Thank you for us at Politics Hub this year.
Although there has only been one Prime Minister in 2023, it has not been a quiet year in Westminster, with many major issues facing the country.
The Politics Hub will be back up and running on January 3, 2024 at 6 a. m. M. Y we expect you to register for a very important year as politics prepares for the general election.
But until then, all of us at Politics Hub and Sky News wish you and yours a glorious holiday season.
By Jennifer Scott, political reporter
Today, it may not seem unusual for chaos to ensue anywhere politics takes place.
But there have been a number of political moments this year that have left even the most seasoned Westminster observer speechless.
We take a look at some of the most unexpected incidents of the past year. . .
There are reports this evening that Sir Keir Starmer is potentially looking at scaling back his pledge that a Labour government would invest up to £28bn a year in green energy in the UK.
When asked about the report, Shadow Secretary for External Development Lisa Nandy denied it.
He told broadcasters: “We are surely committed to making Britain a blank energy superpower, cutting citizens’ bills, creating smart jobs across the country and making sure we maintain our own energy security, which may be more important, especially now with Putin’s moves in Russia.
“But what we’re committed to is looking at the economic scenario and spending as much as the scenario allows. “
Nandy noted that if Labour were to come to power, it would be “likely” that they would “inherit the worst economic situation since World War II”.
As a result, he said Labour would “be careful with every penny” and said: “We will set out our exact plans before the general election so that other people can take a stand at the general election. “
“But surely we are committed to being a green government and one that puts the other Britons first,” he added.
Labour’s Lisa Nandy was also asked about Rishi Sunak backtracking on plans to hike the minimum salary requirement for family visas.
It emerged last night that they had quietly softened the much-criticised measure.
The threshold will now be above £29,000 in the spring, and then increase in “gradual stages” to the full amount of £38,700 until “early 2025”.
If Labor wins the next general election, it will come into effect in early 2025, and the shadow minister is asked if the party would allow it to continue.
He told TV channels that the Labour Party had “made it clear from the outset that immigration policy wants to be aligned with skills” to tackle shortages here in the UK.
“That’s why we’ve said that all those projects that the prime minister has announced and not announced and announced over and over again, we pass them on to the Advisory Committee on Migration to get qualified recommendations before making a decision, if we’re lucky enough to come into force next year. “
But he described Mr Sunak as “just one example of the chaos that ensues when the government is afraid of its own back seats and does not have a coherent immigration policy, or even a strong opinion in the cabinet”.
We’ve just been hearing from Labour’s shadow international development minister following the vote in the United Nations Security Council on a resolution to create “conditions for sustainable cessation of hostilities,” and on speeding up the delivery of aid to Gaza (see our dedicated live coverage here).
Speaking to the media, Nandy described it as a “welcome and a moment in the search for peace in the Middle East. “
He noted that it is “the first time that foreign networks have spoken with one voice about the desire to achieve a lasting ceasefire and flood Gaza with aid. “
“It is urgent now that the foreign network mobilizes its efforts and ensures that the hostages are released, that settler violence in the West Bank ends, and that there is no turning back from the horrors of recent months. “
Asked if there had been a call for an early ceasefire, Nandy replied: “Everyone needs to see a ceasefire where the violence ends and aid can be delivered to Gaza and peace talks can begin.
“The tricky thing is, with hostages still being held and rockets being smuggled into Israel through Hamas, this is a very complicated thing to do. “
But she said the UN resolution calls for no return to “the horrors of recent months” and a move towards a “sustainable ceasefire”.
The Labour shadow cabinet minister also rejected Israel’s assertion that the aid conversation is unnecessary, saying there is “no question” that a “humanitarian catastrophe” is unfolding in Gaza.
By Alexandra Rogers, Political Journalist
Rishi Sunak has said the upper threshold for a family visa will increase in 2025 after being criticised by Conservative MPs for abandoning plans to introduce it next spring.
The prime minister said the government will “significantly raise the pay threshold” to £38,700 by “early 2025”, an update to the original plan defined by Home Secretary James Cleverly earlier this month.
The threshold for obtaining a family visa, which applies to Britons who want to bring family members to the UK, will rise from £18,600 to £38,700 next spring in a bid to reduce legal net migration, which has reached a record . last year.
But on Thursday night the Home Office quietly watered down the measure, saying the threshold would first be raised to £29,000 from the spring, and then increased in “incremental stages” – though no timetable was set for when the top figure would be introduced.
The party’s right-wing conservative MPs immediately criticized the change, with David Jones, vice president of the right-wing European studies group, telling the Palestinian Authority news agency that it was an “unfortunate sign of weakness,” while Jonathan Gullis, a former conservative minister, told the Palestinian Authority news firm, he wrote in X that it is “deeply disappointing and undermines our efforts. “
Read the full story here:
By Alexandra Rogers, political reporter
Simon Case will return to his role as head of the civil service in January after weeks of absence for health reasons, the Cabinet Office has confirmed.
Case, who as cabinet secretary is the UK’s top civil servant, took a medical leave in October.
At the time, he reported that he would most likely be out for several weeks and return in 2024.
A spokesperson for the Cabinet Office told Sky News: “The Cabinet Secretary will return to work in the new year. “
It is understood that when he returns to public service, he will resume the same day-to-day jobs as Cabinet Secretary.
The Cabinet Office would comment on the medical recommendation he won, as it is a personal matter.
Case is expected to testify at the COVID inquiry at some point, with the inquiry’s chair, Baroness Heather Hallett, saying last month that “it remains entirely my goal that Mr. Case present oral testimony at the ‘inquest’ and that a special meeting will be convened. “Module 2 hearing to get your testimony.
Read the full story here:
The Christmas recess has begun and MPs are returning to their constituencies for the season.
But while the latest opinion polls are likely to be a source of festive cheer for Labour, Tory MPs will feel a glaring lack of goodwill.
The Sky News live poll tracker – collated and updated by our Data and Forensics team – aggregates various surveys to give an indication of how voters feel about different political parties.
Labor is on 42. 7 per cent to the Conservatives’ 25. 7 per cent, a lead of around 17 points.
In third are the Lib Dems on 10.8%, followed by Reform on around 8.9% and the Greens on 5.8% – with the SNP on 3.0%.
Check out the latest update below and you can read more about the tracker method here.
Sir Keir Starmer has just issued a statement on the vote in the United Nations Security Council on a resolution to create “conditions for sustainable cessation of hostilities,” and on speeding up the delivery of aid to Gaza (see our dedicated live coverage here).
The Labour leader welcomed the adoption of the solution, saying: “The horrors of the last few months have been intolerable. This solution outlines how we will need to work towards a lasting ceasefire.
“The forthcoming humanitarian truce is urgent, and in the area it brings with it, intense international relations are beginning to create new situations in which fighting will not resume and the threat of escalation will be reduced. “
Sir Keir continued: “Hamas must release all the remaining hostages, end all attacks on Israel and have no role in the future governance of Gaza.
“Israel will have to agree to end its bombing campaign, allow a humanitarian offensive in Gaza, and end settler violence and displacement in the West Bank. “
More broadly, Sir Keir argued that a lasting ceasefire is “not enough” for the implementation of a long-term peace, stressing that “there have been no peace talks for more than a decade. “
He called for “a new political process that has the capacity, conviction and commitment to turn a rhetoric around two states living side by side in peace into reality”.
He concluded: “The next Labour government will be dedicated to working towards this. The international community must be spurred into action rather than shy away from the challenge. The future of Israelis and Palestinians depends on it.”
In January this year, Rishi Sunak made five pledges for voters to judge him on.
The prime minister has achieved one of his goals so far: to halve inflation by the end of the year.
And as far as the NHS is concerned, although waiting lists and waiting times are decreasing, the waiting list is still longer than it was in January.
With the end of the year fast approaching, how does the Prime Minister manage to deliver on his other promises?
You can see the progress for yourself below.