Starmer, Polanski and Farage in final pitch to voters as polls open in Gorton and Denton byelection

Voting begins in one of the most eagerly awaited and fiercely contested byelections of recent yearsThe number of asylum seekers being housed temporarily in hotels has fallen to the lowest level for 18 months, Home Office figures show. Rajeev Syal has the story.A minister has confirmed that the government is pressing ahead with the deal to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.Yes. My colleague the foreign secretary Yvette Cooper has been talking to Marco Rubio, her opposite number in the US, about it. Foreign policy is never easy. We will make progress on the Chagos deal. Continue reading...