The comments made by John Redwood on 20 July 2026.
Mr Burnham today should set out which companies he will nationalise. Will he make taxpayers pay compensation to owners or will he confiscate the assets? Does he realise people’s savings and pension funds are at risk if he steals them and foreign investors could stop investing?
STORY
Andy Burnham is taking office as Prime Minister today after Sir Keir Starmer formally resigned to King Charles III, completing one of the most significant mid-Parliament transfers of power in recent years. Burnham, the former Mayor of Greater Manchester, became Labour leader after standing unopposed and securing overwhelming support from Labour MPs.
The changeover follows Starmer’s decision to stand down after a period of falling confidence inside the Labour Party and wider political pressure on his Government. Starmer led Labour to a landslide general election victory in 2024, but his premiership ended before the completion of a full Parliament.
Burnham will take office without a general election because Labour still commands a majority in the House of Commons. Under the UK’s parliamentary system, the monarch appoints as Prime Minister the person most likely to command the confidence of the Commons, which in this case is the newly elected Labour leader.
Starmer is expected to make a final statement outside Downing Street before travelling to Buckingham Palace to tender his resignation. Burnham will then meet the King and be invited to form a Government, before returning to Downing Street to make his first speech as Prime Minister.
The ceremonial transfer will be swift, but the political change is substantial. Burnham becomes the seventh Prime Minister since 2016, continuing a period of unusually rapid turnover at the top of British politics.
In his first remarks, Burnham is expected to acknowledge the instability of recent years and promise a more stable and less divisive style of Government. He has also signalled that cost-of-living support will be an early priority, alongside a longer-term programme for economic renewal.
Markets were calm ahead of the transition, with sterling remaining steady as investors waited for confirmation of Burnham’s senior appointments. Reuters reported that attention was particularly focused on his choice of Chancellor, with speculation around Shabana Mahmood helping reassure investors expecting a disciplined approach to public spending.
Burnham inherits a difficult economic and political position, including sluggish growth, pressure on public services and the need to rebuild public confidence after another change of Prime Minister without a general election. He will also face immediate questions over taxation, spending, public sector reform and Labour’s response to Reform UK’s advance.
![PRESS RELEASE : Southern Water fined £7.1 million for sewage pollution [July 2026]](https://www.ukpol.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/environmentagency.png)
The press release issued by the Environment Agency on 17 July 2026.
Beaches forced to close, local trade hit, equipment failure and lack of oversight by company.
Southern Water has been fined £7.1m after repeated illegal sewage pollution incidents forced the closure of beaches, harmed coastal communities. Serious failures were exposed in the company’s management of wastewater.
Sentencing Southern Water at Canterbury crown court today, Mr Justice Johnson KC heard how preventable equipment failures and poor operational oversight led to repeated discharges of untreated sewage between 2019 and 2021, some at the height of summer.
The prosecution comes almost exactly five years after Southern Water received a record £90 million fine for nearly 7,000 illegal sewage discharges.
Across five major pollution incidents, Southern Water repeatedly failed to maintain critical pumping equipment, delayed reporting pollution to regulators and allowed untreated sewage to enter coastal waters.
In July 2019, an Environment Agency investigation found that around 10m litres of sewage was discharged for almost 24 hours. It could have been prevented but staff showed a lack of system knowledge.
Southern Water is legally obliged to report pollution to the Environment Agency as soon as possible, but they failed to do so until the next day. It meant Thanet District Council couldn’t warn people against getting into the water.
Little over a year later, around the August bank holiday in 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, another illegal discharge.
A failed pump at Margate pumping station was out of order for weeks, leading to the release of sewage into the sea. A second pump then failed. At least 16m litres of sewage were released into the sea across two days. Like earlier, the Environment Agency was only told by Southern Water about the pollution a day later.
On that same August day six years ago, untreated wastewater and human waste was also discharged into seawater from a pumping station at Broadstairs, in the region of 1.6m to 3.2m litres, for more than two hours.
Southern Water only told the Environment Agency weeks later. Their failure to report it sooner meant Thanet District Council was again unable to warn the public.
Lindsay Faulkner, environment manager for the Environment Agency in Kent, said:
Southern Water allowed this repeated pollution to happen. Stronger oversight by the company is needed, and plain to see from their track record. These preventable incidents harmed the environment and local communities, but like so much pollution caused by water companies, they were avoidable and should never have happened.
The Environment Agency demands much more from Southern Water. Our inspections of sewage treatment sites, including pumping stations at fault in this case, will continue. We are holding them to account.
Skip to February 2021, another pumping station fault, more pollution. Now a computer broke down at Broadstairs, as did a back-up. This time, the Environment Agency was told about sewage and debris off the coast, and both they and the council gave advice to swimmers to stay away from a 5km-stretch of Kent coastline for 24 hours.
The Environment Agency told the court Southern Water should have picked up the fault earlier, a fairly basic diagnosis.
Possibly the most damaging of the five main incidents leading the Environment Agency’s case, as far as the impact on beaches and bathing waters, came in June the following summer. Again, simultaneous failures at Margate and Broadstairs pumping stations, when after lockdown, everyone was desperate to get outdoors.
As the sun rose, Thanet District Council closed 11 of them. Advice to keep out of the sea for a week at the height of summer was also posted on Swimfo, the Environment Agency’s online guide to bathing water quality.
Equipment breakdown sent more sewage and debris into the sea for hours. A poorly-maintained circuit board caused the power supply to stop, causing a domino effect for the rest of the plant.
October 2021, and more badly-managed equipment caused a power shutdown at the Broadstairs plant, with more untreated sewage and sanitary towels pumped into the sea. In all, 10 beaches were closed by the council.
Southern Water also admitted to another 35 illegal discharges also between 2019 and 2021, and that a pump used to move sewage around its network was out of action for more than a year. They were fined £7,127,083, with costs to the Environment Agency of £149,000, and a victim surcharge of £181.
![PRESS RELEASE : First groups designated as threat to national security [July 2026]](https://www.ukpol.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/homeoffice.webp)
The press release issued by the Home Office on 17 July 2026.
Today (17 July), the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR), and Russia’s GRU Volunteer Corps have formally been designated under the National Security (State Threats) Act 2026 after Parliament approved an order laid by the Home Secretary on Monday (13 July), in order to protect the safety of the UK.
It is now a criminal offence to express support for these bodies – meaning anyone who glorifies or encourages their activity which threatens the safety of the UK can be prosecuted. It is also now a criminal offence to assist or to accept or obtain a material benefit, such as payment, from any of these bodies. Anyone found guilty of these offences could face up to 14 years imprisonment.
Anyone committing other acts, such as sabotage, on behalf of these groups could be prosecuted for other offences under the National Security Act 2023, in which they could face life imprisonment.
All 3 groups are the first to be designated under these landmark new powers, and they have now been added to the list of designated bodies in the UK.
![PRESS RELEASE : Historic UK-India Free Trade Agreement is now in effect [July 2026]](https://www.ukpol.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/newfco.png)
The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 17 July 2026.
UK and India total trade, worth £48 billion in 2025, is set for an immediate boost with consumers now enjoying cheaper, quicker, and easier access to the best of British and Indian products and services across both countries.
To celebrate this historic occasion, a special package of select British goods arrived at the British Deputy High Commission in Mumbai on the morning of 15 July aboard a British Airways flight. This package was unveiled by Harjinder Kang, His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for South Asia, and David Wright, British Airways’ General Manager in India to signal the arrival of new opportunities unlocked under the agreement for both countries.
The package contained goods from the UK benefitting from reduced tariffs, including cosmetics, food products, and alcoholic beverages.
Harjinder Kang, His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for South Asia and British Deputy High Commissioner for Western India, said:
This is a watershed moment for the UK-India partnership. As the landmark trade deal comes into force, what better than having select British products arriving in one of the very first UK flights into India this morning – with thanks to support from British Airways. Our landmark trade deal is designed to benefit businesses and consumers from day one with cheaper, quicker and easier trade. We are all excited to take full advantage of it.
David Wright, British Airways’ General Manager in India, said:
India is one of British Airways’ most important markets and we have a long history of connecting people, businesses, and cultures across the UK and India. With 63 flights each week going up to 70 by the end of summer, we play an important role in strengthening economic and cultural ties between our two countries.
The UK-India Free Trade Agreement marks a significant milestone in the relationship between the UK and India and reinforces the long-term potential of one of the world’s most dynamic international corridors. We are proud to support this landmark agreement and the opportunities it will create for trade, investment and tourism.
As the UK’s flag carrier, we look forward to deepening our links with India and connecting customers and communities across our global network for years to come.
Starting 15 July, 99% of Indian goods entering the UK and 90% of UK goods entering India will either be duty free or reduced in tariffs. It will benefit a wide range of sectors on both sides including automotive, manufacturing, consumer goods, creative industries, and medical technology as it marks the biggest milestone in the bilateral economic partnership.
To mark this major milestone, a number of celebratory events and activations will be hosted by the UK Government across India and the UK including business receptions in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and at Lancaster House in London.
In the long run, the deal is expected to boost bilateral trade by £25.5 billion, Indian GDP by £5.1billion, and UK GDP by £4.8billion every year.
STORY
London Mayor Sadiq Khan is among 26 people nominated for life peerages in a new list issued shortly before Sir Keir Starmer leaves Downing Street. The appointments include Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat nominees as well as crossbenchers drawn from public services, trade unions, business and the voluntary sector.
Khan is expected to remain focused on his role at City Hall and has reportedly indicated that he does not currently want a ministerial post in Andy Burnham’s Government. The timing of the list has nevertheless renewed debate about prime ministerial patronage and the size of the unelected second chamber, particularly as Burnham has previously advocated replacing it with a body representing the nations and regions.
STORY
Incoming Prime Minister Andy Burnham has confirmed that the Government’s proposed national digital identity scheme will be abandoned as part of what his team described as a reset of priorities. The programme had originally been presented as a way to strengthen right to work checks and tackle illegal employment, but its scope was reduced after opposition over cost, privacy and whether participation should be compulsory.
The Office for Budget Responsibility had estimated spending of around £1.8 billion between 2026-27 and 2028-29, although ending the programme will not necessarily release the whole amount for other uses. Burnham has said attention and resources should instead be directed towards the cost of living, while existing documents and digital systems will continue to be used for employment checks.
The comments made by Gordon Brown, the former Prime Minister, on 17 July 2026.
Congratulations to my friend Andy Burnham on becoming leader of the Labour Party with a clear mission to transform Britain for the better.
Today, we also thank Keir Starmer for bringing Labour back into government and guiding Britain through difficult times at home and abroad.
The comments made by Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the President of Ukraine, on 16 July 2026.
Today, we express our special gratitude to Keir Starmer, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, with whom we’ve done a lot of serious work during the full-scale war. The United Kingdom has always stood with Ukraine and continues to do so. And we value that immensely. Thank you, Keir Starmer.
Thank you to your team and to all the people of the United Kingdom. I awarded Keir the Order of Freedom in recognition of his personal leadership and support for our people. Prime Minister Starmer and I have had dozens of meetings, conversations, and decisions together. Today marks Keir’s fourth visit to Ukraine as Prime Minister. Altogether, we’ve had 46 official meetings and calls alone – at least two every month. I am grateful for all the support provided to Ukraine during this time. Today, Keir and I discussed the key issues regarding the front line, our long-range operations, and our mid-range strikes. Ukraine has achieved significant success in these areas, and we will continue applying every form of such pressure on Russia to bring this war to an end and achieve a dignified peace. We will, of course, continue coordinating closely with our British friends.
STORY
The Government has confirmed local government reorganisation decisions affecting 14 more areas in England, including Kent and Medway, Hertfordshire, Gloucestershire, Staffordshire and Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland. Ministers said the changes would replace fragmented two-tier structures with stronger unitary councils.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said 134 councils would be streamlined into 38 unitary authorities. Ministers argued that the reforms would reduce duplication, improve accountability and create better foundations for devolution and economic growth.
Council leaders have warned that reorganisation will involve major transition risks, particularly for adult social care, children’s services and public health. The Government has published guidance on protecting those services during the move to new council structures.