UK Politics

Eight in 10 Britons believe that senior politicians should be required to publish the amount of tax they pay every year, according to a new poll.A YouGov survey of nearly 5,000 people found that 80 per cent believe politicians should be required to disclose the amount of tax they pay each year, while only 8 per cent said they should not.It comes after Angela Rayner resigned last week as deputy prime minister and housing minister over her failure to pay £40,000 in stamp duty.Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has also evaded questions about his tax payments, particularly regarding his wife’s Clacton property, his private company assets, and his earnings from GB News.When approached for comment by The Independent, Mr Farage said he publishes all of his “monthly earnings and company figures” and that there was “no need” to disclose how much tax he pays as well. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has evaded questions about his tax payments More

The Green Party’s new leader claims he has had multiple conversations with Labour MPs about defecting to his party as they become increasingly unhappy with the direction of Sir Keir Starmer’s government.In an interview with The Independent, Zack Polanski said the number of Labour MPs he has spoken to who are dissatisfied with the party was in “double figures”. He added that the Greens would “absolutely” welcome disillusioned MPs, as long as they share the party’s values.Mr Polanski named Labour left-wingers Clive Lewis and Nadia Whittome as “obvious” examples of the MPs he would welcome into the fold.It comes amid growing concern from backbenchers over Sir Keir’s leadership, with his approval rating hitting an all-time low last month.Zack Polanski spoke to The Independent about his plans as leader of the Green Party More

Foreign minister Stephen Doughty had barely got back to his seat after dramatically announcing the sacking of Lord Mandelson as Britain’s ambassador to the US over his ties to the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and my WhatsApp inbox was filling up with messages mostly asking variations on one question:“Why does Keir Starmer have such appalling judgment in making his key appointments?”While the now disgraced Labour peer is off into the wilderness (not for the first time in a long career), the chaos he has left behind is enveloping the prime minister.After all, this is the second big resignation in about a week, at a time when Sir Keir’s umpteenth reset in the shape of a major reshuffle was meant to relaunch his government.Only last Friday, he lost his deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner – who he appointed as housing secretary – because she had failed to pay £40,000 in stamp duty on her second home.Now, a mere seven days later, he has lost the man he had tasked to look after the most important relationship in Britain’s foreign policy – the ambassador who has to charm and deal with Donald Trump in the White House – over alleged (and what Downing Street is insisting is) “new information” over his relationship with Epstein.Lord Mandelson’s sacking is the latest scandal to hit Sir Keir Starmer’s government More

Government says Peter Mandelson sacked ‘in light of new emails’ over relationship with Jeffrey EpsteinSir Keir Starmer has sensationally sacked Peter Mandelson as US ambassador over the growing scandal of his links to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The prime minister asked Lord Mandelson to step down after a string of shocking revelations, including resurfaced emails appearing to show him offering support for convicted paedophile Epstein as he was facing charges of child sex offences. Starmer found Lord Mandelson’s emails to Jeffrey Epstein “reprehensible”, Downing Street has said.Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty, announcing that Lord Mandelson had been sacked, claimed that the emails showed “that the depth and extent of Peter Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein is materially different from that known at the time of his appointment” as UK ambassador to the UK last year. “In light of that, and mindful of the victims of Epstein’s crimes, he has been withdrawn as ambassador with immediate effect,” the minister added. Mr Doughty had been called to address the Commons after Sir Lindsay Hoyle granted an urgent question to Tory Neil O’Brien about Lord Mandelson’s appointment. MPs on both sides of the house had been demanding that Lord Mandelson return to the UK for questioning despite his status as a Lord meaning he does not have to stand in front of the Commons. James Roscoe has taken over from Lord Mandelson as interim ambassador while Downing Street begins the process of finding a permanent replacement.Mandelson-Epstein emails made me very uncomfortable, says SarwarScottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has said emails between Lord Peter Mandelson and paedophile Jeffrey Epstein made him “very, very uncomfortable”, as he backed the peer’s sacking as US ambassador.Speaking to journalists in Holyrood, Mr Sarwar said the Prime Minister had made the right decision.“The details that came to light were deeply, deeply concerning, they made me feel very uncomfortable,” he said.“I think there’s legitimate questions that the public will want answers to and I think, ultimately, the Prime Minister has made the right decision.”Asked if the decision suggests issues with the Prime Minister’s judgment, Mr Sarwar drew parallels with the previous Tory administration in the UK.“If you compare it to the years under the Conservatives, it was dither, delay, not even referring to the Standards Commissioner, often defending the indefensible,” he said.“(The Prime Minster has) actually taken swift action, there was swift action in terms of the resignation of (former deputy prime minister) Angela Rayner and the swift action in terms of the removal of Peter Mandelson as the ambassador to the US.”The Scottish Labour leader spoke out on Thursday (Andrew Milligan/PA) More

Peter Mandelson has been sacked as Britain’s ambassador to the US following new revelations about his relationship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein – meaning Sir Keir Starmer is now scrambling to fill the position. The appointment is at the centre of the UK-US relationship and will help shape interactions between the two administrations in the years to come, with the future of Ukraine, the conflict in the Middle East and trade tariffs among the key areas of discussion. The UK’s next man or woman in Washington will need all the political and diplomatic nous they can muster. Here we look at the runners and riders.James RoscoeJames Roscoe has taken over from Lord Mandelson as interim ambassador while Downing Street begins the process of finding a permanent replacement. While there is no suggestion yet that Mr Roscoe will hold the position permanently, the career diplomat has a strong CV. He is currently the embassy’s head of mission, a role which sees him take over in the absence of the ambassador. He was previously deputy head of mission at the British embassy in Washington in July 2022.Before moving to Washington, he was the UK ambassador to the UN General Assembly from 2019. Prior to this, from 2016 to 2019, he held the roles of director for communication at the Cabinet Office, and subsequently the Department for Exiting the European Union.George Osborne George Osborne is said to have been on Downing Street’s shortlist to be the next UK ambassador to Washington, despite the former Tory chancellor being disliked by many in the Labour Party for his role as the architect of austerity in Britain. Tom Baldwin, in his biography of the prime minister, wrote that senior No 10 aides “invested considerable effort” in unsuccessfully pushing for Mr Osborne to be considered. Former chancellor George Osborne known as the architect of austerity in the UK More

Peter Mandelson has been dramatically sacked from his role as UK ambassador to the US following mounting pressure over his newly revealed links to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. It comes after it was revealed that Lord Mandelson had maintained ties with Epstein after the disgraced former banker was jailed for a child sex offence.Responding to an urgent question in the House of Commons, foreign minister Stephen Doughty said Lord Mandelson had been sacked after leaked emails showed that his relationship with Epstein, who died in 2019, was “materially different from that known at the time of his appointment” as UK ambassador to the US last year.The Tories said it showed an “extraordinary error of judgement by this prime minister” and that it raised “massive questions” about what he knew about the pair’s relationship and when.Announcing Lord Mandelson’s sacking, Mr Doughty said: “In light of additional information in the emails written by Peter Mandelson, the prime minister has asked the foreign secretary to withdraw him as ambassador to the United States.The prime minister initially said he had ‘confidence’ in Peter Mandelson More

Lord Mandelson asked Jeffrey Epstein for help vetting an Israeli adviser, despite having claimed he never had a “professional” relationship with the paedophile, it has emerged. Britain’s ambassador to the US messaged the notorious sex offender to ask about a consultant in September 2013, according to reports, five years after he pleaded guilty in Florida to the solicitation of a minor.Leaked emails reveal Epstein forwarded the message to former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak. There have been calls for Lord Mandelson to be sacked (PA) More