Author: Miles Donavan

Reform made the most of it. ‘Exclusive’: Tory defector begs Reform UK to avoid critical MISTAKE as he reveals ‘final straw’ reason for exit,’ splashed GB News this week. The ‘Conservative heavyweight’ the article refers to is Tim Montgomerie, founder of Conservative Home and former Boris Johnson adviser, who jumped ship to join what GB News calls the ‘burgeoning populist party’ after 33 years as a Tory member. The tipping point for Montgomerie was the Tories’ handling of immigration. He told GB News: “The final straw for me was last Thursday’s immigration numbers. And how many times I sat with…

The decision has been welcomed by organisations that support refugees, but they argue that it needs to be made permanent. The government has extended the amount of time newly-recognised refugees have to find suitable accommodation, increasing the period from 28 days to 56 days.  Currently, once people receive an asylum decision, they have 28 days to leave Home Office accommodation and arrange alternative housing, as outlined in the Asylum Support (Amendment) Regulations 2002.  According to government letters seen by the BBC, the Home Office has called the change “an interim measure” as it tries to grapple with the asylum backlog…

When a constituent approached me about their eVisa, which is an online record of immigration status, it served as a warning about a potential risk of a repeat of the Windrush scandal. When a constituent approached me about their eVisa, which is an online record of immigration status, it served as a warning about a potential risk of a repeat of the Windrush scandal. It led me to fear that people with indefinite leave to remain in the UK would be refused re-entry after the 1st of January 2025. The Home Office under the previous Conservative government proposed to change…

The government definitely needed a reset. But it missed a crucial mission. Adrian Ramsay is co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales and the MP for Waveney Valley Call it a reset, call it a “plan for change”, the Prime Minister’s administration was in desperate need of a relaunch. Labour have had a shaky first few months, peppered with mis-steps from the ending of the winter fuel allowance to a budget which penalises small businesses and employers and won’t deliver improved living standards for people. So now we have the Government’s new priorities from housing to NHS waiting…

‘Unless economic growth delivers material benefits for more of us, Starmer risks suffering the same fate as US President Biden.’ Yesterday, Keir Starmer set out key milestones for what his government plans to achieve over the next four and a bit years before the 2029 general election. During his ‘Plan for Change’ speech, he noted that too many in Whitehall were “comfortable in the tepid bath of managed decline”, and that he wanted to shake things up and create change. But has his ‘Plan for Change’ received a warm reception? Or has the response been more on the tepid side?…

“You’re the worst winner, because you’ve never taken responsibly from what you’ve won. Former Labour strategist Alastair Campbell delivered a masterclass on how to call out Nigel Farage over his failures on Brexit, as he took apart the Reform UK leader on Question Time. Discussing the plight of the economy and Labour’s new milestone targets to achieve change in the country, Campbell said: “Brexit has done so much damage to this country”, and received much applause. Farage accused Campbell of being the ‘worst loser in history’, to which Campbell replied: “You’re the worst winner, because you’ve never taken responsibly from…

“At a stroke, it severely damaged that mantle of economic fiscal competence that our party has always [had].” A senior Conservative Party shadow cabinet member has admitted that former Tory leader Liz Truss left a ‘deep and painful scar’ on the Conservative Party’s reputation following her disastrous mini-budget. Truss was booted out of office after just 49 days, making her the country’s shortest-serving Prime Minister, after her disastrous mini-budget which included unfunded tax cuts, sending the markets into financial turmoil and the pound collapsing. In comments to journalists, Mel Stride, the Shadow Chancellor, admitted that the mini-budget had been a…

The former deputy PM and Lib Dem leader, who is now Meta’s president of global affairs, says Musk is playing an “outsized role” in the Trump administration. Elon Musk risks becoming a “political puppet master” in US politics, the former deputy prime minister Nick Clegg has said. In comments made on Nick Robinson’s Political Thinking podcast, Clegg said that the billionaire and X owner Elon Musk had been “playing an outsized role” in the US election and now the formation of the Trump’s administration. Clegg said Musk has a choice “he can either be an avid and well-heeled supporter, which…

The council’s airport company has contributed nearly £500 million over the past two decades to frontline services and community and charitable organisations. Councillor Javiera Hussain is a Luton Labour Party councillor, and director of Luton Rising, the council-owned economic development company. The company has outlined plans for the airport’s expansion, which include enlarging Terminal 1 and adding a second terminal. As a local authority, raising funds to enable us to deliver for our communities can be tough – but this doesn’t detract from our duty and desire to support our residents, by improving their living standards, and eradicating poverty. At…

The Prime Minister Keir Starmer has laid out the six new milestones for his government as part of Labour’s Plan for Change. This morning, the Prime Minister delivered one of his most important speeches since taking office, outlining six new milestones his government aims to achieve by spring 2029. He said that these measurable milestones will enable the public “to hold our feet to the fire”.  They build on Labour’s five missions set out in the manifesto: securing the highest sustained growth in the G7, making Britain a clean energy superpower, building an NHS for the future, making Britain’s streets…