Essex force says report is outside time limit for prosecution, while Electoral Commission says it has not found any undeclared spending

Nigel Farage has avoided investigation over claims his general election campaign breached electoral law last year – in part because too much time has passed since the alleged offences.

The Reform UK leader was told on Thursday that Essex police could not open an investigation because it was now time-barred, more than a year having passed since any alleged offence. The Electoral Commission, which had been asked to open a separate inquiry into other elements, said it had not identified any undeclared spending that should have been reported.

Split emerges among members of board of trustees over circumstances of charity boss’s exit from organisation

An extraordinary row has broken out at Oxfam over the treatment of its outgoing chief executive.

Halima Begum had left the organisation, it confirmed on Monday, amid claim and counterclaim of bullying – with a split emerging among members of its board of trustees.

Protesters say David Lammy is ignoring warnings over deteriorating health of eight hunger strikers awaiting trial

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Pro-Palestine demonstrators have daubed the Ministry of Justice building in central London with red paint, demanding that the justice secretary meet eight Palestine Action-affiliated hunger strikers.

Two protesters were arrested after Friday’s action, the activists said. They are demonstrating over the treatment of hunger strikers who are due to be held for more than a year before standing trial.

Defeated Tory and Labour rivals describe force of Reform ‘machine’ as police assess claims of overspending

The Tory and Labour candidates who Nigel Farage beat to win his Westminster seat of Clacton have described a Reform campaign that felt like a “juggernaut”, as police began assessing claims of overspending by the Reform UK leader.

The candidates spoke after a former aide alleged that Reform UK falsely reported election expenses in Clacton, where Farage won in last year’s general election. On Monday, Essex police said they were assessing a report of “alleged misreported expenditure by a political party” after a referral from the Metropolitan police.