Author: Fatimah Idera

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has defended Labour’s decision to scale back its original plan to give workers protection from unfair dismissal from their first day in a job. The government now plans to reduce the qualifying period from two years to six months instead. Phillipson said the change was a pragmatic compromise that would help Labour pass its wider employment rights bill, which includes new day-one rights to sick pay and paternity leave. She argued that without the adjustment, the entire bill risked being blocked in Parliament. Labour had previously promised in its election manifesto to introduce unfair dismissal protection…

Former Brexit Party and UKIP politician, David Coburn has denied receiving any money connected to a pro-Russian influence operation in the European Parliament. Coburn’s name appears in WhatsApp messages exchanged between disgraced former MEP Nathan Gill who was jailed last week for taking bribes to deliver pro-Russia speeches and Oleg Voloshyn, a former Ukrainian MP aligned with the Kremlin. Gill admitted receiving thousands of dollars from figures linked to Viktor Medvedchuk, a powerful Ukrainian oligarch and close ally of Vladimir Putin. According to documents submitted at Gill’s sentencing, Voloshyn referred to a $6,500 payment allegedly intended for another MEP identified…

Shell UK has been fined £560,000 for failing to maintain ageing pipework on its Brent Charlie offshore platform. The oversight which had led to a major leak and posed as a potentially catastrophic fire and explosion risk. Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that the corroded pipework, which had been installed for short-term use and scheduled for removal in 2010, remained in place for seven additional years without proper maintenance. In May 2017, the deterioration caused a significant uncontrolled release involving 200kg of gas and 1,550kg of crude oil, creating a highly flammable and explosive mixture. More than 170 workers on the…

UK ministers have rejected claims that plans to absorb the cost of supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) into wider education spending will reduce funding for schools. The Department for Education (DfE) said Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) projections were incorrect and failed to consider reforms due early next year. Under the plans, all Send spending will be moved away from local authorities by 2028, shifting around £6bn of forecasted costs onto government departments. Councils have welcomed the change, saying rising demand has made Send costs unsustainable, but teaching unions backed OBR warnings that school budgets could…

The  National Union of Students (NUS) has warned that a three-year freeze on the salary threshold for student loan repayments could leave new graduates struggling to cover essential living costs. In Wednesday’s Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced that from April 2027 the repayment threshold for Plan 2 student loans will be frozen at £29,385. Plan 2 applies to students who began courses in England and Wales between September 2012 and July 2023. The current threshold is £28,470. Alex Stanley, NUS vice-president for higher education, said the freeze could push graduates into repayment while earning salaries dangerously close to the minimum…

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has defended the government’s tax-raising Budget, insisting it will help lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. He described child poverty as abhorrent and said he is “absolutely determined” to reduce it. The government has been responding to questions on the Budget, which includes new measures affecting everything from electric vehicles to pensions. On Wednesday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves raised taxes for millions while announcing the end of the two-child benefit cap. The government also maintained its defence of its economic growth record despite downgraded medium-term forecasts. Under the Budget, millions will pay higher rates…

Net migration to the UK dropped by two-thirds in the year ending June 2025, with provisional data showing a fall from 649,000 to 204,000. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the decline was largely driven by fewer arrivals for work and study. Also, Home Office figures reveal asylum claims reached a record high of 110,051 in the year to September 2025. The number of asylum seekers housed in hotels also rose by 2% compared with the previous year. Thursday’s statistics were released in two parts: ONS figures on net migration to June 2025 and Home Office data on the…

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to proceed with plans to remove about £300m worth of tax breaks from the Motability scheme, which provides cars to disabled people. Although the Treasury had reportedly examined options to cut tax reliefs worth up to £1bn, ministers have stepped back from the most drastic proposals amid fears they could destabilise the Motability scheme. The savings are now expected to fall well below the £1bn figure, with one government source saying that level of reduction had never been realistic. As part of the budget, Reeves is set to withdraw certain tax reliefs for Motability vehicles,…

Justice Secretary David Lammy is proposing a radical overhaul of the criminal courts in England and Wales, aiming to tackle the record backlog of over 78,000 cases currently waiting to be completed in the crown courts. The core of his plan is to scrap the use of jury trials for all but the most serious offenses, which would fundamentally change the justice system. Under this proposal, only public interest crimes like murder, manslaughter, and rape, which carry a possible prison sentence of more than five years, would guarantee a jury. For thousands of defendants facing other serious offenses, which could…

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has apologised to a headteacher after unintentionally leading pupils in the viral “6-7” dance during a visit to Welland Academy in Peterborough. Starmer, who was at the school with Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson to promote the expansion of free school meals, was reading with children when one pointed out they were on pages six and seven. In response, the prime minister instinctively performed the well-known juggling hand gesture associated with the “6-7” meme sending the classroom into laughter. A teacher quickly informed him the dance was banned in the school. “You know children get into…