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.
New Hampshire has approved the issuance of a $100 million municipal bond backed by Bitcoin, in what appears to be the first structure of its kind at the US state level.
Minutes from a Nov. 17 meeting of the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority (BFA), the state’s business financing agency, show the board planned “to consider approving a resolution authorizing up to $100,000,000 bonds for a project to acquire and hold digital currency.”
Minutes from the following day record that directors voted to “approve the preliminary official intent, with no reservation, to issue a taxable conduit revenue bond for WaveRose Depositor, LLC of up to $100,000,000.”
According to a Wednesday Crypto in America report, the bond is backed by Bitcoin (BTC) and would let companies borrow against overcollateralized BTC held by a private custodian. The state or taxpayers do not back the bond; instead, BFA approves and oversees a private deal, while Bitcoin — reportedly held in custody by BitGo — covers investors.
According to the report, asset manager Wave Digital Assets and bond specialist Rosemawr Management designed the bond to utilize Bitcoin as collateral under the same rules that govern municipal and corporate bonds. Wave co-founder Les Borsai said the goal is to “bridge traditional fixed income with digital assets” for institutional investors.
The New Hampshire State House in Concord. Source: Wikimedia
“We believe this structure shows how public and private sectors can collaborate to responsibly unlock the value of digital assets and digital asset reserves,” he added.
The borrower is expected to post approximately 160% of the bond’s value in Bitcoin as collateral, and if the price of BTC drops below roughly 130%, a liquidation would ensure that bondholders stay whole. According to BFA Executive Director James Key-Wallace, fees from the transaction will fund the local innovation and entrepreneurship program, the Bitcoin Economic Development Fund.
New Hampshire dives headfirst into crypto
The news follows New Hampshire becoming the first US state to allow its government to invest in cryptocurrencies in May after Governor Kelly Ayotte signed a bill allowing the municipality to “invest in cryptocurrency and precious metals.”
New Hampshire is also working on a bill to deregulate local cryptocurrency mining operations. In late October, a committee voted 4–2 to send the measure for further review in an interim study after it had been deadlocked in the State Senate twice.
The local administration is viewed as particularly welcoming to the cryptocurrency industry. In early February, Brendan Cochrane, an Anti-Money Laundering specialist at YK Law in New York City, argued that it could become an alternative for crypto companies relocating to the Bahamas.
The latest moves build on a longer history of crypto engagement. Back in 2015, New Hampshire was already working on a bill that would have allowed the state government to accept tax and fee payments in Bitcoin.
Global bank regulators are preparing to revisit their most stringent crypto rules after the United States and the United Kingdom refused to implement them, a move that threatens to unravel the long-standing consensus of the Basel Committee.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Erik Thedéen, the governor of the Swedish central bank and chair of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), said they may need a “different approach” to the current 1,250% risk weighting for crypto exposures.
According to global law firm White & Case, the application of the 1,250% risk weight means that credit institutions must hold their own funds of at least equal value to the amount of the respective crypto-asset exposure.
Under the existing framework, crypto assets issued on a permissionless blockchain, which includes stablecoins such as USDt (USDT) and USDC (USDC), receive the same 1,250% risk weighting used for the riskiest venture investments.
However, Thedéen acknowledged that the rapid growth of regulated stablecoins has changed the policy landscape. “What has happened has been fairly dramatic,” Thedéen told the Financial Times, adding that there is a strong increase in stablecoins and that the amount of assets in the system calls for a new approach.
“We need to start analysing. But we need to be fairly quick on it,” Thedéen added, floating questions over stablecoin risks and if there was an argument that could approach the assets in “a different way.”
Explicit resistance from major economies
The resistance felt from major economies is now more explicit. According to the FT report, the US Federal Reserve does not plan to implement the Basel crypto rules as written, with policymakers calling the capital charges unrealistic.
The Bank of England also signaled that it will not apply the framework in its current form. At the same time, the European Union has only partially implemented the 2022 standard, excluding key provisions that cover permissionless blockchains.
Citing anonymous sources, Bloomberg previously reported that the Basel Committee is preparing to revise its 2022 guidance next year to be more favorable to banks participating in crypto markets.
The report said that many banks interpreted the framework as a deterrent to engaging with cryptocurrency or stablecoin services.
The talks reportedly intensified as regulated stablecoins gained traction in the US, supported by US President Donald Trump and the passage of the GENIUS Act, which formally authorized the use of these assets in payments.
Stablecoin boom requires rethink of rules
Thedéen echoed the concerns in the FT report, saying that the increase in stablecoin adoption requires fresh analysis and a potentially more lenient stance.
However, he also said that reaching an agreement may be difficult as regulators are divided on core assumptions about crypto’s risk profile and the role of bank-issued digital assets.
“Going further than that at this point in time is difficult, because I’m the chair and there are so many different views in this committee,” he said
The divergence in policies creates a competitive imbalance for global banks. If EU banks remain bound by these mandates while the US and the UK operate under more lenient frameworks, the playing field becomes significantly tilted.
This imbalance would influence which jurisdictions can build bank-issued stablecoin products, tokenized deposits or even crypto custody solutions.
Ondo Global Markets, a US-based tokenization platform, has received regulatory approval to offer tokenized stocks to European investors.
Liechtenstein Financial Market Authority (FMA) has granted Ondo approval to launch its tokenized stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the European Union and the broader European Economic Area (EEA), the company announced on Tuesday.
“With this milestone, more than 500 million investors in 30 European countries can soon access regulated exposure to US markets directly onchain,” Ondo said.
The news came a few weeks after Ondo partnered with Boerse Stuttgart Group’s digital asset arm BX Digital to enable the tokenized stock trading in Switzerland on Nov. 3.
Liechtenstein adopts MiCA despite not being EU member state
Liechtenstein’s approval positions Ondo to offer tokenized stocks and ETFs to retail investors across all 30 EEA countries, including all 27 EU nations plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
The regulatory milestone positions Ondo to operate within a “unified, regulated European framework consistent with established investor-protection standards,” the company said.
Ondo did not specify the framework under which it secured approval to offer tokenized stocks in Europe, but highlighted Liechtenstein’s passporting regime, which extends across the EEA.
Following the expiry of the transitional regime on Dec. 31, 2025, crypto asset service providers (CASPs) must hold MiCA authorization from Liechtenstein’s FMA.
Cointelegraph approached Ondo and the FMA for comment regarding the nature of the approval but had not received a response at the time of publication.
The news arrives amid rising tensions within the EU over the extent of supervisory authority that member states should retain under MiCA. According to reports, EU officials are drafting plans to designate the European Securities and Markets Authority as the direct regulator for all CASPs across the bloc.