5 January – The UK government confirms it will not go ahead with a plan to privatise
Channel 4.[2]
9 January – A new scheme to support businesses with the cost of energy bills is outlined in the
House of Commons to replace
existing support due to end in March. The scheme will replace capped energy bills with a wholesale discount on gas and electricity, and only apply when energy bills are high. Industries such as glass, ceramics and steel, which use a greater amount of energy, will get a larger discount than others.[3][4]
10 January – The UK government published the
Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill 2023, designed to require public sector organisations to provide a minimum service when their unions vote to strike.[5][6]
MPs vote 309–249 in favour of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill, which now moves to the
committee stage.[11]
19 January – Prime Minister Sunak apologises for taking his seat belt off in a moving car to film a social media clip.
Lancashire Police later say they are "looking into" the incident.[12] He is issued with a
fixed-penalty notice the following day.[13]
William Shawcross, the commissioner for public appointments, steps back from the planned investigation into how Richard Sharp got the job as BBC chairman because of previous contact between them. Another investigator will be appointed to take on the inquiry.[20]
MPs vote 315–246 in favour of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill, which is then sent to the
House of Lords for further debate.[21]
February
5 February – In a move seen as marking her return to political life, former Prime Minister
Liz Truss writes an article for The Sunday Telegraph in which she says her
economic agenda was never given a "realistic chance".[22]
Former Labour MP
Jared O'Mara, who submitted fake expense claims to fund his
cocaine habit, is convicted of fraud.[25] He is sentenced the following day to four years in prison.[26]
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson urges present Prime Minister Rishi Sunak not to scrap the
Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, warning to do so would be a "great mistake".[35]
Scottish Health Secretary
Humza Yousaf and former Minister for Community Safety
Ash Regan become the first two candidates to announce they will stand in the Scottish National Party leadership election.[36]Keith Brown, the SNP's depute leader,
Neil Gray, the Minister for International Development, and
Màiri McAllan, the Environment Minister, all rule themselves out of the contest.[37]
In a speech to the
Scottish Labour Party conference in Edinburgh,
Labour leader
Sir Keir Starmer rules out a deal with the SNP "under any circumstances", and warns against complacency following the departure of Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader and First Minister.[38]
20 February – Scotland's Finance Secretary,
Kate Forbes, announces she is running in the Scottish National Party leadership election.[39]
21 February –
The UK Government announces that it had a budget surplus in January, with £5bn more in revenue than predicted.[40]
Kate Forbes insists her campaign to become the next SNP leader has not been derailed after she lost the support of several colleagues following comments about
same-sex marriage and having children outside marriage, both of which she is opposed to as a member of the
Free Church of Scotland.[41]
MSPs vote 68–57 to approve the Scottish Government's budget for the 2023–24 financial year, which includes a tax rise for everyone in Scotland earning more than £43,662.[42]
23 February –
Labour leaderSir Keir Starmer outlines the five key issues that his party will focus on during the run up to the
2024 general election: higher economic growth, clean energy, improving the NHS, reforming the justice system, and raising education standards.[43]
Environment Secretary
Therese Coffey, commenting on the vegetable shortage, tells MPs "we anticipate the situation will last about another two to four weeks".[44]
24 February – Nominations close for the SNP leadership election, with Kate Forbes, Ash Regan and Humza Yousaf having all reached the threshold of supporters to go forward into the contest.[45]
25 February –
Theo Clarke, the Conservative MP for
Stafford, is deselected by her constituency party a week after returning to Parliament from maternity leave.[46]
26 February –
Luciana Berger, who left the Labour Party in 2019 following the
antisemitism controversy, is to re-join the party after accepting an apology from Sir Keir Starmer, who said there had been a "litany of failures".[47]
27 February – Sunak, and President of the European Commission,
Ursula von der Leyen, announce a new Brexit deal for Northern Ireland, named the
Windsor Framework.[49]
March
1 March – COVID-19 in the UK:
WhatsApp messages
leaked to the Daily Telegraph are reported as suggesting former Health Secretary
Matt Hancock chose to ignore advise from experts in April 2020 that there should be "testing of all going into care homes".[50] A spokesman for Hancock said "These stolen messages have been doctored to create a false story that Matt rejected clinical advice on care home testing”.[51]
2 March –
COVID-19 in the UK: The Daily Telegraph publishes more of Matt Hancock's WhatsApp exchanges, this time with former Education Secretary
Gavin Williamson in December 2020, when a debate into whether schools should reopen following the Christmas holiday was taking place. The leaked messages suggest Hancock favoured school closures, while Williamson was more hesitant.[52] Hancock, who worked alongside journalist
Isabel Oakeshott to
co-author a book, describes the release of the messages as a "massive betrayal and breach of trust".[53] In response, Oakeshott says she released the messages because she believed doing so was in the "public interest".[54]
The
Commons Select Committee of Privileges finds that former Prime Minister Boris Johnson may have misled Parliament over the Partygate scandal after evidence suggested breaches of COVID-19 rules would have been "obvious" to him. In response Johnson says that none of the evidence shows he "knowingly" misled parliament, and that "it is clear from this report that I have not committed any contempt of parliament".[59]
The latest leaked WhatsApp messages published by the Daily Telegraph are reported as appearing to show former Health Secretary Matt Hancock and
Cabinet SecretarySimon Case joking about locking people in quarantine hotels.[60]
Rupa Huq is allowed to rejoin the Labour Party five months after being suspended over comments she made about former Conservative Chancellor
Kwasi Kwarteng.[61]
Buckingham Palace announces the first
state visit to be made by Charles III and Camilla as King and Queen Consort; they will travel to France and Germany between 26 and 31 March.[62]
4 March – Leaked WhatsApp messages published by the Daily Telegraph indicate Matt Hancock and his staff deliberated over whether or not he had broken COVID-19 regulations after pictures of him kissing his aide, Gina Coladangelo, were published by The Sun newspaper. In another conversation, the messages show Hancock criticising the
Eat Out to Help Out scheme for "causing problems" in areas where there was a high number of COVID-19 cases.[63]
5 March –
News outlets including BBC News, Sky News and The Independent (who have not verified the messages) report that further WhatsApp messages published by The Telegraph appear to show discussions about how and when the government should reveal details of the
Kent COVID-19 variant in order to ensure people would comply with the regulations. The news outlets also says Hancock appears to suggest they should "frighten the pants off everyone", while in another conversation, head of the civil service
Simon Case suggests the "fear/guilt factor" was an important element of the government's messaging.[64][65][66]The Telegraph also reports messages showing ministers and civil servants discussing "[getting] heavy with the police" to enforce lockdown measures with senior police officers being brought into Number 10 to be told to be stricter with the public.[67]
6 March – The Telegraph publishes messages that are reported to have been exchanged between Allan Nixon, a parliamentary Advisor and Hancock from November 2020 in which they discuss threatening to cancel projects in MPs constituencies if MPs do not support the
local lockdown tiers legislation. It is also reported that as part of a strategy aimed at trying to stop MPs from rebelling against the legislation, party
whips compiled a spreadsheet of 95 MPs who disagreed with this policy and the reasons for them disagreeing; these related to lack of parliamentary scrutiny, economic harm, harms to hospital, absence of cost benefit analysis and the policy being "unconservative".[69]
7 March –
Home Secretary
Suella Braverman introduces the
Illegal Migration Bill into the
House of Commons, which is designed to stop migrants arriving in the UK by boat. The legislation proposes to detain and remove those from the UK who arrive by illegal means, as well as blocking them from returning.[70]
STV hosts the first televised debate of the Scottish National Party leadership election.[71]
9 March – The UK government announces a two-year delay in the construction of the Birmingham to Crewe leg of
HS2 in order to save costs.[72]
16 March – The UK government announces that
TikTok is to be banned on electronic devices used by ministers and other employees, amid security concerns relating to the Chinese-owned app's handling of user data.[79] The
Welsh Government also announces the app will be banned from all its official devices.[80]
18 March –
Peter Murrell resigns as chief executive of the Scottish National Party amid a row over party membership.[81]Mike Russell succeeds him as interim chief executive.[82]
19 March – The UK government launches the
Emergency Alerts service, a service to send text alerts to mobile phones in a situation where it is perceived there is an immediate risk to life.[83]
21 March –
Partygate scandal: Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson publishes a 52-page defence of his actions during the COVID-19 pandemic in which he acknowledges misleading Parliament over the Partygate scandal, but says he did not do so intentionally.[84]
Stormont is to ban Northern Ireland's civil servants from using the
TikTok app on their official devices following a similar decision by the
Westminster Government.[86]
22 March –
Boris Johnson gives evidence to the cross-party Privileges Committee, relating to his conduct during
Partygate. He insists that he "did not lie" to the House of Commons and always made statements in good faith.[87]
Scotland's First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, issues a "sincere, heartfelt and unreserved" apology to people affected by the practice of forced adoption in Scotland during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.[89]
The
TikTok app is banned on all Scottish Government phones and electric devices.[91] The
Westminster Parliament also announces that the app will be banned on "all parliamentary devices and the wider parliamentary network".[92]
Reports in The Sun and i newspapers suggest former Prime Minister
Liz Truss, who was in office for 49 days, has submitted a Resignation Honours list.[94]
London City Hall bans its staff from using TikTok on all its official devices.[95]
26 March – The Observer reports on a sting operation staged by the campaign group
Led By Donkeys in which former ministers
Matt Hancock and
Kwasi Kwarteng agreed to work for a fake South Korean company for £10,000 per day.[96]
The UK government introduces the
Victims and Prisoners Bill into the House of Commons, which will give ministers the power to veto the release of some prisoners, and restrict marriage in prison for those serving whole life terms.[106]
Humza Yousaf is sworn in as Scotland's First Minister at Edinburgh's
Court of Session and begins naming his cabinet.[107]
30 March –
During his state visit to Germany,
Charles III becomes the first British monarch to address the
Bundestag.[108]
The
Cabinet Office issues ministers with updated guidelines on the use of messaging apps such as
WhatsApp for government business, advising them to use the apps "with care" and never to use them for information classified as "secret".[109]
The
Parliamentary Standards Committee recommends that former Scottish National Party MP
Margaret Ferrier be suspended from the House of Commons for 30 days for breaching COVID-19 regulations in September 2020 when she took a train home from London following a positive COVID test.[110]
3 April – Environment Minister
Therese Coffey confirms government plans to ban
wet wipes containing plastic in England as a means of helping to tackle water pollution.[112]
4 April – Immigration Minister
Robert Jenrick is given a six-month driving ban by magistrates after he was caught speeding on the
M1.[113]
5 April –
The UK government confirms plans to use the vessel
Bibby Stockholm to house around 500 male migrants off the Dorset Coast, citing the cheaper cost of doing so compared to housing them in hotels.[114]
The Times publishes video of an undercover investigation in which Conservative MP
Scott Benton apparently offers to lobby on behalf of a fake company.[116] Benton subsequently has the
party whip withdrawn.[117]
Police arrest former SNP chief executive
Peter Murrell as part of their investigation into the party's finances and release him later without charge pending further investigation.[118]
6 April – An inquiry concludes without being able to determine whether Conservative MP
Mark Spencer told colleague
Nus Ghani that her Muslim faith was a factor in her sacking.[119]
7 April –
BBC News reports that
Johnston Carmichael, the accountants who audit the SNP's accounts, have resigned from the role, citing a their decision to do so as having been taken following a review of their clients.[120]
Labour are accused by critics of practicing "dog whistle" and "gutter politics" following the release of adverts personally attacking Prime Minister
Rishi Sunak with claims that he does not believe people convicted of child sex offences should be sent to prison.[121]
8 April – SNP president Mike Russell tells The Herald newspaper he does not think Scottish independence can be achieved "right now", and that the party is facing its biggest crisis for 50 years.[122]
10 April – Sir Keir Starmer says that he stands "by every word" of the Labour Party's adverts attacking Rishi Sunak despite criticism from fellow party members.[123]
12 April – SNP leader
Humza Yousaf confirms that his party will not pay any legal fees for former chief executive
Peter Murrell, but that he will not be suspended from the party because he is "innocent until proven guilty".[124]
13 April – Andrew Edwards, a councillor representing a ward in
Haverfordwest, is suspended from the Conservative Party after his voice is identified on a recording in which someone stating a belief that white men should have black slaves.[125]
Shaun Slater, a
Bromley councillor who tweeted that it was "more likely" a rape victim was a prostitute whose "punter... didn't pay", is expelled from the Conservative Party.[128]
16 April –
Scotland's Sunday Mail publishes leaked video purporting to show
Nicola Sturgeon playing down concerns about the SNP's finances.[129]
The SNP says that its finances are "in balance" following reports the party is facing a financial crisis.[130]
17 April –
The
Parliamentary Standards Commissioner is to investigate Prime Minister Rishi Sunak over a possible failure to declare an interest over a childcare company in which his wife has shares.[131]
Sunak announces a review of the "core maths content" taught in England's schools, with the establishment of a panel to conduct the review.[132]
MP Margaret Ferrier confirms she will appeal against her 30-day ban from the House of Commons.[133]
18 April – SNP treasurer
Colin Beattie is arrested and questioned by
Police Scotland in connection with their ongoing investigation into the party's finances.[134]
19 April –
Downing Street publishes a full list of financial interests for all ministers, including those of
Rishi Sunak which mention a childcare company in which his wife has shares. Sunak had previously declared the shares to government officials, Downing Street said, and BBC News said it was told that this happened before he became prime minister.[135][136] Downing Street had previously said work on the new list was ongoing.[136]
20 April – Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is handed the findings of an investigation into bullying allegations against Deputy Prime Minister
Dominic Raab.[138]
Diane Abbott is suspended from the
Labour Party after writing a letter in The Observer in which she downplays racism against Irish people, Jews, and Travellers.[145]
The
Emergency Alerts service is tested by the UK government at 3pm BST. An estimated 80% of smartphones are believed to be compatible to receive the alert, but around 7% of those do not receive it. Many people on the
Three network report that the alert failed to appear on their phone, while others do not receive it because their phone is switched to aeroplane mode or they have disabled emergency alerts.[146][147]
26 April –
Andrew Bridgen is expelled from the Conservative Party after comparing COVID-19 vaccines to the Holocaust and being found to have breached lobbying rules.[148]
The
Illegal Migration Bill passes its final stage in the House of Commons, with MPs voting 289–230 in favour of the bill.[149]
Richard Sharp resigns as Chairman of the
BBC over his breach of the BBC's rules regarding public appointments after failing to declare his connection to a loan secured by former Prime Minister
Boris Johnson worth £800,000.[153]
29 April – The constituency Labour parties of
Rutherglen and
Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse have written to Labour leader
Sir Keir Starmer and Scottish Labour leader
Anas Sarwar to make a formal complaint about the selection process for candidates, after being "inundated" with complaints by local members about a "lack of transparency".[155]
30 April – Former Prime Minister
Liz Truss is contesting a bill of around £12,000 she has been asked to pay by the government for costs incurred at
Chevening House in Kent during her time as Foreign Secretary and while she was a candidate in the
Summer 2022 Conservative leadership election.[156]
The Scottish Government reverses plans to give £46m to colleges and universities, having identified the money as an "essential saving".[158]
3 May –
An independent review into the internal culture of
Plaid Cymru identifies several issues within the party, and concludes that it needs to "detoxify a culture of harassment, bullying and
misogyny".[159]
The SNP signs a contract with a new auditor, Manchester-based AMS Accountants Group.[160]
7 May – Leaked text message conversations obtained by the BBC show members of Plaid Cymru discussed whether the party's leader,
Adam Price, was fit for office in November 2022, and debated whether he should be removed from the post.[168]
10 May –
Following his expulsion from the Conservative Party for calling COVID-19 vaccines the "biggest crime against humanity since the Holocaust," MP
Andrew Bridgen announces he will join the
Reclaim Party, giving the party its first parliamentary representative.[169]
Adam Price announces his resignation as leader of
Plaid Cymru after a report found a culture of misogyny, harassment and bullying in the party.[170]
11 May –
Kemi Badenoch, the
Secretary of State for Business, is reprimanded in the House of Commons by Speaker
Lindsay Hoyle after the UK government's decision to scrap plans to allow EU-era legislation to expire was reported in the media before it was announced to Parliament.[171]
Llyr Gruffydd is appointed interim leader of Plaid Cymru following the resignation of Adam Price.[172]
16 May –
Javad Marandi, a businessman whose foreign companies were part of a global money laundering investigation, is named as a major donor to the Conservative Party.[173]
Adam Price makes his final Senedd appearance as leader of Plaid Cymru.[174]
Llyr Gruffydd formally succeeds Adam Price as leader of Plaid Cymru.[178]
18 May – The
2023 Northern Ireland local elections are held.
Sinn Féin sees a net gain of 39 seats, increasing the party's Councillor count from 105 to 144 Councillors.
DUP seeing no net gain or loss, siting at 122 seats and
Alliance having a net gain of 14 Councillors with most other parties seeing losses.[179]
19 May – Data collected from 160 local authorities in England shows that 26,165 were turned away from polling stations during England's local elections for not having valid ID. Of those, 16,588 later returned with ID later in the day, while 9,577 did not return.[180]
20 May –
Sinn Féin are now the largest political party in Northern Ireland after making significant gains in the local election votes.[181]
21 May – Labour and the Liberal Democrats call for an inquiry into Home Secretary Suella Braverman after it is reported she asked civil servants to arrange a private
speed awareness course after she was caught speeding in summer 2022 during her tenure as Attorney General.[182]
22 May – Former Deputy Prime Minister
Dominic Raab announces he will stand down from Parliament at the next election.[183]
23 May – The Cabinet Office has referred former Prime Minister Boris Johnson to the police following fresh allegations of rule breaches during the COVID-19 pandemic.[184]
24 May –
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirms that Home Secretary
Suella Braverman's handling of a speeding offence did not breach ministerial rules and that she will not face an investigation.[185]
Neil Coyle is reinstated as a Labour MP following a five-day suspension from the House of Commons after he was found to have breached harassment rules over racist comments he made to a journalist. Labour says his conduct will be monitored by the party's chief whip.[187]
A proposed vote by MPs on a 30-day House of Commons ban for Margaret Ferrier is postponed after there are deemed to be too few MPs present for the vote to carry.[189]
Four MPs who claimed fines for driving offences on their personal expenses have been asked to repay the money by parliamentary authorities.[192]
The Home Office announces it is launching an ad campaign on social media in Albania to deter migrants from coming to the UK; the campaign will begin the following week.[193]
31 May –
Labour's
Nick Thomas-Symonds defends the party's decision to accept money from green entrepreneur
Dale Vince, a supporter of
Just Stop Oil describing him as a "legitimate person" to accept money from, and says that it has nothing to do with the party's views on the protest organisation.[194]
Personal trainer Henry Morris reveals himself to be the person behind a parody Twitter account titled Secret Tory.[195]
June
1 June –
Labour suspend MP
Geraint Davies from the party following allegations that he subjected younger members to unwanted sexual attention.[196]
The UK government confirms it will launch a legal challenge over the COVID-19 Inquiry's demand for the unredacted version of Boris Johnson's WhatsApp messages and emails as the deadline on which the inquiry had demanded access to them expires.[197]
2 June – Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson announces he is bypassing the Cabinet Office by directly supplying the COVID-19 inquiry with unredacted copies of his WhatsApp messages and emails.[198]
5 June – The Parliamentary Standards Committee finds former Conservative MP
Matt Hancock (now sitting as an independent) guilty of attempting to influence an investigation into Conservative MP
Steve Brine, and orders him to apologise to Parliament.[199]
6 June –
MPs vote to suspend
Margaret Ferrier, the MP for
Rutherglen and Hamilton West, from the House of Commons for 30 days for breaching COVID-19 regulations, almost certainly triggering a by-election in her constituency.[200]
Ian Blackford, the SNP's leader at Westminster from 2017 to 2022, announces he will step down from Parliament at the next general election.[201]
Shadow Chancellor
Rachel Reeves announces a change of policy on Labour's 2021 pledge of an annual £28bn investment in green industry if the party wins the next election, saying the party must be "responsible" with public finances. She confirms that Labour would instead increase investment each year between 2024 (the expected date of the election) and 2027, when the annual amount would be £28bn.[212]
Bambos Charalambous, the Shadow Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, is suspended from the Labour Party following complaints about his conduct.[213]
Rhun ap Iorwerth is set to become the next leader of Plaid Cymru after the final two candidates seen as potential rivals in the party's leadership race,
Sian Gwenllian and
Sioned Williams, issue a joint statement ruling themselves out of the contest.[214]
Health Minister
Will Quince announces he will step down as a Conservative MP at the next general election.[215]
10 June –
Nigel Adams becomes the third Conservative MP in quick succession to stand down from Parliament with immediate effect, triggering a
by-election.[216]
Police Scotland arrest Scotland's former First Minister,
Nicola Sturgeon, as part of their ongoing investigation into the SNP's finances. She is subsequently released without charge.[218]
12 June –
The
House of Lords Appointments Commission says that it rejected eight of Boris Johnson's nominations for peers after Sunak accuses Johnson of asking him to intervene in the process, something Johnson rejects.[219]
Chris Bryant, chair of the Commons Select Committee of Privileges, describes attacks on the committee's procedures aas "bang out of order".[220]
With the findings of the Privileges Committee investigation into Boris Johnson scheduled to be published within days, Johnson submits an eleventh hour letter to the Committee at 23:57 on 12 June.[221]
Scotland's First Minister,
Humza Yousaf, tells BBC News he will not suspend Nicola Sturgeon from the SNP following her arrest.[222]
The broadcasting regulator
Ofcom announces it is conducting research into public attitudes towards
current affairs programmes presented by politicians with a view to a potential change in the rules regarding such shows.[223]
Independent councillor Ieuan Williams stands down as deputy leader of
Isle of Anglesey County Council after telling a meeting the previous evening that "all Tories should be shot". Apologising for the comment, Williams says he was "angry and emotional" about poverty at the time.[225]
15 June –
Partygate: A report by MPs concludes that ex-Prime Minister
Boris Johnson deliberately misled the
Commons over lockdown parties at
10 Downing Street, and would be suspended for 90 days if still an MP. It states that he deliberately misled the House, the committee, impugned the committee and was "complicit in the campaign of abuse and attempted intimidation of the Committee".[226][227]
Lucy Allan, Conservative MP for
Telford, announces she will stand down from Parliament at the next general election.[228]
Scotland's First Minister, Humza Yousaf, concludes that
Jenny Gilruth did not break the ministerial code during her time as the country's Transport Minister. The announcement comes after
Scottish Conservatives leader
Douglas Ross suggested she had done so by delaying important railways work that cost £1m.[229]
After several of Johnson's former Conservative colleagues threaten to vote against the Privileges Committee report when it is brought before Parliament, Johnson asks them not to do so.[232]
Buckingham Palace announces that Charles III has given Queen Camilla Scotland's highest honour, the
Order of the Thistle.[233]
David Warburton, the MP for
Somerton and Frome, becomes the fourth Conservative MP in eight days to announce their resignation from the House of Commons, doing so following suspension from the party over allegations of sexual misconduct, and triggering a
by-election in his constituency.[240]
The Mirror publishes video footage of a party held in December 2020 at Conservative Party Headquarters. Housing Secretary
Michael Gove describes the incident as "indefensible".[241]
BBC News reports that it has seen an invitation sent out to 30 people by
Ben Mallett, a former aide to Boris Johnson, in which they were invited to "jingle and mingle" at a party held at Conservative Party Headquarters on 14 December 2020, while London was in
Tier 2 restrictions.[243]
MPs back, by 354 votes to seven, a report finding Boris Johnson deliberately misled the Commons over lockdown parties at Downing Street.[244]
20 June –
The
Chancellor,
Jeremy Hunt, rules out direct financial support for mortgage holders, over fears it would "make inflation worse, not better".[245]
A
recall petition opens in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West constituency to determine whether Margaret Ferrier will face a by-election; 10% of eligible voters must sign it to trigger the by-election.[246]
21 June – Welsh Conservative Member of the Senedd
Tom Giffard gives a speech in the Senedd congratulating Wales for winning the 2023
World Cup of Darts generated by the
ChatGPT chatbot.[248]
Research carried out by the
Electoral Commission indicates around 14,000 people were prevented from voting in England's May 2023 elections because they did not have suitable photo ID, with unemployed people and those among ethnic minorities being more likely to be turned away.[252]
24 June –
The UK government holds an emergency
COBRA meeting to discuss the
Wagner Group rebellion in Russia. Sunak urges both sides to "be responsible and to protect civilians".[253]
Addressing a convention in
Dundee, Scotland's First Minister,
Humza Yousaf, says the SNP will use the next general election as a referendum to negotiate independence with the UK government if the party wins a majority in Scotland.[254]
26 June –
Daniel Korski, a former Downing Street adviser, rejects "in the strongest possible terms" a claim by journalist and author
Daisy Goodwin that he groped her during a meeting at Downing Street in 2013.[255]
27 June –
Virginia Crosbie, the MP for
Ynys Môn, apologises for attending a drinks event at Westminster on 8 December 2020 after the Guido Fawkes website reported she was a co-host of the event.[256]
28 June –
The final proposals for the
2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies are published, and see changes to constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales. The overall number of MPs elected at the next general election will remain at 650, but the number of seats will change from 533 to 543 in England, 40 to 32 in Wales, and 59 to 57 in Scotland. The review, which takes account of changes in population, will also see some prominent MPs, such as Conservative Defence Secretary
Ben Wallace and Labour's Shadow Chancellor
Rachel Reeves, lose their seats as they are abolished, requiring them to undergo a fresh selection process for alternative seats.[257]
Stewart Hosie, MP for
Dundee East and former SNP deputy leader, confirms he will stand down from Parliament at the next general election.[258]
Daniel Korski withdraws from the contest to be the Conservative candidate for the
2024 London mayoral election following allegations he groped journalist and author Daisy Goodwin.[259]
Robin Millar resigns as a parliamentary aide to Welsh Secretary
David TC Davies in order to vote against legislation that makes it compulsory for schools in Northern Ireland to teach all post-primary school children about abortion and birth control. The legislation passes by 373–28.[260]
Rwanda Asylum Plan: The plan to deport some asylum seekers to Rwanda is ruled unlawful. In a three-judge decision, the court of appeal overturns a high court decision that previously ruled that Rwanda could be considered a safe third country to send refugees.[262]
A
Local Government Association survey indicates that one in ten councils in England have had councillors stand down from office due to a legal requirement that council meetings should be held in person. The rule was suspended during the pandemic, but reinstated in May 2021.[263]
Conservative MP Lee Anderson faces censure from the
Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons for filming a promotional video for his GB News programme on Parliamentary property without permission.[264]
30 June –
Zac Goldsmith resigns as
Minister of State for Overseas Territories, Commonwealth, Energy, Climate and Environment after he was accused by the Privileges Committee of interfering with their work. Goldsmith said he resigned over a long-standing climate issue, something Sunak contradicted when he said that Goldsmith resigned because he refused to apologise for criticising the Committee investigation into Johnson. Goldsmith later said that was wrong.[265]
The
High Court hears the UK government's legal challenge to the
UK COVID-19 Inquiry's demand for full access to Johnson's diaries and WhatsApp messages.[267]
The UK government says it will not investigate allegations of groping made against Daniel Korski.[268]
Local Government Minister
Lee Rowley formally writes to
South Cambridgeshire District Council to request they end their trial of a four-day working week "immediately" amid concerns about "value for money". The scheme, launched in January 2023, is scheduled to run until March 2024.[270]
First Minister of Scotland
Humza Yousaf announces that the SNP has changed the way it records donations after the issue was highlighted by its auditors. Having previously only kept online records of donations under £250, the party will now keep documented records of the donations.[271]
The Labour Party announces that a future Labour government will give newly qualified teachers in England a £2,400 payment to stop them leaving the profession.[273]
The
Cabinet Office finds that
Sue Gray broke civil service rules by failing to declare that she was in talks with Labour about a job with the party. Labour dismisses the finding as a "political stunt".[275]
Illegal Migration Bill: The
House of Lords votes to limit the time which children and pregnant women can be held before being deported for entering the UK illegally.[277]
A group of Conservative MPs calling themselves the
New Conservatives publish a 12-point plan intended to reduce net migration to the UK, and warn Sunak that failure to tackle the issue "risks eroding public trust".[278]
Ofcom launches investigations into an episode of Jacob Rees-Mogg's State of the Nation that aired on GB News on 9 May, and an edition of Richard Tice presented by
Alex Salmond on TalkTV on 2 April, both of which covered news stories, but were presented by politicians. The State of the Nation investigation will establish whether the edition of the programme, which covered a jury verdict on former US President Donald Trump, complies with broadcast regulations, while the Richard Tice investigation will look at whether the programme was presented with due impartiality. The former received 40 complaints after airing, while the latter received two.[279][280]
4 July –
The
Metropolitan Police announces it is reopening its investigation into a lockdown party held at Conservative Party Headquarters in December 2020, as well as an event held at Westminster on 8 December 2020.[281]
SNP MP
Mhairi Black announces she will stand down from Parliament at the next general election.[282]
SNP MP
Angus McNeil is suspended from the party for a week following an argument with the party's chief whip,
Brendan O'Hara, after he allegedly threatened O'Hara.[285]
Media expert Chris Banatvala, who drew up the UK's broadcasting rules, urges
Ofcom to decide whether politicians should be allowed to present programmes on news channels.[286]
Six members of Parliamentary staff tell BBC Newsnight that a "predatory culture" still exists in Westminster, with abuses of power by male MPs and senior staffers common.[287]
The UK government loses a High Court bid to prevent the COVID-19 Inquiry from seeing Boris Johnson's diaries and WhatsApp messages in full.[289]
Caroline Nokes, who chairs the House of Commons
Women and Equalities Committee, tells the BBC's Newsnight programme she has experienced inappropriate behaviour at Westminster around 30 times since becoming an MP, and that describes what some women working at Westminster have been through as "horrific".[290]
The Scottish and UK governments confirm plans to collaborate on new legislation to prevent landlords excluding parents and people on benefits from renting properties.[291]
The Scottish Government urges Westminster to decriminalise the personal possession of all illegal drugs, and puts forward a number of proposals for the managed use of drugs.[293]
Ofcom launches an investigation into a GB News campaign that urges the UK government to introduce legislation to stop "Britain becoming a cashless society" following a complaint. The "Don't Kill Cash" petition, which has been signed by more than 166,000 people, potentially breaches Ofcom's rules that require broadcasters to not comment on "matters of political and industrial controversy or current public policy".[294]
John McNally, MP for
Falkirk, says he will stand down from Parliament at the next election, becoming the seventh SNP MP to do so.[300]
The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards opens an investigation into Conservative MP Lee Anderson for using the roof of his Westminster office to film a promotional video for his GB News show.[301]
MPs approve the Privileges Committee report that accused Johnson's allies of running a co-ordinated campaign to interfere with the report into Johnson.[302]
11 July –
MPs overturn many of the 20 changes the House of Lords made to the Illegal Migration Bill, but the government makes concessions on the detention of children and pregnant women.[303]
In the
Senedd, Wales's First Minister, Mark Drakeford, defends the country's former Health Minister Vaughan Gething for not reading pandemic paperwork until he prepared for the COVID-19 inquiry, but
Andrew RT Davies, leader of the
Welsh Conservatives questions how there can be confidence in Gething's current job as Economy Minister.[304]
MPs on the
Public Bills Committee vote 9–6 against an amendment to the
Victims and Prisoners Bill that would remove parental rights from a person convicted of murdering their partner for the duration of their sentence.[305]
12 July –
Cabinet Secretary Simon Case refers Nadine Dorries to the Conservative Whip following allegations she sent "forceful" messages to officials.[306]
Simon Case urges politicians to stop referring to the Civil Service as "the Blob", describing the term "insulting" and "dehumanising".[307]
13 July –
Illegal Migration Bill: The House of Lords rejects government plans to extend the amount of time migrant children can be held in detention, and also votes to increase protection for people claiming to be the victims of human trafficking.[308]
Labour announce plans to reform the Parliamentary standards system if they win the next general election, including levying fines for former ministers who breach lobbying rules.[309]
A report into UK dentistry published by the
Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee concludes that it is "totally unacceptable" that many people do not have access to a dentist, and calls for more to be done to facilitate this.[311]
Angus MacNeil is suspended from the SNP after declining an invitation to rejoin the party at Westminster.[312]
15 July –
Secretary of State for DefenceBen Wallace announces his intention to stand down from the Cabinet at the next reshuffle, and to stand down as an MP at the next general election when
his constituency will be abolished because of boundary changes.[313]
Angus MacNeil urges the UK government to reopen the Energy Bill Support Scheme Alternative Funding programme, designed to help households that missed out on the £400 worth of financial help given to households in the winter of 2022–23 after it emerged that of the one million households eligible to apply to the scheme only a fraction received any funds.[314]
17 July – The
Illegal Migration Bill is set to become law after the House of Lords votes not to reinstate time limits on child detention and protections concerning modern slavery.[317]
18 July –
Philippa Whitford, MP for
Central Ayrshire, announces she will stand down from Parliament at the next general election, becoming the eighth SNP MP to do so.[318]
Writing for The Telegraph, former UKIP and Brexit Party leader
Nigel Farage claims to have evidence that
Coutts bank decided to close his account because his views "do not align" with theirs.[321] The report obtained by Farage is subsequently published in the Daily Mail.[322]
19 July – The Conservative Party have complained to the Evening Standard about their front page coverage of the party's selection of
Susan Hall as its candidate for the
2024 London mayoral election, claiming the coverage is "contemptable".[324]
Nigel Farage receives an apology from
Dame Alison Rose, the chief executive of
NatWest Bank, for "deeply inappropriate" comments made about him in a report on his suitability as a customer at Coutts Bank. The UK government also announces that banks will be required to fully explain their reasons for closing people's accounts.[326]
Selby and Ainsty: Labour takes the formerly safe Conservative seat of Selby and Ainsty. The swing of 23.7% is the largest since 1945.
Keir Mather becomes the constituency's new MP, and at 25, the youngest Member of Parliament and
Baby of the House.[334]
23 July – The Cabinet Office announces the launch of the
Humanitarian Medal for emergency workers and humanitarian relief teams, such as charities, service personnel and health workers.[336]
Charlotte Owen, a former adviser to Boris Johnson, joins the House of Lords as its youngest life peer at the age of 30, becoming Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge.[338] Her appointment was announced on 12 July.[339]
The Cabinet Office confirms that controversial guidance used to vet potential speakers for government organised events has been withdrawn.[340]
25 July –
Dame Alison Rose says she was the source of an inaccurate BBC news report about Nigel Farage's Coutts bank account after discussing the matter with BBC business editor
Simon Jack, something she describes as a "serious error of judgement".[341] She subsequently resigns from her post early the next day.[342]
Labour abandons proposals to allow people to legally change their sex without a medical diagnosis.[343] This policy is in juxtaposition to
Scottish Labour which confirms it still supports removing the requirement.[344]
27 July – First Minister of Scotland
Humza Yousaf unveils a new Scottish Government paper on independence that includes plans for Scottish citizenship and passports.[346]
28 July –
Gina Miller, leader of the
True and Fair Party, reveals she was told one of the party's bank accounts would be close without explanation by
Monzo. The bank has since confirmed it does now allow accounts for political parties.[347]
30 July – Nigel Farage launches AccountClosed.org, a website he says will stand up for people who have been refused bank accounts.[348]
31 July –
Nick Timothy is selected as the Conservative Party candidate for the
West Suffolk constituency, the seat currently occupied by former Health Secretary
Matt Hancock.[349]
1 August – The
Department for Business and Trade announces that the
CE marking will continue to be recognised on products sold in the UK, rather than being replaced by a post-Brexit British logo, which was scheduled to happen in 2024.[352]
2 August –
Robin Harper, who in 1999 became the first Green parliamentarian after he was elected to the Scottish Parliament, resigns his life membership of the
Scottish Greens claiming the party has "lost the plot".[353]
Gwent Police says it is "reviewing" the content of a leaflet sent to constituents by Conservative MP
David TC Davies discussing traveller sites in the area.[354] They subsequently announce Davies will face no action over the leaflet.[355]
3 August – Five people are arrested after environmental protesters from
Greenpeace climb on the roof of the
North Yorkshire home of Rishi Sunak in protest at the Prime Minister's decision to award 100 new oil contracts.[356]
4 August –
Chancellor
Jeremy Hunt instructs the
Financial Conduct Authority to speed up their investigation into whether people have had their bank accounts closed because of their political views.[357]
Comedian
Eddie Izzard announces plans to stand in one of Brighton's constituencies at the next general election.[358]
A royal spokesman confirms there will be no official public events to mark the first anniversary of the
death of
Elizabeth II.[359]
Edinburgh's
Court of Session rejects an attempt by the Scottish Government to delay the hearing into its legal challenge against Westminster's decision to block the
Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill. The Scottish Government had wanted it delayed until after a separate hearing into determining the definition of a woman.[360]
8 August – The
Electoral Commission warns people to look out for unauthorised use of their data after revealing it was the victim of a "complex cyber-attack" in August 2021, which was not discovered until October 2022.[365]
9 August –
First Minister of Wales
Mark Drakeford confirms he will leave the Senedd at the
Next Senedd election; he is expected to stand down as First Minister before then.[366]
Drakeford asks ministers to make cuts to public services in Wales as inflation and public sector pay place constraints on the Welsh Government's budget.[367]
10 August –
Stuart Andrew, MP for
Pudsey, confirms he will not stand again for parliament at the next general election.[368]
11 August –
Ministry of Defence data indicates
Rishi Sunak has taken more domestic flights during his time as prime minister than his three predecessors did during their terms in office.[369]
Angus McNeil, MP for the
Western Isles, is expelled from the SNP following his disagreement with the party's Chief Whip at Westminster.[372]
13 August – Following calls from some senior SNP figures for a review,
Ian Blackford, the SNP's former leader at Westminster, confirms the
SNP–Green agreement at Holyrood will remain in place until 2026.[373]
15 August –
Global Media & Entertainment have rejected an
Alba Party poster depicting Rishi Sunday as a vampire feeding off Scottish oil because it "slandered" the prime minister.[374]
17 August – The Saudi Arabian embassy in the UK announces that
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been invited to visit the UK, although Downing Street says there are no plans in the prime minister's diary for a visit.[375]
25 August – Following a review of MPs severance pay, the
Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority announces the money paid to MPs leaving Parliament at the next election will double to £19,000, and will be paid over four months rather than two.[380]
26 August – Conservative MP
Nadine Dorries resigns
her Parliamentary seat two months after originally saying she would do so, accusing Prime Minister
Rishi Sunak of abandoning "the fundamental principles of Conservatism" and that "history will not judge [him] kindly".[381]
27 August – Shadow Chancellor
Rachel Reeves rules out any form of a wealth tax if Labour wins the next general election, saying that any extra funding for public services must come about as a result of economic growth.[382]
29 August –
The UK government announces plans to scrap EU-era water pollution restrictions on housing development in order to facilitate the building of more houses.[383]
Monmouthshire county councillor Sara Burch resigns from her cabinet post following a post on
Twitter in which she likened the actions of the
Secretary of State for Wales to events in the
Romani Holocaust after accusing him of "whipping up anti-traveller feeling".[384]
Following a number of high profile criminal trials during which convicted defendants have refused to attend their sentencing hearings, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announces plans to introduce legislation that will compel convicted criminals to attend their sentencing hearings, by force if necessary, or face more time in prison.[386]
The UK government announces plans to reinstate EU equal pay laws that were scrapped in a post-Brexit purge of EU legislation.[387]
31 August –
Rishi Sunak carries out a mini-cabinet reshuffle, promoting
Grant Shapps to Defence Secretary to replace
Ben Wallace who plans to stand down from Parliament at the next election.
Claire Coutinho replaces Shapps as Energy Secretary, and at 38, becomes the youngest member of Sunak's cabinet.[388]
Former Conservative MP
Antoinette Sandbach has asked that her name be removed from a 2021
TEDx Talk that connects her to a slave owner, arguing there is no public interest in identifying her as his descendant.[390]
Chancellor
Jeremy Hunt says the UK government will "spend what it takes" to put right
defective concrete in schools,[392] but concedes that structural problems could be identified in more schools and other public buildings.[393]
Neil Gray, Scotland's Wellbeing and Economy Secretary, says there is no immediate risk to schools in Scotland from
defective concrete.[394]
4 September –
Opposition leader
Sir Keir Starmer performs a
shadow cabinet reshuffle, as MPs return to Westminster after the summer break. This includes
Angela Rayner becoming both Shadow Levelling Up Secretary and Shadow Deputy Prime Minister.[395]
Education Secretary
Gillian Keegan apologises for her use of offensive language after she is recorded swearing following an appearance on
ITV News to discuss the crisis over
defective concrete in schools.[397]
Former minister
Gavin Williamson is told to apologise for sending bullying text messages to a colleague following the publication of the findings of an independent panel of MPs appointed by Parliament to investigate the matter.[398]
Christopher Pincher, MP for
Tamworth, loses his appeal against an eight week suspension from Parliament over an incident in which he drunkenly groped a colleague.[399]
Former SNP MP
Natalie McGarry is ordered to pay £66 for embezzling £25,000 from the SNP and a pro-independence group.[401]
First Minister of Scotland
Humza Yousaf outlines the programme for government legislation for the year ahead, including improvements to childcare, an extra £1bn for social security and pay improvements for social care staff.[402] There are also plans to ban
disposable vapes over environmental concerns.[403]
Home Secretary
Suella Braverman announces that Russia's mercenary
Wagner Group is to be prescribed as a terrorist organisation.[404]
The
OppositionLabour Party unsuccessfully attempts to force a Parliamentary vote that would force the government to publish documents relating to school funding while Sunak was Chancellor.[406]
The UK rejoins the EU's
Horizon Europe scheme, allowing UK scientists and institutions to apply for money from the £81b fund.[408]
Justice Secretary
Alex Chalk announces an independent inquiry into the escape of
Daniel Khalife from
Wandsworth Prison. The inquiry will have two areas of focus – a review of the "placement and categorisation" of all inmates at Wandsworth, and an investigation of all people in custody currently charged with terror offences.[409]
Christopher Pincher resigns his Parliamentary seat, triggering a
by-election.[399]
Conservative MP
Marcus Fysh is reprimanded by the Parliamentary Standards Committee after speaking to the media regarding a now-concluded investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner, and ordered to apologise to the House of Commons.[410]
A government auction for renewable energy projects ends without any new contracts being awarded for offshore wind farms after developers said they were too expensive. Contracts for onshore wind, solar energy and tidal projects are awarded though.[412]
Labour suspends its leadership team in the
Bolton North East constituency following a disagreement over who will represent the party at the next general election. An election campaign will be established by an outside convener.[413]
The Conservatives defend accepting a £350,000 donation from Sandy Chadha, chief executive of Supreme 8 Limited, who is also chief executive of Supreme PLC, a company accused by the Labour Party of marketing vapes to children.[414]
UK government plans to relax restrictions on water pollution to encourage housebuilding in England are defeated in the House of Lords.[423]
A survey by the
Local Government Information Unit has highlighted concerns that Voter ID could cause "serious disruption" if implemented at the next general election.[424]
Two councillors on
Sunderland City Council resign from the opposition Liberal Democrat Party and join the controlling Labour Party.[425][426] These resignations mean the Liberal Democrat Party lose their status as the opposition party, moving to third behind the Conservatives.
14 September –
Responding to an
Intelligence and Security Select Committee report criticising the UK government's China strategy, Sunak says he is "acutely aware of the particular threat to our open and democratic way of life" posed by China.[427]
The
Parliamentary Standards Committee finds that Sunak broke the MPs code of conduct when Downing Street commented on their investigation into his wife's failure to properly declare her financial interest in a childminding company before details had been made public.[428]
15 September –
The UK government formally prescribes the
Wagner Group as a terrorist organisation.[429]
The BBC documentary series State of Chaos is told that senior Whitehall officials raised concerns with Buckingham Palace about Boris Johnson's conduct during the pandemic, and suggested
the Queen raise the matter with him during their weekly private audience.[431]
Conservative MP
Dehenna Davison resigns as a levelling up minister, saying "chronic migraines" have made it "impossible" to do her job.[432] She is replaced by
Jacob Young.[433]
A year on from her
controversial budget, former prime minister
Liz Truss gives a speech in which she attempts to defend the policies she tried to enact, acknowledging she tried to introduce them too fast but blaming the "political and economic establishment" and "institutional bureaucracy" for their failure.[434]
Figures released by the Welsh Government indicate that plans to bring an extra 36
members to the
Senedd could cost an extra £17.8m on top of the present cost of running the legislature.[435]
19 September –
The UK government announces that commissioners will be appointed to oversee the running of
Birmingham City Council following its recent financial troubles.[436]
The UK government is criticised by the
National Audit Office (NAO) over its reasoning behind the decision to use public funds to pay for Boris Johnson's Partygate legal fees, describing it as not "wholly persuasive".[439]
The
Home Office announces it is disbanding the team established in 2018 to deal with
Windrush cases.[441]
Labour leader
Keir Starmer holds a meeting with French President
Emmanuel Macron, which he describes as "very constructive and positive".[442]
In a series of interviews with
BBC Local Radio, Liberal Democrat leader
Sir Ed Davey rules out an electoral deal with the Labour Party for the next general election.[443]
A petition on the
gov.wales website opposing Wales's 20 mph speed limit has received over 177,000 signatures since its launch, and will be considered by the Senedd Petitions Committee for debate as it has passed the 10,000 signatures required to be considered for debate.[444]
20 September –
Sunak announces a major rethink of the UK government's strategy to achieve net zero carbon output in the UK by 2050, including a delay in banning the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035.[445]
Charles III addresses the
French Senate during his state visit to France.[450]
The UK government says that no action will be taken against Boris Johnson after he was found to have made a "clear breach" of rules governing jobs for ex-ministers.[451]
Speaking to LBC ahead of the 2023 autumn statement, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt says it would be "virtually impossible" to introduce tax cuts until the state of the UK economy has improved.[453]
The Home Office is ordered to stop work to convert the former RAF Scampton into an asylum centre by West Lindsey District Council over a potential breach of planning laws.[454]
Conservative MP
Brandon Lewis has claimed that people working for him have struggled to secure mortgages because banks regard them as politically exposed persons.[455]
23 September –
A task force to accelerate home insulation and upgrades to domestic boilers is scrapped by the UK government.[456]
Former prime minister Boris Johnson warns Sunak against building what he describes as a "mutilated" version of HS2 after reports the Birmingham to Manchester leg of the scheme could be scrapped due to spiralling costs.[457]
24 September –
Home Secretary
Suella Braverman orders a review into armed policing, after dozens of firearms officers hand in their weapons, following concerns over a police officer charged with murdering 24-year-old
Chris Kaba.[458]
Former Secretary of State for Transport
Grant Shapps tells the BBC it would be "crazy" not to review HS2 plans amid spiralling costs.[459]
25 September –
Olympic rower
James Cracknell is chosen as the Conservative Party candidate for
Colchester at the next general election following
William Quince's decision to stand down from Parliament.[460]
Mayor of Greater ManchesterAndy Burnham says that scrapping the HS2 rail link between Birmingham and Manchester risks "ripping the heart" out of plans to improve rail services across northern England.[461]
At their annual party conference, members of the Liberal Democrats vote to reject proposals by the party leadership to abandon their housebuilding target of 380,000 properties per year.[462]
Giving his keynote speech at the Liberal Democrats party conference in Bournemouth, Sir Ed Davey calls for a new legal right to begin treatment for cancer within two months of referral in England.[464]
Alok Sharma, MP for
Reading West, announces he will not stand for parliament again at the next general election.[465]
First Minister of Wales
Mark Drakeford tells the Senedd he has received threats to his personal safety over Wales's 20 mph speed limit, while police confirm they are investigating "reports of malicious communications" sent to Drakeford.[466]
27 September – Former SNP minister
Fergus Ewing is suspended from the party for a week after voting against the Scottish Government in a no confidence vote.[468]
29 September –
Around a dozen Conservative MPs, including some ministers, are reported to have complained to the party's chief whip about Suella Braverman's speech on immigration and refugees.[469]
Ahead of the broadcast of an interview with Conservative Home Secretary
Suella Braverman conducted by Conservative deputy chair and
GB News presenter
Lee Anderson, the chief executive of Ofcom,
Melanie Dawes, says there are no present rules to prevent GB News using Anderson to interview Braverman.[470]
Colwyn Bay independent councillor Tom Maclean is cautioned by the
Public Services Ombudsman for Wales after sharing a fake social media post featuring an image of Norwegian mass killer
Anders Breivik. Maclean had claimed not to know the picture was of Breivik and deleted it as soon as his actions came to light.[471]
30 September –
Richard Walker, the chief executive of
Iceland who had plans to stand as a Conservative MP, leaves the party, branding it "out of touch".[472]
October
1 October – Speaking to BBC One's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Prime Minister
Rishi Sunak says that he would like to cut taxes before the next election, but does not commit to doing so.[473] He also declines to confirm whether or not the Birmingham to Manchester leg of the
High Speed 2 rail link will be scrapped.[474]
3 October –
Home Secretary
Suella Braverman addresses the Conservative Party Conference and claims a "hurricane" of migrants are coming to the UK.[475]
London Assembly chair
Andrew Boff is ejected from the Conservative Party Conference after heckling Braverman during her speech.[476]
4 October
Rishi Sunak confirms that the West Midlands to Manchester portion of the
High Speed 2 (HS2) rail link will be axed, which will free up £36bn to be spent on new transport projects in the North and Midlands. He also confirms that the southern portion of the line will run all the way from Birmingham to
Euston, not just
Old Oak Common as earlier reports had speculated.[477][478]
Ahead of her party's annual conference,
Carla Denyer, co-leader of the
Green Party of England and Wales, tells the BBC that winning four seats at the next general election is "absolutely realistic".[482]
6 October –
At a summit of European leaders in Spain, Sunak calls for greater co-operation in dealing with migration.[483]
Dale Vince, a major donor to the Labour Party, says he will no longer fund
Just Stop Oil and describes further protests from the group as being "counterproductive".[484]
The UK government orders an inquiry after the Department for Education miscalculated the schools budget for England for the 2023–24 academic year, forcing a planned 2.7% had to be revised to 1.9%.[486]
8 October –
Marina Wheeler, an employment lawyer and the former wife of Prime Minister
Boris Johnson, has been appointed as the Labour Party's adviser on protecting women against workplace harassment.[487]
9 October –
Sunak chairs an emergency
COBRA meeting to discuss the escalating situation in Israel, and pledges further support for the country.[488]
Shadow Chancellor
Rachel Reeves delivers her keynote speech to the Labour Party Conference, promising to usher in "an era of economic security" by cutting waste and driving growth.[489]
The Supreme Court begins a hearing as the UK government appeals against the Court of Appeal's block on sending asylum seekers to Rwanda.[490]
10 October –
Keir Starmer delivers his keynote speech to the Labour Party Conference, promising to build 1.5 million new homes, make reforms to the NHS and education, and to deliver a "decade of renewal under Labour". The speech is slightly delayed by a protester who throws glitter at Starmer.[491]
Labour suspends
Newport City Councilor Miqdad Al-Nuaimi while it investigates posts he made on social media about Israeli security policy in Gaza.[492]
Aberdeen City Councillor Kairin van Sweeden refers herself to the Standards Commission after describing a fellow councillor who was born in Sri Lanka as a "New Scot" during a council meeting.[494]
Police confirm that 24 fines will be issued for breaches of COVID-19 rules in regard to a party held at Conservative Party HQ in December 2020 for those involved in
Shaun Bailey's campaign to become London Mayor.[497]
14 October –
Scottish Green MSP
Maggie Chapman says she regrets the "upset and anger" caused by her social media post in which she described the
Hamas attack on Israel as "decolonisation" rather than "terrorism". She has since deleted the post.[498]
Former SNP MP Lisa Cameron claims she and her family have had to go into hiding since she switched to the Conservatives after receiving threats of violence.[499]
Crispin Blunt, the MP for
Reigate, co-director of the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians, announced the group's intention to prosecute UK government leaders for "aiding and abetting war crimes in Gaza" amid the
2023 Israel–Hamas war, warning his colleagues in Westminster of the peril of guilt through complicity.[500]
15 October – First Minister of Scotland Humza Yousaf signals a change in his party's Scottish independence strategy, now saying that an SNP win in a majority of Scotland's Westminster seats would give the party a mandate to begin independence negotiations with the Westminster Government.[501]
16 October – Parliament's
Independent Expert Panel recommends Conservative MP
Peter Bone face a six week suspension from the House of Commons after upholding complaints of bullying against him.[502]
17 October –
Peter Bone is suspended by the Parliamentary Conservative Party after allegations of bullying were upheld against him.[503]
Humza Yousaf announces a freeze on
council tax for Scottish households during his closing speech at the SNP Party Conference.[504]
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak begins a two day visit to Israel as part of diplomatic efforts to help prevent the Israel–Hamas war escalating into a wider Middle East conflict.[508] Following a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu, Sunak says he will stand with Israel "in solidarity".[509]
Sunak meets
Palestinian Authority leader
Mahmoud Abbas in Egypt, where they jointly condemn Hamas's attacks on Israel. Sunak also "expressed his deep condolences" for civilian deaths in Gaza.[512]
MPs approve the
Worker Protection Bill, designed to give women better protection against sexual harassment in the workplace.[513]
Downing Street announces that
Cabinet SecretarySimon Case is to take time off due to a private medical matter; he is expected to return in a few weeks.[517]
23 October –
Sunak tells parliament the UK has judged the
al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion, which occurred on 17 October, was likely caused by "a missile, or part of one" fired from "within Gaza".[518]
Ofcom finds GB News breached its regulations on impartiality during a programme which aired on 16 June. Former
Brexit Party MEP
Martin Daubney was standing in for Laurence Fox when he interviewed
Reform Party leader
Richard Tice and discussed immigration. Ofcom finds Tice was not "sufficiently challenged" on his views and "the limited alternative views presented were dismissed".[519] However, Ofcom decides that Lee Anderson's interview with Home Secretary Suella Braverman did not breach their impartiality rules as it was a current affairs programme.[520]
24 October –
Anas Sarwar, the leader of
Scottish Labour, accuses Israel of a "clear breach" of international law in Gaza and says there is "no justification for the withholding of essential supplies" from the people of Gaza. His comments come after a number of Scottish Labour resignations by officials who disagree with Keir Starmer's stance on the conflict.[521]
Sir Keir Starmer meets with Muslim Labour MPs as tension grows over the party's stance on the Israel–Hamas conflict and after 150 Muslim councillors wrote to him urging him to call for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East.[523]
BBC Director General
Tim Davie attends a meeting with Conservative MPs, where there is a heated discussion about the BBC's decision not to describe Hamas as a terrorist organisation in its news reports of the Israel–Hamas conflict.[525]
26 October –
Parliament is
prorogued by order of the King in preparation for the State Opening on 7 November, the first time that Parliament has been prorogued by a king since 1951.[526]
Crispin Blunt, the MP for
Reigate, is suspended from the Conservative Party after he confirms he has been arrested and questioned by police over allegations of rape and possession of controlled substances.[527]
27 October –
GB News have hired former Prime Minister
Boris Johnson to present a series "showcasing the power of Britain around the world"; he will also help to provide coverage of the next UK and US elections.[528]
Scotland's former Health Secretary
Alex Neil calls for an urgent review of the use of WhatsApp by government following revelations that National Clinical Director Jason Leitch deleted messages on a daily basis during the pandemic; he also says that many government ministers did not understand the rules for using the app.[531]
NatWest says there were "serious failings" over its treatment of Nigel Farage.[532]
28 October –
Ash Regan, who stood as a candidate in the
2023 SNP leadership election, defects to the
Alba Party after becoming disillusioned with what she describes as the SNP's "wavering commitment" to Scottish independence.[533]
Downing Street confirms that
Paul Bristow has been sacked as a ministerial aide after calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, something Downing Street describes as comments that "were not consistent with the principles of collective responsibility".[535]
Mark Drakeford, First Minister of Wales and leader of
Welsh Labour, echoes Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer's call for a humanitarian pause in the Gaza conflict to allow aid in to the region. His comments come after 12 of his backbenchers in the Senedd signed a petition calling for a ceasefire.[536]
The Electoral Commission rejects an application to register the Party of Islam as a new political party because it did not define its constitution or structure clearly enough.[539]
November
1 November – The
2023 AI Safety Summit takes place at
Bletchley Park. The UK government announces a "world first agreement" between 28 countries on how to manage the riskiest forms of
AI.[540][541]
3 November – At Westminster Magistrates' Court,
Bob Stewart, MP for
Beckenham, is fined £500 for a racially aggravated public order offence after he told an activist to "go back to Bahrain".[543]
5 November –
Bob Stewart voluntarily surrenders the Conservative Party Whip following his conviction for a racially aggravated public order offence.[544]
Carol Vorderman confirms she is to leave her weekly Saturday morning show on
BBC Radio Wales after breaching the BBC's impartiality rules by posting content critical of the UK government on
X.[550]
An opinion piece by Home Secretary
Suella Braverman was published in The Times in which she questioned the impartiality of the police over the way they deal with demonstrations, saying that aggressive right-wing protesters are "rightly met with a stern response", while "pro-Palestinian mobs" are "largely ignored".[552]
Downing Street says that Rishi Sunak still has "full confidence" in Home Secretary Suella Braverman, while Chancellor
Jeremy Hunt says her comments "are not words that I myself would have used".[554]
Dame Alison Rose, the former chief executive of
NatWest, is to miss out on £7.6m of bonuses and shares after admitting discussing the closure of Nigel Farage's bank account.[555]
Scotland's Health Secretary, Michael Matheson, agrees to pay back the £11,000 of roaming charges he built up while using his iPad during a holiday in Morocco.[556]
Wales's health minister,
Eluned Morgan, apologises over a social media post commenting on
David Cameron's appointment as
Foreign Secretary in which she asked if "Thatcher's hearse" would be next to arrive at Downing Street.[563]
14 November –
Israel–Hamas war: David Cameron, the new foreign secretary, announces sanctions against four senior
Hamas leaders and two of the militant group's financiers.[564]
In a letter to the Rishi Sunak, former Home Secretary Suella Braverman accuses the prime minister of failure and betrayal on key policies.[565]
A group of economists supported by former prime minister Liz Truss proposes an alternative "growth budget" ahead of the
autumn statement, which it claims would boost economic growth by cutting taxes and benefits.[566]
The British Government's plan to deport migrants to
Rwanda is ruled as unlawful by the
Supreme Court.[568]
Sunak says the government will introduce "emergency legislation" to enable Parliament to "confirm Rwanda is safe" and prevent legal challenges from blocking the migrant policy.[569]
Labour frontbenchers resign to vote for an SNP motion calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.[570]
MPs vote 293–125 to reject the SNP's amendment calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.[571]
Senedd Presiding OfficerElin Jones announces an independent review of television channels that will be available in the Senedd building following her previous ban of GB News.[572]
16 November –
David Cameron makes his first working visit to Ukraine as Foreign Secretary, where he meets President
Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, and reiterates the UK's promise to provide moral, diplomatic and "above all military support for... however long it takes".[573]
In a statement to the Scottish Parliament, Health Secretary Michael Matheson says the cause of his £11,000 roaming charges bill came from his sons watching football on his parliamentary iPad while the family was on holiday in Morocco. Matheson confirms he has repaid the money and referred himself to the parliamentary watchdog.[574]
Conservative MPs
Eleanor Laing and
Virginia Crosbie, who were among attendees at a lockdown gathering held at Westminster in December 2020, say they have been told by police they will not be fined over their attendance at the event.[575]
Both the Conservatives and Labour launch welfare to work policies ahead of the autumn statement; the Conservatives intend to focus on expanding career support for those on long-term health related benefits, while Labour outlines plans to reduce the 7.8 million NHS waiting list backlog.[576]
17 November –
Newly appointed Health Secretary
Victoria Atkins says there is no conflict of interest with her husband's job with
British Sugar.[577]
Police launch an investigation after the constituency office of
Jo Stevens, the
Shadow Secretary of State for Wales, was vandalised after she abstained during the Parliamentary vote calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.[581]
19 November – Independent MP Bob Stewart announces he will not seek re-election at the next general election following his conviction for a racially aggravated public order offence.[582]
Local councillors have reacted angrily after James Giles, an independent councillor, emailed 19,000 councillors urging them to sign a petition calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and threatening to identify those who did not.[586]
Labour MP
Alex Cunningham accuses Home Secretary
James Cleverly of describing his constituency,
Stockton North, as a "
shithole" during Prime Minister's Questions. He alleges that the remark was made after he asked a question about child poverty in the area. A spokesman denies that Cleverly made the remark, and later Deputy Speaker
Dame Eleanor Laing says "I understand that the alleged words were not actually used".[588] Cleverly subsequently says he used an "unparliamentary" word to describe the MP but not his constituency.[589]
26 November – Conservative deputy chair
Lee Anderson claims he was approached by
Reform UK and offered the equivalent of five years' worth of MPs salary to defect to the party. The allegation is rejected by Reform UK's leader,
Richard Tice.[591]
27 November –
Sunak cancels a planned meeting with Greek Prime Minister
Kyriakos Mitsotakis after a diplomatic row breaks out between the UK and Greece over the
Elgin Marbles.[592] Downing Street subsequently says that the meeting was cancelled after Mitsotakis broke an agreement not to discuss the Marbles in public when he told BBC One's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg he would like them to be returned.[593]
Home Secretary James Cleverly apologises to the House of Commons for using "inappropriate language" about MP Alex Cunningham, saying he was using the derogatory term to describe Cunningham himself and not his constituency.[594]
29 November – At Prime Minister's Questions, Sunak accuses the Greek prime minister of trying to "grandstand" over the Elgin Marbles when questioned about his decision to cancel a planned meeting with Mitsotakis.[597]
December
1 December –
Bradley Thomas, the Conservative candidate for
Bromsgrove, faces another selection vote after an "irregularity" was found in the original process in July 2023.[598]
3 December –
Sir Keir Starmer uses a Sunday Times article to credit
Margaret Thatcher as a leader who effected "meaningful change" and unleashed Britain's "natural entrepreneurship".[600] Downing Street subsequently responds that Starmer is not "fit to lace Baroness Thatcher's boots".[601]
4 December –
Home Secretary James Cleverly unveils the UK government's five point plan aimed at reducing legal migration, which includes increasing the minimum salary threshold for a visa from £26,200 to £38,700.[602]
MPs vote 246–242 in favour of an amendment to the
Victims and Prisoners Bill requiring the UK government to accelerate plans to establish a body to compensate victims of the
NHS infected blood scandal, defeating the government which had not planned to include the measure in the legislation.[603]
5 December –
Home Secretary
James Cleverly travels to Rwanda to sign a new immigration treaty which he says addresses the concerns of the Supreme Court.[604]
The Court of Session in Edinburgh rejects a bid by the Scottish Government to prevent the publication of details of an inquiry into whether former First Minister
Nicola Sturgeon broke the ministerial code over a meeting with
Alex Salmond's aide in the aftermath of allegations against Salmon in 2021.[607]
Sunak calls an emergency press conference at which he urges Conservative MPs to back his latest Rwanda asylum plan. A vote on the legislation is scheduled to face a parliamentary vote on 12 December, but will not be a vote of confidence in the prime minister's authority.[609]
Two ministers are appointed to replace Robert Jenrick's ministerial briefing for immigration.
Michael Tomlinson is appointed to the role of Minister of State for Illegal Migration, while
Tom Pursglove becomes Minister of State for Legal Migration.[610]
Conservative councillor Wendy Agnew resigns as chair of Aberdeenshire Council's Kincardine and Mearns area committee following comments made about gypsies during a council meeting in November. Agnew is also being investigated by the
Ethical Standards Commissioner following a complaint about the comments.[611]
Police have closed their investigation into potential breaches of COVID rules at a gathering held at Westminster on 8 December 2020, determining that it did not meet the threshold for issuing fines.[614]
9 December – As part of an initiative to make being an MP more attractive as a career, MPs who lose their seats at the next election will receive publicly funded careers advice under a proposed "transition scheme" as they search for new occupations.[615]
10 December –
Lawyers on the right of the Conservative Party have described the revised Rwanda legislation as not "sufficiently watertight".[616]
In his first broadcast since leaving the post of Immigration Minister,
Robert Jenrick tells the BBC Sunak's revised Rwanda plan is unlikely to work since it is "weak" and will become "bogged down" in legal challenges.[617]
The
Green Party cuts ties with
Green Party Women, one of its members' groups, after the group objected to the party's stance on "gender-critical views".[619]
Foreign Secretary
David Cameron threatens to withdraw co-operation with Scottish ministers following a meeting between
Humza Yousaf, the First Minister of Scotland, and Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the
2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, which took place without the presence of a UK official which Cameron said was a breach of protocol.[620] In response, Yousaf calls the threat "petty" and "misguided".[621]
11 December –
Conservative MPs from the
European Research Group (ERG) say the UK government's Rwanda asylum plan will not work because it does not go "far enough to deliver the policy".[622]
The UK government is offering a £2.5bn financial package for the return of a Stormont Executive, which includes funds to settle public sector disputes and for public services.[623]
First Minister of Wales
Mark Drakeford launches an investigation into whether Sports Minister
Dawn Bowden breached the ministerial code over her handling of the Welsh Rugby Union sexism scandal.[627]
Former government minister
David Davis intervenes to stop an attack on a rough sleeper near Parliament.[628]
A report by the
Commons Select Committee on Standards recommends
Scott Benton, MP for
Blackpool, be suspended from Parliament for 35 days over a "very serious breach" of the rules regarding standards after giving the message that "he was corrupt and 'for sale'".[630] Benton subsequently confirms his intention to appeal against the ruling.[631]
Paul Barnett, leader of the Labour controlled
Hastings Borough Council, leaves the Labour Party along with five colleagues to establish an independent group, citing what they collectively describe as Labour's lack of "focus on local government".[634]
A review commissioned by
NatWest into the closure of
Coutts' customer accounts has found "no evidence of discrimination" in relation to people's political views.[635]
Eluned Morgan, considered a favourite in the Welsh Labour leadership election, rules herself out of the contest.[636]
16 December – Sunak travels to Italy to attend a
right-wing rally in Rome, where he discusses his immigration policy and calls for changes to global refugee rules.[637]
17 December –
Michelle Mone says that, in certain circumstances, she could benefit from some of the profits made by personal protective equipment sold to the UK government during the COVID-19 pandemic by a company run by her husband, Doug Barrowman.[638]
Foreign Secretary David Cameron has said he would like to see a "sustainable ceasefire" in Gaza because "too many civilians have been killed".[639]
The UK government announces it will introduce an amendment to the
Criminal Justice Bill to make it clear "without any doubt" that the act of
spiking another person's drink is illegal, but the measures will stop short of making spiking a specific offence.[640]
Drakeford expresses his disappointment there are no women candidates in the Welsh Labour leadership contest, and claims personal attacks on social media have discouraged them from entering the contest.[641]
In response to Michelle Mone acknowledging that, in certain circumstances, she could benefit from some of the profits of a government PPE contract, Sunak says the government is taking the issue "incredibly seriously" and is pursuing legal action against
PPE Medpro.[645]
Welsh Education Minister
Jeremy Miles formally announces his Welsh Labour leadership campaign after winning the backing of 16 Labour members of the Senedd.[646]
19 December –
Finance Secretary
Shona Robison presents the Scottish Government's budget for 2024–25. Measures announced include a new 45% tax rate for people earning between £75,000 and £125,140, and a rise in the top rate of tax, paid by those earning over £125,000, from 47% to 48%. The £43,663 tax threshold is also frozen for the year.[647]
During routine questioning from MPs from Parliament's
Liaison Committee, Sunak says that he does not have a "precise" date by which he hopes to stop migrants from crossing the English channel in boats.[648]
The budget for Wales, announced by Finance Minister
Rebecca Evans, cuts spending on public services, with funds being diverted to support the NHS.[650]
Andrew Bridgen announces he has left the
Reclaim Party seven months after joining over what he describes as a "difference in the direction of the party".[653]
21 December –
Former Justice Secretary
Sir Robert Buckland urges the UK government to do more to tackle the misuse of
Artificial Intelligence to potentially disrupt the next general election, describing it as a "clear and present danger" to UK democracy.[654]
The UK government revises plans to increase the minimum salary someone coming to the UK must earn to apply for a
family visa. Original plans to raise the amount from £18,600 to £38,700 are now updated to £29,000 from spring 2024, with no timetable for any further increases.[655] Sunak subsequently confirms the £38,700 threshold will be introduced in early 2025.[656]
Chancellor
Jeremy Hunt signs a deal with Switzerland to facilitate easier financial transactions between Swiss and UK companies.[657]
24 December – Home Secretary James Cleverly apologises after a Sunday Mirror report that he made an "ironic joke" about spiking his wife's drink at a Downing Street reception shortly after the UK government's announcement that it would clearly define the activity as being illegal.[658]
26 December – The Labour Party says it is confiding processing some asylum claims overseas before asylum seekers reach the UK if it forms the government after the next general election.[659]
James Daly, the MP for
Bury North, said in a newspaper interview that the majority of children in his constituency who are struggling are "the products of crap parents" and that "he wanted to help people from disadvantaged backgrounds have the best chance to succeed".[661]
The UK government says that a report published on the
GOV.UK website on 27 December that said housing asylum seekers on the
Bibby Stockholm barge was discriminatory on the grounds of age and sex was published by mistake. The report is deleted from the website.[666]
31 December – Former Downing Street Director of Communications
Dominic Cummings claims in a blog post to have attended two meetings with Sunak during the past year to discuss political strategy ahead of the next general election, and that the prime minister asked him to "secretly" work on stratecy.[667]
26 February –
Thomas Pendry, Baron Pendry, PC, 88, British politician, Member of Parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde (1970–2001), member of the House of Lords (since 2001).[673]
21 June –
Winnie Ewing, 93, Scottish politician MP (1967–1979), MEP (1979–1999), MSP (1999–2003), President of the Scottish National Party (1987–2005).[683]
5 January – The UK government confirms it will not go ahead with a plan to privatise
Channel 4.[2]
9 January – A new scheme to support businesses with the cost of energy bills is outlined in the
House of Commons to replace
existing support due to end in March. The scheme will replace capped energy bills with a wholesale discount on gas and electricity, and only apply when energy bills are high. Industries such as glass, ceramics and steel, which use a greater amount of energy, will get a larger discount than others.[3][4]
10 January – The UK government published the
Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill 2023, designed to require public sector organisations to provide a minimum service when their unions vote to strike.[5][6]
MPs vote 309–249 in favour of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill, which now moves to the
committee stage.[11]
19 January – Prime Minister Sunak apologises for taking his seat belt off in a moving car to film a social media clip.
Lancashire Police later say they are "looking into" the incident.[12] He is issued with a
fixed-penalty notice the following day.[13]
William Shawcross, the commissioner for public appointments, steps back from the planned investigation into how Richard Sharp got the job as BBC chairman because of previous contact between them. Another investigator will be appointed to take on the inquiry.[20]
MPs vote 315–246 in favour of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill, which is then sent to the
House of Lords for further debate.[21]
February
5 February – In a move seen as marking her return to political life, former Prime Minister
Liz Truss writes an article for The Sunday Telegraph in which she says her
economic agenda was never given a "realistic chance".[22]
Former Labour MP
Jared O'Mara, who submitted fake expense claims to fund his
cocaine habit, is convicted of fraud.[25] He is sentenced the following day to four years in prison.[26]
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson urges present Prime Minister Rishi Sunak not to scrap the
Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, warning to do so would be a "great mistake".[35]
Scottish Health Secretary
Humza Yousaf and former Minister for Community Safety
Ash Regan become the first two candidates to announce they will stand in the Scottish National Party leadership election.[36]Keith Brown, the SNP's depute leader,
Neil Gray, the Minister for International Development, and
Màiri McAllan, the Environment Minister, all rule themselves out of the contest.[37]
In a speech to the
Scottish Labour Party conference in Edinburgh,
Labour leader
Sir Keir Starmer rules out a deal with the SNP "under any circumstances", and warns against complacency following the departure of Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader and First Minister.[38]
20 February – Scotland's Finance Secretary,
Kate Forbes, announces she is running in the Scottish National Party leadership election.[39]
21 February –
The UK Government announces that it had a budget surplus in January, with £5bn more in revenue than predicted.[40]
Kate Forbes insists her campaign to become the next SNP leader has not been derailed after she lost the support of several colleagues following comments about
same-sex marriage and having children outside marriage, both of which she is opposed to as a member of the
Free Church of Scotland.[41]
MSPs vote 68–57 to approve the Scottish Government's budget for the 2023–24 financial year, which includes a tax rise for everyone in Scotland earning more than £43,662.[42]
23 February –
Labour leaderSir Keir Starmer outlines the five key issues that his party will focus on during the run up to the
2024 general election: higher economic growth, clean energy, improving the NHS, reforming the justice system, and raising education standards.[43]
Environment Secretary
Therese Coffey, commenting on the vegetable shortage, tells MPs "we anticipate the situation will last about another two to four weeks".[44]
24 February – Nominations close for the SNP leadership election, with Kate Forbes, Ash Regan and Humza Yousaf having all reached the threshold of supporters to go forward into the contest.[45]
25 February –
Theo Clarke, the Conservative MP for
Stafford, is deselected by her constituency party a week after returning to Parliament from maternity leave.[46]
26 February –
Luciana Berger, who left the Labour Party in 2019 following the
antisemitism controversy, is to re-join the party after accepting an apology from Sir Keir Starmer, who said there had been a "litany of failures".[47]
27 February – Sunak, and President of the European Commission,
Ursula von der Leyen, announce a new Brexit deal for Northern Ireland, named the
Windsor Framework.[49]
March
1 March – COVID-19 in the UK:
WhatsApp messages
leaked to the Daily Telegraph are reported as suggesting former Health Secretary
Matt Hancock chose to ignore advise from experts in April 2020 that there should be "testing of all going into care homes".[50] A spokesman for Hancock said "These stolen messages have been doctored to create a false story that Matt rejected clinical advice on care home testing”.[51]
2 March –
COVID-19 in the UK: The Daily Telegraph publishes more of Matt Hancock's WhatsApp exchanges, this time with former Education Secretary
Gavin Williamson in December 2020, when a debate into whether schools should reopen following the Christmas holiday was taking place. The leaked messages suggest Hancock favoured school closures, while Williamson was more hesitant.[52] Hancock, who worked alongside journalist
Isabel Oakeshott to
co-author a book, describes the release of the messages as a "massive betrayal and breach of trust".[53] In response, Oakeshott says she released the messages because she believed doing so was in the "public interest".[54]
The
Commons Select Committee of Privileges finds that former Prime Minister Boris Johnson may have misled Parliament over the Partygate scandal after evidence suggested breaches of COVID-19 rules would have been "obvious" to him. In response Johnson says that none of the evidence shows he "knowingly" misled parliament, and that "it is clear from this report that I have not committed any contempt of parliament".[59]
The latest leaked WhatsApp messages published by the Daily Telegraph are reported as appearing to show former Health Secretary Matt Hancock and
Cabinet SecretarySimon Case joking about locking people in quarantine hotels.[60]
Rupa Huq is allowed to rejoin the Labour Party five months after being suspended over comments she made about former Conservative Chancellor
Kwasi Kwarteng.[61]
Buckingham Palace announces the first
state visit to be made by Charles III and Camilla as King and Queen Consort; they will travel to France and Germany between 26 and 31 March.[62]
4 March – Leaked WhatsApp messages published by the Daily Telegraph indicate Matt Hancock and his staff deliberated over whether or not he had broken COVID-19 regulations after pictures of him kissing his aide, Gina Coladangelo, were published by The Sun newspaper. In another conversation, the messages show Hancock criticising the
Eat Out to Help Out scheme for "causing problems" in areas where there was a high number of COVID-19 cases.[63]
5 March –
News outlets including BBC News, Sky News and The Independent (who have not verified the messages) report that further WhatsApp messages published by The Telegraph appear to show discussions about how and when the government should reveal details of the
Kent COVID-19 variant in order to ensure people would comply with the regulations. The news outlets also says Hancock appears to suggest they should "frighten the pants off everyone", while in another conversation, head of the civil service
Simon Case suggests the "fear/guilt factor" was an important element of the government's messaging.[64][65][66]The Telegraph also reports messages showing ministers and civil servants discussing "[getting] heavy with the police" to enforce lockdown measures with senior police officers being brought into Number 10 to be told to be stricter with the public.[67]
6 March – The Telegraph publishes messages that are reported to have been exchanged between Allan Nixon, a parliamentary Advisor and Hancock from November 2020 in which they discuss threatening to cancel projects in MPs constituencies if MPs do not support the
local lockdown tiers legislation. It is also reported that as part of a strategy aimed at trying to stop MPs from rebelling against the legislation, party
whips compiled a spreadsheet of 95 MPs who disagreed with this policy and the reasons for them disagreeing; these related to lack of parliamentary scrutiny, economic harm, harms to hospital, absence of cost benefit analysis and the policy being "unconservative".[69]
7 March –
Home Secretary
Suella Braverman introduces the
Illegal Migration Bill into the
House of Commons, which is designed to stop migrants arriving in the UK by boat. The legislation proposes to detain and remove those from the UK who arrive by illegal means, as well as blocking them from returning.[70]
STV hosts the first televised debate of the Scottish National Party leadership election.[71]
9 March – The UK government announces a two-year delay in the construction of the Birmingham to Crewe leg of
HS2 in order to save costs.[72]
16 March – The UK government announces that
TikTok is to be banned on electronic devices used by ministers and other employees, amid security concerns relating to the Chinese-owned app's handling of user data.[79] The
Welsh Government also announces the app will be banned from all its official devices.[80]
18 March –
Peter Murrell resigns as chief executive of the Scottish National Party amid a row over party membership.[81]Mike Russell succeeds him as interim chief executive.[82]
19 March – The UK government launches the
Emergency Alerts service, a service to send text alerts to mobile phones in a situation where it is perceived there is an immediate risk to life.[83]
21 March –
Partygate scandal: Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson publishes a 52-page defence of his actions during the COVID-19 pandemic in which he acknowledges misleading Parliament over the Partygate scandal, but says he did not do so intentionally.[84]
Stormont is to ban Northern Ireland's civil servants from using the
TikTok app on their official devices following a similar decision by the
Westminster Government.[86]
22 March –
Boris Johnson gives evidence to the cross-party Privileges Committee, relating to his conduct during
Partygate. He insists that he "did not lie" to the House of Commons and always made statements in good faith.[87]
Scotland's First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, issues a "sincere, heartfelt and unreserved" apology to people affected by the practice of forced adoption in Scotland during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.[89]
The
TikTok app is banned on all Scottish Government phones and electric devices.[91] The
Westminster Parliament also announces that the app will be banned on "all parliamentary devices and the wider parliamentary network".[92]
Reports in The Sun and i newspapers suggest former Prime Minister
Liz Truss, who was in office for 49 days, has submitted a Resignation Honours list.[94]
London City Hall bans its staff from using TikTok on all its official devices.[95]
26 March – The Observer reports on a sting operation staged by the campaign group
Led By Donkeys in which former ministers
Matt Hancock and
Kwasi Kwarteng agreed to work for a fake South Korean company for £10,000 per day.[96]
The UK government introduces the
Victims and Prisoners Bill into the House of Commons, which will give ministers the power to veto the release of some prisoners, and restrict marriage in prison for those serving whole life terms.[106]
Humza Yousaf is sworn in as Scotland's First Minister at Edinburgh's
Court of Session and begins naming his cabinet.[107]
30 March –
During his state visit to Germany,
Charles III becomes the first British monarch to address the
Bundestag.[108]
The
Cabinet Office issues ministers with updated guidelines on the use of messaging apps such as
WhatsApp for government business, advising them to use the apps "with care" and never to use them for information classified as "secret".[109]
The
Parliamentary Standards Committee recommends that former Scottish National Party MP
Margaret Ferrier be suspended from the House of Commons for 30 days for breaching COVID-19 regulations in September 2020 when she took a train home from London following a positive COVID test.[110]
3 April – Environment Minister
Therese Coffey confirms government plans to ban
wet wipes containing plastic in England as a means of helping to tackle water pollution.[112]
4 April – Immigration Minister
Robert Jenrick is given a six-month driving ban by magistrates after he was caught speeding on the
M1.[113]
5 April –
The UK government confirms plans to use the vessel
Bibby Stockholm to house around 500 male migrants off the Dorset Coast, citing the cheaper cost of doing so compared to housing them in hotels.[114]
The Times publishes video of an undercover investigation in which Conservative MP
Scott Benton apparently offers to lobby on behalf of a fake company.[116] Benton subsequently has the
party whip withdrawn.[117]
Police arrest former SNP chief executive
Peter Murrell as part of their investigation into the party's finances and release him later without charge pending further investigation.[118]
6 April – An inquiry concludes without being able to determine whether Conservative MP
Mark Spencer told colleague
Nus Ghani that her Muslim faith was a factor in her sacking.[119]
7 April –
BBC News reports that
Johnston Carmichael, the accountants who audit the SNP's accounts, have resigned from the role, citing a their decision to do so as having been taken following a review of their clients.[120]
Labour are accused by critics of practicing "dog whistle" and "gutter politics" following the release of adverts personally attacking Prime Minister
Rishi Sunak with claims that he does not believe people convicted of child sex offences should be sent to prison.[121]
8 April – SNP president Mike Russell tells The Herald newspaper he does not think Scottish independence can be achieved "right now", and that the party is facing its biggest crisis for 50 years.[122]
10 April – Sir Keir Starmer says that he stands "by every word" of the Labour Party's adverts attacking Rishi Sunak despite criticism from fellow party members.[123]
12 April – SNP leader
Humza Yousaf confirms that his party will not pay any legal fees for former chief executive
Peter Murrell, but that he will not be suspended from the party because he is "innocent until proven guilty".[124]
13 April – Andrew Edwards, a councillor representing a ward in
Haverfordwest, is suspended from the Conservative Party after his voice is identified on a recording in which someone stating a belief that white men should have black slaves.[125]
Shaun Slater, a
Bromley councillor who tweeted that it was "more likely" a rape victim was a prostitute whose "punter... didn't pay", is expelled from the Conservative Party.[128]
16 April –
Scotland's Sunday Mail publishes leaked video purporting to show
Nicola Sturgeon playing down concerns about the SNP's finances.[129]
The SNP says that its finances are "in balance" following reports the party is facing a financial crisis.[130]
17 April –
The
Parliamentary Standards Commissioner is to investigate Prime Minister Rishi Sunak over a possible failure to declare an interest over a childcare company in which his wife has shares.[131]
Sunak announces a review of the "core maths content" taught in England's schools, with the establishment of a panel to conduct the review.[132]
MP Margaret Ferrier confirms she will appeal against her 30-day ban from the House of Commons.[133]
18 April – SNP treasurer
Colin Beattie is arrested and questioned by
Police Scotland in connection with their ongoing investigation into the party's finances.[134]
19 April –
Downing Street publishes a full list of financial interests for all ministers, including those of
Rishi Sunak which mention a childcare company in which his wife has shares. Sunak had previously declared the shares to government officials, Downing Street said, and BBC News said it was told that this happened before he became prime minister.[135][136] Downing Street had previously said work on the new list was ongoing.[136]
20 April – Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is handed the findings of an investigation into bullying allegations against Deputy Prime Minister
Dominic Raab.[138]
Diane Abbott is suspended from the
Labour Party after writing a letter in The Observer in which she downplays racism against Irish people, Jews, and Travellers.[145]
The
Emergency Alerts service is tested by the UK government at 3pm BST. An estimated 80% of smartphones are believed to be compatible to receive the alert, but around 7% of those do not receive it. Many people on the
Three network report that the alert failed to appear on their phone, while others do not receive it because their phone is switched to aeroplane mode or they have disabled emergency alerts.[146][147]
26 April –
Andrew Bridgen is expelled from the Conservative Party after comparing COVID-19 vaccines to the Holocaust and being found to have breached lobbying rules.[148]
The
Illegal Migration Bill passes its final stage in the House of Commons, with MPs voting 289–230 in favour of the bill.[149]
Richard Sharp resigns as Chairman of the
BBC over his breach of the BBC's rules regarding public appointments after failing to declare his connection to a loan secured by former Prime Minister
Boris Johnson worth £800,000.[153]
29 April – The constituency Labour parties of
Rutherglen and
Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse have written to Labour leader
Sir Keir Starmer and Scottish Labour leader
Anas Sarwar to make a formal complaint about the selection process for candidates, after being "inundated" with complaints by local members about a "lack of transparency".[155]
30 April – Former Prime Minister
Liz Truss is contesting a bill of around £12,000 she has been asked to pay by the government for costs incurred at
Chevening House in Kent during her time as Foreign Secretary and while she was a candidate in the
Summer 2022 Conservative leadership election.[156]
The Scottish Government reverses plans to give £46m to colleges and universities, having identified the money as an "essential saving".[158]
3 May –
An independent review into the internal culture of
Plaid Cymru identifies several issues within the party, and concludes that it needs to "detoxify a culture of harassment, bullying and
misogyny".[159]
The SNP signs a contract with a new auditor, Manchester-based AMS Accountants Group.[160]
7 May – Leaked text message conversations obtained by the BBC show members of Plaid Cymru discussed whether the party's leader,
Adam Price, was fit for office in November 2022, and debated whether he should be removed from the post.[168]
10 May –
Following his expulsion from the Conservative Party for calling COVID-19 vaccines the "biggest crime against humanity since the Holocaust," MP
Andrew Bridgen announces he will join the
Reclaim Party, giving the party its first parliamentary representative.[169]
Adam Price announces his resignation as leader of
Plaid Cymru after a report found a culture of misogyny, harassment and bullying in the party.[170]
11 May –
Kemi Badenoch, the
Secretary of State for Business, is reprimanded in the House of Commons by Speaker
Lindsay Hoyle after the UK government's decision to scrap plans to allow EU-era legislation to expire was reported in the media before it was announced to Parliament.[171]
Llyr Gruffydd is appointed interim leader of Plaid Cymru following the resignation of Adam Price.[172]
16 May –
Javad Marandi, a businessman whose foreign companies were part of a global money laundering investigation, is named as a major donor to the Conservative Party.[173]
Adam Price makes his final Senedd appearance as leader of Plaid Cymru.[174]
Llyr Gruffydd formally succeeds Adam Price as leader of Plaid Cymru.[178]
18 May – The
2023 Northern Ireland local elections are held.
Sinn Féin sees a net gain of 39 seats, increasing the party's Councillor count from 105 to 144 Councillors.
DUP seeing no net gain or loss, siting at 122 seats and
Alliance having a net gain of 14 Councillors with most other parties seeing losses.[179]
19 May – Data collected from 160 local authorities in England shows that 26,165 were turned away from polling stations during England's local elections for not having valid ID. Of those, 16,588 later returned with ID later in the day, while 9,577 did not return.[180]
20 May –
Sinn Féin are now the largest political party in Northern Ireland after making significant gains in the local election votes.[181]
21 May – Labour and the Liberal Democrats call for an inquiry into Home Secretary Suella Braverman after it is reported she asked civil servants to arrange a private
speed awareness course after she was caught speeding in summer 2022 during her tenure as Attorney General.[182]
22 May – Former Deputy Prime Minister
Dominic Raab announces he will stand down from Parliament at the next election.[183]
23 May – The Cabinet Office has referred former Prime Minister Boris Johnson to the police following fresh allegations of rule breaches during the COVID-19 pandemic.[184]
24 May –
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirms that Home Secretary
Suella Braverman's handling of a speeding offence did not breach ministerial rules and that she will not face an investigation.[185]
Neil Coyle is reinstated as a Labour MP following a five-day suspension from the House of Commons after he was found to have breached harassment rules over racist comments he made to a journalist. Labour says his conduct will be monitored by the party's chief whip.[187]
A proposed vote by MPs on a 30-day House of Commons ban for Margaret Ferrier is postponed after there are deemed to be too few MPs present for the vote to carry.[189]
Four MPs who claimed fines for driving offences on their personal expenses have been asked to repay the money by parliamentary authorities.[192]
The Home Office announces it is launching an ad campaign on social media in Albania to deter migrants from coming to the UK; the campaign will begin the following week.[193]
31 May –
Labour's
Nick Thomas-Symonds defends the party's decision to accept money from green entrepreneur
Dale Vince, a supporter of
Just Stop Oil describing him as a "legitimate person" to accept money from, and says that it has nothing to do with the party's views on the protest organisation.[194]
Personal trainer Henry Morris reveals himself to be the person behind a parody Twitter account titled Secret Tory.[195]
June
1 June –
Labour suspend MP
Geraint Davies from the party following allegations that he subjected younger members to unwanted sexual attention.[196]
The UK government confirms it will launch a legal challenge over the COVID-19 Inquiry's demand for the unredacted version of Boris Johnson's WhatsApp messages and emails as the deadline on which the inquiry had demanded access to them expires.[197]
2 June – Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson announces he is bypassing the Cabinet Office by directly supplying the COVID-19 inquiry with unredacted copies of his WhatsApp messages and emails.[198]
5 June – The Parliamentary Standards Committee finds former Conservative MP
Matt Hancock (now sitting as an independent) guilty of attempting to influence an investigation into Conservative MP
Steve Brine, and orders him to apologise to Parliament.[199]
6 June –
MPs vote to suspend
Margaret Ferrier, the MP for
Rutherglen and Hamilton West, from the House of Commons for 30 days for breaching COVID-19 regulations, almost certainly triggering a by-election in her constituency.[200]
Ian Blackford, the SNP's leader at Westminster from 2017 to 2022, announces he will step down from Parliament at the next general election.[201]
Shadow Chancellor
Rachel Reeves announces a change of policy on Labour's 2021 pledge of an annual £28bn investment in green industry if the party wins the next election, saying the party must be "responsible" with public finances. She confirms that Labour would instead increase investment each year between 2024 (the expected date of the election) and 2027, when the annual amount would be £28bn.[212]
Bambos Charalambous, the Shadow Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, is suspended from the Labour Party following complaints about his conduct.[213]
Rhun ap Iorwerth is set to become the next leader of Plaid Cymru after the final two candidates seen as potential rivals in the party's leadership race,
Sian Gwenllian and
Sioned Williams, issue a joint statement ruling themselves out of the contest.[214]
Health Minister
Will Quince announces he will step down as a Conservative MP at the next general election.[215]
10 June –
Nigel Adams becomes the third Conservative MP in quick succession to stand down from Parliament with immediate effect, triggering a
by-election.[216]
Police Scotland arrest Scotland's former First Minister,
Nicola Sturgeon, as part of their ongoing investigation into the SNP's finances. She is subsequently released without charge.[218]
12 June –
The
House of Lords Appointments Commission says that it rejected eight of Boris Johnson's nominations for peers after Sunak accuses Johnson of asking him to intervene in the process, something Johnson rejects.[219]
Chris Bryant, chair of the Commons Select Committee of Privileges, describes attacks on the committee's procedures aas "bang out of order".[220]
With the findings of the Privileges Committee investigation into Boris Johnson scheduled to be published within days, Johnson submits an eleventh hour letter to the Committee at 23:57 on 12 June.[221]
Scotland's First Minister,
Humza Yousaf, tells BBC News he will not suspend Nicola Sturgeon from the SNP following her arrest.[222]
The broadcasting regulator
Ofcom announces it is conducting research into public attitudes towards
current affairs programmes presented by politicians with a view to a potential change in the rules regarding such shows.[223]
Independent councillor Ieuan Williams stands down as deputy leader of
Isle of Anglesey County Council after telling a meeting the previous evening that "all Tories should be shot". Apologising for the comment, Williams says he was "angry and emotional" about poverty at the time.[225]
15 June –
Partygate: A report by MPs concludes that ex-Prime Minister
Boris Johnson deliberately misled the
Commons over lockdown parties at
10 Downing Street, and would be suspended for 90 days if still an MP. It states that he deliberately misled the House, the committee, impugned the committee and was "complicit in the campaign of abuse and attempted intimidation of the Committee".[226][227]
Lucy Allan, Conservative MP for
Telford, announces she will stand down from Parliament at the next general election.[228]
Scotland's First Minister, Humza Yousaf, concludes that
Jenny Gilruth did not break the ministerial code during her time as the country's Transport Minister. The announcement comes after
Scottish Conservatives leader
Douglas Ross suggested she had done so by delaying important railways work that cost £1m.[229]
After several of Johnson's former Conservative colleagues threaten to vote against the Privileges Committee report when it is brought before Parliament, Johnson asks them not to do so.[232]
Buckingham Palace announces that Charles III has given Queen Camilla Scotland's highest honour, the
Order of the Thistle.[233]
David Warburton, the MP for
Somerton and Frome, becomes the fourth Conservative MP in eight days to announce their resignation from the House of Commons, doing so following suspension from the party over allegations of sexual misconduct, and triggering a
by-election in his constituency.[240]
The Mirror publishes video footage of a party held in December 2020 at Conservative Party Headquarters. Housing Secretary
Michael Gove describes the incident as "indefensible".[241]
BBC News reports that it has seen an invitation sent out to 30 people by
Ben Mallett, a former aide to Boris Johnson, in which they were invited to "jingle and mingle" at a party held at Conservative Party Headquarters on 14 December 2020, while London was in
Tier 2 restrictions.[243]
MPs back, by 354 votes to seven, a report finding Boris Johnson deliberately misled the Commons over lockdown parties at Downing Street.[244]
20 June –
The
Chancellor,
Jeremy Hunt, rules out direct financial support for mortgage holders, over fears it would "make inflation worse, not better".[245]
A
recall petition opens in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West constituency to determine whether Margaret Ferrier will face a by-election; 10% of eligible voters must sign it to trigger the by-election.[246]
21 June – Welsh Conservative Member of the Senedd
Tom Giffard gives a speech in the Senedd congratulating Wales for winning the 2023
World Cup of Darts generated by the
ChatGPT chatbot.[248]
Research carried out by the
Electoral Commission indicates around 14,000 people were prevented from voting in England's May 2023 elections because they did not have suitable photo ID, with unemployed people and those among ethnic minorities being more likely to be turned away.[252]
24 June –
The UK government holds an emergency
COBRA meeting to discuss the
Wagner Group rebellion in Russia. Sunak urges both sides to "be responsible and to protect civilians".[253]
Addressing a convention in
Dundee, Scotland's First Minister,
Humza Yousaf, says the SNP will use the next general election as a referendum to negotiate independence with the UK government if the party wins a majority in Scotland.[254]
26 June –
Daniel Korski, a former Downing Street adviser, rejects "in the strongest possible terms" a claim by journalist and author
Daisy Goodwin that he groped her during a meeting at Downing Street in 2013.[255]
27 June –
Virginia Crosbie, the MP for
Ynys Môn, apologises for attending a drinks event at Westminster on 8 December 2020 after the Guido Fawkes website reported she was a co-host of the event.[256]
28 June –
The final proposals for the
2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies are published, and see changes to constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales. The overall number of MPs elected at the next general election will remain at 650, but the number of seats will change from 533 to 543 in England, 40 to 32 in Wales, and 59 to 57 in Scotland. The review, which takes account of changes in population, will also see some prominent MPs, such as Conservative Defence Secretary
Ben Wallace and Labour's Shadow Chancellor
Rachel Reeves, lose their seats as they are abolished, requiring them to undergo a fresh selection process for alternative seats.[257]
Stewart Hosie, MP for
Dundee East and former SNP deputy leader, confirms he will stand down from Parliament at the next general election.[258]
Daniel Korski withdraws from the contest to be the Conservative candidate for the
2024 London mayoral election following allegations he groped journalist and author Daisy Goodwin.[259]
Robin Millar resigns as a parliamentary aide to Welsh Secretary
David TC Davies in order to vote against legislation that makes it compulsory for schools in Northern Ireland to teach all post-primary school children about abortion and birth control. The legislation passes by 373–28.[260]
Rwanda Asylum Plan: The plan to deport some asylum seekers to Rwanda is ruled unlawful. In a three-judge decision, the court of appeal overturns a high court decision that previously ruled that Rwanda could be considered a safe third country to send refugees.[262]
A
Local Government Association survey indicates that one in ten councils in England have had councillors stand down from office due to a legal requirement that council meetings should be held in person. The rule was suspended during the pandemic, but reinstated in May 2021.[263]
Conservative MP Lee Anderson faces censure from the
Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons for filming a promotional video for his GB News programme on Parliamentary property without permission.[264]
30 June –
Zac Goldsmith resigns as
Minister of State for Overseas Territories, Commonwealth, Energy, Climate and Environment after he was accused by the Privileges Committee of interfering with their work. Goldsmith said he resigned over a long-standing climate issue, something Sunak contradicted when he said that Goldsmith resigned because he refused to apologise for criticising the Committee investigation into Johnson. Goldsmith later said that was wrong.[265]
The
High Court hears the UK government's legal challenge to the
UK COVID-19 Inquiry's demand for full access to Johnson's diaries and WhatsApp messages.[267]
The UK government says it will not investigate allegations of groping made against Daniel Korski.[268]
Local Government Minister
Lee Rowley formally writes to
South Cambridgeshire District Council to request they end their trial of a four-day working week "immediately" amid concerns about "value for money". The scheme, launched in January 2023, is scheduled to run until March 2024.[270]
First Minister of Scotland
Humza Yousaf announces that the SNP has changed the way it records donations after the issue was highlighted by its auditors. Having previously only kept online records of donations under £250, the party will now keep documented records of the donations.[271]
The Labour Party announces that a future Labour government will give newly qualified teachers in England a £2,400 payment to stop them leaving the profession.[273]
The
Cabinet Office finds that
Sue Gray broke civil service rules by failing to declare that she was in talks with Labour about a job with the party. Labour dismisses the finding as a "political stunt".[275]
Illegal Migration Bill: The
House of Lords votes to limit the time which children and pregnant women can be held before being deported for entering the UK illegally.[277]
A group of Conservative MPs calling themselves the
New Conservatives publish a 12-point plan intended to reduce net migration to the UK, and warn Sunak that failure to tackle the issue "risks eroding public trust".[278]
Ofcom launches investigations into an episode of Jacob Rees-Mogg's State of the Nation that aired on GB News on 9 May, and an edition of Richard Tice presented by
Alex Salmond on TalkTV on 2 April, both of which covered news stories, but were presented by politicians. The State of the Nation investigation will establish whether the edition of the programme, which covered a jury verdict on former US President Donald Trump, complies with broadcast regulations, while the Richard Tice investigation will look at whether the programme was presented with due impartiality. The former received 40 complaints after airing, while the latter received two.[279][280]
4 July –
The
Metropolitan Police announces it is reopening its investigation into a lockdown party held at Conservative Party Headquarters in December 2020, as well as an event held at Westminster on 8 December 2020.[281]
SNP MP
Mhairi Black announces she will stand down from Parliament at the next general election.[282]
SNP MP
Angus McNeil is suspended from the party for a week following an argument with the party's chief whip,
Brendan O'Hara, after he allegedly threatened O'Hara.[285]
Media expert Chris Banatvala, who drew up the UK's broadcasting rules, urges
Ofcom to decide whether politicians should be allowed to present programmes on news channels.[286]
Six members of Parliamentary staff tell BBC Newsnight that a "predatory culture" still exists in Westminster, with abuses of power by male MPs and senior staffers common.[287]
The UK government loses a High Court bid to prevent the COVID-19 Inquiry from seeing Boris Johnson's diaries and WhatsApp messages in full.[289]
Caroline Nokes, who chairs the House of Commons
Women and Equalities Committee, tells the BBC's Newsnight programme she has experienced inappropriate behaviour at Westminster around 30 times since becoming an MP, and that describes what some women working at Westminster have been through as "horrific".[290]
The Scottish and UK governments confirm plans to collaborate on new legislation to prevent landlords excluding parents and people on benefits from renting properties.[291]
The Scottish Government urges Westminster to decriminalise the personal possession of all illegal drugs, and puts forward a number of proposals for the managed use of drugs.[293]
Ofcom launches an investigation into a GB News campaign that urges the UK government to introduce legislation to stop "Britain becoming a cashless society" following a complaint. The "Don't Kill Cash" petition, which has been signed by more than 166,000 people, potentially breaches Ofcom's rules that require broadcasters to not comment on "matters of political and industrial controversy or current public policy".[294]
John McNally, MP for
Falkirk, says he will stand down from Parliament at the next election, becoming the seventh SNP MP to do so.[300]
The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards opens an investigation into Conservative MP Lee Anderson for using the roof of his Westminster office to film a promotional video for his GB News show.[301]
MPs approve the Privileges Committee report that accused Johnson's allies of running a co-ordinated campaign to interfere with the report into Johnson.[302]
11 July –
MPs overturn many of the 20 changes the House of Lords made to the Illegal Migration Bill, but the government makes concessions on the detention of children and pregnant women.[303]
In the
Senedd, Wales's First Minister, Mark Drakeford, defends the country's former Health Minister Vaughan Gething for not reading pandemic paperwork until he prepared for the COVID-19 inquiry, but
Andrew RT Davies, leader of the
Welsh Conservatives questions how there can be confidence in Gething's current job as Economy Minister.[304]
MPs on the
Public Bills Committee vote 9–6 against an amendment to the
Victims and Prisoners Bill that would remove parental rights from a person convicted of murdering their partner for the duration of their sentence.[305]
12 July –
Cabinet Secretary Simon Case refers Nadine Dorries to the Conservative Whip following allegations she sent "forceful" messages to officials.[306]
Simon Case urges politicians to stop referring to the Civil Service as "the Blob", describing the term "insulting" and "dehumanising".[307]
13 July –
Illegal Migration Bill: The House of Lords rejects government plans to extend the amount of time migrant children can be held in detention, and also votes to increase protection for people claiming to be the victims of human trafficking.[308]
Labour announce plans to reform the Parliamentary standards system if they win the next general election, including levying fines for former ministers who breach lobbying rules.[309]
A report into UK dentistry published by the
Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee concludes that it is "totally unacceptable" that many people do not have access to a dentist, and calls for more to be done to facilitate this.[311]
Angus MacNeil is suspended from the SNP after declining an invitation to rejoin the party at Westminster.[312]
15 July –
Secretary of State for DefenceBen Wallace announces his intention to stand down from the Cabinet at the next reshuffle, and to stand down as an MP at the next general election when
his constituency will be abolished because of boundary changes.[313]
Angus MacNeil urges the UK government to reopen the Energy Bill Support Scheme Alternative Funding programme, designed to help households that missed out on the £400 worth of financial help given to households in the winter of 2022–23 after it emerged that of the one million households eligible to apply to the scheme only a fraction received any funds.[314]
17 July – The
Illegal Migration Bill is set to become law after the House of Lords votes not to reinstate time limits on child detention and protections concerning modern slavery.[317]
18 July –
Philippa Whitford, MP for
Central Ayrshire, announces she will stand down from Parliament at the next general election, becoming the eighth SNP MP to do so.[318]
Writing for The Telegraph, former UKIP and Brexit Party leader
Nigel Farage claims to have evidence that
Coutts bank decided to close his account because his views "do not align" with theirs.[321] The report obtained by Farage is subsequently published in the Daily Mail.[322]
19 July – The Conservative Party have complained to the Evening Standard about their front page coverage of the party's selection of
Susan Hall as its candidate for the
2024 London mayoral election, claiming the coverage is "contemptable".[324]
Nigel Farage receives an apology from
Dame Alison Rose, the chief executive of
NatWest Bank, for "deeply inappropriate" comments made about him in a report on his suitability as a customer at Coutts Bank. The UK government also announces that banks will be required to fully explain their reasons for closing people's accounts.[326]
Selby and Ainsty: Labour takes the formerly safe Conservative seat of Selby and Ainsty. The swing of 23.7% is the largest since 1945.
Keir Mather becomes the constituency's new MP, and at 25, the youngest Member of Parliament and
Baby of the House.[334]
23 July – The Cabinet Office announces the launch of the
Humanitarian Medal for emergency workers and humanitarian relief teams, such as charities, service personnel and health workers.[336]
Charlotte Owen, a former adviser to Boris Johnson, joins the House of Lords as its youngest life peer at the age of 30, becoming Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge.[338] Her appointment was announced on 12 July.[339]
The Cabinet Office confirms that controversial guidance used to vet potential speakers for government organised events has been withdrawn.[340]
25 July –
Dame Alison Rose says she was the source of an inaccurate BBC news report about Nigel Farage's Coutts bank account after discussing the matter with BBC business editor
Simon Jack, something she describes as a "serious error of judgement".[341] She subsequently resigns from her post early the next day.[342]
Labour abandons proposals to allow people to legally change their sex without a medical diagnosis.[343] This policy is in juxtaposition to
Scottish Labour which confirms it still supports removing the requirement.[344]
27 July – First Minister of Scotland
Humza Yousaf unveils a new Scottish Government paper on independence that includes plans for Scottish citizenship and passports.[346]
28 July –
Gina Miller, leader of the
True and Fair Party, reveals she was told one of the party's bank accounts would be close without explanation by
Monzo. The bank has since confirmed it does now allow accounts for political parties.[347]
30 July – Nigel Farage launches AccountClosed.org, a website he says will stand up for people who have been refused bank accounts.[348]
31 July –
Nick Timothy is selected as the Conservative Party candidate for the
West Suffolk constituency, the seat currently occupied by former Health Secretary
Matt Hancock.[349]
1 August – The
Department for Business and Trade announces that the
CE marking will continue to be recognised on products sold in the UK, rather than being replaced by a post-Brexit British logo, which was scheduled to happen in 2024.[352]
2 August –
Robin Harper, who in 1999 became the first Green parliamentarian after he was elected to the Scottish Parliament, resigns his life membership of the
Scottish Greens claiming the party has "lost the plot".[353]
Gwent Police says it is "reviewing" the content of a leaflet sent to constituents by Conservative MP
David TC Davies discussing traveller sites in the area.[354] They subsequently announce Davies will face no action over the leaflet.[355]
3 August – Five people are arrested after environmental protesters from
Greenpeace climb on the roof of the
North Yorkshire home of Rishi Sunak in protest at the Prime Minister's decision to award 100 new oil contracts.[356]
4 August –
Chancellor
Jeremy Hunt instructs the
Financial Conduct Authority to speed up their investigation into whether people have had their bank accounts closed because of their political views.[357]
Comedian
Eddie Izzard announces plans to stand in one of Brighton's constituencies at the next general election.[358]
A royal spokesman confirms there will be no official public events to mark the first anniversary of the
death of
Elizabeth II.[359]
Edinburgh's
Court of Session rejects an attempt by the Scottish Government to delay the hearing into its legal challenge against Westminster's decision to block the
Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill. The Scottish Government had wanted it delayed until after a separate hearing into determining the definition of a woman.[360]
8 August – The
Electoral Commission warns people to look out for unauthorised use of their data after revealing it was the victim of a "complex cyber-attack" in August 2021, which was not discovered until October 2022.[365]
9 August –
First Minister of Wales
Mark Drakeford confirms he will leave the Senedd at the
Next Senedd election; he is expected to stand down as First Minister before then.[366]
Drakeford asks ministers to make cuts to public services in Wales as inflation and public sector pay place constraints on the Welsh Government's budget.[367]
10 August –
Stuart Andrew, MP for
Pudsey, confirms he will not stand again for parliament at the next general election.[368]
11 August –
Ministry of Defence data indicates
Rishi Sunak has taken more domestic flights during his time as prime minister than his three predecessors did during their terms in office.[369]
Angus McNeil, MP for the
Western Isles, is expelled from the SNP following his disagreement with the party's Chief Whip at Westminster.[372]
13 August – Following calls from some senior SNP figures for a review,
Ian Blackford, the SNP's former leader at Westminster, confirms the
SNP–Green agreement at Holyrood will remain in place until 2026.[373]
15 August –
Global Media & Entertainment have rejected an
Alba Party poster depicting Rishi Sunday as a vampire feeding off Scottish oil because it "slandered" the prime minister.[374]
17 August – The Saudi Arabian embassy in the UK announces that
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been invited to visit the UK, although Downing Street says there are no plans in the prime minister's diary for a visit.[375]
25 August – Following a review of MPs severance pay, the
Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority announces the money paid to MPs leaving Parliament at the next election will double to £19,000, and will be paid over four months rather than two.[380]
26 August – Conservative MP
Nadine Dorries resigns
her Parliamentary seat two months after originally saying she would do so, accusing Prime Minister
Rishi Sunak of abandoning "the fundamental principles of Conservatism" and that "history will not judge [him] kindly".[381]
27 August – Shadow Chancellor
Rachel Reeves rules out any form of a wealth tax if Labour wins the next general election, saying that any extra funding for public services must come about as a result of economic growth.[382]
29 August –
The UK government announces plans to scrap EU-era water pollution restrictions on housing development in order to facilitate the building of more houses.[383]
Monmouthshire county councillor Sara Burch resigns from her cabinet post following a post on
Twitter in which she likened the actions of the
Secretary of State for Wales to events in the
Romani Holocaust after accusing him of "whipping up anti-traveller feeling".[384]
Following a number of high profile criminal trials during which convicted defendants have refused to attend their sentencing hearings, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announces plans to introduce legislation that will compel convicted criminals to attend their sentencing hearings, by force if necessary, or face more time in prison.[386]
The UK government announces plans to reinstate EU equal pay laws that were scrapped in a post-Brexit purge of EU legislation.[387]
31 August –
Rishi Sunak carries out a mini-cabinet reshuffle, promoting
Grant Shapps to Defence Secretary to replace
Ben Wallace who plans to stand down from Parliament at the next election.
Claire Coutinho replaces Shapps as Energy Secretary, and at 38, becomes the youngest member of Sunak's cabinet.[388]
Former Conservative MP
Antoinette Sandbach has asked that her name be removed from a 2021
TEDx Talk that connects her to a slave owner, arguing there is no public interest in identifying her as his descendant.[390]
Chancellor
Jeremy Hunt says the UK government will "spend what it takes" to put right
defective concrete in schools,[392] but concedes that structural problems could be identified in more schools and other public buildings.[393]
Neil Gray, Scotland's Wellbeing and Economy Secretary, says there is no immediate risk to schools in Scotland from
defective concrete.[394]
4 September –
Opposition leader
Sir Keir Starmer performs a
shadow cabinet reshuffle, as MPs return to Westminster after the summer break. This includes
Angela Rayner becoming both Shadow Levelling Up Secretary and Shadow Deputy Prime Minister.[395]
Education Secretary
Gillian Keegan apologises for her use of offensive language after she is recorded swearing following an appearance on
ITV News to discuss the crisis over
defective concrete in schools.[397]
Former minister
Gavin Williamson is told to apologise for sending bullying text messages to a colleague following the publication of the findings of an independent panel of MPs appointed by Parliament to investigate the matter.[398]
Christopher Pincher, MP for
Tamworth, loses his appeal against an eight week suspension from Parliament over an incident in which he drunkenly groped a colleague.[399]
Former SNP MP
Natalie McGarry is ordered to pay £66 for embezzling £25,000 from the SNP and a pro-independence group.[401]
First Minister of Scotland
Humza Yousaf outlines the programme for government legislation for the year ahead, including improvements to childcare, an extra £1bn for social security and pay improvements for social care staff.[402] There are also plans to ban
disposable vapes over environmental concerns.[403]
Home Secretary
Suella Braverman announces that Russia's mercenary
Wagner Group is to be prescribed as a terrorist organisation.[404]
The
OppositionLabour Party unsuccessfully attempts to force a Parliamentary vote that would force the government to publish documents relating to school funding while Sunak was Chancellor.[406]
The UK rejoins the EU's
Horizon Europe scheme, allowing UK scientists and institutions to apply for money from the £81b fund.[408]
Justice Secretary
Alex Chalk announces an independent inquiry into the escape of
Daniel Khalife from
Wandsworth Prison. The inquiry will have two areas of focus – a review of the "placement and categorisation" of all inmates at Wandsworth, and an investigation of all people in custody currently charged with terror offences.[409]
Christopher Pincher resigns his Parliamentary seat, triggering a
by-election.[399]
Conservative MP
Marcus Fysh is reprimanded by the Parliamentary Standards Committee after speaking to the media regarding a now-concluded investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner, and ordered to apologise to the House of Commons.[410]
A government auction for renewable energy projects ends without any new contracts being awarded for offshore wind farms after developers said they were too expensive. Contracts for onshore wind, solar energy and tidal projects are awarded though.[412]
Labour suspends its leadership team in the
Bolton North East constituency following a disagreement over who will represent the party at the next general election. An election campaign will be established by an outside convener.[413]
The Conservatives defend accepting a £350,000 donation from Sandy Chadha, chief executive of Supreme 8 Limited, who is also chief executive of Supreme PLC, a company accused by the Labour Party of marketing vapes to children.[414]
UK government plans to relax restrictions on water pollution to encourage housebuilding in England are defeated in the House of Lords.[423]
A survey by the
Local Government Information Unit has highlighted concerns that Voter ID could cause "serious disruption" if implemented at the next general election.[424]
Two councillors on
Sunderland City Council resign from the opposition Liberal Democrat Party and join the controlling Labour Party.[425][426] These resignations mean the Liberal Democrat Party lose their status as the opposition party, moving to third behind the Conservatives.
14 September –
Responding to an
Intelligence and Security Select Committee report criticising the UK government's China strategy, Sunak says he is "acutely aware of the particular threat to our open and democratic way of life" posed by China.[427]
The
Parliamentary Standards Committee finds that Sunak broke the MPs code of conduct when Downing Street commented on their investigation into his wife's failure to properly declare her financial interest in a childminding company before details had been made public.[428]
15 September –
The UK government formally prescribes the
Wagner Group as a terrorist organisation.[429]
The BBC documentary series State of Chaos is told that senior Whitehall officials raised concerns with Buckingham Palace about Boris Johnson's conduct during the pandemic, and suggested
the Queen raise the matter with him during their weekly private audience.[431]
Conservative MP
Dehenna Davison resigns as a levelling up minister, saying "chronic migraines" have made it "impossible" to do her job.[432] She is replaced by
Jacob Young.[433]
A year on from her
controversial budget, former prime minister
Liz Truss gives a speech in which she attempts to defend the policies she tried to enact, acknowledging she tried to introduce them too fast but blaming the "political and economic establishment" and "institutional bureaucracy" for their failure.[434]
Figures released by the Welsh Government indicate that plans to bring an extra 36
members to the
Senedd could cost an extra £17.8m on top of the present cost of running the legislature.[435]
19 September –
The UK government announces that commissioners will be appointed to oversee the running of
Birmingham City Council following its recent financial troubles.[436]
The UK government is criticised by the
National Audit Office (NAO) over its reasoning behind the decision to use public funds to pay for Boris Johnson's Partygate legal fees, describing it as not "wholly persuasive".[439]
The
Home Office announces it is disbanding the team established in 2018 to deal with
Windrush cases.[441]
Labour leader
Keir Starmer holds a meeting with French President
Emmanuel Macron, which he describes as "very constructive and positive".[442]
In a series of interviews with
BBC Local Radio, Liberal Democrat leader
Sir Ed Davey rules out an electoral deal with the Labour Party for the next general election.[443]
A petition on the
gov.wales website opposing Wales's 20 mph speed limit has received over 177,000 signatures since its launch, and will be considered by the Senedd Petitions Committee for debate as it has passed the 10,000 signatures required to be considered for debate.[444]
20 September –
Sunak announces a major rethink of the UK government's strategy to achieve net zero carbon output in the UK by 2050, including a delay in banning the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035.[445]
Charles III addresses the
French Senate during his state visit to France.[450]
The UK government says that no action will be taken against Boris Johnson after he was found to have made a "clear breach" of rules governing jobs for ex-ministers.[451]
Speaking to LBC ahead of the 2023 autumn statement, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt says it would be "virtually impossible" to introduce tax cuts until the state of the UK economy has improved.[453]
The Home Office is ordered to stop work to convert the former RAF Scampton into an asylum centre by West Lindsey District Council over a potential breach of planning laws.[454]
Conservative MP
Brandon Lewis has claimed that people working for him have struggled to secure mortgages because banks regard them as politically exposed persons.[455]
23 September –
A task force to accelerate home insulation and upgrades to domestic boilers is scrapped by the UK government.[456]
Former prime minister Boris Johnson warns Sunak against building what he describes as a "mutilated" version of HS2 after reports the Birmingham to Manchester leg of the scheme could be scrapped due to spiralling costs.[457]
24 September –
Home Secretary
Suella Braverman orders a review into armed policing, after dozens of firearms officers hand in their weapons, following concerns over a police officer charged with murdering 24-year-old
Chris Kaba.[458]
Former Secretary of State for Transport
Grant Shapps tells the BBC it would be "crazy" not to review HS2 plans amid spiralling costs.[459]
25 September –
Olympic rower
James Cracknell is chosen as the Conservative Party candidate for
Colchester at the next general election following
William Quince's decision to stand down from Parliament.[460]
Mayor of Greater ManchesterAndy Burnham says that scrapping the HS2 rail link between Birmingham and Manchester risks "ripping the heart" out of plans to improve rail services across northern England.[461]
At their annual party conference, members of the Liberal Democrats vote to reject proposals by the party leadership to abandon their housebuilding target of 380,000 properties per year.[462]
Giving his keynote speech at the Liberal Democrats party conference in Bournemouth, Sir Ed Davey calls for a new legal right to begin treatment for cancer within two months of referral in England.[464]
Alok Sharma, MP for
Reading West, announces he will not stand for parliament again at the next general election.[465]
First Minister of Wales
Mark Drakeford tells the Senedd he has received threats to his personal safety over Wales's 20 mph speed limit, while police confirm they are investigating "reports of malicious communications" sent to Drakeford.[466]
27 September – Former SNP minister
Fergus Ewing is suspended from the party for a week after voting against the Scottish Government in a no confidence vote.[468]
29 September –
Around a dozen Conservative MPs, including some ministers, are reported to have complained to the party's chief whip about Suella Braverman's speech on immigration and refugees.[469]
Ahead of the broadcast of an interview with Conservative Home Secretary
Suella Braverman conducted by Conservative deputy chair and
GB News presenter
Lee Anderson, the chief executive of Ofcom,
Melanie Dawes, says there are no present rules to prevent GB News using Anderson to interview Braverman.[470]
Colwyn Bay independent councillor Tom Maclean is cautioned by the
Public Services Ombudsman for Wales after sharing a fake social media post featuring an image of Norwegian mass killer
Anders Breivik. Maclean had claimed not to know the picture was of Breivik and deleted it as soon as his actions came to light.[471]
30 September –
Richard Walker, the chief executive of
Iceland who had plans to stand as a Conservative MP, leaves the party, branding it "out of touch".[472]
October
1 October – Speaking to BBC One's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Prime Minister
Rishi Sunak says that he would like to cut taxes before the next election, but does not commit to doing so.[473] He also declines to confirm whether or not the Birmingham to Manchester leg of the
High Speed 2 rail link will be scrapped.[474]
3 October –
Home Secretary
Suella Braverman addresses the Conservative Party Conference and claims a "hurricane" of migrants are coming to the UK.[475]
London Assembly chair
Andrew Boff is ejected from the Conservative Party Conference after heckling Braverman during her speech.[476]
4 October
Rishi Sunak confirms that the West Midlands to Manchester portion of the
High Speed 2 (HS2) rail link will be axed, which will free up £36bn to be spent on new transport projects in the North and Midlands. He also confirms that the southern portion of the line will run all the way from Birmingham to
Euston, not just
Old Oak Common as earlier reports had speculated.[477][478]
Ahead of her party's annual conference,
Carla Denyer, co-leader of the
Green Party of England and Wales, tells the BBC that winning four seats at the next general election is "absolutely realistic".[482]
6 October –
At a summit of European leaders in Spain, Sunak calls for greater co-operation in dealing with migration.[483]
Dale Vince, a major donor to the Labour Party, says he will no longer fund
Just Stop Oil and describes further protests from the group as being "counterproductive".[484]
The UK government orders an inquiry after the Department for Education miscalculated the schools budget for England for the 2023–24 academic year, forcing a planned 2.7% had to be revised to 1.9%.[486]
8 October –
Marina Wheeler, an employment lawyer and the former wife of Prime Minister
Boris Johnson, has been appointed as the Labour Party's adviser on protecting women against workplace harassment.[487]
9 October –
Sunak chairs an emergency
COBRA meeting to discuss the escalating situation in Israel, and pledges further support for the country.[488]
Shadow Chancellor
Rachel Reeves delivers her keynote speech to the Labour Party Conference, promising to usher in "an era of economic security" by cutting waste and driving growth.[489]
The Supreme Court begins a hearing as the UK government appeals against the Court of Appeal's block on sending asylum seekers to Rwanda.[490]
10 October –
Keir Starmer delivers his keynote speech to the Labour Party Conference, promising to build 1.5 million new homes, make reforms to the NHS and education, and to deliver a "decade of renewal under Labour". The speech is slightly delayed by a protester who throws glitter at Starmer.[491]
Labour suspends
Newport City Councilor Miqdad Al-Nuaimi while it investigates posts he made on social media about Israeli security policy in Gaza.[492]
Aberdeen City Councillor Kairin van Sweeden refers herself to the Standards Commission after describing a fellow councillor who was born in Sri Lanka as a "New Scot" during a council meeting.[494]
Police confirm that 24 fines will be issued for breaches of COVID-19 rules in regard to a party held at Conservative Party HQ in December 2020 for those involved in
Shaun Bailey's campaign to become London Mayor.[497]
14 October –
Scottish Green MSP
Maggie Chapman says she regrets the "upset and anger" caused by her social media post in which she described the
Hamas attack on Israel as "decolonisation" rather than "terrorism". She has since deleted the post.[498]
Former SNP MP Lisa Cameron claims she and her family have had to go into hiding since she switched to the Conservatives after receiving threats of violence.[499]
Crispin Blunt, the MP for
Reigate, co-director of the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians, announced the group's intention to prosecute UK government leaders for "aiding and abetting war crimes in Gaza" amid the
2023 Israel–Hamas war, warning his colleagues in Westminster of the peril of guilt through complicity.[500]
15 October – First Minister of Scotland Humza Yousaf signals a change in his party's Scottish independence strategy, now saying that an SNP win in a majority of Scotland's Westminster seats would give the party a mandate to begin independence negotiations with the Westminster Government.[501]
16 October – Parliament's
Independent Expert Panel recommends Conservative MP
Peter Bone face a six week suspension from the House of Commons after upholding complaints of bullying against him.[502]
17 October –
Peter Bone is suspended by the Parliamentary Conservative Party after allegations of bullying were upheld against him.[503]
Humza Yousaf announces a freeze on
council tax for Scottish households during his closing speech at the SNP Party Conference.[504]
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak begins a two day visit to Israel as part of diplomatic efforts to help prevent the Israel–Hamas war escalating into a wider Middle East conflict.[508] Following a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu, Sunak says he will stand with Israel "in solidarity".[509]
Sunak meets
Palestinian Authority leader
Mahmoud Abbas in Egypt, where they jointly condemn Hamas's attacks on Israel. Sunak also "expressed his deep condolences" for civilian deaths in Gaza.[512]
MPs approve the
Worker Protection Bill, designed to give women better protection against sexual harassment in the workplace.[513]
Downing Street announces that
Cabinet SecretarySimon Case is to take time off due to a private medical matter; he is expected to return in a few weeks.[517]
23 October –
Sunak tells parliament the UK has judged the
al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion, which occurred on 17 October, was likely caused by "a missile, or part of one" fired from "within Gaza".[518]
Ofcom finds GB News breached its regulations on impartiality during a programme which aired on 16 June. Former
Brexit Party MEP
Martin Daubney was standing in for Laurence Fox when he interviewed
Reform Party leader
Richard Tice and discussed immigration. Ofcom finds Tice was not "sufficiently challenged" on his views and "the limited alternative views presented were dismissed".[519] However, Ofcom decides that Lee Anderson's interview with Home Secretary Suella Braverman did not breach their impartiality rules as it was a current affairs programme.[520]
24 October –
Anas Sarwar, the leader of
Scottish Labour, accuses Israel of a "clear breach" of international law in Gaza and says there is "no justification for the withholding of essential supplies" from the people of Gaza. His comments come after a number of Scottish Labour resignations by officials who disagree with Keir Starmer's stance on the conflict.[521]
Sir Keir Starmer meets with Muslim Labour MPs as tension grows over the party's stance on the Israel–Hamas conflict and after 150 Muslim councillors wrote to him urging him to call for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East.[523]
BBC Director General
Tim Davie attends a meeting with Conservative MPs, where there is a heated discussion about the BBC's decision not to describe Hamas as a terrorist organisation in its news reports of the Israel–Hamas conflict.[525]
26 October –
Parliament is
prorogued by order of the King in preparation for the State Opening on 7 November, the first time that Parliament has been prorogued by a king since 1951.[526]
Crispin Blunt, the MP for
Reigate, is suspended from the Conservative Party after he confirms he has been arrested and questioned by police over allegations of rape and possession of controlled substances.[527]
27 October –
GB News have hired former Prime Minister
Boris Johnson to present a series "showcasing the power of Britain around the world"; he will also help to provide coverage of the next UK and US elections.[528]
Scotland's former Health Secretary
Alex Neil calls for an urgent review of the use of WhatsApp by government following revelations that National Clinical Director Jason Leitch deleted messages on a daily basis during the pandemic; he also says that many government ministers did not understand the rules for using the app.[531]
NatWest says there were "serious failings" over its treatment of Nigel Farage.[532]
28 October –
Ash Regan, who stood as a candidate in the
2023 SNP leadership election, defects to the
Alba Party after becoming disillusioned with what she describes as the SNP's "wavering commitment" to Scottish independence.[533]
Downing Street confirms that
Paul Bristow has been sacked as a ministerial aide after calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, something Downing Street describes as comments that "were not consistent with the principles of collective responsibility".[535]
Mark Drakeford, First Minister of Wales and leader of
Welsh Labour, echoes Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer's call for a humanitarian pause in the Gaza conflict to allow aid in to the region. His comments come after 12 of his backbenchers in the Senedd signed a petition calling for a ceasefire.[536]
The Electoral Commission rejects an application to register the Party of Islam as a new political party because it did not define its constitution or structure clearly enough.[539]
November
1 November – The
2023 AI Safety Summit takes place at
Bletchley Park. The UK government announces a "world first agreement" between 28 countries on how to manage the riskiest forms of
AI.[540][541]
3 November – At Westminster Magistrates' Court,
Bob Stewart, MP for
Beckenham, is fined £500 for a racially aggravated public order offence after he told an activist to "go back to Bahrain".[543]
5 November –
Bob Stewart voluntarily surrenders the Conservative Party Whip following his conviction for a racially aggravated public order offence.[544]
Carol Vorderman confirms she is to leave her weekly Saturday morning show on
BBC Radio Wales after breaching the BBC's impartiality rules by posting content critical of the UK government on
X.[550]
An opinion piece by Home Secretary
Suella Braverman was published in The Times in which she questioned the impartiality of the police over the way they deal with demonstrations, saying that aggressive right-wing protesters are "rightly met with a stern response", while "pro-Palestinian mobs" are "largely ignored".[552]
Downing Street says that Rishi Sunak still has "full confidence" in Home Secretary Suella Braverman, while Chancellor
Jeremy Hunt says her comments "are not words that I myself would have used".[554]
Dame Alison Rose, the former chief executive of
NatWest, is to miss out on £7.6m of bonuses and shares after admitting discussing the closure of Nigel Farage's bank account.[555]
Scotland's Health Secretary, Michael Matheson, agrees to pay back the £11,000 of roaming charges he built up while using his iPad during a holiday in Morocco.[556]
Wales's health minister,
Eluned Morgan, apologises over a social media post commenting on
David Cameron's appointment as
Foreign Secretary in which she asked if "Thatcher's hearse" would be next to arrive at Downing Street.[563]
14 November –
Israel–Hamas war: David Cameron, the new foreign secretary, announces sanctions against four senior
Hamas leaders and two of the militant group's financiers.[564]
In a letter to the Rishi Sunak, former Home Secretary Suella Braverman accuses the prime minister of failure and betrayal on key policies.[565]
A group of economists supported by former prime minister Liz Truss proposes an alternative "growth budget" ahead of the
autumn statement, which it claims would boost economic growth by cutting taxes and benefits.[566]
The British Government's plan to deport migrants to
Rwanda is ruled as unlawful by the
Supreme Court.[568]
Sunak says the government will introduce "emergency legislation" to enable Parliament to "confirm Rwanda is safe" and prevent legal challenges from blocking the migrant policy.[569]
Labour frontbenchers resign to vote for an SNP motion calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.[570]
MPs vote 293–125 to reject the SNP's amendment calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.[571]
Senedd Presiding OfficerElin Jones announces an independent review of television channels that will be available in the Senedd building following her previous ban of GB News.[572]
16 November –
David Cameron makes his first working visit to Ukraine as Foreign Secretary, where he meets President
Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, and reiterates the UK's promise to provide moral, diplomatic and "above all military support for... however long it takes".[573]
In a statement to the Scottish Parliament, Health Secretary Michael Matheson says the cause of his £11,000 roaming charges bill came from his sons watching football on his parliamentary iPad while the family was on holiday in Morocco. Matheson confirms he has repaid the money and referred himself to the parliamentary watchdog.[574]
Conservative MPs
Eleanor Laing and
Virginia Crosbie, who were among attendees at a lockdown gathering held at Westminster in December 2020, say they have been told by police they will not be fined over their attendance at the event.[575]
Both the Conservatives and Labour launch welfare to work policies ahead of the autumn statement; the Conservatives intend to focus on expanding career support for those on long-term health related benefits, while Labour outlines plans to reduce the 7.8 million NHS waiting list backlog.[576]
17 November –
Newly appointed Health Secretary
Victoria Atkins says there is no conflict of interest with her husband's job with
British Sugar.[577]
Police launch an investigation after the constituency office of
Jo Stevens, the
Shadow Secretary of State for Wales, was vandalised after she abstained during the Parliamentary vote calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.[581]
19 November – Independent MP Bob Stewart announces he will not seek re-election at the next general election following his conviction for a racially aggravated public order offence.[582]
Local councillors have reacted angrily after James Giles, an independent councillor, emailed 19,000 councillors urging them to sign a petition calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and threatening to identify those who did not.[586]
Labour MP
Alex Cunningham accuses Home Secretary
James Cleverly of describing his constituency,
Stockton North, as a "
shithole" during Prime Minister's Questions. He alleges that the remark was made after he asked a question about child poverty in the area. A spokesman denies that Cleverly made the remark, and later Deputy Speaker
Dame Eleanor Laing says "I understand that the alleged words were not actually used".[588] Cleverly subsequently says he used an "unparliamentary" word to describe the MP but not his constituency.[589]
26 November – Conservative deputy chair
Lee Anderson claims he was approached by
Reform UK and offered the equivalent of five years' worth of MPs salary to defect to the party. The allegation is rejected by Reform UK's leader,
Richard Tice.[591]
27 November –
Sunak cancels a planned meeting with Greek Prime Minister
Kyriakos Mitsotakis after a diplomatic row breaks out between the UK and Greece over the
Elgin Marbles.[592] Downing Street subsequently says that the meeting was cancelled after Mitsotakis broke an agreement not to discuss the Marbles in public when he told BBC One's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg he would like them to be returned.[593]
Home Secretary James Cleverly apologises to the House of Commons for using "inappropriate language" about MP Alex Cunningham, saying he was using the derogatory term to describe Cunningham himself and not his constituency.[594]
29 November – At Prime Minister's Questions, Sunak accuses the Greek prime minister of trying to "grandstand" over the Elgin Marbles when questioned about his decision to cancel a planned meeting with Mitsotakis.[597]
December
1 December –
Bradley Thomas, the Conservative candidate for
Bromsgrove, faces another selection vote after an "irregularity" was found in the original process in July 2023.[598]
3 December –
Sir Keir Starmer uses a Sunday Times article to credit
Margaret Thatcher as a leader who effected "meaningful change" and unleashed Britain's "natural entrepreneurship".[600] Downing Street subsequently responds that Starmer is not "fit to lace Baroness Thatcher's boots".[601]
4 December –
Home Secretary James Cleverly unveils the UK government's five point plan aimed at reducing legal migration, which includes increasing the minimum salary threshold for a visa from £26,200 to £38,700.[602]
MPs vote 246–242 in favour of an amendment to the
Victims and Prisoners Bill requiring the UK government to accelerate plans to establish a body to compensate victims of the
NHS infected blood scandal, defeating the government which had not planned to include the measure in the legislation.[603]
5 December –
Home Secretary
James Cleverly travels to Rwanda to sign a new immigration treaty which he says addresses the concerns of the Supreme Court.[604]
The Court of Session in Edinburgh rejects a bid by the Scottish Government to prevent the publication of details of an inquiry into whether former First Minister
Nicola Sturgeon broke the ministerial code over a meeting with
Alex Salmond's aide in the aftermath of allegations against Salmon in 2021.[607]
Sunak calls an emergency press conference at which he urges Conservative MPs to back his latest Rwanda asylum plan. A vote on the legislation is scheduled to face a parliamentary vote on 12 December, but will not be a vote of confidence in the prime minister's authority.[609]
Two ministers are appointed to replace Robert Jenrick's ministerial briefing for immigration.
Michael Tomlinson is appointed to the role of Minister of State for Illegal Migration, while
Tom Pursglove becomes Minister of State for Legal Migration.[610]
Conservative councillor Wendy Agnew resigns as chair of Aberdeenshire Council's Kincardine and Mearns area committee following comments made about gypsies during a council meeting in November. Agnew is also being investigated by the
Ethical Standards Commissioner following a complaint about the comments.[611]
Police have closed their investigation into potential breaches of COVID rules at a gathering held at Westminster on 8 December 2020, determining that it did not meet the threshold for issuing fines.[614]
9 December – As part of an initiative to make being an MP more attractive as a career, MPs who lose their seats at the next election will receive publicly funded careers advice under a proposed "transition scheme" as they search for new occupations.[615]
10 December –
Lawyers on the right of the Conservative Party have described the revised Rwanda legislation as not "sufficiently watertight".[616]
In his first broadcast since leaving the post of Immigration Minister,
Robert Jenrick tells the BBC Sunak's revised Rwanda plan is unlikely to work since it is "weak" and will become "bogged down" in legal challenges.[617]
The
Green Party cuts ties with
Green Party Women, one of its members' groups, after the group objected to the party's stance on "gender-critical views".[619]
Foreign Secretary
David Cameron threatens to withdraw co-operation with Scottish ministers following a meeting between
Humza Yousaf, the First Minister of Scotland, and Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the
2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, which took place without the presence of a UK official which Cameron said was a breach of protocol.[620] In response, Yousaf calls the threat "petty" and "misguided".[621]
11 December –
Conservative MPs from the
European Research Group (ERG) say the UK government's Rwanda asylum plan will not work because it does not go "far enough to deliver the policy".[622]
The UK government is offering a £2.5bn financial package for the return of a Stormont Executive, which includes funds to settle public sector disputes and for public services.[623]
First Minister of Wales
Mark Drakeford launches an investigation into whether Sports Minister
Dawn Bowden breached the ministerial code over her handling of the Welsh Rugby Union sexism scandal.[627]
Former government minister
David Davis intervenes to stop an attack on a rough sleeper near Parliament.[628]
A report by the
Commons Select Committee on Standards recommends
Scott Benton, MP for
Blackpool, be suspended from Parliament for 35 days over a "very serious breach" of the rules regarding standards after giving the message that "he was corrupt and 'for sale'".[630] Benton subsequently confirms his intention to appeal against the ruling.[631]
Paul Barnett, leader of the Labour controlled
Hastings Borough Council, leaves the Labour Party along with five colleagues to establish an independent group, citing what they collectively describe as Labour's lack of "focus on local government".[634]
A review commissioned by
NatWest into the closure of
Coutts' customer accounts has found "no evidence of discrimination" in relation to people's political views.[635]
Eluned Morgan, considered a favourite in the Welsh Labour leadership election, rules herself out of the contest.[636]
16 December – Sunak travels to Italy to attend a
right-wing rally in Rome, where he discusses his immigration policy and calls for changes to global refugee rules.[637]
17 December –
Michelle Mone says that, in certain circumstances, she could benefit from some of the profits made by personal protective equipment sold to the UK government during the COVID-19 pandemic by a company run by her husband, Doug Barrowman.[638]
Foreign Secretary David Cameron has said he would like to see a "sustainable ceasefire" in Gaza because "too many civilians have been killed".[639]
The UK government announces it will introduce an amendment to the
Criminal Justice Bill to make it clear "without any doubt" that the act of
spiking another person's drink is illegal, but the measures will stop short of making spiking a specific offence.[640]
Drakeford expresses his disappointment there are no women candidates in the Welsh Labour leadership contest, and claims personal attacks on social media have discouraged them from entering the contest.[641]
In response to Michelle Mone acknowledging that, in certain circumstances, she could benefit from some of the profits of a government PPE contract, Sunak says the government is taking the issue "incredibly seriously" and is pursuing legal action against
PPE Medpro.[645]
Welsh Education Minister
Jeremy Miles formally announces his Welsh Labour leadership campaign after winning the backing of 16 Labour members of the Senedd.[646]
19 December –
Finance Secretary
Shona Robison presents the Scottish Government's budget for 2024–25. Measures announced include a new 45% tax rate for people earning between £75,000 and £125,140, and a rise in the top rate of tax, paid by those earning over £125,000, from 47% to 48%. The £43,663 tax threshold is also frozen for the year.[647]
During routine questioning from MPs from Parliament's
Liaison Committee, Sunak says that he does not have a "precise" date by which he hopes to stop migrants from crossing the English channel in boats.[648]
The budget for Wales, announced by Finance Minister
Rebecca Evans, cuts spending on public services, with funds being diverted to support the NHS.[650]
Andrew Bridgen announces he has left the
Reclaim Party seven months after joining over what he describes as a "difference in the direction of the party".[653]
21 December –
Former Justice Secretary
Sir Robert Buckland urges the UK government to do more to tackle the misuse of
Artificial Intelligence to potentially disrupt the next general election, describing it as a "clear and present danger" to UK democracy.[654]
The UK government revises plans to increase the minimum salary someone coming to the UK must earn to apply for a
family visa. Original plans to raise the amount from £18,600 to £38,700 are now updated to £29,000 from spring 2024, with no timetable for any further increases.[655] Sunak subsequently confirms the £38,700 threshold will be introduced in early 2025.[656]
Chancellor
Jeremy Hunt signs a deal with Switzerland to facilitate easier financial transactions between Swiss and UK companies.[657]
24 December – Home Secretary James Cleverly apologises after a Sunday Mirror report that he made an "ironic joke" about spiking his wife's drink at a Downing Street reception shortly after the UK government's announcement that it would clearly define the activity as being illegal.[658]
26 December – The Labour Party says it is confiding processing some asylum claims overseas before asylum seekers reach the UK if it forms the government after the next general election.[659]
James Daly, the MP for
Bury North, said in a newspaper interview that the majority of children in his constituency who are struggling are "the products of crap parents" and that "he wanted to help people from disadvantaged backgrounds have the best chance to succeed".[661]
The UK government says that a report published on the
GOV.UK website on 27 December that said housing asylum seekers on the
Bibby Stockholm barge was discriminatory on the grounds of age and sex was published by mistake. The report is deleted from the website.[666]
31 December – Former Downing Street Director of Communications
Dominic Cummings claims in a blog post to have attended two meetings with Sunak during the past year to discuss political strategy ahead of the next general election, and that the prime minister asked him to "secretly" work on stratecy.[667]
26 February –
Thomas Pendry, Baron Pendry, PC, 88, British politician, Member of Parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde (1970–2001), member of the House of Lords (since 2001).[673]
21 June –
Winnie Ewing, 93, Scottish politician MP (1967–1979), MEP (1979–1999), MSP (1999–2003), President of the Scottish National Party (1987–2005).[683]