The Green Party conceded defeat in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election in the early hours of Friday, accepting that Labour's Sagal Abdi-Wali had held Sir Keir Starmer's former seat and that the Green leader, Zack Polanski, had failed to enter the Commons. The result capped a day in which Andy Burnham signed a security pact with Germany in Berlin, Britain and Israel struck a last-minute deal sparing the East Jerusalem consulate full closure, and Home Office figures put racial and religious hate crime in England and Wales at a record high outside London. This is UKFCP's 24 hours in politics round-up.
The by-election was the first electoral test of Burnham's premiership, which began on 20 July, and closed out a conference season in which Labour returned to the top of the polls. John Healey's first Budget is due later this month, with 20-year gilt yields above 6 per cent.
Labour holds Starmer's old seat
Polls closed at 10pm on Thursday and counting began immediately in the seat Starmer vacated on 1 September. Before any declaration, the Greens accepted they had lost, with a party spokesperson telling LBC: "It is clear now we will come a close second in this by-election."
Fifteen candidates stood. Starmer won the seat in 2024 with 48.9 per cent and a majority of 11,572, with the Greens third on 10.4 per cent. An eve-of-poll projection by PollCheck had put Labour on 40.4 per cent to the Greens' 35.6 per cent. No vote totals, majority or turnout figure had been declared as counting continued.
Lucas rounds on Polanski over Zionism motion
Caroline Lucas, the Greens' former leader, told the BBC that Polanski should have taken part in the conference vote declaring Zionism a form of racism, and that he had failed to show leadership by abstaining. She declined to say whether he should stand down, according to HuffPost UK.
Burnham intervened directly, calling on Polanski to reverse the motion and describing it as "completely wrong". Adrian Ramsay, Green co-leader until 2025, who opposed the motion, said he had "no intention of leaving the Green Party".
Burnham signs security pact in Berlin
On his first visit to Germany as prime minister, Burnham launched a joint UK-Germany security partnership with Chancellor Friedrich Merz covering sabotage, cyber-attacks and other hybrid threats, with information sharing and co-ordinated work on critical infrastructure resilience.
Burnham said he was "very committed" to deeper cooperation at a UK-EU summit expected towards the end of the year, and to "seeing if we can bring the UK closer to Europe". The French finance minister, Roland Lescure, told the BBC that Britain could "come back, anytime". The Independent reported that Merz had reportedly warned Burnham that rejoining would require the UK to raise tariffs on Chinese electric cars to 45 per cent. Andy Street, the former Conservative mayor of the West Midlands, warned his party against falling into a Brexit "trap".
Consulate survives as reduced mission
Israel had ordered Britain's consulate general in occupied East Jerusalem to close by Thursday in retaliation for UK plans to sanction Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. A last-minute agreement keeps the building open as "UK Mission, Jerusalem", with 20 British diplomats, including the consul general, leaving the country.
Ed Miliband rejected Israel's claim that it had the legal right to close the post, saying the government "reiterates its long-standing view that East Jerusalem is occupied territory". The Israeli foreign minister, Gideon Sa'ar, said: "It is not possible to act against Israel without Israel taking appropriate measures in response." The Palestinian embassy in London called the attempted closure unlawful.
Rising hate crime, surge in terror arrests
Home Office figures published on Thursday recorded 146,825 hate crime offences in England and Wales in the year to March 2026, up 7 per cent and the first rise in three years. Race hate crimes rose 9 per cent to 107,926 and religious hate crimes 13 per cent to 11,419. Offences targeting Muslims rose 15 per cent to 5,132, with antisemitic offences up 10 per cent to 3,162.
The policing minister, Sarah Jones, said the figures were "a stark warning that hatred continues to blight our communities". Separate statistics showed 3,867 terrorism-related arrests in the year to June 2026, with 94 per cent linked to the proscription of Palestine Action.
Also in the last 24 hours
- The Fonagy review warned ADHD and autism are at risk of overdiagnosis while anxiety and depression surge, and the government committed to an overhaul of support.
- The yield on 20-year gilts passed 6 per cent for the first time since 1998, ahead of Healey's first Budget.
- The i Paper reported the standards investigation into Nigel Farage's undeclared £5m gift is nearing a conclusion, raising the prospect of a second Clacton by-election before Christmas.
- Farage opened the door to a post-election pact with the Conservatives, saying: "After an election, who's to say?"
- Burnham announced a £48m dementia research partnership, saying he wanted Britain "to be the country that makes the breakthrough".
- The NHS hospital waiting list in England is at its worst since 2025, according to Sky News.
- Two Latvian nationals were arrested on suspicion of breaching the perimeter at RAF Molesworth.
- Premier League clubs are "concerned" about political interference in Manchester City's appeal, the BBC reported; Burnham denied downplaying the case.
The formal declaration in Holborn and St Pancras, with the majority and turnout, was expected later on Friday morning.
Join the Discussion
Have something to say? Join the conversation!
Sign in to share your thoughts and engage with other readers.
Sign In Create AccountNo comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this article!