NEW: Labour announces 25 new peerages including - as revealed by me and @ecourea.bsky.social - Rachel Reeves's former chief of staff Katie Martin and Keir Starmer's ex-director of comms Matthew Doyle. Also former Tory-supporting Iceland boss Richard Walker.

Wednesday’s @theguardian.com front page: PM urges Europe to curb human rights laws to halt rise of populism www.theguardian.com/law/2025/dec...

Such a thoughtful piece by ⁦‪@peterwalker‬⁩99.bsky.social on whether the religious right is on the rise in the UK www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Keir Starmer wants Angela Rayner to return to cabinet: “Yes. She’s hugely talented” He told @rachelsylvester.bsky.social: “Yes, of course I do. I was really sad we lost her. As I said to her at the time, she’s going to be a major voice in the Labour movement” www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

MY WEEKEND READ: ‘The only idea around’: will Labour return to a customs union with the EU? The desperate search for economic growth is pushing the party to confront the issue that dare not speak its name www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

EXCL: Ministers want to secure youth mobility scheme with EU by end of 2026, with UK officials pushing for two-year time limit and cap in “tens of thousands” @ecourea.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Great profile of Christopher Harborne, who has given Nigel Farage’s Reform UK a record £9m, from our @rowenamason.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Friday’s @theguardian.com front page: Farage hits out as fresh claims of ‘vindictive’ teenage racism emerge www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Nigel Farage reads out letter from Dulwich contemporary at presser who said that while Reform leader's comments were "yes, sometimes offensive" they were never uttered "with malice". Notably,he doesn't repeat Richard Tice's claim that multiple allegations are "made up twaddle".

The FCA has decided not to immediately investigate Rachel Reeves and Treasury over pre-budget briefings. But could yet look into what Tories claimed amounted to market manipulation - depending on outcome of Treasury's own inquiry into leaks. www.theguardian.com/business/202...

NEW: David Lammy lambasts “courts emergency” that will surpass 100,000 outstanding cases, leaving victims waiting years for justice, confirming plans to drop thousands of jury trials. But appears to back away from jury trials only for serious crimes like murder, rape and manslaughter after backlash

EXCL: Richard Hermer, UK’s top law officer & one of most senior Jewish govt ministers, urges Nigel Farage to apologise to school contemporaries who claim Reform UK leader racially abused them while at school, saying he had “clearly deeply hurt” many people. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

EXCL: The UK is hoping to secure an agreement within weeks to rejoin the EU’s flagship student mobility programme, as part of a drive to pursue closer relations with Brussels after a setback on defence @ecourea.bsky.social & @kiranstacey.bsky.social report www.theguardian.com/education/20...

Tuesday’s @theguardian.com front page: OBR chair quits after inquiry into early release of budget document www.theguardian.com/business/202...

BREAKING: Richard Hughes quits as chair of the OBR after damaging budget leak obr.uk/docs/dlm_upl...

🚨 Our latest podcast: @kiranstacey.bsky.social & I discuss the PM's speech and whether it defuses the row over claims Rachel Reeves misled the public... Plus an eventful Your Party conference www.theguardian.com/politics/aud...

NEW: OBR report into budget day leak finds it was "not a case of intentional leakage" but an "inadvertent" one as a result of IT weaknesses - and was the "worst failure" in the organisation's 15-year history.

Keir Starmer denies Rachel Reeves misled the public by claiming there was a hole in the public finances to justify tax rises. PM says OBR productivity downgrade left govt with "starting point" of £16bn less than it might otherwise have had...

NEW: Keir Starmer says he's confident that UK has "walked through narrowest part of the tunnel" on cost of living - and that "bit by bit" people will see a country that shrugs off sense that things can never be better.

Saturday’s @theguardian.com front page: Wealthy must pay to fix our creaky services, says Reeves www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

“At an early meeting to set the path for Your Party, participants quickly agreed on one thing: given cliches about leftwingers forever falling out, at all costs they must avoid a descent into factionalism.” Great read @peterwalker99.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

STORY: OBR has cast doubt on claims Rachel Reeves dropped plans to raise income tax in this week’s budget because of rosier forecasts, pointing out she knew about these well before the change of heart 👇 By @guardianheather.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Flagship policy that would have given workers right to claim unfair dismissal after their first day on the job is to be ditched by government in favour of a six month-threshold (down from current 24) 👇 www.theguardian.com/law/2025/nov...

NEW - the government poised to water down flagship workers rights bill, ditching day one rights to unfair dismissal but reducing qualifying period from two years to six months. But in concession to unions, government will remove provisions for up to nine months probation.

Thursday’s @theguardian.com front page: “I am asking everyone to make a contribution” www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

MY ANALYSIS: The budget has averted an immediate crisis for Labour – but the danger is not over yet www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Rachel Reeves gambles on tax and spend. But has she forgotten the "squeezed middle"? Listen to me, @pippacrerar.bsky.social and @johnharris1969.bsky.social chew over today's budget here. www.theguardian.com/politics/aud...

Don’t worry folks, the OBR has now removed the document from its website. That should do it…

BREAKING: The Office for Budget Responsiblity has published its economic and fiscal document *BEFORE* Rachel Reeves delivers her budget. Unprecedented.

✂️One to watch - will Rachel Reeves promise unspecified spending cuts for back end of parliament, in what could be election year?

Wednesday’s @guardian front page: Reeves vows to tackle cost of living crisis in decisive budget for Labour www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

💥Jury trials for all except most serious crimes such as rape, murder and manslaughter set to be scrapped under radical proposals drawn up by David Lammy. Proposals drew swift backlash from senior lawyers who said they would not reduce court backlogs & could “destroy justice as we know it”.

NEW: Keir Starmer says Nigel Farage should have “courage” to launch inquiry into Reform's links to Russia after Nathan Gill sentencing. “It is shocking that a senior Reform official, the leader in Wales, has been jailed for over 10 years, a very significant sentence for taking pro-Russia bribes.

Great news that our Politics Weeky UK podcast has been shortlisted at political podcast awards 🤞🤞 Our 'in conversation' event @andyburnham.bsky.social was talk of Labour conference... Co-hosted by @kiranstacey.bsky.social & brilliantly produced @zoehitch.bsky.social @frankietobi.bsky.social

Tuesday’s @theguardian.com front page: Victory for carers after inquiry into debt scandal Incredible work by top colleagues @patrickjbutler.bsky.social & @joshhalliday.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

“I’ll show the media, I’ll show the Tories, I’ll not let them beat me. I’ll be there on Wednesday, I’ll be there next year & I’ll be back the year after that” - Rachel Reeves urges Labour MPs to back budget @jessicaelgot.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

“I would never ever do it in a hurtful or insulting way” Nigel Farage responds to allegations of racist behaviour from when he was a teenager at school @itvnewspolitics.bsky.social

"Rachel Reeves, please, let’s make budgets boring again". Surely an argument we can all get behind. Great piece by @guardianheather.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Two long-serving peers - Labour peer David Evans and former army chief Richard Dannatt - to be suspended from HoL after parliamentary watchdog ruled they broke lobbying rules - @direthoughts.com www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

🚨Our latest podcast - we discuss Rachel Reeves’s high stakes budget moment... Plus @kiranstacey.bsky.social behind the scenes of his G20 trip to South Africa with Keir Starmer www.theguardian.com/politics/aud...

BREAKING: Keir Starmer had a “brush by” with Chinese premier Li Qiang at G20 summit in Johannesburg at weekend - although reporters on trip were not told about this. Understand this was a brief hello in leader’s lounge and nothing of substance was discussed.

A make-or-break budget: inside the Treasury before Labour’s crucial day Big read by top economics editor @guardianheather.bsky.social & me www.theguardian.com/uk-news/ng-i...

NEW: Reform UK’s former leader in Wales, Nathan Gill, has been jailed at the Old Bailey for 10 and a half years for taking bribes to make statements in favour of Russia when he was an MEP. Full story 👇 www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

BREAKING: The UK’s response to Covid was “too little, too late”, a damning official report on the handling of the pandemic has concluded, saying the introduction of a lockdown even a week earlier than happened could have saved more than 20,000 lives.

EXCL: Criminals will be stopped from “gaming the system” by choosing trial by jury to increase chances of proceedings collapsing, courts minister has said, promising to limit jury trials by next election - @jessicaelgot.bsky.social reports www.theguardian.com/law/2025/nov...

People who migrate to UK may be eligible for benefits & social housing only when they become British citizens. Those who arrive by small boats could wait up to 30 years for long-term residency. For latest on home secretary's plans read @syalrajeev.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

It’s clearly a night to share @theguardian.com back page. World Cup, here we come!! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏆

Keir Starmer has warned senior ministers & officials to stop briefing against one another & leaking details of budget PM told cabinet last week’s political turmoil distracted from voters’ priorities & they shld focus on delivery not navel gazing 👇 www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

💥 NEW: ‘Deeply shocking’: Nigel Farage faces fresh claims of racism and antisemitism at school “He would sidle up to me and growl: ‘Hitler was right,’ or ‘Gas them,’ sometimes adding a long hiss to simulate the sound of the gas showers". Read on for more... www.theguardian.com/politics/ng-...

Tuesday’s @theguardian.com front page: Starmer faces Labour revolt over hardline asylum plans www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...