Markus Andrews

Angela Rayner’s flat has been graffitied with the phrase “tax evader” as the deputy prime minister faces calls to resign after admitting underpaying stamp duty on her Hove property.Footage from the seaside flat shows the words “tax evader” and “b***h” written in purple, red and yellow lettering. The words can be seen in various sizes across the front of the white wall around her front patio. An additional message of “Tax evader Rayner” could also be seen graffitied on a construction clipboard nearby. A spokesperson for Ms Rayner decried the offensive graffiti as “unjustifiable and beyond the pale”. The spokesperson said: “This vandalism to residents’ homes is totally unjustifiable and beyond the pale.“Neither Angela nor her neighbours deserve to be subjected to harassment and intimidation.“It will rightly be a matter for the police to take action as they deem appropriate.”An additional message of “Tax evader Rayner” could also be seen graffitied on a construction clipboard nearby More

As the government looks for new ways to tackle illegal migration, Sir Keir Starmer is considering the rollout of digital ID cards.The prime minister has not said whether the cards would be compulsory, but has confirmed that ministers are examining how the technology could be used to limit illegal working – one of the so-called “pull factors” drawing people across the Channel in small boats.Similar systems are already in place across Europe. Estonia issues every citizen with a digital ID number, while France argues that the UK’s lack of such checks makes it easier for asylum seekers to enter the shadow economy. Supporters, including the Tony Blair Institute, claim a national scheme would prevent benefit fraud, close loopholes exploited by gangs, and make it harder to forge documents.But critics warn the policy risks creating a “dystopian nightmare”, with campaigners such as Big Brother Watch saying ordinary people would be forced to prove their identity simply to go about daily life. They argue digital IDs would not stop small boat crossings and would instead punish law-abiding citizens.So, is a national digital ID card the answer? Would it help tackle illegal migration and fraud, or does it threaten to erode civil liberties and privacy?We want to hear from you. Share your thoughts in the comments and vote in the poll below – we’ll feature the most compelling responses in the coming days. More

Sir Keir Starmer is determined to save Angela Rayner after she admitted to dodging £40,000 in tax when purchasing a property.After weeks of speculation about her property arrangements, the deputy prime minister conceded that she had not paid enough stamp duty on her £800,000 seaside flat in Hove, East Sussex.And the prime minister is reportedly prepared to do whatever he can to save his deputy, having vowed not to hand his critics a “scalp”. A senior ally of the PM told The Times he has genuine sympathy for Ms Rayner’s position and will do what he can to keep her in his top team, but that ultimately her fate will be decided by the outcome of an independent ethics probe. Ms Rayner referred herself to the prime minister’s independent ethics adviser, who will interview her over the property purchase in the coming days as part of an investigation into the scandal.She had been under pressure after it was reported that she had saved £40,000 in stamp duty by removing her name from the deeds of a family home in her Ashton-under-Lyne constituency, classifying the Hove flat as her only property despite still spending time at the family house.Angela Rayner admitted not paying enough tax More

Nigel Farage was branded a “Putin-loving free speech imposter and Trump sycophant” by a US congressman on Wednesday who launched a severe critique of the Reform UK leader before the Briton gave evidence to a committee in Washington DC. Democrat representative Jamie Raskin urged voters in Britain to “think twice” before voting for Mr Farage, accusing him of only protecting free speech he agrees with. His comments came as Mr Farage, who has been heavily critical of free speech in the UK, with claims police are too heavy-handed with their arrests of people accused of hate speech, gave evidence on the subject to the US House judiciary committee. Mr Raskin said: “To the people of the UK who think this Putin-loving free speech imposter and Trump sycophant will protect freedom in your country, come on over to America and see what Trump and Maga are doing to destroy our freedom … You might think twice before you let Mr Farage ‘make Britain great again’.” Giving evidence later in the session, Mr Farage hit back, saying: “You can say what you like, I don’t care.”In his stinging attack, Mr Raskin argued that Donald Trump and Mr Farage “both claim they’re protectors of free speech, but they only want to protect speech they agree with”. Nigel Farage appears in front of the US house judiciary committee More

Sir Keir Starmer has failed to prove to working people in the UK that he is one of them and risks opening the door for Nigel Farage to seize power, the leader of Labour’s biggest backer has warned.Speaking ahead of the annual meeting of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in Brighton next week, TUC general secretary Paul Nowak told The Independent that “for too many people, ‘change’ feels too much like a slogan and they don’t feel it in their pockets”.It comes as the TUC is set to use the annual congress to push the agenda on wealth taxes to fill the spending gap in Rachel Reeves’ budget.Keir Starmer has made some self-inflicted mistakes, Nowak believes More

Rachel Reeves has held out for the last possible date to hold her Autumn Budget as she scrambles to come up with a plan to rescue the nation’s troubled finances. The chancellor admitted that the economy is “not working well enough” as she pledged to get a “tight grip” on spending when she delivers her budget on 26 November.The Independent has been told she is considering a new tax raid by raising capital gains tax and introducing a gambling levy to help close an estimated £40bn black hole in her budget.The two options, championed by trade unions and former prime minister Gordon Brown, are said to be top of the list of possible new taxes – also including a mansion tax, freezing income tax thresholds and applying national insurance to rental income for landlords – being looked at.A well-placed source told The Independent: “At the moment the focus is on capital gains tax and the gambling tax.”It comes as the chancellor has reiterated she will not break Labour’s manifesto promise of no rises in income tax, VAT or employee national insurance contributions, despite economists warning she may have no other choice.Rachel Reeves is set to deliver the next budget in November (Oliver McVeigh/PA) More

Liz Truss has hinted about returning to frontline politics, revealing that she has “always been obsessed with making Britain a great nation again”.Speaking to Sky News’ Wilfred Frost on The Master Investor Podcast on Wednesday (3 September), the former prime minister said that she is “depressed about how far the UK has sunk”.Asked by Mr Frost if she would consider returning as an MP, she said: “I never rule anything out. Why would I do that?”Describing the economy as “dire”, Ms Truss said she “wants to help fix that in any way I can”. More

Last month, in a disturbing but not entirely unsurprising development, the leader of a Reform UK council effectively barred a local newspaper and website from interacting with the authority.The ban imposed by Nottinghamshire County Council came after Nottinghamshire Live published a series of stories which council leader Mick Barton claimed “consistently misrepresented” Reform.It was a strange move for a party that bills itself as the champion of free speech. And it was somewhat ironic that it came just days before party leader Nigel Farage planned to lambast the state of free speech in the UK in front of a congressional committee in Washington DC.But the truly worrying thing is that the block on engaging with the media is not a localised phenomenon, but one which could truly rear its ugly head on a national scale if Mr Farage takes control of Downing Street.Farage revels in press conferences More