UK Politics

The Independent visited Windsor in Berkshire ahead of Donald Trump’s state visit to the town on Tuesday (16 September), where he and his wife Melania will be staying until Friday (19 September).American flags line the streets, hundreds of armed police guard every corner, and queues of tourists spill out onto the pavements.The mood among local councillors, businesses, and residents, as Windsor prepares to make itself ‘Trump ready’, is varied. While some are critical of prime minister Keir Starmer rolling out the red carpet, others welcome it as a boost for the local economy.A protest organised by the Stop Trump group is expected outside Windsor castle upon the president’s arrival. More

A former Reform UK MP is being investigated over claims that he used social media to “facilitate racial abuse”.James McMurdock, who suspended himself from the party over separate allegations about loans during the pandemic, is facing a probe by parliament’s standards commissioner. It comes after he allegedly started a so-called “N-tower” on social media, a way of spelling out the n-word without being subject to a platform’s content-moderation practices. James McMurdock is facing a standards probe More

Peter Mandelson did not have national security vetting before Sir Keir Starmer appointed him the UK’s ambassador to Washington, the foreign secretary has admitted.The shock revelation came as the prime minister was urged to apologise to the victims of the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and to “publish the Mandelson-Epstein files in full” as the government faced emergency questions on the ongoing scandal of Lord Mandelson’s links with the disgraced financier. Sir Keir was forced to sack the Labour grandee last week after the publication of emails that showed he had sent supportive messages even as Epstein faced jail for sex offences.The prime minister sacked Peter Mandelson last week but has faced questions about his judgement in appointing the peer More

Starmer breaks silence over Mandelson sackingLord Peter Mandelson did not have national security vetting before he was appointed as the UK ambassador to the US by Keir Starmer, the foreign secretary has said. In a letter to the chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Emily Thornberry, newly-appointed foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said the vetting was done by the Cabinet Office. Ms Cooper was asked the following: “What security concerns were raised by the agencies undertaking security clearance ahead of Peter Mandelson’s appointment?” She responded: “The Propriety and Ethics Team in the Cabinet Office (PET) conducted a due diligence process, prior to the announcement of Peter Mandelson’s appointment on 20 December 2024 at the request of No. 10. “The FCDO was not asked to contribute to that process and no issues were raised with the FCDO as a result of this process. This was not a security check.“After Peter Mandelson’s appointment was announced, which started the ambassadorial appointment process, including National Security Vetting, in advance of him taking up his post.” Labour MP reveals daughter’s ‘horrendous’ experience at scandal-hit mental health hospitalTom Watling16 September 2025 15:51Davis closes debate with message of frustration Sir David Davis has closed today’s three-hour debate into the appointment and sacking of Lord Peter Mandelson. His tone is one of disappointment; Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty refused to disclose any information about the vetting process for Lord Mandelson, arguing it was confidential. In closing, Sir David said it was clear that “we’re not going to get the answers”. “We will return to this matter,” he added. ( More

A Labour MP has used the emergency parliamentary debate to defend the process behind Lord Mandelson’s appointment, arguing it is no different to past failures made in the vetting of senior staff.But John Slinger’s speech was branded “risible” by the father of the house Sir Edward Leigh on Tuesday (16 September).He said: “That speech we just heard was absolutely risible, frankly, and I would just give him some advice. You know, don’t do the whips’ dirty work.”Mr Slinger rose again to tell Sir Edward: “Please don’t patronise me.”Sir Iain Duncan Smith then intervened to add: “Advice for the member opposite… those that lick the feet of the unworthy get for themselves nothing but a dirty tongue.” More

Jeremy Corbyn has launched a fierce attack on Sir Keir Starmer in a bid to win support for his new political party.Writing for The Independent, the former Labour leader savaged the prime minister’s economic policies, accusing him of “trying to balance the books off the backs of the poor”.Britain has a government that “inflicts suffering at home and enables genocide abroad”, he said, referring to his criticism of Sir Keir’s handling of the Israel-Palestinian conflict.Jeremy Corbyn accused Keir Starmer of ‘trying to balance the books off the backs of the poor’ More

More than 650 organisations including Ben and Jerry’s, Lush and hundreds of small cafes and pubs have written to the government to warn that the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s draft guidance on single sex spaces is “unworkable” and would “cause significant economic harm”, The Independent understands. The guidance has been drafted after the Supreme Court ruled trans women are not legally women under the Equality Act (2010) earlier this year, a judgment that was hailed as a victory for biological women by gender critical campaigners. But there are concerns that the ruling, and the EHRC’s draft guidance, could leave transgender people excluded from public life. The draft guidance that was submitted for consultation over the summer warns that if a service is provided “only to women and trans women or only to men and trans men, it is not a separate-sex or single-sex service under the Equality Act 2010”. The letter – sent to minister for women and equalities Bridget Phillipson and business secretary Peter Kyle – warns that if the final guidance is “similar to this draft”, it would tell organisations that they “must adopt practices that are incompatible with modern business values”. It calls on Ms Phillipson to “take immediate action to prevent these proposals from moving forward”. The EHRC has shared its updated code of practice for services, public functions and associations with the equalities minister for approval after a consultation that took place over the summer. But in theory, Ms Phillipson could reject the draft and ask the EHRC to redraft it. It comes after sources told The Times that the final guidance will tell schools, hospitals, leisure centres and cinemas to ban trans women from using single-sex spaces such as lavatories and changing rooms. The letter says: “We, the undersigned businesses and organisations, are writing to express our deep concern at proposals seeking to enforce blanket, mandatory exclusion of trans people from gendered spaces and services.“The proposals made in the EHRC’s draft Code of Practice under the Equality Act would have serious and far-reaching consequences for UK businesses, our employees, and our customers. The EHRC’s draft code of practice has been submitted to Bridget Phillipson More

Former health minister Maria Caulfield has become the latest Conservative politician to defect to Reform in another blow for Kemi Badenoch.Ms Caulfield, who was a Conservative MP for nearly a decade, said “the future is Reform” as she announced her decision to switch to Nigel Farage’s party.It comes less than a day after the shock defection of sitting Conservative MP and shadow minister Danny Kruger to Nigel Farage’s party.She becomes the thirteenth former Tory MP to join Reform and her defection comes just 24 hours after sitting Conservative MP and shadow minister revealed he had switched allegiance. Ms Caulfield told GB News: “If you are Conservative right-minded, then the future is Reform. The country is going to change a lot.Maria Caulfield was a health minister in the previous Conservative government (Lucy North/PA) More