A list of events relating to politics and government in the United Kingdom during 2026.
Events January 1 January – In his new year message, Prime Minister Keir Starmer says his government will "defeat the decline and division offered by others" and that 2026 will see people feeling "positive change" in their lives. In her new year message, the leader of the opposition Kemi Badenoch says that in 2025 there was "no growth, higher taxes and record unemployment" and that the plan for her party would "back business and fix our economy so we can fund our armed forces, police, schools, NHS and build something that we feel proud of". In his new year message, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey, says that his party could "win again in 2026" after their "record-breaking success" in the previous local elections. He also said he would "stop Trump's America becoming Farage's Britain" and "change our country for the better". In his new year message, Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK, which has led in national opinion polls since early 2025, says that his party is offering "hope" and "change", predicting that May would be "the single most important set of elections between now and the next general election" and that the country is getting "gloomier" and "poorer", and that with higher unemployment and debt is "running completely out of control". In her new year message, Rachel Millward, the Green Party's co-deputy leader, says they would "do everything" they can "to stop Nigel Farage getting anywhere near Downing Street". Mothin Ali, the other co-deputy, said the party had gained 110,000 new members since the summer and that they are "here to replace Labour". 2 January – Mike Nesbitt announces he is stepping down as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party. 3 January – Starmer says that the UK was not involved in the US strikes on Venezuela, which resulted in the capture of its president Nicolas Maduro. 5 January – Starmer says that Greenland, a Danish territory, should decide its own future, after President Donald Trump suggests the US could invade it. Dame Emily Thornberry, who chairs the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, describes the US action in Venezuela as a breach of international law, and says that the UK should make clear it is "unacceptable". Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper tells the House of Commons she has reminded her US counterpart of that country's obligations under international law following the capture of Maduro. 6 January – In Scotland, Cabinet Secretary for Justice Angela Constance is found by an investigation to have broken the ministerial code with comments she made about a grooming gangs expert in parliament. The Scottish Parliament confirms that MSPs will receive a 4.3% pay rise from April, taking their annual income from £74,507 to £77,710. 7 January – Starmer says that MPs will vote on the deployment of British troops to Ukraine. Laila Cunningham is announced as the Reform candidate for the 2028 London mayoral election. 8 January – The House of Lords votes to approve a proposal to allow more time for it to debate the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. 11 January – Peter Mandelson is interviewed on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg about Jeffrey Epstein. Kemi Badenoch says a Conservative government would ban social media for under 16s. The government releases a pothole map, showing how various local authorities are faring in tackling them. The map is accompanied by a new traffic light rating system. 12 January – Former Conservative Party Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi defects to Reform UK. Michael Forsyth is elected as the new Speaker of the House of Lords, succeeding John McFall. Grok sexual deepfake scandal: Science Secretary Liz Kendall announces the enabling of offences against the creation, or the request for creation, of intimate images of another person who has not consented to this, for example by using Generative AI, provided for in the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, in response to the Grok AI image generation scandal. Social Democratic and Labour Party MLA Cara Hunter, who was the victim of a deepfake video, quits social media platform X due to what she describes as a "complete negligence in protecting women and children online". 13 January – The UK government drops plans to require people to sign up to their digital ID card scheme in order to prove their eligibility to work in the UK. Finance Secretary Shona Robison delivers the 2026 Scottish budget, which includes changes to tax thresholds, an increase in taxation on residential properties worth over £1m and an increase in the Scottish Child Payment. 15 January – Malcolm Offord is announced as the leader of Reform UK in Scotland. Robert Jenrick loses the Conservative whip and is sacked as Shadow Secretary of State for Justice over an alleged plan to defect to Reform UK. Jenrick then announces he has joined Reform UK later the same day. 23 councils apply to have the 2026 United Kingdom local elections delayed. Jon Burrows is the only candidate for the Ulster Unionist Party leadership election after deputy leader Robbie Butler announces he will not seek election to the post. 17 January Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair is among a number of high-profile figures to be named by the US Trump administration as members of Gaza's Board of Peace. The Scottish Information Commissioner warns the Scottish Government that it could face legal action after it missed a deadline to release files from an inquiry into whether former first minister Nicola Sturgeon broke the ministerial code during an investigation into her predecessor, Alex Salmond. 18 January – Downing Street says that Starmer has told Trump in a phone call that it would be wrong for the United States to impose tariffs on countries for opposing his wish to annex Greenland. Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, Farage says that Reform UK will not become the "Conservative Party 2.0" following the defection of Robert Jenrick. Shadow minister Andrew Rosindell resigns from the Conservative Party to join Reform UK in anger at his former party's handling of the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands when it was in government. 20 January – Member of the Senedd and shadow cabinet James Evans is expelled from the Welsh Conservatives after telling leader Darren Millar he is involved in talks to join Reform UK. Reform's leader, Nigel Farage, later says he has held no such talks with Evans. 21 January – The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards rules that Reform UK leader Nigel Farage breached MPs' rules 17 times by failing to register financial interests totalling £384,000 within the 28-day limit, but concludes that the breaches were "inadvertent" and do not require sanctions. Peers vote 251–150 to amend the UK government's Schools Bill to include a social media ban for under 16s. MPs at Westminster vote to amend the Troubles Legacy Act, removing a measure providing conditional immunity from prosecutions for Troubles-era crimes. 22 January – Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper says that the UK is holding off joining Donald Trump's Board of Peace amid concerns about Vladimir Putin's involvement. Labour MP and former Minister Andrew Gwynne announces he is stepping down from his Gorton and Denton constituency, triggering a by-election. Secretary of State for Local Government Steve Reed confirms that 29 councils in England planning elections for May 2026 will have these postponed until May 2027. Chris Watkins is removed as leader of Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council following a vote of no confidence over a disagreement about the postponement of local elections. Steve Hey is voted in to replace him. 23 January – A BBC News report suggests that with election delays due to local government reorganisation, around 250 councillors could end up serving terms of seven years, rather than the usual four. Belfast City Council's strategic and resources committee votes to suspend its use of X over concerns about the Grok AI tool, with the proposal to be put to the full council on 2 February. 24 January – Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester and former MP for Leigh, applies to stand as Labour's candidate in the 2026 Gorton and Denton by-election. A Sinn Féin billboard near Newry that bears a pro-Palestine slogan is under investigation by council planners after being erected without permission. 25 January – Andy Burnham is blocked by Labour's National Executive Committee from standing as a candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election. 26 January – Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman defects to Reform UK. Former Scottish Conservatives leader Ruth Davidson and former Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street launch Prosper UK, a centrist organisation that will target an estimated seven million politically homeless voters in a bid to encourage them to vote Conservative. Scottish Conservative councillor for Dunoon ward Daniel Hampsey defects to Reform UK. 27 January – Starmer departs for a three-day visit to China, the first time for a UK Prime Minister since 2018. Matt Goodwin is announced as the Reform UK candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election. Shahbaz Sarwar is announced as the Workers Party of Britain candidate for the Gorton and Denton by-election. Around 50 Labour MPs sign a letter objecting to the decision to block Andy Burnham from standing in the Gorton and Denton by-election. Former MP Conor McGinn is charged with sexual assault. The Rwandan government launches legal action against the UK government to seek payments it says it is owed under the Rwanda asylum plan. The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards finds that Plaid Cymru MP Liz Saville Roberts breached MPs' rules by failing to register donations worth £47,250 to a cross-party group she chairs within 28 days of receiving the money. The Senedd votes to approve the 2026 Welsh budget, worth £27bn, following a deal between Labour and Plaid Cymru. 28 January – Sarah Mullally is installed as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury in a ceremony at Canterbury Cathedral. 30 January – Chinese authorities lift travel bans imposed on seven senior Labour politicians, including Baroness Helena Kennedy, for their criticism of China's human rights against the Uyghur minority. Jackie Pearcey is chosen as the Liberal Democrats candidate for the Gorton and Denton by-election. Hannah Spencer, the Green Party candidate in the 2024 Greater Manchester mayoral election, is chosen as the party's candidate for the Gorton and Denton by-election. 31 January – Starmer arrives in Japan following a four-day visit to China, and meets Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Tokyo. Angeliki Stogia is selected as the Labour Party candidate for the Gorton and Denton by-election. 2026 Ulster Unionist Party leadership election: Jon Burrows officially becomes leader of the Ulster Unionist Party.
February 1 February – Peter Mandelson resigns his membership of the Labour Party saying he does not want to "cause further embarrassment" after documents released as part of the Epstein files suggest Jeffrey Epstein paid him $75,000 over three separate payments during 2003 and 2004. Charlotte Cadden, a former police detective, is selected as the Conservative Party candidate for the Gorton and Denton by-election. Speaking to Sky's Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, First Minister of Northern Ireland Michelle O'Neill says there should be a referendum for the people of Northern Ireland to decide whether they want to be part of a United Ireland by 2030. 2 February – Former minister Tulip Siddiq is sentenced in her absence to four years in prison by a Bangladesh court for charges of corruption. The Workers Party of Britain withdraws from the Gorton and Denton by-election. The Scottish Government says it will not support the Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill, a bill tabled by Independent MSP Ash Regan that would criminalise payment for sex. 3 February