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Sir Keir Starmer has seen off a backbench rebellion over plans to cut the winter fuel allowance but the Government’s majority fell to 120. MPs voted 348 to 228 against the Tory motion for the controversial policy to be blocked. A list of how MPs voted will be available shortly, though it will not be immediately clear how many actively chose to abstain as it will only show who voted […]

The United States and the UK have formally accused Iran of supplying short-range ballistic missiles to Russia to use in the war in Ukraine, and plan to take measures to punish those involved. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking alongside British Foreign Secretary David Lammy during a visit to London, said sanctions will be announced later on Tuesday. “Russia has now received shipments of these ballistic missiles and will […]

Prisoners could be put up in hotels when they are freed early to ease jail overcrowding, the Justice Secretary said. Shabana Mahmood told the Commons that inmates who are homeless on release could be temporarily placed in taxpayer-funded budget hotels if there is not enough space in bail hostels and other community accommodation typically used for offenders. A watchdog warned it was “inevitable” some of the 1,700 prisoners being released […]

Sir Keir Starmer has insisted bosses are not “knocking on my door saying they want to rip up employee rights” as he defended his plan to tackle bad working practices. The Prime Minister, who vowed to “rewrite the rules of our economy” and forge a new partnership between government, business and workers, rejected criticism of his plans – which the Tories have dubbed “French-style union laws”. The Institute of Directors […]

Consumer group Which? has called on Oasis and Ticketmaster to “do the right thing” and refund fans hit by inflated ticket prices. Many fans were shocked by the price of standard tickets for the reunion tour more than doubling from £148 to £355 on Ticketmaster amid surging demand, prompting the Government and the UK’s competition watchdog to pledge they will look into the use of dynamic pricing. Following the controversy, […]

All primary school-aged children should be given free meals to help tackle the obesity crisis, leading health experts have said. The group warned that they see the “impact of poor diet and food scarcity on the health of our children and young people” every day. In a letter to Health Secretary Wes Streeting, they urged the Government to follow the example set in London and roll out free school meals […]

Harry Kane has set his sights on notching 100 international goals as he prepares to become just the 10th male England player to reach a century of caps against Finland. The 31-year-old’s tally currently stands at 66 since netting on his debut as a substitute against Lithuania in 2015, while he has been the country’s all-time leading goalscorer since overtaking Wayne Rooney’s previous record of 53 in March last year. […]

Spiralling levels of economic inactivity in Britain’s workforce are set to be tackled by the Government as it pledged to address the “greatest employment challenge of a generation”. Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall assembled experts on a new Labour Market Advisory board for the first time this week to look at ways to help the Government meet its target to reach an 80% employment rate. It comes as a […]

It is “inevitable” some of the hundreds of inmates set to be freed from jail early will commit more crimes and end up back behind bars, the prisons watchdog warned. Around 1,700 prisoners are expected to be released on Tuesday from jails across England and Wales in a bid to cut overcrowding. This is in addition to the around 1,000 prisoners normally freed each week. It comes after Justice Secretary […]