Suddenly, all parties think ex-RBS chief Sir Fred Goodwin should be stripped of his honour. Maybe. But why now? And will it really do anything to rein in the bankers? Jane Merrick, Mark Leftly, Matt Chorley and Brian Brady report

The Queen should be given a new royal yacht – likely to cost at least £60m – as a way to help overturn Britain's mood of austerity, according to Cabinet minister Michael Gove.

A campaign for people to leave 10 per cent of their estate to charities and cultural organisations on their death claimed the backing of all three political parties yesterday.

The Labour leader, Ed Miliband, has come in for a good deal of criticism for his attempts to relaunch his leadership of the party with a debate on the need for a kinder, more responsible form of capitalism. Cut the deep philosophising and get on with hammering the Coalition Government more effectively, is the caustic response of some on his own side.

Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond has accused the UK Government of "bullying" Scottish voters over plans for an independence referendum but agreed to hold talks with David Cameron on the way forward.

David Cameron is planning a wide-ranging government reshuffle in March to "buy off" Eurosceptic Tory MPs ahead of a possible new rebellion over an EU referendum.

Only one in four people who voted Liberal Democrat at the last election still supports the party now, according to new research.

Survey shows huge collapse in popularity since party joined the Coalition

The Tory party chairwoman, Baroness Warsi, has accused her Liberal Democrat counterpart of treating the coalition like "a bad episode of Come Dine with Me" by enjoying the good things on offer and "then slagging it off afterwards".

How Lib Dems let down the poor

Ann Widdecombe is evidently a convert to the “prolonged frivolity” she enjoyed while competing on Strictly Come Dancing last year. She is back in sequins, feathers and ra-ra skirts this winter in deepest, darkest Dartford. The former Tory minister is now a pantomime dame, performing as Widdy-in-waiting to her ex-Strictly judge Craig Revel Horwood’s wicked Queen Lucretia (from Bromley)- his third successive year in the role.

Another year of politics ends and the PM takes the side-stepping and bullishness prizes, while Nick Clegg smarts

Inside Wesminster