Andy Burnham has claimed his devolution plans strengthen his case for a written constitution for the UK.

The prime minister said the UK’s “antiquated” political system needs reform if equal opportunities are to be effectively shared out across the country.

Britain is one of the only major democracies without a codified arrangement which lays out how the country should be governed.

The UK’s constitution is currently established through history by common law, statutes and conventions.

Burnham has already decided to allow regional mayors to keep a proportion of income tax to spend on their local area by early 2028.

He has also set up No.10 North, an alternative to 10 Downing Street in the north of England, to symbolise his commitment to moving power out of Westminster.

He said his devolution plans “increase the case for a constitution because Britain is changing through this, England is certainly changing through this.”

He claimed the country needs to set up a codified model of devolution which works for Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England.

“In the end, I think it does start to point towards a new constitutional settlement… with that commitment to equivalent living standards,” he said.

He added that his promise to implement “good growth in every postcode” was “more than just a sound bite”.

The prime minister did not outline any time frame for implementing such a historic change.

Countries usually adopt a written constitution following major events like revolution or war, when governments need to signal a departure from previous regimes.

The prime minister first floated the idea in his 2024 book Head North, co-written with Liverpool city region mayor Steve Rotherham.

He said deep inequality had become part of Britain because it had not moved on from the “feudal state” which held power in Westminster.

“Our failure fully to set out the rules for how the country should be run is one of the principal reasons why Britain is one of the most unequal major countries in the world,” he wrote.

“Our unwritten and murky constitutional arrangements have had the effect of hoarding power in a small number of hands – in Whitehall and Westminster and, by extension, in the powerful networks of institutions and vested interests that surround them.”.

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is a condition that affects up to 5% of adults (some research suggests it may be 50-75% likelier in men than women).

Per the Mayo Clinic, its symptoms include a high self-worth, expecting constant praise an/or attention, jealousy of others and believing people envy them too, arrogance, criticism, and feelings of superiority.

But writing for Forbes, Kathy Caprino, who often writes about narcissists, said: “Most adult children of narcissists never get the help they need to recover and heal, because they have no idea that what they’ve experienced as children is unhealthy and destructive”.

So how can you tell if you’ve been raised by narcissistic parents?

Here, Steven Buchwald, a therapist from Manhattan Mental Health Clinic, shared six potential signs:

People who grew up with a narcissistic parent may have had their achievements ignored, minimised, overshadowed, and even mocked as a child, said Buchwald.

Fear that this may happen again could extend into adult milestones, like buying a house, getting a promotion, or becoming engaged.

“A child of a narcissistic parent often feels their success serves as a threat to someone’s self-importance. As a result, happiness in adulthood can lead a person to feel unsafe,” the therapist told us.

“Before sharing positive news, ask yourself if you’re more apprehensive about their reaction than you are about your success. If the answer is ‘yes’, initially celebrate with those that are supportive. This bides time for your nervous system to experience joy before it must navigate forms of negativity.”

Whether you’re planning a wedding or trying to get a surprise birthday party together, children of narcissistic parents may feel they have to anticipate the actions of their mum and/or dad.

They could dread inviting them in the first place, feeling they have to walk a tightrope, Buchwald explained.

“Narcissistic parents may use the event to attention seek, play victim or create an atmosphere,” he added. “When planning your event, list the moments that mean the most to you. This can be walking down the aisle, the music played at your baby shower, or birthday decorations.

“Write down how you would like these aspects of the day to play out. If this sparks feelings of anxiety about others’ behaviour, build a plan of action. This may be assigning trusted friends as ‘buffers’ to redirect conversations and gently intervene in conflict or arranging parts of the day away from certain people.”

The therapist added that children of narcissistic parents may have been subjected to sudden mood swings when they were young.

As a result, he said, they might have become experts in reading “micro-expressions” and minute changes in atmosphere.

However, this hypersensitivity isn’t always accurate in adulthood, he continued. Ask yourself whether there’s any actual evidence that your suspicions about others’ moods are true: if there isn’t, consider taking a more optimistic view.

Going on holiday, taking time off from a demanding job, or even having a cup of coffee to yourself might feel like “cheating” to children of narcissistic parents, who may have grown up believing their job was to look after everyone else’s needs.

If that sounds like you, Buchwald suggested, try journalling; write down statements like, “‘I’m not selfish as I have previously (insert examples of you helping others)’, ‘I deserve to go on holiday as I (insert reasoning).’”

Sometimes, the therapist said, narcissistic parents can make their child feel guilty for building friendships or relationships outside of the family unit – partly because those with NPD may see healthy independence as rejection.

Adults who grew up in these conditions might struggle to post pictures with their mates online or tell their parents about group trips.

“Remember, someone voicing their disappointment doesn’t mean that you have done something wrong”, says Buchwald.

“Ask yourself whether your actions are harmful, or if someone is actually irritated as they weren’t the main focus.”

“Those who were raised in a narcissistic home often enter adulthood with a reflex to justify any choices they make,” partly because they were judged so often as kids, the therapist ended.

“For one week, pay close attention to how often you explain or justify your decision-making, even when unnecessary. Take a beat and ask yourself if you’re sharing the info out of choice or because you’re apprehensive that your decision will be judged.

“If the decision is the latter, challenge yourself to stop one sentence shorter than you normally would. It may initially feel uncomfortable, but after a short time become the norm.”

Andy Burnham has promised cost of living relief is “on its way” and hinted he might look at trying to bring down utility bills and rail fares.

Speaking to the Sunday Mirror, the prime minister said the worries of voters have been on his mind from his first moment in the job two weeks ago.

Alluding to his campaign to win the Makerfield by-election, Burnham said he was thinking of the “people on whose doors I was knocking only about five, six weeks ago… They did get over to me how tough life was. Can’t go for drink anymore. Can’t take the kids out. Not having a holiday this year.”

He added: “I heard those type of things being said throughout the campaign, and those comments were still ringing in my ears as I arrived in Downing Street.”

Burnham said he would not make “false promises” to the public but will do “whatever I can” to “take a little bit of pressure down”.

The prime minister indicated that he is looking at rail fares – some of which he described as “outrageously” high – and said water bills are an essential issue.

Burnham said: “I think rail fares are too high, outrageously so in some instances. So that’s something that’s in my sights.

“I mentioned VAT and electricity bills. It’s a short-term measure at this moment, but let’s see where we can go with that.

“Water is an issue as well, where I think the public pay high bills and they don’t see that money then going into infrastructure. There’s another area that needs reform.”

In his first fortnight as PM, Burnham has already promised to cap bus fares at £2 for journeys outside of London and announced plans to cut VAT from energy bills, saving approximately £45 from the energy price cap.

He also revealed pubs, social clubs and live music venues would get a 20% cut to business rates from April.

The chancellor John Healey also wrote in The Sunday Telegraph he would be watching for any supermarkets’ attempts to rip off customers.

He said: “We’ll be watching closely for any suggestions that customers are being taken for a ride at the pump or the till.”

He said Labour would not be afraid to “clamp down” in price-gouging begins.

However, the chancellor also warned that the government “can’t completely stop the squeeze that families and businesses will feel with a global shock of this scale”.

It comes after war in Iran triggered a 13% increase in household energy bills for Britain at the start of July.

Even so, Healey vowed the government will have a “ruthless focus on our own national interests” and work with allies to ease the impact from the crisis in the Middle East.

Ministers will also have to decide whether it wants to intervene and help Brits in the winter when the price cap is expected to rise again.

Burnham told the Sunday Mirror: “We’ll keep monitoring that situation and make sure we’re doing everything that we can do. People have raised issues like the standing charges on bills, and they kind of pushed me to go further on that.

“So I’ll take a look at that issue, alongside other issues and other things that we might be able to do to help people with the cost of living.

“It remains a very tough time for people, and I know the main thing people would like me to do if I can do it is to ease that pressure a little bit.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

As I was sitting in my living room, engrossed in a self-help book about finding the perfect partner to complete me, I got a call from my teenage daughter Jordan that changed everything.

I was in my mid-40s and felt extremely low about myself and my life. I was divorced, had a few unsuccessful relationships in recent years, and I felt I’d failed at finding true love.

“Please, Mom, it’s so cute and tiny!” Jordan was at a photo shoot in Hollywood. The makeup artist had a puppy with her, and its sibling still needed a home.

“Just our three cats – that’s what we’re allowed,” I reminded her. The apartment rules I had signed 11 years ago after my split with her dad were ironclad.

“No one will know! I’ll never ask for anything else ever again!” she promised, and because she was my only child, she always got her way.

Within a week, a tired-looking lady from a dog rescue organisation brought a fit-in-your-palm-sized black chihuahua to our home. We named him Preston, and we soon discovered he had a big bark!

When we were told to move out or get rid of the dog, the decision was easy. We moved. Ironically, Preston never became my daughter’s dog. He was mean and bit everyone except me. My love for him was plain and true. He slept under my left arm every night for almost 19 years.

Months after moving to a dog-friendly place, I saved a big black terrier boy. I found him caked with dirt in the middle of a street with a broken rope around his neck. I lifted him into my car and rushed to the vet. When he was cleared to leave, we brought him home and named him Alfie. Next came Maddie, a sweet little spaniel mix from a high-kill shelter.

And so, I began to save them – one dog at a time.

When my daughter went off to college, mutts took the place of men. It seemed the more I missed my only child, the more dogs I saved. The chaos and their constant need for my attention filled the void.

The fact that I lived in a house full of animals was not completely surprising.

“I’m never, ever getting married, and when I grow up, I’m going to live in a castle with a hundred cats and dogs and monkeys and goats!” I used to tell everyone as a child. Playing with dolls and wearing frilly tutus were never my thing. Animals were.

Today, I’ve been in the trenches of dog rescue in Los Angeles for over 20 years. I’ve also had three major back surgeries. My lower back is all titanium now.

“When are you going to stop lifting crates and heavy bags of dog food?” my spine surgeon asked after my second back surgery.

“Soon. I’m slowing down, I swear – less rescue, health comes first.”

As I told him that, I wanted to believe what I was saying, but I knew deep down it was never going to happen. The number of animals needing help is seemingly infinite.

There’s always another urgent email plea about a pit-mix puppy thrown from a car window, or a Facebook post about a matted poodle, limping, on the side of the road, or, in recent months, a frantic phone call about two senior terriers left in a home after the owners were deported after an ICE raid.

How can I stop? How do I say no? How do I look the other way?

“Rescue is like quicksand,” a seasoned rescuer told me years ago. “Once you get in, you’ll never get out.”

I didn’t fully understand what she meant at the time, but she was right.

After I sold the little jewellery and paintings I had to pay for my rescued dogs’ medical expenses, I decided to become a legit operation. It’s been 16 years since I formed my own nonprofit dog rescue foundation. I now have an indispensable right hand, Gina, who matches me in commitment and enthusiasm (and exhaustion), as well as a community of wonderful volunteers, foster parents, groomers, rescue partners and donors. It takes a pack of passionate people to save lives.

My morning often starts something like this. A text at 7:30am pings on my phone with an image of nine large-breed puppies abandoned in an orchard – their terrified faces peering out of the wagon they were dumped in.

My adrenaline kicks in, and the only thing that matters is getting those poor babies to safety. I’m holding my phone and texting with one hand, and with the other, I’m filling dog bowls with my home-cooked mix and haphazardly throwing them down for my waiting pack.

We have nowhere to put these nine pups, so I scroll down to Lori, one of my trusted go-to rescuers, who has a big property and takes larger pups. She’s my first rapid-fire text and, luckily, in this case, my last.

It’s a bartering game sometimes.

I’ll take them if you can take the Chiweenie family we picked up yesterday.

I have a foster who likes small-breed moms and babies, so I text back, No prob, done deal.

Miriam, who often transports dogs for me, is my next call. Within two hours, the orchard puppies are saved. Later that week, I’ll get pics of the litter happily frolicking. We’ll never know who the uncaring people who abandoned these helpless pups were, and sadly, this kind of cruelty happens often.

I have spent days working in last night’s pyjamas until whatever crisis we’re facing has been resolved. As for the mama Chihuahua/Doxie and babies, they’ll be groomed, vet-treated, spayed/neutered, given toys, collars and tags, and trained, if needed, before we place them into forever homes.

I think of myself as the passer of the baton. My job is to love them all like they are my own and give them the best of everything to make up for the trauma they’ve been through, and then place them into the arms of great adopters who’ll give them the lives they deserve.

I have a ritual – a way of saying goodbye to every dog that comes into our organisation that I’ve fostered. When I drop a dog off at their new home after the house and yard are secure and checked, I take a walk with the new owners and pup, who’s sniffing and enjoying the unfamiliar surroundings. I’ve prepared the adopters, so they know what’s coming next. After a block or so, I quietly peel off and head in the opposite direction back to my car. There are no confusing goodbyes for the dogs because I’ve learned that works better.

This is the “movie moment” that I’ve repeated hundreds of times: taking a last look at that prancing dog with her gleaming coat and tail up, who is now a loved pet. It’s that image, as they head into the proverbial sunset, that I keep imprinted in my mind. The dog that I spent four hours taking 50 ticks off its tiny body. The dog that came trembling out of a high-kill shelter three hours before it was set to be euthanised. The dog that was chained to an RV bumper 24/7. All of those dogs are now somebody’s best friend, best snuggler and best hiking buddy.

I often drive away from dropping these dogs off with tears in my eyes, but I also feel a deep sense of calm because I know I’ve fulfilled my commitment to each one of them. I’ve fulfilled my promise of great new lives – even if it takes weeks, months or sometimes even years to deliver it to them.

There is a well-known expression in the rescue community: “Saving one dog won’t change the world, but it will surely change the world for that one dog.” This is the mantra I live by, but for me, it goes one step even further. It’s also about how those new adopters’ lives have been changed for the better.

I couldn’t have gotten through my husband’s death without Bruno. He’s my rock.

Our 9-year-old son was so shy until we adopted Skye. She’s brought him out of his shell.

Messages like these are what keep me going. Taking a skinny, filthy pup and transforming him into a happy, healthy dog who is then adopted and loved forever. That’s powerful magic.

In our current world, where it’s easy to feel that we have no agency, being able to have a positive impact on a life, two-legged or four, matters. We can make beautiful things happen one creature or person at a time.

While I don’t have much time to think about my love life, others seem to.

I think I found your next husband! reads a recent late-night text from a friend, who has also sent along the Instagram post of a smiling guy sitting in the middle of a canine-covered couch.

Right, so we can have 100 dogs together! I text back.

Never mind, looks like he’s married.

I’m not disappointed. I’m in bed surrounded by my current assortment of rescue dogs. It’s a melting pot of smooth and scruffy, white, tan, black, brown and grey older ones, and two pink-nosed puppies. They are all pushed up close, nuzzling against me, paws across my legs and arms, offering little licks to my fingertips. Their round eyes are looking at me with such open, pure love. It is in that moment that it comes to me – that profound aha! realisation.

What I have in my life is not a soulmate, but a soul–purpose, and that’s what completes me.

Linzi Glass is a published author with Henry Holt and Company, HarperCollins, Penguin UK, and Scholastic, and the founder and executive director of The Forgotten Dog Foundation, a Los Angeles–based rescue that has saved thousands of dogs over the past 16 years. She is currently working on a memoir about her years in dog rescue. For more info, visit
www.theforgottendog.org/ and www.linziglass.com.

Nigel Farage struck a secret deal to return as Reform UK’s leader months before the general election, according to reports.

The Sunday Times claims Farage negotiated a pact with Richard Tice, then-party leader, in March and April 2024.

George Cottrell, the convicted fraudster known as “posh George” who reportedly bankrolled Farage, supervised the conversations.

The newspaper reports that once Farage became leader, he would repay or write off more than £1 million in loans Reform had received from Tice’s firm.

If accurate, the existence of this pact casts doubt on Farage’s previous claim that he did not intend to return to frontline politics until June 2024 when he announced his plan to run to be the Clacton MP.

Farage has used this claim to defend his failure to declare a £5 million gift to parliament in the year before he was elected to the Commons.

The Reform leader has repeatedly claimed the lump sum from crypto-billionaire Christopher Harborne was not for political purposes and so did not need to be added to the register of MPs’ interests.

He told the Triggernometry podcast last month that he was a broadcaster when he received the donation, describing himself as “an influencer” who wasn’t in politics.

A parliamentary probe into the donation was launched earlier this year but was paused after Farage chose to trigger a by-election in Clacton over what he described as an “establishment stitch-up”.

Asked about this supposed deal with Tice, Reform sources told HuffPost UK Farage was trying to find out the party liabilities and what loans would have to be repaid if he did return to frontline politics.

They claimed he decided he would not come back, before changing his mind, and said he was essentially trying to keep his options open.

Farage is currently fighting the Clacton by-election, but all major parties have refused to stand a candidate calling it a political stunt.

His main opponent is comedy character, Count Binface.

If Farage wins and returns to the Commons, the probe into his £5 million donation will resume.

The investigation could still punish him for failing to declare the lump sum to parliament and trigger a second by-election in Clacton.

Labour Party chair Bridget Phillipson slammed the Sunday Times report, saying: “Farage and Reform think the rules don’t apply to them. But as more of the truth comes out, the net is closing in.

“If accurate, this revelation blows Nigel Farage’s story apart. It would mean Farage was privately negotiating his return to frontline politics while publicly presenting as someone who hadn’t decided whether to return. That raises even more questions about the secret £5 million gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, further undermining his account of why he kept it secret.

“Grubby pacts, secret gifts, support from a convicted fraudster, attempted cover-ups and police investigations – it all adds up to a stench of sleaze the public can smell from miles away.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.