Goto

Collaborating Authors

 labour mp


US action in Venezuela not legal, senior Labour MP says

BBC News

The US military action in Venezuela breaches international law and the UK should make clear it is unacceptable, the chair of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee has said. Dame Emily Thornberry is the most senior Labour MP so far to criticise Donald Trump's strikes on the country over the weekend, which saw President Nicolas Maduro and his wife captured. The UK government has so far refused to say whether the move was illegal, insisting it is for the Americans to lay out the legal basis for the action. But the US president's actions have been criticised by some Labour MPs, as well as the leaders of the Lib Dems, Greens and the SNP. Dame Emily told BBC Radio 4's Westminster Hour the strikes were not a legal action and she cannot think of anything that could be a proper justification.


Westminster's reliance on Elon Musk's X is 'totally wrong', says Labour MP

The Guardian

Westminster needs to wean itself off X, a close ally of Keir Starmer has said, as he suggested that Elon Musk was deliberately manipulating its algorithm to boost his own political and personal interests. Josh Simons, the MP for Makerfield and former head of the Starmerite thinktank Labour Together, said he believed the British political class was dangerously addicted to the platform, formerly known as Twitter. Simons maintains an active X profile, but says he is keen not to "overuse" it. His comments reflect a growing concern among Labour MPs about the impact of X after the summer's riots, during which misinformation spread rapidly on the platform. But they also threaten to exacerbate tensions between the government and the company, with Musk continuing to attack Starmer over ministers' response to the violence.


AI-enhanced images a 'threat to democratic processes', experts warn

The Guardian

Experts have warned that action needs to be taken on the use of artificial intelligence-generated or enhanced images in politics after a Labour MP apologised for sharing a manipulated image of Rishi Sunak pouring a pint. Karl Turner, the MP for Hull East, shared an image on the rebranded Twitter platform, X, showing the prime minister pulling a sub-standard pint at the Great British beer festival while a woman looks on with a derisive expression. The image had been manipulated from an original photo in which Sunak appears to have pulled a pub-level pint while the person behind him has a neutral expression. The image brought criticism from the Conservatives, with the deputy prime minister, Oliver Dowden, calling it "unacceptable". "I think that the Labour leader should disown this and Labour MPs who have retweeted this or shared this should delete the image, it is clearly misleading," Dowden told LBC on Thursday.


The Papers: Cancer treatment 'revolution' and baby joy

BBC News

"Robot war on cancer" is the headline on the front of Saturday's Daily Express. The paper reports that scientists from the Institute of Cancer Research in London have designed a new computer tool that can learn to predict how tumours will grow, evolve and spread. Dr Andrea Sottoriva, who led the research, likens their work to a game of chess, saying: "The best chance we have of beating cancer is to predict the next move." The i says the breakthrough will transform care for millions of people and boost survival chances. The Sun's main story celebrates new baby joy for the parents of Alfie Evans - the toddler who was at the centre of a legal battle over his care before he died of a degenerative brain condition.