UK Politics

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseA major new report has proposed turning the Commonwealth into a trade and security bloc and inviting Ukraine to join.Ahead of the biannual Commonwealth heads of government meeting (Chogm) in Samoa next week, the think tank Policy Exchange has produced a report to revitalise the international club of nations.The report, which has cross-party support in the Commons and has been backed by former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper and Australia’s ex-foreign minister Alexander Downer, comes with exclusive polling revealing public support for the plans.According to the polling, more than three in five (63 per cent) of UK adults believe the Commonwealth should encourage the removal or reduction of barriers to trade between its members.The report recommends giving Prince William a special Commonwealth role More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseA senior MP has accused the former RAF chief air marshal of lying over allegations he had pushed through an illegal recruitment policy for the service.Alicia Kearns, the former chair of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, used parliamentary privilege in prime minister’s questions (PMQs) to accuse Sir Mike Wigston of lying in the case of the RAF’s former head of recruitment group captain Lizzy Nicholl.Challenging Sir Keir Starmer, Ms Kearns said: “Group Captain Lizzy Nicholl had an exemplary career with the RAF until she was forced to resign for refusing to implement illegal recruitment orders. Despite inquiry after inquiry vindicating Lizzy on every count, the RAF and Ministry of Defence have failed to offer her fair compensation and those responsible have just walked away.Ms Kearns used parliamentary privilege to accuse a former air chief marshall of lying More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseRachel Reeves is being warned that she may have to break Labour’s manifesto pledge not to raise income tax or national insurance in order to fill a £40bn black hole in her spending plans.The concerns come after the chancellor warned her cabinet colleagues this week that she needs to find spending cuts and tax rises of £40bn to balance the books – far more than the £22bn she has claimed the Tories left behind.Ms Reeves was boosted on Wednesday by a drop in inflation to 1.7 per cent – the first time in three years it has been under 2 per cent – which means benefit payments will not need to be raised by as much as feared. However, it also means she will not raise as much money as hoped from freezing income tax band thresholds.The conundrum has led to speculation that Ms Reeves will unveil a £25bn tax raid in her Budget on 30 October, while spending on benefits and even international aid, traditionally protected by Labour, are under threat.Keir Starmer and the chancellor must decide how to meet a £40bn black hole More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseThe Technology Secretary has said tech companies must ensure child safety is at the forefront of the development of new products, as he criticised the Roblox gaming platform for not protecting its users.Peter Kyle said Ofcom would be telling the US-based gaming platform steps it needed to take to ensure users were protected after US investment firm Hindenburg Research accused it of having lax safety controls which created an “X-rated paedophile hellscape”.Mr Kyle (Hove and Portslade) had been asked what he was doing to protect children using the platform from online predators.Keeping children safe online is the key priority for this Government. The Online Safety Act places strict safety duties on online platforms such as Roblox to protect children from being groomed by online predatorsPeter KyleHe said: “Keeping children safe online is the key priority for this Government. The Online Safety Act places strict safety duties on online platforms such as Roblox to protect children from being groomed by online predators.“Ofcom is the regulator for the regime, and they will set out steps in the codes for the platform to take to fulfil their duties by the end of this year.”Roblox is an online gaming platform where users can create their own games. The majority of players are under 16, and it is used by hundreds of millions of users every month. Chatrooms are available for users, and although it offers parental controls, there are no age restrictions.In a report published last week Hindenburg Research, which is looking to “short” the company’s stock, said: “Our in-game research revealed an X-rated paedophile hellscape, exposing children to grooming, pornography, violent content and extremely abusive speech.”Roblox has rejected the claims made in the Hindenburg report, saying “safety and civility have been foundational” to the company since its inception.The Online Safety Bill, which has passed through parliament, will require platforms to protect children from harmful content. Ofcom will draw up codes of practice that will enforce the legislation, although the guidance will be voluntary.The Online Safety Act and measures that will be coming into force soon are there to directly impact that concern. I want those powers to be used as assertively as possiblePeter KyleLabour MP for Northampton South Mike Reader said one of his constituents was a volunteer moderator on the website. He said his constituent’s group had identified and banned 14,000 accounts involved in child grooming, exploitation and sharing indecent images.Mr Reader said: “Does the Secretary of State agree with me that while we drive for tech innovation and investment, we must keep online safety at the heart of our strategy?”Mr Kyle said: “The Online Safety Act and measures that will be coming into force soon are there to directly impact that concern. I want those powers to be used as assertively as possible.“I have heard just today of another story affecting Roblox. I expect that company to do better to protect the service users, particularly children, on its website.”Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy Labour MP Melanie Ward raised concerns about online safety, as she said the Safer Phones Bill – a private members’ bill due to be presented to the Commons, would help stop young people from being damaged by social media and mobile phone content.Mr Kyle said: “We must keep children safe and vulnerable people safe when they are online. It is my intention to make sure that safety is baked in from the outset. When it comes to keeping children safe in this country everything is on the table, and I am open minded as to how we move forward in order to achieve a much safer environment.“Companies releasing products into our society should see it as a privilege, not a right.”The safety of our community, particularly younger members of our community, is our highest priority, and we have a robust set of proactive and preventative safety measures designed to to catch and prevent malicious or harmful activity on our platformRoblox spokesmanA Roblox spokesperson said: “Safety and civility have been foundational to Roblox since our inception nearly two decades ago, and we have invested heavily throughout our history in our trust and safety efforts. Today, 10% of full-time employees and thousands of contractors are focused exclusively on trust and safety.“Every day, tens of millions of people of all ages have a safe and positive experience on Roblox, abiding by our community standards.“The safety of our community, particularly younger members of our community, is our highest priority, and we have a robust set of proactive and preventative safety measures designed to catch and prevent malicious or harmful activity on our platform.“These protocols include text chat filters in all supported languages to detect and block inappropriate words and phrases, blocking attempts to direct users under the age of 13 off the platform and preventing the sharing of personal information, such as a phone number or address. We also do not allow user-to-user image sharing on Roblox. For more information about our safety efforts, see our recent blog post.” More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseSir Keir Starmer has said Britain is considering imposing sanctions on Israeli ministers as pressure mounts on the Tel Aviv government over its actions in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon.It comes one day after the UK imposed fresh sanctions on Israeli settlers in the West Bank, accusing Israel of allowing “impunity to flourish” among extremist settlers. Hours earlier, former foreign secretary Lord Cameron had revealed he had been preparing to sanction Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich and national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir during his final days in the role before the general election was called.Asked at Prime Minister’s Questions whether those sanctions would be applied, Sir Keir said: “We are looking at that.”He said the pair had made “abhorrent” comments about the situation in Gaza and the West Bank.Starmer said Israel must ‘take all possible steps to avoid civilian casualties’ More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreClose The leaders of the European Union and six Gulf nations met for an inaugural summit on Wednesday against a backdrop of turmoil in the Middle East and struggles to find a unified position on the war in Ukraine and relations with Russia. The summit was expected to last just a few hours and encompass everything from visas and trade to the situation in the Middle East, and was unlikely to yield more than general commitments to improve cooperation. Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said the summit was “long overdue” and added that “the economic ties between the European Union and the Gulf countries need to be strengthened.”“They are there, but they have the potential to be developed much, much further,” he said.Officials said the EU would also raise human rights issues with their visitors, which includes Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The United States , U.N. and others have alleged that aides of Prince Mohammed and other Saudi officials killed U.S.-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi, whose columns for The Washington Post were critical of the crown prince.”Our outrage and revulsion at this horrific violation of human rights cannot be set aside for the sake of quick deals with dictators. EU leaders must confront brutal authoritarianism wherever it exists,” EU Greens legislator Daniel Freund said.The 27-nation EU has long had relations with the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which include Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait. The nations of the European Union already find it challenging to find full alignment on Israel’s wars against Hamas and Hezbollah, and it will be difficult to find a strong common statement with GCC leaders, officials familiar with the meeting said. EU members are also in disagreement regarding relations with Russia and Ukraine, with nations like Hungary and Slovakia holding vastly different views on Moscow’s actions than much of the other EU states. At the same time, several GCC nations have much better contact with Moscow compared to EU members. More

Starmer refuses to rule out national insurance rise at PMQsYour support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseRachel Reeves will announce Labour’s first Budget in 15 years later this month, leading one of the most highly-anticipated fiscal events in over a decade.As the chancellor looks to fill the £22bn “black hole” in public spending she announced in late July, speculation has mounted about what measures will be included on 30 October.During Labour’s first few months in power, ministers have warned that “tough decisions” will be required to balance the books. Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has said the event is going to be “painful” but that there is “no other choice given the situation that we’re in”.This likely means tax rises and spending cuts can be expected. The government has already come under fire for its decision to cut back winter fuel payments for millions of pensions, sparking a row which has hung over its first 100 days in power.In the run-up to the Budget, inflation fell below the 2 per cent target for the first time in three years, sparking hopes of an interest rate cut to come in November.We’ll be bringing you all the latest updates ahead of the big event on 30 October here, on The Independent’s liveblog.Show latest update 1729062168Pinned: Inflation falls below 2% target for first time in three yearsUK inflation has decreased to below the 2 per cent target for the first time in over three years.The consumer price index (CPI) has dropped to 1.7 per cent, down from 2.2. per cent in August, according to the Office for National Statistics.The figure has beaten expert predictions, which largely estimated a more modest drop to 1.9 per cent.Albert Toth16 October 2024 08:021729089221Inflation drop ‘badly-timed’ for benefit claimants as next increase revealedInflation has dropped below 2 per cent for the first time in over three years, raising hopes that the Bank will cut interest rates in November. The decrease exceeded many economist predictions, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) falling to 1.7 per centBut some experts have warned that the rate drop is “badly timed” for many people, as it will be a key factor in how much benefits are uprated by the DWP next April.Albert Toth16 October 2024 15:331729080857ICYMI: Ex-Bank of England chief urges Rachel Reeves to raise national insurance“Be courageous, be bold, and ensure that the economic inheritance we leave to our grandchildren is one of which both they and we can be proud.“One day, you will look back on your time as chancellor and you will want to remember the far-reaching changes you made – not the political compromises that others will urge on you.”Albert Toth16 October 2024 13:141729076014Controversial weight-loss jab policy revealed ahead of BudgetAhead of the Budget on 30 October, it has been revealed that a trial is underway where unemployed people will be given weight-loss jabs to assist them back into work.The UK’s life sciences sector will receive £279 million from drugs giant Eli Lilly, to invest in developing new medicines and ways to deliver treatment.“The long-term benefits of these drugs could be monumental in our approach to tackling obesity. For many people, these jabs will be life-changing, help them get back to work and ease the demands on our NHS,” health secretary Wes Streeting wrote in The Telegraph.Albert Toth16 October 2024 11:531729069415Rachel Reeves boosted by big drop in inflation as she seeks £40bn in Budget tax risesRachel Reeves has been boosted by a sharp drop in inflation as she seeks to find £40bn of tax hikes and spending cuts in this month’s Budget.The chancellor will welcome the dip, which saw inflation fall under the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target for the first time in more than three years, as she prepares for what promises to be a brutal Budget.Albert Toth16 October 2024 10:031729069239Would raising employer national insurance be a ‘tax on working people’?Labour came under criticism in recent days after several ministers refused to rule out that an increase in employer national insurance contributions (NICs) will be announced in the upcoming budget.Ministers and Treasury officials have indicated the government’s position is that the measure would not break their manifesto pledge. Meanwhile, Institute for Fiscal Studies director Paul Johnson has argued it would be a “straightforward breach.”Here are the facts about the debate and how the measure could affect you:Albert Toth16 October 2024 10:001729062000ICYMI: Reeves warned national insurance hike would be ‘straightforward breach’ of manifestoRachel Reeves has been warned that hiking employer national insurance contributions would be “a straightforward breach” of the Labour manifesto.The chancellor has been told by Paul Johnson, director of the influential Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), that the party said “very clearly” it would not make the change.Albert Toth16 October 2024 08:001729054800Budget rumours: Inheritance Tax reformInheritance tax is a levy on the estate of someone who has died. This is their property, money and possessions. Crucially, it is not paid if the value of these things is below £325,000.The tax rate is 40 per cent, but it’s only charged on the part of the estate that’s above the threshold. In 2023/24, only 5 per cent of deaths generated an inheritance tax bill, raising around £7 billion.However, the IFS writes that the tax measure “is littered with special exemptions”. These include a business relief, the ability to pass on agricultural land tax-free, and the tax-free passing on of pension pots.The economic think tank says that ending these measures alone would raise £4.8bn a year by 2029.Albert Toth16 October 2024 06:001729044000Tell us what you’d like to see announced in Labour’s first budgetWe would like to hear your thoughts on what you would like to see introduced in Reeves’ Budget. Should she focus on measures to support homeowners, such as the Freedom to Buy scheme? Or would you prefer a focus on closing tax loopholes, such as abolishing non-dom status, to ensure a fairer tax system?Share your views:The Independent16 October 2024 03:001729033260Budget rumours: Taxing pension savingsPension tax relief is a reduction of the amount of tax paid on private pensions. It helps workers save for retirement by boosting their pension pots.The amount of tax relief a person is granted is based on their income tax. It will effectively cancel out tax on pension contributions up to a maximum of £60,000.After this, contributions will be taxed at either 20, 40, or 45 per cent, depending on which income tax rate the worker falls into.However, the chancellor is thought to be considering a flat 30 per cent pension tax relief rate. This would mean that higher earners would effectively pay 10 per cent in tax, while those on the additional rate would pay 15.The measure would raise around £3 billion a year, with 7 million earners paying more tax. But it would be better news for basic rate earners, who would actually begin to receive a 10 per cent boost to their pension contributions.Evaluating the idea last year, the IFS said it would “redistribute the burden of taxation from the bottom 80 per cent to the top 20 per cent of earners.”Albert Toth16 October 2024 00:01 More

Keir Starmer refuses to rule out raising national insurance contributionsYour support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseSir Keir Starmer was involved in a tense exchange with Rishi Sunak at Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) over national security.Mr Sunak said the PM has halted the implementation of the foreign agents registration scheme. Mr Starmer simply replied “that is not correct”, before sitting down to cheers from Labour backbench MPs.The foreign agents registration scheme would ensure that those working for a foreign power declare their lobbying activities with the UK government.At PMQs, Mr Starmer also revealed that the government is considering sanctioning two Israeli ministers over their support for blocking aid from entering the Gaza Strip.Shortly after PMQs the private members bill on assisted dying was formally introduced to the House of Commons.Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who is bringing forward the proposals, has said that disabled and vulnerable people will not be at risk from the legislation as it will apply only to terminally ill adults.She said the end of life bill will have “stringent” criteria and the legislation was about giving “autonomy” to people at the end of their lives. Show latest update 1729089146Pausing our coverageWe’re pausing our coverage for now – please come back and revisit tomorrow for politics updatesAlex Ross16 October 2024 15:321729084717Sunak under fire from shadow cabinet not challenging Starmer over Taylor Swift at PMQsRishi Sunak is under pressure from his top team after he failed to ask Keir Starmer about Taylor Swift and freebie-gate at PMQs.The ex-PM is the party’s caretaker leader until his replacement is chosen next month. He used this week’s PMQs to ask about foreign affairs, in an apparent bid to put pressure on the foreign secretary David Lammy.One member of Mr Sunak’s shadow cabinet told the Independent: “There just had to be one question about Taylor Swift – and the prime minister would not have known what to do. I don’t know why he didn’t ask it”.Kate Devlin16 October 2024 14:181729084210Watch: Keir Starmer pays tribute to former SNP leader Alex SalmondKeir Starmer pays tribute to former SNP leader Alex SalmondJoe Middleton16 October 2024 14:101729082759EXCLUSIVE: Nigel Farage slams FA over Tuchel appointment: ‘Why the hell can’t we have an English manager?’Nigel Farage has attacked the FA for appointing German Thomas Tuchel to succeed Gareth Southgate, asking: “Why oh why can’t we have an English manager?”The Reform UK boss joined critics questioning the governing body’s decision to choose Tuchel who will take over from interim boss Lee Carsley in January following Southgate’s resignation after the Three Lions’ Euros campaign in July.Joe Middleton16 October 2024 13:451729081259Keir Starmer says government is ‘looking into’ sanctioning Israeli ministersKeir Starmer says government is ‘looking into’ sanctioning Israeli ministersJoe Middleton16 October 2024 13:201729079486Assisted dying Bill introduced to House of CommonsThe Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill has been formally introduced in the House of Commons.Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle confirmed the Bill will have its Second Reading on Friday, November 29.On that day it will be debated and could face its first vote, with MPs deciding according to their own conscience rather than along party lines.The Bill is expected to be more commonly referred to as Kim Leadbeater’s Bill on choice at the end of life for the terminally ill.Joe Middleton16 October 2024 12:511729078497Government considering sanctions against Israeli ministersSir Keir Starmer confirmed the government was still considering sanctions against Israeli ministers as pressure mounted on the Tel Aviv government over its actions in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon.Former foreign secretary Lord Cameron had been “working up” sanctions against Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich and national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir during his final days in the role before the general election was called.Asked at Prime Minister’s Questions whether those sanctions would be applied, Sir Keir said: “We are looking at that.”He said the pair had made “abhorrent” comments about the situation in Gaza and the West Bank.The prime minister added: “The humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire. The death toll has passed 42,000 and access to basic services is becoming much harder.“Israel must take all possible steps to avoid civilian casualties, to allow aid into Gaza in much greater volumes and provide the UN humanitarian partners the ability to operate effectively.”Joe Middleton16 October 2024 12:341729078386New government will work hand-in-hand with Wales to bring down NHS waiting lists, says StarmerSir Keir Starmer has promised to work with the Welsh government to bring down NHS waiting lists, claiming the previous government was in conflict with them.Pointing out that one in five people in Wales are on NHS waiting lists, Plaid Cymru MP Liz Saville-Roberts said: “The secretary of state for Wales says that a new cross border NHS plan would bring down Welsh surgery waiting lists – but the first minister of Wales contradicts her. She denies it has anything to do with bringing down waiting lists.”Responding, Sir Keir Starmer said: “The difference is, we now have a Westminster government that wants to work with the Welsh government to deliver for the people of Wales. For fourteen long years, the Welsh government was in a position where the then government was in conflict with them.“We will work together, collaborate and ensure that together we deliver across Wales.”Millie Cooke16 October 2024 12:331729077700Sunak rebuked for trying to score ‘party political points’ on Britain’s securitySir Keir Starmer has rebuked Rishi Sunak for attempting to score “party political points” on Britain’s security and education. The leader of the opposition hit out at the government for its decision to halt the progression of the Freedom of Speech Act, suggesting the decision would make it easier for China to exert political influence over UK universities.Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions, he said: “Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee have warned that British universities are a rich feeding ground for China to exert political influence over us.“That’s why we passed the Freedom of Speech Act with new powers to help defend universities from this threat, but the new education secretary has since blocked it.“So can the prime minister tell us how, without this tool, the government will prevent Chinese influence over our universities?”Responding, Sir Keir said: “I really don’t think party political points on security and intelligence is right. Honestly, throughout the last parliament we stood with the government on all questions of security and intelligence because it was important for the outside world that we did so.”He added: “He speaks about the record of the last government. That record was 14 years of failure, six years of austerity, three years of Brexit logjam, then Johnson, Truss and the leader of the opposition – utter failure. “And this government was elected to do things differently, to make fairer choices and most importantly to give Britain its future back.”Millie Cooke16 October 2024 12:211729077607Analysis: Consensual Rishi Sunak proves why the Tories should have got a new leader alreadyWith Keir Starmer on the backfoot of Taylor Swift-gate, threats of a £40 billion black hole in Labour’s spending plans and inflation figures suggesting that the last government may have actually fixed the economy, there was plenty for Rishi Sunak to shoot at.Instead he chose to use his six questions on China, a mostly consensual issue apart from a difference over protecting freedom of speech in universities.With the Budget just around the corner there was an opportunity for an engaged Tory leader of the Opposition to apply pressure.Mr Sunak missed the chance and even allowed Sir Keir to have a free hit on his government’s record.This is why there is genuine concern about him responding to the Budget on 30 October with a new leader not in place until three days later.David Maddox16 October 2024 12:20 More