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A petition demanding a public inquiry into pro-Israel influence on UK politics and democracy will be debated in Parliament on 22 June 2026, according to an update published on the Petitions Committee’s page on 21 May 2026.

The petition reads:

We feel that the horrific devastation in Gaza, the ongoing suppression of Palestinians in the West Bank, and the UK’s political response underline the urgent need to scrutinise how pro-Israel organisations, networks, and lobbying efforts may shape government decisions, party policy, and public debate.

Petition debates cannot change the law or force a vote, but they can raise awareness and put pressure on the government.

The petition was launched in January and has now passed 115,000 signatures.

A petition is eligible for a debate if it reaches 100,000 signatures, though the committee has discretion over whether to schedule one.

Israel: Starmer government does not support public inquiry

The government responded on 17 April 2026, stating it does not support a public inquiry.

It said it already takes foreign influence seriously and is taking action, including transparency measures and the recent Rycroft review into foreign financial interference.

Notably, the Rycroft review does not mention Israel or the United States at all. It focuses instead on Russia, China, and Iran.

At least half of Keir Starmer’s front bench accepted Israeli or pro-Israel cash. If any cabinet MPs like David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, or Yvette Cooper show up to this debate, colour us surprised.

The Starmer government has shown less than zero interest in holding Israel to account for its crimes. Under Starmer, the UK has operated near-daily spy flights over Gaza from December 2023 onwards.

Just recently, the Foreign Office (FCDO)  closed down its unit that tracked Israeli atrocities and breaches of humanitarian law in Gaza and Lebanon.

Don’t hold your breath for any meaningful action on 22 June.

Featured image via Getty/Charles McQuillan

By The Canary

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There is a familiar refrain that follows my partner and I as we navigated the UK’s public bathrooms. As a gender-nonconforming couple, we’re painfully aware of the transphobic discourse that overshadows our daily lives. Approaching a set of bathrooms whilst out and about, and not wanting to draw more attention to ourselves, one or both of us will groan, before announcing with resignation:

Time to do ‘gender’…

It will be a situation familiar to many trans people. The so-called ‘bathroom ban’, fought for by anti-trans activists, has become notorious for making the lives of cis and trans people alike more complicated. Not only is it an infringement on the human rights of trans people themselves, but it inevitably leads to the policing of people of all gender expressions. Cis people too find themselves viewed with suspicion and even harassed for not looking a ‘certain’ way.

It is a situation unlikely to change in the near future. A new ‘code of practice’ document released by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has set out new (but no less convoluted) guidance on how public institutions and services are to cater to those with ‘protected characteristics’ and avoid discrimination.

Despite its claims to provide clarity with regards to various “everyday situations”, it’s a total mess of legalese that fails in simplifying the lived experiences of cis and trans people in Britain today.

Responses to the update

In an explainer video posted on their website, EHRC chair Mary Ann Stephenson says:

The code outlines how the Equality Act 2010 works in relation to the provision of services, public functions, and associations and explains the steps that should be taken to ensure people are not discriminated against.

The document itself claims to be:

based on the principle that people with the protected characteristics set out in the [Equality] Act should not be discriminated against, harassed or victimised when using any service provided publicly or privately.

TERF groups have already claimed a tentative victory in response to the new guidance.

Lobby group Sex Matters argues:

Nothing in the code of practice changes the Equality Act 2010. What it does is provide detailed, practical guidance on how to interpret the act.

In particular, the group claims that previous guidance on Equality Act:

was ambiguous about the relationship between the protected characteristics of sex and gender.

For example, the old guidance suggested that:

a service provider … should treat transsexual people according to the gender role in which they present.

This notion of “presentation” was underpinned by the principle of “self-identification”. Regardless of how a service provider visually perceives a person’s gender, they should defer to how that person identifies themselves.

Sex Matters argue that the “new code of practice has removed that error”, leading trans advocacy group TransActual to conclude:

The newly published EHRC Code of Practice leaves trans people in the UK today with less rights than they had prior to last year’s Supreme Court ruling.

But does it really? The new guidance certainly gives TERFs more ammunition in their never-ending lawfare campaigning against people who are just trying to live their lives, but claims that it removes previous errors of interpretation around certain social interactions appear to be overstated.

Summarising analysis from the Good Law Project, which argues that the “updated code of practice rows back on some of the most harmful elements in the previous draft”, trans rights lead Jess O’Thomson explains:

It’s good to see clear guidance that associations can be for multiple protected characteristics – so you can have an organisation for both cis and trans women. And the suggestion of checking people’s birth certificates before they can use the toilet has been axed.

But it still treats trans people as a third sex, suggesting they should be made to use separate spaces – entirely ignoring the harm this causes, and human rights law. We will keep fighting this discriminatory approach.

‘Biology’ as a euphemism

The problems that persist with the new guidance all come down to different interpretations of sex and gender. In short, the guidance seeks to clarify the legal definition of these terms, and how public service providers can navigate the EHRC’s legal framework in a variety of hypothetical scenarios. What the document provides, then, is  legal cover for individuals and organisations. But it remains the case that the law does not neatly cohere with (nor determine) the lived experiences of those concerned.

For example, what does it mean when the guidance says it uses “the expression ‘biological sex’ to describe the sex of a person at birth”? To cut through the vague euphemism, it means the bathroom you use should be determined by what genitals you have. As a foundation that is supposed to alleviate the complications of ‘perceived’ gender expression, it doesn’t hold up under scrutiny.

Many intersex people, for example, have testified to invasive and discriminatory medical treatment on the basis that their “sex at birth” is no less determined on a medical professional’s perceptions. It has long been the norm that people born with ambiguous genitalia are subjected to decisions made about their bodies by doctors, who even encourage parents to consent to surgeries that can ‘correct’ their child’s genitals and make them look more ‘normal’.

Outside of medical professionals and intimate partners, however, who else is going to be interacting with our genitals during the day-to-day? Certainly not a random Starbucks employee! It is for this reason that so many of the hypothetical situations lists in the new guidance unavoidably fall back on other people’s perceptions of an individual’s gender expression.

The absence of trans testimonies

Contradictions continue to hamper this most irrational of debates because many of the things that determine our gender cannot be seen.

Speaking personally, as a trans woman, my hormone profile is not that of a biological man. A combination of testosterone blockers and a hormone replacement therapy has fundamentally changed my inner emotional landscape. As far as outward appearances go, I continue to be misgendered often. But many of the women in my family present as more ‘masculine’ than most anyway. In fact, compared side by side, I’m the spitting image of the woman that gave birth to me.

Too much information? Yeah, probably! The EHRC’s new guidance goes to great lengths to try and ‘clarify’ how businesses and public bodies can avoid falling foul of the UK’s discrimination laws, but the fact remains that people’s lived experiences are more diverse than the law could ever truly account for. This is a problem that the EHRC – whenever it does decide to listen to trans people – cannot avoid. As a result, ‘clarification’ paradoxically means even more ‘complication’.

Prioritising the legal definitions of sex and gender over and above the reality of trans lives will always be reductive, further entrenching a ‘hostile environment‘ for trans people. But that is precisely what lawfare-waging TERFs want. The more convoluted the law, the colder the chilling effect on LGBTQ people’s freedoms of movement and expression.

At the end of the day, it’s not the law that needs to be changed, but the general attitudes towards trans people in this country. The law may influence this, but the problems have taken root far deeper than statutes.

Featured image via Getty/Ian Forsyth

By Em Colquhoun

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The man of the hour, Pedro Pascal

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We hope you love the products we recommend! All of them were independently selected by our editors. Just so you know, HuffPost UK may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page if you decide to shop from them. Oh, and FYI — prices are accurate and items in stock as of time of publication.

Festivals are all fun and games until you remember about a small thing called a shower.

I don’t know about you, but it’s always a day or two into a festival or camping before I start to become irrevocably aware of the layer of the layer of filth I must be covered in. After that, it’s game over.

While, yes, there’s often some kind of shower... situation going on at campsites, it’s not always one you want to find yourself in.

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That is, if you even have time to shower between running around and drinking copious amounts of alcohol.

But if there is one hack you can’t live without at a festival, it’s always having a pack of wet wipes on hand.

Should you lose track of time and realise you’ve not washed in a considerable number of days, or that you’ve developed an irrational fear of the shared showers, wet wipes will always have your back.

These coconut-scented ones from Freshwipes come in a pack of 12, but if you’re going for a longer stint you can save by buying a multipacks of 5, 10, or 36.

They’re biodegradable, 10x wetter than regular baby wipes, and fold out to A4 size, so one wipe is enough to clean your whole body.

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That means you can rest assured you’re not leaving too much harmful rubbish behind.

They’re even skin-safe certified, earning the seal of approval from Dr Hilary Jones MBE as dermatologically sound and antibacterial, thanks to the addition of chlorhexidine.

And, if coconut is not your thing, you can choose between its ocean fresh scent and unscented options.

But best of all, one pack costs just £6, so you can stay odour-free wherever you are this summer for the price of less than two coffees.

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We hope you love the products we recommend! All of them were independently selected by our editors. Just so you know, HuffPost UK may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page if you decide to shop from them. Oh, and FYI — prices are accurate and items in stock as of time of publication.

One day, someone will invent an injection that means we never have to reapply sunscreen again. But until that day comes, it is a sad and unfortunate truth that sunscreen is a daily skincare essential – and more so in the sunny months than ever.

Despite the undeniable benefits of wearing SPF – it protects against skin cancer, and prevents visible signs of ageing, etc, etc – it is a pretty spenny necessity, which can make it all the more tempting to skip it. Fine, we’ll admit it.

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If you need a little extra nudge to stock up on sunscreen this year, that’s completely understandable. Or at least iHerb seems to think so, because it’s launched a ‘buy one, get one 50% off’ promotion on its entire sunscreen range. Can we get a ‘whoop whoop’ for iHerb?

If you’ve not yet stocked up on sunscreen for the season ahead – and even if you have – now’s the time to do it.

But this isn’t one of those sales that applies to just one or two items. Whether you’re looking for a kids’ sunscreen, one that’s suitable for sensitive skin, or a face sunscreen, iHerb has every kind of SPF you could want. We’re talking over 300 products – woah.

To make sure you don’t miss it, we’ve rounded up our tried and tested favourites from its summer sale to stock your baskets with right now.

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Best sunscreens to shop now

If you’re looking for a face sunscreen, it’s gotta be fragrance-free. This one from Eucerin is super lightweight, and it’s even loaded with hyaluronic acid to help lock in hydration.

Not every sunscreen works under makeup, but this one from Aveeno absorbs so quickly, you won’t have any problems with pilling. It also won’t leave a white cast, making it ideal for darker skin tones.

If you have oily skin, you’ll know the struggle of finding a sunscreen that doesn’t break you out. But Cetaphil is a go-to high street brand for a reason: it actually works at keeping skin clear. This moisturiser contains SPF30, but just be aware you’ll need to top up after a couple of hours.

One of the trickiest things with body sunscreen is finding one that won’t stain your clothes and leave you with a pile of white-turned-yellow clothes at the end of the summer. This one from Eucerin might take a little while to sink in, but it passes the colour transfer test, and it’s hydrating so it leaves your skin feeling great, too.

Looking for a sunscreen to take with you on the go? This baby one from Cetaphil comes in stick form, so you won’t have to worry about getting dirty hands creamy, and slots neatly into the tiniest of bags.

If you’re swimming in the sea – lucky you – this sunscreen is formulated to be reef-safe, and is water-resistant for up to 80 minutes so you don’t have to reapply every time you need a cool down. It even has a light shimmer to it, if you’re in the market to channel Edward Cullen in the sunshine.

We all need to be kept on our toes, which is why this sunscreen feels on the thicker side upon application, but later sinks in completely. Thrilling! This zinc formula is also suitable for kids and adults alike, so you won’t have to worry about keeping two different lotions on you at the same time.

If there’s one thing that’s going to convince your kids to wear sunscreen, it’s if it smells like tangerine and vanilla. This SPF 40 zinc formula might leave a little greasy layer on your skin, but it’s water resistant for over an hour, and it’s made from 98% natural ingredients.

When you have .2 seconds to slather your baby in sunscreen before they start wriggling, there’s no time for messing around with squeezy bottles and screw caps. This mineral sunscreen stick makes application quick and easy, and it’s hypoallergenic so it’s great for sensitive skin.

With an SPF ranking of 60+, this sunscreen will keep your face ultra-protected in even the sunniest of conditions. Plus, Hawaiian Tropic just smells like summer, so it’s a must (if you know, you know).

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Israel’s genocide in Gaza and US-led war on Iran is pushing Democratic voters to increasingly oppose the sacred economic and military aid pact between Washington and Israel.

Democratic voters change tack

Results from a New York Times 2026 Siena poll shows that on the question of economic and military support to Israel:

• 68% of Democratic voters stood in opposition
• 25% of Democratic voters support the supply of aid
• 7% were ambivalent

The poll also addressed the thorny question of Democratic party support for Trump’s unilateral decision to invade Iran. Polling data suggests that:

• 93% believed it was the wrong decision
• 5% believed it was the right decision
• 2% were ambivalent

Plummeting support for Israel

Similarly, it found that:

• 47% of Democratic voters believe their party is too supportive of Israel
• 9% said Democrats are not supportive enough of Israel
• 33% believe Democrats are about right on support of Israel
• 12% were ambivalent

In terms of support for Palestinians, 60% of 2024 Democratic voters sympathised more with Palestinians, while only 16% sympathise more with Israelis. And even the US as a whole is now more sympathetic towards Palestinians (37%) than towards Israelis (35%).

A recent CNN report also highlights shifting attitudes among Democratic voters on hot-button issues. Net favourability of Israel among moderate/conservative democratic voters plummeted between 2022 and now, the outlet reported. The data suggests the favourability pendulum swung away from support for Israel in 2025.

With prominent Democratic politicians remain openly supportive of Israel, they appear out of step with voters on other issues. It’s hardly surprising that 54% of 2024 Democratic voters had felt dissatisfied with the party.

Most Democratic voters and non-voters think the US is heading “in the wrong direction”, with 90% of 2024 Democratic voters (and 75% of non-voters) agreeing that:

The economic system in this country is generally unfair to most Americans

With this in mind, it makes sense that people would want politicians to focus on domestic problems rather than fuelling conflict abroad. Accordingly, 51% of Democratic voters (and 74% of non-voters) agree that the US:

should pay less attention to problems overseas and concentrate more on problems here at home

Will the Democrats get their house in order?

Commenting on the shifting sands of public opinion, Al Jazeera points out that:

Leading up to the 2024 vote, Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza was one of the most contentious and divisive issues for the Democrats and Harris.

Commenting further, the outlet added:

Some polls have suggested that the Gaza policy was one of the main reasons Harris lost the election.

A 2025 IMEU Policy Project survey showed that Gaza was a top issue for people who voted for Biden in 2020, but did not back Harris four years later.

Yet, there are zero mentions of Gaza and Israel in the 192 pages of the autopsy report.

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Left-leaning Action for a Progressive Future produced an autopsy on the Democrats’ 2024 election loss which agreed on the role the Gaza genocide played. The report blamed:

• Democratic elites’ complicity and failure to take or promise meaningful action over Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
• The abandonment of working-class voters and excessive cosiness with corporate elites.
• The alienation of many young voters between the ages of 18 and 29, along with voter disenchantment in general.
• Joe Biden’s selfish decision to run again despite clearly being unable to.

If the Democratic Party is to pose a real challenge to the far-right Donald Trump regime, it needs to start listening to its voter base — urgently.

Featured image via Getty Images/the Canary

By Ed Sykes

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