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Senior Labour MP Accuses Trump Of ‘Undermining Free Speech’ After Starmer Ally Banned By US

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A senior Labour MP has hit out at the Donald Trump administration after an ally of Keir Starmer’s top aide was banned from the United States.

Imran Ahmed is one of two British anti-disinformation campaigners whose US visas are being revoked.

Ahmed, who is also a former adviser to cabinet minister Hilary Benn, is chief executive of the Centre for Countering Digital Hate, which was set up in 2017 by Morgan McSweeney, who is now the No.10 chief of staff.

He has been sanctioned along with Clare Melford, another British-based executive who runs the Global Disinformation Index.

In all, five Europeans have been banned after Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, accused them of leading “efforts to coerce American platforms to punish American viewpoints they oppose”.

In a post on X, he said: “The Trump administration will no longer tolerate these egregious acts of extraterritorial censorship.”

But Chi Onwurah, the Labour MP and chair of the Commons technology committee, said: “Banning people because you disagree with what they say undermines the free speech the administration claims to seek.

“We desperately need a wide ranging debate on whether and how social media should be regulated in the interests of the people.

“Imran Ahmed gave evidence to the select committee’s inquiry into social media, algorithms and harmful content, and he was an articulate advocate for greater regulation and accountability.

“Banning him won’t shut down the debate, too many people are being harmed by the spread of digital hate.”

A UK government spokesperson said: “The UK is fully committed to upholding the right to free speech.

“While every country has the right to set its own visa rules, we support the laws and institutions which are working to keep the Internet free from the most harmful content.

“Social media platforms should not be used to disseminate child sex abuse material, incite hatred and violence, or spread fake information and videos for that purpose.”

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Yet Another U-Turn As Labour Backs Down Over Farmers’ Inheritance Tax

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The government has U-turned on its plans to launch an inheritance tax raid on farmers.

After months of intense backlash and protests in Westminster, Labour has increased the threshold – the point at which inhertance tax would apply on large farm estates – from land worth £1 million to those worth £2.5 million when it is introduced in April.

The new plan will also permit spouses to pass on £5 million of assets between them before they have to pay the inheritance tax.

This means the total number of estates impacted will drop from 375 to 185 – and the U-turn could cost around £130 million.

It comes after prime minister Keir Starmer told a Commons committee hearing last week that he had been told of farmers with terminal illnesses who were planning to kill themselves before the new rules came in to avoid the tax.

Environment secretary Emma Reynolds claimed the government’s change of heart came about after listening to those within the agriculture community.

She said: “Farmers are at the heart of our food security and environmental stewardship, and I am determined to work with them to secure a profitable future for British farming.

“We have listened closely to farmers across the country and we are making changes today to protect more ordinary family farms. We are increasing the individual threshold from £1m to £2.5m which means couples with estates of up to 5m will now pay no inheritance tax on their estates.

“It’s only right that larger estates contribute more, while we back the farms and trading businesses that are the backbone of Britain’s rural communities.”

But the new U-turn has caused frustration from those within Labour, too.

One MP told HuffPost UK: “Another hill we’ve been forced to climb only to be marched back down again. This government is like being stuck in a room with ‘The Thick of It’ on repeat.”

A rural Labour MP said the government had been “dragged along to do the bare minimum”.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch described the U-turn as a “big win for the Conservative Party’s campaign against Labour’s Family Farm Tax.”

She added: “This fight isn’t finished. Other family businesses are still affected by Labour’s tax raid, and we will keep pushing until the tax is lifted from them too. But today is an important win, and proof that standing up for what’s fair, even when the odds are against us can make a real difference.”

Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice also pounced on the government’s flip-flopping.

He said: “Labour’s tax raid on family farms has already been a disaster for the sector, plunging countless farmers into despair, with heartbreaking reports of some taking their own lives in order to save their farms for future generations.

“This cynical climbdown – whilst better than nothing – does little to address the year of anxiety that farmers have faced in planning to protect their livelihoods. Even with the raised threshold, many family farms will still face crippling bills. With British agriculture hanging by a thread, the government must go further and abolish this callous farms tax.”

The Lib Dems’ rural affairs spokesperson, Tim Farron, said: “It is utterly inexcusable that family farmers have been put through over a year of uncertainty and anguish since the government first announced these changes.

“Liberal Democrats were the first to call out and oppose the unfair family farm tax in last years Budget and we have been proud to stand alongside our farming communities to campaign against it ever since. This concession has been hard won, and I am so grateful to all the farmers who have fought tirelessly to achieve this.

“This is about justice and security – if we undermine British farming then we also undermine our ability to provide us with the food we need to keep us secure in an uncertain world.

“Yet many family farms will still find themselves financially crippled and barely making the minimum wage.

“We demand that the government scraps this unfair tax in full and if they refuse to, Liberal Democrats will submit amendments in the new year to bring it down.”

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

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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.

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‘Absolute F*****g Disaster’: Why A Union Leadership Result Is Bad News For Keir Starmer

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Keir Starmer has been dealt another huge blow after one of his closest trade allies was deposed as leader of a leading trade union.

Christine McAnea was defeated by the left-winger Andrea Egan, who was kicked out of the Labour Party in 2022.

In a major shock, Egan received nearly 60% of the vote and will take over from McAnea next month.

The result will shift the balance of power on Labour’s ruling national executive committee (NEC), making it harder for Starmer and his supporters to control.

A senior Labour source said the result was an “absolute fucking disaster – a massive loss for Keir”.

Another party insider said: “It’s terrible. The biggest trade union in the country has gone to the hard left for the first time ever.

“It will probably mean waves of strikes across the public sector, causing misery to anyone in need of social care services ,for example.”

Labour MP Karl Turner told HuffPost UK said McAnea’s defeat was linked to worsening relations between Downing Street chief of staff Morgan McSweeney and the Parliamentary Labour Party.

He said: “When you outsource the management of the PLP to unelected office staff you end up losing control of everything else.”

A Labour source said: “The No.10 gang need to stop with all this glorifying in punching down on Labour and trade union members.

“If you don’t tend to your flock no wonder they abandon you.”

Egan, who was expelled for sharing articles on social media from Socialist Appeal, an organisation banned by Labour, has said she will look again at the financial relationship between Unison and the party.

Last year, Unison gave Labour £1.49 million, making it the party’s largest union donor.

Egan said: “This result means ordinary Unison members are at long last taking charge of our union.

“We will put faith in members’ decisions and stand up to any employer, politician or Cabinet minister who acts against our interests.

“Together, we will turn Unison into the remarkable force for change it should be. That journey has begun today.”

The result was welcomed by the Mainstream campaign group, which is closely aligned to Andy Burnham, who has made little secret of his desire to replace Starmer as Labour leader and PM.

“This result shows clearly that vast swathes of Labour’s historic coalition feel the government has fallen out of step with its mainstream,” the group said.

“By working hand in hand with our partners in the trade union movement, the Labour Party has ushered in huge advances for working people before and it can do so again – but only if the party rediscovers its progressive instincts.

“We look forward to working with Andrea and all those who share our commitment to a more open Labour Party with the energy and ideas to transform the country.”

Starmer said: “Congratulations to Andrea Egan on her election as General Secretary of Unison. I look forward to working with her.”

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Andy Burnham Says Latest Labour Leadership Stories Are ‘Rubbish’. But MPs Aren’t Convinced

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Andy Burnham has described reports he wants to become an MP again before May as “rubbish”.

However, Labour MPs are convinced the Manchester mayor is eyeing a speedy return to Westminster so he can be in position to run for the party leadership if Keir Starmer is ousted.

Voters will go to the polls on May 7 next year for elections to the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Senedd and councils across England.

Opinion polls suggest Labour is heading for a catastrophic result, which could trigger a leadership challenge to the prime minister.

Burnham, who quit Westminster in 2017 so he could run to become mayor of Greater Manchester, would need to be an MP again to stand for the top job.

He was accused of plotting to replace the PM during the Labour conference in September, when he made a number of criticisms of the party leadership.

According to newspaper reports today, Burnham has held talks about standing in a by-election before May.

Although Burnham passed up the opportunity to comment before the stories were published in the Sunday Times and Mail on Sunday, he did post a reaction on X this morning.

He said: “Quite a lot of rubbish in the papers today. Reminds me why I left Westminster in the first place.”

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Quite a lot of rubbish in the papers today. Reminds me why I left Westminster in the first place!

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Quite a lot of rubbish in the papers today. Reminds me why I left Westminster in the first place!

— Andy Burnham (@AndyBurnhamGM) December 14, 2025

But one of his supporters told the Mail on Sunday: “It’s happening. We are on the brink of securing a seat which is likely to come free shortly and where the polls say Andy would beat Reform.”

It is understood that would most likely be the Gorton and Denton seat currently held by former minister Andrew Gwynne, who was suspended by Labour in February over offensive messages he sent WhatsApp messages and is currently on long-term sick leave.

In a statement to The Times in September, Gwynne said: “In order to end the tedious speculation about my seat while I’m trying to recover from a period of ill health, it is my intention to serve the full term.

“The route to No 10 is not going to be through Gorton and Denton.”

But one MP told HuffPost UK: “Andy is gagging for a seat before May. Why wouldn’t he be? He knows that he needs to be ready in parliament for the local election results in May. Andrew Gwynne’s is the seat he will go for.”

A former Labour frontbencher said: “Burnham has spoken to other MPs who might fancy going but hasn’t been able to get a deal.”

Gwynne is thought to be coming under pressure from senior Labour figures in his constituency to stand down to make way for Burnham, but it will ultimately be up to government chief whip Jonathan Reynolds to authorise a by-election.

Another MP said: “There’s a significant number of us livid that he’s undermining the PM at every turn. He’s overestimating his support at Westminster.

“If he wanted to stand for parliament, he had an opportunity last year to run at the general election.

“We also can’t afford to have a mayoral by-election at the same time as he purports to want to have a leadership contest at the very top of the party during the course of summer 2026. It’s incredible.”

Home secretary Shabana Mahmood said Labour politicians should “focus on the day job” of delivering for the public rather than indulging in leadership speculation.

She told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: “I think that all of us in Government and in the Labour Party have a responsibility to focus on the day job and to get on with delivering for the British people.

“I was on your show just a few weeks ago, and I made this point that every single minute you have in government is precious, and it’s a huge privilege and an honour to be the government of your country, and we mustn’t waste a single second of it.

“So actually, this is on the whole of the government and all of the parliamentary Labour Party and the whole Labour movement to make sure we don’t waste a single second of the time that we have in government.”

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