UK Politics

Support trulyindependent journalismFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorSir Keir Starmer has said the US is a reliable and trusted ally after weeks of turmoil surrounding the presidential election.The prime minister vowed to work with whoever wins the US Presidential election the morning after Joe Biden dramatically pulled out of the race.With senior Democrats rallying behind vice president Kamala Harris, the PM stressed the importance of the “special relationship” between Britain and the United States.Keir Starmer stressed the importance of the ‘special relationship’ More

Support trulyindependent journalismFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorLabour should remove the two-child benefit cap “immediately” to lift thousands of children out of poverty, MPs have said.Chancellor Rachel Reeves has come under pressure from her party’s backbenchers to lift the cap, which prevents almost all parents from claiming universal credit or child tax credit for a third child. The policy, which was brought in by David Cameron’s Conservative government, impacted 450,000 households and 1.6 million children last year according to official figures.Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside Kim Johnson has tabled an amendment to the King’s Speech that would scrap the cap, with the proposal currently backed by 29 MPs. She told The Independent that the level of child poverty in her constituency was “unacceptable” and these children “can’t wait two years for a decision to be made”. She added: “Removing the two-child cap needs to be done and it needs to be done immediately”.Her comments come as education secretary Bridget Phillipson said on Monday morning that she would consider scrapping the cap as part of the newly established Child Poverty Taskforce. The review was set up by prime minister Sir Keir Starmer last week in an apparent attempt to appease backbench MPs who want bolder action on child poverty. A boy plays in the street near the Heron Cross pottery kiln in Stoke on Trent, England. 1.6 million children were affected by the two-child benefit cap last year, government figures show. More

Support trulyindependent journalismFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorDonald Trump will have harboured hopes of winning a landslide US election victory against Joe Biden, who was the opponent he would have “prayed for”, the UK’s former ambassador to Washington has suggested.The 81-year-old incumbent announced on Sunday that he would cede to calls to end his re-election bid, which had reached a fever pitch over the 25 days since his disastrous TV debate against Mr Trump sparked concerns about his mental fitness.With just 105 days left until the election, all eyes are now on who will replace Mr Biden as the Democratic Party nominee set to face up against an increasingly feverish Trump campaign, which is in the ascendancy after his defiant reaction to an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania earlier this month.Endorsed by Mr Biden, vice president Kamala Harris has emerged as the most likely frontrunner. But others have called for a wider contest to be decided at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on 22 August – a selection process abandoned more than 50 years ago in favour of primaries and caucuses.Sir Kim Darroch – who was forced to resign as the UK’s ambassador in 2019 after leaked cables showed him labelling Mr Trump an “incompetent” and “inept” president – urged Democrats on Monday not to “rush to a decision” on anointing Ms Harris as their candidate.The ex-diplomat said: “The tide at the moment is flowing strongly with Kamala Harris. I’m not sure if it’s sensible to rush to a decision on that, because what the Democrats have to do is look at three key swing states – Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania – and think ‘who is the best placed Democrat to take those?’.“So they need to just pause a little bit and think about this.”Speaking to LBC, Lord Darroch said he believed it had been “a mistake” for Mr Biden, already the oldest president in US history, to initially insist on putting his name forward for a second term in the Oval Office.Sir Kim Darroch was appointed to the House of Lords by Theresa May in 2019 More

Support trulyindependent journalismFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorSir Keir Starmer will launch a new body on Monday to deal with Britain’s “fragmented and broken” skills training system.In a bid to ensure training provision is aligned with the needs of the economy, the prime minister will unveil Skills England.The body, which was included in Labour’s manifesto, will bring together central and local government, businesses, trade unions and training providers to better understand the nation’s “skills gap”.Starmer wants Skills England to open up new opportunities for young people More

Support trulyindependent journalismFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorUS president Joe Biden will have made his decision to stand down based on the “best interests of the American people”, British prime minister Keir Starmer said.Sir Keir praised Mr Biden’s “remarkable career” and vowed to work with him for the remainder of his presidency after the 81-year-old announced he would not be seeking a second term.In a move set to reverberate across the globe, Mr Biden abandoned his re-election bid on Sunday and endorsed his vice president Kamala Harris as his successor.Follow live updates hereSir Keir said: “I respect president Biden’s decision and I look forward to us working together during the remainder of his presidency.US president Joe Biden abandoned his re-election bid on Sunday and endorsed his vice president Kamala Harris as his successor More

Support trulyindependent journalismFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorGordon Brown’s multibank will be officially launched in London this week amid concerns over rising child poverty across the capital.The opening of Felix’s Multibank, the first in London, is being backed by the former prime minister and mayor Sadiq Khan. The scheme works like a food bank but also provides non-perishable goods such as cleaning products, toys and clothing and they have been established in areas such as Swansea, Greater Manchester and Fife. The West London-based multibank, due to open this week, is expected to help thousands of families with supplies sourced from the food industry which would otherwise go to waste. Earlier this week, The Independent revealed shocking reports of multiple families, who were being housed in awful conditions in hotels, being labelled “intentionally homeless” by councils in London. Mr Brown told The Guardian, “The London Felix Multibank is the fourth of six that will be opened by the end of this year across Britain. It is opening at a time of transition from a Britain where child poverty has risen dramatically to one where we wish to see child poverty falling.” “As a new anti-poverty plan is being prepared, the multibanks still need to secure more supplies and more funds from generous donors so that, working with food banks, we can provide poverty relief.”Multibank opens in Swansea, Wales More

Support trulyindependent journalismFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorIreland is set to play a pivotal role in Keir Starmer’s plan for a crucial reset in relations with the European Union. The UK government believes the Irish are “very influential” within the bloc. And Ireland has already signalled its willingness to discuss with other EU countries the potential for a closer relationship with the UK in the wake of Labour’s landslide election victory. The prime minister began to write the start of what he hopes will a new chapter in the relationship with the EU as he welcomed continental leaders to a summit in Oxfordshire on Thursday.  The PM wants a reset in UK/EU relations More

Support trulyindependent journalismFind out moreCloseOur mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.Louise ThomasEditorRachel Reeves has hinted at inflation-busting pay rises for public sector workers, highlighting the cost of industrial action from “not settling”.The chancellor has promised that “people won’t have to wait long” for a decision after reports that independent pay review bodies have recommended a 5.5 per cent rise for teachers and around 1.3 million NHS staff.“There is a cost to not settling, a cost of further industrial action, and a cost in terms of the challenge we face recruiting,” she told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme.Rachel Reeves accused the Conservative government of having ‘run away’ from making tough decisions on pay More