Tessa Jowell: London mayoral race is Labour’s big moment June 14, 2015 Labour mayoral hopeful Dame Tessa Jowell said over the weekend that her party had “lost the art” of winning an election, and that a victory in the race to replace Boris Johnson would be the “first step” in a national comeback. “The scale of our defeat five or six weeks ago shows that we [...]
Think tank says parties must appeal to middle income voters June 14, 2015 Both Labour and the Conservatives need to broaden their appeal to middle England, according to new research out today. A paper from the centre-right think tank Policy Exchange argues that Labour is still seen as the party of the poor and trade unionists, while the Tories remain most closely aligned with the wealthy. Policy Exchange [...]
Syed Kamall on Brussels, Brexit and Boris’ job – is he ready to be London’s next mayor? June 14, 2015 More than 300 Tory voters packed a lecture hall at BPP University in Waterloo last Thursday night to hear London MEP Syed Kamall speak about Britain’s relationship with the European Union. Kamall – a Conservative MEP who has represented the capital in Brussels since 2005 and led the European Conservatives and Reformists Group, the multi-country [...]
UK is “feeble” in the face of military threats from around the world, former commanders warn June 14, 2015 The UK is weak against military threats from around the world, according to four former commanders of the Armed Forces. Admiral Sir Nigel Essenhigh, Admiral Lord Boyce, Field Marshal Lord Walker and Air Chief Marshal Sir Peter Squire said in a joint letter that Britain's global influence is declining, and expressed their concern at [...]
UK forced to move its spies as Russia and China crack documents leaked by whistleblower Edward Snowden June 14, 2015 British spies have been removed from potentially dangerous operations after Moscow and Beijing managed to crack files leaked by US whistleblower Edward Snowden. The documents reveal how British and American intelligence agents operate and could lead to their identification by other countries, according to senior figures in the security services and Downing Street. [...]
Labour has unveiled its London mayor shortlist: Tessa Jowell, Sadiq Khan, David Lammy, Diane Abbott, Gareth Thomas, Christian Wolmar June 13, 2015 The Labour party has revealed that six City Hall hopefuls will be fighting to become its candidate in next year's London mayoral elections. Frontrunners include MPs Dame Tessa Jowell and Sadiq Khan. MPs David Lammy, Diane Abbott, Gareth Thomas are also on the list, as well as journalist Christian Wolmar. The candidates would've had to receive a minimum [...]
Labour frontbenchers plan to launch separate pro-EU campaign June 12, 2015 A group of Labour frontbenchers is planning to launch a pro-European campaign group for the upcoming EU referendum. Senior figures in the party will be launching the "unashamedly" pro-EU group, separate to the Conservatives' campaign. It is reported that they have begun discussions for funding and office space in order to launch their campaign as [...]
Gordon Brown: UK on “life support” with government giving up on Scotland June 12, 2015 Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown has warned that the UK is on "life support" because the government has given up on saving the union. He claimed that the Conservatives' positioning as "the English Nationalist party" threatened the union, which has lasted 308 years. His intervention comes as the Tories bring forward plans to limit Scottish [...]
Labour leadership race: Who is backing who in the battle to succeed Ed Miliband? June 12, 2015 Labour leadership nominations are nearing the end of their first week, as candidates weigh up their options for their prospective bids for power. While Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper and Liz Kendall each have enough MPs backing them for a place on the leadership ballot, two more candidates for leader are currently vying for a place. [...]
David Cameron’s migrant welfare reforms rejected as he holds “open and frank” EU talks June 12, 2015 David Cameron has held "open and frank" discussions with EU leaders in his ongoing campaign to renegotiate the UK's relationship with the EU. The Prime Minister met with leaders from Belgium, Spain, Finland and Romania as he continued to push his agenda for EU reform in Brussels. Migrant benefits become a sticking point Each of the [...]