The Northern Ireland Secretary has told The Independent that the Government's promised amendments to the controversial Troubles Bill will be brought to parliament on Monday (12 October 2026). The amendments will then be debated by the 'Committee of the Whole House' in the Commons Chamber on Monday, 19 October. UPDATE: The amendments have now been published ; see our first

Afghans who worked with UK forces were wrongly refused relocation and left facing years of danger, delay and uncertainty, according to the House of Commons Defence Committee.

The Defence Committee’s report into the Afghan data breach makes sobering reading. The accidental disclosure of personal details relating to thousands of Afghans who had supported UK forces was a serious failure with

According to a recent story in the Telegraph, the Ministry of Defence is still supposed to be rewriting its transgender policy, more than a year after the Supreme Court judgment on the meaning of "woman" in the Equality Act, leaving commanding officers and service personnel uncertain about the applicable rules. 

Women’s organisations and campaigners quoted by the paper argue that

Following the resignations of John Healey and Al Carns, Hamish de Bretton-Gordon writes in the Telegraph that Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, who as Chief of the Defence Staff is the professional head of the armed forces, should now "show that he represents British servicemen and women by falling on his sword as well", because –

Given the colossal insult

The resignation of John Healey MP as Defence Secretary marks the end of a period in which, whatever one's political views, Defence had at its head someone who had prepared thoroughly for it in Opposition and, when the time came, did not disappoint.

I haven't met Mr Healey personally, but I've heard him speak a couple of times at RUSI

With a significant procedural motion concerning the NI Troubles Bill expected on Monday (27 April), the picture is supposedly complicated by the expected absence of the Armed Forces Minister Al Carns, who is believed to be visiting troops engaged in defensive missions against Iran in the Gulf.

His absence from a key Commons moment raises questions in some minds about:

The saga of Northern Ireland Troubles legislation continues in Parliament on Monday (27 April), following a statement by the NI Secretary Hilary Benn last week.

Mr Benn's written statement confirmed that the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill remains central to the Government’s approach, describing it as an effort to finally address a long-standing failure to deal with the past. Nearly three

The position as of spring 2026 is a bit of a moving target, but can be summarised in three overlapping strands: (1) the existing 2023 Act (partly in force but legally damaged), (2) court challenges undermining it, and (3) new legislation currently working its way through Parliament but delayed.

1) The current law: the 2023 “Legacy Act”

The operative statute