UK politics live: Starmer could make ‘pragmatic’ U-turn over £1bn tax plan, as PM warned after Trump meeting

Sir Keir Starmer recorded a Covid-era broadcast urging the public to work from home from a Labour donor’s £18 million penthouse.

The Christmas message, broadcast in December 2021, was reportedly filmed at a flat belonging to Lord Waheed Alli - a donor who has handed hundreds of thousands of pounds to the Labour Party over the last two decades.

It came five days after the previous Conservative government presided over new guidance to limit the spread of a new Covid-19 variant, including recommendations to work from home when possible.

Our political correspondent Millie Cooke has the full story:

The number of pupils in England off school without permission at the start of the academic year has fallen slightly compared with last year, figures suggest.

Data from the Department for Education (DfE) shows the unauthorised absence rate across all schools in England was 2.0% in the week ending September 13, compared with 2.1% in the equivalent week in 2023.

It comes as parents in England face higher fines if they take their children out of class without permission this academic year as part of a government drive to boost attendance since the Covid-19 pandemic.

School absence fines have increased from £60 to £80 under the changes, and a parent who receives a second fine for the same child within a three-year period will automatically receive a £160 fine.

The DfE has said other actions, such as a parenting order or prosecution, will be considered if a parent exceeds two fines per child within a three-year period, and those who are prosecuted could receive a fine of up to £2,500.

In the last week of the summer term – the week ending July 19 – the unauthorised absence rate was 5.0%, which was lower than at the end of the academic year in 2023 when the rate was 5.6%.

Two pensioners are seeking to take the Scottish and UK governments to court over the cut to the winter fuel payment.

Peter and Florence Fanning, of Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, have raised proceedings with the help of the Govan Law Centre against the Scottish government and the UK Work and Pensions Secretary over the policy.

Following Labour’s election win, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced the winter fuel payment – which had previously been universal – will only be available to those on pension credit or other means-tested benefits this year due to financial woes.

The decision led to the Scottish government – which was due to take control over a similar payment through the devolved Social Security Scotland but has since announced a delay – to follow suit.

The judicial review – which has been raised at the Court of Session – now requires a judge’s approval to move to a hearing on the merits, with the Govan Law Centre seeking to expedite both the case and its application for legal aid to ensure a decision can be handed down before the winter.

The case asks the court to rule on whether the decision was unlawful, which would then allow the petitioners to ask the court to, in effect, set aside the policy and restore the winter fuel payment to all.

Speaking at a press conference in Edinburgh on Thursday, Mr Fanning, 73, said: “We intend to sue both the London and Scottish governments, since both are guilty through action and inaction, of damaging the welfare of pensioners.

“We are hoping to be successful, given the manifest injustice involved, however, my work as a trade unionist and shop steward has taught me that some battles are worth fighting regardless of the outcome – I believe this is one such battle.”

Asked by GB News what he thought of Sir Keir Starmer, Trump replied: “Well I’m going to see him in about an hour so I have to be nice.”

“I actually think he’s very nice. He ran a great race, he did very well, it’s very early he’s very popular.”

Ahead of the meeting, Sir Keir told reporters: “I think it really matters that you know who your counterpart is in any given country, and know them personally, get to know them face to face.”

The Prime Minister used his UN address to call for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East.

He said: “We need to see an immediate ceasefire to provide space for a diplomatic settlement, and we are working with all partners to that end.

“Further escalation serves no one. It offers nothing but more suffering of innocent people on all sides and the prospect of a wider war that no-one can control and consequences none of us can foresee.

“It shames us all the suffering in Gaza continues to grow. The answer is diplomacy, the release of all the hostages and the unfettered flow of aid to those in need - it is the only way to break the devastating cycle of violence.

He called for a two state solution as well as peace in Sudan calling it the “worst humanitarian crisis in the world today”.

He adds: “The world cannot look away”

Ahead of his meeting with the Republican presidential candidate at Trump Tower, Sir Keir told reporters: “I’ve said a number of times, I want to meet both candidates.

“We’ve now got the opportunity to meet Trump, which is good.

“Obviously, I still want to speak to Harris as well.

“But you know, the usual diary challenges, but it’s good that this one now has been fixed.

“I think it really matters that you know who your counterpart is in any given country, and know them personally, get to know them face to face.”

He said the UK embassy team, led by ambassador Dame Karen Pierce, “has got good relations with both camps and has had for a long time”.

Asked whether he would be prepared to stand up to Mr Trump on issues such as support for Ukraine, Sir Keir said: “The first thing I think is important to say in relation to this is we’ve obviously had a special relationship with”

Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly, the PM told world leaders: “Conflict touches more countries now than ever in UN history.

“War is one of the main reasons that progress has stalled. That is a catastrophe made by human hands.

“We are returning the UK to responsible global leadership. I think the international system can be better, we need it to be better.

“People talk about instability and a fear of fatalism has taken hold. We won’t accept this slide into greater conflict

“This is the moment to reassert fundamental principles to recommit to the UN and rule of law.

“So we are ready to step up.”

The Prime Minister is visiting the Republican presidential candidate’s Trump Tower for talks ahead of November’s US election.

Sir Keir said he wanted to meet Mr Trump face to face because “I’m a great believer in personal relationships on the world stage”.

Ahead of the meeting, Sir Keir told reporters: “I’ve said a number of times, I want to meet both candidates.

“We’ve now got the opportunity to meet Trump, which is good.

“Obviously, I still want to speak to Harris as well.

“But you know, the usual diary challenges, but it’s good that this one now has been fixed.

“It’ll be really to establish a relationship between the two of us.

“I’m a great believer in personal relations on the international stage.

“I think it really matters that you know who your counterpart is in any given country, and know them personally, get to know them face to face.”

Former Tory chair Baroness Sayeeda Warsi has quit the Conservatives in a furious row just as the party is preparing to gather for a crucial conference on its future in Birmingham.

The Muslim peer was brought in as chair by David Cameron in 2010 to help detoxify the party’s brand and bring it into the 21st century.

But since leaving government in 2014 Warsi has had a difficult relationship with the Tory leadership consistently calling out racism and islamophobia in the Conservative Party.

David Maddox reports:

If he resists the temptation to simply preach the gospel of his friend and proprietor Sir Paul Marshall, the former Tory minister may find that he thrives in the role, writes Alan Rusbridger: