UK politics live: Keir Starmer says he didn’t realise Rachel Reeves was crying in Commons during PMQs

Key Points

• Reeves appears in public day after PMQs tears
• Starmer insists Rachel Reeves doing 'excellent job'
• Starmer says he didn’t realise Reeves was upset during PMQs but praises her resilience
• PM admits he 'didn't get process right' in handling welfare reforms
• ‘We are all human beings,’ Streeting declares in defence of Reeves

Starmer says he’ll ‘take the hit’ on nanny state row to stop children losing teeth

Sir Keir Starmer said he was “not interested” in arguments about the “nanny state” if the price was children losing their teeth before they were 10.

Answering questions at the launch of the Government’s 10-year NHS plan, the Prime Minister said: “When I learned at Alder Hey that children of that age, eight to 12, were coming in to have their teeth taken out and that was the highest cause of admission – I’m not interested in arguing about ‘nanny state’.

“If the price of not doing it is a child losing his or her teeth before they’re 10 years old, I’ll take those measures any day of the week and I’ll defend them any day of the week.”

Starmer refuses to rule out further tax hikes

Sir Keir Starmer refused to rule out future tax hikes but insisted the “heavy lifting” to repair the public finances had already been done.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has previously promised she would not need to repeat the £40 billion tax raid she set out in October.

Asked if he would repeat that commitment, Sir Keir said: “No prime minister or chancellor is going to write a budget in advance, but we did really tough stuff in that budget last year.

“We made sure that we stabilised the economy and we took the big and heavy decisions early on.

“And that’s what we meant by what we said when the Chancellor said that before, it’s what I mean and say again today.

“We’ve done a lot of the heavy lifting, we’ve done a lot of the hard yards.

“As a result of that turning our economy around: the fastest growth in the G7 in the first quarter of this year, business confidence at a nine-year high and record investment.”

‘Oh, come on,’ Reeves mutters at question about 10-year plan

The prime minister was asked by the Times what is different about his 10-year plan to the ones that went before it.

The reporter said it is basically the same as its predecessors, so why will it work.

As he was asking, the chancellor said: ‘oh, come on.’ Clearly she believes there is something special about it.

(Ella Pickover/PA Wire)

Architect of blue Labour says Starmer has just six months to turn things around

Lord Maurice Glasman - the architect of blue Labour - has suggested the prime minister has just six months to prove whether he has a clear vision.

He also said Sir Keir should conduct a reshuffle of his Cabinet, calling for a "fundamental reset" in government.

Asked whether the prime minister has a "strategic vision", Lord Glasman said: "This is the whole issue. We'll find out in the next six months if that is the case."

Speaking to Times Radio, he also said he is arguing for a "big structural change in government".

Asked whether he thinks the PM should reshuffle his Cabinet, the Labour peer said: "Yeah, there's lots of talent in the PLP, actually. I think there's got to be a fundamental reset, but that can only follow from a strategic outlining of what's been done. It cannot be the case that a government is stymied from governing constantly by a backbench rebellion.

Now Reeves turns to laughter

After three questions in a row to Sir Keir Starmer about Rachel Reeves having appeared alongside him at the speech, the chancellor has turned to laughter.

When ITV asked how she is doing today, after yesterday’s tears in the Commons, she could be seen looking towards the correspondent and laughing at the premise.

Rachel Reeves sighs at Beth Rigby question

Rachel Reeves audibly said ‘ugh’ when Sky’s Beth Rigby asked Sir Keir Starmer about her tears in the Commons on Wednesday.

She was the second journalist in a row to ask about the chancellor, who has appeared alongside Sir Keir in a show of unity as he unveils his NHS plan.

But she is clearly in no mood to go into the personal matter that left her in tears, if her audible sigh is anything to go by.

Starmer says NHS reform is ‘about fairness’

Reforming the NHS is “about fairness” for everyone, Sir Keir Starmer said as he spoke at the launch of the NHS 10-year plan.

The Prime Minister said: “Millions of people across Britain no longer feel that they get a fair deal, and it’s starting to affect the pride, the hope, the optimism that they have in this great country, and our job is to change that.”

He continued: “For 77 years this weekend, the NHS has been the embodiment, if you like, of British pride, of hope, that basic sense of fairness and decency. 77 years of everyone paying in, working hard, doing the right thing, secure in the knowledge that if they or their family needs it, the NHS will be there for them.

“In 10 years’ time, when this plan has run its course, I want people to say that this was the moment, this was the Government, that secured those values for the future.

“Look, when people are uncertain about the deal they’re getting from this country, what fairer way is there to respond than that, by giving them more control, by partnering with them to build an NHS that is fit to face the future? And that is what this plan that we are launching today will do.”

Starmer credits Reeves’ decisions for record NHS investment

Sir Keir Starmer has hailed the decisions made by Chancellor Rachel Reeves as playing a part in the government investing “record amounts in the NHS”.

He said: “It’s all down to the foundation we laid this year, all down to the path of renewal that we chose, the decisions made by the Chancellor, by Rachel Reeves, which mean we can invest record amounts in the NHS.

“Already over 6,000 mental health workers recruited, 1,700 new GPs, 170 community diagnostic centres – really important – already open.

“New surgical hubs, new mental health units, new ambulance sites. Record investment right across the system.”

Pictured | Starmer, Reeves and Streeting at launch of NHS 10-year plan

(PA)

(PA)

Watch live | Starmer joined by Reeves as Labour unveil 10-year NHS plan

Starmer says NHS still needs work but future ‘already looks better’ under Labour

Sir Keir Starmer acknowledged improvements were needed in the NHS but said the situation was better than when Labour first took over from the Conservatives a year ago.

The prime minister said: “I’m not going to stand here and say everything is perfect now, we have a lot more work to do and we will do it.

“But let’s be under no illusions: because of the fair choices we made, the tough Labour decisions we made, the future already looks better for our NHS.

“And that is the story of this Government in a nutshell.”

Reeves says NHS plan is ‘good for nation’s health and finances’

Labour’s plan for the NHS will be “good for the health of our nation and good for the health of our nation’s finances”, Rachel Reeves has said in her first public appearance since crying in the Commons chamber on Wednesday.

Smiling as she spoke at a health centre in London, the chancellor said: “I want to be clear, we are spending money on taxpayers’ priorities, but that wouldn’t have been possible without the measures that we took in the budget last year.

“We fixed the foundations and we’ve put our economy back on a strong footing.”

She went on to say the government was “making this country fairer for those who have paid in all their lives by guaranteeing that the NHS will be there when they need it”.

Ms Reeves added: “This is the right way forward, good for the health of our nation and good for the health of our nation’s finances.

“This government will always deliver on the priorities of ordinary working people, and I am proud that with this plan the NHS will always be there for those who need it for the next 77 years, and many more beyond that too.”

Reeves returns the favour

Also keen to support the PM, as he did for her, Rachel Reeves is muttering along as he lays out his plan for the future of the NHS.

‘Yes, yep, yes,’ she can be heard saying as she watches Sir Keir Starmer discuss the investment Labour is putting into the health service.

Sir Keir set out a ‘promise made, and a promise delivered’ on extra appointments, which the chancellor applauded with a wide smile.

Analysis: Rachel Reeves needed to be visible today

A beaming chancellor Rachel Reeves is definitely making an effort to look much happier today.

She has not mentioned the tears of yesterday at PMQs and the prime minister has now rallied to her saying she is safe in her job as chancellor.

Ms Reeves was not previously slated for this NHS 10-year plan launch but it was important she was here today to try to move on from a very difficult week for the government.

This is a show of unity and strength with three of the biggest figures in the government - Keir Starmer, Reeves and health secretary Wes Streeting.

Keir Starmer chants ‘wahey’ as Reeves gets on stage

Sir Keir Starmer chanted ‘Wahey’ as he cheered Rachel Reeves on her way to the podium to speak about the NHS 10-year-plan.

If there was any doubt about the relationship between the PM and his chancellor, Sir Keir is trying his best to put it to bed.

He is clapping enthusiastically, smiling widely and murmuring ‘exactly’ alongside the chancellor’s speech.

Reeves appears in public day after PMQs tears

Rachel Reeves has appeared in public with Sir Keir Starmer a day after breaking down in tears alongside the Prime Minister in the Commons.

The public show of unity came after Sir Keir gave her his full backing and said he did not appreciate how upset she was in the Commons because he was focused on answering Prime Minister’s Questions.

The pair were both at the launch of the Government’s 10-year plan for the NHS in London.

Starmer set to feel the heat at NHS presser

Under fire prime minister Sir Keir Starmer will be doing his best not to hand photographers and film crews a gift wrapped golden shot as he enters a sweltering room full of NHS staff to outline his NHS 10-year plan.

The PM has been under major pressure in recent weeks, and even a drop of sweat on Sir Keir’s forehead will prompt headlines about him ‘feeling the heat’.

His backdrop of nurses are wafting fans in a desperate but futile bid to keep cool. It is boiling.

Then again, the PM likes his ‘sleeves up, getting on with it’ look. So maybe it’s the perfect temperature for him.

Rayner vows to scrap ‘unfair’ council funding system in major review of red tape

The government will launch a “comprehensive” review aimed at ripping up red tape for councils and replace an “outdated and unfair” funding process with a “fair funding review”, Angela Rayner said.

The deputy prime minister told the Local Government Association: “Alongside our new outcomes framework, we’ll be launching a comprehensive review to ensure unnecessary regulations and needless asks from Government aren’t getting in the way of you serving your communities.

“We will harness the Government’s AI team to unlock efficiencies and work lockstep with the LGA so we get it right, so that’s two fundamental shifts in the way this Labour Government is doing business with local leaders, and we won’t stop there.”

(Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

She continued: “You watched as your communities were unfairly short changed for too long. So that’s why my third pledge is to make good on a promise I made countless times in opposition, a promise to fund councils on the basis of need.

“The last government promised a fair funding review back in 2016, they recognised how outdated and unfair the funding process was back then, but as with so many of these things, their promises came to nothing.

“They dithered, they delayed and abandoned the fair funding review, but not under my watch. Anyone who knows me knows that I don’t make promises that I can’t keep.

“I listen to the people in this room calling for government funding to recognise the unique challenges of their place, whether that be rising temporary accommodation or even the pressure caused by huge footfall in coastal communities on the weekends… this Labour Government will waste no time in delivering it. We will implement a fair funding review, and yes, that’s a full fat version.”

Watch | Rachel Reeves is resilient and will bounce back, says Wes Streeting

Can Labour survive its identity crisis? Ask chief political commentator John Rentoul anything

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Rayner promises ‘fundamental shift’ to cut local government bureaucracy

Angela Rayner has vowed to deliver a “fundamental shift” in how local government is run, with plans to strip back red tape and refocus efforts on long-term outcomes.

The deputy prime minister said a new local government outcomes framework would “radically simplify the funding and reporting regime” and help “prioritise the long-term instead of getting caught up in the nuts and bolts”.

She said the aim was to support councils to “deliver meaningful outcomes and facilitate a shift towards prevention”, adding: “The micromanagement of previous governments failed. It wasted taxpayers’ money and got us into a mess that we’re in now.”

Ms Rayner also pledged to end the “Westminster knows best” attitude and said ministers would work with local leaders who showed results through new ways of delivering services.

(Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

Analysis | Why Starmer finally came out to give his full backing to his tearful chancellor

Our Political Editor David Maddox writes:

There are moments in politics where the situation has spun so badly out of control that somebody has to step in quickly to end the chaos.

Most famously in recent history it was former 1922 committee chairman Sir Graham Brady’s visit to Liz Truss in Downing Street to force her to resign after the mini-budget fallout.

Read the full analysis below:

Reeves to flank Starmer in show of unity

Rachel Reeves is to flank Sir Keir Starmer as he unveils his big plan for the NHS in a show of unity after yesterday’s grim scenes in the commons.

The chancellor is said to be at a hospital with the prime minister in London ready to put on a brave face after breaking down in tears behind him in Wednesday’s PMQs session.

The PM belatedly threw his arms around the chancellor, insisting she has his full backing until the next general election and beyond. But much damage had already been done - not least on financial markets - as he refused to guarantee her safety while she wept behind him.

She was not initially set to appear at the event, giving the impression that the side-by-side outing has been hastily arranged to show the two are walking in lockstep and quell rumours she is on the way out.

‘Well-known’ figures want to join Reform UK cabinet, Farage claims

A Reform UK cabinet could include people from outside Parliament, Nigel Farage has said.

During an LBC phone-in on Thursday, the Reform UK leader said it was “nonsense” that ministers “must all be politicians in the House of Commons” and suggested following the US example where cabinet members have often never stood for election.

He said: “I really mean this, I do think that you’ve got to think a little bit more about running the public finances as if you’re running a business.”

Asked if there were any names he was considering, he declined to say, but added: “I’m amazed by the conversations we’re having already.”

(Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire)

He said: “Some of them are very well-known people.

“This country is in economic, social and cultural decline, we are in big trouble, and a lot of people recognise that if this is not turned around within the next decade, the place will, frankly, not be worth living in.”

In the wide-ranging phone-in, he also said he wanted to be prime minister because he did not “see anybody else with the guts to take on the really tough issues this country faces and turn it round”.

Asked whether he supported same-sex marriage, which he previously opposed, he would only say it was a “settled issue”, and he described a recent Commons vote to decriminalise women who have abortions after the 24-week limit as “disturbing”.

Watch | Starmer admits to 'tough' few days as PM addresses Reeves crying

Labour sees biggest first-year poll drop for governing party since 1990s

Labour has experienced a significant double-digit decline in public support since the general election a year ago, marking the first such drop for a governing party since John Major's Conservative administration in the 1990s.

Sir Keir Starmer’s party has averaged 24% in opinion polls over the past month, a notable 10-point decrease from the 34% recorded in the weeks immediately following the 2024 election.

While it is common for political parties to experience a slide in the polls after taking power – a trend observed in almost every UK government over the last four decades – a drop of this magnitude is considered unusual.

Read the full report below:

Governemnt bonds rally after Starmer backs Reeves

UK government bonds rallied and the pound steadied after reassurances from Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer over Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

Fears over her position as Chancellor sparked a sharp sell-off on Wednesday, with the yield on Government bonds, known as gilts, seeing the sharpest increase since US President Donald Trump’s tariff plans shook up financial markets in April.

Gilt yields move counter to the value of the bonds, meaning that their prices fall when yields rise.

But yields on 10-year and 30-year gilts dropped back on Thursday, down 0.1 percentage points each to 4.54% and 5.33% respectively.

The pound also edged higher, having suffered marked falls on Wednesday and was 0.1% higher at 1.37 dollars and 0.04% up at 1.16 euros in Thursday morning trading.

MPs declare more than £1m of gifts and hospitality in year since election

MPs have received more than £1 million in gifts since the election, including foreign travel, accommodation and tickets to sporting events and concerts.

Rows over free tickets and other gifts given to senior Labour figures, including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, posed an early problem for the Government, which had made restoring trust in politics a major part of its election campaign.

Some 236 MPs declared gifts from UK sources, totalling £477,539, while 144 said they had been on overseas trips paid for by donors, charities, think tanks or foreign governments, worth another £810,761.

In total, 318 MPs declared that they had received gifts in the year since the election, just under half the number sitting in the Commons.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage declared the highest value, receiving gifts worth a total of £98,709 over the past year.

The biggest recipient of hospitality from UK sources was the Prime Minister, thanks to his regular attendance at Arsenal games.

Sir Keir Starmer watching Arsenal (PA Archive)

Reeves' tears were 'purely personal', Starmer says

Sir Keir Starmer said people could be caught “off guard” by their emotions, but not everyone had to do so in the public eye.

He said Rachel Reeves was an “excellent Chancellor” and they were both “absolutely committed to our fiscal rules”.

The Prime Minister told Virgin Radio the Chancellor’s tears were “nothing to do with politics, nothing to do with the ups and downs of this week, or her relationship with anybody in the Labour Party, it’s purely personal”.

He said: “What I would say is – and you’ll understand this – in politics, you’re on show the whole time, there’s no hiding place.

“But we are humans in the end and sometimes personal things are obviously on our minds and, in this case, that was the situation.”

(PA Wire)

He said they were “absolutely committed to our fiscal rules and the economic stability that is so important for this country, and that is the rock on which we build everything else”.

“On that issue, Rachel and I are in lockstep, and have been for years.”

He added: “She’s great colleague. She’s a friend of mine and I’ll be working with her for a very long time to come.

“But like all human beings, we’re also personal. There are moments that catch us off guard and if you’re in front of a camera for large periods of your life, unfortunately, that could be caught on camera in a way, if it had been anybody else at work, it would have not really been noticed.”

Starmer says he didn’t realise Reeves was upset during PMQs but praises her resilience

Sir Keir Starmer said he did not fully appreciate how upset Rachel Reeves was in the Commons on Wednesday because he was focused on responding to Prime Minister’s Questions.

He told Virgin Radio: “I actually personally didn’t appreciate it was happening in the Chamber because I came in, I’ve got questions being fired at me in PMQs so I’m constantly up at the despatch box and down.

“I think we just need to be clear, it’s a personal matter, and I’m not going to breach Rachel’s privacy by going into what’s a personal matter for her.”

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves (right) crying as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaks during Prime Minister’s Questions (UK Parliament/PA) (PA Wire)

He later added she was “fine” following the tearful episode.

He told Virgin Radio: “She’s fine. She’s good… I had a long chat with her last night.

“She’s very resilient and strong is Rachel. She’s driven through lots of change in the Labour Party. We’ve had to change the Labour Party, fought an election together.

“I’ve seen her resilience first hand. I admire it. She’s a really powerful woman, and she’s also very widely respected.

“The sort of messages of concern that have come in over the last 24 hours or so show the great affection and respect in which she is held.

“People are held in respect for a reason, and that’s because people know they’re very good at what they’re doing.”

Starmer refuses to say if watered-down welfare reforms will save money

The Prime Minister refused to confirm whether his welfare reforms will save any money after they were stripped of key elements to prevent a Labour revolt.

Asked on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme how much money the welfare reforms will now save, Sir Keir Starmer said: “In terms of getting people back into work, of course, that will be good for the economy, because more people coming back into work and being supported back into work is good for them.”

He said the amount saved will be determined after disability minister Sir Stephen Timms completes his review of the Pip assessment process.

Pressed on whether the changes made will now cost the Government more money, Sir Keir said: “We need to finish the Stephen Timms review in order to properly answer that question.”

He added: “We will deal with all these matters at the budget and we will set out what we’re spending money on and how we’re going to spend it.

Starmer says NHS must ‘reform to survive’ despite progress on waiting lists

The Prime minister said he is “proud” of how his government has tackled NHS waiting lists, but added that “if the health service is to survive, it’s got to reform”.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Sir Keir Starmer said the health service was “left in a terrible state” by the previous government.

He said: “But even if that had not been the case the nature of illness and the presentation of the public in terms of: we all live longer, but with more conditions – what the health service has to deal with is so different to what it was 70 years ago when the NHS was set up that we have to change.

“And I know that simply putting more money into the old system isn’t going to produce what we need.”

Sir Keir added: “We’ve been driving down those waiting lists.

“I’m really pleased about that. I’m proud of what we’ve done. But I know that if the health service is to survive, it’s got to change, it’s got to reform.”

Streeting sets out 10-year NHS plan

Health secretary Wes Streeting told BBC Breakfast the 10-year health plan meant people would “begin to see and feel those changes” to the NHS and improvement in the health service.

He said new neighbourhood health services were in place in some regions but the government “will be rolling health centres starting off in areas with the highest levels of need, the communities that are also the most poorly served”.

He said people will get increasing amounts of care in their home, adding: “This is the game changer for the 21st century.”

He said: “Often we’ve been sent from village to town, to city. So now we’re going to design care around you.

“You’re going to have much more personal, personalised care, more ease, more convenience, more choice and control.”

Streeting launches staunch defence of his ally the chancellor

It is perhaps no surprise that Wes Streeting has launched the most staunch defence of Rachel Reeves yet since she broke into tears in the Commons on Wednesday.

The health secretary and the chancellor, as well as being political allies, are genuine friends.

So, taking to the airwaves in her support on Thursday morning, Mr Streeting told Sky News: “The strength of Rachel isn't just the judgment she applies where she says yes, but perhaps even more importantly, those judgments where she says no, because you need someone in that office who has the experience, the judgment and the strength to make, not always the easy choices, not always the popular choices, but the right choices to get our economy growing.

“And you see that reflected in the record of Rachel in her first 12 months as chancellor.”

'Tough' last few days but Labour will 'come through it stronger', Starmer says

The last few days have been “tough” for the government, Sir Keir Starmer has acknowledged, but said his party would “come through it stronger”.

In an interview with the BBC, the prime minister said: “I’m not going to pretend the last few days have been easy, they’ve been tough.

“I’m the sort of person that then wants to reflect on that, to ask myself what do we need to ensure we don’t get into a situation like that again, and we will go through that process.

“But I also know what we will do and that’s we will come through it stronger.”

‘Of course Rachel Reeves will be chancellor at election,’ Streeting promises

Wes Streeting has promised that Rachel Reeves will be chancellor at the next general election, doubling down on the prime minister’s guarantee.

In a boost for the chancellor, after her tearful display in the Commons on Wednesday, the health secretary said “the election victory was built on the bedrock of the reputation Rachel Reeves built as shadow chancellor”.

Speaking to Sky News, he said Ms Reeves “rehabilitated for the Labour Party the reputation of being able to be trusted with the public finances”.

“Just to knock this issue on the head, Rachel Reeves as chancellor is here to stay,” he said.

Analysis: Starmer hints at lessons to be learned after welfare debacle

The Independent’s political correspondent Archie Mitchell writes:

Sir Keir Starmer has said he is the type of person who likes to reflect on his mistakes, and how not to make them again.

In the wake of the debacle over his botched welfare bill, the prime minister admitted the government “did not get the process right”.

The main problem for Sir Keir, though, is that it is far from the first time he has faced a similar debacle. The episode was reminiscent of - although more extreme than - his U-turns over winter fuel payments and an inquiry into the grooming gangs scandal.

So while voters, and furious Labour backbenchers, will welcome the PM’s reflective remarks, made during a BBC podcast to mark one year of Labour, it is words not deeds that will win back their trust.

With his internal critics emboldened by the U-turn, there are only so many more mistakes the PM can afford to make.

‘We are all human beings,’ Streeting declares in defence of Reeves

The Independent’s political correspondent Archie Mitchell reports:

Wes Streeting has jumped to the chancellor’s defence, declaring “we are all human beings” and praising her strength and resilience.

The health secretary said Rachel Reeves is “resilient and she will bounce back… we have in Rachel, someone who will lead our economy from strength to strength, support family finances from strength to strength and back British business”.

Pressed on why she was in the Commons chamber to be seen crying behind the prime minister in the first place, Ms Streeting told Sky News he was “not going to get into it more than I already have” and “it is what it is”.

Wes Streeting has jumped to the chancellor’s defence (PA Wire)

PM admits he 'didn't get process right' in handling welfare reforms

The prime minister has admitted his government “didn’t get the process right” in handling its package of welfare reforms.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Sir Keir Starmer said: “We didn’t get the process right.

“Labour MPs are absolutely vested in this.

“It matters to them to get things like this right, and we didn’t get that process right.”

The reforms had been stripped of key elements to reduce the scale of a Labour revolt.

The prime minister added: “We didn’t engage in the way that we should have done.”

The prime minister has admitted his government ‘didn’t get the process right’ in handling its package of welfare reforms (PA Wire)

Mel Stride uneasy about Jenrick's public outburst against Reeves

The Independent’s political correspondent Archie Mitchell reports:

Sir Mel Stride has suggested he feels uneasy about Robert Jenrick's public outburst against an emotional Rachel Reeves.

The shadow chancellor distanced himself from his Tory colleague over a video in which the shadow justice secretary claimed Ms Reeves' career – alongside her welfare bill – is dead.

Asked about it, Sir Mel said: "I think everybody has their own way of doing politics.

"I think, personally, keeping the personal out of politics is really important.

"But I think the point that Rob is making there is a very valid one, which is that this government has really lost control of the economy."

Sir Mel Stride has suggested he feels uneasy about Robert Jenrick's public outburst against an emotional Rachel Reeves (PA Wire)

Only Angela Rayner has emerged from the welfare debacle with her reputation intact

It is a cliche that Labour is the party of work – “the clue is in the name” – and yet the first time that proposition has been tested in government resulted in a humiliating retreat. Keir Starmer failed to make the case for welfare reform, which meant that it looked as if he and Rachel Reeves, his iron chancellor, just wanted to save money.

After it was presented to Labour backbenchers as a choice between austerity and defending the rights of people with disabilities, there was only going to be one outcome – and it is a measure of the prime minister’s naivety that he didn’t see this until the last moment.

It is significant that it was Angela Rayner, who lives and breathes politics, who led the effort behind the scenes to save the government from being defeated in the Commons. It was she who forced the prime minister to bow to the reality of parliamentary arithmetic.

Read the full analysis here from John Rentoul here:

Angela Rayner reveals why she’d never want to be prime minister

Angela Rayner has said she would never want to be prime minister because “it would age me by 10 years within six months”.

“Have you ever seen a prime minister after a year or two in government?” the deputy prime minister joked.

The morning after Sir Keir Starmer scraped through a major rebellion over his watered-down welfare reforms, Ms Rayner was asked whether she is waiting in the wings to take the embattled PM’s place.

Read the full article here:

Labour MP who led welfare revolt calls for wealth tax to meet £5bn cost of U-turn

The leader of the rebel Labour MPs who forced Sir Keir Starmer to abandon his welfare reforms has called for a wealth tax to meet the £5bn cost of the U turn.

On Tuesday, the prime minister suffered the biggest blow to his leadership since coming into power a year ago after he was forced to shelve a key plank of his controversial benefit cuts in order to get them through parliament.

While his welfare reform bill passed its second reading by 335 votes to 260 – a majority of 75 – the prime minister still suffered the largest rebellion of his premiership so far, with 42 Labour MPs voting to reject the legislation.

Read the full article here:

Has Kemi Badenoch finally shown the killer instinct to save her as Tory leader?

Ever since Kemi Badenoch became Tory leader, her many Conservative critics have claimed she has failed to make any impact. Any number of backbenchers have been only too willing, albeit usually under the cowardly cover of anonymity, to claim she is going nowhere.

Principal among their complaints is that she never seems to get the better of her weekly parliamentary jousts with Keir Starmer. Time and again, she asks the wrong question, chooses the wrong topic, and lacks the wit to seize on any missteps by the Prime Minister, they moan. Why can’t she give Starmer and co both barrels – just like showman Nigel Farage does on a regular basis?

It is not a criticism likely to be made of her again anytime soon. Not after her comprehensive filleting of Starmer over his defeat by Labour welfare rebels.

Read the full analysis here from Simon Walters here:

Watching Rachel Reeves crying in the Commons was quietly devastating

Imagine being Rachel Reeves, for a moment. You are sitting in the House of Commons, surrounded by your peers; there to help defend your government’s decisions on welfare reforms after nights of heavy in-fighting and rebellion.

The weight of being the first female chancellor in British history lies heavy on your shoulders; your already watered-down plans to make savings with welfare cuts, even more so. I must not crumble, you might tell yourself.

In front of you: not only the glare of the cameras live-streaming Prime Minister’s Questions to the nation and a gallery of front and backbenchers, but Keir Starmer himself – friend, loyal supporter, employer. And then, in a devastating blow, he fails to openly back you, despite stating on the record in January that you were safe in your job. I’d cry, too, if I were Reeves. Wouldn’t you?

Read the full analysis here:

Listed: The Labour MPs voting against the move to proscribe Palestine Action as terror group

• Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington)
• Tahir Ali (Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley)
• Richard Burgon (Leeds East)
• Ian Byrne (Liverpool West Derby)
• Imran Hussain (Bradford East)
• Kim Johnson (Liverpool Riverside)
• Clive Lewis (Norwich South)
• Grahame Morris (Easington)
• Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East)

The tellers who verified the count for those voting “no” were Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Clapham and Brixton Hill) and Independent MP Ayoub Khan (Birmingham Perry Barr).

How Starmer went from defiant to defeated as he scrambled to get his bill over the line

With a simple majority of 156, it would be truly extraordinary if the government was defeated today on its key welfare reforms.

But that does not mean that Keir Starmer can take any kind of satisfaction over a numerical victory in the Commons today.

The fact is, in many ways he has already lost. By being forced by rebels to make significant concessions to an important part of his government’s reform programme less than a year into being prime minister, Sir Keir is in almost unprecedented territory for someone who has so recently won power.

New NHS plan will ‘fundamentally rewire’ health service – Keir Starmer

A new 10-year NHS plan will “fundamentally rewire” the health service and put care on people’s doorsteps, the Prime Minister has said.

Sir Keir Starmer will use a speech in London on Thursday to unveil his vision for the NHS, which will focus on “three big shifts” in the way the health service operates.

The new plan, which will be published by the Government on Thursday, sets out how the NHS will move from analogue to digital, treatment to prevention, and from hospital to more community care.

Read the full article here:

Watch: MP recalls Starmer defended ‘activist’ who broke into RAF base 21 years ago in court

Starmer insists Rachel Reeves doing 'excellent job'

The prime minister has insisted that Rachel Reeves is doing an “excellent job” as chancellor, and that they continue to “work together”.

It follows her tearful appearance at Wednesday’s charged PMQs, which saw her budget scrutinised after yesterday’s concessions to the welfare bill majorly impact her proposed savings.

Asked if Reeves would remain in government Sir Keir said: "She's done an excellent job as chancellor and we have delivered inward investment to this country in record numbers.

"She and I work together, we think together.

"In the past there have been examples - I won't give any specifics - of chancellors and prime ministers who weren't in lockstep. We're in lockstep."

He said Reeves' tears had "nothing to do with politics" or this week's welfare U-turns - which potentially blows a hole in her Budget plans.

"That's absolutely wrong," said Sir Keir. "Nothing to do with what's happened this week. It was a personal matter for her, I'm not going to intrude on her privacy by talking to you."

Corbyn warns of 'chilling effect' of proscribing Palestine Action a terror group

Jeremy Corbyn warned the proscription of direct action group Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation will have a “chilling effect on protests”.

The Independent MP for Islington North said: “Surely we should be looking at the issue that Palestine Action are concerned about, and the supply of weapons from this country to Israel, which has made all this possible. If this order goes through today, it will have a chilling effect on protests.”

House of Lords votes to block expulsion of hereditary peers

The House of Lords has backed a move to block the expulsion of hereditary peers from the upper chamber.

Peers supported by 280 votes to 243, majority 37, an amendment to the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill that would instead see a gradual reduction of bloodline peers.

The amendment, put forward by shadow culture minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, would abolish the aristocratic by-elections, meaning the number of hereditary peers would decrease as individuals die or retire.

There are currently 92 seats reserved for members of the Lords who are there by right of birth, but there are only 86 currently sitting.

This is because by-elections were suspended after Labour won the election last year and six hereditary peers have left the House since then by death, retirement or moving on.

Zarah Sultana calls move to proscribe Palestine Action 'grotesque'

Independent MP for Coventry South Zarah Sultana also told the Commons: “To equate a spray can of paint with a suicide bomb isn’t just absurd, it is grotesque.

“It is a deliberate distortion of the law to chill dissent, criminalise solidarity and suppress the truth.”

(Parliament TV)

Four people arrested after Palestine Action demonstration

Four people, including “a man who blocked the gates of Downing Street with his mobility scooter”, have been arrested following a Westminster protest by Palestine Action, the Metropolitan Police has said.

A Met Police spokesperson said: “Officers have made four arrests in the vicinity of the Palestine Action protest taking place in Westminster this evening.

“Public Order Act conditions had been imposed to prevent serious disruption, requiring anyone taking part in the protest to assemble on Richmond Terrace, off Whitehall.

“A man who blocked the gates of Downing Street with his mobility scooter and refused to move to the conditioned area was arrested for breaching the conditions.

“A woman who locked herself onto a suitcase outside the gates of Parliament has also been arrested for breaching the conditions and for being in possession of articles intended for locking-on.

“A man who was with her and refused to move to the conditioned area was arrested for breaching the conditions.

“A fourth man has also been arrested for breaching conditions.”

Labour MP who led welfare revolt calls for wealth tax to meet £5bn cost of U-turn

The leader of the rebel Labour MPs who forced Sir Keir Starmer to abandon his welfare reforms has called for a wealth tax to meet the £5bn cost of the U turn.

On Tuesday, the prime minister suffered the biggest blow to his leadership since coming into power a year ago after he was forced to shelve a key plank of his controversial benefit cuts in order to get them through parliament.

While his welfare reform bill passed its second reading by 335 votes to 260 – a majority of 75 – the prime minister still suffered the largest rebellion of his premiership so far, with 42 Labour MPs voting to reject the legislation.

Read the full article here:

House of Lords back move to block expulsion hereditary peers

The House of Lords has backed a move to block the expulsion of hereditary peers from the upper chamber.

Peers supported by 280 votes to 243, majority 37, an amendment to the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill that would see a gradual reduction of bloodline peers.

The amendment, put forward by Tory frontbencher Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, would end the aristocrat by-elections and would mean the number of hereditary peers would decrease as they die or retire.

Leader of the House of Lords Baroness Smith of Basildon argued that removing the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords was a manifesto commitment.

What has happened in the Commons today?

• Chancellor Rachel Reeves appeared to cry in the Commons as Sir Keir Starmer declined to guarantee she would remain in place until the election.
• The Prime Minister faced MPs after being forced to scrap key planks of his welfare reforms, leaving an almost £5 billion black hole in Ms Reeves’ spending plans and fuelling speculation she could be forced to hike taxes.
• Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said Ms Reeves looked “absolutely miserable” and challenged the Prime Minister to say whether the Chancellor would keep her job until the next election.
• Sir Keir dodged the question about whether Ms Reeves would be in place for the remainder of the Parliament, saying Mrs Badenoch “certainly won’t”.
• Despite the Prime Minister not backing her in the Commons, Downing Street insisted she was “going nowhere” and had Sir Keir’s “full backing”.
• Asked about Ms Reeves’ tears, a spokesman for the Chancellor said it was a “personal matter”.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves was seen crying behind Starmer during PMQs (House of Commons/UK Parliament)

Former soldier decries move to proscribe Palestine Action

Former soldier Clive Lewis, now the Labour MP for Norwich South, said: “I understand what terrorism is. I was in London on July 7 in 2007 and I watched my community, this city, attacked by real terrorists.

“And at that point, rightly or wrongly, I decided I was going to Afghanistan to fight the terrorists.

“And I went because I love this country, and I love our democracy, and I want to see it protected. I think today’s proscription order against Palestine Action undermines that and I wish my Government wouldn’t do it.”

It’s hard to see how Rachel Reeves can survive

Until lunchtime today, it appeared that humiliated Keir Starmer was the biggest political victim of the government’s welfare U-turn. The extraordinary and piteous sight of chancellor Rachel Reeves in tears in the Commons has changed that.

She rightly deserves sympathy for the huge personal toll the welfare revolt has clearly had on her. From the moment Labour was elected, Reeves has staked everything on balancing the nation’s books and filling the Conservatives’ “£22bn black hole”.

However, the welfare rebellion by her party has blown a further £5bn hole in her plans, making it impossible for her to keep her pledge of no further tax rises. The fact that more than 100 of her MPs were prepared, in effect, to treat her and her strategy with contempt, forcing her to rip it up, was a big enough blow to her self-esteem.

Read the full analysis from Simon Walters here:

Watch: Zarah Sultana compares Starmer’s defence of activists

Ten Labour MPs voted against move to proscribe Palestine Action as terror group

Ten Labour MPs, including one teller, voted against the Government’s moves to proscribe direct action group Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation.

According to Commons data, those in the “no” lobby were Mother of the House Diane Abbott, Tahir Ali (Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley), Richard Burgon (Leeds East), Ian Byrne (Liverpool West Derby), Imran Hussain (Bradford East), Kim Johnson (Liverpool Riverside), Clive Lewis (Norwich South), Grahame Morris (Easington) and Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East).

The tellers who verified the count for the aye votes were Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Clapham and Brixton Hill) and Independent MP Ayoub Khan (Birmingham Perry Barr).

Watch: Angela Rayner reveals why she’d never want to be prime minister

Move to proscribe Palestine Action as a terror group supported by Commons

Legislation to proscribe direct action group Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation has been supported by the Commons.

MPs voted 385 to 26, majority 359 in favour of the Terrorism Act 2000 (Proscribed Organisations) (Amendment) Order 2025.

The motion is expected to be debated and voted on by the House of Lords on Thursday before it becomes law.