Delivering in Government: your weekly round up of good news Labour stories

It was a busy week for the Labour government.

From taking on Elon Musk to signs of green shoots in the economy, there was plenty of tangible progress towards renewing the country.

Here are the six most exciting breakthroughs and announcements this week that you can use, whether you’re on the doorstep, sparring on social media, or debating in the pub.

1. Economy growing again

The UK economy grew by 0.3% in November, faster than the forecast of 0.1%.

Meanwhile, UK borrowing costs have fallen to their lowest level in more than a year, as investors grow more confident in the government’s handling of public finances.

The Bank of England has also cut rates six times since Labour came to power.

2. Northern Powerhouse Rail

Labour has announced Northern Powerhouse Rail, a multi-billion-pound plan to transform travel across the North with faster, more frequent trains.

The first phase will upgrade lines between Leeds, Sheffield, York and Bradford in the 2030s.

The second phase will build a brand new line between Liverpool and Manchester via Manchester Airport and Warrington, with three new stations.

3. Banning deepfake abuse

Labour’s ban on creating non-consensual intimate images, including AI deepfakes, came into force this week.

It’s now a crime to create or request sexually explicit images of someone without their consent. Technology Secretary Liz Kendall has also made it a priority offence under the Online Safety Act, forcing platforms to proactively stop this content.

That came as X banned its AI tool Grok from creating sexualised images of people, following criticism from many, including the prime minister.

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4. Protecting rape victims’ privacy

Labour has blocked police from requesting rape victims’ counselling notes during investigations unless in exceptional circumstances.

Under the new rules, which came into force this week, police can only request counselling records if necessary, proportionate and relevant – and requests must be approved by a chief inspector. Previously, police routinely requested these notes in almost 30% of rape cases, leading many victims to avoid seeking therapy or drop out of investigations.

Victims had often been advised not to seek counselling while cases were ongoing – despite many rape trials taking two years or more to reach court.

5. Ending caged hens

Labour has set out plans to phase out all cages for laying hens by 2032, giving each bird more space and freedom to move.

Currently, over 20% of UK eggs come from ‘colony cages’ where up to 80 birds are kept together, with each hen having no more space than an A4 sheet of paper. All major UK retailers, from Sainsbury’s to Aldi, have already committed to not selling caged eggs.

The government is also consulting on tighter restrictions for lamb castration and tail docking, which are often carried out without pain relief.

6. Faster Windrush compensation

Labour has reformed the Windrush compensation scheme so victims receive more money, faster.

Claimants who challenge their compensation award can now receive up to three-quarters of their expected payout while their review is being processed, instead of waiting with nothing. 

Victims can now also claim for lost pension contributions and savings they were forced to drain after being wrongly denied the right to work.

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