UK politics – latest: Starmer refuses to choose between US and EU on trade as Mexico and Canada delay tariffs

The Education Secretary has rejected criticism of plans to revamp Ofsted’s grading system for schools with a new “report card” style scale.

Bridget Phillipson said she “fundamentally” rejects the idea that giving more information on where schools need to improve is “not something that parents want”, after unions and the sister of a headteacher who took her own life following an Ofsted inspection criticised the plans.

Schools in England will receive ratings – from the red coloured “causing concern” to orange coloured “attention needed”, through the green shades of “secure”, “strong” and “exemplary” – for each area of practice under proposals for Ofsted’s new report card system.

Previously, Ofsted awarded one of four single-phrase inspection judgments: outstanding, good, requires improvement and inadequate.

Ms Phillipson said “good” as a judgement has become “too vague to serve its purpose” and that too many schools are “coasting” to deliver education that is not up to the required standard.

The prime minister insisted it was not a choice of “either or” as he sat down with EU leaders for dinner last night to launch his post-Brexit reset talks.

It came as Trump threatened tariffs against the EU, after announcing plans to impose them on Canada and Mexico.

Members of his inner circle have made it clear tariffs could be imposed on Britain, however there were signs of optimism on Monday as Trump said the UK was “out of line” on trade “but I’m sure that one… I think that one can be worked out”.

Sir Keir Starmer has said his “heart goes out” to the family of a 15-year-old boy who died after being stabbed in Sheffield.

In a statement, the Prime Minister said: “It is horrific and senseless news that a boy has died after a stabbing in Sheffield.

“I am deeply grateful to the first responders, the police officers and the medical staff who are offering support and reassurance.

“My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of the boy, the staff and students at the school and the entire community of Sheffield.

“They are grieving the needless loss of a young life and the nation mourns with them.

“Our schools should be places of safety and learning, not violence and fear. My Government is absolutely committed to tackling knife crime so young people are safe on our streets and in our schools.

“Tonight a young boy should be returning to the love and safety of his family.

“We stand and work together against the devastating consequences of knife crime, so no more families know this tragic loss.”

The prime minister has called for deeper defence co-operation with European Union as he pushes to ‘re-set’ relations in Brussels.

Sir Keir addressed EU leaders over dinner in Brussels, where he became the first UK prime minister to attend a European Council meeting since Brexit.

He said: “We need to deepen co-operation to protect ourselves from state threats and sabotage, including on sub-sea infrastructure.

”Sir Keir told the leaders in Brussels they should also “explore greater co-operation on missions and operations, like we’re already doing with our operations in the Red Sea and our work to train Ukrainian troops”.

The Prime Minister, who is pushing for closer defence and security ties as part of his “reset” in relations with the EU, also called for more work on military research and development, where the UK has “unique skills”.

The United States is one of the UK’s major trading partners, accounting for nearly a quarter of exports of chemicals and almost a third of crude oil imports.

Here we looks at how much trade the UK has with the US, based on figures published by the Office for National Statistics.

Read the full article here:

President Trump has sparked a new trade war by announcing a 25 percent tariff on Canadian goods entering the US.

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said an urgent meeting was needed, as “we mustn’t let Donald Trump bully the UK or our close ally Canada, who we share a head of state with.”

The agenda for the meeting is set to be wide-ranging as leaders of the EU’s 27 member states gather for the “informal retreat” in Brussels.

Joint European defence, security, trade and migration are all understood to be on the table, as the Labour leader looks to deliver on his pledge to ‘reset’ the UK’s relationship with the bloc which voters elected to leave in 2016.

The prime minister’s office has confirmed conversations about trade will take place but insists measures like rejoining the single market or freedom of movement are off the table.

Here’s what’s on the agenda:

The number of prisoners in England and Wales has jumped up by more than 1,000 since the start of the year, new figures reveal.

The prison population grew by 1,184 in the five weeks from December 30 to February 3, according to analysis by the PA news agency of Ministry of Justice (MoJ) data published on Monday.

This takes the number of inmates in jail to 86,802, the highest figure since October 21 last year (87,465), the day before more than 1,000 prisoners were released early as part of the Government’s bid to ease overcrowding.