72 m. ago Merz says he ‘deplores deeply’ UK’s decision to leave EU after signing UK

UK PM and German chancellor answered media questions after signing first treaty between two countries since second world warWhile Rushanara Ali is answering the urgent question in the Commons, Keir Starmer is speaking at the event where he is announcing a “civil society covenant”.There is a live feed here.Why does this government think a 16-year-old can vote but not be allowed to buy a lottery ticket or an alcoholic drink, marry or go to war, or even stand in the elections they’re voting? It isn’t the government’s position on the age of maturity just hopelessly confused? Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago Starmer says coalition of willing plan for peacekeeping force for Ukraine includes troops on ground – UK politics live

UK PM and German chancellor answered media questions after signing first treaty between two countries since second world warWhile Rushanara Ali is answering the urgent question in the Commons, Keir Starmer is speaking at the event where he is announcing a “civil society covenant”.There is a live feed here.Why does this government think a 16-year-old can vote but not be allowed to buy a lottery ticket or an alcoholic drink, marry or go to war, or even stand in the elections they’re voting? It isn’t the government’s position on the age of maturity just hopelessly confused? Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago Trump lashes out at supporters as poll says most Americans believe key details on Epstein being hidden: Live

‘I don’t want their support anymore!’ says president, calling supporters demanding answers on Epstein files ‘weaklings’

Politics

4 h. ago Starmer defends lowering voting age to 16, saying people old enough to pay tax should have a say – UK politics live

Plan to give 16 and 17-year-olds vote across UK means nearly 1.5 million more people will be to have say at general electionWhile Rushanara Ali is answering the urgent question in the Commons, Keir Starmer is speaking at the event where he is announcing a “civil society covenant”.There is a live feed here.Why does this government think a 16-year-old can vote but not be allowed to buy a lottery ticket or an alcoholic drink, marry or go to war, or even stand in the elections they’re voting? It isn’t the government’s position on the age of maturity just hopelessly confused? Continue reading...

Politics

7 h. ago Voting age to be lowered to 16 across UK by next general election

16- and 17-year-olds will be able to vote in all elections as part of changes including easier voter registration and crackdown on foreign interferenceUK politics live – latest updatesThe voting age will be lowered to 16 across the UK by the next general election in a major change of the democratic system.The government said it was a reform to bring in more fairness for 16- and 17-year-olds, many of whom already work and are able to serve in the military. It brings the whole of the UK voting age to 16. Scotland and Wales have already made the change for Holyrood and Senedd elections, as well as local council elections. Continue reading...

Politics

9 h. ago Jess Phillips says Labour rebels should not be surprised by the action taken against them – UK politics live

Home Office minister defends Keir Starmer’s decision to remove whip from four MPs and says Labour must ‘act as a team’Good morning. Chief whips tends to be quite secretive, and when four Labour MPs had the whip suspended yesterday, there was no detailed, public explanation as to why they were being punished for rebelling when so many other backbenchers, who have also voted against the party, have not been singled out. As Eleni Courea and Jessica Elgot report in our overnight story, we were just told they were regular rebels.But the best explanation came from the Labour party source who told Geri Scott from the Times that the four MPs – Rachael Maskell, Neil Duncan-Jordan, Brian Leishman and Chris Hinchliff – were being punished for “persistent knobheadery”.I don’t think that the discipline that has been meted out over the last 24 hours is linked to [the welfare bill] because many more people voted against the government than these four people.I actually don’t know because I’m not pa...

Politics

18 h. ago Fire stations, care homes and libraries get share of £10m for clean energy

Publicly-owned Great British Energy has awarded mayors grant funding to roll out projects such as solar panels on community buildings to cut bills.

Economics

23 h. ago What are rescissions – and why does Trump want Congress to approve them?

The president is pushing for cuts in spending that Congress needs to approve to take effect – but what exactly are they?US politics live – latest updatesCongressional Republicans are pushing for passage of a rescissions package, legislation requested by Donald Trump that will claw back $9bn in funding intended for foreign aid programs and public broadcasting.The bill, which is part of the president’s campaign to slash government spending, passed the House last month, and is now being debated in the Senate. Continue reading...

Politics

26 h. ago Keir Starmer removes Labour whip from four ‘persistent rebel’ MPs

Rachael Maskell, Neil Duncan-Jordan, Brian Leishman and Chris Hinchliff pushed out and three trade envoys lose rolesUK politics live – latest updatesKeir Starmer has removed the Labour whip from four MPs for repeatedly breaching discipline and stripped three further Labour MPs of their trade envoy roles in an effort to assert his control over the party.The Guardian understands that the four MPs who have lost the whip are Rachael Maskell, Neil Duncan-Jordan, Brian Leishman and Chris Hinchliff. They were informed on Wednesday afternoon and told their positions would be kept under review. Continue reading...

Politics

26 h. ago Trump calls Epstein case a hoax and lashes out at Maga critics – live updates

President tries to downplay issue amid growing outrage from conservativesTrump says people interested in Epstein inquiry are ‘bad people’As Democrats reckon with a deep inter-party divide that threatens their ability to repair the party’s image and win back voters, Ken Martin said he was not focused on “internal bullshit” because “most people could care less about the internal drama and soap opera of the Democratic party”.Martin, the chair of the Democratic National Committee, told the Guardian that he knows Democrats have to earn back trust from communities across the country before the midterms. Continue reading...

Politics

26 h. ago UK politics live: Suella Braverman apologises for Tory government ‘failures’ over Afghan data breach

Email blunder triggered the evacuation of thousands of Afghans who were brought to the UK under a secret resettlement scheme

Politics

27 h. ago Keir Starmer to remove Labour whip from at least four ‘persistent rebel’ MPs

Rachael Maskell, Neil Duncan-Jordan, Brian Leishman and Chris Hinchliff to be pushed out as PM takes actionUK politics live – latest updatesKeir Starmer is to remove the whip from MPs for persistent rebellions, starting with at least four of them on Wednesday afternoon.The Guardian understands that four MPs set to lose the whip are Rachael Maskell, Neil Duncan-Jordan, Brian Leishman, and Chris Hinchliff. Continue reading...

Politics

28 h. ago UK politics live: ‘Angry’ Starmer says Tories have questions to answer over Afghanistan data breach

Email blunder triggered the evacuation of thousands of Afghans who were brought to the UK under a secret resettlement scheme

Politics

29 h. ago UK politics live: Starmer says Tories have ‘serious questions’ to answer over Afghanistan data breach

Email blunder triggered the evacuation of thousands of Afghans who were brought to the UK under a secret resettlement scheme

Politics

30 h. ago Trump calls Epstein conspiracy a ‘hoax’ and turns on Maga ‘weaklings’

President faces Maga backlash over claims of hiding details of Epstein’s crimes to protect rich elite – including TrumpUS politics live – latest news updatesDonald Trump has lashed out against his own supporters, calling them gullible “weaklings” for questioning the transparency of a secretive government inquiry into the late high-profile socialite and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.The US president is struggling to contain a political crisis within his usually loyal Make America Great Again (Maga) base over suspicion that the administration is hiding details of Epstein’s crimes to protect the rich elite Epstein associated with, which included Trump. Continue reading...

Politics

31 h. ago UK politics live: Former veterans minister hits out at ‘ineptitude’ over Afghan resettlement scheme

Email blunder triggered the evacuation of thousands of Afghans who were brought to the UK under a secret resettlement scheme

Politics

32 h. ago No automatic right to resettlement for Afghans in data leak, says Healey

Defence secretary says it was ‘never the plan to bring everyone’ on dataset to UK, while Ben Wallace denies Tories sought superinjunctionUK politics live – latest updatesThe defence secretary, John Healey, has said there is no automatic right to resettlement for Afghans named in a leaked Ministry of Defence database, as the former Conservative ministers Ben Wallace and Johnny Mercer clashed over whether “thousands of people with little or tenuous links” had been admitted to Britain.The controversy revolves around a dataset containing the personal information of nearly 19,000 people who applied for the Afghan relocations and assistance policy (Arap) that was released “in error” in February 2022 by a British defence official. Continue reading...

Politics

33 h. ago UK politics live: Defence minister warns ‘accountability starts now’ after Afghan data breach

Email blunder triggered the evacuation of thousands of Afghans who were brought to the UK under a secret resettlement scheme

Politics

43 h. ago US House speaker Mike Johnson calls for release of Epstein files amid backlash

Trump has faced growing resentment over the decision of his attorney general, Pam Bondi, to withhold informationUS politics – live updatesAnalysis: How Epstein files uproar became a vehicle for QAnonMike Johnson, speaker of the House, called for the justice department to make public documents related to the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, breaking with Donald Trump over an issue that has roiled the president’s rightwing base.It was a rare moment of friction between Trump and the speaker, a top ally on Capitol Hill, and came as the president faces growing backlash from conservatives who had expected him to make public everything known about Epstein, who killed himself in 2019 while in federal custody as he faced sex-trafficking charges. Continue reading...

Politics

50 h. ago Pop music still has a role in political protest, says author of new version of Live Aid poem

In an interview with ‘The Independent’, Rhidian Brook also revealed Bob Geldof’s tongue-in-cheek four-letter reaction to the poem filled with famous song lyrics

Culture