Budget 2016: George Osborne’s Budget approved by MPs including Iain Duncan Smith after disability benefit cuts were shelved March 22, 2016 MPs have approved the Budget after a week that saw one senior minister resign from the cabinet and a government U-turn on benefit cuts. The Budget passed with a majority of 35 MPs at 310 votes for to 275 against. George Osborne's Budget last week contained £4bn worth of disability benefits cuts – leading pensions [...]
London mayoral election 2016: Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith and Labour candidate Sadiq Khan confirm they will step down as MPs if elected March 22, 2016 Conservative mayoral candidate Zac Goldsmith and his Labour rival Sadiq Khan have both confirmed that they won't be following in current London mayor Boris Johnson's footsteps – at least when it comes to having both an office in City Hall and the House of Commons. Both Goldsmith and Khan said today that they intend to [...]
Budget 2016: Chancellor George Osborne says he is “sorry” Iain Duncan Smith resigned and is prepared to “listen and learn” from mistakes March 22, 2016 Chancellor George Osborne has said that he is "sorry" that former work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith resigned after last week's Budget and that he is prepared to "listen and learn" from his mistakes. Addressing MPs in the House of Commons earlier today, Osborne said: "I am sorry that my right honourable friend chose to [...]
US Presidential Election 2016: Donald Trump urges tougher border controls in response to attacks in Brussels March 22, 2016 Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump has issued another stark warning on border control following the attacks in Brussels. Trump called again for tougher US border security following Tuesday's attacks in Brussels, saying "we have to be very vigilant and careful about who we allow into our country." As many as 34 people have been killed and more [...]
Nearly three in four people say chancellor George Osborne is not up to the job of Prime Minister after Budget March 22, 2016 Nearly three in four people think chancellor George Osborne is not up to the job of Prime Minister, according to new YouGov figures out today. In just the latest post-Budget blow for the chancellor, YouGov found that only eight per cent of people think Osborne would be a good fit for replacing Prime Minister David Cameron. The proportion [...]
EU referendum: Ed Miliband to set out case for EU membership in first intervention March 22, 2016 Former Labour leader Ed Miliband is to set out his argument for why the United Kingdom should remain in the European Union, in his first intervention on the issue. Miliband is set to make a case for progressive change only being possible inside a reformed EU, while accusing pro-Brexit campaigners of wanting to usher in [...]
EU referendum: Presidential hopeful Donald Trump believes “Britain may leave the EU” March 22, 2016 Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump has said he believes the United Kingdom could vote to leave the European Union. The frontrunner for the Republican nomination said the UK was experiencing "a lot of problems" and so could end up voting for Brexit come 23 June. Speaking in Washington, D.C., Trump said his opinion was "based on [...]
EU referendum: Moody’s says Brexit costs outweigh the benefits and warns of negative effect on UK Plc credit ratings March 22, 2016 A British exit from the European union would result in prolonged uncertainty and put downward pressure on British companies’ credit ratings, Moody’s Investors Service has warned. In two new reports out today, the credit rating giant said that the economic costs of a so-called Brexit would outweigh the potential benefits, with the UK leaving the [...]
David Cameron makes case for “compassionate conservatism” while Stephen Crabb will rule out disability benefit cuts following resignation of Iain Duncan Smith March 21, 2016 Prime Minister David Cameron has defended his compassionate conservative credentials today, days after Iain Duncan Smith quit amid a row over the Budget. Cameron told MPs this afternoon that he is committed to "compassionate conservatism" after Duncan Smith left his role as work and pensions secretary over what he called a deeply unfair Budget. Read more: [...]
London mayoral election 2016: Labour candidate Sadiq Khan and Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith spar as official campaign kicks off March 21, 2016 The front-runners to replace Boris Johnson as mayor of London traded sharp words today, the first official day of the mayoral campaign. With just seven weeks to go until voters head to the polls, Labour candidate Sadiq Khan used a speech in Westminster to say he would be the “British Muslim who takes the fight [...]