Fun East Midlands fact: With Robert Jenrick's defection, there is now not a single Conservative MP in the whole of Nottinghamshire After the 2019 general election, 8 out of 11 Notts constituencies were held by Tories

Kemi Badenoch statement: “I have sacked Robert Jenrick from the Shadow Cabinet, removed the whip and suspended his party membership with immediate effect….

@matildamartin.bsky.social tonight set the agenda, reporting first that government was considering ditching mandatory digital ID "It's hard to find a backbench MP who'll advocate for mandatory digital ID in public, or a minister who will defend it in private," a Labour MP told her Her exc story 👇

Top story from PolHome's @matildamartin.bsky.social: The government is looking at dialing down the mandatory element of digital ID in a bid to rebuild public support for the policy "Making it non-mandatory would take a lot of the heat out of the debate," one Labour MP tells her

👇In which I explain that while civil service reform may not be the most glamorous thing a government could focus on, they absolutely need to do it. A year and a half on from entering gov the civil service hasn't meaningfully changed. Gov needs a plan to make that happen.

A Tory spokesperson goes in two-footed: "Reform is fast becoming the party of has-been politicians looking for their next gravy train. Their latest recruit used to say he'd be 'frightened to live in a country' run by Nigel Farage, which shows the level of loyalty for sale."

Households could be offered interest-free loans to install solar panels and heat pumps as part of the government's Warm Homes Plan, which could come as soon as next week, PolHome understands @nadinebh.bsky.social reports

Interesting. NHS is getting a lot better at mitigating strike action.

SCOOP: Zarah Sultana’s unauthorised launch of a Your Party membership portal should be referred to the police, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has advised. Belter from @meganekenyon.bsky.social www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-...

EXCLUSIVE: Leaked WhatsApp messages show Labour MPs urging govt to leave X, arguing that it should "show direction to others in the UK" The MPs said X owner Elon Musk is "fascist" and that the platform's AI tool, Grok, had put "children in harm's way"

WhatsApp mgs leaked to PolHome's @zoecrowther.bsky.social show Labour MPs urging government to quit X amid the Grok scandal They say X is "worse than ever, especially for women" & constituents are on Facebook anyway One says it's "surely time to take a stand" www.politicshome.com/news/article...

🚨 OUT NOW 🚨 Will government finally quit X? 📱 Former No10 comms director James Lyons and Women & Equalities Committee chair @sarahowen.org.uk join @alaintolhurst.bsky.social and @zoecrowther.bsky.social to discuss which platforms the government should be using in 2026 🎧 Listen now: pod.fo/e/375060

interesting reflections from Lou Haigh on Twitter's damage to the very art of politics

A Reform UK source has admitted to PolHome that the council tax predicament is a "learning curve" for Farage's party At the same time, a senior Reform councillor in Durham tells colleague @matildamartin.bsky.social that the party is dealing with "huge headwinds" in local government finances

Exclusive: Labour's support has collapsed among school & college staff, according to a poll carried out for UK's biggest education union NEU NEU general sec @danielkebedeneu.bsky.social tells me conditions have worsened for teachers since Labour took power

EXC: Labour MP Karl Turner will vote for a Tory motion tomorrow against govt plans to abolish jury trials for some offences “The PM should intervene and stop this disastrous policy proposal before marching Labour MPs up hills only to U-turn when the penny drops that we will not put up with this."

Solidarity with the Alliance of Canterbury Residents Associations — to replace charming Victorian lampposts with these soulless steel things is very poor

Keir Starmer has this morning urged Cabinet to keep its nerve amid grim opinion polling (today’s YouGov put Labour in third place behind Reform & Tories) “Governments do not lose because polls go down. They lose when they lose belief or nerve. We will do neither,” he said

I'm afraid there *is* an obvious answer: it can't.

A fascinating corrective by Scarlett Maguire, full of striking stats “Recent data… shows that 1 in 3 young women now say they will vote for the Green Party. Meanwhile, young men, far from being more right wing than the population as a whole, are as likely to vote Green as they are Reform (20%)”

A cross-party group of MPs is organising to tackle the threat of deepfake AI content to British democracy in 2026 The Speaker of the House of Commons has also taken a close personal interest in the issue @zoecrowther.bsky.social reports

As MPs return to Westminster today, one of the biggest outstanding questions is what the govt's SEND reforms will look like One Labour MP predicted it would be the first "spat" for Starmer and his cabinet to deal with in 2026 @politicshome.bsky.social www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Grim nights in Wales and Scotland are already baked into Labour thinking about the May locals Less discussed, however, @matildamartin.bsky.social & @noahvickers.bsky.social report, is things getting ugly in London, where Polanski eyes gains "The whole of the Olympic Park belongs to the Greens"

🚨 OUT NOW 🚨 What does 2026 have in store? 🔮 LBC political editor @natashaclark.bsky.social joins @alaintolhurst.bsky.social and @adampayne26.bsky.social to discuss their predictions for this year's big political storylines 🎧 Listen now: pod.fo/e/371119

Senior doorkeeper Paul Kehoe helps keep the magic of Parliament running behind the scenes 🎅✨ Paul has worked in the House of Commons since he was 19 years old, for more than 46 years It was an absolute joy to interview him about his lifetime of service

NEW: Ministers expected to tour the country early next year as part of govt's consultation on digital ID @politicshome.bsky.social understands -Govt keen to demonstrate efforts go beyond normal consultation -Process viewed by insiders as opp to reset messaging www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Labour MP and Children’s Online Safety APPG chair @joanireid.com tells me: 🇦🇺🇬🇧 UK should copy Australia’s under-16 social media ban if it works 💪 “Ofcom needs to be bolder" 🚫 "If X is not complying with our laws, then they shouldn't be allowed to operate" Full @politicshome.bsky.social interview 👇

Starmer joins TikTok (where there's already a No10 account) after posting on Substack for the first time last week. In April, gov joined Reddit, revealed @zoecrowther.bsky.social. Plus growing work with influencers. All part of the effort to reach where people increasingly get info. t.co/Yk6nIjEu7o

So many people in politics whose brains should be studied in a lab.

A Your Party insider tells PolHome: "The entire thing makes an excellent case for left Labourism and highlights the positive side of the constraints imposed by a) the whip, b) the ability to face outwards always, rather than fight to the death with your ostensible comrades."

don't think this is necessarily guaranteed to be the maddest headline to emerge from Merseyside this weekend tbh

Inside Polanski's comms operation: - Coached in Judie Dench-inspired acting methods - Growing dialogue with Zohran Mamdani's people - An expanding press team, including a former senior Corbyn adviser and ex-Bundesliga employee - Social media “critical” + more from @sophiealichurch.bsky.social

Great to see @politicshome.bsky.social exc lead a key segment of @bbcnewsnight.bsky.social with Culture Secretary answering qs on a note sent by Bridget Phillipson to Labour MPs over "misleading" OBR claims about SEND @sophiealichurch.bsky.social + picked up by @theguardian.com @thetimes.com today

Where does the Budget leave Starmer and Reeves? Two important audiences — the markets and the PLP — were pretty pleased But Labour MPs know how the third — the electorate — reacts could be a different story w/ colleagues @zoecrowther.bsky.social, @matildamartin.bsky.social & Harriet Symonds

The Budget on Wednesday was relatively well received by two audiences: the markets and the Parliamentary Labour Party. But now Labour MPs nervously await for verdict of a third audience: the voters writes PolHome Editor @adampayne26.bsky.social

Under a proposal to be voted on at Your Party conference in Liverpool this weekend, MPs could be blocked from leading the party and ordinary members put in charge, PolHome can reveal YP members will also be given control of how MPs are whipped, reports colleague @siennarodgers.bsky.social

What is Reform-curious voters' biggest hesitation? The party's lack of governing experience That's according to new @thinksinsight.bsky.social research shared exclusively with PolHome this weekend Reform as a "risk" to the country, and a single-issue party (immigration), are also concerns

Reform's lack of experience is the biggest concern for people curious about voting for them The party being a "risk" for the UK, and it having no policies barring immigration, are also worries, according to new @thinksinsight.bsky.social research shared w/ PolHome @adampayne26.bsky.social reports

What is Reform-curious voters' biggest hesitation? The party's lack of governing experience That's according to new @thinksinsight.bsky.social research shared exclusively with PolHome this weekend Reform as a "risk" to the country, and a single-issue party (immigration), are also concerns

Labour MP and former minister @jimmcmahon.co.uk responds to my story about Labour MPs calling for a minister-led review of the government’s use of X

Tomorrow we're dropping interesting research on Reform curious voters — what attracts them, & what puts them off I discuss on this week's pod w/ @thinksinsight.bsky.social, @psurridge.bsky.social, @alaintolhurst.bsky.social & unplanned guest: Alain's chicken, Judy! podfollow.com/politicshome...

A cross-party group of MPs and peers has written to Ofcom demanding stronger action against rising antisemitism on Elon Musk's X The parliamentarians believe the social media platform may have already breached the Online Safety Act @zoecrowther.bsky.social exclusively reports

🚨 Labour MPs are calling for a minister-led review of the government’s use of X, warning it poses growing risks to democracy and public safety @politicshome.bsky.social understands a review is currently being carried out by officials, but without ministerial oversight

We've lost a legend, and far too soon. Thank you for the music, Mani

As all eyes are fixed on the House of Commons as the government sets out its immigration reforms, @politicshome.bsky.social can reveal that the government has delayed consulting with the public on the development of digital ID plans until the new year www.politicshome.com/news/article...

The government is set to publish the Men's Health Strategy on Wednesday @politicshome.bsky.social understands it is expected to include new measures to tackle gambling-related harms, as pressure grows for ministers to treat gambling addiction as a major public health threat

EXC: Kensington and Chelsea Council is investigating whether Lord Peter Mandelson committed an offence when he publicly urinated in the street last week

“I’m not a member of Your Party, and won’t be joining,” Jamie Driscoll reveals to us “You’ve really got to ask why their political leadership is allowing this [infighting] to happen” That + so much more in @siennarodgers.bsky.social latest look inside YP, and its shambolic ride to Merseyside

🚨 OUT NOW 🚨 Why won't anyone reform council tax? 🏘️ Labour MPs @jonathanbrashmp.bsky.social & @catherinewestmp.bsky.social, Tory MP Harriett Baldwin & tax lawyer @danneidle.bsky.social join @alaintolhurst.bsky.social to discuss why council tax seems politically untouchable 🎧 Listen: pod.fo/e/3529c3

This would be a great reform. They should do it. I remember encountering the ‘write-round’ process when I first worked in government and thinking then it was a crazy way to run a modern administration.