Parliament - who is the Official Opposition

At the time of writing, His Majesty's Official Opposition is the Conservative Party. 

According to Erskine May - 'There are opposition parties but only one is regarded as the 'Official Opposition' and that is the largest minority party which is prepared, in the event of the resignation of the government, to assume office.'  (Erskine May para 4.6).

The Leader of the Opposition and some of the Leader's principal colleagues in both Houses form a group, known as ‘the Shadow Cabinet’, each member of which is given a particular range of activities on which it is their task to direct criticism of the Government's policy and administration and to outline alternative policies. 

Online safety for under 16s

On Monday 16 February, the Prime Minister's Office (10 Downing Street) announced that the 'Government will give parents and carers greater clarity and support as the Prime Minister announces immediate action to make the online world safer for children' - read the announcement. 

Notes to editors inform us that:

Local government elections May 2026

On Monday 16 February it was announced by the government that plans to postpone various elections had been reversed and the elections would now proceed in May 2026.  The reversal was brought about following a legal challenge brought by Reform UK. 

It appears that the government took legal advice relating to the challenge and decided not to actually contest the matter in court. Details of that legal advice are not available and so we do not know the exact basis for the government's decision. 

Some items of interest

Readers may be interested in reading the following articles .....

1. The Secret Barrister 5 February 2026 - Palestine Action - What just happened - ' ... six Palestine Action protestors were acquitted by a jury of aggravated burglary, following a break-in at an Elbit Systems UK factory near Bristol in August 2024. Three of the six were also acquitted of violent disorder, while no verdict was reached in relation to three others. The jury were also unable to reach verdicts on a charge of inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent (against one defendant, accused of striking a police officer in the back with a sledgehammer, causing serious injury), and charges of criminal damage.'

2. Administrative Court blog 13 February 2026 - High Court - proscription of Palestine Action unlawful and Palestine Action: The "purpose" of the Home Secretary's proscription policy

3. Public Law for Everyone 13 February 2026 - The High Court's judgment in the Palestine Action case

4. Human Rights Watch 7 January 2026 - Silencing the Streets - The right to protest under attack in the United Kingdom and also see their World Report 2026

5. UK Constitutional Law Association Blog -  

Palestine Action ~ judicial review

On 13 February 2026, the High Court handed down judgment The King (on the application of Huda Ammori) v Sceretary of State for the Home Department [2026] EWHC 292 (Admin).

On 5 July 2025 the Terrorism Act 2000 (Proscribed Organisations) (Amendment) Order 2025 ("the Order") came into force. The Order was made on 4 July 2025, having been laid before Parliament by the Home Secretary on 30 June 2025, approved by the House of Commons on 2 July 2025 and by the House of Lords on 3 July 2025. 

The Order added the names of three organisations to the list of proscribed organisations at Schedule 2 to the Terrorism Act 2000 ("the 2000 Act"). 

One of those organisations was Palestine Action. 

Motion for a Return (Humble Address) - 4 February 2026

Some readers will doubtless recall that in 2017 the House of Commons wished to have sight of "Sectoral Impact Assessments" prepared by the government in connection with the process of the UK leaving the European Union (EU) - previous post 1 November 2017.

An Opposition Motion was put forward by Sir Keir Starmer MP - 

"That an humble Address be presented to Her Majesty, That she will be graciously pleased to give directions that the list of sectors analysed under the instruction of Her Majesty's Ministers, and referred to in the Answer of 26 June 2017 to Question 239, be laid before this House and that the impact assessments arising from those analyses be provided to the Committee on Exiting the European Union."

On Wednesday 4 February 2026, an Opposition Motion - (this time by the Conservative Party) - sought a further Humble Address so that the House could see all papers relating to Lord Mandelson’s appointment as His Majesty’s Ambassador to the United States of America.

Hansard informs us that the following was resolved - 

Leveson Part 2 - Efficiency

Part 2 of Sir Brian Leveson's Review of the Criminal Courts has been published. You can read it HERE.

Part 1 was published in July 2025 - previous post and HERE.

Addition 6 February 2026 - Joshua Rozenberg - Jury reforms within weeks