4 h. ago Minister hopes supreme court’s gender ruling will ‘draw a line’ under trans debate – UK politics live

Health minister Karen Smyth says ‘it’s good we have clarity for women’ as Tories call for ruling to be ‘reinforced with legislation’Shadow chancellor Mel Stride has highlighted the recent report by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) which suggested business confidence in the UK has dipped severely.In a post to social media, the recently knighted MP said:I take no pleasure in the ICAEW’s latest survey, which reveals UK business confidence has slipped into negative territory for the first three months of 2025, thanks to Labour’s anti-business budget.Tax burden tops the list of concerns for the second quarter in a row, with 56% of businesses saying it’s their greatest challenge. Red tape follows closely, with 43% of companies reporting increased strain. Rising costs and wage pressures continue to squeeze profits, with investment growth remaining sluggish.Single-sex services like changing rooms must be based on biological sex. If a male person is allowed...

Politics

40 h. ago LA county facing financial turmoil after wildfires and $4bn abuse settlement

County to cut budget by almost $90m as it tackles nearly $2bn in fire-related costs and cuts to federal fundingLos Angeles county is experiencing unprecedented financial challenges amid growing costs from the historic wildfires that ravaged the region earlier this year and a $4bn sex abuse case settlement, the county CEO said this week.The region faces roughly $2bn in expenses related to January’s fires, which killed 30 people and destroyed nearly 17,000 structures. Earlier this month the county announced it had a $4bn agreement to settle thousands of claims of sexual abuse in juvenile facilities dating back 1959 – the largest such settlement in US history. Continue reading...

Events

64 h. ago Trump memo outlines plan to slash US state department budget in half

Cuts would mean dramatic decreases in funding for humanitarian aid, global health and international groupsThe Trump administration is reportedly proposing to slash the state department budget by nearly half in a move that could drastically reduce US international spending and end its funding for Nato and the United Nations, according to an internal memorandum.The memo based on spending cuts devised by the White House office of management and budget envisions the total budget of the state department and USAID, the main foreign assistance body which has been largely dismantled by Elon Musk’s “department of government efficiency”, or Doge, being reduced to $28.4bn, a reduction of $27bn or 48% from what Congress approved for 2025. Continue reading...

Politics

6 d. ago House passes Republican budget framework paving way for Trump’s agenda

Multitrillion-dollar resolution unlocks path to deliver Trump’s sweeping tax cut and immigration planUS politics live – latest updatesThe House Republican speaker, Mike Johnson, muscled through a multitrillion-dollar budget framework that paves the way for Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill”, one day after a rightwing rebellion threatened to sink it.The resolution passed in a 216-214 vote, with just two Republicans – fiscal conservatives Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Victoria Spartz of Indiana – joining all Democrats in opposition. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Nigel Farage paid £40,000 by firm that helps super rich cut tax bills

Nomad Capitalist helps people obtain second residencies and citizenships, urging its clients to ‘go where you’re treated best’

Economics

2 w. ago Things to do in Scotland this Easter 2025: Here are 7 budget

Here are some great idea to create lasting family memories this Easter.

Politics

2 w. ago Furious Aldi shopper left 'humiliated' after staff asked to search her bag to check she hadn't stolen anything before checking out her groceries

Karen Sharman, 61, claims she was 'singled out' after a routine trip to the budget chain's Brighton store on March 26th 2025, turned into a dramatic confrontation.

Politics

2 w. ago US House to vote on ‘reckless’ $1bn budget cut to Washington DC

Trump and congressional Republicans attempting to exert control over mostly Democratic capital cityWashington DC has found itself in the crosshairs of Donald Trump and congressional Republicans in recent weeks, with efforts by both to exert more control over the overwhelmingly Democratic capital city.The president on Thursday signed an executive order he said would make Washington DC “safe, beautiful, and prosperous” by stepping up crime fighting, arrests of undocumented immigrants and the processing of permits to carry concealed weapons. Trump separately directed JD Vance to “remove improper ideology” from the Smithsonian Institution, which has many museums in and around the city. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Trump signs order on Washington DC as Republicans exert control over city

President says order will make capital ‘safe, beautiful’ by stepping up arrests of undocumented peopleWashington DC has found itself in the crosshairs of Donald Trump and congressional Republicans in recent weeks, with efforts by both to exert more control over the overwhelmingly Democratic capital city.The president on Thursday signed an executive order he said would make Washington DC “safe, beautiful, and prosperous” by stepping up crime fighting, arrests of undocumented immigrants and the processing of permits to carry concealed weapons. Trump separately directed JD Vance to “remove improper ideology” from the Smithsonian Institution, which has many museums in and around the city. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Rachel Reeves must rethink fiscal rules as social security cuts will inflict real pain

Writing for the Record, Stephen Boyd of IPPR Scotland urges Rachel Reeves to consider alternative means to raise badly needed revenues for public services.

Events

2 w. ago Keir Starmer is one of Labour’s most rightwing prime ministers. And one of its most leftwing, too | Andy Beckett

The PM offers a political hybrid designed for a fickle electorate. There are short-term electoral gains to be won, but risks in the long termFor more than eight months now, since shortly after Labour won power, more and more people have been outraged by the government’s moves to the right. Starting with its decision to keep the Conservatives’ cruel two-child benefit cap last July, the government has regularly given these critics reasons to feel shocked, betrayed or just disappointed.From deportation videos to Keir Starmer’s declaration that “I like and respect” Donald Trump, from repeated public sector cuts to the chancellor Rachel Reeves’s talk of “tearing down regulatory barriers” in this week’s spring statement, Labour has often behaved as if the boundaries between its supposedly centre-left politics and the politics of the right or even the far right have simply melted away. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Spring statement latest: Reeves won’t ‘escalate trade wars’ as Trump’s latest tariffs could hit UK economy

A 25 per cent tariff on vehicles imported to the US will come into effect on 2 April, the US president announced

Events

3 w. ago Spring statement latest: Rachel Reeves refuses to rule out tax rises in autumn budget

Chancellor faces speculation she will be forced to find more money to balance the books

Economics

3 w. ago Rachel Reeves defends benefit cuts and denies further tax rises likely in autumn – UK politics live

Chancellor confirmed welfare cuts of £4.8bn in spring statement, but insisted the priority was to restore stability to the public finances Nick Robinson is interviewing Rachel Reeves on the Today programme now.Q: You promised just one budget a year, but yesterday you had to announce drastic cuts. What’s gone wrong?We’re not at the moment at a position where we want to do anything to escalate these trade wars.Trade wars are no good for anyone. It will end up with higher prices for consumers, pushing up inflation after we’ve worked so hard to get a grip of inflation, and at the same time will make it harder for British companies to export. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Spring statement latest: Reeves rejects warning that welfare reforms could push 250,000 into poverty

Chancellor faces speculation she will be forced to find more money to balance the books

Events

3 w. ago ‘At odds with reality’ – British media react to Chancellor’s spring statement

While some warned of further uncertainty, others accused Ms Reeves of mismanaging public finances.

Politics

3 w. ago UK politics latest: Reeves refuses to rule out more cuts amid growing Labour backlash

Chancellor faces speculation she will be forced to find more money to balance the books

Politics

3 w. ago Spring statement 2025 live: Reeves refuses to rule out more cuts amid growing Labour backlash

Chancellor faces speculation she will be forced to find more money to balance the books

Politics

3 w. ago Spring statement 2025 live: Trump tariffs could wipe out Reeves’s thin margin of error on budget, OBR warns

Office for Budget Responsibility said the most “severe” scenario would ‘almost entirely eliminate’ the Chancellor’s £9.9 billion headroom against her fiscal rules

Events

3 w. ago Spring Budget 2025 RECAP: Chancellor Rachel Reeves outlines spending cuts in Spring Statement

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has delivered her Spring Statement, confirming the 2025 growth estimate for the UK has been halved to 1 per cent by the government's official forecaster

Economics