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 moreKing Charles met Volodymyr Zelensky at Sandringham on Sunday in an overt show of solidarity with the Ukrainian president.The meeting came after Donald Trump and the US vice-president JD Vance berated Mr Zelensky over his conduct during the Ukraine war and apparent lack of gratitude for American donations during a televised conference in the Oval Office.Mr Zelensky had been in London to attend a summit of European leaders which saw them discuss a peace plan for Ukraine and security on the continent, a day after Sir Keir Starmer said Mr Zelensky had “full backing across the United Kingdom” as he welcomed him to Downing Street. The decision to invite the Ukrainian president to Sandringham is the most conspicuous political act the King has made since succeeding Queen Elizabeth II, who went to great lengths to keep out of politics. The gestures by both the King and the prime minister are bound to be seen as the clearest possible signal that Britain is backing Mr Zelensky after his bitter fall-out with Mr Trump.The prime minister is attempting to bridge the gap between Ukraine and the White House, which was more evident than ever when Mr Trump accused Mr Zelensky of not being ready for peace in the heated White House show down. Cabinet minister Nick Thomas-Symonds said it is “entirely appropriate” that Mr Zelensky met the King, rejecting suggestions that the move is a provocation to the White House. Charles and Zelensky in Norfolk on Sunday 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 moreSir Keir Starmer has said Europe “must do the heavy lifting” as he seized control of Ukraine peace talks from Donald Trump.The prime minister said now was “not a moment for more talk, it is time to act” after hosting a summit of 19 leaders from Europe and Nato at Lancaster House, London, with Volodymyr Zelensky to defend Ukraine from further Russian aggression. Sir Keir told a press conference that the UK, France and others had formed “a coalition of the willing” to put together a plan for peace which they will present to Mr Trump – taking away the initiative from the US president who had wanted to impose his own deal.He also announced a £1.6bn finance deal to help Ukraine buy 5,000 missiles in a show that the UK will continue to support the Ukraine president’s war efforts.It came on the same day that President Zelensky met King Charles in a highly unusual political gesture by the monarch, seemingly designed to send a clear signal to the US president after he berated the Ukrainian leader in the Oval Office on Friday.Volodymyr Zelensky and Keir Starmer chat before heading to a private room to hold a meeting during the summit 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 announced plans to loan more than £2bn worth of frozen Russian assets to fund weapons in Ukraine as the prime minister warns that we are at a “turning point” in the war. It comes ahead of a major summit in London on Sunday where European leaders will meet to thrash out a response to Donald Trump’s erratic stance on Ukraine and his catastrophic meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday. The £2.26bn package will be given to Ukraine as a loan and will be paid back using profits generated on sanctioned Russian sovereign assets.Follow latest updates as Starmer hosts Ukraine summitThe formal agreement was signed by Ms Reeves and Ukrainian finance minister Sergii Marchenko on Saturday, with the first tranche of funding expected to reach Kyiv later next week.Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves holds a video meeting with Ukraine’s finance minister Sergii Marchenko, as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky watch (Toby Melville/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 moreKing Charles is to meet Volodymyr Zelensky at Sandringham on Sunday in a rare and dramatic sign of royal support.The King’s invitation to the Ukraine president came a day after Donald Trump sparked worldwide outrage by insulting and abusing Mr Zelensky at the White House.And it is only two days after Mr Trump accepted an invitation from the King for an unprecedented second state visit to Britain – delivered to him personally by Sir Keir Starmer.King Charles’s impromptu meeting with Mr Zelensky will take place after the president meets Sir Keir, who is hosting a weekend summit of EU leaders on the Ukraine crisis.King Charles has thrown his support behind Zelensky 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 more Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Romania’s capital on Saturday in the latest anti-government demonstration by far-right groups after a top court canceled a presidential election in the European Union country last year.Protesters converged in front of the government building in Bucharest, waving Romania’s tricolor flag and chanting slogans such as “Down with the Government” and “Thieves.” Many expressed support for Calin Georgescu, who emerged as the frontrunner in December’s canceled election, and demanded they be resumed from the second round.George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, which organized the protest, told supporters on Saturday: “We are united, we are strong. We are here because our vote was stolen. Because democracy was trampled on.”Simion told reporters that the protest aimed to “restore democracy and free elections” and demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu.“We do not trust that the upcoming elections will be free and fair,” he said. A no-confidence vote on Friday, which was backed by AUR and two other far-right opposition parties, failed to unseat Ciolacu’s pro-Western coalition government, which was formed after a Dec. 1 parliamentary election. Election rerun scheduled for May 4 Romania has seen recurring protests after the Constitutional Court made the unprecedented move to annul the election two days ahead of the Dec. 8 runoff following Georgescu’s surprise first-round win. The far-right populist had polled in single digits and declared zero campaign spending. Allegations of electoral violations and Russian interference quickly emerged. Moscow has denied it meddled in Romania’s election.On Wednesday, Romanian prosecutors launched a criminal investigation against Georgescu, accusing him of supporting fascist groups, “incitement to actions against the constitutional order,” and false declarations regarding electoral campaign financing and asset disclosures. Prosecutors have placed him under judicial control, according to his lawyers.Georgescu, who has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, attended Saturday’s protest where he told supporters that “the system has maliciously tried to divide us” and that “old and new cronies tried to block my candidacy.”The first round of the rerun of the election is scheduled for May 4. If no candidate gets more than 50% of ballots, a runoff will follow on May 18.It isn’t yet clear whether Georgescu will be able to participate in the new election. 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 moreLabour is gearing up to increase its attacks on Nigel Farage’s Reform UK over his party’s stance on Russia, as fresh polling makes clear that the public is strongly pro-Ukraine. It comes amid growing animosity between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky over the White House’s attempts to negotiate a peace deal with Vladimir Putin. As Reform rises in the polls, both Labour and the Tories have been grappling with how to tackle the threat posed by party.It is now understood that Labour is preparing to use Mr Farage’s previous comments about Russia against him as tensions over Ukraine grow.Reform UK leader Nigel Farage (Ben Whitley/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 moreKeir Starmer has skewered efforts by his chief climate change adviser to force people to eat less meat by reducing their intake by the equivalent of two kebabs a week.The prime minister was famously vegetarian for 30 years and did not let his children eat meat until they were 10 but has insisted that he does not want to get involved in people’s personal decisions on how they live their lives.Sir Keir was challenged after remarks by Emily Nurse, head of net zero at the Climate Change Committee.In a recent interview, she said: “We are absolutely not saying everyone needs to be vegan. But we do expect to see a shift in dietary habits to get to net zero.”Sir Keir and Lady Victoria were vegetarians 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 moreDonald Trump is facing a furious backlash and accusations of bullying and thuggery from UK politicians after an extraordinary shouting match with Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.Prime minister Keir Starmer declared his “unwavering support” for Ukraine as senior Conservative MPs, including Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, leapt to the Mr Zelensky’s defence after Trump accused Kyiv of “gambling with World War Three”.A spokesperson for the prime minister said Sir Keir had “tonight spoken to both President Trump and President Zelensky.”“He retains unwavering support for Ukraine, and is doing all he can to find a path forward to a lasting peace based on sovereignty and security for Ukraine,” the spokesperson said, adding the prime minister looked forward to hosting the Ukrainian president in London at the weekend.Opposition Leader Kemi Badenoch has spoken out in support of Volodymyr Zelensky More