UK Politics

An independent investigation has found “credible evidence of unlawful harassment of two women” by MP Rupert Lowe and his team, Reform UK has said. The probe by Jacqueline Perry KC was launched by the party after they received complaints from two women working in Mr Lowe’s offices, who complained of bullying from the MP himself and male members of staff. Mr Lowe, who has lost the Reform whip, has repeatedly denied the allegations and has claimed it is part of an attempt to smear his reputation. Rupert Lowe has criticised Reform’s leadership (Jordan Pettitt/PA) More

‘Not appropriate’ for Reeves to accept Sabrina Carpenter tickets, minister saysOver three quarters of the British public would prefer to see the Chancellor implement higher taxes on the rich than cut public spending, a poll has found.One day before Rachel Reeves is due to deliver the spring statement, a YouGov poll has found that 78 per cent of people would back a 2 per cent wealth tax on people with assets worth more than £10 million.The survey of 2,257 people also found that 77 per cent would rather see higher taxes on the rich than cuts in public spending.Rachel Reeves has repeatedly said she will not budge from her fiscal rules, leading to mounting pressure over how to balance the books – by raising taxes or cutting spending.Another poll ahead of the statement on Wednesday has found Brits are increasingly pessimistic about the state of the economy.Some 58 per cent of people said they believe the economy is worsening, with just one in 10 believing growth was getting better, according to a survey by KPMG.Yougov poll reveals collapse in confidence in Labour’s handing of the economyRachel Reeves will stand up to deliver her sporting statement tomorrow with public confidence in her handling of the economy at a low after a failure to spark the growth she promised during the election.According to the findings 73 per cent of those surveyed by Yougov think Labour is doing a bad job with the economy. A mere 16 per cent think it is doing a good job.Half (53 per cent) say Rachel Reeves has done a bad job as chancellor – only 11 per cent view her performance positively.Four in ten (41 per cent believe the government taxes and spends too much, 23 per cent say it taxes and spends too little and 12% think they get the balance about right.Meanwhile, 56 per cent say the rich are not paying enough tax, suggesting wide support for a so-called wealth tax while 69 per cent say they would like the government to spend more on the NHS.David Maddox25 March 2025 14:43Pictures: Protesters interrupt Nigel Farage’s speech in Doncaster( More

A major Reform UK donor almost lost his OBE over social media posts in which he said someone “should kill” London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan, it has emerged. Charlie Mullins said he was accused of “bringing the honours system into disrepute” and was told by the Honours Forfeiture Committee that they were “minded to recommend to His Majesty that your OBE be revoked” over the comments. The multimillionaire Pimlico Plumbers founder has accused Sir Keir Starmer of seeking political revenge against him because he has repeatedly criticised Labour since the general election. Charlie Mullins said he was a victim of political revenge by Sir Keir Starmer More

A minister has heaped more pressure on Rachel Reeves over her decision to accept free tickets to see Sabrina Carpenter perform at the O2, saying he does not “personally think it’s appropriate”. The chancellor had faced criticism for attending the show earlier this year ahead of imposing sweeping cuts to spending, including the benefits bill, as she seeks to balance the books – with critics arguing the gifts are an insult to the public during an ongoing cost of living crisis.The latest saga threatens to reignite the freebies row that engulfed the government last year after a number of cabinet ministers, including the prime minister, accepted tickets to the Taylor Swift Era’s tour, at a total value of more than £23,000.Matthew Pennycook More

The former boss of Tesco has said out-of-work young people should be made to do military training in exchange for benefits. Amid a deepening row over Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ welfare cuts, the supermarket’s ex-chairman John Allan said welfare payments should be “conditional on military training for people who are not working”. Mr Allan said there is “no reason to believe” those not in education, employment, or training “are any less prepared to work, provided they’re given the training and given the opportunities”. Tesco’s ex-chairman said young people could be coerced into military training More

Reducing or removing a tax on big tech companies would have “little impact” on the economy, but will be a “tough balancing act” for the Chancellor to manage, one expert has said.Media reports have suggested Britain could slash the digital services tax (DST) – a levy on big tech companies – in order to stave off American tariffs by appeasing US President Donald Trump.But reports that the tax could be slashed or abolished come as Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to announce spending cuts for some Government departments in her spring statement on Wednesday, after having made cuts to welfare which have proved unpopular with Labour backbenchers.Matthew Holman, an AI (artificial intelligence) lawyer at Cripps, and an expert in the tech and data space, said it was likely the Chancellor was trying to keep the peace between large tech firms who appear to have influence in the Trump White House and an “increasingly unsympathetic UK electorate”.“The reason this is a tough balancing act for the Chancellor is simple: the domestic economy is weak and the national taxation and spending agenda appears all-consuming,” Mr Holman told the PA news agency.“The OBR has forecast lower growth, and on Wednesday the Chancellor is reportedly going to cut £5 billion from welfare spending as well as announce reduction in Civil Service head count.“It must, at least arguably, be the case that some of these cuts would not be needed if the UK continued to collect DST from US corporations?“Why is the UK government apparently letting those US corporations off of tax due here and at the same time taking money from hardworking families?“I should stress that is not my opinion, but it is the likely flak coming in the direction of the Chancellor from the opposition benches and further afield.“However, should the Chancellor fail to appease the US administration, the already weak UK economy could face further shocks as a result of a fresh wave of tariffs from Washington which, as I understand it, are due to be announced on April 2.“Which is the worse fate? That is the balancing act.”Mr Holman said that removing or reducing the tax would have “very little” impact on the UK economy as the amount it brings in a year is just under 1% of the total tax levied in the UK, but added: “This is far more about perception than actual impact on taxation.”The UK is keen to position itself as a key investment hub for US tech giants, in particular when it comes to artificial intelligence.The Technology Secretary Peter Kyle recently visited the US to spread that message, but US tech firms and both the Trump and previous Biden administrations have not been supportive of the digital services tax and similar measures in EU countries.They are seen as interim measures before the introduction of global tax reform for digital services that would remove perceived inequalities in digital services taxes which mean large multinational firms were making large revenues from countries such as the UK but not paying any tax on them.But Mr Holman said ongoing US hostility to the reform proposals, which have been led by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) meant it was unlikely to see them introduced soon.“The UK government website says that it plans to remove DSTs once the OECD reforms are passed. Unfortunately, those reforms have always been controversial and remain so, and are taking a long time to become law,” he said.“They were not favourably viewed by the Biden administration and the last deadline for implementation – June 2024 – passed without resolving deadlock.“In light of the Trump administration’s new approach to international taxes and tariffs, we should not expect to see the OECD reforms becoming law any time soon.Both the Biden and Trump administrations were not supportive of the OECD proposals or any attempt to tax US digital service providers in non-US territories.“The taxes are considered as unfairly discriminating against US corporations’ successes, and is further exacerbated by the perception that the EU and UK is taking the mickey,” Mr Holman said.“The US tech companies have been lobbying US officials to tackle this issue and, in light of this weekend’s developments, it seems that the interim DST measures will be ditched – at least in the UK.“The Trump administration’s ‘America First’ foreign and fiscal policies seem to be causing the UK government to think again.”On Monday, the Prime Minister’s spokesman would not be drawn on whether slashing the digital services tax in exchange for a reprieve on American tariffs was part of Sir Keir’s discussions with Mr Trump, and insisted the Government would only strike a deal “in the national interest”.Meanwhile, Ms Reeves said she does not “recognise” reports ministers may means test free school meals as part of the cost-cutting drive across Government and insisted the digital services tax was “hugely important”. More

Labour revealed the extent of its welfare reforms ahead of the spring Budget as work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall delivered an announcement in Commons on the plans.Taking to the stand, the minister said the welfare system is “failing the very people it is supposed to help and holding our country back”.“This government is ambitious for our people and our country and we believe unleashing the talents of the British people is the key to our future success,” she added.Ms Kendall went on to announce a sweeping number of reforms, with savings amounting to £5 billion by 2029/30 – the end of this parliamentary term.Liz Kendall announced Labour’s welfare plans in Commons More

Thousands of new homes in England will be built as part of the biggest boost in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation, the government has said.Chancellor Rachel Reeves vowed the £2 billion in grant funding to deliver up to 18,000 new homes in England will go some way to “fixing the housing crisis”.The funding is described by the government as a “down payment from the Treasury” ahead of longer-term investment in social and affordable housing expected to be announced later in the year.The government expects at least half of the 18,000 would be social homes, as charities urged that the “vast majority” should be for social rent amid record highs in homelessness across the country.The announcement on Tuesday comes a day ahead of the spring statement, in which the Chancellor is expected to announce spending cuts for some government departments, having already unveiled cuts to welfare – which have proved unpopular with Labour backbenchers – and amid reports the digital services tax – a levy on big tech companies – could be slashed in order to stave off American tariffs.The housebuilding boost is aimed at helping to fulfil the government’s pledge to build 1.5 million new homes over the next five years.Last year, experts at the New Economics Foundation said 90,000 social homes would need to be built by as early as 2027/28 to meet the Government’s target and that by the final year of this parliament, ministers would “need to go beyond this and deliver 110,000 new social homes to ensure 1.5 million homes are built”, amounting to a total of 365,000 social rent homes over the next five years to hit the target.The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said thousands of new affordable homes will start construction by March 2027 and be completed by July 2029.They said the funding will also “unlock development and opportunity” on sites that are ready and waiting for construction to begin in locations including Manchester and Liverpool.The chancellor announced the plans on a visit to an affordable housing site in Stoke-On-Trent with deputy prime minister Angela Rayner.Ms Reeves said: “We are fixing the housing crisis in this country with biggest boost in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation.“Today’s announcement will help drive growth through our Plan for Change by delivering up to 18,000 new homes, as well as jobs and opportunities, getting more money into working people’s pockets.”Her cabinet colleague Ms Rayner said: “Everyone deserves to have a safe and secure roof over their heads and a place to call their own, but the reality is that far too many people have been frozen out of homeownership or denied the chance to rent a home they can afford thanks to the housing crisis we’ve inherited.“This investment will help us to build thousands more affordable homes to buy and rent and get working people and families into secure homes and onto the housing ladder.“This is just the latest step forward in delivering our Plan for Change mission to build 1.5 million homes, and the biggest increase in social and affordable housing in a generation.”The number of households on local authority waiting lists, or registers, for social housing in England stood at 1,330,611 in 2024 – the highest figure in a decade.The previous highest figure was 1,370,410 in 2014.The government cautioned that the figure for those on waiting lists is likely to “overstate the number of households who still require social housing at any one time”.It said this is because some households can be recorded on more than one council’s list and registers are reviewed at varying times to remove those who no longer require housing.Figures published last month showed that both the number of households in temporary accommodation – a form of homelessness – and the number of children in this situation were at record highs.The number of children in temporary accommodation hit 164,040 as of the end of September – up 15% in a year and is the highest since records for this measure began in 2004.The number of households in temporary accommodation was also at a record high of 126,040, having increased 16% in a year.Matt Downie, chief executive of housing and homelessness charity Crisis, said Tuesday’s announcement is “hugely welcome” and hopefully “signals the beginning of a social housebuilding programme that will radically shift this country’s response to homelessness, putting housing at the heart of the solution”.He urged the Government to “ensure that the vast majority of the initial 18,000 homes are for social rent so that people facing homelessness can access them”.This plea was echoed by Shelter which said the funding is a “positive step” but that it is “vital that the majority of this funding is directed towards social rent housing, not expensive alternatives that won’t help struggling families”.The charity’s chief executive, Polly Neate repeated their call for a commitment to build 90,000 social homes a year, saying this vow was come in the June Spending Review.She added: “This is the Government’s moment to prove it is serious about tackling the housing emergency. Without a major funding commitment to 90,000 social homes a year for ten years, homelessness will keep spiralling, and millions will remain trapped in unstable, overpriced housing.”But Conservative shadow housing secretary Kevin Hollinrake said without cutting the numbers of people crossing the Channel in small boats, there was “simply no way for the government to stop every single home built with this funding from simply coping with the population growth from illegal migrants, many of who might not even have left Calais yet”.He added: “Only the Conservatives under new leadership will take action to stop illegal crossings and prevent millions from gaining access to social housing.”People in the UK illegally are unable to apply for social housing. Those who have been granted asylum can apply, but the Chartered Institute for Housing has said their lack of a “local connection” means they have less chance of securing a social home than longstanding UK residents.Meanwhile, Ms Reeves said she does not “recognise” reports ministers may means-test free school meals for young children as part of the cost-cutting drive across government and insisted the digital services tax was “hugely important”.Ahead of the spring statement, the prime minister told BBC Radio 5 Live on Tuesday that he wanted to “take some money out of Government” and was looking “across the board” at where to make spending cuts.Sir Keir insisted the government had made “record investments” at last October’s budget and that the statement would not “alter the basics” of public spending.He and the chancellor face a difficult fiscal situation, as Ms Reeves has repeatedly said she will not budge from her fiscal rules, which rule out borrowing to fund day-to-day spending.This has led to mounting pressure over how to balance the books – by raising taxes or cutting spending – amid disappointing growth figures and higher-than-expected borrowing.Although the chancellor is expected to announce a series of spending cuts on Wednesday, she has faced calls from some quarters to raise taxes on the richest instead.The charity Oxfam is among those calling for a 2% wealth tax on people with assets worth more than £10 million, saying a YouGov poll of 2,257 people showed 78% would back such a move, while 77% would rather see higher taxes on the rich than cuts in public spending. 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