Category Archives: sky news

‘What Is Wrong With Labour?’ Trevor Phillips Scorches Minister Over Glaring Issue Within Party

Posted on by
Reply

Sky News’ Trevor Phillips asked a senior minister what is “wrong” with Labour as he tore into the party’s lack of female leaders.

Labour is currently in turmoil as speculation of a coup mounts.

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is campaigning as the party’s candidate in the Makerfield by-election.

If he wins and becomes an MP, he is expected to challenge Keir Starmer’s leadership, sparking a contest which ex-health secretary Wes Streeting has already vowed to join.

Senior female party figures, like former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, are yet to say if they would partake in any leadership race.

Interviewing work and pensions secretary Pat McFadden on Sky News, Phillips said: “There’s a shadow contest going on. The Labour Party’s not going to have a female leader. It’s bizarre.

“This is not something you could say of any self-democratic party, most of the centre-right parties in Europe [have had a female leader] – the Tories have had four!

“Genuinely, what is about the Labour Party that makes it, as far as I can see, incapable of having a serious female contender for leadership?”

McFadden said that was a “good and serious point”, though he rejected claims there was any contest coming on right now as no one has formally challenged the prime minister.

But he added: “If there is a contest, then why should it just be with the people who so far have been mentioned?”

Phillips said: “What’s wrong with the Labour Party?”

“The Labour Party’s not perfect, like any other organisation,” McFadden replied. “There are wonderful women politicians in the Labour Party, many of them are capable of leadership, and if we ever are in a position of a contest, why wouldn’t they put themselves forward?”

Phillips’ question comes after Jess Phillips told the Hay festival this week that her party is sexist for having no permanent female leaders in its history.

The MP for Birmingham Yardley, who resigned as the minister for safeguarding and violence against women and girls earlier this month, said: “Like all institutions [Labour] is a bit sexist”.

She added that “every institution that every single person in this room works for is led by the patriarchy”.

However, she disputed the idea that just having a woman in power would improve the UK.

“I have to say, the idea that a woman leads and it makes it better for women is not one that I’ve recognised in this country,” she said.

“My mortgage went up by a thousand pounds a month, cheers Liz [Truss]. I shouted at her, every time I saw her, the amount that she now owed me. She has not paid me back.”

Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Share Button

Sky News Presenter Says Keir Starmer Is ‘Not Waving, But Drowning’ In Savage Takedown

Posted on by
Reply

Keir Starmer is “not waving, but drowning” as he struggles to fight off attempts to kick him out of Downing Street, a Sky News presenter has declared.

Trevor Phillips said “the vultures are circling” around the prime minister in the wake of Labour’s latest election catastrophe.

The party is on course to lose around 1,500 councillors in England following a surge in support for Reform UK and the Green Party.

Labour also lost power in the Welsh Senedd for the first time ever, and was defeated once again by the SNP at Holyrood.

In response, Starmer insisted he “won’t walk away” from his job, and even suggested that he will be PM for another eight years.

On Saturday, the prime minister shocked Westminster by handing jobs to Labour grandees Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman.

Meanwhile, Labour backbencher Catherine West said she will trigger a leadership election unless the cabinet ousts him.

On Sky News this morning, Phillips said: “The smart money says the prime minister won’t be winkled out of Downing Street, but the vultures are circling.”

In a powerful monologue, Phillips added: “On May 7 the British people spoke, and they were brutal. They gave Nigel Farage a fighting force of nearly 1,500 councillors. They boosted [Green Party leader] Zack Polanski’s ranks by getting on for another 500.

“They put leaders in Edinburgh and Cardiff who ultimately want to break up the UK.

“What they said to Sir Keir Starmer was unambiguous: we think your government is a massive letdown, we really can’t see the point of your party and what’s more we really don’t like you very much either.

“The Labour Party is in chaos, with a backbencher threatening to trigger a leadership contest, and several of Starmer’s cabinet members jostling to replace him.

“The prime minister is going to respond tomorrow in what we are promised is a major speech. To rescue his leadership he’ll need something a bit more persuasive than his initial response on Friday morning, which amounted to ‘yes I made mistakes, the biggest of which is not to tell people frequently enough and loudly enough that everything I’ve done is right’.

“It’s quite hard to imagine voters in Barnsley or Hartlepool or Thurrock, where Labour were swept away by Reform, turning to their friends and crying ’if only I’d known they’d bring back Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman, I’d definitely have voted for Keir instead of Nigel.

“The prime minister is signalling frantically that he plans to keep going. He talked about being set for a 10 year run. But for all the stirring words and the bravado, this weekend he seems to me, and to many others, to be a man who is not waving, but drowning.”

Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Share Button

No, Labour Has Not Said It Might Delay The Next General Election

Posted on by
Reply

The Labour Party chair sparked a row on Sunday with her response after she was asked on live TV if the government would delay the next general election.

The government is currently facing intense backlash over offering to postpone local in 63 councils next year.

Ministers claim this would help local authorities who are struggling with the administrative effort of setting up a voting system while also implementing Labour’s plans to abolish two-tier councils.

However, that would mean some local authorities will have been in place for up to seven years without facing voters.

Critics claim this delay is politically motivated, and that Labour is hoping Reform will fall in the polls by the time these councils actually go to the ballot box – although the government has rejected such allegations.

Sky presenter Trevor Phillips asked Labour chair Anna Turley on Sunday if Labour intended to postpone the next general election beyond 2029, too.

But doing so would require breaching the law.

Turley immediately said: “No, not at all. We are undertaking the biggest change to local government in 50 years and that takes time.”

But Phillips pushed: “If I were interviewing someone in Latin America or Africa, and they said to me what you’ve just said to me, you’d already be saying, ‘banana republic,’ speechifying about the dangers of authoritarianism.”

He then suggested Labour could use its plans to also reform the House of Lords as a reason to “put off a general election in 2029”.

Turley said: “We’ve still got a huge amount of elections coming up this year in Scotland, in Wales, all of London, we’ve got a huge amount of elections coming up in May…”

Phillips said: “So even if things are difficult and there is reorganisation of Westminster, as I say, you promised to get rid of the House of Lords, there is going to be no delay on general election?”

She said work to get rid of hereditary peers is ongoing, and general elections “always come at the decision of the prime minister”.

The presenter replied: “What I’m not hearing is that this Labour government can’t see any circumstances by which you would choose to do what you’ve done in local authorities and delay a general election, which, I’ve got to say, I’m finding surprising, that you can’t just say, ’no general election will go beyond the five-year term.”

She replied: “Of course a general election will come.

“The House of Lords isn’t elected. So I’m a bit confused as to why House of Lords reform would impact on a general election. There are no plans for a change to the general election.”

Her comments sparked major backlash from political opponents, with ex Tory prime minister Liz Truss calling her remarks “sinister” and Conservative MP Alicia Kearns wrote on X: “Either there is a terrifying reality where they’ve discussed delaying it… or Turley is terrified she won’t take the ‘right line’ and be punished… which is everything the public hates.

“This was simple. There was only one answer: of course we won’t delay the next general election. And they better not.”

But Turley also later told Times Radio this had been a “misunderstanding”.

“He was talking about House of Lords reform, which is not going to affect the general election at all,” she said. “There’s no change to the general election.

“The law is very clear. We will have a general election by 2029. That won’t change. I’m not quite sure where he was going with that, I’m afraid.”

Governments can call snap elections before their five-year term is up but they cannot extend their time in office beyond that, according to law.

The maximum time a parliament can sit is five years from the day on which it first meets.

Share Button

Trevor Phillips Skewers Labour For Treatment Of Rachel Reeves Amid Rental Row

Posted on by
Reply

Trevor Phillips called out a senior Labour minister today over the way Rachel Reeves has been treated after breaking property law.

The chancellor has been in the spotlight this week after it was revealed she was renting out her family home without the correct licence.

She claimed it was an “inadvertent” mistake as she had not been aware of the necessary requirements.

Within 24 hours, new emails showed her husband had actually been aware – but their estate agents had promised to obtain the correct licence on their clients’ behalf, and then failed to do so.

This was still a breach of property law, but Keir Starmer and his independent adviser on ministerial standards said Reeves’ apology and new attempts to get a licence were “sufficient” as resolutions.

The prime minister did still show his frustration at the way the situation was handled, telling Reeves it was “regrettable” she did not share all of the details when she first told him about the issue on Wednesday.

But, as Sky News presenter Phillips pointed out while interviewing defence secretary John Healey: “In the past, that would have been pretty much ground for resignation, wouldn’t it?”

Healey replied: “Of course it would have been better if they’d managed to get all of the information together in one go, but I think she wanted to act immediately – which she did.”

He then insisted this was not comparable to the Tory government, when ministers breached the ministerial code but did not leave their posts.

Phillips reminded Healey how Labour, when in opposition, used to insist the Tories were acting as though it was “one rule for them, one rule for everybody else”.

“How come it’s so different when you make pretty much the same level of error?” The presenter said.

“Totally different!” Healey insisted. “The independent adviser in a case like Priti Patel said she breached the ministerial code. The independent adviser in Rachel’s case –”

Phillips cut in to list all of the ministers who have been forced to quit over a scandal since Labour came to power, including former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, who quit over her own tax scandal in September.

“These things happen in government,” the minister said. “The test is how a prime minister responds. And the start of this government, the prime minister set new standards for ministerial conduct, he gave the independent adviser new powers…”

“Why isn’t he getting rid of his chancellor?” Phillips asked.

Healey said: “Because his adviser said it was an inadvertent error, there is no course for further action, the prime minister is taking his recommendation.”

Share Button

Reform Deputy Leader In On-Air Bust-Up With Sky News Presenter Over Deportation Plan

Posted on by
Reply

Reform UK’s deputy leader was involved in an extraordinary on-air bust-up with a Sky News presenter as he was quizzed on the party’s plans to deport hundreds of thousands of immigrants.

Richard Tice even asked Matt Barbet “are you on the side of international lawyers” as he appeared to lose his temper during the live interview.

The clash came after Reform pledged to deport 600,000 illegal immigrants in five years if it wins the next election.

Under “operation restoring justice”, Nigel Farage said he would withdraw the UK from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and other international treaties to stop “activist judges” blocking his plans.

Farage said Reform would also revive the Tories’ failed Rwanda plan, while also paying the likes of Afghanistan and Iran to take back their asylum seekers.

That prompted Barbet to ask Tice: “You said you would do deals with despotic governments in Afghanistan and Sudan and send them straight back. Is that the moral thing to do?”

The Reform deputy leader said: “Sometimes, you do business with people you may not get on with, who may not be your friends. That’s life. Leadership is tough.”

Barbet then asked again: “Is it moral?”

Tice replied: “I’ll tell you what is not moral, that is putting the safety of our women and girls, British citizens, at risk. That is completely immoral.”

Asked if a Reform UK government would do a deal with the Taliban, he said: “We will do whatever is necessary to protect the safety and security of British citizens.”

But the presenter told him the Taliban “do far worse to women and girls than anything that happens in this country”.

Tice hit back: “Whose side are we on? Are you on the side of international lawyers and the likes?”

Barbet told him he “wasn’t on anyone’s side, I’m just questioning where this is coming from and what your principles are”.

The MP replied: “My principles are, and our principles at Reform, is to defend our borders, protect our sovereignty and protect the safety of British citizens, women and girls. That is the role of British government, nothing else.

“It’s not our job to police or patrol other regimes around the world, however desirable or undesirable they may be.

“The reason we’ve got into such a terrible state at the moment is because of the weakness of the existing establishment, the Labour and the Tory parties, who have betrayed the British people on this, let us down, lied to us, misinformed us. Now the truth’s coming out and guess what? The British people are a bit grumpy.”

Share Button

Kemi Badenoch Says She Believes Israel Is Allowing Humanitarian Aid Into Gaza

Posted on by
Reply

Kemi Badenoch has insisted she believes Israel is still getting humanitarian aid into Gaza despite growing fears of famine.

The Tory leader’s remarks come amid growing concerns that people in the Palestinian territory are facing mass starvation due Israel’s blockade of relief.

More than 100 non-governmental organisations issued a statement this week saying the “Israeli government’s siege starves the people of Gaza, aid workers are now joining the same food lines, risking being shot just to feed their families”.

Israel did announce over the weekend that it would allow airdrops of relief into the Palestinian territory, and promised it would implement a “tactical pause” in its military operation in three parts of Gaza to help ease the humanitarian crisis.

But speaking to Sky News this morning, the Tory leader suggested her support for Israel had not wavered despite the international community’s fears.

Presenter Trevor Phillips asked for Badenoch’s reaction to Live Aid organiser Bob Geldof’s claim that Israel has been “lying” about the food crisis in Gaza.

She said: “I disagree with that. What I am seeing is Israel allowing humanitarian aid to go in. This has been an unbelievably difficult situation, it’s been heartbreaking seeing some of those pictures, hearing some of those stories.

“What we allow want to see is this awful war coming to an end. And that will happen when those hostages are released and we get a ceasefire.”

Phillips asked: “Have those pictures at all led your pretty much unwavering support for Israel to waver?”

“No, no. War is a difficult situation,” she replied. “What I see when I see Israel is a country that is trying to defend itself, mostly from Iran and a lot of its proxies – Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis. I think they’re in a very difficult situation.

“And what worries me is the length of time this war has been going on makes it very difficult for the people in Palestinian territories and also for Israel, we need to bring things to an end.”

Phillips pointed out that polling suggests Brits are moving away from supporting Israel, to which the Tory leader said she is “somebody who believes in looking at what’s actually happening”.

“The right thing is for there to a ceasefire. A lot of people are suffering on both sides, but we must’n’t forget how this started,” she claimed.

“On October 7, a massacre occurred. It was an act of war. There are still people who are being held hostage and they need to be brought home.

“All of this could be brought to an end, except that those territories are being run by a terrorist organisation. We cannot allow it to go on.”

Asked if there was anything Israel is doing which she would not support, the leader of the opposition said that Israel has a “responsibility to make sure aid gets through.”

But she noted: “I also know that allowing a terrorist organisation to win is not going to be safe, not just for Israel, but for the rest of the world.

“This is how they get incubated. And then 10, 15, 20 years’ time, the rest of us suffer for it. We need to bring this sort of terrorism to an end.”

Existing tensions between the Israelis and the Palestinians soared when Palestinian militants Hamas killed 1,200 people on Israeli soil and took a further 251 people hostage.

Israel declared war and imposed a blockade on Gaza while also launching missile strikes across the territory.

According to the local Hamas-run health ministry, more than 61,000 people have died in Gaza since the conflict began.

<div class="js-react-hydrator" data-component-name="Twitter" data-component-id="1474" data-component-props="{"itemType":"rich","index":29,"contentIndexByType":1,"contentListType":"embed","code":"

#TrevorPhillips: What’s your reaction to Bob Geldof’s accusation that the Israelis are lying about the situation in Gaza?

Kemi Badenoch: \"I disagree with that. What I’m seeing is Israel allowing humanitarian aid to go in… \" pic.twitter.com/n5RDTXrTDA

— Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 (@Haggis_UK) July 27, 2025

","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺","author_url":"https://twitter.com/Haggis_UK","cache_age":86400,"description":"#TrevorPhillips: What’s your reaction to Bob Geldof’s accusation that the Israelis are lying about the situation in Gaza? Kemi Badenoch: \"I disagree with that. What I’m seeing is Israel allowing humanitarian aid to go in… \" pic.twitter.com/n5RDTXrTDA— Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 (@Haggis_UK) July 27, 2025\n\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false},"_maxwidth":{"label":"Adjust width","placeholder":"220-550, in px","value":""},"_theme":{"value":"","values":{"dark":"Use dark theme"}}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":720,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/ext_tw_video_thumb/1949386782648250368/pu/img/TTstSqZs8c80N2Ss.jpg:large","thumbnail_width":1152,"title":"Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 on Twitter / X","type":"rich","url":"https://twitter.com/Haggis_UK/status/1949386886134526377","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"enhancements":{},"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"desktop","editionInfo":{"id":"uk","name":"U.K.","link":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk","locale":"en_GB"},"originalEdition":"uk","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isAdsFree":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"6885ea70e4b00fcf3e6f970f","entryPermalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/kemi-badenoch-says-she-believes-israel-is-allowing-humanitarian-aid-into-gaza_uk_6885ea70e4b00fcf3e6f970f","entryTagsList":"israel,sky-news,kemi-badenoch,gaza,palestine","sectionSlug":"politics","deptSlug":null,"sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"","isWide":false,"isShopping":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"uk.politics","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc140cf94592c45d7390c","disabledWithMapiEntries":false,"overrides":{"all":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4"},"whitelisted":["56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439","56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529","570278d2e4b070ff77b98217","57027b4be4b070ff77b98d5c","56fe95c4e4b0041c4242016b","570279cfe4b06d08e3629954","5ba9e8821c2e65639162ccf1","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e","5b35266b158f855373e28256","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2","60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","60d0de02b627221e9d819408"],"playlists":{"default":"57bc306888d2ff1a7f6b5579","news":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","politics":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","entertainment":"56c6e7f2e4b0983aa64c60fc","tech":"56c6f70ae4b043c5bdcaebf9","parents":"56cc65c2e4b0239099455b42","lifestyle":"56cc66a9e4b01f81ef94e98c"},"playerUpdates":{"56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439":"60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b":"60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529":"60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced":"60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e":"60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2":"60d0de02b627221e9d819408"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"16b0ecc6-802c-4120-845f-e90629812c4d","clickToPlayPlayer":"823ac03a-0f7e-4bcb-8521-a5b091ae948d","videoPagePlayer":"05041ada-93f7-4e86-9208-e03a5b19311b","defaultPlaylist":"2e062669-71b4-41df-b17a-df6b1616bc8f"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":11},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":0},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"6885ea70e4b00fcf3e6f970f","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"desktop","page_edition":"en-uk"},"tags":[{"name":"Israel","slug":"israel","links":{"relativeLink":"news/israel","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/israel","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/israel"},"relegenceId":3989007,"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/israel/"},{"name":"sky news","slug":"sky-news","links":{"relativeLink":"news/sky-news","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/sky-news","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/sky-news"},"relegenceId":3514968,"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/sky-news/"},{"name":"kemi badenoch","slug":"kemi-badenoch","links":{"relativeLink":"news/kemi-badenoch","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/kemi-badenoch","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/kemi-badenoch"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/kemi-badenoch/"},{"name":"gaza","slug":"gaza","links":{"relativeLink":"news/gaza","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gaza","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gaza"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gaza/"},{"name":"Palestine","slug":"palestine","links":{"relativeLink":"news/palestine","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/palestine","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/palestine"},"relegenceId":3537831,"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/palestine/"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","enableIncontentPlayer":false,"bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-1\", \"entry_paragraph_1\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline\", \"entry_paragraph_2\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-2\", \"entry_paragraph_3\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-infinite\", \"repeating_dynamic_display\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false}”>

#TrevorPhillips: What’s your reaction to Bob Geldof’s accusation that the Israelis are lying about the situation in Gaza?

Kemi Badenoch: “I disagree with that. What I’m seeing is Israel allowing humanitarian aid to go in… ” pic.twitter.com/n5RDTXrTDA

— Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 (@Haggis_UK) July 27, 2025

Labour minister James Murray also told Sky News that the UK would recognise a Palestine state, describing it as a case of “when not if”. However, he refused to put a clear timeline on it.

It comes after French president Emmanuel Macron confirmed he would formally announce Palestine statehood in September.

Share Button