UK politics

UK politics

The Office of National Statistics latest report shows unemployment has risen from 4.1% when Labour took office in July 2024 to 5.1% on Tuesday, an increase of around 24%. This is the sharpest rise in joblessness in several years and takes us back to levels last seen during the recovery from the pandemic. Businesses have been hit hard by Labour's increase to employers National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and National Minimum Wage (NMW).

Freemasonry has the highest moral and ethical standards standards that have been a cornerstone of its identity since the earliest days of organised Freemasonry over 300 years ago. The decision by the Metropolitan Police casts an aura of mistrust over the entire Freemason community. Given the obvious, detrimental impact on our members, United Grand Lodge of England, Order of Women Freemasons and Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons consider that we now have no choice but to take legal action to challenge this unlawful decision.

When we said we'd protect jobs and invest in Britain's future, we meant it - and this is proof,

Peter Kyle, the business secretary, said: This landmark legislation, now soon to be in law, will drag Britain's outdated employment laws into the 21st century and offer dignity and respect to millions more in the workplace. The bill will introduce rights to guaranteed hours and payment for short-notice cancellation of shifts, bar fire-and-rehire practices in most circumstances, grant paternity and parental leave from day one, and strengthen workplace trade union rights.

Keir Starmer's Whitehall communications chief will address the cabinet on overhauling the government's media strategy on Tuesday as ministers increasingly try to combat far-right rhetoric online. David Dinsmore, a former editor of the Sun who was appointed permanent secretary for government communications in November, will speak to ministers about modernising the way they reach voters. The government is concerned about the proliferation of false and inflammatory far-right content on social media and is stepping up efforts to communicate on those platforms.

It reflects what businesses tell us they are less confident about hiring staff due to sky-high employment costs and a tidal wave of new employment legislation coming down the track. While there has been some easing of cost pressures - with average earnings including bonuses slowing to 4.7 per cent in the three months to October - labour costs remain a challenge.

Police are investigating suspected fraud and money laundering by a former member of staff at Tower Hamlets Council, according to a report. Documents presented to the council's audit committee say the allegations involve inappropriate procurement and approval of services and payments involving undeclared conflicts of interest. The council says the alleged crimes date back to 2018 and that a police investigation is ongoing. The town hall launched an internal investigation called Operation NextWage after police alerted it to the potential crimes.

The government must stop dragging its heels over whether to add China to the enhanced tier of its threat regime, the parliamentary intelligence watchdog has warned. The Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) made up of senior MPs and peers flagged several areas of the National Security Act where there are unresolved issues in its annual report. The Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS) came into force in July

The company's overall rate of profit on these contracts is capped at around 6%, but Mears' operations across the UK exceeded that limit to the tune of 13.8m. Mears recorded its highest rate of profit in Northern Ireland, peaking at 17%. That was partly due to the fact asylum seekers in Northern Ireland don't have to be dispersed among different local authorities like they do in the UK, reducing transport and administrative costs.

The 82-year-old, of Notting Hill, west London, was driving a Volkswagen Polo at the junction between Grosvenor Road and Chelsea Bridge Road, west London, on 13 March. He said there had been heavy traffic on the Embankment and in such conditions "you don't necessarily react quickly enough to the light". In July he was disqualified for the same amount of time for speeding.

TfL first announced plans to extend an Overground line to Bermondsey all the way back in 2009. It was finally approved by Lewisham Council in 2022. Then, after years of setbacks, in 2024 property developers said they wanted to drop £17 million on a brand new station next to Millwall Stadium. But with no more news, by the end of 2025 south Londoners had all but given up on their dreams of a new Overground hub.

Ten years ago, I walked the route of HS2, the 140-mile railway proposed to run from London to Birmingham, to discover what lay in its path. Nothing had actually been constructed of this, supposedly the first phase of a high-speed line going north. The only trace was the furtive ecological consultants mapping newts and bats and the train's looming presence in the minds of those who lived along the route.

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.

The prime minister has said he will "get to the bottom" of where damaging leaks about the Budget and against his Cabinet are coming from. Last week, Chancellor Rachel Reeves told MPs that pre-Budget leaks suggesting she had abandoned plans to increase income tax rates were "unauthorised" and there was an inquiry under way. Sir Keir Starmer told the Liaison Committee, a parliamentary committee made up of every select committee chair, that he did not believe the leaks were coming from inside his own office.

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.

The definition will be non-statutory, meaning it is not set in law or legally binding, but will provide a form of words public bodies can adopt. It provides guidance to the government and other bodies on what constitutes unacceptable treatment of Muslims, aiming to help them better understand and quantify prejudice and hate crimes against this group. The draft definition is: "Anti-Muslim hostility is engaging in or encouraging criminal acts, including acts of violence, vandalism of property, and harassment and intimidation whether physical, verbal, written or electronically communicated, which is directed at Muslims or those perceived to be Muslims because of their religion, ethnicity or appearance."

As the end of 2025 draws closer, so too does the daunting possibility that the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has handed the Labour government justification to ban trans people from public bathrooms. Even more daunting is the possibility that the government, in all its wilful ignorance and desperation to court the votes of bigots, will follow-through with said ban.

The Chief will describe the increasingly complex and interconnected nature of global threats, ranging from technological disruption and hybrid threats to terrorism and information manipulation. Mastery of technology must infuse everything we do. Not just in our labs, but in the field, in our tradecraft, and even more importantly, in the mindset of every officer. We must be as comfortable with lines of code as we are with human sources, as fluent in Python as we are in multiple languages ...

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.

Cryptocurrencies will be regulated in a similar way to other financial products under legislation coming into force in 2027. The Treasury is drawing up rules that will require crypto companies to meet a set of standards overseen by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Ministers have sought to overhaul the crypto market, which has ballooned in popularity as a way of investing money and making payments.

It is a postcode lottery at the moment if you are a victim in terms of the standard of service you are going to get when your allegation is being investigated by the police and whether that is going to lead to charges ultimately and hopefully a successful prosecution, Mahmood told Trevor Phillips on Sky News.

Allies of Burnham were reported on Sunday to have identified a shortlist of seats to allow the Greater Manchester mayor to return to Westminster in the new year. One of these seats is said to be that of Gwynne, who was suspended by the Labour party in February after a leak of offensive WhatsApp messages. One source was quoted as saying that Burnham allies had found a nailed on constituency,

Over the past four months I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as the chancellor's infrastructure and planning adviser, and in my time have had the ability to advise HM Treasury and help steer the important steps the government is taking to improve the planning system to support economic growth. I look forward to continuing my engagement with HM Treasury and government as I return to the private sector.