Free speech target or terrorist gang? The inside story of Palestine Action – and the plan to ban it

If this interview had taken place in a week’s time, Huda Ammori might have been arrested. If this interview had been published in a week’s time, the Guardian might also have been breaking the law.Ammori, a co-founder of Palestine Action, said she was finding it “very hard to absorb the reality of what’s happening here”. She said: “I don’t have a single conviction but if this goes through I would have co-founded what will be a terrorist organisation.”By “this” she means the UK government’s hugely controversial proposal to ban Palestine Action under anti-terrorism laws, placing it alongside the likes of Islamic State and National Action – the first time a direct action group would be classified in this way

Starmer still faces Labour anger over risk of ‘two-tier’ disability benefits

Keir Starmer is battling to stem the revolt over his cuts to disability benefits, with about 50 Labour MPs concerned the new concessions will create a “two-tier” system where existing and new claimants are treated differently.Senior government sources insisted things were “moving in the right direction” for No 10, with the whips phoning backbenchers to persuade them to support the bill on Tuesday.Government insiders said they believed they had peeled off enough of the original 120-plus Labour opponents of the legislation to win the vote, after the work and pensions secretary, Liz Kendall, promised to exempt current disability claimants from the changes, and to increase the health element of universal credit in line with inflation.However, rebel MPs will attempt to lay a new amendment on Monday giving colleagues a chance to delay the bill, which will still involve £2.5bn of cuts to future disability benefits

UK politics: Starmer says welfare concessions are ‘common sense’ but dodges funding question – as it happened

Keir Starmer has described the compromise welfare bill proposals announced overnight as “common sense” and as striking “the right balance”.Speaking to reporters on a visit, he said:It’s very important that we reform the welfare system, because it doesn’t work and it traps people, and therefore we’re going to press ahead with the reforms. And the principles are if you can work, you should work. If you need help getting into work, you should have that help and support. But if you can’t work or there’s no prospect of work, then you must be protected

Keir Starmer says he ‘deeply regrets’ island of strangers speech

Keir Starmer has said he “deeply regrets” a speech in which he described the UK as being in danger of becoming an island of strangers without tough curbs on immigration.In an interview with the Observer, the prime minister said he should have read the speech more carefully and “held it up to the light a bit more”.The speech, delivered in May to unveil Labour’s immigration policy, was criticised for seeming to echo Enoch Powell’s infamous 1968 “rivers of blood” speech in which Powell claimed Britain’s white population would be “strangers in their own country”.After the speech, Starmer’s official spokesperson said the prime minister “absolutely stands by” his language, including claims that mass immigration had done “incalculable damage” to the British economy.However, in the interview with his biographer Tom Baldwin, Starmer said: “I wouldn’t have used those words if I had known they were, or even would be, interpreted as an echo of Powell

Stephen Kinnock stares into the abyss as he carries can for welfare U-turn | John Crace

You could have heard the cries of despair coming from Stephen Kinnock’s house from the other end of the street. He had been safely tucked up in bed when he got the message from No 10 that the government was doing the mother of all U-turns on the welfare bill. The third U-turn in a month or so and by far the biggest yet.It was Kinnock’s bad luck that he had been booked to do the government’s morning media round. He had been told it would be a doddle

No 10 climbs down over welfare bill in move to win over Labour rebels

Downing Street has announced major changes to its welfare bill in an attempt to win the support of more than 120 Labour rebels who had threatened to vote against it next week and hand Keir Starmer a damaging first defeat as prime minister.Liz Kendall, the work and pensions secretary, wrote to Labour MPs on Thursday night to lay out the concessions, which were thrashed out over 24 hours of negotiations between senior rebels and government officials.The compromises, revealed by the Guardian on Thursday, include exempting everyone currently receiving disability benefits from the changes, and increasing the health element of universal credit in line with inflation.Kendall said she would bring forward a more fundamental review of the personal independence payment (Pip) system and increase the amount of money to be spent on back-to-work schemes. Ruth Curtice, the head of the Resolution Foundation thinktank, said the changes would cost about £3bn and would probably be paid for by tax rises