Tag: News Story

STORY

Members of the House of Lords are due to question ministers this week on issues including healthy life expectancy, the Windrush Compensation Scheme, paternity leave for the self-employed and youth offending in England and Wales. The questions form part of the Lords programme for 18 to 21 May.

On Monday, peers are scheduled to question the Government on the fall in healthy life expectancy in England, a new local government pension fund guide and inconsistent decision-making for victims under the Windrush Compensation Scheme. Peers will also raise regulatory flexibilities and innovation linked to the proposed UK-EU sanitary and phytosanitary agreement.

The Lords will also continue debating the King’s Speech during the week. The Monday debate is focused on justice, home affairs and the Union, before later debates cover education, culture, technology, energy security, health, housing, transport, foreign affairs and defence.

STORY

MPs are continuing the debate on the King’s Speech this week, with the House of Commons sitting from 14:30 today. The main subject for Monday’s debate is backing business to create economic growth.

The parliamentary schedule for the week also includes debate on energy security on Tuesday, Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday and the conclusion of the King’s Speech debate on defence readiness. Justice questions, science questions and business and trade questions are also due to take place across the week.

The Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill is scheduled for second reading on Thursday. The bill is expected to be one of the key legislative measures watched closely during the new parliamentary session, following recent Government interventions in the steel sector.

STORY

New mandatory registration rules for paid tax advisers have begun rolling out, with HM Revenue and Customs introducing a single digital system for advisers who interact with HMRC on behalf of clients. The new requirement came into effect from Monday 18 May 2026.

HMRC said the reforms are intended to raise standards in the tax advice market, protect taxpayers and make advisers easier to identify. Registration will be free and phased between May 2026 and March 2027, with different categories of advisers invited to register during separate windows.

The first registration window, from 18 May to 18 August, applies to new tax advisers and advisers interacting with HMRC without an agent services account, Self Assessment account or Corporation Tax account. HMRC said eligible advisers who fail to register by the relevant deadline could face sanctions.

STORY

The Government has announced new reforms aimed at stopping waste criminals from exploiting loopholes in the regulatory system. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the measures would introduce stricter background checks for waste carriers and tougher penalties for illegal dumping.

The reforms form part of the Government’s Waste Crime Action Plan and are intended to make it harder for rogue operators to remain active in the sector. Waste Minister Mary Creagh (in photo) said that the changes would help remove corrupt operators from the industry and strengthen action against those responsible for fly-tipping and illegal waste activity.

The Environment Agency said the reforms would give it stronger powers to revoke permits and issue enforcement notices. The Government said lawbreakers could face up to five years in prison under tougher penalties for waste crime.

STORY

A new National Conversation project has been launched to examine what unites and divides people across Britain. The initiative is being led by the Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion, co-chaired by former Conservative Chancellor Sajid Javid and former Labour policy chief Jon Cruddas.

The commission is asking members of the public to complete a survey and record a short voice note setting out their vision for their community and country. The project will look at questions of British, English, Scottish and Welsh identity, as well as what connects people to their neighbours and makes places feel like home.

The work is being convened by the Together Coalition and is expected to run until the end of August. A report later this year will combine public evidence with academic research, expert testimony and the commission’s own deliberations.

STORY

David Lammy has criticised calls for Labour to reopen the question of UK membership of the European Union, describing the issue as a distraction from the Government’s immediate priorities. The Deputy Prime Minister said Labour had been elected on a manifesto that ruled out joining the single market or customs union.

The comments followed remarks by Wes Streeting, who has argued that the UK should rejoin the EU in the future. Lammy said Labour should focus on delivery rather than internal arguments, warning that extended party infighting would risk weakening the Government and strengthening Reform UK.

The intervention came as Labour faces wider internal tension over its direction after recent electoral losses. The issue is also politically sensitive because Andy Burnham is seeking a return to Parliament through the Makerfield by-election, in a constituency where Brexit remains a significant electoral factor.

STORY

Prime Minister Keir Starmer will not set out a timetable for leaving office despite pressure from within the Labour Party following its poor local election results, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy has said. Reuters reported that Lammy told Sky News there would be no timetable for departure after speaking to the Prime Minister twice on Sunday.

The pressure on Starmer follows Labour losses in the 7 May elections, with Reuters reporting that almost a quarter of Labour MPs have called for him to go. Former Health Secretary Wes Streeting has said he would stand in any formal leadership contest, while Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is seeking a parliamentary route that could allow him to challenge for the leadership.

Starmer has said he intends to fight any leadership challenge. Under Labour rules, a formal contest would require one MP to submit 81 nominations, equal to 20% of Labour MPs, before a leadership race could begin.

STORY

Sadiq Khan has criticised Government plans to explore a possible Olympic and Paralympic Games bid centred on the north of England, warning that excluding London would be a missed opportunity. Ministers have asked UK Sport to carry out an initial strategic assessment of whether the Games could be hosted in the north in the 2040s, including the likely costs, socio-economic benefits and chances of a successful bid.

The BBC reported that the Mayor of London has argued that a future UK bid should make use of the capital’s existing sporting infrastructure, including venues developed for London 2012. A spokesperson for Khan said London was the “sporting capital of the world” and that a country-wide bid using assets across the UK, including the publicly owned London Stadium, could help deliver a greener and more sustainable Games.

STORY

The Metropolitan Police has said a six-month live facial recognition pilot in Croydon led to 173 arrests, equivalent to one arrest every 35 minutes during deployments. The pilot, which ran from October 2025 to March 2026, used static cameras mounted on existing infrastructure such as lampposts rather than the dedicated vans normally used for live facial recognition operations.

The Met said crime in the area fell by 10.5% compared with the same period the previous year, with violence against women and girls offences down by 21%. Those arrested during the pilot included people wanted for kidnap, rape and serious sexual assault, while 37 arrests were made for breaches of court-imposed conditions.

Lindsey Chiswick, the national and Met lead for live facial recognition, said the results showed the technology could help identify serious offenders quickly when used carefully and openly. The force said more than 470,000 people walked past the cameras during the pilot, with one false alert and no arrests ever made as a result of a false alert from live facial recognition.

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A man has gone on trial accused of murdering 18-year-old Henry Nowak, a first-year University of Southampton student who was stabbed after a night out in December. Southampton Crown Court heard that Mr Nowak, from Chafford Hundred in Essex, had been walking home in Belmont Road, Portswood, when he was fatally injured. Hampshire Police said officers were called at around 11.30pm on 3 December and found him with a puncture wound to his chest and two wounds to his leg.

Prosecutors told the court that Vickrum Digwa, 23, was seen on phone footage before the incident and was allegedly carrying a large shastar knife. Sky News reported that Mr Digwa denies murder and carrying a knife in public, while his mother, Kiran Kaur, 53, denies assisting an offender by allegedly removing a weapon from the scene. The court has heard that Mr Nowak was an accountancy and finance student who had been out with football team-mates before the stabbing.