Thank you for joining us in the Politics Hub for another busy day in Westminster.

Here's what happened:

• Jaws hit the floor across the House of Commons when Tory MP Natalie Elphicke crossed the floor to the Labour benches just minutes before PMQs started;
• The move provoked shock and fury on the Tory benches that an MP considered very right-wing decided to switch sides just weeks or months before a general election;
• But there is also considerable upset on the Labour side that someone so right-wing has been welcomed with opened arms, especially given her previous defence of her ex-husband accused (and eventually convicted) of sexual assault;
• Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds defended the defection, saying she is "putting her constituents first";
• She also made clear that Nigel Farage would not be welcome in Labour after a party spokesperson earlier seemed to fail to rule that out;
• Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick told Sky News the Tory party must stop their voters from "drifting to Reform" in order to win the next election - and also that he would welcome Mr Farage in the party;
• Labour provoked upset in the Jewish community by restoring the whip to Kate Osamor, who had said on Holocaust Memorial Day that Gaza should be remembered as a genocide;
• SNP leader John Swinney was sworn in as Scotland's new first minister, and appointed former leadership contender Kate Forbes as his deputy;
• The Home Office expelled a Russian defence attache as part of a series of measures against Moscow.
  

Join us from 6am for the very latest political news.

By Faye Brown, political reporter

Nigel Farage would not be accepted into Labour because his values are "completely inimical" to the party, a shadow frontbencher said.

Anneliese Dodds was asked about her party's "red lines" following the shock defection of former Tory MP Natalie Elphicke to the Opposition on Wednesday.

Some Labour figures have expressed concerns about the move, given that the Dover MP has repeatedly attacked Labour over migration and was seen as being on the right of her party.

Ms Dodds told the Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge that she had not been contacted by anybody "to say they didn't want that decision to have been taken", following reports Sir Keir Starmer has faced a hostile response.

Asked if Mr Farage would be welcome if he wanted to join Labour, Ms Dodds said: "Nigel Farage is someone who is well outside any kind of Labour values.

"He has proven that time and time and time again."

Read the full story here:

It's been a big day in Scotland today, with John Swinney being sworn in as the new first minister and the appointment of his new cabinet.

The Scottish government has confirmed 11 cabinet ministers have been appointed, with 14 junior ministers below them.

This means that there are four fewer ministers in the Scottish government since the start of this year.

And in a sign of what the new SNP first minister's priorities will be, the "minister for independence" role has been scrapped, and no longer appears on the Scottish government's website.

The role was first created just over a year ago when Humza Yousaf became first minister.

By Tomos Evans, Wales reporter

Wales's first minister Vaughan Gething has said he is "entirely relaxed" after being accused of misleading the UK COVID Inquiry.

Nation.Cymru reported on Tuesday that Mr Gething sent a text message in which he said "I'm deleting the messages in this group".

"They can be captured in an FOI [Freedom of Information request] and I think we are all in the right place on the choice being made," the message added.

The Welsh news outlet reported the message was posted in a ministerial group chat on Monday 17 August 2020.

"The message that has been published today is a message from me without the context of the discussion," Mr Gething said at First Minister's questions.

You can read more below:

At Westminster today, we've seen Sir Keir Starmer accused of taking Labour rightwards after welcoming former Tory MP Natalie Elphicke, who defected just before PMQs.

Up in Scotland, are the SNP going in a similar direction?

New party leader and first minister John Swinney has just been speaking about his cabinet, which notably includes former leadership candidate Kate Forbes as his deputy.

Our Scotland correspondent Connor Gillies says "she was promised a significant and senior role", having chosen not to run for the leadership again after her failed attempt last year.

She got almost half the vote but lost to Humza Yousaf.

The progressive Scottish Greens, who were in coalition with Mr Yousaf's SNP until they were turfed out last month, sparking his downfall, are "not particularly pleased" with Ms Forbes's appointment.

There's "a sense the SNP is taking a lurch to the right", says Connor, given her more socially conservative views.

That charge has been denied by Mr Swinney, who has vowed "to be a first minister for everyone, whether you're in the LGBT community or not".

Ms Forbes has previously said she would have voted against gay marriage and the government's gender reform laws, and that her faith means she thinks having children outside marriage is "wrong".

Connor says the disquiet her appointment will cause among some in the Scottish parliament is a sign of how tough a job Mr Swinney has to improve the sense of unity among MSPs, something he has to do to govern effectively with a minority administration.

By Jennifer Scott, political reporter

The Conservatives must stop their voters from "drifting to Reform" in order to win the next election, Robert Jenrick has said.

Speaking to political editor Beth Rigby, the former immigration minister pointed to lowering legal migration as the "most important" issue to win back those who now support Nigel Farage's party - as well as people who voted Tory in 2019 "who [now] don't feel that the party is being conservative enough".

Mr Jenrick also said he would have "no problem" with Mr Farage joining his party, or "working with" him, adding: "I want the Conservative Party to be one which is the natural home for anyone who shares my determination to tackle issues like illegal and legal migration."

You can read more here:

The Sky News live poll tracker - collated and updated by our Data and Forensics team - aggregates various surveys to indicate how voters feel about the different political parties.

With the local elections complete, Labour is still sitting comfortably ahead, with the Tories trailing behind.

See the latest update below - and you can read more about the methodology behind the tracker here.

After Natalie Elphicke announced her defection from the Tory party to Labour this lunchtime, there were immediately questions about what would happen to Labour's existing candidate.

Mike Tapp, a former soldier, was selected a long while ago, and he has tonight publicly reassured voters that he remains their candidate.

He posted on X: "I'm still your candidate!

"We've seen countless Tory switchers, today another, I look forward to Natalie's support at the next general election.

"Natalie has seen that only Labour has a plan to secure our borders, and build the homes we need."

Over a year ago, Rishi Sunak made five pledges for voters to judge him on.

The prime minister met his promise to halve inflation by the end of 2023.

But with the general election approaching, how is Mr Sunak doing on delivering his other promises?

You can see the progress for yourself below: