Politics latest: Angela Rayner says she 'never' wants to be the leader of the Labour Party

'I don't want to be leader of the Labour Party' - Angela Rayner rules out leadership ambitions

Angela Rayner has said she "never" wants to be the leader of the Labour Party. 

It follows a series of stories suggesting the deputy prime minister has pushed the chancellor for new taxes, so that she can deliver 1.5m new homes.

Rayner confirmed to Sky News that a leak inquiry into this is now underway.

Asked if she leaked these stories herself to boost her credentials, Rayner responds: "Absolutely not. I don't want to be leader of the Labour Party.

"I'm very happy and honoured to be Deputy Prime Minister of this country. And I've got a lot in my in-tray to prove that I can do the job that I'm doing. That's what I'm interested in."

Pushed on whether she really means it, Rayner confirms that she "never" would like to be leader. 

So, that's that one settled, then. Right.

Sir Alan Bates attacks 'kangaroo court' Post Office scheme after 'take it or leave it' offer

Sir Alan Bates has accused the government of presiding over a "quasi kangaroo court" for Post Office compensation.

Writing in The Sunday Times, the campaigner, who led a years-long effort for justice for sub-postmasters, revealed he had been given a "take it or leave it" offer that was less than half of his original claim.

"The sub-postmaster compensation schemes have been turned into quasi-kangaroo courts in which the Department for Business and Trade sits in judgement of the claims and alters the goal posts as and when it chooses," he said.

"Claims are, and have been, knocked back on the basis that legally you would not be able to make them, or that the parameters of the scheme do not extend to certain items."

More than 900 sub-postmasters were prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 after faulty Horizon accounting software made it look as if money was missing from their accounts.

Many are still waiting for compensation, despite the previous government saying those who had their convictions quashed were eligible for £600,000 payouts.

Sir Alan, who was portrayed by actor Toby Jones in ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, has called for an independent body to be created to deliver compensation.

He added that promises the compensation schemes would be "non-legalistic" had turned out to be "worthless".

A government spokesperson said they are trying to "give the benefit of the doubt to postmasters as far as possible".

Farage as PM would be 'very bad for this country', warns Badenoch

As the sun rises each morning, so too does Kemi Badenoch criticise Nigel Farage each day. 

The embattled Tory leader has warned Sky News that it would be "very bad for this country" if Reform UK won the next general election and Farage became PM.

Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Badenoch accused Farage of making empty promises that would unravel in government. 

She said: "Nigel Farage is someone who is going to say whatever he wants in order to get into power. 

"I am taking the hard road - I'm not going to do that.

"He's making the same mistake that Sir Keir Starmer made of making promises, and then they'll get into government and can't deliver it".

Starmer and Farage also have another thing in common. 

They've both received more public support than Badenoch in multiple polls carried out this week. 

A YouGov weekly voting intention poll saw the Conservatives fall behind Reform, Labour, and now the Liberal Democrats - for the first time since 2019.

A separate poll also placed Reform in first, Labour in second, but this time around the Tories in third, ahead of the Lib Dems. 

Challenged about these dire polls for the Tories, Badenoch said she would not respond with short-term political fixes. 

"I could have come rushing out with policies to chase the polls but that's the wrong thing to do," she said. 

"What we need to do is deliver a proposition that’s going to change the country for the better.

"It's going to take some time because we just lost an election. The public don’t come back to the opposition straight away – the government are doing so badly that people are going to protest parties.

"I can’t say how long that's going to take. I need to use this time as wisely as possible", she told the BBC.

'Stop delaying and just do it' - Backbenchers call on PM to scrap the two-child benefits cap

There's been lots of talk about whether the two-child cap on benefits will be removed by the government in a bid to tackle child poverty.

Angela Rayner was asked multiple times about it on Sky News this morning and refused to rule out the idea of scrapping it. 

A number of backbenchers on the left of the party have repeatedly called for the government to do this. 

John McDonnell, the former shadow chancellor, has weighed once again this weekend 

The Jeremy Corbyn-ally said: "Last year, I voted to scrap the two-child cap to lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. 

"As a result, I had the Labour whip withdrawn and was attacked by many of the ministers now backing scrapping the cap."

The Labour MP concluded: "Stop delaying and just do it."

Rayner told Sky News this morning that the government's child poverty taskforce will report back "before the end of the year" with recommendations.

Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch was unequivocal the Conservatives would not scrap the cap.

Why is the government talking about child poverty?

Today, we've heard from Angela Rayner that she would not rule out scrapping the two-child cap benefits cap. 

The deputy PM told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips that the idea was being "looked at" by the government's child poverty taskforce. 

Rayner stressed that she believes employment, rather than benefits, is the best way to lift families out of poverty.

But she added that "lifting any measure that will alleviate poverty... is not a bad idea".

Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch was much more bullish on the issue, while speaking to Sky News this morning. 

The Conservative Party leader said her party has no intention of scrapping the cap as it "reasonable", "there for a good reason" and part of a "humane system". 

She accused people like Nigel Farage, who has said it should be ended, of "just saying things to please people". 

Badenoch added that there are "many people" who would argue that "if you can't afford to have lots of children, then you shouldn't do so". 

Baroness Harman: There could be a 'progressive win' on the Labour benches

But why has the issue of child poverty risen so high up the political agenda this weekend? 

Well, a few weeks ago, former deputy leader of the Labour Party, Harriet Harman, suggested this issue might become a good diversion for the government. 

Speaking on Sky News' Electoral Dysfunction podcast, Baroness Harman said the government's lack of action on other welfare cuts such as winter fuel payments "puts more pressure" on Downing Street to act in other areas. 

Speaking earlier this month, she said: "It might be: 'We've really annoyed pensioners but a lot of them have got grandchildren, everybody cares about child poverty.'

"So, it puts more pressure on going forward."

She added that she thought there might be a "progressive win" within the Labour Party. 

You can listen to that episode here, or wherever you get your podcasts.

PM's condemnation of Israeli strategy was 'not the right message', says Badenoch

Kemi Badenoch has criticised the prime minister's handling of the situation in Gaza. 

The Conservative Party leader said Sir Keir Starmer's criticisms of Israel's policies in the territory - made jointly with France and Canada - was "not the right message". 

The trio condemned Israeli military strategy, which until recently has seen all aid, including food, water and fuel, cut off from civilians in Gaza for more than two months. 

They called on Israel to change policy or face "concrete action". It led to Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli PM, saying the leaders were "on the wrong side of history".

Speaking today, Kemi Badenoch said criticism of Israel should be done "in a way that does not have Hamas cheering".

She explained:  "Hamas praised that statement. Sending a signal to Hamas like that does not send the right message – you should not have terrorist cheers."

Asked if she would ever publicly criticise Israel, Badenoch said: "I have criticised – we've talked about when people need aid, get it – they responded to that."

A small amount of aid is now being allowed into Gaza by the Israeli Defence Force (IDF).

But she told the BBC: “Let’s not forget, two years ago hundreds of people at a music festival were butchered, massacred – we’re still waiting for 58 hostages. What we need to do is get a ceasefire.”

A little earlier this morning on Sky News, Badenoch compared Israel's war against Hamas to Ukraine's war against Russia, saying they are both "proxy war[s]".

The embattled Tory leader also said people are wrong to say the conflict is a "genocide".

First train service to be renationalised kicks off with... a replacement bus service

What is it they say about the best-laid plans?

The government's big dive back into the railway industry has started a little flat. 

Today, South Western Railway has been renationalised, officially coming under public ownership at around 2am this morning. 

It's part of the government's efforts to regain control of all the nation's railway services, which will all, ultimately, be incorporated into the newly created Great British Railways.

But the first South Western Railway route to get under way following renationalisation? A service at 5:36am that was partially a replacement bus service, due to engineering works. 

Nonetheless, on board the first renationalised departure from London Waterloo was Heidi Alexander, the transport secretary. 

She hailed the change as "a new dawn for our railways" and "a watershed moment".

The cabinet minister added that train operators "will have to meet rigorous performance standards and earn the right to be called Great British Railways".

She also said the government is expecting "really high standards" on punctuality, reduced cancellations and improved passenger experiences. 

Is this new? 

South Western Railway is the first to be brought under public ownership by Labour - but it's not the first overall. 

The previous Conservative government brought four rail companies back into public ownership.

The pledge to renationalise the railways was also in Labour's manifesto at the 2024 General Election. 

C2C and Greater Anglia are the next two operators to be renationalised this year, while there should be a further seven taken on by 2027.

But don't necessarily expect cheaper ticket prices - as the government hasn't explicitly promised that nationalisation will save passengers money.

'Get on with it' - Keir Starmer issues warning to developers

Sir Keir Starmer has said that if developers receive planning permission to build new homes, then they "have to build them".

It follows the government announcing new measures to get tougher on housing developers this morning, which include making them set timelines for developments, submit annual reports to councils and pay penalties if they fall behind. 

It's in an effort to both stop developers 'sitting' on land so it goes up in value, while also giving the government a fighting chance of hitting its target of building 1.5m new homes by 2029. 

Starmer said this morning: "This is my message to housebuilders: get on with it."

The PM added: "If you promise homes, you have to build them.

"As part of our Plan for Change, we're introducing penalties if you don't build them fast enough."

-SKY NEWS