Israel’s attacks on Lebanon should not be happening, says Keir Starmer

Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon “shouldn’t be happening”, Keir Starmer has said on his visit to the Middle East, as he called for the Iran conflict to become a watershed moment for the future security of the UK.In an article for the Guardian, the prime minister said the UK’s response to the crisis must involve a fundamental reset in terms of making the country more resilient, including by boosting defence and having closer links to Europe.His comments on Israel echoed criticisms by Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary; and John Healey, the defence secretary, emphasising a potentially widening gap between the UK and Donald Trump’s US over the Iran conflict and its aftermath.As well as the condemnation over Lebanon, Starmer and his ministers have been adamant that the strait of Hormuz must be free of any sort of tolls or levies, after Trump mooted the idea of a “joint venture” between the US and Iran to do this.Speaking in Bahrain on a trip in which he has also held talks in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on shoring up the tentative ceasefire between Iran, the US and Israel, and fully reopening the strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping, Starmer criticised Israel’s intensified bombing in Lebanon, which has killed more than 250 people

‘No more bending to Westminster’s will’ if Plaid Cymru wins power, leader vows

Plaid Cymru’s leader has promised “no more bending to Westminster’s will” as the nationalist party stands on the brink of taking office for the first time in next month’s Senedd elections.Speaking at Plaid Cymru’s manifesto launch in Wrexham on Thursday – chosen because of its football team, which has showcased Wales’s potential to the world – Rhun ap Iorwerth told a packed room of supporters there would be “no more toeing the London party line, no more defending the status quo and no more saying no to Wales”.He said: “Together, and for the first time, we can give our nation the leadership it deserves, leadership that takes its cue from the people of Wales and nobody else.”Labour has led Wales since devolution in 1999 but it appears destined for opposition. Polls consistently suggest the May contest is a two-horse race between Plaid Cymru and Reform UK, with Labour a distant third or even fourth after the Green party

UK spending on foreign aid hits lowest level since 2008

The UK government’s spending on foreign aid has hit its lowest level in nearly two decades, figures show, as humanitarian experts say the cuts are costing lives.Provisional data shows the government allocated 0.43% of national income to official development assistance (ODA) in 2025, down from 0.5% in 2024 and matching the level in 2008.The total ODA spend in 2025 was just over £13bn, an annual decrease of £1bn, or 7

UK politics: Starmer warns ‘lot of work to do’ to make ceasefire permanent at start of talks in Gulf - as it happened

Keir Starmer has said there is a “real sense of relief” in the Gulf at the Iran ceasefire – but also that there is “a lot of work to do” to make it permanent.Speaking to broadcasters at the King Fahd Air Base in Taif, Saudi Arabia, the PM said:double quotation markThere’s work to do. It’s early days.There is a real sense, I think, of relief you can feel it at the base here in Saudi Arabia, for 39 days, they’ve been acting in our collective self-defence. You can feel the relief

Scottish Labour pledges £30m to top up artists’ income to a living wage

Labour has pledged to spend £30m on giving Scottish artists and musicians a living wage, mirroring a similar scheme in Ireland guaranteeing artists a basic income.Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, said the scheme would be part of a deeper shake-up of cultural funding in Scotland by integrating arts and culture into the Scottish government’s economic strategies if his party won power in next month’s Holyrood election.The scheme would start with a pilot project to top up the incomes of up to 1,000 artists, musicians and designers to make sure they made a living wage, provided they had proof of other earnings or income.Costing £30m over two years, Sarwar said it was similar to Ireland’s basic income for 2,000 artists, who were given €325 (£283) a week in three-year cycles. The pilot scheme, which recouped more than its net cost of €72m through increases in arts-related expenditure, productivity gains and reduced reliance on other welfare payments, was made permanent in February

Starmer urged to limit US access to UK bases after ‘dangerous’ Trump threats

Keir Starmer is facing increasing pressure to limit US access to British airbases after Donald Trump threatened “a whole civilisation” would die if Iran ignored his demands, comments that Downing Street has not directly criticised.No 10 has allowed US forces to use UK bases only for defensive missions against Iran, such as targeting missile sites, ruling out involvement in attacks on civilian infrastructure such as power stations, which the US president has threatened.The Liberal Democrats and Greens, as well as some Labour MPs, responded to Trump’s demands that Iran accept his conditions by a Tuesday night deadline by calling for the UK government to take further action.Even Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader and Trump’s closest supporter among the main UK parties, condemned the president’s comments as going “way too far”.Downing Street declined to comment