Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s place in the line of succession is something Parliament “is going to have to consider when the time is right”, Sir Ed Davey has said.

The Liberal Democrat leader: “The most important thing right now is that the police be allowed to get on with their job, acting without fear or favour.

“But clearly this is an issue that Parliament is going to have to consider when the time is right, naturally the monarchy will want to make sure he can never become king.”

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been urged to voluntarily give up his place in the line of succession following his misconduct in public office arrest.

Tory frontbencher Andrew Bowie told GB News: “I think it would be the decent thing for him to remove himself.

“The investigations haven’t concluded, however, and if he is found guilty of this, I think Parliament would be well within its rights to act and remove him from the line of succession.

“But let’s remember, he’s not been found guilty of anything just yet. He is yet to be charged with anything, so we have let the police investigation run its course, and then I think we should all act accordingly.”

Andrew has denied any wrongdoing over his Jeffrey Epstein links, but has not directly responded to the latest allegations.

The Liberal Democrats celebrated winning a council seat from Labour in Redcar in a by-election yesterday.

A Lib Dem source said: “Labour’s vote is collapsing across the country. Only the Lib Dems can beat Reform – even in the backyard of Labour’s own chair Anna Turley.

“We’re on the up and chomping at the bit for more big gains at the local elections, as disillusioned voters abandon Labour and back us as the strongest party to take on Reform.”

Andrew Neil called out Chancellor Rachel Reeves in a post on X with some “corrections” after she made a series of claims about the economy.

Green leader Zack Polanski has said he is “confident, but not complacent” that his party will win the Gorton and Denton by-election.

He visited the Greater Manchester constituency today less than a week before voters go to the polls.

The Greens have claimed next Thursday’s vote is a two-horse race between their party and Reform UK.

The chairman of the Conservative Party has urged activists to “never fall” for accusations they presided over “14 years of failure”.

Kevin Hollinrake was speaking at the Scottish Conservative conference in Edinburgh ahead of the Holyrood election in May.

He said: “Let us be clear, this election in May is absolutely crucial for the future of Scotland and for the future of the United Kingdom.

“Time and time again, it is our party that has turned this country around – never fall for this 14 years of failure nonsense.

“Yes, of course we made mistakes, but who was it that balanced the book on day-to-day spending after the financial crisis where we had a larger deficit than Greece’s – an economy in deep recession?

“Who was it who oversaw the jobs miracle that cut joblessness by 1.2 million? That cut workless households by hundreds of thousands? That made education reforms that led to soaring standards? That cut street crime by 50%? That helped to keep hundreds of thousands of businesses afloat and millions of people in work during Covid? And that kept Jeremy Corbyn out of Number 10 Downing Street.”

New air defence weapons will be developed by Britain and its European allies “to strengthen Nato’s shield and keep our people safe”, a defence minister said.

The new multinational scheme aims to counter drone and missile threats with a new surface-to-air weapon, inspired by those used in Ukraine.

Defence minister Luke Pollard said the project shows “European nations are ready to deter, defend and if necessary, fight, together”.

The low-cost air defence systems, such as autonomous drones or missiles, are expected be delivered by 2027.

Britain – alongside France, Germany, Italy and Poland – launched the Low-Cost Effectors and Autonomous Platforms (Leap) initiative at the European Group of Five meeting on Friday in Krakow.

Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg has described Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as looking like a “broken man”.

The former Conservative MP said on GB News: “It’s the first arrest of a royal, I think, arguably, since the Duke of Monmouth, who had his head cut off in the 1680s for rebelling against James II, although George I, I believe, kept his wife locked up in a castle in Hanover for a bit.

“But it’s also constitutionally fascinating, not just because of the effect on the King and on support for the monarchy, but because that great principle of English and subsequently British law has been upheld, that nobody is above the law. Be you ever so high, the law is above you.”

He added: “For once, I agree with Sir Keir Starmer that no one is above the law. It is a fundamental principle. We now see that the former Prince Andrew has left prison in a very depressed state, looking a defeated, broken man.”

Nigel Farage erupted at Sir Keir Starmer over reports that he has blocked Donald Trump from using RAF bases to strike Iran.

The US President is said to have withdrawn his backing from the Chagos Islands deal because he has not received UK approval to use its military bases for a US attack on Tehran.

The Reform leader wrote on X: “If Keir Starmer’s real obsession with getting rid of the Chagos Islands is to destroy our strong defence relationship with America, then his government must go.”

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson is announcing a crackdown on rip-off special needs schools charging taxpayers £62,000 per pupil, as total special needs spending soars above £12 billion.

But Ministers fear a massive backlash when long-delayed plans to reform special needs education are finally published

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch speaks at the Scottish Conservative conference this afternoon, as the February 26 vote for Scottish Parliament draws near.

But polls show Tories could come fourth or even fifth, while Reform will regard coming second to the SNP as a breakthrough

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper is in Washington today to meet with Trump’s Secretary of State Marco Rubio around 4pm. It comes as the UK clashes with the US over the Chagos islands and a potential US attack on Iran, which the UK is reportedly refusing to support.

The Tories hit out at Labour after new figures showed the Government has borrowed £112.1 billion so far this year.

Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: “Labour have borrowed £112.1 billion so far this year – the fifth highest borrowing on record. Record high taxes and irresponsible spending have weakened the economy.

“With youth unemployment now higher than in Europe, inflation above target and the economy stagnant, Wes Streeting is right: Labour have ‘no growth strategy’.

“Neither Labour nor Reform have the serious answers to stabilise the public finances.

“Only the Conservatives have a leader with a backbone, the plan and the team to get Britain working again.”

Cabinet minister Heidi Alexander was asked about the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on last night’s BBC Question Time.