After months of mixed signals over the war, Trump appears to resume military support for Ukraine, with E.U. funding, amid disappointment with Putin.
Month: July 2025
Darren Jones also declines to rule out wealth tax when questioned about government plans
Good morning. This is the last full week the Commons is sitting before the summer recess starts (on Tuesday next week) and, although there is a fair amount coming up (see below), there is no big story dominating the news agenda. The national newspapers are all splashing on different items – which is normally a sign that it was a slow news day yesterday.
The government wants to talk about its new £500m “better futures fund”.
Labour will not increase taxes on working people, which is why we will not increase National Insurance, the basic, higher, or additional rates of Income Tax, or VAT.
The thing I can tell you is that our manifesto commitment coming into this election was that we were not going to increase the headline rate of income tax or employee national insurance on working people in the pay slips that people get when they go to work or on VAT because we know that that disproportionately affects people on lower incomes because they spend more of their money on the day to day shop, essentially.
We made a commitment in our manifesto not to be putting up taxes on people on modest incomes, working people.
Modest income means different things to different people. But it’s not entirely relevant, because the thing that is relevant is our manifesto commitment not to increase national insurance or employee national or income tax in the payslips that people receive every month.
Treasury minister Darren Jones says Labour’s “working people” tax pledge refers to “anyone that gets a payslip, basically”.
Significantly broader than Transport Sec Heidi Alexander’s definition yesterday of “people on modest incomes”.
What a mess, and not for the first time.
Defence official says major increase in Australian defence spending is ‘quite warranted’
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Some US military stakeholders have “very serious concerns” about the Aukus arrangement but the Pentagon wants “to make this thing work”, a senior American defence official says. While they say a review of the nuclear submarine pact is being undertaken in good faith, it will not be completed within 30 days, as initially anticipated.
Still, Washington is sticking to its request for Australia to give “a clear sense” of how it would respond militarily, including with the Aukus submarines, to future conflicts. While Anthony Albanese declares the Australian government wants to see “peace in and security in our region”, the senior official says the US wants Australia to step up more.
Philippine defense chief renounced Maltese citizenship before his appointment, department says [deltaMinutes] mins ago Now
Fireworks, warplanes and axes: How France celebrates Bastille Day
The German aristocrat, 23, said her royal title “means nothing” to her as she detailed the struggles she faced as a result of her high-status.
Cross-party group of lawyers, politicians and academics considers mechanism to halt crimes against humanity
Clearer legal obligations on the British government to prevent genocides, and to determine if one is occurring rather than leaving such judgments to international courts, are to be considered by a cross-party group of lawyers, politicians and academics under the chairmanship of Lady Helena Kennedy.
The new group, known as the standing group on atrocity crimes, says its genesis does not derive from a specific conflict such as Gaza or Xinjiang, but a wider concern that such crime is spreading as international law loses its purchase.
Chelsea’s Cole Palmer surprised to share Club World Cup podium spotlight with Donald Trump [deltaMinutes] mins ago Now
The “Sesame Street” character shared antisemitic and racist views and a foulmouthed message aimed at President Donald Trump on social media.