No need for another referendum on Scottish independence, says Keir Starmer

Scottish independence is "wafer thin" and is largely based on the "political charisma" of Nicola Sturgeon.Veteran Nationalist George Kerevan said the party had been allowed to drift rightwards and was spending too much time trying to appease middle class voters.He accused senior SNP figures of wanting to placate a "conservative oligarchy" in Scotland made up of "lawyers, accountants, bankers, medial consultants, kirk ministers and university professors"."This group retains a unique, weighty, and

Richard Leonard has claimed his party’s “pro choice” position on indyref2 at the general election did not work.

Brexit and a devolution "power grab". The claim by a Labour MSP was made during a tense grilling for the UK Government minister over laws which will set an internal market once powers return from the EU to Westminster.

Scottish independence needs to be more respectful as it has become "stuck in a rut", a top political academic has said. Professor James Mitchell - who has written a number of books examining devolution and the SNP - said the “binary choice between union and independence” should be replaced by a wider look at the kind of society that Scots wanted.

Gogglebox families ripping into the Labour leader on Friday night when they watched him being interviewed on The Andrew Marr show. But before we get on to that, the person who fans of the show think looks the spitting image of Sir Keir is Lee Riley.Did you guess that?The Gogglebox favourite, who appears on the show alongside best pal Jenny in her caravan in Hull, was compared to the politician by Twitter user Stuart who said: "You never see Lee and Keir in the same caravan...

Chancellor Rishi Sunak will outline his plans to protect millions of jobs on Thursday after intense opposition insisted more needed to be done in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis. The move came as La bour leader Keir Starmer ramped up calls for a plan B for the coronavirus economy, and the SNP made demands in the Commons for the UK Government’s Job Retention Scheme to be extended.

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Keir Starmer of “losing control” of test and tracing and being “out of touch” with how coronavirus is affecting the daily lives of people.

Keir Starmer is to make a televised address to the nation on Wednesday evening in response to Boris Johnson's coronavirus statement.The Labour leader will get a "right of reply" to the Prime Minister's address in which he warned tougher restrictions could be imposed if the rate does not fall.A finalised time for Starmer's speech has not been confirmed, but it is expected to be broadcast in a primetime slot on the BBC.A Labour source said: "He will support what the Government’s announced but also

Keir Starmer and Scottish leader Richard Leonard to back urgent drugs law reforms to save lives.The Labour Campaign for Drug Policy Reform (LCDPR), backed by 16 MPs and 4 MSPs, yesterday launched its drugs manifesto, which broadly back the reforms the Daily Record has been demanding.Many MPs are understood to be frustrated and angry at the Labour leadership’s slowness in getting behind plans to treat drug addiction as a health rather than a crime issue.The LCDPR calls for the Parliamentary

Labour leader Keir Starmer has said that his party will support the latest measures to tackle the rising coronavirus infection rate in the UK.A raft of new restrictions announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson today included a 10pm closing time for pubs, bars and restaurants, and a request for office workers to once again work from home where possible.During his speech in the House of Commons this afternoon, Boris Johnson also announced that weddings would be limited to a maximum of 15 people,

coronavirus pandemic - he criticised the UK for having "one of the highest death rates in the world" from coronavirus. Sir Keir said a second national lockdown would be a “sign of government failure, not an act of God” that would take an “immense toll” on public health and the economy.Speaking from Doncaster, the Labour leader said: “The warnings yesterday from the government’s advisers were stark.

08.30am - Boris Johnson chairs UK cabinet to sign off new lockdown measures which could be a mild as making pubs close at 10pm in England from Thursday and limiting pubs to table service only.09.00am - Keir Starmer makes a speech in Doncaster to the online Labour conference, before rushing back to the Commons.

Sir Keir Starmer is to appeal to former Labour voters who switched to the SNP to “take another look” at the party under his leadership.The Labour leader is to use a speech at the party’s online conference to make a direct plea to lost Labour voter in Scotland and Conservatives in England.Starmer will acknowledge the lack of trust in Labour that led to the collapse of the Labour vote in Scotland and some north of England constituencies under Jeremy Corbyn.Stamer will address party members in his