Politics

Health Secretary Steve Barclay put the blame for the dire situation in the NHS over Christmas onto Covid, Strep A and flu rather than his Government's handling of the health service

Welsh Education Minister Jeremy Miles said free school meals were vital when hard-pressed families were buckling under the pressure after austerity and the legacy of the Covid pandemic

The Mirror told how underneath an online new report headlined 'Woman raped in Plumstead park in early hours', Tory councillor Shaun Slator wrote: 'More likely that it's a punter that didn't pay'

A bleak survey of over 100 leading UK-based economists suggests high inflation could linger for longer than other countries as Brits face a huge squeeze in household incomes

Labour accused the Government of 'breath-taking complacency' after Downing Street insisted the struggling NHS had the funding it needs to cope with spiralling pressures and isn't in crisis

Travellers to England from China will be offered two Covid tests, but the second will be voluntary and not require people to isolate if it comes back positive

Winter illnesses such as flu and Covid are putting more pressure on our health system than at the height of the pandemic

The government could give striking workers extra perks to bring crippling industrial action to an end but it will "hold firm" on pay, a Whitehall source reportedly said

The actor and other black Brits urged the country to get behind events marking the 1948 arrival of the liner HMT Empire Windrush, which brought passengers from the Caribbean to the UK

The payments, which will go to people claiming Universal Credit, Pension Credit and tax credits, begin in the spring and will go directly to bank accounts in three £300 cash boosts.

When the NHS is already on its knees before the depths of winter and many more illnesses strike, the situation is frightening. It was starved of funds by a decade by Tory PMs

A report posted online, claiming to be from a frontline doctor, claimed between 60% and 70% of patients were waiting 10 hours to be seen in the emergency department

Medics warned Tory cuts have left the NHS on its knees, amid claims up to 500 people a week die because of delays in emergency care

Conservative councillor Shaun Slator used a New Year’s Eve tweet to target the complainant who reported being attacked in a South London park in the early hours of December 30

Botswana’s former leader Ian Khama compared sick marksmen who kill elephants, lions and zebras for sport to ISIS extremists 'because those people take a morbid delight in killing'

From strikes and the cost of living to local elections and Tory revolts, we look at the landmines waiting for Rishi Sunak - as many believe his days are numbered

The Prime Minister is said to have ditched his predecessor Liz Truss's idea for 'big bang' reforms, which were due to include increasing free childcare support by 20 hours a week and scrapping staff to child ratios

Unions and the NHS leaders fear Health Secretary Steve Barclay will seek to limit next year's pay rise for healthcare staff other than doctors and dentists to just 2% - amounting to a real terms wage cut

Blasting the Conservatives’ for 'radio silence' in recent weeks, RMT General Secretary Mick Lynch said he wants to 'work towards a deal but we haven’t heard from anyone formally since mid-December'

The widespread industrial action in December shows no sign of abating, with nurses, civil servants, rail staff and ambulance workers among those set to down tools in disputes over pay

The Welsh Labour leader has put his party on an election footing as he thinks Rishi Sunak's administration is 'staggering on' and the PM could be forced to call an early nationwide poll

The post-Christmas return to work will be hit by disruption as members of the RMT union stage industrial action today, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, with road travel also hampered by strikes

The Lib Dems made the claim as a study found how sick people are diagnosing and treating their own illnesses after giving up on trying to secure a slot with their family doctor

The grim poll for Citizens Advice found 37% would be unable to cope with a £20 added to their bills as inflation runs at 10.7%, energy costs spiral and people face higher mortgage rates

Royal College of Emergency Medicine President Dr Adrian Boyle said the NHS 'cannot continue like this and 'it is unsafe and undignified' as he fired off a grim warning to Tory ministers