Politics

The “vast bulk” of British citizens in Afghanistan will be brought back to the UK over the “next few days”, Boris Johnson has said. Efforts will also be stepped up to relocate Afghans to the UK who have assisted the military operation over the past 20 years, the prime minister said. The prime minister spoke

Terror group al Qaeda “will probably come back” in Afghanistan as the security situation continues to deteriorate, the defence secretary has told Sky News. Speaking to Kay Burley, Ben Wallace was highly critical of the US decision to withdraw troops from the country. It is almost 20 years since the invasion of Afghanistan was launched

More than 58,000 applications were made to the EU Settlement Scheme in the month after the deadline had passed, new Home Office figures reveal. EU citizens living in the UK had until 30 June to apply to stay in the country or lose their rights, under post-Brexit rules introduced by the government. This is due

GCSE results have hit record highs again this year. The proportion of UK pupils getting the top grades – that’s a 7 or higher, equivalent to at least an A – is 28.9%, an increase of 2.7% on last year. The overall pass rate also rose, with over three quarters – 77.1% – of pupils

Firebrand union leader Len McCluskey has fired a vicious parting shot against Sir Keir Starmer, claiming Labour’s ship could  “go under” with him at the helm. In hard-hitting memoirs to mark his retirement, the Unite general secretary known as “Red Len” suggests Sir Keir will fail to win back the “Red Wall” seats Labour lost

The government needs to stop “dragging their heels” and address pension disparity for some Gurkha veterans, Labour has said. Speaking to Kay Burley, shadow armed forces minister Stephen Morgan said it was “outrageous the inequality continues”. A group of Gurkhas is staging a hunger strike opposite Downing Street, with their demonstration having now entered its

More than three quarters of adults in the UK have now received both doses of a coronavirus vaccine, the government has announced. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said a total of 86,780,455 jabs have now been administered, with 89% of people having received a first dose and 75% two doses. Prime Minister

Universities that do not return to face-to-face teaching this coming academic year should not be charging full fees, the education secretary has told Sky News. Speaking to Kay Burley, Gavin Williamson said: “I think if universities are not delivering what students expect, then actually they shouldn’t be charging the full fees.” Live updates as students

The UK is “on track” to meet its “challenging” target of hitting net zero emissions by 2050, a minister has told Sky News. “I think it’s challenging, but I think we are on track, I think we’re doing quite well,” Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng told Kay Burley about the goal. “If you look, since 1990

A minister has told Sky News he would like staff in his department to be coming into the office “at least” two or three days a week, after the government insisted it would follow a “cautious” approach to civil servants returning to their desks. Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng was asked about his views on people

Labour are calling for a senior Conservative to be investigated for training witnesses before they give crucial evidence to MPs. Parliament’s standards watchdog has been told to “urgently” look into payments made to James Gray for coaching witnesses ahead of appearances before select committees. The Tory MP has been receiving the cash while sitting on

Hopes for a summer getaway are given a boost from today with a sizeable expansion of the government’s green travel list – and the return of holiday favourite France to the regular amber category. After a spell on the so-called “amber plus” list, France’s move back to amber means that fully vaccinated travellers returning from

Urgent action is needed to address climate change or the world will soon face “catastrophe”, the UK’s COP26 chief has warned. With just 85 days until the climate conference in Glasgow, minister Alok Sharma told the Observer that failing to act would have “catastrophic” consequences. “I don’t think there’s any other word for it,” said

Boris Johnson has refused to apologise after he said Margaret Thatcher gave the UK a “big early start” in its battle against climate change when she closed coal mines in the 1980s. The PM’s official spokesperson told reporters Mr Johnson recognises the “huge impact and pain” caused by the closure of coal mines – but

The prime minister is not expected to isolate after flying to Scotland this week with a member of his staff who has tested positive for COVID-19. Boris Johnson was on the same flight as the person but did not come within two metres of them, Sky News understands. A Number 10 spokesman said: “The prime

Climate minister Alok Sharma’s air travel to 30 countries in seven months is “bizarre” and sets a bad example ahead of COP26, a Labour minister has said. Speaking to Kay Burley on Sky News, David Lammy told that reports that COP26 President Mr Sharma flew tens of thousands of miles during the pandemic are “worrying”