Hundreds of Labour activists and MPs have ‘made the pilgrimage’ to the seat, where they are pounding the streets

For a few short weeks, the centre of political gravity in Britain has shifted from the Palace of Westminster to the bar of a former Labour club in Wigan.

In London, even as Keir Starmer insists he will fight to stay in No 10, the walls seem to be crumbling around him, especially with Thursday’s resignation of the defence secretary, John Healey.

Hilary Benn says 16 people arrested and 12 police officers injured during second night of disorder

The Northern Ireland secretary has condemned “racist thuggery” in Belfast after a second night of violent anti-immigration protests, in which 16 people were arrested and 12 police officers were injured.

Hilary Benn said during the violence, which followed a serious knife attack on Monday, people were stopped in their cars to be asked where they come from and were targeted because of the colour of their skin.

Former Labor foreign affairs minister says belief US would defend Australia in event of an existential attack is a ‘ludicrous delusion’

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Aukus will prove to be one of the worst defence and foreign policy decisions ever made by an Australian government and is only being permitted by Donald Trump in order to destroy Chinese nuclear threats to the US mainland, former foreign affairs minister Gareth Evans has said.

In evidence to an independent public inquiry into the $368bn nuclear agreement with the US and UK on Thursday, Evans, a cabinet minister in the Hawke and Keating governments, warned the transfer and construction of submarines to Australia from the early 2030s was effectively only an extension of the American military fleet.