News

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 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

Elon Musk and JD Vance are interfering in other countries’ politics in a way that “they would never tolerate” in the United States, Sir Nick Clegg has said.It comes as Sir Keir Starmer faces calls to sanction the tech billionaire, after he called for the dissolution of parliament at Saturday’s rally organised by far-right activist Tommy Robinson.The US vice president has previously criticised free speech in the UK, and a legal case in which a former serviceman who silently prayed outside an abortion clinic was convicted of breaching the safe zone around the centre.Speaking on ITV’s Peston on Monday, 15 September, the former deputy prime minister said: “Look at the way in which Tommy Robinson sort of fawned on Musk, look at the way in which Farage fawns about Trump, that, you know, they’re seeking to turn this country into sort of little MAGA Britain.”We need to be just much clearer in calling out that this is in whatever shape or form, a form of extraterritorial interference into our democratic culture… which they would never tolerate in the US.” More

Zoe Gardner from the Stop Trump Coalition has issued a stark warning ahead of planned protests against Donald Trump’s state visit, which they have organised “to give a voice” to the “huge amount of opposition” to his Windsor Castle stay.She said: “Our demonstration will be front page news; the pushback of not just Trump himself, but this far-right politics of hatred.”The group are holding large-scale demonstrations in Windsor on Tuesday (16 September) and in London on Wednesday (17 September)- an estimated 250,000 people marched on the streets of the capital to protest the president’s last state visit in July 2018. More

Zoe Gardner from the Stop Trump Coalition has issued a stark warning ahead of planned protests against Donald Trump’s state visit, which they have organised “to give a voice” to the “huge amount of opposition” to his Windsor Castle stay.She said: “Our demonstration will be front page news; the pushback of not just Trump himself, but this far-right politics of hatred.”The group are holding large-scale demonstrations in Windsor on Tuesday (16 September) and in London on Wednesday (17 September)- an estimated 250,000 people marched on the streets of the capital to protest the president’s last state visit in July 2018. More

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will arrive in the UK for an “unprecedented” second state visit, hosted by the King on Tuesday (16 September).The Princess of Wales will also play a significant role in the visit, including spending a day with Melania Trump at Frogmore Gardens to meet with Chief Scout Dwayne Fields and members of the Squirrels programme. Prince William and Kate will initially meet the US president and first lady at Windsor estate before they join the King and Queen for a carriage procession to the castle. The visit will include a state banquet at St George’s Hall and a day at Chequers with the Prime Minister. Trump’s first state visit in 2019 cost around £3.9 million, mostly on policing, with total expenses amounting to more than £5 million in today’s money. More

Theresa May has opposed the Assisted Dying Bill, saying she believes it does not have the safeguards in place to prevent people from being pressured to end their lives.Speaking in the House of Lords on Friday (12 September), Baroness May said the legislation, which was debated in the Second Chamber for the first time, could result in people ending their lives “because they feel they are a burden on others”. The former prime minister said she worries about the bill’s impact on people with disabilities and mental health problems as “legalising assisted dying reinforces the dangerous notion that some lives are less worth living than others”.She said that the legislation, which would make assisted dying available to adults in England and Wales with a terminal diagnosis of less than six months to live, could also be used to “cover up mistakes made” in medical care. More

Labour’s Sarah Edwards and her pooch Poykee were crowned Westminster Dog of the Year winners as the event returned on Thursday, 11 September.MPs united across party lines in Victoria Tower Gardens to join forces over one thing — their love of their four-legged friends — as they competed in the annual dog show for politicians and their pets.It is the first time the event has been held since 2023, after the general election caused the 2024 edition to be cancelled.Ms Edwards told The Independent she was keen to enter after being elected, and was  surprised but “absolutely delighted” at their win. More