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Sir Keir Starmer was “infuriated” by “anonymous” briefings against Diane Abbott, his biographer has said.
Last week reports claimed the veteran left-winger Ms Abboott had been banned from standing again in her London constituency.
But the Labour Party leader later confirmed that Ms Abbott, the UK’s first black female MP, would be free to run under the party’s banner at the general election if she chose to.
“It’s always a ‘Labour source’ when that person could have been a number of people in a number of places,” he told his biographer Tom Baldwin, in an article published in The Observer.
On Sunday night, Ms Abbott declared she was running for Labour.
Elsewhere, Scotland first minister and SNP leader John Swinney said voters wanted to bring an end to the “chaotic” Tory government as he launched his party’s campaign at an event in Glasgow.
“I am here to give everything I have, to secure the best future for our country,” the new party leader said.
“That process starts with listening. And this is what most people in Scotland are telling us: They want rid of this disastrous, chaotic Tory government.”
Sunak and Starmer to go head-to-head in final election debate on BBC days before general election
The two party leaders will face each other on 26 June in what will be the final televised debate of the campaign.
Full report:
Matt Mathers3 June 2024 02:00
UK’s nuclear deterrent key to Starmer’s plans to keep Britain safe
Sir Keir Starmer will pitch Labour as the “party of national security” as he seeks to switch attention to defence matters during the general election campaign.
The Labour leader is expected to meet with forces veterans and a group of his party’s candidates when he campaigns in the North West of England on Monday.
Full report:
Matt Mathers3 June 2024 01:00
Tories issue pledge to overhaul equality laws to end ‘confusion’ and protect women-only spaces
The Tories have pledged to overhaul equality laws to end “confusion” over sex in law and protect single-sex spaces and women’s sports.
The Conservatives say amending the Equality Act to define the protected characteristic of sex as “biological sex” will improve the safety of women and girls by making it simpler to draw the line on biological males.
Full report:
Matt Mathers3 June 2024 00:01
ICYMI: Diane Abbott declares she will run as a Labour candidate and intends to win
Full report:
Matt Mathers2 June 2024 23:16
Rishi is finally cracking down on fly-tippers – here’s who he should go after next
With both parties seeking to crack down on street crime, Will Gore wonders if novel deterrents could be the answer.
Read Will’s piece in full here:
Matt Mathers2 June 2024 21:30
Cameron urges Britons living abroad to register to vote by 18 June
Lord David Cameron has urged Britons living abroad to register to vote in the general election.
The foreign secretary advised the estimated five million Britons living overseas to use their lifelong right to vote in UK elections, saying that decisions taken towards a secure future on foreign policy, defence and trade will directly affect their lives.
He said: “Britons living overseas are flying the flag for Britain abroad, and nearly all of them retain a strong interest in the UK.
“Now, thanks to this Conservative government, all of them can vote in the general election – no matter how long they’ve lived abroad. So, I encourage them to sign up to have their say.”
Matt Mathers2 June 2024 21:12
ICYMI: Rory Stewart felt like a ‘fraud’ as a Tory MP
Rory Stewart has spoken of never wanting to go back into politics, saying he found being a Conservative minister “very unpleasant” and admitting: “I feel like a fraud all the time, in a whole series of ways.”
Mr Stewart ran to succeed Theresa May as prime minister and Tory leader in 2019 and came to prominence for his amusing and highly personal use of social media.
Full report:
Matt Mathers2 June 2024 20:45
Blocked Labour candidate Faiza Shaheen ‘considering standing in election as an independent’
Faiza Shaheen has previously said she is considering legal action against the party.
Full report:
Matt Mathers2 June 2024 20:15
In full: Diane Abbott declares she will run as a Labour candidate and intends to win
Full report:
Matt Mathers2 June 2024 19:44
Recap: Labour, Black voters and the damage of the Diane Abbott row
Last week Nadine White, The Independent’s race correspondent, took to the streets of Hackney, east London to take the temperature of voters there after local MP Diane Abbott was said to have been blocked from standing for the party again at the election.
“The strength of feeling in Hackney has been echoed elsewhere, with dozens of prominent Black Britons signing an open letter – seen by The Independent – warning the furore risked alienating Black voters,” she wrote.
“But is the party already seeing damage on the doorstep?” Read the report in full below:
Labour, Black voters and the damage of the Diane Abbott row
The strength of feeling in Hackney has been echoed elsewhere, with dozens of prominent Black Britons signing an open letter – seen by The Independent – warning the furore risked alienating Black voters, Race Correspondent Nadine White writes. But is the party already seeing damage on the doorstep?
Matt Mathers2 June 2024 18:41
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