By Alexandra Rogers, political correspondent

Unison has until now been one of the most loyal unions to Labour under Sir Keir Starmer - but as of Wednesday, that is no longer the case.

The union with a reputation for being moderate has just elected left-winger Andrea Egan as its new general secretary, replacing Christina McAnea who served in the top role since 2021.

The development is a significant blow to the prime minister and Number 10, who strongly backed McAnea's campaign for re-election.

The fact she lost, and turnout was so low, is seen as a damning indictment of the Downing Street operation and is seen as a boost to any potential Andy Burnham leadership bid.

It has parallels with how Lucy Powell's election as deputy leader in October was seen as a repudiation of Sir Keir's ailing leadership.

With McAnea now gone, the safe haven she provided for Sir Keir against the continued criticism of Unite, another key party donor, has vanished.

Instead, he faces hostility on two fronts from the two biggest unions in the country.

The Electoral Commission will not investigate Nigel Farage's general election spending in Clacton, the watchdog has said.

Labour chairwoman Anna Turley had called for an investigation into the Reform UK leader's spending in the Clacton constituency, alleging an overspend could have breached electoral law.

An Electoral Commission spokesperson said: "We have responded to Anna Turley MP's correspondence which raised questions about Reform UK's spending at the 2024 general election.

"After carefully considering the information presented in the letter, we did not identify any expenditure relating to Mr Farage's election campaign in Clacton that should have been declared in Reform UK’s national expenditure."

The decision comes after Essex Police said it would also not be investigating, as the one-year statutory time limit to begin any probe has now elapsed.

Dr Christian Turner has been announced as the new ambassador to the US by the Foreign Office. 

He replaces Lord Mandelson, who was sacked back in September because of his links to disgraced paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. 

But Turner, who was until just hours ago set to take up a job as UK ambassador to the UN, is a relatively obscure figure - even within Westminster. 

So, who is he, and what does his appointment tell us? 

Our chief political correspondent Jon Craig breaks it down...

By Daniel Dunford, senior data journalist

Almost two in five victims of what the government defines as violence against women and girls are neither women nor girls, but adult men.

The government describes violence against women and girls (VAWG) as a "national emergency" and one of their central promises has been that they would halve it within a decade.

Today, 18 months in to their time in power, we know what they mean by that. As part of a strategy labelled Freedom From Violence and Abuse, the Home Office has been working alongside the Office for National Statistics to define a new measure of VAWG.

Among the crimes it says are included in the definition of VAWG are: domestic abuse, stalking, sexual violence, including rape and other sexual offences, sexual harassment, 'honour'-based abuse, female genital mutilation, online and technology-facilitated abuse, fatal VAWG such as domestic homicides, sexual exploitation and spiking.

But in terms of the numbers of offences committed, the majority of VAWG crimes involve either sexual abuse, domestic abuse or stalking - some 5.1 million victims in the year ending March 2025, according to government figures.

The government's strategy includes a range of educational and preventative measures aimed at supporting men and boys, in a bid to reduce the number of crimes of those types women and girls experience.

That will include training for teachers to spot early signs of misogyny in boys and steer them away from it.

He may be dealing with strikes in the NHS and huge reforms of the health service, but the health secretary has found some time for a chat with The Observer.

And as you would expect, one of main questions on the lips of his interview was about his ambitions to succeed Sir Keir Starmer as prime minister.

Wes Streeting said: "The closer I see that job and the pressure on Keir and the demands of that job, the more I wonder why anyone would want it, which is definitely not the answer I would have given as a 15-year-old when I joined the Labour party."

But he immediately clarified to journalist Rachel Sylvester that he is not ruling himself out.

"I'm diplomatically ducking the question to avoid any more of the silly soap opera we've had in the last few months," Streeting said.

Asked if thinks Britain would vote for a gay prime minister, he said: "One of the things Iʼm proud of about this country, is that we have an atheist prime minister with a Jewish wife who succeeded our first Hindu prime minister who succeeded a number of women.

"I think this country is an inclusive, welcoming, decent and kind country."

Pushed for a yes or no, Streeting said: "Yes, but I want to make it explicitly clear that this is not a pitch or a job application. The prime minister's got my absolute support."

The health secretary was also about the prospect of joining the customs union with the EU - something Sir Keir Starmer has ruled out.

He said: "We've taken a massive economic hit leaving the European Union.

"I'm really uncomfortable with the level of taxation in this country. We're asking a lot of individual taxpayers, we're asking a lot of businesses."

Noting the size of the national debt, Streeting argued that the best way to grow the economy is "a deeper trading relationship with the EU".

It appears to be good news. Inflation fell by more than expected, according to data released last week. 

While inflation is still above the Bank of England's target of 2%, it was found to have fallen to 3.2%. 

That in turn led the bank to cut interest rates from 4% to 3.75%, the sixth cut since Labour came to power.

It means that those with floating mortgage rates will see an immediate reduction in their monthly repayments. 

But is it all good news, and has the Bank of England really vanquished inflation? 

Our economics and data editor Ed Conway explains all...

Does society have a cultural problem when it comes to teaching boys about sexual violence? The Labour government certainly thinks so with its new strategy.

Home Office minister and former podcaster Jess Phillips tells Beth in this episode why the strategy has taken so long and how she's changing the focus towards prevention.

But will their new approach work? Can we just rely on teachers to step in and keep women and girls safe? Beth, Ruth and Harriet discuss their responsibilities as parents of boys when it comes to talking about what they see online.

Also, who is on top in politics at the end of 2025? The ladies give Kemi Badenoch credit and Ruth gives a surprise answer on who is going to have a very good 2026.

This episode includes discussions of sexual violence. The Rape Crisis offers help and advice.

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And if you didn't know, you can also watch Beth, Harriet and Ruth on YouTube.

It's been a difficult 12 months for Sir Keir Starmer and his government, with the party plummeting in the polls.

But one "Labour MP" (comedian Rosie Holt) had plenty to say in defence of their efforts so far.

Watch below...

We've just had the latest figures from the Home Office on small boat crossings, which show that more than a thousand people have made the journey this week.

On Saturday, 803 migrants crossed the Channel on 13 boats - the highest number to make the crossing on a single day since 8 October.

Yesterday's arrivals pushed the week's total to 1,374 people on 23 boats, and the total for the year so far to 41,455 people in 671 boats.

It solidifies 2025's position as the year with the second-highest number of small boat crossings ever recorded, behind 2022 which saw 45,755 people make the journey.

Next on the show is Joe Bennett, the son of British couple Lindsay and Craig Foreman who have been detained in Iran for almost a year.

He tells Trevor Phillips he met with Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper in the last couple of months and remains in contact with the government about his parents, but suggests nothing concrete is being done to negotiate their release.

"There is this policy, it seems, to just sort of sit and wait and allow this judicial process - which is, in my eyes, a complete circus - to play out," Bennett says.

"We were told almost two months ago when they were last in court that a sentence would be passed in a couple of weeks. We're now two months down the line and nothing has happened.

"We need to be more accountable as a government and speaking out. They are accused of espionage and spying for the British state, and yet that same UK government won't come out and defend them and say that they completely deny the allegations."

Both the UK and Iran are waiting for each other to make a move on the issue, but insist quiet diplomacy is taking place, Bennett says.

Asked if he feels let down, he adds: "Yeah - let down, disappointed, angry, frustrated, sad. There's so many emotions that come into it.

"But towards the government I think frustrated is the number one word, because they're very good at communicating and absorbing, frustration and being a sponge for the emotions, but that to us doesn't get the end result."

Speaking about the conditions his parents are facing in Iran, Bennett says: "My mum's suffering a lot with her skin and weight, because the ventilation in the place is not very good. 

"It is extremely dirty. She's cooking in kitchens filled with rats. I mean, it is dire, to be honest with you, for them both.

"They can't really exercise, it's overcrowded, it's cramped, and Craig's really struggling at the moment.

"He's had an abscess in his tooth for a couple of months, and he won't get it treated in the hospital because he says the conditions are just not up to par, and he doesn't want to make it any worse."