Today, Keir Starmer will face Prime Minister’s Questions for the first time since the arrests of his former US ambassador Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch and others will be hoping to land a blow on Sir Keir, whose Government has refused to release files relating to the appointment of Andrew as the UK’s trade envoy and Lord Mandelson’s involvement in the process.
Yesterday, the Liberal Democrats launched a bid to force the publication of such documents, which successfully passed as a motion, without the need for a vote.
The party utilised a rare “humble address” procedure to compel the Government.
However, Trade Minister Sir Chris Bryant confirmed the Government would not be able to unseal some documents as the Liberal Democrats attempted to compel their release today.
Sir Chris said that some files would remain unpublished until the police are “satisfied” they are no longer needed for their inquiries.
On Monday, Peter Mandelson was arrested and released on bail on suspicion of misconduct in office.
FOLLOW BELOW FOR LIVE UPDATES THROUGHOUT THE DAY…
Ed Miliband admits Europe is struggling to handle Vladimir Putin’s ‘shadow fleet’
Ed Miliband has admitted Europe is struggling to handle Vladimir Putin’s “shadow fleet”, which Russia uses to dodge crippling Western sanctions.
Moscow deploys tankers, usually previously disused and without modern identification, to ship oil exports around the world and avoid Britain and its allies' attempts to stop the trade.
"The truth is, it's incredibly hard to clamp down on this,” the Energy Secretary admitted.
“But believe me - me, Yvette Cooper across government, the foreign secretary, the chancellor - we are incredibly engaged on this, working with our European allies and indeed our US allies."
"To be fair to our EU allies, they were incredibly dependent on Russian gas," he told Sky.
"And now actually they've reduced a lot of their dependence on Russian gas at speed, but there's further to go."
Robert Jenrick tried to 'destroy' Zia Yusuf just months before Reform defection
Robert Jenrick attempted to obtain confidential candidate application information belonging to Zia Yusuf six months before defecting to Reform UK, leaked communications have revealed.
The messages show Reform's current economic spokesman requesting details from a senior Conservative figure about Mr Yusuf's Tory candidacy application.
Mr Jenrick joined Nigel Farage’s party in January, leaving his former post as Shadow Justice Secretary.
"Hi. Do we have any information on Zia? Did he apply to be a candidate? Do we have his candidate application form? We should destroy him. Rob," the former Tory wrote before his defection.
However, Mr Jenrick was keen to put such rumours to bed while speaking with GB News over the weekend.
Written statements to be heard in the Commons today
Here are the written ministerial statements due to be made in the Commons today:
- Secretary of State for Business and Trade: Government Response to Green Paper on the Future of the Post Office.
- Secretary of State for Business and Trade: UK-EU Competition Cooperation Agreement.
- Secretary of State for the Home Department: The Enforcement of Electronic Travel Authorisation.
- Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government: Grenfell Annual Report.
- Secretary of State for Justice: Sitting day allocations for Courts and Tribunals.
Tories: Labour have 'absolutely no plan' to deal with illegal migration
Conservative Andrew Bowie has told GB News that the Labour Government have "absolutely no plan" to deal with illegal immigration.
The Shadow Energy Secretary said: "They came into office promising they were going to smash the gangs and stop the boats without any plan to actually do that".
"What we've seen is that month on month, more and more people are coming into this country illegally, because this government has got absolutely no plan to deal with the gangs, to deal with the boats.
"What we want to do is get out of the ECHR and deport anybody that comes into this country illegally, the moment their feet touch the soil.
"It's about fairness. It's about doing the right thing for the British people, and that's what we would do if we return to government"
Ed Miliband hails 'actions we took' in Rachel Reeves's budget
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has hailed the "actions we took in the budget” of Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
However, the Energy Secretary said the Government had “got further to go”.
“The price cap in 2025 across the year was lower in real terms than 2024.
"We want to drive it down even lower, so it’s up to £300 lower,” he told Sky News.
Keir Starmer takes credit for energy price drop
Keir Starmer has taken credit for the change in the energy price cap, announced by Ofgem this morning.
"Energy bills are at the front of everybody's mind, and I know they've been too high for too long," the Prime Minister said in a statement.
"I promised to bring bills down and I meant it. And today – because of the actions this government took at the last Budget – the price cap on energy bills has come down by £117.
"That means lower energy bills for millions across the country. But I know there is more to do – and my government is pulling every lever to bear down on the cost of living and protect the pound in the pockets of working people."
Energy bills to fall as Ofgem confirms major price cap change
Ofgem has announced a seven per cent reduction, the equivalent of £117, to the energy price cap for the period covering April 1 to June 30, 2026.
According to the energy regulator, this change results in a reduction of around £10 a month for the average household using both electricity and gas.
The energy price cap sets the maximum rate per unit, and standing charge suppliers can charge households with average energy usage.
As a result of this change, families paying direct debit for gas and electricity will pay £1,641 per year.
Welcome to the live blog
Good morning and welcome to the GB News politics blog.
Today, Keir Starmer will take on Prime Minister's Questions for the first time since the arrests of his former US ambassador Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Leader of the Opposition Kemi Badenoch will lead the grilling of the Prime Minister.
This morning, GB News will hear from Andrew Bowie, Shadow Energy Secretary.
Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter