David Shoebridge wants the Greens to ‘seize this moment’. Is his more combative style the answer? 30. September 2026 (09:12) New leader says his party must connect with millions of disaffected voters and ‘make them believe in politics again’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our new political email, free app or daily news podcastAs One Nation’s polling surged this year, and Pauline Hanson ate away at the votes of first the Coalition and then Labor, one curious mainstay emerged; the Greens remained seemingly anchored to the 10-12% range, no matter which poll you look at.That’s despite the fact that, arguably, there’s rarely been more fertile political ground for the Greens leader to reap rewards; a centrist Labor government with a big majority but increasingly on the nose, a resurgent anti-immigration populist party backed by Australia’s richest mining billionaire, a Coalition in disarray, a cost-of-living crisis set ablaze by rising interest rates and inflation, and a public increasingly alarmed about the nexus of big tech, big datacentres and shadowy AI oligarchs operating with impunity. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Sixteen English councils spend more than 80% of core funding on social care 30. September 2026 (09:00) Councils collectively spent record 71.9% of core spending on adult and children’s care last year, analysis showsSixteen English councils spent more than 80% of their core funding on adult and children’s social care last year, highlighting the growing financial pressure on other local services.Guardian analysis of government figures found that councils responsible for social care spent a net £42.8bn on adult and children’s services in 2025-26, equivalent to a record 71.9% of their combined core spending. Adult social care took 44.5% and children’s services accounted for 27.4%. In 2017-18, care costs made up 62.4% of councils’ core spending. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Andy Burnham says rejoining the EU among all ‘the options’ being considered – UK politics live 30. September 2026 (08:49) The prime minister says he wants to open a debate about the UK’s future relationship with EuropeGood morning. Andy Burnham’s speech is getting a mixed review in the papers, but there is general consensus that it is a consequential one – not one that we will have forgotten within a fortnight or so, but one that will make the next list of all-time important Labour conference speeches of the last 50 years.If you are still catching up, here are three good places to start. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
