired up” about winning a full term. Asked what his message would be to Tory MPs despondent about the party’s lag in the polls, Mr Sunak said he was “entirely confident we can win the next election”. “I am

The jail from which terror suspect Daniel Abed Khalife escaped “really needs closing ultimately”, the chief inspector of prisons has said. Speaking to Sky News’ Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge, Charlie Taylor said there was a “crisis” in large institutions like Wandsworth prison in south London due to a lack of places and staff, and

Labour is calling for an independent inquiry into how a prisoner was able to escape from a London jail while awaiting trial for terror offences. Daniel Abed Khalife, 21, is alleged to have escaped from Wandsworth prison – one of the UK’s largest – under a food truck. Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, said

Rishi Sunak has sounded a cautious note about the prospects of signing Britain’s biggest post-Brexit trade deal, saying it is “not a given”. Speaking to reporters as he travelled to the G20 in Delhi, the prime minister said he would “check in” with Narendra Modi about the progress towards a free trade agreement. But he

A controversial law that would effectively end prosecutions related to The Troubles has passed its final hurdle in the Commons – despite anger from all sides on the island of Ireland. MPs today approved the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill, which will stop new cases and inquests being opened into killings on both

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has come under fire from colleagues for her “unilateral” decision to determine which school buildings need to close as part of the concrete crisis, Sky News has learned. Ministers elsewhere in Whitehall fear she has opened a “Pandora’s box” by setting a more cautious than necessary standard that could affect a

Schools minister Nick Gibb claimed the government is taking the most proactive approach “in the world” over the concrete crisis following accusations it didn’t heed warnings. Mr Gibb told Sky News he did not accept criticism from the National Audit Office (NAO) that the Department for Education (DfE) was taking a “sticking plaster approach” to