In solidarity with the Green party, who have floated the idea of a three-day weekend, I’m not writing my usual blog today but here, as an alternative, is the Politics Live readers’ edition. It is a place for you to discuss today’s politics, and to share links to breaking news and to the most interesting stories and blogs on the web.
Feel free to express your views robustly, but please treat others with respect and don’t resort to abuse. Guardian comment pages are supposed to be a haven from the Twitter/social media rant-orama, not an extension of it.
You can read all today’s Guardian politics stories here.
And here are some of the main ones on our site this morning.
- The US military has launched a heavy cruise missile attack on a Syrian airfield, in retaliation against Bashar al-Assad’s latest indiscriminate use of chemical weapons.
- Jeremy Corbyn has said he is “strongly wedded to the principle of universalism in benefits” as he launched Labour’s policy of providing every primary school child with free school meals.
- More than 1,000 Jewish Labour members and supporters have written to the Guardian condemning the decision not to expel Ken Livingstone over his comments linking Adolf Hitler with Zionism, in a move putting more pressure on the party leadership to take urgent action.
- The government published a form on Thursday requiring rape victims to declare that they do not live with their attacker if they wish to claim an exemption to a new two-child limit for tax credits.
- A record number of GP practices closed last year, forcing thousands of patients to find a new surgery, in spite of government attempts to stop local doctors shutting their doors.
On Thursday nights local council byelections normally take place. There were four last night. Britain Elects has the results.
Tonight's by-elections: two UKIP defences, one Conservative, one Liberal Democrat.https://t.co/4Iw1LhOMFJ pic.twitter.com/5aBU4a6LGg
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
Conservative GAIN St James (Tendring) from UKIP.
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
St James (Tendring) result:
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
CON: 47.9% (+12.7)
UKIP: 22.5% (-16.3)
LAB: 15.0% (-1.0)
LDEM: 12.8% (+12.8)
GRN: 1.9% (+1.9)
Conservative HOLD Hipperholme & Lightcliffe (Calderdale).
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
Hipperholme & Lightcliffe (Calderdale) result:
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
CON: 60.3% (-4.3)
LDEM: 17.1% (+6.8)
LAB: 16.5% (-0.5)
GRN: 6.1% (-2.0)
Liberal Democrat HOLD Walcot (Bath & North East Somerset).
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
Walcot (Bath & North East Somerset) result:
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
LDEM: 48.6% (+11.2)
GRN: 22.2% (+0.4)
CON: 22.0% (-0.5)
LAB: 7.2% (-7.4)
[Share chgs corrected]
Liberal Democrat GAIN Elmhurst (Aylesbury Vale) from UKIP.
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
Elmhurst (Aylesbury Vale) result:
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
LDEM: 63.5% (+37.9)
LAB: 12.2% (-10.0)
CON: 11.9% (-9.3)
UKIP: 9.0% (-14.4)
GRN: 3.5% (-4.2)
Tonight's by-election results:
— Britain Elects (@britainelects) April 6, 2017
LDem gain from UKIP in Aylesbury Vale.
Con gain from UKIP in Tendring.https://t.co/Q1lXVZh7PI pic.twitter.com/OXjpG09gb7
