Week ahead: Labour leadership debate to be aired on TV and new David Hockney exhibitions launch in London

Politics

When the European Union’s General Affairs Council meets on Tuesday, ministers from the member states will discuss the next steps in the relationship between the EU and the UK post-Brexit.

The body is expected to adopt the mandate for negotiations on a new trade partnership.

Labour’s future at stake as leadership battle escalates – The Yorkshire Post says

Meanwhile, the contest for the next leader of the Labour Party rumbles on, with Sir Keir Starmer, Rebecca Long-Bailey and Lisa Nandy still in the running for the top job.

Sky News is hosting a live TV debate with the contenders on Thursday, with Sophy Ridge presenting live from Dewsbury.

The candidates will face questions from a studio audience including Labour members, current Labour voters and past voters of the party who switched away in the 2019 General Election. A hustings will also be held in Brighton on Saturday.

The new leader, taking over from Jeremy Corbyn, is due to be announced in April.

Summit

A key policing summit covering topics including serious violence and the recruitment of 20,000 extra police officers will be held later this week.

The two-day event, beginning on Wednesday, is a joint meeting of the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners.

They will reflect on the current state of policing and consider some of the major steps that must be taken in order to deliver an efficient and effective service.

It’s also a big week for farming, with the National Farmers’ Union holding its annual conference in Birmingham on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Thousands of British farmers will be attending to hear about the NFU’s priorities for the next 12 months, as well as discussing the biggest challenges and opportunities facing the food and farming industry.

Over the two days delegates will be hearing from NFU President Minette Batters, who will deliver the opening address, CBI Director General Dame Carolyn Fairburn and many others.

Its themes include climate change, safeguarding standards and inspiring the nation’s schoolchildren.

Art

A new exhibition by Bradford-born David Hockney will launch at the National Portrait Gallery on Thursday.

The story of David Hockney and the famous Bradford family through the eyes of his brother John

The first major exhibition devoted to his drawings in over twenty years, David Hockney: Drawing from Life, explores Hockney as a draughtsman from the 1950s to the present.

The following day, another exhibition by the artist, entitled Video Brings Its Time to You, You Bring Your Time to Paintings and Drawings, will go on show at Annely Juda Fine Art in London. It includes 18 portraits of Hockney’s friends and associates, from fellow artists to well-known musicians such as Ed Sheeran and Bruno Mars.

The former will run until June and the latter until April.

Budget

New Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak is due to deliver his first Budget and the first since Autumn 2018, on March 11.

Ahead of the Conservative MP for Richmond setting out the Government’s detailed financial plan, the Institute for Fiscal Studies will host an event on Wednesday setting out its latest look at the fiscal constraints within which the Chancellor is operating and assessing his options.

It will also analyse regional inequalities in living standards and public investment.

The contents of the Budget could be the most important for years, as the new Government outlines its tax and spending plans for the coming parliament, post-Brexit.