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STORY

The Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee has called for stronger action on social media harms after responding to the Government’s consultation on growing up in the online world. The committee said there was strong and consistent evidence of significant harm to individuals from social media use, particularly among young people.

Dame Chi Onwurah (in photo), the committee chair, said the status quo was not acceptable and argued that responsibility for preventing harm should not rest primarily on young people or parents. The committee has called for more effective enforcement of existing age restrictions and for ministers to revisit previous recommendations on misinformation and harmful algorithms.

The intervention comes as ministers consider further online safety measures in the new parliamentary session. Any legislation in this area is likely to attract close scrutiny over the responsibilities placed on technology companies, the role of parents and schools, and the balance between child protection, free expression and digital innovation.

STORY

The Conservative Party has suspended Adam Kent, its group leader at Worcestershire County Council, after Conservative councillors joined Greens, Liberal Democrats and independents to remove Reform UK from minority control of the authority. Green councillor Matt Jenkins has now become council leader.

Reform UK gained minority control of Worcestershire County Council last year, but its period in charge was marked by internal conflict and financial pressure. The council received £59.9 million of emergency Government funding and increased council tax by 9% as it sought to avoid bankruptcy.

Conservative Party chair Kevin Hollinrake (in main photo) said the national party had not approved an arrangement with the Greens. Kent had argued that local councillors needed to act in response to instability at the council, making the episode a notable example of how national party discipline and local government pragmatism can come into conflict.

STORY

The Prime Minister has set out plans to put apprenticeships on a more equal footing with university degrees, arguing that the current system has held too many young people back. The Government says small businesses will be able to take on young apprentices with training fully funded from August.

Ministers say the reforms are intended to remove barriers to opportunity and give employers the workforce they need to grow. The announcement forms part of a broader post-16 education and skills agenda, with apprenticeships being presented as a central route into secure work rather than a secondary option.

The policy will be judged by whether it increases the number of high-quality apprenticeship places and improves outcomes for young people. Businesses are likely to welcome additional support, but the Government will still need to show that funding, training standards and employer participation are strong enough to deliver sustained change.

STORY

The Government has confirmed the first 130 universities and colleges approved to offer shorter, flexible courses under a new student finance system. Applications are due to open in September 2026, with ministers saying the reform is designed to help adults who are balancing education with work, childcare and other responsibilities.

The change forms part of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement and will allow people to access student finance for smaller modules as well as traditional full degrees. Ministers argue that the approach will make higher and further education more accessible to people who cannot commit to a full-time qualification at the outset.

The policy is linked to the Government’s wider skills agenda and its efforts to improve workforce flexibility. Its effectiveness will depend on demand from learners, the range and quality of courses offered, and whether employers recognise modular study as a credible route for career progression.

STORY

The Government has said that eleven foreign far-right figures have been blocked from entering the UK ahead of the Unite the Kingdom march in London. Ministers said the exclusions were made to protect public order and prevent individuals from using the event to promote extremist views.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said those who sought to spread hatred or violence would face the full force of the law. The Government has described the weekend as one of the busiest for policing in recent years, with thousands expected to gather in the capital and counter-protests also anticipated.

The decision places public order and extremism policy back at the centre of national politics. It also highlights the balance ministers must strike between protecting freedom of expression, maintaining public safety and preventing foreign activists from using UK events to amplify extremist messages.

STORY

A Bill giving ministers the power to nationalise steel companies has been introduced to Parliament, with the Government saying it wants to safeguard the long-term future of the UK steel industry. The Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill received its First Reading on 14 May.

The legislation would provide a route for companies such as British Steel to be brought into public ownership where ministers judge that a public interest test has been met. The Government has said that steel capability and capacity are firmly in the national interest, particularly because of the sector’s role in infrastructure, defence and wider industrial policy.

The Bill will be debated further at Second Reading, when MPs will be able to examine the scope of the proposed powers. Its progress will be watched closely by industry, unions and opposition parties because it raises wider questions about industrial intervention, public ownership and the future of strategic manufacturing in the UK.

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The Government is expected to set out more detailed proposals to relax bank ring-fencing rules, which were introduced after the 2008 financial crisis to protect high street banking from problems in investment banking. The changes were included in the legislative programme for the new parliamentary session.

According to Reuters, citing Sky News, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has approved proposals that would allow Britain’s largest banks to lend at lower funding costs to organisations aligned with the Government’s economic policy objectives. The plans would also allow banks to share more services between ring-fenced and non-ring-fenced parts of their businesses.

Supporters of reform argue that the changes could reduce costs and improve lending to parts of the economy that ministers want to support. Critics are likely to scrutinise whether the new approach maintains sufficient safeguards against financial instability, given that ring-fencing was designed to prevent a repeat of the banking failures seen during the financial crisis.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to approve an £18 billion increase in defence spending as the Government prepares to publish its delayed defence investment plan. The plan is intended to accelerate the delivery of equipment and technology to frontline forces while also supporting wider economic growth.

The proposal comes as defence policy remains a major part of the Government’s legislative and spending agenda. Starmer has committed to the largest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War, with a longer-term aim of reaching 3% of national output in the next Parliament.

Questions remain over how the additional spending would be funded. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has previously indicated that she does not favour tax rises or additional borrowing for defence increases, which could leave ministers looking at other areas of public spending as they seek to meet the commitment.

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Labour’s National Executive Committee has given Andy Burnham permission to seek selection for the Makerfield by-election, opening a possible route back to Westminster for the Greater Manchester Mayor. The decision follows Josh Simons’s move to stand aside in the constituency, creating a contest that is already being watched as a significant test of Labour’s direction.

Burnham has not been formally confirmed as Labour’s candidate, but the NEC decision removes a major procedural obstacle. If he is selected and wins the seat, he would return to Parliament after nearly a decade as mayor and could become a central figure in any future contest over the Labour leadership.

The by-election is expected to be closely fought, with Reform UK preparing to campaign strongly in an area where Labour has long held parliamentary representation but has recently lost ground. The contest will therefore be seen not only as a local election, but as a measure of Labour’s ability to recover support after poor results in the recent local and devolved elections.