Shabana Mahmood is facing a growing rebellion from Labour MPs against her controversial immigration reforms as Parliament returns after the summer break.
A further 10 Labour MPs are expected to publicly oppose her controversial plan to make it harder for many immigrants to settle in the UK.
They will add their names to a parliamentary motion tabled by a leading rebel calling for the proposed changes to indefinite leave to remain (ILR) to be softened.
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ARCHAEOLOGY
Scottish students discover 1,000-year-old Viking church
Students discovered the remains of what is thought to be a medieval Viking church about 1,000 years old during an archaeology field trip to an uninhabited Scottish island.
Where was the medieval site found?
Pupils from Gordonstoun, a private school once attended by the King, made the discovery on a six-day field trip to Swona, a tiny Orkney island about seven miles north of John O’Groats where only feral cattle live.
Caption: EMBARGOED TO 0001 MONDAY AUGUST 31
Undated handout photo issued by Gordonstoun School of the remains of what is thought to be a medieval Viking church about 1,000 years old discovered by a group of students on an uninhabited Scottish island. The Gordonstoun pupils made the discovery on an archaeological field trip to Swona, a tiny Orkney island where only feral cattle live. Issue date: Monday August 31, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Gordonstoun/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. The building thought to be a church bears similarities to other Viking churches from the 10th and 11th centuries. Issue date: Monday August 31, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Gordonstoun/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: Gordonstoun
Provider: Gordonstoun/PA Wire
Source: PA
Caption: Undated handout photo issued by Gordonstoun School of a Gordonstoun student undertaking excavation work. The remains of what is thought to be a medieval Viking church about 1,000 years old discovered by a group of students on an uninhabited Scottish island. The Gordonstoun pupils made the discovery on an archaeological field trip to Swona, a tiny Orkney island where only feral cattle live. Issue date: Monday August 31, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Gordonstoun/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. The building thought to be a church bears similarities to other Viking churches from the 10th and 11th centuries. Issue date: Monday August 31, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Gordonstoun/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: Gordonstoun
Provider: Gordonstoun/PA Wire
Source: PA
The medieval building bears similarities to other Viking churches from the 10th and 11th centuries. Its remains, including what is thought to be the foundation of its altar, were found beneath a more recent building.
How was it found?
The Gordonstoun team helped professional archaeologists from the Orkney Research Centre for Archaeology (Orca) to uncover the remains.
Gordonstoun housemaster Dan McLean, who organised the trip, said: “The only real hint about a church being on the island is a map reference to a ruin known locally as the ‘Twinly Kirk.’”
After discovering a step leading to the possible church altar, the group found other clues regarding construction method, layout and orientation.
Caption: EMBARGOED TO 0001 MONDAY AUGUST 31
Undated handout photo issued by Gordonstoun School of the remains of what is thought to be a medieval Viking church about 1,000 years old discovered by a group of students on an uninhabited Scottish island. The Gordonstoun pupils made the discovery on an archaeological field trip to Swona, a tiny Orkney island where only feral cattle live. Issue date: Monday August 31, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Gordonstoun/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. The building thought to be a church bears similarities to other Viking churches from the 10th and 11th centuries. Issue date: Monday August 31, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Gordonstoun/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: Gordonstoun
Provider: Gordonstoun/PA Wire
Source: PA
‘Special moment’
Another clue was that it was dry stone, and there was no clay bonding or mortar. There are also cairns nearby and a wall that blocks access to a landing point.
dan mclean, gordonstoun housemaster
More conclusions to come?
Radiocarbon dating of the students’ samples could draw more conclusions about the structure.
The pupils also explored a probable prehistoric settlement in the centre of the small, privately-owned island.
Elsewhere, they investigated a circular ditch believed to have been the site of a Viking warning beacon.
3 min read
James Cleverly is set to taking on the shadow housing secretary role (Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
UK POLITICS
Mayor hopeful Cleverly swipes at Reform on London crime
Sir James Cleverly has said mayoral candidates cannot “credibly” stand for election to run London while “obviously” hating the city, in remarks that will be interpreted as a swipe at Reform UK.
Battle for the capital
The former home secretary, who has announced he’s stepping down as shadow housing secretary to bid for the Conservative nomination for London mayor, made the comments when asked about claims from Reform’s mayoral candidate, Laila Cunningham, that the capital is unsafe.
2 min read
Interview
6 min read
Is London safe?
Cunningham said this week that her children are “petrified” to visit Shepherd’s Bush following a stabbing, and has frequently characterised London as gripped by crime, telling The i Paper last year that there are “no safe parts” in the capital.
Sir James Cleverly, Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (Photo: Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)
Caption: Laila Cunningham of Reform. Photographed at the Reform Party headquarters in Milbank Tower in Westminster..
Photo Tom Pilston. 3/9/25.
Photographer: Tom Pilston
Copyright: Tom Pilston, tompilston@gmail.com , tompilston.com 07802 572 609
Asked directly about her comments, Cleverly told The i Paper: “I’m not here to talk about her. Let her talk about her and let her justify her statements.”
Cleverly on London crime
Cleverly argued responsibility for crime in London lay with the current mayor, Lord Khan of Tooting.
He said the capital’s performance on crime was “an outlier” in the UK while he was home secretary.
Cleverly went on to criticise those who often depict London as afflicted by crime.
Explained
2 min read
‘I love London’
I don’t think you can credibly be the candidate for mayor of London if you obviously hate the city you’re trying to get elected for. I love London. I’m unapologetic about that.
james cleverly
Shadow Home Secretary James Cleverly (Photo: REUTERS/Toby Melville)
Reform: Cleverly is ‘out
of touch’
A Reform UK spokesperson said Cleverly was “out of touch”.
If “James Cleverly thinks crime is not an issue in London then he’s even more out-of-touch than we originally thought”, they said.
The spokesperson added: “London needs a mayor that is realistic about the issues the city faces, not one that will turn a blind eye to them.”
Exclusive
2 min read
US and Iran trade strikes in first hostilities for weeks
The United States and Iran have traded strikes for the first time since late July, breaking a lull in fighting during an intermittent war that has lasted more than six months. Here’s what we know.
Caption: FILE PHOTO: U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS George Washington is pictured during Freedom Edge trilateral exercise among United States, Japan and South Korea in the East China Sea, south of the Korean peninsula and west of Japan’s main islands November 14, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY/File Photo
Photographer: Kim Kyung-Hoon
Provider: REUTERS
Source: REUTERS
Where did the US strike?
US forces struck Iranian rocket launchers on the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, with Central Command claiming the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines.
Caption: Projectiles streak across the sky in this screengrab taken from footage published by Iranian authorities purporting to show missiles launched at US military targets in Jordan from an unknown location, released on August 31, 2026. Wana News Agency via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. ISRAEL OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN ISRAEL. NO ACCESS FOR ISRAELI MEDIA. NO USE BBC PERSIAN. NO USE VOA PERSIAN. NO USE MANOTO. NO USE IRAN INTERNATIONAL. NO USE RADIO FARDA. DIGITAL: NO USE BBC PERSIAN. NO USE VOA PERSIAN. NO USE MANOTO. NO USE IRAN INTERNATIONAL. NO USE RADIO FARDA. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Photographer: Wana News Agency
Provider: via REUTERS
Source: Wana News Agency
Caption: HOUSTON, TEXAS – AUGUST 28: U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a ceremony honoring Artemis II crew members at NASA’s Johnson Space Center on August 28, 2026 in Houston, Texas. Artemis II crew members, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, traveled further into space than any other humans before on the first crewed mission around the moon in more than 50 years. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Photographer: Win McNamee
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images North America
Copyright: 2026 Getty Images
News outlets in Iran reported explosions near Larak island.
Donald Trump posted an AI-generated video on his Truth Social platform of the bombing of the Kharg Island oil hub, claiming it’s “going to be blown to smithereens!”.
What was Iran’s response?
Later, Iranian state TV showed what it said were ballistic missiles being fired by Iran at US bases in Jordan in response to the American strikes. Jordan’s military said it intercepted eight missiles in the country’s airspace early Monday.
The UAE air force also intercepted an Iranian drone over its territorial waters, the country’s defence ministry said.
Caption: A woman walks past a wall mural of Iran’s slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along a street in downtown of Tehran on August 31, 2026. Iran attacked US military targets in the Middle East on August 31 in retaliation for American strikes on an island in the Strait of Hormuz, the first exchange of fire for a month in a war that has engulfed the region. Six months into the conflict, the two sides remain at an impasse, with Iran keeping the strategic strait shut and Washington persisting with a naval counter-blockade of Iran. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images) /
Photographer: ATTA KENARE
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Copyright: AFP or licensors
US ‘eliminated’ Iran’s threat
The US disputed Iran’s claim that its strikes were an act of aggression.
“Iran created the threat and the US military eliminated it,” Centcom said.
This was “to protect civilian mariners, commercial shipping, and the free flow of global commerce” in the Strait of Hormuz, it added.
Analysis
3 min read
Return to open conflict?
Since last confirming it had struck Iranian targets on 29 July, the US had turned its focus to increasing economic pressure in a bid to end the months-long war.
A return to open conflict would be dangerous for the region, where Iran has targeted US military bases and infrastructure in Gulf countries since the fighting began on 28 February.
4 min read
2 min read
Thousands of prisoners set for early release
Thousands of prisoners are set for an early release as part of controversial Government plans to ease jail overcrowding.
Here’s what we know.
‘We will deport all foreign nationals from our jails,’ Reform’s home affairs spokesperson says (Photo: Zeynep Demir/Anadolu via Getty Images).
Cutting the numbers
About 5,000 prisoners were due to be released early from October, down from 6,000, after ministers intervened to block rapists and “serious” child sex offenders from being eligible.
Caption: File photo dated 16/10/13 of HMP Barlinnie in Glasgow. The Government has apologised to the family of Pc Andrew Harper as two of his killers remain eligible for early release. Justice Secretary Alex Norris acknowledged that the decision had “created harm” but said the alternative was seeing prisons cease to function. Some 5,000 people are expected to be released early under sentencing changes, down from 6,000 after ministers exempted rapists and child sex offenders as part of the scheme to tackle overcrowding in jails. Issue date: Tuesday August 04, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Danny Lawson/PA Wire
Photographer: Danny Lawson
Provider: Danny Lawson/PA Wire
Source: PA
Burnham (Photo: Getty)
Under further changes announced by Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Sunday, several hundred more criminals will now be exempt from the early release scheme.
More exemptions
Anyone convicted of unlawful killing, including all forms of manslaughter, is now ineligible.
The exemption extends to those convicted of causing death by dangerous driving or allowing the death of a child.
Grooming gang perpetrators will also be blocked from early release amid concerns about a potential loophole in the system.
PC Harper killers denied
The unlawful killing exemption means two men tied to the killing of PC Andrew Harper will remain behind bars after backlash over their initial eligibility for early release.
Burnham also confirmed the Government will seek to end imprisonment for public protection sentences (IPPs), releasing offenders previously assessed to pose a significant risk of causing serious harm to the public.
5 min read
‘Indeterminate sentence’
What are IPPs?
IPPs, available between 2005 and 2012, meant offenders given such a sentence could only be released once the Parole Board determined they no longer posed a threat. They essentially meant some offenders could be held indefinitely; several hundred still were as of June 2026.
More than 2,000 IPP offenders are in jail, including 1,415 who were recalled to prison.
5 min read
Potential problems
However, Labour’s justice minister Jake Richards warned MPs in January that abolishing IPP sentences retrospectively “would result in prisoners being released whom the independent Parole Board has determined are too dangerous”.
Andy Burnham has promised to crack down on illegal migration (Photo: Jack Taylor/PA Wire)
Caption: ROTHERHAM, ENGLAND – MAY 30: Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and Rother Valley election candidate Jake Richards talk to a shopkeeper during a visit to Maltby on May 30, 2024 in Rotherham, England. The Shadow Home Secretary visited Maltby High Street to set out Labour’s plan to tackle the nationwide issues of anti-social behaviour, street crime and shoplifting. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
Photographer: Christopher Furlong
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images Europe
Meanwhile, Sir David Gauke, the ex-Tory justice secretary who helped Labour craft the early release scheme, has warned that freeing IPP prisoners could be even riskier than releasing killers and rapists early.
Patel to be replaced by Tugendhat in Tory reshuffle
Ex-Tory leadership hopeful Tom Tugendhat is set to replace senior Conservative Dame Priti Patel as shadow foreign secretary, it has emerged.
Caption: BIRMINGHAM, UNITED KINGDOM – 2024/10/02: Conservative party conference leadership candidate Tom Tugendhat MP seen on stage on the last day of the conference. The Conservative Party is the second largest political party in the UK and is meeting in Birmingham for its autumn conference. (Photo by David Tramontan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Photographer: SOPA Images
Provider: SOPA Images/LightRocket via Gett
Source: LightRocket
Copyright: ? 2024 SOPA Images
Caption: MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 07: Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, Priti Patel, attends a panel discussion on day three of the Conservative party conference Manchester Central Convention Complex on October 07, 2025 in Manchester, England. Kemi Badenoch goes into her first conference as party leader with current polling putting the Conservative Party in fourth place behind Reform, Labour and the Liberal Democrats. (Photo by Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)
Photographer: Ian Forsyth
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images Europe
Copyright: 2025 Getty Images
New international role for Patel
Dame Priti said she would now look to strengthen Tory links with global centre-right and fellow conservative parties through a new “international role”.
Caption: BIRMINGHAM, UNITED KINGDOM – OCTOBER 2: Conservative Party leadership candidate Tom Tugendhat attends the Conservative Party Conference at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Birmingham, United Kingdom on October 2, 2024. (Photo by Rasid Necati Aslim/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Photographer: Anadolu
Provider: Anadolu via Getty Images
Source: Anadolu
Caption: LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 09: (EMBARGOED FOR PUBLICATION IN UK NEWSPAPERS UNTIL 24 HOURS AFTER CREATE DATE AND TIME) Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Dame Priti Patel attends the annual Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration at Westminster Abbey on March 9, 2026 in London, England. Delivered by the Royal Commonwealth Society, the Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration brings together government representatives, young people and leading voices from the creative community to celebrate the Commonwealth of Nations, 56 independent member countries with a combined population of 2.7 billion people. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
Photographer: Max Mumby/Indigo
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images Europe
Tugendhat, her reported replacement in Kemi Badenoch’s shadow cabinet, returns to the frontbenches, having previously served as security minister under former Tory prime ministers Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak.
China hawk Tugendhat
Patel called for stronger action to protect the UK from threats posed by China, Iran and Russia.
Tugendhat is one of the most hawkish MPs on China and has campaigned against plans for the new super embassy in London.
He has been on the backbenches since a failed Tory leadership campaign in 2024.
Exclusive
3 min read
Tory reshuffle continues
The move comes as part of Tory leader Badenoch’s impending reshuffle of her frontbench, with the role of shadow housing, communities and local government secretary also vacant after Sir James Cleverly quit to run for London mayor.
5 min read
2 min read
HEALTH NEWS
Weekend lie-in may be good for your health
Caption: Woman sleeping in her bed. (Photo by: BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Photographer: BSIP
Provider: BSIP/Universal Images Group via
Source: Universal Images Group Editorial
Having a lie-in at the weekend may actually have health benefits, new research suggests.
Here’s what we know.
No shame for sleeping in
Researchers from Korea University gathered data on 41,000 adults over a seven-year study, measuring participants’ “catch-up” sleep at the weekend as well as their blood pressure and level of physical activity.
One key takeaway, the team said, was that people should not feel “lazy or guilty” for staying in bed a little longer at the weekend.
Caption: Woman sleeping in bed with pillows. (Photo by: Godong/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Photographer: Godong
Provider: Godong/Universal Images Group vi
Source: Universal Images Group Editorial
4 min read
Weekend slumber: facts and figures
Blood pressure boost
1 h 27 min
The study showed one to two hours extra sleep helped maintain good health.
Sleeping for an extra hour and 27 minutes resulted in optimal blood pressure benefits.
9%
This amount of extra sleep was linked to a nine per cent less chance of high blood pressure.
The study also found any level of extra sleep on the weekend was linked to a six per cent lower likelihood of high blood pressure.
But don’t overdo it…
When weekend catch-up sleep becomes excessive, the degree of sleep irregularity and circadian disruption may increase, which could offset that benefit.
Dr Nawton Lee, korea university
Caption: BONN, GERMANY – JANUARY 26: In this photo illustration a man a man lies in bed on January 26, 2021 in Bonn, Germany. (Photo by Ute Grabowsky/Photothek via Getty Images)
Photographer: Ute Grabowsky
Provider: Photothek via Getty Images
Source: Photothek
A common problem
It comes as one in three adults in Britain have high blood pressure, or hypertension. The average British adult also records less than the NHS-recommended seven to nine nightly hours of sleep.
Despite being symptomless, high blood pressure increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Newsletter (£)
4 min read
4 min read
Opposition to the reforms on the Labour benches could become a key test for Andy Burnham who has enjoyed a summer honeymoon during recess. But with MPs now back and the real business of governing starting in earnest, how he handles any showdown will be an early litmus test of his premiership.
The motion from Labour MP Neil Duncan-Jordan, who described the plans as “un-British”, now has the backing of 64 MPs, including 37 Labour supporters, with the updated list due to be published by Parliament over the next 24-36 hours.
Public rebels a fraction of those concerned about legislation
The Labour figures who have signed the motion are believed to represent only a fraction of the 100 or so MPs who have privately expressed concerns to ministers.
Mahmood and Burnham are currently considering offering a concession to rebels after her plans to double the default time immigrants must live in the UK before qualifying for ILR from five to 10 years triggered a major backlash.
The Home Secretary also wants immigrants who are already in the UK to come under the new rules, with this retrospective application in particular fuelling concerns among Labour MPs.
The i Paper reported exclusive BMG polling on Sunday that a substantial proportion of voters back the rebels, with 45 percent saying those already in the UK to be exempt from the new rules, against 33 per cent who thought the changes should apply.
The same proportion believe lower-skilled health and care workers should be exempt.
Duncan-Jordan and his backers are calling for all skilled worker visa holders, including those in social care, to remain on the default five-year pathway to settlement, saying they “pay taxes, contribute to their communities, and have no recourse to public funds”.
The motion adds that these workers “came to the UK in good faith on the clear understanding that five years of work and residence would provide a pathway” to ILR “and many built lives in the UK on this basis”.
Finally, it warns that Mahmood’s changes would “undermine confidence in the immigration system, damage the UK’s international reputation, and risk exacerbating skills shortages”.
Duncan-Jordan said: “This issue may well be one of the first real tests for the new PM. There have been encouraging signs that Burnham recognises this has been handled badly.
“The first step must be protecting the rights of all existing skilled worker visa holders.
“Whether you work in a care home, on our railways or in the medical professions, people built their lives on the basis of a clear deal: come here, contribute, and you can stay. To change the rules half way through someone’s stay is simply un-British.
“If we don’t change course, the risk of creating a Windrush-style scandal on a massive scale is obvious.
“Our public services will suffer, those who rely on those services will suffer and those who have been providing those services will suffer.
“There is no way out of this – the current plans have got to be scrapped.”
It comes after The i Paper published an analysis by the Unison union suggesting British workers are not filling job vacancies in social care left by fewer migrant staff.
Unison general secretary Andrea Egan warned the union would highlight the issue at Burnham’s first Labour Party conference as leader in late September unless Mahmood offered concessions.
She said: “The willingness of so many MPs to oppose the cruel proposals is encouraging. They know a rethink on these plans is essential.”
The Home Office has been contacted for comment.