Politics live – readers' edition: Friday 12 January

I’m not writing my usual blog today but here, as an alternative, is the Politics Live readers’ edition. It is a place for you to discuss today’s politics, and to share links to breaking news and to the most interesting stories and blogs on the web.

Feel free to express your views robustly, but please treat others with respect and don’t resort to abuse. Guardian comment pages are supposed to be a haven from the Twitter/social media rant-orama, not an extension of it.

You can read all today’s Guardian politics stories here.

And here are some of the main ones on our site this morning.

• Donald Trump has cancelled a visit to Britain next month to open the new US embassy in London amid fears of mass protests.

• An inquiry has been launched into the “serious failing” of appointing Toby Young to the board of the Office for Students without studying his long history of incendiary comments, the commissioner for public appointments has said.

• A cross-party report into tackling sexual harassment in Westminster was delayed by the Labour party and has now been “watered down” by the Conservatives to reduce its focus on victims, it has been claimed.

• HM Revenue and Customs is struggling to cope with a growing workload, including investigating revelations contained within the Paradise Papers, according to parliament’s spending watchdog.

• Labour should consider allowing transgender women to be included on all-women shortlists, the party’s shadow equalities minister, Dawn Butler, has said.

On Thursdays local council byelections take place. There were four yesterday. Britain Elects has two of the results.

Britain Elects
(@britainelects)

Four council by-elections tonight, with previews by @andrewteale https://t.co/tupVuUwrPA

January 11, 2018

Britain Elects
(@britainelects)

No word from both Thanet and Wyre authorities. Results and/or counts in the morning.

January 12, 2018

Britain Elects
(@britainelects)

Conservative HOLDs:

Preesall (Wyre).
Wyre Rural Central (Lancashire).

January 12, 2018

Britain Elects
(@britainelects)

Wyre Rural Central (Lancashire) result:

CON: 60.0% (-10.9)
LAB: 31.8% (+13.9)
GRN: 8.2% (-3.1)

January 12, 2018

Britain Elects
(@britainelects)

Preesall (Wyre) result:

CON: 55.3% (-9.9)
LAB: 44.7% (+9.9)

January 12, 2018