Politics

Transgender women will be banned from being treated in female hospital wards, under new proposals suggested by the health secretary. In his conference speech, Steve Barclay will reportedly announce plans to push back against what he calls “wokery” in the NHS, which he says has led to women’s rights being increasingly sidelined. Speaking to the

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will reiterate the government’s commitments to make benefits sanctions harsher in a speech today – while also committing to raising the national living wage above £11 an hour. Mr Hunt‘s intervention comes around six weeks ahead of his autumn financial statement. While not as tumultuous as his predecessor’s party conference speech last

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has refused to commit to tax cuts ahead of the next election, despite growing calls from inside his party. His cabinet colleague Michael Gove told Sky News on Sunday that he wanted to see “the tax burden reduced” by the time the public goes to the polls. But speaking to Kay Burley

Michael Gove has called for a tax cut before the next general election – putting him at odds with the chancellor on the first day of Conservative Party conference. Jeremy Hunt told The Times newspaper on Saturday the government was “not in a position to talk about tax cuts at all”, and needed to focus

Top Tories are setting out their policies as the Conservative Party conference kicks off in Manchester – with levelling up, immigration, Ukraine and the next general election on the agenda. Rishi Sunak has announced that more than 50 “overlooked” British towns will be given £20m each over the next 10 years to regenerate high streets,

Grassroots Conservative supporters are saying they want to oust Rishi Sunak and “go to war” with the liberal wing of the party in leaked WhatsApp messages obtained by Sky News. We have obtained the discussions amongst members of the Conservative Democratic Organisation (CDO), founded in December 2022 by donor and Johnson-backer Lord Peter Cruddas after

Rishi Sunak has said he is “slamming the brakes on the war on motorists” – with the government confirming that councils will be stopped from enforcing blanket 20mph speed limits. Low-traffic neighbourhoods are also in the prime minister’s crosshairs and will only be permitted where there is local consent. The Department for Transport added that

Rishi Sunak is considering removing the winter fuel allowance from all but the poorest pensioners as a way of clawing back some taxpayer funds from the elderly as he prepares to fight the next election on a pledge to keep the pension triple lock despite its spiralling costs. Government figures told Sky News the prime

Rishi Sunak and Boris Johnson have overseen the largest set of tax rises since the Second World War, according to economic analysis. The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) estimates that – by the time of the next general election – the tax burden will have risen to around 37% of national income. This equates to

Rishi Sunak dodged questions over the future of HS2 as he spoke to local radio stations across the country. The prime minister was repeatedly asked about the northern leg of the high speed rail line between Birmingham and Manchester. He was also quizzed on whether the route would now end in the west London suburb

Labour has U-turned on its plans to remove the charitable status of private schools. Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in 2021 that her party was ideologically opposed to fee-charging schools avoiding tax by operating as charities. However, it has now emerged that, while Labour still plans to force independent schools to pay VAT, it will

“Many people” pretend to be gay to claim asylum in the UK, Suella Braverman has claimed, as she defended herself from criticism from Sir Elton John. The home secretary yesterday delivered a controversial speech in which she claimed the asylum system will break if people are given sanctuary for “simply being gay, or a woman,

The United Nations’ refugee agency has rebuked Home Secretary Suella Braverman after she claimed the current asylum system is no longer fit for purpose. Ms Braverman called for a reform of the international system in a speech in Washington DC. She outlined how she believed the current system was “outdated”, and branded the number of

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has called for a reform of the international asylum system, saying it is no longer fit for purpose. Speaking in Washington DC, Ms Braverman outlined how she believed the current system was “outdated”. She branded the number of displaced people in the world as an “epoch-defining challenge” – the same language

Sir Ed Davey will close this week’s Liberal Democrat conference by promising to “fix our economy with care” after the Conservatives “broke” it with “carelessness”. In his first speech at the annual gathering since becoming leader, he will underline a number of health pledges the party has made over recent days – including enabling patients

Sir Ed Davey has hinted his party would be prepared to do a post-election deal with Labour to prevent the Conservatives from forming a government. Speaking to Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby at the Liberal Democrats annual conference, the leader categorically ruled out any agreement with the Tories, saying his party could “play a

The Liberal Democrats are calling for the government to scrap severance payments for senior figures who break the ministerial code. Research carried out by the party showed a total of £530,000 had been given to ministers after they quit over a breach, despite some of them returning to government within weeks. High profile resignations include

Grant Shapps has hinted at a change to plans for HS2, as the northern section of the rail project looks set to be scrapped. Sky News understands the high-speed line planned between Birmingham and Manchester will be binned by the prime minister due to concerns over the cost of the much delayed project. And it

The home secretary has questioned whether international migration rules and conventions designed more than a century ago are “fit for purpose” ahead of a major speech in the United States. Suella Braverman suggested a shake-up of international rules could be needed to tackle the migrant crisis. She warned a failure to address the problem will

Rishi Sunak is considering a recommendation that would effectively ban cigarettes for the next generation. The prime minister could introduce some of the world’s toughest anti-smoking measures by steadily increasing the legal age for consuming tobacco, according to The Guardian, citing Whitehall sources. The paper said it also understood Mr Sunak’s leadership pledge to fine