Makerfield by-election result live: Burnham faces anxious wait over securing path back to Westminster

New Defense Secretary Dan Jarvis said he was “working around the clock” to complete a plan to support the armed forces with more cash.

At a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels, Mr Jarvis was asked by journalists whether he was fighting for more money in the defense investment plan (Dip) after his predecessor John Healey resigned over the funding.

Stating that he had great respect for Mr Healey, he said: “My priority now is to ensure that our armed forces have the resources they need to do the very difficult job that is being asked of them.”

He added: “So I am working around the clock with my Government colleagues to ensure we can complete the Dip and get the funding we need to ensure our armed forces personnel get the resources we need.”

Makerfield is one of three by-elections held on the same night. Sean O’Grady looks at the other two contests and what other political turmoil lies ahead.

Kemi Badenoch claims the burden of government bureaucracy tying the City of London is also responsible for the potential culling of hill ponies on Dartmoor.

The Conservative leader has proposed an overhaul of the rules governing the financial sector, saying the burden of regulation has become too heavy and is creating a risk-averse culture in financial industries.

He said he wanted to see the whole of society mobilized in a “war effort” to reverse Britain’s “economic decline”.

Answering questions after his speech, the Conservative Party leader called on business leaders to speak publicly about regulations and government actions they do not like.

Ms Badenoch added: “Not enough people know and not enough people understand how bad it is.

“I don’t know how many people have heard of Dartmoor ponies being culled due to a strange regulation from Natural England.”

A row is growing over a possible cull on Dartmoor, with campaigners claiming a requirement to slaughter livestock grazing on common areas of the moor under new contracts with government agency Natural England could lead to the removal of up to 90% of hill ponies.

Sir Keir Starmer has refused to say whether he wants Britain to rejoin the EU in his lifetime, at a time when pressure is mounting on the prime minister to forge closer ties with the bloc.

It comes after Andy Burnham, who is expected to challenge the prime minister for the Labor leadership, previously said he hoped Britain would rejoin the bloc in his lifetime.

Sir Keir told reporters at the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, that “we shouldn’t spend all our time looking back on Brexit” when asked if he wanted the same thing.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey writes: We have witnessed an appalling waste of British influence, a serious cost of living crisis and a tragic breakdown of our collective security. We cannot afford another decade of isolation and economic stagnation:

Greens leader Zack Polanski has been cleared of allegations that he breached the Greater London Authority (GLA) Code of Conduct amid concerns he may not have paid the correct council tax while living on a houseboat.

Mr Polanski, a member of the London Assembly, revealed in a witness statement that he believed council tax charges were managed through mooring fees which he regularly paid for the boat.

Last month he faced questions over whether his houseboat was his primary residence and therefore liable for council tax.

The party initially said he only stayed on the boat occasionally but later issued an apology to him for what it called an “inadvertent mistake”.

The city investigated whether Mr. Polanski had violated the code of conduct.

The GLA’s monitoring officer said Mr Polanski’s council tax position arose “solely from personal living arrangements” and did not involve “a sufficient connection with the member’s public role”.

“I have determined that no further action is warranted regarding this complaint,” monitoring officer Rory McKenna wrote.