Writing the summary…
Caution versus ambition: strategy debate dominates Lib Dem conference

Original reporting
The Guardian: read the full reportRelated stories

The House Freedom Caucus has to transform — it could preview the GOP's post-Trump era
The conservative House Freedom caucus grew in prominence along side President Trump, now they are considering what the future of their movement looks like.

UK not ‘on the slide’, Burnham to tell UN as he gears up for first meeting with Trump – UK politics live
Burnham is heading to New York for the United Nations general assembly Speaking to journalists on his flight to New York, Andy Burnham played down suggestions that previous critical things he has said about Donald Trump could cause a problem when they meet later. As with almost everyone on the left of politics in the UK, Burnham has a longish record of saying disobliging things about the US president. In 2017, as mayor of Greater Manchester, Burnham said that as a “matter of principle” he would not meet Trump because of the “hateful, extremist material” he posted online. After Trump backed his supporters who stormed the US Capitol on 6 January 2021 to try to overturn the presidential election result, Burnham said : “Any UK politician who gave Trump the time of day should be ashamed right now.” Only last year he accused Trump of bringing “instability to the world”. Politicians say things

UK to help refuel Saudi jets countering Houthi attacks
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham says he has agreed to a request for 'defensive' air-to-air refuelling of Saudi jets.
A U.S. House race in Arizona could hinge on voters' opinion of the Big Beautiful Bill
The reelection campaign by a Republican congressman in Arizona could hinge on voter perceptions of last year's massive GOP-backed spending bill.

UK borrows £18bn in August, putting pressure on Healey before budget
Higher-than-expected figure will make chancellor’s aim of calming jittery bond markets more difficult Business live – latest updates The UK government borrowed a higher-than-expected £18.3bn last month, increasing the pressure on John Healey as he attempts to calm jittery bond markets before next month’s budget. Official figures released by the Office for National Statistics on Tuesday said public sector net borrowing – the difference between government spending and income – was £2.9bn higher last month than in August 2025. Continue reading...

There is a racism and cohesion crisis in Britain, and someone needs to lead us out of it. His name is Andy Burnham | Polly Toynbee
I want him to start the fightback next week against extremists who peddle hate and those who despise this country. That would be true patriotism “The speech” may have been in the making a long while, maybe for a lifetime, but Andy Burnham has only a week left for revision before his first conference as Labour leader. Expect hope, of course, that the future will be better, though the way is hard. Already his optimism means that fewer people think they will be worse off next year . But his most urgent task is the cultural wildfire that needs extinguishing before it takes hold. The rise of anti-migration neofascism is more threatening than anything I’ve seen in my lifetime. Shock tactics by a few hundred people in black shirts and balaclavas are designed to invade the national consciousness, their noxious hate bleeding into the mainstream – and they do. Continue reading...