Politics - Sunday, May 17, 2026

Two campaign groups claim that change to how NHS treatments are approved amounts to ‘unlawful power grab’ Campaigners against the UK’s controversial drug pricing deal with Donald Trump are threatening the government with legal action unless it scraps a key element of the plan. They claim that a change to how drug treatments are approved for use by the NHS, which could lead to it paying even higher prices for them, amounts to an “unlawful power grab”. Continue reading...

Justice secretary’s white paper will overhaul youth justice rules and could end lifelong criminal records for under-18s David Lammy has promised to cut the number of children kept in jail while they await trial by a quarter as part of an overhaul of youth justice rules that could also end lifelong criminal records for under-18s. The justice secretary is publishing a white paper on Monday that he says will reduce the number of children ending up in jail – something he admits was his greatest fear growing up in Tottenham in the 1980s. Continue reading...

Senator Bill Cassidy, a two-term Republican who voted to convict President Trump in his 2021 impeachment trial, took a veiled swipe at Mr. Trump, saying power should not focus on “one individual.”

President Donald Trump issues stern warning to Iran on Truth Social, saying the clock is ticking as he reportedly weighs restarting military action after China trip.

Reform, which won more than 50% of the local election vote, is likely to focus heavily on immigration and Brexit Andy Burnham faces a perilous race to win the Makerfield seat, his allies have said, as he gears up to fight a byelection that could decide the long-term future of Labour and the country. The Greater Manchester mayor is likely to be confirmed as Labour’s candidate for the north-west constituency later this week, but those close to him say he faces an uphill battle to beat Reform UK. Nigel Farage’s party won more than 50% of the vote at the local elections and polling suggests Burnham is only marginally ahead. Continue reading...

The Senate parliamentarian ruled against including $1 billion in White House security funding tied to Trump's planned ballroom in the budget bill.

Our simulations debunk the notion that the act created artificial minority districts that wouldn’t otherwise exist.

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Jess Phillips’s frustration about online safety highlights the alarming reluctance to confront big tech The £950,000 fine imposed by Ofcom on a US-based suicide forum that is implicated in over 160 UK deaths marks an intensification of the regulator’s efforts to make the internet safer. Campaigners against online harms, including relatives of people who have taken their own lives, are justifiably angry that it has taken so long to get to this point. Even now, Ofcom is giving the website’s operator the chance to address “concerns” and avoid a court order that would ban access to it. But if enforcement remains a tortuous process, at least the principle is clear. It is illegal to encourage or assist a suicide in England and Wales (in Scotland, such actions could lead to prosecution as reckless endangerment or a range of other offences). A situation whereby behaviour is tolerated online, when it would carry criminal penalties if carried out in person, cannot be allowed. Continue reading...

Trump is weighing restarting military action on Iran and will speak with Netanyahu on Sunday amid reports of Iranian deception and delay tactics.