Treasury won’t cut threshold for higher rate income tax, say sources – UK politics live

This is from Pippa Crerar, the Guardian’s political editor, on where we stand this morning after all the fallout from the budget income tax U-turn. She confirms that sources are now ruling out cutting the thresholds for paying higher rates of income tax.She says government insiders claim the change is all down to better-than-expected fiscal forecasts, and that Labour opposition to the proposal was not a factor.Where we are on budget after revelation Rachel Reeves will no longer hike income tax rates- Treasury confirms that stronger than expected OBR forecasts means fiscal gap is closer to £20bn than previously speculated £30-£40bn. Reeves also wants headroom of around £15bn in addition

MP Adnan Hussain quits Your Party over ‘persistent infighting’

The leftwing Your Party led by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana has had a major split after another independent MP involved, Adnan Hussain, quit because of “persistent infighting and a struggle for power” in the organisation.The departure of the Blackburn MP, who is the secretary of the limited company behind Your Party, is another blow after renewed disagreements between Sultana and Corbyn, this time over the handover of membership levies.Hussain was one of four independent MPs who, along with Corbyn, signed a Your Party statement on Thursday night accusing Sultana of unnecessary delay in passing on £850,000 in donations, a move that infuriated Sultana.On Friday afternoon, Hussain said via X he had spent recent months reflecting on his role in an organisation he had believed would be based on “a commitment to equality, justice and anti-racism”.He said: “Regrettably, the reality I encountered has been far from this vision

Trump’s targeting of alleged drug vessels strains UK-US intelligence ties

It is an intelligence relationship that predates even the Five Eyes: the UKUSA alliance that began, naturally enough, in secret in 1946. But this week the strain of trying to be the closest security ally to a freewheeling White House has begun to show.Britain, it emerged, had quietly suspended intelligence cooperation with the US in the Caribbean because London does not consider the deadly US military campaign against ships accused of drug trafficking to be in line with international law.That amounts to an extraordinary open fissure in a close working relationship at a time when the US is increasing its military buildup, expanding its controversial campaign in the region with an attempt to threaten Venezuela.“I’m not sure if there is a previous example of this happening in the public domain

Britons living abroad: tell us your views on UK politics today

The last decade in British politics has been marked by instability and fragmentation, with six prime ministers in ten years, and Nigel Farage’s Reform party now leading in the polls.A study this month from King’s College London and Ipsos found that 84 percent of people now say the UK feels divided, up from 74 percent in 2020.Polling on voter intention shows a fracturing of the political landscape as people abandon two-party politics – with Reform now averaging 31 percent, Labour 18 percent, the Conservatives 16 percent, Green Party 14 percent and Liberal Democrats 12 percent.We want to hear from Brits living abroad. How do you think UK politics has changed since you left the country? Does anything surprise you about events in the UK? How does living abroad shape your views on UK politics? Do you have concerns?You can tell us about viewing UK politics from abroad herePlease include as much detail as possible

Your Party receives ‘small portion’ of withheld supporters’ donations

The leftwing Your Party, set up by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, is embroiled in another public row over donations to the party.A statement from Corbyn along with Shockat Adam MP, Adnan Hussain MP, Ayoub Khan MP and Iqbal Mohamed MP states that hundreds of thousands of pounds were donated to the party “by supporters in good faith, but have since remained beyond its reach”, which they describe as being “extremely frustrating and disheartening”.It added a “small portion” of the funds was transferred to the party on Thursday which they said was “insufficient” and they will continue to pursue the immediate transfer of all the money donated.The statement posted on X by the independent alliance of MPs was not signed by Sultana and comes days after the Guardian reported on the former Labour MP and Corbyn’s quarrel over hundreds of thousands of pounds in donations.Sultana offered to transfer £600,000 from a company the party’s founders set up earlier this year, only to be rebuffed by allies of the former Labour leader who accused her of playing “political games” with supporters’ money

Starmer stands by McSweeney and says he has been ‘assured no briefings against ministers done from No 10’ – as it happened

Keir Starmer has said he “of course” retains full confidence in his chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, PA Media reports.I will post the full quote shortly.At PMQs yesterday Starmer dodged a question about whether he had full confidence in McSweeney, although No 10 subsequently said he did.Some ministers and MPs want to see McSweeney sacked.We’re closing this blog now, here’s a summary of the day’s main developments:The prime minister has attempted to draw a line under the briefing row, saying he has “been assured that no briefing against ministers was done from No 10” and that he has “full confidence” in his chief of staff, Morgan McSweeneyWes Streeting, the health secretary, has said that he doesn’t know and doesn’t care whether Starmer is trying to identify the No 10 figure briefing against him