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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.CloseRead moreOne of its own peers has hit out at Labour warning it is “almost becoming the cruel party” as anger over the “tractor tax” mounts.The chancellor Rachel Reeves is facing a revolt in rural England over her decision to extend inheritance tax to family farms. Thousands of farmers brought Westminster to a standstill on Tuesday when they descended on the capital to voice their opposition to the changes.Baroness Mallalieu, who is president of the Countryside Alliance and joined farmers on the march, has now warned her government that it is losing the trust of rural communities.And, in an echo of a phrase Theresa May once infamously used to describe the Tories (“the nasty party”), Lady Mallalieu said: “We are almost becoming the cruel party.”Farmers protest in central London 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.CloseRead moreUrgent action has been taken to secure prisons in England and Wales after it emerged that blueprints of jails had been leaked online. The Ministry of Justice said immediate steps had been put in place in the wake of the major security breach. There are fears organised crime groups could use the information to plan escapes or smuggle drugs or weapons to prisoners.Last year former soldier Daniel Khalife escaped from HMP Wandsworth and spent four days on the run.The 23-year-old slipped out of the jail by clinging to the bottom of a food catering truck using a sling made from kitchen trousers, triggering a major manhunt which saw him arrested on a canal towpath next to the Thames. There are fears maps could be used to plan escapes 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.CloseRead moreDiane Abbott has not spoken to Sir Keir Starmer properly in four years since the pair served in Jeremy Corbyn’s shadow cabinet, she has revealed.The 71-year-old, who was elected as the first Black woman MP in 1987, says there is a clear divide in the Labour Party and accuses the prime minister of trying to “force the left out”.In a wide-ranging interview with The Independent, Abbott, who is now the Mother of the House as the longest continuously serving female MP, insists she does not regret standing up to Sir Keir and says she has been thanked by the more radical members of her party for her stance.“I’ve not spoken to Keir Starmer in a very long time.”In fact, she says, the last time they had a “proper” conversation “might have been when Jeremy was leader and we were both in the shadow cabinet”.The pair’s relationship came under scrutiny during the election campaign earlier this year following speculation Abbott may not be allowed to stand as a Labour candidate. Labour’s Shadow Cabinet members in 2019 (L-R) Dawn Butler, Ian Lavery, Emily Thornberry, Keir Starmer, Diane Abbott and John McDonnell wait for Jeremy Corbyn to take to the stage on September 24, 2019 in Brighton, England 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.CloseRead moreSir Keir Starmer has kicked off the hunt for a “sherpa” to guide his post-Brexit reset with the European Union ahead of Donald Trump’s return to the White House.The prime minister is ramping up his efforts to rebuild ties with Brussels, recruiting a second permanent secretary in the Cabinet Office focused primarily on the UK’s relationship with the EU.A job advert posted on Friday night says the “high-profile” £200,000-a-year role will lead on the government’s renewed relationship with the bloc.The successful applicant will face “significant public scrutiny and political attention”, the posting warns.Keir Starmer is on a mission to build closer ties with Europe 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.CloseRead moreGordon Brown has declared he does not support the legalisation of assisted dying, arguing that the state of the NHS means it is not the right time for the momentous change.The former prime minister wrote movingly of the death of his newborn daughter in January 2002, which he said showed him the “value and imperative of good end-of-life care”.The Labour grandee, who remains a very influential figure within the party, said the days spent with his wife Sarah beside their dying baby Jennifer’s bed were “among the most precious days of our lives”.And, in an intervention which threatens to derail Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, Mr Brown called instead for the establishment of a commission to devise a “fully funded, 10-year strategy for improved and comprehensive palliative care”.Former prime minister Gordon Brown (Lucy North/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.CloseRead moreReform UK MP James McMurdock was jailed for repeatedly kicking his girlfriend 18 years ago, it has emerged, as fresh details in the scandal over the politician’s crime come to light. Mr McMurdock claimed he had “pushed” his partner when details of his historical conviction, which he had not disclosed to the public before the election, were first revealed in July.But court records from his sentencing, obtained by The Times this week, show he was detained in a young offenders’ institution for 21 days for kicking the victim around four times, in an incident which took place in 2006. According to the records obtained and reported on by The Times, Mr McMurdock pleaded guilty to assault by beating, and the “serious nature of the offence” meant the sentence was not suspended.The Times reported the offence “requires immediate punishment” and that a pre-sentence report indicated a “lack of willingness to comply”.Reform UK MP, James McMurdock 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.CloseRead moreA group of French mayors have called for a key cross-Channel migrant deal with the UK to be ripped up, accusing Britain of being two-faced in its approach to the migrant crisis. The Group of Mayors from the Opal Coast, which includes Calais as well as 14 smaller towns engulfed by the small boats crisis, has called for the renegotiation of a deal that allows Britain and France to carry out checks in each other’s ports. The group, led by Calais mayor Natacha Bouchart, have accused the UK of hypocrisy for claiming to want to stop migrants crossing the Channel, while letting most of those who arrive settle in Britain.Keir Starmer has brushed off calls from the French mayors 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.CloseRead moreBenjamin Netanyahu faces arrest if he enters Britain after an international arrest warrant was issued for him, Downing Street has said.No 10 refused to explicitly comment on the individual case, saying it was a hypothetical situation, but said the UK would follow its legal obligations. It comes after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Mr Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, Israel’s former defence minister, over alleged war crimes in Gaza.The ICC also issued a warrant for Mohammed Deif, head of Hamas’ armed wing, over the October 7 2023 attacks that triggered Israel’s offensive in Gaza.Yvette Cooper said “there are proper processes that need to be followed” More