FOUND: 6 - What They Never Told You

Friday briefing: ​Will Westminster ever clean up its act over lobbying?

In today’s newsletter: ​Successive governments have allowed a culture of access, gifts and quiet lobbying to flourish, despite repeated promises to clean up public life

The Guardian - UK · Feb 13

If Starmer’s prospective top civil servant really is the ‘queen of woke’, let’s agree that word has lost all meaning

The incoming cabinet secretary, Antonia Romeo, worked under the notoriously woke David Cameron and Theresa May. Maybe she was a double agent? says Guardian columnist Zoe Williams

The Guardian - UK · Feb 11

How much longer can Keir Starmer survive?

When they disintegrate, governments often do so slowly, then quickly. Despite dragooned public statements of support from the cabinet, the government of Keir Starmer gives every appearance of entering that second phase.

The Conversation · Feb 9

Keir Starmer in Beijing as PM Seeks to Ease Strained Relations While Pushing for UK Trade Deals

Prime Minister Keir Starmer arrives in Beijing for the first UK visit in eight years, attempting to rebuild trade ties with China and unlock £billions in economic opportunities whilst navigating geopolitical tensions with the US and security concerns over espionage.

International Business Times UK · Jan 28

New study reveals most common cancer in the UK

The latest figures show that breast cancer is no longer the most common cancer in the UK

The Independent UK · Jan 20

UK to create new ‘school of government’ to train senior civil servants

Establishment will give training in AI and other skills, more than a decade after David Cameron axed previous school

The Guardian - UK · Jan 18

Fact check: Number of pubs fell by 6,800 under Conservative governments

Official figures show the number of public houses and bars registered with HM Revenue and Customs declined between 2010 and 2024.

Evening Standard · Jan 15

UK to build new rail line between Birmingham and Manchester two years after HS2 scrapped

Plans expected to be set out alongside new Northern Powerhouse Rail proposals as Labour tries to woo voters from Nigel Farage’s Reform

The Independent UK · Jan 13

Brexit is a work in progress nearly a decade on from the referendum

I am constantly being asked with disbelief why I voted for Brexit, my answer is inevitably complex

Evening Standard · Jan 1

‘We have to go’: longest-serving lord reflects on looming Labour eviction

Hereditary peer David Trefgarne will be forced to end 64 years in House of Lords when reform bill is approved

The Guardian - UK · Dec 30, 2025