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The new home secretary is expected to unveil plans to move asylum seekers from hotels into military barracks as Sir Keir Starmer seeks to harden his immigration policy amid rising numbers of crossings in the Channel.
Shabana Mahmood is reportedly set to announce the use of Ministry of Defence sites to house people after a wave of protests outside migrant accommodation over the summer.
The defence secretary John Healey confirmed to Sky News that he has placed military planners into the Home Office to scout out military facilities, after an estimated 1,000 people arrived in the UK by small boat over the course of Saturday.
It comes after the prime minister continued his major reshuffle of his top team and junior ministers.
The prime minister sacked Rachel Reeves’s sister from the Cabinet and farming minister Daniel Zeichner, while Jason Stockwood, who had a senior role at dating site Match.com, has been appointed to the Department of Business and Trade.
It comes as his chief secretary Darren Jones denied that Labour were in crisis, and rebuffed Nigel Farage’s prediction that there would be a general election in 2027.
Starmer moved quickly to appoint David Lammy deputy prime minister while Yvette Cooper has been moved from home secretary to take up a new role as foreign secretary, with justice secretary Shabana Mahmood replacing her at the Home Office.
UK politics live: Key pointsHealey dismisses suggestion Lammy is preferred candidate for deputy leadership
On Sunday, John Healey dismissed the idea that former foreign secretary David Lammy’s appointment as Deputy Prime Minister meant he was the Prime Minister’s preferred candidate for the job.
“They’re two separate jobs, two very important jobs. The deputy leader of the Labour Party is an important job and an important vote for Labour Party members,” he told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips.
Meanwhile, Andy Burnham backed Louise Haigh, who resigned as transport secretary last year after it emerged she had previously been convicted of a fraud offence, or former Commons leader Lucy Powell.
Ms Powell was sacked as part of Sir Keir’s Cabinet shake-up this week while Ms Haigh left Government in November after it emerged she had admitted to incorrectly telling police a work mobile phone was stolen in 2013.
Holly Evans7 September 2025 11:59
Brian Cox slams ‘bully’ Nigel Farage in scathing rant on ‘misinformed’ Reform UK leader
Brian Cox slams ‘bully’ Nigel Farage in rant on ‘misinformed’ Reform leader
Brian Cox has slammed Nigel Farage as a “bully” who is “misinformed” in a scathing assessment of the Reform UK leader. Appearing on BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, the Scottish actor said that he is “dazzled by the way a lot of people have been seduced by him”. Mr Farage’s party is currently 10 points ahead in the polls, according to Techne UK. He said that Mr Farage, who was interviewed by Kuenessberg earlier in the episode, was a “bit of a bully”. He said: “You can tell by the way he conducted that interview with you thought a lot of it was badgering. I just don’t trust the man.” Slamming Brexit, Mr Cox also said that he believes there has “never been a more positive time to be in Europe” due to the ongoing Ukraine war.
Holly Evans7 September 2025 11:31
Zack Polanski tells voters there is no ‘time to wait around’ for Corbyn party
Green Party leader Zack Polanski has urged left-leaning voters to back his party, saying there is no “time to wait around” for a new party from Jeremy Corbyn and Zara Sultana.
Mr Corbyn, the former Labour leader, and Ms Sultana have signalled plans to launch a new left-wing political movement but have not yet formally set it up.
Speaking to Trevor Phillips on Sky News on Sunday, Mr Polanski said: “I like Jeremy Corbyn, I like Zara Sultana.
“A lot of our politics is similar and I share lots of platforms with them.
Zack Polanski has said the Green Party would introduce new wealth taxes (Sky News) (PA Wire)
“Jeremy said it himself the other day – we are different people. Whatever they are going to set up does not exist yet.
“I don’t think we have time to wait around.
“I would say to anyone who wants to have social, environmental, racial and economic justice – join the Green Party right now.”
The new Green leader also defended his party’s manifesto proposals, rejecting claims they would blow a £170 billion hole in the public finances.
Holly Evans7 September 2025 11:19
Reform UK’s biggest weakness is government inexperience, says Farage
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said his party’s biggest weakness is “experience at government level”.
He told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg that Nadine Dorries “brings us the one commodity we’re very short of and that’s experience at government level”.
Mr Farage said: “That is our biggest weakness. You could ask me lots of questions about policy and personnel and all the rest of it, but if you ask me, how are you going to do this? I can’t really give you an answer, because I haven’t got anybody in the senior team that’s ever been there before.
“Nadine came yesterday. She’s the first, and there will be others.”
Holly Evans7 September 2025 11:03
Tories accuse Reform UK of copying their immigration plans
Conservative Party chairman Kevin Hollinrake has accused Reform UK of copying the former Government’s migration policies.
Speaking on Sky News, Mr Hollinrake said: “All Reform are doing now – a few weeks ago they were talking about towing the boats back to France and they realised they couldn’t do that.
“And all their plans now are a copycat – exactly the plans that we had in the last government.
“We tried to get through – eventually got past Parliament in passing the Rwanda Act – to return people to their own country and if that could not happen to a third country, Rwanda.
“We got huge criticism for it – and Reform are now copying those plans.”
The Rwanda policy was heavily criticised by opposition MPs, charities and human rights groups, who argued it was costly, unworkable and inhumane.
Holly Evans7 September 2025 10:45
Boris Johnson labelled ‘one of the worst prime ministers in British history’
Zia Yusuf has branded Boris Johnson “one of the worst Prime Ministers in British history” and accused him of betraying Brexit voters.
Reform UK’s head of policy told Sky News the former Conservative leader would never be welcome in his party.
“We certainly would not welcome Boris Johnson – that’s never going to happen,” he said.
“He threw open our borders. The Boris-wave, which is millions and millions of non-EU migrants flooding into the country post-Brexit, betrayed every single person that voted Brexit.
“Frankly he was one of the worst Prime Ministers in British history.”
The term “Boris wave” is used by Reform UK figures to describe the surge in legal immigration following post-Brexit visa policies introduced under Mr Johnson from January 2021.
Holly Evans7 September 2025 10:28
Zia Yusuf defends Reform UK’s stance on deporting women back to Afghanistan
Zia Yusuf has claimed British people are being “subjected to Afghanistan culture” as he defended his party’s stance on deportations.
Appearing on Sky News, Zia Yusuf was pressed by presenter Trevor Phillips over Nigel Farage’s suggestion that women could be deported back to the Taliban-ruled country.
Mr Phillips asked: “Farage said you would deport women back to Afghanistan.
“They could justifiably claim a fear of persecution. Would you send women back to Afghanistan?”
Mr Yusuf replied: “Why were the Tories OK with thousands of military-age men from Afghanistan? That’s why mothers were protesting in Epping – because it was British women that were subjected to that very culture.
“You just laid out the Afghanistan culture that British people are being subjected to.”
Holly Evans7 September 2025 10:07
Badenoch: ‘If we need to leave ECHR to control borders, we will’
Kemi Badenoch has said that if Britain needs to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), the Conservatives will promise to do so.
Ahead of the Tory conference, the Conservative Party leader said she will announce the party’s formal position on the human rights convention at the gathering.
She accused Nigel Farage of having pursued Brexit without a plan, and promised the Tories would not do the same on the ECHR.
“What I’m not going to do is what Nigel Farage did over Brexit, saying we’ll leave and everything will be fine without thinking through what the plan would be,” she told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has ordered a review into whether the UK should leave the ECHR (Paul Campbell/PA) (PA Wire)
Holly Evans7 September 2025 10:01
Reform UK’s Zia Yusuf denies claim migrants would be housed in shipping containers
Reform UK’s head of policy has denied claims that migrants will be housed in shipping containers, insisting the party would use “purpose-built modular steel structures”.
Speaking on Sky News, Zia Yusuf defended proposals for rapid-build detention facilities, citing international examples.
“We can look around the world at where things have worked and worked well,” he said.
“President Trump stood up 3,000 detention beds in eight days. That was this year in the state of Florida – using steel modular structures.”
When presenter Trevor Phillips asked: “Shipping containers?”, Mr Yusuf replied: “They’re not shipping containers, they’re purpose-built modular steel structures.”
Holly Evans7 September 2025 09:54
Defence secretary disputes claim that Angela Rayner was treated unfairly
John Healey said “any government is stronger with Angela Rayner” but she is “not a victim”.
He rejected suggestions by Labour Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham that she had been treated unfairly.
After being shown a clip of Mr Burnham’s remarks, he said: “I dispute that. Our focus has been on the public that elected us, the delivery that we’re charged to change their lives. It’s a big part of the job we all do.
“Our Government will miss Angela Rayner. She’s not been a victim. She’s been under a lot of pressure and Andy Burnham’s right about that.
“But she’s been an inspiration to many, particularly working-class women.
“She’s been a very effective minister leading the overhaul… of employment rights… and also starting planning reform that will lead to us building a lot more homes.
“Any government is stronger with Angela Rayner but we’ve got a good new team in place and that’s our job.”
Sir Keir Starmer pictured with John Healey and Angela Rayner in 2023 (Getty Images)
Holly Evans7 September 2025 09:52