Politics latest: Tetchy Starmer hits back at questions over gifted flat (2024)

Thank you for joining us in the Politics Hub for a busy final day at Labour's annual conference - and in New York, where the PM is attending the UN General Assembly.

You can catch up on Sir Keir Starmer's interview with our political editor Beth Rigbyhere.

And for a round-up of the rest of the day's events, see our 10pm bulletin here.

Join us again from 6am for the very latest political news.

As the Israeli strikes continue inside Lebanon, the humanitarian situation is worsening.

As a result, the Foreign Office has announced this evening that the UK will send £5m in aid which UNICEF will distribute in supplies to those in need.

The package includes essential medical supplies, hygiene kits and fuel for water stations, to help thousands of displaced civilians across Lebanon meet their basic needs, the government has said.

The Foreign Office has also reopened its "register your presence" portal, which British nationals in Lebanon can use to fill in their details to notify the UK government of their whereabouts.

Development minister Anneliese Dodds said in a statement: "The situation in Lebanon is deeply concerning.

"While we continue to urge British nationals to leave and have launched our 'register your presence portal' to aid their departure, the UK will always be a strong supporter of the Lebanese people.

"That is why we are providing £5m to UNICEF to support civilians who have been displaced and are facing a humanitarian emergency."

She reiterated the government's call for an "immediate ceasefire" between Israel and Hezbollah "to prevent further civilian casualties and ensure that displaced people can return to their homes".

Follow the latest on the crisis in the Middle East in our dedicated live coverage here:

The prime minister will be off on another foreign trip next week - this time, to Brussels.

The trip was announced by Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, after she met Sir Keir Starmer on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York today.

The pair will discuss "the reset of EU-UK relations", she added.

The PM said in a follow-up tweet that he is "looking forward" to the trip, adding: "I want to reset our relationship with the EU and make Brexit work for the British people."

Sir Keir Starmer has gone from Labour's annual conference Liverpool to New York for the United Nations General Assembly.

He goes with the escalating crisis in the Middle East top of the international agenda, but back home he's under continued pressure over the freebies row and winter fuel payment cuts.

Here's your 10pm bulletin on what you need to know:

• The prime minister has defended his decision to accept free accommodation worth more than £20,000 so his son could study for his GCSEs "in peace" during the general election;
• Speaking to our political editor Beth Rigby in New York, Sir Keir said journalists and the occasional protester outside the family home was "hard" for his children to "navigate";
• "I promised our children I would protect them," added the PM, who said "any parent would have made the same decision";
• The donation came via his regular donor Lord Alli.

• Sir Keir has acknowledged "concern" around cuts to the winter fuel allowance but insisted it was the right move for the economy;
• It comes after delegates at Labour's conference backed a motion by the party's union supporters to reverse the cuts;
• Our political correspondent Tamara Cohen said it reflects the "strength of feeling" about the cuts as we approach the winter months.

• And on the international front, the PM has repeated his call to Britons in Lebanon to "leave immediately" ahead of a possible Israeli invasion;
• The PM has held talks with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy about the war there, and will speak with many other world leaders as Kyiv seeks permission to use long-range Storm Shadow missiles on targets inside Russia.

By Alix Culbertson, political reporter

Sir Keir Starmer has said he hopes to meet Kamala Harris and Donald Trump before the US election.

The prime minister, speaking from a flight to the US for the annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), said it would be "very good to meet both of them at some stage before the election".

"We'll just have to see what's possible," he added.

He will meet fellow world leaders in New York, and is likely to see US President Joe Biden and his vice president Ms Harris, which could make it diplomatically awkward only to meet one of the presidential candidates.

However, Mr Trump's campaign schedule could make arranging a meeting complicated.

Focus at the UNGA will be on the Ukraine war and theescalating situation in the Middle East.

The prime minister has held talks with Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Sir Keir Starmer has met with the Ukrainian president regularly since winning power in July, with his government having continued to pledge support for Kyiv's war with Russia.

Downing Street said they had a "productive meeting", with Sir Keir "paying tribute to the continued courage of the Ukrainian people".

He reiterated the UK's support "will continue for as long as it takes", but acknowledged the war is "at a critical point".

'Russia must end war'

Earlier, the PM used his first address to the UN Security Council to launch a withering attack on Russia, which remains a council member.

"I wonder how Russia can show its face in this building," he said, adding: "Russia started this illegal war. It must end it, and get out of Ukraine."

It comes as Mr Zelenskyy continues to urge Western allies to allow Ukraine to fire long-range missiles at targets inside Russia.

Sir Keir Starmer campaigned in the general election about being a politician who would do things differently and lead a government of service.

His was a message of change not just about how he would run the country, but also about how he would lead the government change. It was billed not just as a change of power from one party to another but as a change of culture too.

If the polls are anything to go by, that message has been blunted and his reputation tarnished in the early days of his government over the row around Sir Keir's freebies. In the last parliament, Sir Keir claimed more freebies - £107,145 - than any other politician.

The handouts ranged from clothing (£16,200) to football freebies (more than £35,000), concert tickets, rugby matches and the races (£17,000).

New polling put out by YouGov on Wednesday found that three out of four people thought donations of concert tickets and money for clothes to politicians should be banned.

Sir Keir might find that uncomfortable, or vehemently disagree with it, but can he understand that while he is following all the rules, the perception, the optics of claiming all these freebies while asking people to take the pain of difficult choices is an issue for him and his government?

By Alix Culbertson, political reporter

The socialist anthem has been the Labour Party's official anthem since it was founded in 1900.

Written by Irishman Jim Connell in 1889, it is sung to the tune of German Christmas carol O Tannenbaum (O Christmas Tree).

The song emphasises the sacrifices and solidarity of the international labour movement and was adopted by socialist movements around the world in the early 20th Century.

It was first sung in the House of Commons in 1945 when parliament convened after Clement Attlee's Labour defeat of Winston Churchill's Conservatives.

In 1976, Labour MPs famously sang the anthem after winning a majority by one vote in an attempt to overrule nationalisation plans for the shipbuilding industry.

As they reached the words "We'll keep the red flag flying here", Tory MP Michael Heseltine jumped up and seized the mace and waved it at the Labour benches - a highly frowned upon move.

The Red Flag had always been sung at the close of Labour's party conferences until Tony Blair banned it in 2000.

He had been determined to ditch the song since 1994, when he became leader, as it represented everything he disliked about "Old Labour".

However, it was brought back in 2011 under Ed Miliband's leadership and has continued to be sung since then.

When Jeremy Corbyn became leader in 2015, The Red Flag was sung as he and his supporters celebrated in a London pub.

That concludes our coverage of tonight's Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge. The show returns tomorrow at 7pm. In the meantime, stay with us for more political news and analysis.

The threat of further widespread train strikes has been lifted after union members voted overwhelmingly for a new pay deal with train companies and Network Rail.

It was confirmed today that members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) had backed a one-year rise of 4.5% at Network Rail and increases at train operators of 4.75% for the last year and 4.5% for 2024/25 (more here).

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch saysthey "got a reasonable deal", even though it does not keep up with the inflation during the dispute.

He accuses the last Tory government of having "attacked" them by looking to cut jobs, change terms and conditions, "get rid" of their pension scheme, and close ticket offices.

The deal with the new Labour government, he explains, is "no strings attached", despite being below inflation.

"So they haven't caved in - they've just got rid of the Tory nonsense."

Next up on Politics Hub With Sophy Ridgeis the UK's ex-ambassador to Iran, Rob Macaire, and we start by asking how important it is for Britons to leave Lebanon immediately, as the government is urging.

"The messaging couldn't be clearer that people need to leave now," he says.

"And I think, having seen some of these evacuations in the past, people need to remember if you're evacuated from your home in the UK [due to] some disaster… it's all under control of the authorities.

"If the government's trying to do an evacuation in a foreign country, none of that is under the control of the government.

"And even with most professional, best planned operation, it will be messy, it will be confusing, it will be frightening - and people shouldn't rely on an evacuation if it gets to that."

Mr Macaire goes on to say that government departments train and practice for such evacuations as needed, and are "fantastic" - but "it would be a mistake to think it can go like clockwork".