UK Politics
The latest political news and updates from around the UK.
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Scottish leader says will look at independence vote by end of year
U.K.Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon said on Sunday she would be able to make a judgment on whether to hold a second referendum on Scottish independence by the end of this year after a shape of a deal between Britain and the European Union becomes clear. -
Labour does not support second EU referendum - Corbyn
U.K.Britain's main opposition Labour Party is not supporting or calling for a second referendum on EU membership, its leader Jeremy Corbyn said on Sunday. -
Brexit vote may be reversed, says British campaigner Farage
U.K.Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage said on Sunday he was increasingly concerned that a vote for Britain to leave the European Union could be overturned by a powerful group of the bloc's supporters. -
Leader of UKIP splits with girlfriend after 'appalling' Markle comment
U.K.The leader of Britain's anti-European Union UKIP Party said he had split with his new girlfriend after a newspaper published derogatory comments she made about Prince Harry's fiancee Meghan Markle and black people. -
UK government questioned over Carillion contracts after profit warning
U.K.Britain's government is under pressure from opposition parties to explain why ministers awarded construction company Carillion 1.3 billion pounds of new contracts after it was known to be in financial difficulty. -
UK's saving after Brexit even bigger than 350 million pounds, Johnson
U.K.Britain will have even more money to spend on public services than the disputed 350 million pounds a week Brexiteers promised after the country leaves the European Union, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said in an interview published on Tuesday. -
Back Brexit law or risk chaos, May's Conservatives tell MPs
U.K.Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party urged MPs to back the government's Brexit legislation at a vote in parliament later on Wednesday, warning opponents that trying to block the plan would bring chaos. -
Juncker says would like Britain to rejoin EU after Brexit
U.K.European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said on Wednesday that he hoped Britain would rejoin the European Union after it has left next year. -
UK energy price cap laws should be passed by summer - minister
U.K.Britain hopes to pass laws to allow the capping of the most common form of gas and electricity tariffs for millions of households by the summer, a junior minister in the business department told a parliamentary committee on Wednesday. -
UK taxpayers paying billions more for privately funded projects – watchdog
U.K.British taxpayers are spending billions of pounds more on hospitals and schools funded by private companies, a parliamentary watchdog said on Thursday, amid fresh concerns about whether companies should be given the work. -
UK's post-Brexit vote tourism boom fades in third quarter - ONS
U.K.The number of foreign citizens visiting Britain rose by 2.7 percent in the third quarter of 2017 compared with the same period in 2016, the weakest increase in a year, official data showed on Thursday. -
MPs back Brexit legislation, stiffer tests yet to come
U.K.British MPs voted in favour of the government's legislative blueprint for Brexit on Wednesday, marking a victory for Prime Minister Theresa May over political opponents who want a softer approach to leaving the European Union. -
With eye on Brexit talks, May offers France money for border security
U.K.British Prime Minister Theresa May will offer France on Thursday 44.5 million pounds to bolster security at French border controls, part of measures to deepen cooperation that she hopes will foster goodwill in Brexit talks. -
Breakingviews - Carillion mess puts Corbyn a step closer to power
U.K.(Reuters Breakingviews) - Carillion’s demise isn’t good for many people, but it will likely help Jeremy Corbyn. Since his election in 2015, the leader of the UK opposition Labour party has long called for state investment in public infrastructure. The Carillion mess and ongoing work from the National Audit Office will give him momentum. -
UK to introduce foreign owners' property register
U.K.Britain will introduce a public register that will compel foreign companies which own or buy property to disclose their ultimate owners in a bid to crack down on money-laundering, the business ministry said on Thursday. -
Northern Ireland has weeks to restore executive in last ditch talks
U.K.Northern Ireland's main parties have one last opportunity in the coming weeks to restore devolved government and avoid a return to direct rule of the region from London for the first time in a decade, the British and Irish governments said on Thursday. -
Road to ruin? Carillion collapse puts spotlight on UK outsourcing mode
U.K.In Balmedie, a village on the northeast coast of Scotland, an unfinished 12 km stretch of dual carriageway is a stark illustration of why British construction company Carillion went bust this week. -
McDonald to succeed Adams as Sinn Fein leader in striking shift
U.K.Mary Lou McDonald will succeed Gerry Adams as Sinn Fein leader, the party said on Saturday, completing a generational shift for the Irish nationalist party as it bids to enter government on both sides of the Irish border. -
Britain able to have bespoke deal with EU - Macron
U.K.French President Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday Britain would be able to have a bespoke deal with the European Union after Brexit, one of Prime Minister Theresa May's objectives. -
UK government questions Scottish bid to show Britain can alone revoke Brexit
U.K.The British government believes the question of whether it alone can stop Brexit is irrelevant, since it does not intend to change its mind about leaving the European Union, according to its response to a legal challenge by Scottish lawmakers opposed to Brexit. -
May says will stop companies abusing pension schemes
U.K.British Prime Minister Theresa May said she would clamp down on bosses who try to "line their own pockets" while not protecting workers' pensions, after the collapse of outsourcer Carillion with a 900-million-pound hole in its pension scheme. -
Keeping up with the Russians - head of UK army wants more money
U.K.Britain must ensure its armed forces can keep up with adversaries like Russia, which already has military capabilities the United Kingdom would struggle to match, according to the head of the British army. -
UK economy will cope with Brexit hit as global economy grows: O'Neill
U.K.Britain's economy is likely to do better in 2018 than many forecasts suggest and the benefits of global growth in the coming years will "easily dwarf" any hit from leaving the European Union, former Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill said. -
Explainer - Britain's Lords sharpen knives for EU exit laws, but can they block Brexit?
U.K.Legislation to end Britain's European Union membership begins months of debate in the upper house of parliament this month and is likely to be given a rough ride by largely pro-EU lawmakers. -
UKIP in chaos over racist messages
U.K.The United Kingdom Independence Party, which transformed British politics by securing a referendum on EU membership, was close to meltdown on Monday over the fate of its leader, whose lover made racist comments about Prince Harry’s fiancee Meghan Markle. -
U.S. needs to pay attention to relationship with Britain, Tillerson says
U.K.The United States needs to pay attention to its treasured relationship with Britain, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Monday just days after Donald Trump cancelled a trip to London citing anger at the sale of an embassy. -
Northern Ireland militant splinter group says it will end violent campaign
U.K.A small Northern Irish nationalist paramilitary group that has carried out bombings and shootings over the past decade called an end on Tuesday to its armed campaign against British rule of the province. -
UK public finances boosted by EU credit, surging VAT receipts
U.K.Britain's budget deficit fell by much more than expected last month, helped by an unusually large credit from the European Union and the strongest value-added tax receipts on record. -
May slaps down foreign minister over health funds
U.K.Prime Minister Theresa May slapped down her foreign minister on Tuesday after he demanded more funding for Britain's public health service, telling him any discussion of money saved from Brexit should be kept private. -
Britain to set up unit to tackle 'fake news' - May's spokesman
U.K.Britain will set up a new unit to beef up its efforts to counter so-called "fake news" and to try to deter disinformation campaigns by other states, a spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said on Tuesday. -
Brexit minister expects agreement on transition deal by end of March
U.K.Brexit minister David Davis said on Wednesday that he expects Britain and the European Union will agree to a transition deal on exiting the bloc by the end of March. -
UK employment surges to record high, wages edge up
U.K.The number of people in work in Britain surged and one measure of wage growth rose to a near one-year high, according to data that may encourage some Bank of England policymakers to think interest rates should rise again before long. -
UK retail sales grow modestly in January - CBI
U.K.British retail sales grew at a modest pace in January but were weak for the time of year, with grocers doing well but department stores struggling, an industry survey showed on Thursday. -
UK mortgage approvals hit lowest since 2013 in December - UK Finance
U.K.British banks approved the fewest mortgages since April 2013 last month and growth in consumer credit slowed, industry figures showed on Thursday, pointing to a weaker housing market this year. -
Leader to laggard - UK economy loses ground after Brexit vote
U.K.Britain's economy has fared better than the gloomy expectations made at the time of the 2016 Brexit vote, but it has been helped mainly by a strong pick-up in global growth and many of its peers are growing more quickly. -
Two more lawmakers mull joining legal case to show UK can stop Brexit
U.K.Two more lawmakers in Britain's national parliament are considering joining a legal case seeking to show that Britain can, if it chooses, alone change its mind on Brexit, intensifying its potential political scope. -
Brexit could mean JP Morgan moves more than 4,000 jobs from Britain
U.K.JPMorgan could move more than 4,000 jobs out of Britain if Brexit talks result in a divergence of regulations and trade agreements between Britain and the European Union, the U.S. banking giant's Chief Executive Jamie Dimon said on Thursday. -
Rees-Mogg urges May to change tone
U.K.Britain's government must start promoting the opportunities from leaving the European Union and its negotiators should stop being "cowed by the EU," the leader of an influential parliamentary group in Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party said. -
May says world cannot pull in different directions on trade
U.K.British Prime Minister Theresa May told business leaders in Davos on Thursday that countries must not start pulling in different directions on trade. -
Trump says talks with UK will lead to tremendous rise in trade
U.K.U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that discussions underway between the U.S. and Britain would lead to a "tremendous increase" in trade between the two countries. -
EU and UK negotiators eye accelerated Brexit transition talks
U.K.British Brexit negotiators are expected to launch fortnightly rounds of talks in Brussels from as early as next week with the aim of agreeing a swift deal on a transition period, EU diplomats said on Friday. -
May defends record on Brexit and other policies after criticism
U.K.Theresa May's record on Brexit, the environment, housing and education stands for itself, her spokesman said on Monday, defending the prime minister against criticism over her leadership style. -
EU offers UK 'status quo transition', but no votes after Brexit
U.K.The European Union agreed on Monday to offer Britain a 21-month transition period after Brexit next year during which it will keep the "status quo" of EU membership without getting a vote, officials said. -
Factbox: The EU's Brexit transition demands -- and what they mean
U.K.EU ministers endorsed on Monday their instructions to Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, setting the 27 states' demands on what Britain must do to secure a transition period after leaving the European Union on March 29, 2019. -
May promises frank discussions with China amid dash for trade
U.K.Prime Minister Theresa May promised to hold "frank discussions" with China during a crucial trade visit later this week, with several awkward diplomatic issues like North Korea and Brexit expected to be discussed.
Trump gives Saudi Arabia benefit of doubt in journalist's disappearance
WASHINGTON/RIYADH U.S. President Donald Trump gave Saudi Arabia the benefit of the doubt in the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi even as U.S. lawmakers pointed the finger at the Saudi leadership and Western pressure mounted on Riyadh to provide answers. | Video