Conservative party conference 2015: Heathrow or Gatwick expansion? Government ministers promise airports decision by Christmas October 5, 2015 Government ministers are doubling down on their commitment to respond by the end of the year to the Airports Commission's recommendation for a third runway at Heathrow. Speaking today at the Conservative party conference in Manchester, transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin said he did not "hide the challenge" of choosing whether to back or reject the commission's [...]
Electoral Reform Society: One-party run UK councils waste £2.6bn a year October 5, 2015 Councils run by just one political party could be wasting as much as £2.6bn a year, according to a new study out this week from the Electoral Reform Society. The report, which compared councils dominated by one party to more electorally-competitive councils, found that so-called single party councils were saving about £2.6bn less each year [...]
Think tank says childcare plan has £1bn hole October 5, 2015 The government’s plan to double the amount of free childcare available has been underfunded by around £1bn, a think tank will argue today. A report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) says that increasing the amount of free childcare for three and four-year-olds to 30 hours a week would cost £1.6bn a year, [...]
Thousands march in Manchester anti-austerity protests at Conservative party conference October 4, 2015 Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Manchester in an anti-austerity protest on the first day of the Conservative party conference which kicks off today. Around 80,000 people have joined the Take Back Manchester march through the city, according to local media reports and organisers. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is also [...]
David Cameron doubles drone fleet in Islamic State fight and “beefs up” SAS October 4, 2015 David Cameron has said the UK will double the number of drones being used by the army to fight Islamic State (IS) in Syria and Iraq, speaking ahead of the Conservative party conference. The Prime Minister also said that UK strikes against IS in Syria “may well become possible” but he would not push for [...]
Former Labour chancellor Denis Healey dies at home in Sussex aged 98 October 3, 2015 Former Labour chancellor Denis Healey died at his home in Sussex this morning, aged 98. According to his family, he died peacefully in his sleep following a short illness. The politician served as an MP for Leeds for 40 years, and was chancellor of the exchequer from 1974 to 1979. In 1980, he became [...]
Russian airstrikes mainly hitting Syrian civilians, says defence secretary Michael Fallon October 3, 2015 UK defence secretary Michael Fallon has accused Russia of protecting Syria's Assad regime by targeting airstrikes at civilians. He told The Sun that very few strikes by the country, which began its launches there earlier this week, were hitting Islamic State (IS) militants. We're analysing where the strikes are going every morning. The vast [...]
Conservatives name Zac Goldsmith as candidate for London Mayoral Election 2016 October 2, 2015 The Conservatives have chosen their man for next year's London mayoral race: Zac Goldsmith, who was widely expected to win the online primary. In a statement this morning, the Conservative party said Goldsmith received 70 per cent of the online vote – way above runner-up Syed Kamall, who clinched 16 per cent. The decision will [...]
EU referendum: Two-thirds of Conservative MPs still undecided about Brexit – but Eurosceptics have the edge October 2, 2015 Almost two-thirds of Tory MPs are undecided about whether the UK should stay in the European Union – but up to one in five are likely to vote for Brexit, new research suggests. The research, published ahead of the Conservative party conference which starts on Sunday, found that opponents of membership “have a slight [...]
“What is Twitter?” Twitter has a 136-page manual to help politicians stay out of trouble October 1, 2015 Twitter has a 136-page handbook for politicians trying to stay out of trouble on social media. It’s tricky to maneuver the minefield that is social media. Emily Thornberry famously had to resign from the shadow cabinet last year after posting a photo on Twitter and immediately feeling the wrath of the crowd. The Islington MP [...]