Political Editor, The Guardian. Host of Politics Weekly podcast. Co-presenter @itvpeston Political Journalist of the Year 2026 @pressawardsuk
London, Scotland
Joined April 2010
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NEW: Miatta Fahnbulleh is leaning towards rejecting the giant Rosebank oilfield in what would be a blow for the North Sea energy industry and a major victory for climate campaigners.
Story by @kiranstacey theguardian.com/environment/…
NEW: The Jackdaw gasfield will be given the go-ahead on Wednesday, signalling Andy Burnham’s commitment to the North Sea fossil fuel industry and threatening to trigger a row with climate campaigners and Labour MPs.
Story by @kiranstacey theguardian.com/environment/…
EXCL: Senior Reform UK official raised questions about whether major donations from two billionaire backers would be legal under proposed new foreign donors cap three months before they gave £72m to the party.
James Orr, then Reform UK’s head of policy, discussed potential difficulties around future donations from Christopher Harborne and Ben Delo in undercover footage captured by the investigative reporting group Verbatim.
A reporter was posing as a potential donor when Orr talked to him about “filling the war chest in anticipation” of tougher donations rules, describing it as the establishment trying to “kneecap” the party. Story by @rowenamason
theguardian.com/politics/202…
Care homes were an “afterthought” during the pandemic and government failures caused the virus to spread “like wildfire” among vulnerable and elderly people, the public inquiry has found
theguardian.com/uk-news/2026…
EXCL: Andy Burnham has told officials to rip up their plans for how to fix Thames Water and present him with more radical options for what to do with the stricken company.
In an early test of his promise to bring “the essentials of life” under public control, the PM is urging his advisers to go back to the drawing board and create a new list of policies for the utility.
One option being looked at is to convert about £100m of outstanding fines into a government stake in the company, saving its creditors money but giving ministers some say in how it is run.
With @kiranstacey & @jessicaelgot
theguardian.com/politics/202…
🚨 Vive la France. Can Andy Burnham avoid young people protesting on the streets?
Our latest #PoliticsWeekly podcast with me & @kiranstacey
theguardian.com/politics/vid…
Pippa Crerar retweeted
Watch @Peston and @PippaCrerar discuss the implications of ITV’s undercover investigation into Reform UK over on our YouTube channel 📺
youtu.be/3IYFmQERgaw?si=OaWB…
#Peston
NEW: France has dropped its opposition to the UK being included in the EU’s “Made in Europe” legislation as long as the British government aligns with the bloc’s position over tariffs on Chinese EVs.
In a breakthrough for Andy Burnham, Paris on Thursday came round to backing Germany, which has always supported the UK’s calls to be designated European for the purposes of the Industrial Accelerator Act.
The legislation, which is in its draft stage, is designed to protect domestic manufacturing from cheap Chinese competition.
According to a joint Franco-German paper seen by the Guardian, the two countries are now proposing that for the car industry specifically the UK could be included in the "Made in Europe" scheme. @lisaocarroll reports
theguardian.com/world/2026/o…
EXCL: John Healey poised to tax Britain’s banks in his 28 October budget to help offset the damage inflicted on the public finances by war in the Middle East, the Guardian understands.
The chancellor is in Bangkok, where the IMF has praised the UK’s progress towards balancing the books, urging him to “stay the course”.
To keep the Treasury’s deficit reduction plans on track in the face of rising government borrowing costs, Healey is understood to have decided to tap the financial sector for additional revenue.
One option understood to be under discussion – reversing cuts to the bank surcharge made by Jeremy Hunt – would raise upwards of £2bn a year.
Lenders have logged strong earnings on back of rising interest rates, with UK’s four largest lenders – HSBC, NatWest, Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group – alone having generated £200bn in pre-tax profits over past five years.
More from economics editor Heather Stewart, @jessicaelgot & Kayleena Markoff 👇
theguardian.com/uk-news/2026…
Thursday’s @guardian front page: Zelenskyy blames Trump for loss of protection from Russian raids theguardian.com/world/2026/o…
EXCL: Manchester City were invited and took part in a government trade delegation to India this week, despite the Premier League charges.
Bev Craig, Andy Burnham’s successor as mayor, took a club representative to Delhi and Mumbai on a trip organised by business secretary Jonathan Reynolds, where she and other mayors have been promoting British trade and tourism.
She defended the decision to invite City even as the PM came under fire for his own contacts with the club, telling the Guardian it had played a vital role in helping build infrastructure in her city.
Story from @kiranstacey
theguardian.com/football/202…
EXCL: The business secretary has hit back at European demands for British tariffs on Chinese imports, saying the government will not change its trade rules because of pressure from Brussels.
Jonathan Reynolds warned the government would not bow to calls from other countries for the UK to hit Chinese vehicles with import taxes, despite political pressure to align with EU in exchange for deeper future economic ties.
Great interview from @kiranstacey in Mumbai
theguardian.com/politics/202…
Just one poll etc, but this is the first time Reform have slipped behind the Tories into third place since 2024…
YouGov - Sky - Times voting intention
LAB 24%(-3)
CON 23%(+3)
RefUK 21%(-1)
LDEM 12%(+1)
GRN 11%(nc)
Oct 11-12
Pollster note: The changes are within the margin of error, so it's difficult to distinguish signal from noise, but I suspect there is some degree of "conference bounce" there, with the Tories getting a boost from their coverage, and Labour declining again as the temporary impact of their own conference fades.
It may well be a temporary Tory boost, but for the record it means this is the first time that we have had Reform back in third place since 2024 (it’s technically the first time since early 2024 – but we didn’t poll between the election and January 2025 while we were reviewing methods, so we don’t know exactly when Reform overtook the Tories).
Tuesday’s @guardian front page: PM: Britain’s relationship with EU ‘not good enough’ theguardian.com/politics/202…
NEW: Security arrangements for high-profile public figures will be urgently examined to ensure those most at risk are better protected amid rising threats to their safety.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood tells MPs the independent review of the UK’s protective security system will be carried out by Sir Stephen Lovegrove.
The former national security adviser will look at whether current security arrangements are fit for purpose, in particular whether there is adequate protection for those most at risk.
This includes high-profile individuals (including royals), government ministers, MPs, locally elected representatives and other prominent British political figures - but not individual cases.
Dedicated police support will be expanded to leaders of political parties who are not MPs, as well as peers, former MPs, former members of the devolved parliaments and political party spokespeople.
The murder of Ann Widdecombe is one of several recent events to raise serious questions about the security of those in public life.
🚨 Was Andy Burnham right to talk about Russian interference in Brexit?
Our latest Politics Weekly podcast - in vid form - with the brilliant @jessicaelgot standing in...
theguardian.com/politics/vid…
NEW: Andy Burnham denies that he implied the Brexit referendum result was illegitimate because of Russian interference at weekend.
"I implied no such thing in my comments on the Rest is Politics podcast. I think she should go back and look again. It is a matter of record, that Russian actors sought to interfere in the 2019 general election, and we think it is inconceivable that this was the first time."
NEW: Andy Burnham says it would be a "major dereliction of duty" for his government to turn away from exploring closer relations with the EU.
But PM says that at every stage of deciding longer term relationship "the British public will be boss".
"If we are serious about promoting growth, controlling immigration, upholding our values and security, it is a conversation we must have," he tells MPs.
"Sticking with the status quo is not good enough for Britain. Worse, it would be a major dereliction of duty to turn away.
"Our immediate priority is securing a successful outcome at the summit, and I believe we should then set up a serious dialogue about the different options for our relationship in the long term.
"At every stage, the British public will be the boss, and I am clear that public opinion currently supports a pragmatic approach like the one I am suggesting.
"But if we go into this further phase, we will proceed with care and complete transparency. This is the leadership we need to draw a decade to draw a line on a decade of drift and division and take the country forward."
Burnham denies he is reigniting the Brexit wars, after saying earlier this year that the "last thing we should do right now is rerun those arguments".
He tells MPs: "I stand by every single one of those words. I am not reopening the referendum. I respect the referendum result...
"But what I will do is take a pragmatic approach when I can boost growth in the British economy, when I can increase cooperation to get a grip on the boat crossings across the Channel.
"I will do those things where I believe they can be in the country's best interests."
Burnham says EU's 'Made in Europe' plans presents "risks" to British manufacturing - and he's raising concerns about this with EU partners.
Germany is leading push for inclusive definition to include the UK, but France wants to ensure only EU companies can benefit from public subsidies and contracts in affected sectors.
The EU is not expected to reach agreement on a key Made-in-Europe law until December, meaning the issue will not be settled by the summit.
PM tells Commons: "It is important that we get to an arrangement here that works for both the UK and the EU.
"After all, we are both trying to deal with the same issue, which is Chinese exports and the damaging effect that is having on our industry.
"So the way to approach this is to do it together, and that's the case that we're making to the EU."