Closing Summary
Hello, we are now closing our rolling UK politics coverage. Here is a summary of events:
The Parliamentary commissioner for standards has launched an investigation into MP Andrew Gwynne. Gwynne was sacked as a minister and suspended from the Labour Party earlier this month after the emergence of offensive messages in a WhatsApp group.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) said it will reinvestigate business secretary Jonathan Reynolds over accusations he misrepresented his legal career after “further information” came to light.
The Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said the government must swiftly ramp up defence spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product (GDP), adding it was oen of the “most alarming times for Britain’s defence and security since the second world war”. He also said Keir Starmer has to speak “frankly” with Donald Trump when he visits the US next week.
The UK is “potentially in a good position” with the Trump administration, cabinet minister Pat McFadden said, ahead of Keir Starmer’s trip to the US next week. McFadden said it is clear Europe must “do more” to contribute to its own defence and the UK must play a leading role in the change.
The Democratic Unionist Party described Sinn Fein’s decision to boycott a visit to Washington DC on St Patrick’s Day as “short-sighted” and “reckless”. Irish deputy premier Simon Harris criticised what he described as an “easy” stance from Sinn Fein, saying the boycott “doesn’t help anybody in Palestine”.
Scottish Labour would set up an Elon Musk-style department to clear out inefficient quangos and government waste if it wins power next year, Anas Sarwar has proposed. The Scottish Labour leader said the department of government efficiency – a title identical to the Doge run by Musk in the US, would oversee efforts to save money by scrapping dozens of quangos, merging health boards and cutting costs.
The Scottish government is seeking views from the public on what it calls its “flagship policy” of effectively ending the two-child benefits cap.
Labour’s Ian Murray insisted Scotland “cannot afford” to enter a third decade with the SNP in charge at Holyrood. Speaking at the Scottish Labour party conference, the secretary of state for Scotland said the country needs a fresh start with Anas Sarwar installed as first minister.
The government’s suicide prevention adviser said that legalising assisted dying in England and Wales may cause major issues in suicide prevention work if the state effectively concedes that taking one’s own life should be allowed in some circumstances.
Nigel Farage addressed the right-wing Conservative Political Action Conference (Cpac) in Washington last night and praised Elon Musk as a “hero” just a month after the billionaire suggested he should stand down as leader of Reform UK.
Scottish Labour would set up an Elon Musk-style efficiency department to clear out government waste
Scottish Labour would set up an Elon Musk-style department to clear out inefficient quangos and government waste if it wins power next year, Anas Sarwar has proposed.
The Scottish Labour leader said the department of government efficiency – a title identical to the Doge run by Musk in the US, would oversee efforts to save money by scrapping dozens of quangos, merging health boards and cutting costs.
Sarwar claimed that after nearly two decades of the Scottish National party being in power, services were getting worse and “ministers blame everyone but themselves”.
“I can tell you now that as first minister, I will end this culture of waste,” he said. “Respect people’s hard-earned money, and get value for every penny.”
In a speech to the party’s annual conference in Glasgow, Sarwar unveiled a swathe of new policy proposals Labour hopes will reverse a sharp slump in the polls before next year’s Scottish parliament election in recent months.
Scottish Labour won 37 Westminster seats in July, taking 35% of the vote, but since then its reputation has plunged in the wake of unpopular decisions by the Chancellor Rachel Reeves, such as cutting winter fuel payments, refuse compensation to the Waspi pensioners, and raise national insurance costs for employers.
