Main events
Stepping away from the transatlantic love-in for a moment, a seventh SNP MP has confirmed he will not be contesting his seat at the next general election.
Falkirk MP John McNally is standing himself up for re-election after eight years in Westminster.
The 72-year-old was first elected in the 2015 general election after securing a significant 19,701 vote majority.
But the barber by trade has now followed a string of high-profile SNP colleagues by confirming he will not contest his Westminster seat in the event of an election next year.
The politician revealed to the Falkirk Herald that the decision was made to allow him to spend more time with his family.
His decision not to seek re-election follows that of Westminster deputy leader Mhairi Black, who announced last week that she was stepping down due to the toxic environment.
Former Westminster SNP leader Ian Blackford and ex-party deputy leader Stewart Hosie are among the high profile names who have also chosen not to contest their seats.
His colleagues Peter Grant, Angela Crawley and Douglas Chapman are also not contesting their seats.
Joe Biden shows good spirits as he leaves No 10 after talks with Rishi Sunak, PA media reports
Biden came out next to Sunak at 11:17 in the morning and briefly stopped at the door to look up at the sky.
The US president then engaged in a brief exchange with the prime minister and stopped to smile widely for the cameras, before getting back into his car and leaving Downing Street.
Biden said UK-US relations were ‘rock solid’ in an important week for the transatlantic relationship
Joe Biden said UK-US relations were “rock solid” as he visited Downing Street to meet Rishi Sunak ahead of tomorrow’s NATO summit.
More photos from Biden’s arrival at Downing Street – his first as president.
Joe Biden arrives at Downing Street ahead of the crucial NATO summit
Joe Biden arrives at Downing Street for his first time as president ahead of tomorrow’s NATO summit in Lithuania.
After exiting the US president’s car “the Beast”, he shared a warm handshake with Rishi Sunak at the door and smiled to continue before disappearing behind the door of Number 10.
Also in the presidential convoy is the US ambassador to the UK, Jane Hartley.
Joe Biden’s convoy was filmed from Winfield House, the official residence of the US ambassador, and from Regent’s Park to Downing Street.
Aletha Adu
Labor must do more to eradicate the perception of racism within the party, the widow of one of the country’s first black British MPs has said, amid frustrations that no graduates of the party’s only scheme for minority development have ethnic talent was chosen to stand as an MP.
The party launched the second cohort of the Bernie Grant leadership program (BGLP), dedicated to developing the next generation of black politicians, in recognition of the lack of diversity at all levels.
Sharon Grant criticized the party for not following through on its promise to support graduates, many of whom are councillors, adding that the BGLP may not be “worthy of carrying Bernie’s name” unless there is visible progress in black representation throughout the party.
Larry the cat was entertained by waiting for the press in Downing Street by stepping on the red carpet laid out for Joe Biden.
The White House said the visit was intended to “further strengthen the close relationship between our countries”.
Joe Biden’s arrival at Westminster seems imminent. A red carpet has been prepared outside Downing Street.
Suella Braverman has attacked the “pathetic” protest at George Osborne’s wedding
Suella Braverman condemned climate activists targeting private weddings as “unacceptable” and “outrageous” after a woman threw orange confetti at former chancellor George Osborne’s wedding on Saturday.
He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain:
I completely disagree. I don’t care what your cause is, there is absolutely no good reason to try and restrict the civil liberties, rights, liberties of a private citizen.
And the way in which this person tried to ruin someone else’s wedding day… I’m sure they didn’t succeed, actually, because their efforts were in vain. They only alienated the supporters instead of attracting them.
It is unacceptable, deplorable and, as I have made clear many times, the militant, disruptive, selfish tactics of groups like Just Stop Oil, which have caused misery in many cases to the law abiding majority through slow walking , through various extreme tactics, is absolutely unacceptable. Their method was ineffective but I was very happy with the response of the police.
He added:
We have given them more power through our new Public Order Act, they have taken swift action and in fact in recent weeks since the power came into effect, it has averaged several days without It took 10 minutes for the police to intervene and stop Just Stop Oil from causing serious disruption to the law abiding majority.
Just Stop Oil praised the protest but denied responsibility.
Joe Biden to meet Rishi Sunak before the crunch Nato summit and have tea with King
After arriving in Stansted last night, Joe Biden will meet Rishi Sunak in Downing Street this morning ahead of tomorrow’s NATO summit in Vilnius.
After his meeting with the prime minister – where topics for discussion are expected to include the war in Ukraine, the country’s Nato membership bid and sending cluster munitions to Ukraine (for which the US has faced criticism) – then he is the king’s tea. in Windsor.
Biden is hesitant about Ukraine’s Nato bid, while Sunak supports tracking membership.
They are also expected to discuss the Northern Ireland peace process after Brexit. Last night, John Kerry, Biden’s climate envoy, told the BBC that this would be a “critical part” of their discussion.
The meeting, which will be their fifth in as many months, precedes a long-awaited and crunch two-day NATO summit in Lithuania, which starts tomorrow, as several countries – including Ukraine and Sweden – try to join the alliance.
His arrival in Windsor will be greeted with a royal salute, a performance of the US national anthem by the Welsh Guards and tea. Biden and the king will meet with financial and philanthropic leaders where climate finance is on the agenda.
After Biden’s arrival last night, he flew by helicopter to the London residence of the US ambassador.
I’ll be keeping an eye on the UK politics blog now. Please contact with any tips or suggestions: miranda.bryant@guardian.co.uk
