Politics latest: Starmer suffers post-election poll drop; UUP leader stands down over 'irreconcilable differences' (2024)

Conservative Party deputy chair Matthew Vickers has resigned from his role in order to back Robert Jenrick in the Conservative Party leadership contests.

Mr Vickers also serves as shadow policing minister, but does not need to stand back from this role to declare his support for a candidate.

However, Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ) is remaining neutral in the contest, which is why Mr Vickers is standing down.

He said the Tories "have a mountain to climb" and "need a leader that can bring us back in one term".

"I firmly believe that's Robert," he said, pointing to him having the "clearest diagnosis of why we lost" and a "compelling vision for how we change, rebuild, and win again".

You can read more about Mr Jenrick and his leadership rivals below:

The Conservatives are demanding an investigation into Labour's appointment of several senior civil servants since the election, which the Opposition claims may have broken hiring rules.

The government says the claims from the Opposition are "untrue".

The appointments include Emily Middleton, formerly ofLabour-aligned group Labour Together; and Ian Corfield, who donated to the party.

TheToriesare claiming these hirings could be down to ministers trying to "circumvent" Sir Keir Starmer's chief of staffSue Gray, who has reportedly blocked the appointment of advisers to political roles.

Alex Thomas, the programme director of the Institute for Government thinktank and a former director in the Civil Service, says the new government's steps aren't completely out of the ordinary.

He says it is possible to use an "exception" process when a minister wants to bring someone in to their department when they believe it necessary.

Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) leader Doug Beattie has announced he is standing down from the role, citing "irreconcilable differences" with party officers among his reasons.

In a statement, Mr Beattie said it has been a "huge honour" to lead the UUP since May 2021, but added: "It has not been easy and at times it has been both lonely and isolating."

'Promote a positive future'

Mr Beattie said he had lost the ability to "influence and shape the party going forward", but hoped his successor would be able to "continue the momentum I have started".

He acknowledged some in the party "did not agree with the direction and path" he had set it on, but urged whoever takes over ensures the UUP is "inclusive" and promotes "a positive future".

Our senior Ireland correspondent David Blevins said while the UUP only has one MP following the general election (their first in seven years), they are the second-largest Unionist party.

Internal issues only strengthen the Democratic Unionist Party, he added.

Sir Keir Starmer is in Northern Ireland today, where he will discuss the recent riots with the head of the country's police service.

At least 20 police officers were injured in a spate of violent incidents across early August in Northern Ireland.

Bricks, petrol bombs and other missiles were thrown at officers as anti-immigration protests brought wider unrest to areas including Belfast.

Cars were set alight and a number of businesses were severely damaged.

Elsewhere, a petrol bomb was thrown at a mosque in Newtownards.

Dozens of people have been arrested and charged with offences such as rioting and racially-motivated hate crimes.

Young children were also involved in some of the street disturbances.

Sir Keir is in Belfast, where he is expected to be briefed by Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable Jon Boutcher on operational details relating to the recent unrest.

The pair will also discuss wider policing challenges in Northern Ireland as part of their second engagement since the prime minister took office.

Dame Rachel Da Souza, the children’s commissioner, earlier joined Sky News to discuss news that one child is being strip searched every 14 hours in England and Wales.

Data found that in 45% of cases, there was no adult present at the time.

You can hear more from Dame Rachel below:

The Politics Hub is running a little slower than usual at the moment.

The House of Commons has been on its summer recess since 30 July, and won't return until 2 September.

That means no PMQs, ministerial statements, or other usual business.

And there's nothing going in on the House of Lords, either.

It's a period when MPs may try to get away on holiday, although they are still expected to deal with constituency issues.

Of course, this year's summer recess has proved busy for the prime minister and his top team because of the riots - although parliament wasn't recalled early as a result.

Once parliament returns on 2 September, the next recess period will arrive just 10 days later.

That's for party conference season, when MPs will be spread across the country for some of the biggest events in the political calendar.

People possessing zombie-style knives and machetes have been urged to hand them in to police stations ahead of a ban.

There will be no repercussions for surrendering the dangerous weapons safely, the government has said.

Zombie-style knives and machetes will be added to a list of prohibited dangerous items from 24 September, along with butterfly knives, samurai swords and push daggers.

While the government stopped short of announcing a ban on ninja swords in the King's Speech, policing minister Dame Diana Johnson said it intends to make them illegal in the future.

The move is part of a plan to halve knife crime within the next 10 years.

"Too many people have access to weapons that can lead to devastating, life-changing consequences," Dame Diana said.

You can read more from Sky News below:

The housing market experienced a surge in activity following the Bank of England's recent decision to cut interest rates, according to a leading property website.

Estate agents reported a 19% jump in enquiries about properties for sale after 1 August, when compared with the same period last year, research by Rightmove found.

It came after the Bank cut rates for the first time in more than four years from 5.25% to 5%.

Rightmove's Tim Bannister said it was clear that the Bank's decision had "sparked a welcome late summer boost in buyer activity".

He added: "While mortgage rates aren't yet substantially lower since the rate cut, the fact that the long-hoped-for first cut has finally arrived, and mortgage rates are heading downwards, is positive for home-mover sentiment."

You can read more from Sky News below:

Emergency measures to avoid prison overcrowding could lead to police delaying operations, the national chairman of the Prison Officers' Association (POA) has said.

Operation Early Dawn, triggered in the North of England this morning, allows defendants to be held in police cells until prison beds become available, but could mean their court dates are delayed or adjourned at short notice.

Mark Fairhurst has now warned that the policy would lead to "justice delayed".

He said the most serious offenders would still end up in court and be guaranteed a prison cell, but less serious offenders would either spend longer in police cells or be bailed.

"It's justice delayed at the moment, because we're not clogging up police cells, so they might have to delay some of their operations," Mr Fairhurst told the BBC.

"When they arrest people they've got to make sure they've got them a custody space in police custody, because we might have prisoners filling up their cells. Of course, they have got to pay overtime to supervise prisoners."

However, Mr Fairhurst clarified that this would not mean that some people who would normally go to jail would avoid it.

More than half of people think Britain is "moving in the wrong direction", according to a poll which shows a drop in favourability for Sir Keir Starmer.

The poll by Ipsos, conducted between 9 and 12 August, showed a post-general election drop in the perception of the prime minister, as well as his deputy Angela Rayner and Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

Of those polled, 22% said that they think things in Britain are heading in the right direction, 52% in the wrong direction and 19% neither.

Sir Keir remains the most popular politician asked about, with 38% having a favourable opinion towards the prime minister and 38% unfavourable.

This is despite a drop in his net rating to 0 from a rating of plus seven immediately after the election, but compares to a net rating of minus 10 for Rishi Sunak in his second month as prime minister.

Deputy Prime Minister Ms Rayner also faced a dip in ratings. Some 33% said they were favourable towards Ms Rayner and 36% unfavourable.

Ratings for Mr Sunak and the Conservative Party remain steady post-election. Some 20% said they were favourable towards Mr Sunak and 58% unfavourable.

Ipsos interviewed a representative sample of 1,148 adults aged 18 and over across Britain.