Rishi Sunak to Keir Starmer: Five bold predictions for British politics in 2023 Westminster If a week is a long time in politics, as Harold Wilson once said, then what on earth was 2022? Rishi Sunak started the year as Chancellor, spent a strange summer on the backbenches, and returned to Downing Street with the top job by Christmas. In an exhausting and traumatic 12 months the UK witnessed [...]
Rishi Sunak hires Evercore investment banker as new ethics adviser Westminster Rishi Sunak has hired a new independent ethics adviser, after the last two holders of the post quit during Boris Johnson’s premiership. The Prime Minister has appointed Sir Magnus Laurie CBE, a senior investment banker at Evercore and chair of Historic England, as Number 10’s new independent adviser on ministers’ interests. Sunak said in a [...]
Half of UK firms find trading with EU difficult post-Brexit, says new survey Brexit latest More than half of UK businesses who trade overseas are finding it difficult to trade goods with the EU post-Brexit, according to a new survey. A new poll from the British Chambers of Commerce found that 56 per cent of firms “face difficulties adapting to the new rules for trading goods” with the EU and [...]
Sunak looks East: The PM’s China strategy has become clear December 21, 2022 It took Rishi Sunak less than a week into his Tory leadership battle with Liz Truss to dramatically swerve to the right. Amid the flurry of policies designed to win over the grassroots included a promise to be more belligerent toward China than Boris Johnson. Sunak promised to label the country as an official “threat”, [...]
Strikes: Sunak says public sector pay process doesn’t need reform December 20, 2022 Rishi Sunak has thrown his backing behind the government’s independent pay review process for public sector workers, despite this month’s widespread strikes. The Prime Minister told MPs on a Westminster committee today that pay offers to striking NHS staff members were “fair” as Number 10 today said Sunak would not intervene to negotiate with unions. [...]
Sadiq Khan to run for third term as London mayor in 2024 election December 20, 2022 Sadiq Khan will seek a third term as London mayor, after being selected as Labour’s candidate for the 2024 election. Khan, who would be the first London mayor to win three elections if victorious in 2024, said it would be a “very tough election” and that “there’s still so much more to do.” There have [...]
Jeremy Hunt extends alcohol duty freeze until August December 19, 2022 Planned hikes in alcohol duty have been put off until August, afterJeremy Hunt decided to extend the current freeze a further six months. The chancellor was due to increase duty on beer, wine, cider and spirits by the annual increase in RPI on 1 February. This would have meant an average increase of 7p for [...]
Covid: Government to sue Baroness Mone-linked firm over £122m PPE contract December 19, 2022 The government is suing a firm linked to Baroness Michelle Mone, after it was handed contracts worth more than £200m to supply personal protective equipment (PPE) during Covid-19. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) today announced it was suing PPE Medpro for £122m plus costs, after the firm allegedly breached a contract “regarding [...]
Number 10: Rishi Sunak ‘deeply regrets’ Christmas strikes December 19, 2022 Rishi Sunak “deeply regrets” the strikes disrupting the Christmas period but will not bend on public sector pay demands, Number 10 has said. Sunak’s official spokesman today said it is “still in the gift of the unions to step back and reconsider the approach” as Britain suffers from a series of December strikes. Up to [...]
Christmas strikes: Government sends in 1,200 troops to replace workers December 18, 2022 Around 1,200 members of the military and 1,000 civil servants are being sent in by the government to cover striking ambulance drivers and Border Force staff. The staff will be deployed to minimise disruption throughout the rest of the month as more key sector workers go on strike. Up to 10,000 ambulance staff will go [...]
