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.CloseRead moreThe UK’s reliance on technology across government, businesses and people’s personal lives has left us more vulnerable to potentially devastating online attacks, the head of the cyber security agency warned.National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) chief Richard Horne said the threat was “getting broader and in some parts deeper”, with online criminals and state-backed hackers from countries such as Russia and China looking to exploit vulnerabilities.He said since taking on the role at the NCSC in October, he was both more concerned because of the “stark truth about the risk” but also more reassured because of the strength of the UK’s cyber defence community.The head of the NCSC, part of the GCHQ intelligence agency, told the PA news agency: “We’re seeing the threat getting broader and in some parts, deeper.“So where it’s getting broader is we’re seeing more and more cyber criminals able to have quite devastating effects on organisations and customers of those organisations, or people who rely on those services.”And “in some cases, it is going deeper” with more sophisticated attacks being carried out around the world, he added.“That tends to be more in the theatre of war, as it were, but there’s always the possibility of that sort of those really sophisticated attacks spilling over, which we’ve seen in the past.”In Russia, Vladimir Putin’s government and state-aligned hackers have sought to target countries including Ukraine to support the war there – but also Nato members including the UK.Mr Horne said: “In some ways, the breadth of threat is really criminals, and those criminals might be in Russia, and they might be kind of state-aligned rather than state-directed.“But the breadth of threats that most organisations in the UK need to think about is criminal threat, and especially ransomware, because of the devastation it can cause.”Hackers from China have been blamed for hacking the Electoral Commission’s database and targeting MPs’ emails.Mr Horne told PA: “China are a very capable cyber actor and they’re certainly establishing their position in the world.“And for us it comes back to: where are we exposed, where are we vulnerable, how are we managing our risk?“As geopolitics unfolds and different actors assert their position more, we need to be ready to assert our position, and part of that is defence.”The last government took action to remove Chinese firm Huawei from the UK’s 5G mobile network because of security concerns.But with the proliferation of Chinese technology across all aspects of life, Mr Horne insisted the country that technology originated from was not the main factor in determining risk.He said: “I think in some ways, one of my colleagues had a great expression, ‘the flag is not a great indicator of risk’.“It’s more a case of ‘what is that technology taking out and what information is leaving’ and it’s not necessarily going to one place or another and it doesn’t really matter, from the perspective of defence, where it’s going because attackers can misuse it.“It’s more a case of more and more technology is impeding on our lives, we are depending on it more, and as a result, data is leaving us to go elsewhere, and that’s very much part of the risk we need to understand.”The NCSC’s annual review showed a threefold increase in the most serious cyber incidents affecting the UK in 2023-24, but Mr Horne warned the danger is still being “widely underestimated” by both public and private sector organisations and individuals.Asked whether it was the Government, companies or individuals failing to understand the risk, Mr Horne said: “I think it’s everyone … The extent to which technology is taking our information and moving it elsewhere, the extent to which organisations rely on their supply chains, and those supply chains have all sorts of risks that they haven’t considered.“The extent to which organisations apply basic security controls consistently everywhere and not just at the core – they all kind of add up to not properly understanding the extent of exposure and the extent of vulnerability.“And at the same time, the threat is getting broader. So add all of that together and it’s a growing risk.”Mr Horne joined NCSC from professional services giant PwC in October. Asked whether he was more concerned or more reassured as a result of his time at the cyber defence agency, he said: “I think you’re more concerned because you do see the stark truth about the risk, but more reassured because there is so much happening.”The NCSC was part of a cyber defence community “and I think if there’s one thing we have in this country that is probably better than anywhere else, it’s the way we can pull together as that community across all parts of society and protect ourselves together”.In a speech launching the agency’s annual review at its headquarters in London, Mr Horne said the UK relied on online infrastructure “to keep the lights on and the water running, to improve our public services, to keep businesses running, and to drive our growth and prosperity”.“But those critical systems and services make attractive targets for hostile states and malicious actors in cyberspace.“They are increasingly using our technology dependence against us, seeking to cause maximum disruption and destruction.” 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.CloseRead moreThe new secretary-general of Nato has warned Donald Trump not to push Ukraine to sign a peace deal that would see the leaders of Russia and Iran “high-fiving”. Mark Rutte also warned such an agreement would create a “dire security threat not only to Europe but also to the US.” The next US President has repeatedly claimed that he would bring peace to Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office.While he has yet to reveal details of his plan to end the war, hints that Ukraine would be forced to make significant concessions to its Russian invaders have worried Nato countries.In a press conference on Tuesday, Mr Rutte urged allies to increase military aid for Ukraine to strengthen Kyiv’s position should it enter negotiations with Moscow. Donald Trump during a meeting with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky in September 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.CloseRead moreRussia, China and other hostile actors are exploiting the UK’s dependence on technology to cause “maximum disruption and destruction”, Britain’s cyber security chief has warned.In his first major speech, Richard Horne, head of GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), highlighted the “widening gap” between the threats facing the UK – from both state-backed hackers and online criminals – and the defences in place to protect businesses and public services.Speaking at the launch of the NCSC’s annual review in London, he said the UK must wake up to Russia’s online “aggression and recklessness”, as well as the risks posed by “highly sophisticated” Chinese hackers. “The UK has one of the world’s most advanced digital economies”, he said, adding: “Those critical systems and services make attractive targets for hostile states and malicious actors in cyber space.“They are increasingly using our technology dependence against us, seeking to cause maximum disruption and destruction”.Richard Horne will replace Lindy Cameron as chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (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.CloseRead moreLabour is considering capping political donations by individuals and private companies amid reports Elon Musk will hand a $100m donation to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.The Tesla tycoon is said to be plotting the £79m donation, which would be by far the largest in British electoral history, via the British arm of his social media firm X.According to The Sunday Times, leading businessmen and Conservative Party officials believe Musk could hand over the cash as a “f*** you Starmer payment” in his ongoing feud with the prime minister.It would give Mr Farage’s insurgent Reform a significant financial advantage over Labour and the Conservatives and be enough to fund a near-endless barrage of attack ads against the government.But the government is considering recommendations in an upcoming report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) think tank that would cap individual and corporate political donations at £100,000 a year.Elon Musk is reportedly considering handing a $100m donation to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK 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.CloseRead moreThe UK needs to wake up to Russia’s online “aggression and recklessness” and the risks posed by “highly sophisticated” Chinese hackers, the cyber security chief will warn.In his first major speech, Richard Horne, head of GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), will highlight the “widening gap” between the threats facing the UK – from both state-backed hackers and online criminals – and the defences in place to protect businesses and public services.The NCSC’s annual report shows a threefold increase in the most serious cyber incidents affecting the UK in 2023-24, but Mr Horne will warn the danger is still being “widely underestimated” by both public and private sector organisations.There is no room for complacency about the severity of state-led threats or the volume of the threat posed by cyber criminals Richard HorneMr Horne, who took over as the cyber security agency’s chief in October, will say on Tuesday: “What has struck me more forcefully than anything else since taking the helm at the NCSC is the clearly widening gap between the exposure and threat we face, and the defences that are in place to protect us.“And what is equally clear to me is that we all need to increase the pace we are working at to keep ahead of our adversaries.”Mr Horne will warn of “the aggression and recklessness of cyber activity we see coming from Russia”, both from organisations linked to Vladimir Putin’s government and groups operating without direct Kremlin control.He will say: “We can see how cyber attacks are increasingly important to Russian actors, along with sabotage threats to physical security, which the director general of MI5 spoke about recently.“All the while, China remains a highly sophisticated cyber actor, with increasing ambition to project its influence beyond its borders.“And yet, despite all this, we believe the severity of the risk facing the UK is being widely underestimated.”Speaking at the NCSC’s headquarters in London, he will say: “There is no room for complacency about the severity of state-led threats or the volume of the threat posed by cyber criminals.“The defence and resilience of critical infrastructure, supply chains, the public sector and our wider economy must improve.”The NCSC’s report described Russia as a “capable, motivated and irresponsible threat actor in cyberspace” and through its actions in Ukraine Mr Putin’s government is also inspiring “non-state threat actors” not officially linked to the Kremlin to carry out cyber attacks against critical national infrastructure.Chinese hackers such as the Volt Typhoon group had targeted US infrastructure and “could be laying the groundwork for future disruptive and destructive cyber attacks” while in the UK Beijing-linked groups are believed to have targeted MPs’ emails and the Electoral Commission’s database.The report also warns that Iran “is developing its cyber capabilities and is willing to target the UK to fulfil its disruptive and destructive objectives” while North Korean hackers were targeting cryptocurrency to raise revenue and attempting to steal defence data to improve Pyongyang’s internal security and military capabilities.The NCSC also believes that UK firms are almost certainly being targeted by workers from North Korea “disguised as freelance third-country IT staff to generate revenue for the DPRK regime”.The UK needs to wake up to the severity of the cyber threatNCSC annual report The report highlights major incidents including the British Library hack in October 2023 and the Synnovis incident in June 2024, which saw a Russian gang carry out a ransomware attack which disrupted health services.Mr Horne will say: “The attack against Synnovis showed us how dependent we are on technology for accessing our health services. And the attack against the British Library reminded us that we’re reliant on technology for our access to knowledge.“What these and other incidents show is how entwined technology is with our lives and that cyber attacks have human costs.”In all, 2023-24 saw the NCSC receive 1,957 reports of cyber attacks, 430 of which needed support from the centre’s incident management team, up from 371 the previous year.Of these incidents, 89 were nationally significant, 12 of which were at the top end of the scale and more severe in nature, a threefold increase on last year.The NCSC said: “The UK needs to wake up to the severity of the cyber threat.”As this report shows, while AI presents huge opportunities, it is also transforming the cyber threatPat McFadden, Cabinet Office ministerThe report added: “The UK cannot underestimate the severity of state-led threats, or the volume of the threat posed by criminals.“The resilience of critical infrastructure, supply chains and the public sector must improve. But so must our wider economy.”The increasing availability of artificial intelligence (AI) can “increase the volume and heighten the impact of cyber attacks”, the report said.Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden said: “As this report shows, while AI presents huge opportunities, it is also transforming the cyber threat.“Cyber criminals are adapting their business models to embrace this rapidly developing technology – using AI to increase the volume and impact of cyber attacks against citizens and businesses, at a huge cost.” 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.CloseRead moreSir Keir Starmer has rejected demands that he make a choice between a trade deal with the US and closer relations with the EU in the wake of the re-election of Donald Trump to the White House.The prime minister has been posed a Brexit conundrum amid fears that Mr Trump’s plans to introduce tariffs and instigate a trade war will force Britain to choose between striking a trade deal with the incoming US president and continuing to pursue closer ties with the EU in a planned reset of Britain’s relationship with the bloc.With Mr Trump also understood to be ready to pull the plug on support for Ukraine, and threatening to withdraw funding for European defence if Nato allies do not pay more money towards it, Sir Keir is also being pushed to pursue closer integration with European allies on defence.But addressing the Lord Mayor’s Banquet at Mansion House, he made it clear that he believes the choice being posed is a false one and that he can achieve closer relationships with both allies.Starmer attends the Mansion House dinner yesterday 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.CloseRead moreBritish food sales to the EU have fallen by almost a fifth since Brexit, a new report shows, with campaigners calling on Sir Keir Starmer to urgently cut red tape holding back exporters.New requirements for physical, documentary and ID checks have complicated food trade between the UK and Europe, leading to a 16.3 per cent drop each year in food exports to the EU, the Centre for Inclusive Trade Policy (CITP) found.The drop-off has meant a £3bn hit to food exports on average in the three years since the end of the Brexit transition period, the report found.Keir Starmer was urged to rip up his red lines on the single market and customs union 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.CloseRead more Ireland faces weeks of coalition talks before it gets a new government, as the country’s two major center-right parties work to form a stable administration.With all but a handful of seats filled in the 174-seat legislature on Monday after three days of counting election ballots, Fianna Fail had won 46 seats and Fine Gael 38. The two parties, who have governed in coalition since 2020, look set to fall just short of the 88 needed for a majority without third-party support.“The people have spoken, let us now get on with the work,” said Fianna Fail leader Micheál Martin.Left-of-center party Sinn Fein won at least 37 seats in Friday’s election but is unlikely to be part of the next government. Both Fine Gael and Fianna Fail have a longstanding refusal to work with Sinn Fein, partly because of its historic ties with the Irish Republican Army during three decades of violence in Northern Ireland.“The outcome of the election is now clear. The numbers are there for Fianna Fail and Fine Gael to form a government together,” said Sinn Fein lawmaker Eoin Ó Broin. He said that would be “the worst possible outcome for the people of the country.” Longtime rivals with origins on opposing sides of Ireland’s 1920s civil war, Fianna Fail and Fine Gael formed an alliance after the 2020 election ended in a virtual dead heat. The two parties took it in turns to hold the post of premier, for about two years each. This time, Fianna Fail’s bigger seat tally means its Martin looks likely to become prime minister, or taoiseach, rather than Simon Harris of Fine Gael.Fianna Fail’s deputy leader, Jack Chambers, said coalition talks would require “time and space,” and it’s unlikely there will be a new government before Christmas.Ireland has proved a partial exception to the anti-incumbent mood in elections around the world. Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, which have dominated Irish politics for a century, remain in the driving seat, though their combined share of the vote has declined to just over 40%.They will need support to command a majority in parliament, and could turn to the Social Democrats and the Irish Labour Party, who both increased their seat totals, or to independent lawmakers.The new government will face huge pressure to ease rising homelessness, driven by soaring rents and property prices, and to better absorb a growing number of asylum-seekers.The cost of living — especially Ireland’s acute housing crisis — was a dominant topic in the election campaign, and immigration has become an emotive and challenging issue in a country of 5.4 million people long defined by emigration.A stabbing attack on children outside a Dublin school just over a year ago, in which an Algerian man has been charged, sparked the worst rioting Ireland had seen in decades.For all the focus on migration, anti-immigration independents made few breakthroughs. Ireland does not have a significant far-right party to capitalize on the issue. More