Tag: News Story

STORY

Green Party leader Zack Polanski has announced that he intends to stand in the Holborn and St Pancras parliamentary by election. The contest was triggered by former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s decision to stand down as the constituency’s MP.

Polanski said he had lived and worked in the community for many years and would represent people struggling with the cost of living. He accused Labour of standing up for corporations and wealthy interests, while arguing that the Greens could offer local voters an alternative. Polanski is currently a citywide member of the London Assembly, although Green Party members in Holborn and St Pancras will have the final decision over the selection of their candidate.

Labour has represented Holborn and St Pancras continuously since the constituency was created in 1983. At the 2024 general election, Starmer secured 48.9% of the vote, independent candidate Andrew Feinstein finished second with 18.9% and the Greens came third with 10.4%. Polanski said the forthcoming contest offered the constituency an opportunity to elect London’s first Green MP.

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The Government has announced a £442 million Rough Sleeping Programme intended to ensure that everyone sleeping on the streets is offered accommodation and support before Christmas. Homelessness Minister Florence Eshalomi said the programme would combine urgent winter provision with longer-term help for people who have experienced persistent rough sleeping.

Local services will be able to provide accommodation alongside tailored assistance with mental health, substance use, employment, training and maintaining a tenancy. Part of the investment is expected to deliver more than 1,000 settled homes with intensive support for people who have the most complex needs.

Funding will be concentrated in areas experiencing the greatest pressure, with mayoral strategic authorities and councils given flexibility to design local services. Guidance also requires accessible provision for women, who may be underrepresented in official figures and face particular risks of violence and exploitation. An additional £8.1 million will take the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund to £47 million, while total Government investment in homelessness and rough sleeping services over three years will exceed £4 billion.

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The Government is developing proposals for the formal regulation of the funeral industry as part of plans to improve standards, remove rogue operators and provide stronger protection for bereaved families. Health and Social Care Secretary Yvette Cooper said clearer safeguards and consistent oversight were needed to ensure the deceased were treated with dignity.

The work follows the sentencing of Robert Bush, who operated Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Hull and received a 20-year prison sentence for 67 offences including preventing a lawful and decent burial, fraud, fraudulent trading and theft. Cooper said the case, together with the findings of the inquiry into David Fuller’s crimes in hospital mortuaries, demonstrated the need for improved standards across every setting responsible for caring for people after death.

The Department of Health and Social Care will lead the work alongside the Ministry of Justice and other departments. The Law Commission will review the criminal law concerning the deceased, identify potential gaps in existing protections and consider whether new offences are required. Bereaved families, funeral providers, faith groups and local authorities will be consulted before detailed proposals and an implementation timetable are published.

STORY

British companies can trade with Canada under the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership following the agreement’s entry into force between the two countries. Canada’s ratification means the UK’s accession now applies across all 11 other members of the trading bloc.

In a written statement to Parliament, Reindustrialisation Minister Blair McDougall said Canada was the UK’s largest CPTPP trading partner during the four quarters ending in the first quarter of 2026. It accounted for 23% of British trade with members of the bloc, while its economy had a market of approximately 42 million people.

The arrangements provide UK farmers and dairy producers with access to Canadian tariff rate quotas covering products including cheese, cream and ice cream. They also allow British business visitors to remain in Canada for up to six months, support digital trading without requiring physical data facilities in the country and expand access to public procurement opportunities in sectors including air transport, accountancy and financial services.

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Nigel Farage is facing questions over his previous claim that a second parliamentary standards investigation had been opened into his finances. The Reform UK leader made the statement when he resigned as MP for Clacton in July, arguing that the parliamentary standards system had been used as a political tool.

Parliament’s published list currently records one investigation into Farage, opened in May under the rule covering the registration of interests. The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards has been considering separate information concerning reported payments by George Cottrell for social media work, accommodation and security before the 2024 general election, but there has been no official confirmation that the existing inquiry has been widened or that a second one has begun.

Farage has said the social media work was personal rather than political and has compared his activities before returning to Parliament to those of an online influencer. He has since been returned as the MP for Clacton following a by-election. The Commissioner has declined to comment publicly on whether the scope of the investigation will change.

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Restore Britain has received donations totalling £500,000 from technology entrepreneur Simon Galbraith, providing the party with its first major financial contribution. Party leader Rupert Lowe said the funding comprised two separate donations of £250,000 made through Galbraith’s company, Cade Hill Investments.

Galbraith co-founded the Cambridge-based database software company Redgate Software and has previously donated to the Liberal Democrats. He said he was supporting Restore Britain because of concerns about the performance of the state, the condition of British institutions and the representative nature of the country’s democracy.

Restore Britain was registered as a political party in February 2026 and is seeking to establish itself as a challenger to Reform UK on the political right. Although £500,000 is below the largest donations received by Reform, the funding will give Lowe’s party substantially greater resources for campaigning and contesting targeted elections.

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Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has announced what he described as a comprehensive reset of British policy towards Israeli settlement activity in the occupied West Bank. In his first Commons appearance in the role, Miliband said the Government would examine measures intended to prevent British companies from financing, constructing or promoting new settlements.

The announcement follows Israeli tenders connected to the E1 development, under which thousands of homes are planned between East Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim. The UK joined 20 other countries and the European Union in warning that the project would divide the West Bank and further undermine the prospects for a viable Palestinian state.

Miliband said ministers were examining Britain’s wider economic relationship with the occupied territories. Options under consideration include further sanctions and restrictions on trade connected to settlements. Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, has warned that Israel could respond if Britain introduces punitive measures.

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Prime Minister Andy Burnham has used his first appearance in the House of Commons since entering Downing Street to promise economic renewal, greater regional power and measures to ease pressure on household finances. Addressing MPs as Parliament returned from its summer recess, Burnham said his Government wanted to restore optimism and improve opportunities across the country.

Burnham argued that political centralisation, privatisation and deindustrialisation had contributed to Britain’s economic difficulties, with Brexit adding to a prolonged period of weak growth. He said greater public control of water, energy and transport could support growth, while the proposed No 10 North office in Manchester would help transfer powers away from Westminster.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch rejected Burnham’s economic analysis and accused him of returning to policies associated with the 1970s. The Prime Minister also reaffirmed British support for Ukraine, committed the Government to meeting its climate obligations and acknowledged that further decisions would be needed on defence spending and North Sea energy production.

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Plans to transform the former Gatehouse pub in Norwich into a Muslim community centre and place of worship have divided opinion among residents, heritage campaigners and supporters of the proposed development. Norfolk Muslim Community Association has submitted applications to Norwich City Council for a change of use and an extension to the building at 391 Dereham Road.

The proposals would create prayer and function rooms alongside facilities for education, youth activities, family counselling, school visits and charitable work. The association has said it wants the centre to encourage interfaith engagement and provide additional space for Norwich’s Muslim community. Plans also include a substantial rear extension and landscaped areas beside the River Wensum.

The Gatehouse was built for Morgans Brewery in 1934 and was designated as a Grade II listed building in 2015. Planning documents indicate that features including the original bar, fireplaces, timber panelling, windows and entrance would be retained, while historic beer keg equipment would be relocated within the building. The pub has been closed since 2023 and an earlier attempt to secure it as a community owned pub was unsuccessful.

Opponents have raised concerns about parking, additional traffic, the size and appearance of the extension and the loss of a historic public house. Norwich and District CAMRA has argued that the building should be retained as a pub, while some nearby residents have questioned whether the proposed parking provision would be sufficient during busy periods. Numerous operators have indicated that if the venue would have been marketed more widely, then it could have remained open as a pub.

Other residents have supported bringing the vacant building back into use and said the proposals could protect its historic features while providing useful community facilities. The debate has also extended beyond conventional planning concerns, with reports of anonymous leaflets encouraging objections and some online comments focusing on the religious identity of the proposed occupants.

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Former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced that he will stand down as the Labour MP for Holborn and St Pancras. His departure from the House of Commons will trigger a by election in the north London constituency.

Sir Keir said he had spent the summer considering his future and had concluded that it was the right time to hand the constituency to a successor. He intends to focus on international affairs, including defence, security, trade and technology, while continuing his work to combat violence against women and girls.

He has represented Holborn and St Pancras since 2015 and became Labour leader in 2020 before leading the party to victory at the 2024 general election. Sir Keir left Downing Street in July 2026 following the election of Andy Burnham as Labour leader and Prime Minister.