Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is carrying out a reshuffle of his shadow cabinet as the party prepares for the next general election, expected in 2024.
But who has won a promotion in the ranks? Who has been demoted to a lower position? And who is returning to the backbenchers after a stint in a top job?
The first of the big winners is deputy party leader Angela Rayner, having been formally appointed as the shadow deputy prime minister, solidifying herself in the role if Labour wins the next election. She has also been named shadow levelling up secretary – giving her a departmental brief to get her teeth into.
A Labour source also said she would remain the “strategic lead on Labour’s new deal for working people”.
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Another rise in the ranks was announced with the news that Shabana Mahmood would take over as shadow justice secretary.
Sky News understands she is a key ally to Sir Keir and has been credited with helping transform the party and its campaign machine while acting as its national campaign co-ordinator.
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Former leadership contender Liz Kendall has also received a vote in confidence with a big promotion – going from a junior shadow health minister to shadow work and pensions secretary.
Another leap to a full departmental brief was given to Thangam Debbonaire, who has gone from a more obscure role as shadow leader of the Commons to shadow secretary for culture, media and sport.
Image: Liz Kendall and Darren Jones are among those Labour MPs getting promoted today. Pics: PA/Rita Franca/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Pat McFadden had been a senior player in the Treasury team, having held the role of shadow chief secretary to the Treasury.
But now he will take over as the shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster – a strange title in the Cabinet Office, previously held by Ms Rayner – and as the national campaign co-ordinator.
Perhaps more of a sideways shift than a full-on promotion was gained by Peter Kyle. Having been shadow Northern Ireland secretary, he already held a key role – with ongoing issues at Stormont and continued fallout from Brexit.
He will now take on the shadow science, innovation and technology post – a key part of policy going forward when it comes to jobs and growth.
However, Darren Jones has definitely been promoted as a new member of the shadow cabinet.
He won plaudits as the chair of the business select committee – especially when it came to questioning prominent ministers – and the strong communicator now takes on the role of shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, with the hope he will aid Labour’s economic credibility in the coming months.
Another new entry to Sir Keir’s team, though a well-known name from the past, is Hilary Benn, who comes in as shadow Northern Ireland secretary.
He held multiple government roles in the Blair and Brown years – including environment secretary – and numerous shadow positions since, such as Jeremy Corbyn’s shadow foreign secretary. But he now returns after a seven-year absence from the frontbench.
A more minor promotion, but one all the same, is for Ellie Reeves. She had held a junior position as a shadow justice minister, but now adds deputy national campaign co-ordinator to her job title.
Demoted
One of the biggest casualties of the reshuffle was Lisa Nandy, who lost her position as shadow levelling up secretary to Ms Rayner.
She has been appointed as the shadow minister for international development – essentially the second in command to the shadow foreign secretary – and will keep her seat at the cabinet table.
But it is a lower position than being in charge of shadowing an entire department, and our deputy political editor Sam Coates understands it was a “pretty brutal” conversation between her and Sir Keir.
Less of a big hit was taken by Steve Reed, who has gone from shadow justice secretary to shadow environment secretary.
While the brief may traditionally have been seen as a lesser role, environmental issues often lead to key debates with voters, so it could still be a fruitful place for Mr Reed to make his mark.
One clear demotion was for Lucy Powell, losing her spot as shadow culture secretary. But again, she has been given the consolation prize of leader of the House.
Image: Jonathan Ashworth and Lisa Nandy lost roles – but were put elsewhere in the shadow cabinet
Meanwhile, Jonathan Ashworth has taken a hit, moving from shadow work and pensions secretary to the more obscure role of shadow paymaster general.
But Sky News understands he will stay as a full shadow cabinet member and will play a big role in the general election campaign.
Nick Thomas-Symonds also loses his post as shadow secretary for international trade, but again keeps his cabinet position as a shadow minister without portfolio in the Cabinet Office.
Gone
Kicking off proceedings today was the resignation of Jim McMahon, who quit his post as shadow environment secretary.
In his letter to Sir Keir, Mr McMahon said there was “still some way to go” in his recovery from a serious illness – reported in the Mirror earlier this year as an infection that led him to two weeks in hospital – and he wanted to resign “for the benefit of both my health and my family”.
The party leader thanked him for his service, and also revealed Mr McMahon had been subject to “abuse [and] violent threats” during his time in post.
Image: Rosena Allin-Khan and Jim McMahon are both heading to the backbenches
Another resignation came from Rosena Allin-Khan, who stepped down as the shadow minister for mental health.
Writing to Sir Keir, she revealed tensions, saying: “As discussed previously, and in our call earlier, you made clear that you do not see a space for a mental health portfolio in a Labour cabinet, which is why I told you many weeks ago that I would not be able to continue in this role.”
But she thanked him for the opportunity and promised to fight for a Labour government from the backbenches.
Two other MPs have seen their roles removed and given to someone else – Fleur Anderson who was shadow paymaster general, and Preet Kaur Gill, who was shadow minister for international development.
A US judge has granted prediction markets platform Kalshi a temporary reprieve from enforcement after the state of Connecticut sent it a cease and desist order last week for allegedly conducting unlicensed gambling.
The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) sent Kalshi, along with Robinhood and Crypto.com, cease and desist orders on Dec. 2, accusing them of “conducting unlicensed online gambling, more specifically sports wagering, in Connecticut through its online sports event contracts.”
Kalshi sued the DCP a day later, arguing its event contracts “are lawful under federal law” and its platform was subject to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s “exclusive jurisdiction,” and filed a motion on Friday to temporarily stop the DCP’s action.
An excerpt from Kalshi’s preliminary injunction motion arguing that the DCP’s action violates federal commodities laws. Source: CourtListener
Connecticut federal court judge Vernon Oliver said in an order on Monday that the DCP must “refrain from taking enforcement action against Kalshi” as the court considers the company’s bid to temporarily stop the regulator.
The order adds that the DCP should file a response to the company by Jan. 9 and Kalshi should file further support for its motion by Jan. 30, with oral arguments for the case to be held in mid-February.
Kalshi does battle with multiple US states
Kalshi is a federally regulated designated contract maker under the CFTC and, in January, began offering contracts nationally that allow bets on the outcome of events such as sports and politics.
Its platform has become hugely popular this year and saw a record $4.54 billion monthly trading volume in November, attracting billions in investments, with Kalshi closing a $1 billion funding round earlier this month at a valuation of $11 billion.
However, multiple US state regulators have taken issue with Kalshi’s offerings, which have led to the company being embroiled in lawsuits over whether it is subject to state-level gambling laws.
Kalshi sued the New York State Gaming Commission in October after the regulator sent a cease and desist order claiming it offered a platform for sports wagering without a license.
In September, Massachusetts’ state attorney general sued Kalshi in state court, which the company asked to be tossed. So far this year, Kalshi has sued state regulators in New Jersey, Nevada, Maryland and Ohio, accusing each of regulatory overreach.
Sir Keir Starmer has called for a tougher approach to policing Europe’s borders ahead of a meeting between leaders to discuss a potential shake-up of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
The prime minister said the way in which the ECHR is interpreted in courts must be modernised, with critics long claiming the charter is a major barrier to deportations of illegal migrants.
His deputy, David Lammy, will today be in Strasbourg, France, with fellow European ministers to discuss reforms of how the agreement is interpreted in law across the continent.
In an opinion piece for The Guardian, Sir Keir and his Danish counterpart, Mette Frederiksen, said the change was necessary to prevent voters from turning to populist political opponents.
Image: Small boat crossings have risen this year. File pic: PA
What’s the issue with the ECHR?
The ECHR, which is the foundation of Britain’s Human Rights Act, includes the right to family life in its Article 8.
That is often used as grounds to prevent deportations of illegal migrants from the UK.
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There has also been a rise in cases where Article 3 rights, prohibiting torture, were used to halt deportations over claims migrants’ healthcare needs could not be met in their home country, according to the Home Office.
The Conservatives and Reform UK have both said they would leave the ECHR if in power, while the Labour government has insisted it will remain a member of the treaty.
But Sir Keir admitted in his joint op-ed that the “current asylum framework was created for another era”.
“In a world with mass mobility, yesterday’s answers do not work. We will always protect those fleeing war and terror – but the world has changed, and asylum systems must change with it,” the two prime ministers wrote, as they push for a “modernisation of the interpretation” of the ECHR.
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2:16
System ‘more than broken’, says asylum seeker
What is happening today?
Mr Lammy is attending an informal summit of the Council of Europe.
He is expected to say: “We must strike a careful balance between individual rights and the public’s interest.
“The definition of ‘family life’ can’t be stretched to prevent the removal of people with no right to remain in the country [and] the threshold of ‘inhuman and degrading treatment’ must be constrained to the most serious issues.”
It is understood that a political declaration signed by the gathered ministers could carry enough weight to directly influence how the European Court of Human Rights interprets the treaty.
The UK government is expected to bring forward its own legislation to change how Article 8 is interpreted in UK courts, and is also considering a re-evaluation of the threshold for Article 3 rights.
Image: David Lammy will swap Westminster for Strasbourg today
The plans have been criticised by Amnesty International UK, which described them as weakening protections.
“Human rights were never meant to be optional or reserved for comfortable and secure times. They were designed to be a compass, our conscience, when the politics of fear and division try to steer us wrong,” Steve Valdez-Symonds, the organisation’s refugee and migrant rights programme director, said.
Sir Keir’s government has already adopted several hardline immigration measures – modelled on those introduced by Ms Federiksen’s Danish government – to decrease the number of migrants crossing the Channel via small boats.
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2:40
Beth Rigby: The two big problems with Labour’s asylum plan
Starmer-Macron deal ‘a sticking plaster’
Meanwhile, French far-right leader Jordan Bardella told The Daily Telegraph he would rewrite his country’s border policy to allow British patrol boats to push back small vessels carrying migrants into France’s waters if he were elected.
The National Rally leader called Sir Keir’s “one-in, one-out” agreement with Emmanuel Macron, which includes Britain returning illegal arrivals in exchange for accepting a matching number of legitimate asylum seekers, a “sticking plaster” and “smokescreen”.
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4:02
Far-right, 30, and France’s most popular politician
He said that only a complete overhaul of French immigration policy would stop the Channel crossings.
Mr Bardella is currently leading in opinion polls to win the first round of France’s next presidential election, expected to happen in 2027, to replace Mr Macron.
The race for the new US Federal Reserve chair is nearing the finish line, with US President Donald Trump reportedly set to begin interviewing finalists for the top job this week.
According to a report from the Financial Times on Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has presented a list of four names to the White House.
One of these is former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, whom Bessent is scheduled to meet with on Wednesday. Another is National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett, who is seen as the frontrunner for the role.
Another two names would be picked from a list of other finalists, which includes Fed governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, and BlackRock chief investment officer Rick Rieder.
Trump and Bessent are expected to hold at least one interview next week, as a decision looks likely to be announced in January.
However, Trump has revealed he already has his eye on one particular candidate.
“We’re going to be looking at a couple different people, but I have a pretty good idea of who I want,” Trump said to journalists on Air Force One on Tuesday.
Kevin Hassett is a frontrunner for Fed chair role
The upcoming round of interviews suggests that Hassett may not be the clear lock in for the role as previously thought, though he is seen as the favorite.
Earlier this month, prediction market odds on Kalshi and Polymarket shot up for Hassett significantly following comments from Trump at the White House on Dec. 2.
While welcoming guests, Trump labeled Hassett as “potential Fed chair” leading many to assume the president had let a major hint slip.
With Hassett’s odds spiking to 85% after Trump’s comments last week, they have since declined to around 73% for Hassett, while Warsh’s odds sit at 13% on Kalshi at the time of writing, which has floated around this range over December.
Regardless of who ends up taking over as chair, the move is bound to impact crypto markets under the new leadership.
If elected, Hassett has asserted that he will be apolitical in terms of running the Fed, despite his close ties to Trump. Speaking with The Wall Street Journal this week, Hassett said that “You just do the right thing” when asked if he would blindly follow orders from Trump.
“Suppose that inflation has gotten from, say, 2.5% to 4%. You can’t cut,” Hassett said, adding that he would rely on his own “judgment, which I think the president trusts.”