Committee

• Israel's Ministerial Committee for Legislation approved bills giving the government sole discretion over senior civil service appointments, reducing oversight mechanisms. • The committee deferred decisions on more radical proposals, including bills to cancel the Oslo Accords and restrict immigration and citizenship for non-Orthodox converts. • These moves signal a push toward greater executive control, amid ongoing debates on judicial and administrative reforms.

• The Senate Armed Services Committee has advanced a draft version of the National Defense Authorization Act that includes language to block automatic military pay reductions triggered by certain budget gimmicks tied to the sequester framework. • The provision comes after Pentagon officials warned that artificial pay cuts could drive recruitment and retention problems and after several advocacy groups lobbied lawmakers to permanently repeal the sequester caps. • Senator Adam Smith and other committee members argued that service members should not be collateral damage in political budget fights.

Karl Turner, who lost Labour whip after criticising PM, calls for privileges committee to examine if Starmer misled parliamentUK politics live – latest updatesA former Labour MP has joined opposition parties calling for Keir Starmer to face a Commons committee to examine whether the prime minister misled parliament as the government’s crisis surrounding the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington continues.Karl Turner, who lost the Labour whip last month after making a series of interventions criticising Starmer and No 10, has written to the speaker of the Commons urging him to refer Starmer to the privileges committee, the same body that found Boris Johnson had lied in the Commons over the lockdown parties scandal. Continue reading...

• Kevin Warsh, President Trump's nominee for Federal Reserve Chair, testifies in his first Senate Banking Committee hearing at 1400 GMT on April 21, 2026, facing questions on Fed independence amid Trump's pressure to cut rates. • Warsh advocates reducing the Fed's balance sheet, conflicting with recent resumption of regular Treasury purchases in December 2025. • The hearing addresses hot topics like Fed autonomy and potential rate cuts, with USD firming after Monday's rally rejection.

Whitehall officials are weighing up ‘unprecedented’ disclosure of documents in security clearance scandalStarmer did not gamble with national security over Mandelson, says ministerMinisters are under growing pressure to share the documents from Peter Mandelson’s vetting process with the parliamentary committee tasked with deciding if they should be made public.In February, MPs passed a binding parliamentary motion, known as a humble address, requiring the government to publish “all papers” relating to Mandelson’s appointment as ambassador to the US. Continue reading...

Democratic congressman dropped out of California governor’s race after reports of sexual misconductThe House ethics committee on Monday announced it had opened an investigation into the Democratic congressman Eric Swalwell, a day after he dropped out of the California governor’s race amid reports of sexual assault and misconduct.The bipartisan committee said in a statement that it would scrutinize “allegations that [Swalwell] may have engaged in sexual misconduct, including towards an employee working under his supervision”. Continue reading...

• Anthropic expanded its AI strategy by acquiring AI drug discovery startup Coefficient Bio for approximately $400 million and launching a political action committee to influence AI regulation. • The company is also seeing surging investor demand for its shares amid tightening AI infrastructure supply and growing market appetite. • These moves position Anthropic to shape policy, enter life sciences, and capitalize on demand for leading AI technologies in the US.