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☆ Dollar hovers near highest in a week after hawkish Fed minutes
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The yen l anguished just above a three-week low despite the continued threat of intervention by Japanese officials. The dollar index, which tracks the currency against six major rivals including the euro , sterling and yen, was little changed at 104.89 after gaining 0.28% overnight. The dollar was little changed at 156.77 yen after rising to 156.85 overnight, the highest since May 1. Traders and analysts suspect Japan's Ministry of Finance intervened several times to support the yen following its plunge to a 34-year low of 160.245 per dollar on April 29. Bigger rival bitcoin was little changed at $69,491 after reaching $71,957 on Tuesday for the first time since April 9.

Persons: Sterling, Ether, James Kniveton, Japan's, Rishi Sunak, bitcoin Organizations: Bank of Japan, Reserve, Federal, Traders, of Finance, Bank of England, Conservatives, Labour Party, Labour, Securities

☆ European stocks head for slightly higher open as investors follow UK election news and euro zone data
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

European markets are heading for a slightly higher open Thursday as traders digest the minutes of the last U.S. Federal Reserve meeting, which revealed Fed officials have concerns over sticky inflation and remain cautious on possible interest rate cuts. U.K. markets will be closely watched Thursday after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that a general election will be held on July 4, ending months of speculation over the date of a national vote. As polls stand, the ruling Conservative Party is expected to lose to the opposition center-left Labour Party.

Persons: Rishi Sunak Organizations: Federal Reserve, Conservative Party, Labour Party Locations: U.S

☆ UK general election: PM Rishi Sunak calls surprise July vote as his party seeks to defy dire polls
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

London CNN —UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced a snap general election for July 4 in a statement outside Downing Street on Wednesday evening, as his Conservative Party faces an uphill struggle to extend its 14 years in power. But a fall in inflation rates, announced earlier Wednesday, provided the backdrop for his announcement. The move will be welcomed by the buoyant Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer, which is soaring in the opinion polls and has sought to present itself as a reformed and moderate group that is ready for power. Sunak walks back inside on Wednesday after announcing the July 4 date for the election. But Johnson’s premiership collapsed after a string of scandals, paving the way for his then-finance minister Sunak to emerge as a frontrunner for the leadership.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak, Downing, King Charles III of, “, ” Sunak, Keir Starmer, Buckingham, Queen’s, Starmer, ”, Carl Court, Liz Truss, Boris Johnson, —, Theresa May —, King Charles III Organizations: London CNN —, Conservative Party, Conservative, Labour Party, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, Party, Scottish National Party, European Union, Tories Locations: Britain, Buckingham Palace, Ukraine, Downing, Sunak, United Kingdom, Rwanda, Britain’s

☆ Opinion: Rewatching ‘Notting Hill,’ the truly unbelievable part is Hugh Grant’s house
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Opinion Laura Beers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

The Notting Hill of the 1990s was still socially heterodox and shabby chic, a neighborhood where a group of 30-something professionals could plausibly have ended up. Even in the late 1990s, such access to disposable income marked the characters in “Notting Hill” out as privileged. Yet, in the 1990s, Notting Hill, long a center of Caribbean immigrant culture and the site of the annual Notting Hill Carnival, underwent a rapid process of gentrification. Between 1995 and 1999, Notting Hill house prices rose by 75%. The colorful terraced houses of Notting Hill, which these days sell for millions of pounds.

Persons: Laura Beers, ”, George Orwell’s, Richard Curtis ’, Julia Roberts, Anna Scott, Hugh Grant, William Thacker, Roberts, Laura Beers Laura Beers, it’s, —, Curtis, Hill’s, Hugh Grant's, Winston, George Orwell, Orwell, Tony Blair’s Britain, Bill Clinton’s America, Grant’s, Tony Blair, Steve Eason, Notting, Spike, Rhys Ifans, Notting Hill, Mike Kemp, San, Spencer Platt, Rishi Sunak’s government’s, Bill, Rewatching Organizations: American University, CNN, MCA, Everett, Notting, Labour, Hulton, Getty, Movement, Housing, Federal Reserve, New York State, Hill ” Locations: American, London, West London, Notting, West, Britain, United States, Young, Notting Hill, Central London, San Francisco, Manhattan, San Matteo, Redwood City, York

☆ Sunak Announces U.K. Elections for July 4, Months Earlier Than Expected
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Mark Landler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain on Wednesday called a snap general election for July 4, throwing the fate of his embattled Conservative Party to a restless British public that appears eager for change after 14 years of Conservative government. But the Tories have discarded four prime ministers in eight years, lurching through the serial chaos of Brexit, the coronavirus pandemic and a cost-of-living crisis. With the opposition Labour Party ahead in most polls by double digits for the last 18 months, a Conservative defeat has come to assume an air of inevitability. “Now is the moment for Britain to choose its future,” Mr. Sunak said as pelting rain drenched his suit jacket. The choice for voters, he said, was to “build on the future you’ve made or risk going back to square one.”

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak’s, Barack Obama, ” Mr, Sunak, ” Organizations: Conservative Party, Conservative, Downing, Labour Party Locations: British, Britain

☆ Britain’s election campaign hasn’t started yet, but the mudslinging is well underway
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-18 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

He lost two general elections as Labour leader in campaigns that focused heavily on his views regarding national security. The context for Sunak’s attack on Starmer is that the UK will vote in a general election at some point this year. “Of course Rishi doesn’t believe that Starmer himself is a threat to national security,” a senior Conservative told CNN. It’s just ridiculous and it clearly winds him up when we point it out.”No one knows for sure when the election campaign proper will start. Until then, Britain is braced for months of mudslinging between Sunak and Starmer.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Keir Starmer, Sunak, Starmer, –, Jeremy Corbyn, Corbyn, Toby Melville, Rishi doesn’t, ”, ” David Gauke, ” Gauke, ” Starmer, “, ” Keir Starmer, Leon Neal, cynically, won’t, It’s Organizations: CNN, British, Labour Party, Labour, PM, NATO, Conservative, Conservative Party, “ Locations: Britain, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Rwanda, Gaza, Sunak

☆ Royal Mail: Meet Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínský who wants to buy Britain’s postal service
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

It has been operating a postal service in England since the reign of Henry VIII. EP Group has until May 29 to convert its £3.5 billion ($4.4 billion) non-biding offer into a formal bid for IDS. The likely sale would come after a difficult few years for Royal Mail, which was privatized in 2013. ‘As British as it gets’The potential buyout of Royal Mail has stirred anxieties about the consequences of the iconic British institution coming under foreign ownership. “Royal Mail is an important national asset that would benefit from being able to take a longer-term view,” the firm said.

Persons: Henry VIII, Daniel Křetínský, Křetínský, Patrik Tkáč, Rishi Sunak, Kemi Badenoch, Dave Ward, ”, ” Ward, Jonathan Reynolds, ” Ivana Kottasová Organizations: London CNN — Royal Mail, Distribution Services, IDS, Royal Mail, UK Department for Business, Trade, CNN, Bloomberg, Equity Investment, Newsweek, West Ham United Football Club, Reuters, Communication Workers Union, Labour Party, Royal, Labour Locations: England, Czech, British, United States, FNAC, France, United Kingdom, West

☆ Britain faces its 'most dangerous' years in history, PM Rishi Sunak to warn in pre-election bid
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-13 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"I'm convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet most transformational our country has ever known," he will add. Aides told the Guardian that Sunak has wanted to deliver the speech for some time. "I have bold ideas that can change our society for the better, and restore people's confidence and pride in our country." It is unclear exactly when Britons will head to the polls, but Sunak has indicated that a vote could be called in the autumn. By law, the next U.K. general election must be held no later than 28 January 2025.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak, I'm, Downing Organizations: Conservative Party, Sky News, CNBC, Guardian, Conservatives, Labour Party, Labour, Tories Locations: Britain, London

☆ Election Updates: Trump returns to the trail as Biden makes a West Coast fund-raising swing.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-11 | by ( Chris Cameron | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

The thinking of party leaders is that Mr. Hernandez would stay in the race if he won the nomination, running interference for Ms. Lake. “They’re not even trying to cover their tracks at this point,” Cody Hannah, a co-chair of the Arizona Green Party, said in an interview on Friday. We know they aren’t genuine Greens.”Efforts to reach Mr. Norton and Mr. Hernandez were not immediately successful. Mr. Hannah, the Green Party’s co-chair, said party members were not familiar with either Mr. Hernandez or Mr. Norton. “These are people who essentially have no connection to our party deciding who’s on our primary ballot,” he said.

Persons: Mike Norton, Arturo Hernandez, —, Norton, Ruben Gallego, Hernandez, Kari Lake, Donald J, Trump, Gallego, Eduardo Heredia, “ They’re, ” Cody Hannah, “, Lake, Kyrsten Sinema, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, circulators, Mr, Joe Lombardo, Hannah, ” Organizations: Arizona Green, U.S . Senate, Republicans, Green Party, Democratic, Green Party of, Arizona Green Party, Greens, Democratic Party, Republican Party, Senate, Green, New York Times, Republican, Federal, Commission Locations: Arizona, Quintana, Green Party of Pima County

☆ UK GDP growth: Country exits recession as services bounce back
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-10 | by ( Hanna Ziady | Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The increase follows falls of 0.3% in the fourth quarter and 0.1% in the third quarter of last year. The Bank of England now expects UK GDP to expand by 0.5% this year, double the pace forecast in February, according to projections published Thursday. A growing economy could, however, delay the interest rate cuts widely expected this year. “Stronger GDP growth raises the risk of stronger demand pressures on inflation,” analysts at Nomura wrote in a note, adding that Friday’s GDP release “casts doubt” over a cut in June. Annual UK inflation came in at 3.2% last month, a sharp slowdown from a rate above 10% about a year ago.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak, Nomura, ”, Andrew Bailey, Bailey Organizations: London CNN, Gross, Office, National Statistics, Conservative Party, Labour Party, The Bank of England, P Global . Service, Bank of England Locations: United Kingdom

☆ Opinion: Trump’s congestion pricing outrage is classic ‘dead cat’ strategy
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Opinion Rosa Prince | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

In short, Trump’s New York congestion comment was classic dead cat. In the same Truth Social message, the former president mused about the impact of congestion pricing elsewhere in the world. After all, congestion pricing has been introduced in a number of cities, from Singapore to Stockholm, over the past 25-odd years. I live about four miles from the edge of the congestion zone, and it’s never once been a problem to circumvent. By most metrics, London’s congestion pricing experiment has been a resounding success.

Persons: Rosa Prince, Read, Donald Trump, ”, Rosa Prince Rosa Prince Here, Stormy Daniels, mused, It’s, “, I’m, it’s, Akmen, they’re, Boris Johnson, there’s, Sadiq Khan, Ella Roberta Adoo, Khan, Mayor Khan, he’s Organizations: Politico UK, London CNN — Former, New, Big Apple, Getty, Conservative, Transport, London, Labour Party, Trump, TfL, CNN, Twitter, New Yorker Locations: New York City, New York, Singapore, Stockholm, London, AFP, It’s, Manhattan, London —, England, New

☆ Britain’s Conservative Party Is Being Held Captive by Bad People - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Geoffrey Wheatcroft | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

At 3 a.m. one day last December, a 78-year-old volunteer for the British Conservative Party was reportedly woken by a call from Mark Menzies, the Conservative lawmaker she worked for. The volunteer, a former campaign manager for Mr. Menzies, paid the sum out of her own savings. Mr. Menzies, who was suspended from the party last month, denies that allegation and others, which include using £14,000 from party funds for personal medical bills. Yet the affair epitomizes a Conservative Party in crisis. Lord Salisbury, Stanley Baldwin, Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher led the Conservative Party for more or less 15 years.

Persons: Mark Menzies, ”, Menzies, Rishi Sunak, Mr, Sunak, Lord Salisbury, Stanley Baldwin, Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher, — Organizations: British Conservative Party, Conservative, Conservative Party, Tories, Conservatives, Labour Party, Tory Locations: England, Wales

☆ Sadiq Khan Heads for 3rd Term as London Mayor
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sadiq Khan, the two-term center-left mayor of London, was poised on Saturday to become the first three-time winner of the job by a clearer margin than some of his supporters had predicted. Mr. Khan, from the main opposition Labour Party, was initially elected to the post in 2016, becoming London’s first Muslim mayor, and would now become the first politician to win three consecutive terms since the role was created in 2000. With the Labour Party well ahead in the opinion polls ahead of a looming general election, many analysts had expected Mr. Khan to cruise to a comfortable victory in a city that tends to lean to the left, but some saw the potential for an unexpectedly tight race against Susan Hall, representing Britain’s governing Conservative Party. That prospect quickly faded on Saturday, with Mr. Khan’s party declaring victory and the BBC forecasting him as the winner after results from half of London’s regions showed the mayor exceeding his performance in his last election, in 2021.

Persons: Sadiq Khan, Khan, London’s, Susan Hall, Khan’s Organizations: Labour Party, Conservative Party Locations: London

☆ Sadiq Khan wins third term as London mayor, Labour sources say, capping strong showing for opposition in English elections
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Sadiq Khan has won a third term as London’s mayor, Labour Party sources claimed on Saturday, capping a round of local elections across England that confirmed the political supremacy of the main opposition party. Sunak has resisted calls to outline when he will hold that vote, and Labour leads opinion polls by a huge margin. Keir Starmer’s opposition party won control of eight councils, and also stormed to victory on Thursday in a Westminster by-election in Blackpool. In particular the loss of Oldham council, a north-west English town, where around a quarter of the population is Muslim. If his victory is confirmed, Khan would become the first mayor of London to serve a third term since the post was created in 2000.

Persons: CNN — Sadiq Khan, Khan, Susan Hall, Rishi Sunak, –, Sunak, Keir Starmer’s, Yvette Cooper, Donald Trump Organizations: CNN, Labour Party, Conservative, England, Labour, Conservatives, Tories, BBC Locations: England, West Midlands, Tees, Westminster, Blackpool, Gaza, Oldham, London

☆ Labour's Sadiq Khan wins re-election as London mayor
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan hopes to convince U.S. tech firms to invest more in London. Sadiq Khan was re-elected as London's mayor, final results showed on Saturday, helping to cement the Labour Party's commanding lead over the governing Conservatives in local elections ahead of Britain's national vote later this year. For Labour, London is the latest of a number of councils and mayoralties it has won in the local elections, which took place on Thursday, inflicting heavy losses on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservatives. Opinion polls predict that Labour will win the next national election, propelling its leader Keir Starmer to power and ending 14 years of Conservative government in Britain. Khan, 53, who became the first Muslim mayor of the British capital in 2016, has pledged to build more social housing and work with a future national Labour government to boost police capacity.

Persons: London Sadiq Khan, Sadiq Khan, Rishi Sunak's, It's, Khan, Susan Hall, Keir Starmer, Rishi Sunak Organizations: U.S, Labour, Conservatives, Tory, Conservative, Labour Party, Labour government Locations: London, Britain

☆ Rishi Sunak’s Dismal Task: Leading U.K. Conservatives to Likely Defeat
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Mark Landler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A few days before Britain’s Conservative Party suffered a stinging setback in local elections on Thursday, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recorded a short video to promote some good news from his government. In the eight-second clip, Mr. Sunak poured milk from a pint bottle into a tall glass, filled with a steaming dark beverage and bearing the scribbled figure of 900 pounds on the side. “Pay day is coming,” Mr. Sunak posted, referring to the savings that an average wage earner would supposedly reap from a cut in mandatory contributions to Britain’s national insurance system. However partisan her jab, loser is a label that Mr. Sunak is finding increasingly hard to shake, even among his members of his own party. In the 18 months since he replaced his failed predecessor, Liz Truss, Mr. Sunak, 43, has lost seven special parliamentary elections and back-to-back local elections.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, ” Mr, Sunak, He’d, Angela Rayner, Liz Truss Organizations: Britain’s Conservative Party, Labour

☆ Kendrick Lamar and Drake's beef explained, from its 2013 origins to their diss tracks "Push Ups" and "6:16 in LA" and latest responses
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Ayomikun Adekaiyero | Eve Crosbie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +26 min

Both rappers released diss tracks that took blistering personal shots on Friday night. "He doesn't have the heart for the lying, disrespect, and animosity it requires to make an effective diss track," Pierre wrote. Later in the track, Drake references Cole's diss track and apology. At the end of the track, Lamar samples a 1994 Tupac interview to simulate a conversation between the two rappers. "6:16 in LA" also parodies Drake's song titles, which often feature location names and timestamps.

Persons: Kendrick Lamar, Drake's, Drake, —, Lamar's fiancée Whitney Alford, Lamar, Aubrey Drake Graham —, Lamar dissed Drake, J, Cole, Rick Ross, Cole —, Taylor, Joseph Okpako, WireImage Lamar, Jermaine Cole, Big, Wale, Pusha, Meek Millz, Big Sean, Jay, Tyler, Mac Miller, Kunta, Lamar hasn't, Meek, Getty, Tim Mosenfelder, Aubrey, Muhammad Ali, Michael Jackson, Jackson, Prince, Mike Jack, Prince . Prince, “, rics, Organizations: Metro Boomin, Service, Future, Metro, HBO, Drake, Wireless, Lamar, Big, Rocky, Rap Locations: Drake's, Lamar, LA, Florida

Britain’s Conservative Party suffered striking early setbacks on Friday in local elections that are viewed as a barometer for how the party will perform in a coming general election and a key test for the embattled prime minister, Rishi Sunak. Only a minority of the results had been announced by early Friday, but already the signs were ominous, if not unexpected, for Mr. Sunak’s Conservatives, who have trailed the opposition Labour Party by double digits in national polls for 18 months. The Conservatives have lost more than 120 seats so far, including six in Hartlepool, in northeast England, where the Conservatives had made inroads after Brexit but have more recently lost ground to the resurgent Labour Party. Labour also won a special election for a parliamentary seat in Blackpool South, a seaside district, in a huge swing of votes away from the Conservatives, who had held the seat but narrowly missed finishing third, behind Reform U.K., a small right-wing party. The previous Tory member of Parliament, Scott Benton, resigned in March after becoming embroiled in a lobbying scandal.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Scott Benton Organizations: Britain’s Conservative Party, Sunak’s Conservatives, Labour Party, Conservatives, Labour, Blackpool, Reform Locations: Hartlepool, England

☆ UK local election: Former PM Boris Johnson turned away from polling station after forgetting ID
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Christian Edwards | Alex Hardie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Boris Johnson was turned away from a polling station while trying to vote in the United Kingdom’s local elections after forgetting to bring photo ID – a requirement he introduced while prime minister. Polling station staff were forced to turn the former prime minister away as he tried to cast his ballot in South Oxfordshire on Thursday, PA media reported. New rules requiring photo ID to vote were introduced by Johnson’s Conservative government in the Elections Act 2022. Veterans minister Johnny Mercer apologized to Diver. “The legislation on acceptable forms of ID came out before the veterans ID cards started coming out in January this year.

Persons: Boris Johnson, Johnson, Adam Diver, Johnny Mercer, ” Mercer, Rishi Sunak Organizations: CNN, United, Johnson’s Conservative, Labour Party Locations: South Oxfordshire

☆ Britain’s Conservatives suffer heavy losses in a sign that Rishi Sunak is in real trouble
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Britain’s governing Conservative Party suffered heavy losses in local elections, a sign that they could be in real trouble when the country holds a general election at some point later this year. It also means that if a general election were held tomorrow, the opposition Labour Party would almost certainly win power. What these results don’t tell us is when the general election will take place. Conservatives are divided on when they think Sunak should bite the ballot bullet. Others think Sunak should look toward the end of the year, as it allows the most time for things to improve.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Keir Starmer, Sunak, Rwanda –, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Johnson, Truss Organizations: CNN, Conservative Party, Labour Party, Conservative, Labour, Reform, Conservatives Locations: Rwanda

New Labour Party MP for Blackpool South, Chris Webb (C) reacts as his win is announced at the count centre in Blackpool, north-west England on May 3, 2024, during the Blackpool South by-election. The opposition Labour Party won a Blackpool South by-election, taking the seat from the Conservatives. The Reform UK party, founded by Brexit proponent Nigel Farage, came in third. Labour leader Keir Starmer posted on the social media platform X that the "swing towards Labour in Blackpool South is historic." Angela Richardson, deputy chair of the Conservative Party, told the BBC the result "was not unexpected," especially given the circumstances that sparked the by-election.

Persons: Chris Webb, Rishi Sunak's, David Jones, Nigel Farage, Scott Benton's, Keir Starmer, Angela Richardson Organizations: New Labour Party, Blackpool South, Blackpool, LONDON, Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party, Labour Party, Conservatives, New Labour, Conservative, Reform UK, Labour, Conservative Party Locations: Blackpool, England, Britain

☆ U.K. Conservatives Hold Their Breath: How Bad Will Local Elections Be?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Mark Landler | More About Mark Landler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When voters in England and Wales go to the polls on Thursday to elect mayors and local council members, the outcome will inevitably be seen as a barometer for Britain’s coming general election. Given the sour public mood and the Conservative Party’s dire poll ratings, the storm clouds are already forming. The big question is not whether the governing Conservatives will lose seats — that is a foregone conclusion among pollsters — but whether the losses will exceed or fall short of expectations after 18 months in which the Tories have consistently trailed the opposition Labour Party by yawning margins. “If a party has been 20 points behind the opposition for 18 months, how much worse can it get?” said Tony Travers, a professor of politics at the London School of Economics. “The losses would have to be very, very bad for it to be viewed as a negative result for the Conservatives, and they are unlikely to be good enough for Labour for it to be viewed as a success.”

Persons: pollsters, ”, Tony Travers Organizations: Wales, Conservative, Conservatives, Tories, Labour Party, London School of Economics, Labour Locations: England

☆ England’s Local Elections and Their Wider Significance, Explained
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Megan Specia | More About Megan Specia | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Voters in England and Wales will cast ballots for mayors, council members and police commissioners on Thursday. And while the elections will, of course, focus on local issues like garbage collection and public safety, this vote is expected to have broader significance. Local elections, by their nature, are about who leads communities and ensures the delivery of certain public services. The Conservatives face a fierce challenge from the opposition Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer. About one-third of England’s council seats are being contested on Thursday, and 10 mayoral seats in major English metro areas, home to about a third of Britain’s population, are also up for election.

Persons: Rishi Sunak’s, Keir Starmer Organizations: Conservative Party, Conservatives, Labour Party, Labour Locations: England, Wales

☆ He Won by a Landslide. Why Is He Fighting for His Political Life?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The last time Ben Houchen ran to be mayor of Tees Valley, a struggling, deindustrialized region in northeastern England, he stormed to victory with almost 73 percent of the vote. Three years on, Mr. Houchen, a Conservative politician, faces a re-election contest in which even a narrow win would do. As voters in England prepare to vote in Thursday’s local and mayoral elections, the governing Conservatives, led by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, are trailing badly in the opinion polls to the opposition Labour Party ahead of a general election expected later this year. So Mr. Houchen has campaigned on his own achievements, relying on his personal brand as the poster boy for “leveling up” — the Conservatives’ flagship policy of bringing prosperity to disadvantaged regions of England.

Persons: Ben Houchen, Houchen, Rishi Sunak Organizations: Conservative, Conservatives, Labour Party, —, Conservatives ’ Locations: Tees Valley, England

☆ What to Know About the Breakup of Scotland’s Coalition Government
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, on Thursday abruptly ended a coalition agreement between his Scottish National Party and the Scottish Green Party, creating a new set of challenges for an embattled leader whose party has been engulfed in a funding scandal since last year. But Mr. Yousaf’s decision to scrap the coalition appeared to take Lorna Slater, a co-leader of the Greens, by surprise on Thursday morning. of “an act of cowardice,” adding that Mr. Yousaf could “no longer be trusted.”Does this mean the end of the Scottish government? The Scottish Conservatives are pressing for a vote of no confidence in Mr. Yousaf, which the opposition Scottish Labour Party has signaled it would support, and that could take place next week. But that vote relates to confidence in Mr. Yousaf, not the government, so its implications are unclear even if he were to lose.

Persons: Scotland’s, Humza Yousaf, Lorna Slater, Yousaf, “ Organizations: Scottish National Party, Scottish Green Party, Scottish, Greens, Scottish Conservatives, Scottish Labour Party Locations: Scotland

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