Noah Vickers

Guernsey's Chief Minister Lindsay De Sausmarez: 'No One, Ultimately, Wants To Pay More Tax' Lindsay de Sausmarez is head of Guernsey’s government. She tells Noah Vickers about the island’s demographic challenge, the impact of Brexit and We...

In my latest interview for @thehousemag.bsky.social, I spoke with Guernsey's chief minister Lindsay de Sausmarez, who told me about Brexit's impact, the island's demographic challenge, and Westminster's demand for more transparency from the Crown Dependencies:

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Why Gas-Powered Data Centres Could Soon Be Coming To Britain Are UK data centres preparing to use gas-powered generators as a short-term energy fix? And what is the government’s view on whether they should? N...

NEW: Data centres across the UK are turning to the gas network as grid connection delays mean they may have to wait almost a decade for electricity. Could it imperil the government's 2030 Clean Power mission?

My feature for @thehousemag.bsky.social

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Lib Dem MP Pippa Heylings: 'Reform Wants People To Go Down The Mines Again' Liberal Democrat net-zero lead Pippa Heylings tells Noah Vickers the Tories have made a serious tactical error in resiling from action on climate c...

NEW: I speak with Lib Dem energy spox Pippa Heylings about the party's strategy to gain further seats by taking on "the myths being peddled" by Tories and Reform about net zero.

Heylings claims Lib Dems could be UK's next official opposition:

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

‘Starmer has to stay. You wouldn’t sack a football manage... Mayor of London Sadiq Khan revisits the Tooting streets where he grew up and talks about rejoining the EU in his lifetime, Trump’s ‘rubbish’, Mandelson’s ‘arrogance’ and why he takes bodyguards to the...

I understand London mayor Sadiq Khan will *not* be joining Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar in calling for Keir Starmer to go.

The mayor was asked about his support for the PM in the Observer this weekend:

observer.co.uk/news/nationa...

Screenshot of Barking and Dagenham Star on launch day, 4th February 2026

Delighted to announce that we (Social Social Community News) have today launched our sixth borough-wide local news publication in London – Barking and Dagenham Star!

Check it out 👇
barkingstar.co.uk

And give the Star a follow on here as well 👇
@banddstar.bsky.social

New Group Of Labour MPs Aims To 'Drag The Political Spotlight' Onto Men And Boys' Issues The plight of Britain’s boys has soared up the political agenda over the last year. Noah Vickers reports on a new caucus of Labour MPs taking up th...

The plight of Britain’s boys is a growing political talking point

A group of Labour MPs has launched a campaign to produce a coherent, centre-left response to the issues facing young men

According to co-founder @alistrathern.bsky.social, it's an area where progressives have "ceded the field on"

BREAKING: Andy Burnham says he has sought permission to stand in the by election.

International MPs Urge Caution Over UK's China 'Mega-Embassy' China’s plan to build a ‘mega-embassy’ in the heart of London has set alarm bells ringing in parliaments around the world. Will it get the green li...

As the government grants permission for the new Chinese Embassy to be developed, a reminder that MPs in countries as far away as New Zealand were among those concerned about fibre-optic cabling close to the site, as I reported for @thehousemag.bsky.social

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Nine years ago a Twitter user was sending poetry to Sadiq Khan about London’s many cultural identities. A decade on, Reform UK’s mayoral candidate doesn’t dispute it was her old account - so what’s changed?

Our profile of Laila Cunningham: www.londoncentric.media/p/laila-cunn...

When I asked Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander about a new Birmingham-Manchester rail link, she told me:

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Tom Tugendhat: UK 'Ending Up Like A Potemkin Power' Former security minister Tom Tugendhat speaks to Noah Vickers about the state of the UK’s military, his bids for the Tory leadership and why Keir S...

"We're ending up like a Potemkin power"

For @thehousemag.bsky.social's first issue of 2026, I speak with ex-security minister Tom Tugendhat about the state of Britain’s military, his bids for the Tory leadership and why UK politicians should get off TikTok

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Update

Kent County Council, described as Reform's "shop window" council, has proposed a 3.99% council tax hike

Celebrated as a win by council leader: "Through sound financial management and efficiencies, the council has been able to keep the proposed increase below the level previously expected”👇

Councillors' Addresses To Be Kept Secret By Default Over Safety Fears The home addresses of local councillors will soon be kept secret from the public under new government legislation, amid rising concern over threats...

Councillors' home addresses will soon be kept secret from the public under new legislation, amid rising concern over politician safety

The LGA found that 1 in 4 councillors had experienced threats of violence or death against themselves or someone close to them

@noahvickers.bsky.social reports

Councillors' Addresses To Be Kept Secret By Default Over Safety Fears The home addresses of local councillors will soon be kept secret from the public under new government legislation, amid rising concern over threats...

Amendments to the English Devolution Bill mean local councillors' home addresses will soon be kept secret by default, amid mounting concern over politicians' safety at all levels.

@jocoxfoundation.bsky.social and @local.gov.uk have welcomed the change:

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

175 Years Not Out! Parliament's Cricket Club Celebrate Their Anniversary Parliament’s cricket team has been playing since 1850. Graham Stuart and Andrew Bingham tell Noah Vickers about the sport’s lasting popularity amon...

🏏 Parliament’s cricket team has been playing since 1850

Graham Stuart and Andrew Bingham tell @noahvickers.bsky.social about the sport’s lasting popularity among MPs, peers and staff

Grim nights in Wales and Scotland are already baked into Labour thinking about the May locals

Less discussed, however, @matildamartin.bsky.social & @noahvickers.bsky.social report, is things getting ugly in London, where Polanski eyes gains

"The whole of the Olympic Park belongs to the Greens"

'We've Got A Tough Fight': Labour Braces For Council Losses In London Heartlands Labour is steeling itself for bruising results nationwide at the May local elections. However, there's one part of the country where party sources ...

Labour facing tough London elections in May.

“The whole of the Olympic Park belongs to the Greens,” Labour source says.

“There is no Labour party presence in one of the most sizeable developments in the whole of London… It’s all Green, Green, Green.”

Story w @matildamartin.bsky.social

'We've Got A Tough Fight': Labour Braces For Council Losses In London Heartlands Labour is steeling itself for bruising results nationwide at the May local elections. However, there's one part of the country where party sources ...

All eyes are on elections in Scotland & Wales next year.

But London council elections will also be a crucial bellwether for the government. We can reveal that nervousness extends from City Hall to London Labour MPs & councillors

With @noahvickers.bsky.social

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

175 Years Not Out! Parliament's Cricket Club Celebrate Their Anniversary Parliament’s cricket team has been playing since 1850. Graham Stuart and Andrew Bingham tell Noah Vickers about the sport’s lasting popularity amon...

175 Years Not Out! Parliament's Cricket Club Celebrate Their Anniversary

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander: 'It's Urgent That We Give People Confidence In The Railway Again' Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander tells Noah Vickers about nationalising Britain’s railways, expanding Heathrow Airport and what kind of car she ...

Here's our big interview with the Transport Secretary www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander: 'It's Urgent That We Give People Confidence In The Railway Again' Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander tells Noah Vickers about nationalising Britain’s railways, expanding Heathrow Airport and what kind of car she ...

The Transport Secretary tells me she was "working for Sadiq [Khan] and reflecting the position of the Mayor of London at that time".

Does that mean she wasn't giving her own view to the Assembly back in 2018? Read her answer to me in @thehousemag.bsky.social

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

In 2018, Heidi Alexander (then London's deputy mayor for transport) told the London Assembly that Heathrow expansion "would expose hundreds of thousands more people to worsening air quality and adverse noise impacts".

Now she says a third runway has "transformational potential"

What Is Behind Labour's Northern Powerhouse Rail Delay? Labour’s long-delayed plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail have left MPs and mayors frustrated. What’s the hold up? Noah Vickers reports

Does Andy Burnham think his Labour leadership posturing has helped or hindered the case he's making for Northern Powerhouse Rail?

“I don’t think they’re connected in any way, shape or form,” he says, making no attempt to deny his ambitions for the top job.

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

What Is Behind Labour's Northern Powerhouse Rail Delay? Labour’s long-delayed plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail have left MPs and mayors frustrated. What’s the hold up? Noah Vickers reports

NEW: Labour's northern MPs grow frustrated over the government's repeated delays in progressing Northern Powerhouse Rail.

Ministers don't want to commit to anything that looks like HS2, but have found the two schemes are bound up with one another:

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Don't Leave Manchester With 'Cut-Price' Rail Upgrade, Andy Burnham Warns Ministers Exclusive: Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has warned the government not to give his region a “cut-price infrastructure option” as discussion...

Andy Burnham has warned the Treasury not to give Manchester a "cut-price" rail upgrade

In a strongly-worded message to Westminster, the Greater Manchester Mayor said removing Manchester Airport from Northern Powerhouse Railway plans would be "ludicrous”

He sat down with @noahvickers.bsky.social

Don't Leave Manchester With 'Cut-Price' Rail Upgrade, Andy Burnham Warns Ministers Exclusive: Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has warned the government not to give his region a “cut-price infrastructure option” as discussion...

Exclusive: Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has warned the government not to give his region a “cut-price infrastructure option” as discussions continue over Labour’s plan to deliver the Northern Powerhouse Rail project www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Don't Leave Manchester With 'Cut-Price' Rail Upgrade, Andy Burnham Warns Ministers Exclusive: Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has warned the government not to give his region a “cut-price infrastructure option” as discussion...

Burnham's demand for an underground NPR station in Manchester is thought to be another sticking point.

“I have made this plain in recent days to the Treasury,” the mayor tells me. “We will never accept anything other than an underground station at Piccadilly.”

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Don't Leave Manchester With 'Cut-Price' Rail Upgrade, Andy Burnham Warns Ministers Exclusive: Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has warned the government not to give his region a “cut-price infrastructure option” as discussion...

EXCL: Burnham warns ministers not to build "cut-price" version of Northern Powerhouse Rail, as Treasury ponders how to keep costs down.

Cutting Manchester Airport from the route while expanding Heathrow would be "one of the most London-centric things ever"

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Is The UK Jobs Market Ready For AI's 'Transitionary Shocks'? AI is transforming the world of work. Will it lead to a spike in unemployment? What is being done to prepare for one? Noah Vickers reports

What is the roll-out of AI doing to the UK's labour market? What kind of future scenario planning is going on inside government to prepare not only for the opportunities ahead, but for the prospect of mass job losses?

My feature for @thehousemag.bsky.social

www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Natural England's Tony Juniper: Money Spent On Bat Tunnel 'Could Have Been Put To Better Use' Natural England wants to cast off its ‘blocker’ image and reframe its mission as one that enhances national infrastructure. Noah Vickers speaks to ...

NEW: My interview with Natural England chair Tony Juniper, who tells me, on the infamous HS2 'bat tunnel':

"We could have finished up with a much better outcome for the bats, without having to spend that money"

www.politicshome.com/news/article...