UK

Donald Trump’s top team have been dubbed “unbelievably stupid” by Gordon Brown’s former national security adviser after a journalist was mistakenly added to a group chat outlining plans to strike the Houthis in Yemen.Lord West of Spithead, a retired admiral of the Royal Navy, told The Independent the incident was “absolutely extraordinary”, while former defence secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind described the incident as an “appalling breach of security”. Donald Trump gave the security adviser his backing despite the breach More

Rachel Reeves will soon give an update on her plans for the UK economy as she prepares to make the first Spring Statement of the new Labour government. The chancellor will also deliver an economic forecast as part of the event, with many predicting further spending cuts to come as the Treasury seeks to tackle ailing growth.Ms Reeves will make the statement on Wednesday 26 March. She had previously committed to one major economic event a year – the Budget – which usually comes in the Autumn. This is to “give families and businesses stability and certainty on tax and spending changes,” she says.This means there a no major policy announcements expected as part of the statement, although some have predicted that reduced spending targets and some key tax changes will be revealed.There have also been several big policy announcements in the run-up to the event. Last week, the government unveiled welfare reforms that will amount to £5 billion in spending cuts by 2029/30. The brunt of the cuts will fall on claimants of health-related benefits, with Universal Credit and the Personal Independence Payment both overhauled.Chancellor Rachel Reeves will deliver her Spring Statement on 26 March (Jonathan Brady/PA) More

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