Inside 2024 in UK politics – from ‘squatter’ Sunak to Labour landslide

2024 began with tired Tory leader Rishi Sunak accused of “squatting” in No10 as he resisted pressure to call an election.

Mr Sunak tried to catch Labour by surprise by calling a vote in July but his gaffe-ridden campaign – and the toxic Tory legacy – saw the party humiliated at the ballot box. Keir Starmer stormed his way to No10 with a massive majority, promising to change Britain – and ensure politics was less of a soap opera.

But the new PM found this was easier said than done. Labour was forced to grapple with a £22billion Tory black hole in the public finances and confronted by the worst riots in over a decade only weeks after coming into office.

There were rows over freebies, No10 infighting and a mammoth Budget that handed cash to public services but also riled businesses and farmers. We look back on a year that changed everything.

January

The Post Office scandal soared to the top of the news agenda after ITV drama ‘Mr Bates vs the Post Office‘ triggered a ferocious public backlash.

Rishi Sunak announced plans to exonerate wrongfully-convicted postmasters and compensation for some of those whose lives were wrecked by scandal. Ex-Post Office boss Paula Vennells was shamed into handing back her CBE.

Mr Sunak said he would call a general election in the “second half of the year” after being accused of “squatting” in No10 amid massive pressure to put the country out of its misery.

Former Cabinet Minister Simon Clarke broke ranks to say the PM should quit or the Tories risked being “massacred” at the polls. He later said he was acting alone after no other Conservatives backed his botched rebellion.

The UK and the US launched joint missile attacks on Houthi rebels in Yemen after attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

February

Keir Starmer ditched plans to spend £28billion-a-year on green investment, saying it was no longer affordable as the Tories had wrecked the economy.

Labour seized the Tory seats of Wellingborough and Kingswood in two stunning by-election wins. But the party was forced to disown its candidate Azhar Ali in a contest in Rochdale for suggesting Israel allowed its citizens to be killed to give it the green light to invade Gaza.

Labour pulled its support, leading to victory for controversial left-wing firebrand George Galloway as a Worker’s Party candidate.

Tensions over the conflict erupted in Parliament when SNP MPs and some Tories walked out of a symbolic vote over an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

The row led to calls for Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to resign for allowing Labour to see off a potential rebellion in its ranks by putting forward a weaker motion for an “immediate humanitarian cease-fire”.

Meanwhile, Rishi Sunak was condemned for making a £1,000 bet with Piers Morgan that flights would take off to Rwanda.

He faced an even deeper backlash for making a trans jibe during PMQs as Esther Ghey, the mother of murdered transgender teenager Brianna Ghey, watched on from the gallery.

The Northern Ireland Executive finally reformed after nearly two years as the DUP agreed to return to power-sharing at Stormont, dropping their protest at Brexit trade rules.

Vice chair Lee Anderson was suspended by the Tories for refusing to apologise for saying Islamists had “got control” of London Mayor Sadiq Khan.

And Blackpool South MP Scott Benton lost an appeal against his suspension from Parliament after he was caught offering to lobby ministers on behalf of gambling investors.

March

Jeremy Hunt announced a mass expansion of childcare provision and 2p cut to National Insurance in the Budget in a last ditch bid to revive Tory fortunes.

Lee Anderson defected to Reform and Rishi Sunak was besieged by rumours of a plot to oust him.

In a further headache for the PM, Blackpool South MP Scott Benton stepped down, triggering another by-election.

And former PM Theresa May joined the stream of Tories saying they would step down at the next election.

It emerged that the taxpayer had funded a £15,000 libel bill for Science Secretary Michelle Donelan, after she falsely accused an academic of supporting Hamas.

Tory donor Frank Hester apologised for allegedly saying Labour MP Diane Abbott made him “want to hate all black women” and she “should be shot”. He said the remarks were “rude” but claimed the criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin.

Vaughan Gething became Welsh Labour leader and First Minister, becoming the first Black leader of a European country.

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson resigned as DUP leader after being charged with rape and historic sexual offences.

April

Tory MP William Wragg resigned the Tory whip after admitting he’d given out other MPs phone numbers when caught in a sexting scam.

The Rwanda Bill finally passed Parliament, paving the way for asylum seekers to be deported to Kigali in July.

Police launched a probe into whether Angela Rayner gave false information about her main residence amid a row over the sale of a council house. She said she would step down if she had broken the law.

Tory MP Mark Menzies quit over claims he used campaign funds to pay “bad people”, calling his 78-year-old former campaign manager at 3:15am claiming he was locked in a flat and needed £5,000 as a matter of “life and death”.

Humza Yousaf resigned as First Minister of Scotland following the collapse of a power-sharing deal between the SNP and the Scottish Greens.

May

The Tories lost nearly 500 councillors in a local election pummelling – as well as the Blackpool South by-election to Labour.

SNP veteran John Swinney became party leader and Scotland’s First Minister.

Ex-Post Office boss Paula Vennells was hauled before the Post Office Inquiry for three-day grilling, where she repeatedly broke down in tears.

Rishi Sunak announced the general election would be held in July in a speech in the pouring rain outside No10.

Jeremy Corbyn was stripped of his Labour membership after saying he would run as an independent candidate.

Diane Abbott was finally readmitted to Labour after she had the whip suspended in April 2023 for an article where she claimed Jewish, Irish and Traveller people do not face racism “all their lives”.

Nigel Farage said he wouldn’t run after seven failed bids to become an MP. Parliament was dissolved as the election campaign got underway.

June

Nigel Farage dealt a hammer blow to the Tories by deciding to run after all – and taking back the leadership of Reform UK.

Model Victoria Thomas-Bowen was arrested for throwing a banana milkshake at Mr Farage in Clacton. She later received a suspended 13-week prison sentence.

All the parties unveiled their manifestos as official lists showed more than 4,500 candidates were standing – a record number.

Welsh First Minister Vaughan Gething lost a no-confidence vote in the Senedd but refused to resign.

Tories took another donation of £150,000 from Frank Hester after he had been accused of making racist comments about Labour’s Diane Abbott.

Rishi Sunak left the D-Day commemorations early to record a TV interview, sparking a furious backlash.

Several MPs, Tory figures and Met Police officers were embroiled in a scandal over bets placed on the date of the General Election.

Post Office campaigner Alan Bates was given a knighthood in the King’s Birthday Honours, while Gordon Brown was made a Companion of Honour.

July

Labour won a landslide victory in the General Election, with a whopping 174-seat majority. The Tories suffered their worst ever defeat, leaving them with just 121 MPs.

Keir Starmer told the country “the work of change begins” as he promised to “restore service and respect to politics” in his first speech outside No10.

The Cabinet was appointed, including Angela Rayner as Deputy PM and Rachel Reeves as the first female Chancellor.

Theresa May, 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady and Labour veteran Harriet Harman were among those given peerages in the dissolution honours.

One of the new Government’s first acts was to ditch the controversial Rwanda deportation scheme.

There were tough decisions too as Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said thousands of prisoners would be released early to ease overcrowding.

Rachel Reeves said the Tories had left a £22billion black hole in the public finances. She axed winter fuel payments for 10 million pensioners and a number of infrastructure projects.

The King’s Speech set out Labour’s programme for Government, with bills on rail nationalisation, workers’ rights, planning and immigration. Rishi Sunak’s gradual smoking ban and plans for a football regulator were revived.

Mr Starmer travelled to the NATO summit in Washington for his first foreign trip as Prime Minister. He also hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Downing Street.

The Tory leadership race got underway, with Rishi Sunak agreeing to stay on as caretaker leader until November.

Vaughan Gething resigned and Eluned Morgan became Welsh Labour leader.

Seven Labour MPs, including former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, had the whip suspended for rebelling on a vote on the two child benefit limit.

August

Riots swept through the country in the wake of the murder of three young girls in Southport.

Keir Starmer said rioters would “feel the full force of the law”, ordering a “standing army” of specialist officers to meet the violence.

The Government activated “Operation Early Dawn”, an emergency plan to ease prison overcrowding as rioters were sentenced for their role in the disorder.

The Met Police ended its probe into the election betting scandal, saying the offences did not meet the bar for misconduct in public office.

The PM cancelled Rishi Sunak’s £40million Government helicopter contract.

Questions were asked about who authorised a Downing Street pass for Labour’s biggest donor, Waheed Alli.

Keir Starmer warned the Budget would be “painful” in a speech in the Downing Street garden.

September

MPs backed the plan to cut winter fuel payments, with dozens of Labour MPs absent or abstaining on the vote.

Keir Starmer visited the White House for the first time as PM to meet President Joe Biden.

A row erupted over freebies accepted by the PM and other top ministers. Days later, Mr Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves said they would no longer accept donations for clothes.

Labour held its first party conference in power for 14 years, where the PM promised a Britain “built to last” – but said there were no easy answers.

Mr Starmer travelled to the UN General Assembly in New York, and enjoyed a two-hour dinner with Donald Trump at Trump Tower.

Canterbury MP – and long-time Starmer critic – Rosie Duffield quit Labour to sit as an independent MP on the eve of Conservative conference.

A shake-up of hospitality rules for ministers was announced after weeks of controversy over freebies.

Cabinet Secretary Simon Case said he would step down at the end of the year, citing ill health.

October

The Tories held their annual conference, with a beauty parade of the remaining leadership hopefuls – James Cleverly, Robert Jenrick, Tom Tugendhat and Kemi Badenoch.

The UK agreed to hand over Chagos Islands to Mauritius.

The PM made his first trip to Brussels where he promised to rebuild relations with Europe after years of Brexit turmoil.

Sue Gray resigned as No10 chief of staff following a string of hostile briefings and internal rows.

Former First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond died at a conference in North Macedonia.

The Government confirmed it won’t revive the northern leg of HS2, which was scrapped by Rishi Sunak.

Ministers were caught up in a row over the decision to allow a blue-light escort for Taylor Swift at her Eras Tour shows in London.

Labour MP Kim Leadbeater announced plans for a bill to legalise assisted dying.

MP Mike Amesbury was suspended by Labour after CCTV footage showed him punching a man in the street.

Rachel Reeves unveiled her highly anticipated Budget, with a borrowing splurge and £40billion-a-year in tax rises to fund a £70billion investment in public services.

November

Kemi Badenoch became Tory leader after defeating Robert Jenrick in a run-off members’ vote.

Donald Trump won the US Presidential election in an extraordinary political comeback.

No10 confirmed Sue Gray wouldn’t take on a role as envoy to the nations and regions after weeks of speculation about her future.

Keir Starmer met Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in Rio – the first time a UK PM has met the Chinese president in person since 2018.

A petition demanding a general election hit more than 2.8million signatures after being promoted online by Elon Musk.

Labour stalwart John Prescott died aged 86.

Louise Haigh quit as Transport Secretary after admitting to pleading guilty to a fraud offence over a stolen mobile phone in 2014. She was replaced in the role by Heidi Alexander.

MPs backed the Assisted Dying bill at second reading in a historic Commons vote.

December

Sir Chris Wormald was named as the new head of the civil service.

Keir Starmer said he won’t choose between the US and the EU when Donald Trump returns to the White House.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said South Western Railway, C2C and Greater Anglia will be nationalised by autumn 2025.

Mr Starmer set out his ‘Plan for Change’, with targets on how the public can judge him by the next election.

The UK welcomed the fall of the Assad regime in Syria and sent a delegation to meet Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Syrian rebel group that stormed to power.

WASPI women accused the Government of betrayal after ministers rejected recommendations for payouts for those affected by changes to the state pension age.

Nigel Farage said Reform UK were in talks with billionaire Elon Musk over a donation to the party.

Labour appointed 30 new peers to swell their ranks in the Lords.

“Prince of Darkness” Peter Mandelson was named as the next UK ambassador to the US.