UK politics

UK politics

MP for Tonbridge; former security minister Tugendhat was first elected in 2015. The son of a high court judge, Tugendhat served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and later became a military assistant to the chief of the defence staff. He chaired the foreign affairs select committee between 2017 and 2022. After the sanctions were announced, he said it was a direct assault on British democracy and an attempt to silence the British people.

From 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.

As a result of a new deal agreed during Sir Keir Starmer's trip to China, import taxes on whisky will be cut from 10% to 5% - a deal the UK government said would be worth 250m to the UK's economy over the next five years. Scotch whisky is a key export for Britain's drinks sector, with more than 5bn in annual exports. In recent years, China has been one of its fastest-growing markets.

she was "very happy to hear from people who have different views".

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has said China has lifted "all restrictions" on six current members of the British Parliament, after talks with President Xi Jinping. Speaking to the BBC in Shanghai, Sir Keir said a travel ban and other sanctions "no longer apply" to those parliamentarians, which includes four Conservative MPs and two peers in the House of Lords.

I 've been looking back at Brexit through the rear-view mirror of Alberta's runaway referendum train. And I've been studying David Cameron, the British prime minister who called for the Brexit referendum in 2013. Ran a re-election campaign on the promise of one. Was handed a majority government in 2015 in part on the basis of that promise. Ran a campaign to remain in the European Union in 2016. Lost. And then resigned the next day.

Police are braced as protesters are to descend on central London, as concerns were raised over the proximity between pro-Palestine and UK Independence Party (UKIP) rallies. Two counter protests to the right-wing UKIP demo are planned in London tomorrow. Conditions mean each set of protesters are obliged to remain in areas defined by police, with pro-Palestinian demonstrators contained between Downing Street and Whitehall Place and Ukip supporters within the north terrace of Trafalgar Square.

Uncertainty about what the future holds for the Police Digital Service (PDS) continues, despite the UK government confirming the organisation is set to be absorbed into a new national policing body, as part of a wider reform of the policing sector. The UK government published its long-awaited whitepaper, detailing its plans to reform the policing sector, on 26 January 2025, with its contents being described as the most "radical blueprint for reform" the sector has seen in 200 years.

Keir Starmer had been desperate to squeeze in a trip to China for some time. Another country to tick off his list and he always feels a lot better about himself when he's abroad. Less noise from his unhappy MPs. Plus he loved the pomp and ceremony that came with it. The large flags. The military bands. A country that treated him with respect. Almost.

Donaldson calling on Brits to "go on strike for a week" from 2 to 9 February, the right-wing activist says that "native Brits must always come first." On his website he explains that mending "immigration" is not "anywhere near as complicated as politicians pretend." He is calling on the government to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and to "deport" all illegal immigrants from the UK and those who commit sexual and violent crimes.

The government is to scale back new energy efficiency targets for social housing, after councils and housing associations warned about the multi billion pound cost of potential building upgrades. Labour plans to introduce minimum energy performance ratings for social homes in England, in a bid to cut tenants' fuel bills and meet climate goals. But ministers now plan to give social landlords more time and greater flexibility to show they comply with new standards.

"The government has kicked the can down the road for months, only to arrive at exactly the same conclusion it always wanted. This is a disgraceful political choice by a small group of very powerful people who have decided the harm suffered by millions of ordinary women simply does not matter."

Capita and the Cabinet Office are deeply sorry for the worry, frustration, and distress this has caused - particularly for those dealing with bereavement or ill health.

Pressure is mounting on the UK government to introduce a ban on social media for under-16s, after a decisive vote in House of Lords in favour of Australian-style restrictions. Peers backed a Tory-led amendment to the children's wellbeing and schools bill by 261 votes to 150, despite the government opposing the move. Ministers are already considering a ban as part of a consultation due to report by the summer and so the Lords amendment is unlikely to pass in the Commons.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) said that Anthropic will help the government to build and pilot an assistant that will help support people in specific situations, starting with "providing custom career advice and help to lock down a job". The pilot is planned to start later this year. Earlier in the week Anthropic's chief executive Dario Amodei published a magnum opus detailing among other things how he expects AI to disrupt to the job market.