UK

A housing project in Kent that could provide 3,500 homes to support Angela Rayner’s housebuilding drive has been paused amid claims that dangerous lead pollution from a neighbouring refinery could put future residents at risk. The project, which comes as the government plans to fast-track new developments and build 1.5 million homes, would see thousands of homes built next to one of Europe’s leading lead refineries on brownfield land in Gravesham. Planning permission was initially granted by Gravesham Borough Council following a planning application in October 2022, but the project is now under review due to fears its location would make it dangerous for residents, with Britannia Refined Metals (BRM), the owner of the refinery, itself saying the area is “a lead pollution hotspot”. The developers have pointed to the government’s drive for new housing, saying that a “radical response is required, including by approving development that may be controversial”. Britannia Refined Metals, in Gravesham, say the area is a ‘lead pollution hotspot’ More

An adviser who helped Nigel Farage to boost his social media presence has suggested that the UK would have been better off had it not got involved in the Second World War, rather than deciding to fight Nazi Germany. In his personal blog, Jack Anderton also suggested Britain should not support Ukraine in its fight against Putin’s illegal invasion, saying: “Russia is not our enemy”. The 23-year-old, who helped to run Mr Farage’s TikTok account, has never been an official Reform UK employee. The blog, first revealed by The Observer, also saw Mr Anderton claim the UK could “regain” former colonies such as Australia, Canada and South Africa, as well as suggesting the UK should copy the policy of mass incarceration carried out in El Salvador, which has been condemned as a breach of human rights. ‘We get nothing in return for our support of Ukraine,’ wrote Anderton More

Angela Rayner has warned Nigel Farage and Reform UK that their plan to scrap online safety laws could “fail a generation of young women” by removing protections against issues such as revenge porn.The deputy prime minister demanded Mr Farage explain how his party would ensure young women’s online safety, given Reform’s vow to repeal the Online Safety Act.Her warning is the latest in a series of interventions by senior Labour figures regarding the act. Under rules introduced in late July, the legislation requires online platforms, including social media and search engines, to prevent children from accessing harmful content like pornography or material encouraging suicide.Reform has vowed to repeal the law and replace it with a different means of protecting children online, though the party has not said how it would do this.Among their criticisms of the act, Mr Farage and his colleagues have cited freedom of speech concerns and claimed the act is an example of overreach by the government.This prompted backlash from technology secretary Peter Kyle, who claimed people like Jimmy Savile would use the internet to exploit children if he was still alive, and insisted anyone against the act – like Mr Farage – was “on their side”.Nigel Farage has not revealed plans to replace current online safety laws More

Nigel Farage and Reform UK risk “failing a generation of young women” if they scrap online safety laws aimed at preventing revenge porn, Angela Rayner has said.The Deputy Prime Minister demanded Mr Farage explain how his party would keep young women safe when they use the internet, after Reform vowed to repeal the Online Safety Act.Her warning is the latest intervention in a row between senior Labour figures and Mr Farage’s party over the Act.Under new rules introduced through the legislation at the end of July, online platforms such as social media sites and search engines must take steps to prevent children from accessing harmful content such as pornography or material that encourages suicide.Reform has vowed to repeal the law and replace it with a different means of protecting children online, though the party has not said how it would do this.Among their criticisms of the Act, Mr Farage and his colleagues have cited freedom of speech concerns and claimed the Act is an example of overreach by the Government.This prompted backlash from Technology Secretary Peter Kyle, who claimed people like Jimmy Savile would use the internet to exploit children if he was still alive, and insisted anyone against the Act – like Mr Farage – was “on their side”.The Reform leader demanded an apology, but ministers have been trenchant in their defence of the Act.Now, the Deputy Prime Minister has questioned how Mr Farage would seek to prevent the “devastating crime” of intimate image abuse, also known as “revenge porn”, without the Online Safety Act’s protections.Ms Rayner claimed: “Nigel Farage risks failing a generation of young women with his dangerous and irresponsible plans to scrap online safety laws.“Scrapping safeguards and having no viable alternative plan in place to halt the floodgates of abuse that could open is an appalling dereliction of duty. It’s time for Farage to tell women and girls across Britain how he would keep them safe online.”Under the Online Safety Act, revenge porn is classified among the “most severe online offences”, the Deputy PM added.Citing figures from the charity Refuge, the Labour Party claimed a million young women had been subject to revenge porn: either intimate images being shared, or the threat of this.Some 3.4 million adults in total, both men and women, have been affected, Labour also said.Ministers have previously had to defend the Online Safety Act against accusations from Elon Musk’s X social media site that it is threatening free speech.In a post at the start of August titled “What Happens When Oversight Becomes Overreach”, the platform formerly known as Twitter outlined criticism of the act and the “heavy-handed” UK regulators.The Government countered that it is “demonstrably false” that the Online Safety Act compromises free speech and said it is not designed to censor political debate.Mr Farage has meanwhile suggested there is a “tech answer” for protecting children online, but neither he nor the Government have outlined one.He also suggested children are too easily able to avoid new online age verification rules by using VPNs (virtual private networks), which allow them to circumvent the rules by masking their identity and location.When Reform UK was approached for comment, its Westminster councillor Laila Cunningham said: “Women are more unsafe than ever before thanks to Labour. Starmer has released thousands of criminals back onto the streets early with no regard for women’s safety.“I am calling on Jess Phillips to debate me on women’s safety – she ignored the grooming gangs scandal and now she’s wilfully deceiving voters on this issue.“Reform will always prioritise prosecuting abuse but will never let women’s safety be hijacked to justify censorship.“You don’t protect women by silencing speech. You protect them by securing borders, enforcing the law, and locking up actual criminals, and that is exactly what a Reform government would do.” More

Rachel Reeves should water down her inheritance tax raid on family farms to protect workers, according to a think tank that championed the controversial Labour policy. The Centre for the Analysis of Taxation (CenTax), which has been broadly supportive of the idea of a so called ‘tractor tax’, warned that landowners were “less likely to be impacted by the reform than working farmers”. The move will increase pressure on the chancellor over her plans, which critics say could sound the death knell for many family farms. Farmers protest in Whitehall, London, over the changes to inheritance tax (IHT) rules in the budget which introduced new taxes on farms worth more than £1 million (Jordan Pettitt/PA) More

Angela Rayner previously called for Britons to have the right to stop working during heatwaves, it has emerged.During the 2022 heatwave, which saw temperatures of 40C recorded in the UK for the first time, the now deputy prime minister urged the previous Conservative government to urgently introduce guidance on safe working temperatures. It would force employers to control temperatures at work by providing extra breaks, flexible working hours or allowing employees to finish their shifts early if temperatures are exceeded.Posting to social media, Ms Rayner minister shared a link to a Guardian article with the headline: “Unions call for maximum UK workplace temperature as heatwave descends.”She added: “We need urgent guidance for safe indoor working temperatures and the government must ensure employers allow staff to work flexibly in this heat. Where is their plan to keep people safe?”Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner is also Housing Secretary More

Sir Keir Starmer is under growing pressure to introduce a wealth tax to fill a black hole in public finances, after new polling shows almost all Labour members back the move. The prime minister has been urged to adopt a “radical change of direction” after a survey, shared exclusively with The Independent, showed that 91 per cent of party members think the government should tax the rich more. It comes after deputy prime minister Angela Rayner pressed Rachel Reeves to consider eight wealth taxes rather than impose cuts on departments in a leaked memo earlier this year. Former shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds also weighed in, backing a wealth tax and warning that spending cuts will not “deliver the kind of fiscal room that is necessary”.It comes amid mounting questions over how the government will raise the money to fill the black hole in the public finances left by a series of major U-turns and spending commitments, with the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) – a leading economic think tank – last month warning the chancellor is facing a £41.2bn shortfall. ( More

Thousands of people have had their homes seized after receiving controversial ‘no-fault’ eviction notices despite Labour pledging to abolish them, new data shows.Labour said in its election manifesto it would abolish Section 21 eviction notices “immediately” after winning the election. A year on, and the relevant legislation still progressing through parliament means that the ban is still not in effect.According to Ministry of Justice figures released on Thursday, 11,400 households received no-fault evictions by bailiffs in the year to June.The number of bailiff evictions is an eight per cent rise on the previous year, continuing a trend of a heightened use of the notices.Housing charity Shelter said it is “unconscionable” that renters “continue to be marched out of their homes by bailiffs” a year after Labour’s election victory.Shelter described no-fault evictions as one of the leading causes of homelessness, with landlords able to evict tenants with little notice and no reason required More