UK Politics

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreAs much as 70% of tasks in computer-based jobs could be transformed or replaced by AI, according to a new study.Experts from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said artificial intelligence was likely to have a “seismic impact” on the economy and society.According to its new report on the technology, jobs reliant on computer-based tasks such as project management, marketing and administrative support are the most likely to be reshaped by the emergence of AI.The think tank has called for greater government intervention on the issue, warning that AI policy is currently too focused on accelerating AI uptake and safety, and not on the “implications of powerful AI”.The study’s analysis of 22,000 common tasks performed by workers found that up to 70% in these types of roles could be significantly transformed or replaced by AI.It said AI would likely have the greatest impact on organisational, strategic and analytical tasks.The intervention comes ahead of the Paris AI Action Summit next week, where world leaders, industry experts, tech executives and academics will meet to discuss the international approach to developing and using AI.Last month, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer unveiled the Government’s AI Action Plan – a range of measures designed to make the UK a global leader in AI while also boosting the economy.That plan focused on increasing AI infrastructure in the UK to support more AI development, as well as creating growth zones around the country, advancing AI safety regulation, and using AI more within the civil service to cut spending and speed up work.There has been ongoing debate on the technology’s potential impact on the global jobs market, with many warning of the danger of humans being displaced from work.However, others, including a number of tech executives, have said the aim of AI is to help workers with tasks and streamline their workloads, rather than replace them.In recent weeks, ChatGPT maker OpenAI has also launched its first of what are known as AI agents – AI tools which can be programmed to carry out specific tasks autonomously – a new branch of the technology which many see as having a substantial impact on both working and daily life.And last year, a previous IPPR report warned that as many as eight million UK jobs could be at risk of being lost to AI in the “worst-case scenario”.Carsten Jung, head of AI at the IPPR, warned that politics “needs to catch up” with the implications of AI.“AI capabilities are advancing at breath-taking speed,” he said.“The launch of ‘AI agents’ shows AI is different from past technologies. It is not merely a tool – it is an actor.“AI technology could have a seismic impact on economy and society: it will transform jobs, destroy old ones, create new ones, trigger the development of new products and services and allow us to do things we could not do before.“But given its immense potential for change, it is important to steer it towards helping us solve big societal problems.“Politics needs to catch up with the implications of powerful AI. Beyond just ensuring AI models are safe, we need to determine what goals we want to achieve.“This demands democratic debate and close scrutiny of how AI is deployed. The public will want to be involved in setting clear missions and boundaries.“The promise of AI to tackle some of humanity’s biggest problems is tantalising – we all have a stake in directing and achieving it.”Elsewhere in its latest study, the IPPR said wider society was already being changed by AI – with approximately 930,000 people in the UK said to have an AI digital companion on app Character.AI, adding many users had “relationships” with these chatbots.The think tank warned that while these AI companions can provide emotional support, they also carry risks of addition and potential long-term psychological impacts, particularly for young people. More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreRachel Reeves has been dealt a further blow in her bid to fulfil Labour’s primary mission of reigniting economic growth, as a downgraded forecast overshadowed news of an interest rate cut.The Bank of England has halved its projections for growth this year because of the impact of the chancellor’s autumn Budget, and inflation is now expected to rise higher than previously estimated, to 3.7 per cent.The Bank also warned that more people will be out of work, as firms swallow higher taxes and an increase to the minimum wage. Ms Reeves, whose future as chancellor is being questioned over her record in the first seven months of the Labour government, was warned the “putrid” new growth forecast “needs to be a wake-up call”.However, she got a much-needed boost as the Bank announced a cut in interest rates from 4.75 per cent to 4.5 per cent. As well as providing relief for businesses, the cut will help thousands of people with mortgages who will see their monthly payments fall. A homeowner with a £300,000 tracker mortgage will see monthly repayments fall around £43 from £1,710 to £1,667.Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, said the interest rate cut will be welcomed by many people (Benjamin Cremel/PA) More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreBritain’s new ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, has reacted with a foul-mouth rant when pressed about his friendship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.The New Labour grandee also accused others of having an “obsession” with his relationship with the disgraced financier and convicted sex trafficker. Lord Mandelson has come under intense pressure in the role even before he crosses the Atlantic to take up the job. The Independent revealed last month that Mr Trump was considering rejecting Lord Mandelson’s nomination, in what would have been a major diplomatic headache for Sir Keir Starmer.The Labour grandee called the US president a ‘danger to the world’ several years ago (Andrew Milligan/PA) More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreKemi Badenoch’s Tories have received a major blow with the latest poll suggesting that as much as a third of their voters from the 2024 election have switched to Reform UK.According to the weekly tracker poll by Techne UK for The Independent, 33 per cent who said they voted Tory last year are now backing Nigel Farage’s party.And Reform UK are now joint top of the poll for the first time, putting it in line with YouGov poll earlier this week. Farage with Reform UK chair Zia Yusuf More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreRobert Jenrick has refused to rule out an electoral pact between the Conservatives and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK as the party surges in the polls.The former Tory leadership contender insisted Mr Farage’s party “have no intention” of seeking a deal, but would not rule an agreement out himself. After the insurgent right-wing party overtook the Tories in the polls, shadow justice secretary Mr Jenrick opened a divide between himself and Kemi Badenoch, who is strongly against the idea. Robert Jenrick refused to rule out a deal with Reform More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read morePalmerston, the former chief mouser at the Foreign Office, has come out of retirement for a new, “purr-fect” job in Bermuda.The news, posted on Wednesday on Palmerston’s official DiploMog account on social network X, comes more than four years after it was announced that he was retiring from public life to a “quieter and easier” life in the countryside.Palmerston had been adopted by Foreign Office diplomat Andrew Murdoch when he retired as chief mouser. Murdoch has now been appointed governor of Bermuda, a tiny British territory in the mid-Atlantic.“Diplomacy and a purr-fect role have lured me out of retirement,” the post said. “I’ve just started work as feline relations consultant (semi-retired) to the new Governor of Bermuda. I’ve been busy meeting very welcoming Bermudians.”The Foreign Office said Palmerston “will attend only the meetings he deems important, offering advice when necessary and indulging in well-earned naps.”Palmerston, who is named after the longest-serving British Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmerston, arrived in government in April 2016 as a rescue cat. He was regarded with affection and showered with treats by Foreign Office staff, occasionally bringing them dead mice in return.Palmerston in Bermuda More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreA new book on Keir Starmer’s rise to power has caused a stir in Westminster. It’s revelations have left the prime minister facing a series of questions over a meeting with his voice coach while the UK was under strict Covid restrictions and details an attempted ‘coup’ by his deputy.Here we look at some of the biggest revelations contained in Get In, by Patrick Maguire and Gabriel Pogrund. Dominic Cummings wanted to advise Labour Perhaps the most unexpected name to appear is that of Boris Johnson’s former chief of staff Dominic Cummings, later to become famous for a lockdown trip to Barnard Castle. The book details how he contacted Jeremy Corbyn’s former spokesman in early 2019 with a proposition to claw back some control over Brexit. Over a dinner he laid out his plan for Corbyn to save Brexit by backing Theresa May’s troubled deal. That would have led to a less ‘hard’ version of Brexit than the one ultimately hurried in by her successor, Boris Johnson. Under Mr Cumming’s idea, the Tories would be split, leaving Mr Corbyn to win the next election. But Labour MPs never did support May’s deal. And it was Mr Cummings who entered Downing St, alongside Mr Johnson, not Mr Corbyn.Sir Keir’s rise to power is charted in the new book (Omar Havana/PA) More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreWatch as Labour answers an urgent question on Israel and Gaza on Thursday, 6 February, after Donald Trump claimed that the US will “take over” the territory.On Tuesday, the US president said his nation would “take over the Gaza Strip” with a “long-term ownership position” – estimating that about 1.8 million of the near-2.3 million Palestinians living in Gaza would have to be relocated to achieve his vision of turning what he called a “hell hole” into “the Riviera of the Middle East”.Thirty-eight Labour MPs wrote to Sir Keir Starmer demanding the prime minister take a stand against the Republican’s “ethnic cleansing” of Gaza in the biggest public backlash within the party against the prime minister since Labour won the election.The PM did not directly address Mr Trump’s comments when he was confronted on the issue during Prime Minister’s Questions but Downing Street later confirmed Sir Keir planned to talk to the US president over the shock plans. More