Harrell strategist was paid for years at City Hall in unusual arrangement
Some current and former city staff and elected officials say the arrangement represented a thorny conflict between politics and governance.
Local politics
Labour is dead, says Zarah Sultana as she calls for patience over party launch
Co-leader of nascent leftwing party says more than 750,000 people have registered their interest“Labour is dead” after failing to deliver for working people, Zarah Sultana said as she urged supporters of a new leftwing party she is creating to be patie…
Washington secures AmeriCorps funding from Trump administration
The federal government agreed Thursday to release more than $184 million for AmeriCorps service programs around the country, restoring more than $21 million in total funding for Washington.
England to sell eight times more council homes than it built last year, report finds
Depletion of social housing stock spurs calls for councils to have first refusal to buy ex-council homes entering marketEngland will sell off more than eight times as many council homes in 2025-26 as were constructed the previous year, research has fou…
Reform UK accused of serving a ‘plate of chaos’ at Leicestershire county council
Tory opposition criticises leadership after Reform’s 22-year-old deputy leader is removed after three months in roleA Reform UK-led county council has served its residents a “plate of chaos” from the start of its leadership, according to its Conservati…
I spoke to the AI avatar of a Leeds MP. How did it cope with my Yorkshire accent?
Leeds MP Mark Sewards has launched a digital assistant, but the results of my chat show MPs’ aides have nowt to worry aboutAs anyone with even a trace of a regional dialect who has had to pay a parking fine can attest, voice recognition services strugg…
Washington state primary election results 2025
View election results for the 2025 Washington state primary, including Seattle mayor, where incumbent Bruce Harrell is seeking reelection.
‘A sign of how we live now’: friction in Notting Hill over counter-terrorism barriers
Film tourists, market traders and residents react as council imposes traffic control measures on famous London streetIf Richard Curtis had shot his romcom classic Notting Hill over the past month, things might have turned out very differently.Julia Rob…
Alaska senator’s ‘I feel cheated’ is a motto for our times
The Republican lawmaker’s lament about how she got played by President Donald Trump is no help for the scrambling wind and solar industries. But it is a phrase for the age.
MPs and political candidates face ‘industrial’ levels of abuse, minister says
Exclusive: Young people deterred from politics, Rushanara Ali warns, as government plans stricter punishmentsMPs and political candidates are facing “industrial” levels of intimidation and harassment, a minister has warned, as the government outlines p…