In British politics

The U.K. government on Wednesday announced new measures to curb the arrival of migrants on boats from France and to step up the removal of failed asylum seekers.

It said 100 new "specialist intelligence and investigation officers" would be recruited to the National Crime Agency (NCA) to help dismantle smuggling gangs that run the dangerous Channel crossings.

Today, July 4, parliamentary elections are taking place in Great Britain, called ahead of schedule by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The elections promise to fundamentally change the face of the UK government, according to pollsters.

Britain looks likely to see a change of government this week, swinging leftwards back to the center ground and the Labour party after 14 years of right-wing Conservative rule.

Voters will elect a new parliament from 7 a.m. today, with predictions of a landslide Labour win that would make Keir Starmer prime minister, 100 years after Ramsay MacDonald became the party's first.

In November 2023, the British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, canceled a meeting with his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis after the latter brought up the Parthenon Sculptures in an interview with a British media outlet.

The U.K.'s Labour Party on Tuesday won the backing of 120 business leaders, in a timely boost as it bids to oust the ruling Conservatives in the upcoming general election.

The coalition of CEOs and other senior figures, which includes some well-known names from British business, said in a joint letter that it was "time for a change."

Keir Starmer is emerging as a potential future Prime Minister of Britain, presenting himself as a meticulous and professional lawyer with a focus on details rather than charisma, according to Politico's analysis.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson will on Thursday outline plans to tackle Britain's cost-of-living crisis, as he seeks to move on from a damaging series of scandals and a confidence vote called by his own MPs.

An investigative report released Wednesday blamed British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other senior leaders for allowing boozy government parties that broke the U.K.'s COVID-19 lockdown rules, and while Johnson said he took "full responsibility" for the breaches, he insisted he would not resign.

It remains to be seen whether they will pay the price for the so-called saga regarding the party in Downing Street, for which Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak were punished for violating the law on the coronavirus.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday apologised to MPs after he became the first British leader fined for breaking the law, but faced opposition calls to quit for the sake of integrity in politics.