15 m. ago Scottish budget LIVE: Income tax thresholds adjusted, mansion tax introduced and child payments increased

Follow along live as Finance Secretary Shona Robison sets out the 2026/27 budget.

Economics

28 m. ago Trump warns of ‘reckoning and retribution’ in Minnesota amid anti

As protests over killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis continue, president uses Truth Social post to slam protesters and repeat baseless claims Donald Trump is heading to Detroit, Michigan today, where he’ll tour a Ford factory in Dearborn.The president will deliver remarks to the Detroit Economic Club at 2pm ET, to continue his “affordability” tour, where he’s expected to tout the administration’s commitment to revitalising manufacturing and keeping costs down. Continue reading...

Events

71 m. ago Trump live updates: President to visit Detroit auto plant and give speech amid factory job slump

President will give remarks at the Detroit Economic Club in the afternoon

Politics

98 m. ago Watch live: Ministers questioned over Grok AI row as Keir Starmer vows to end abuse on X

Watch live as technology secretary Liz Kendall and culture secretary Lisa Nandy are questioned over AI and copyright on Tuesday (13 January).

Politics

3 h. ago Keir Starmer tells MPs he is open to social media ban for young people

PM says he is alarmed at reports about children’s screen time and has shifted position on Australian-style policyUK politics live – latest updatesKeir Starmer has told MPs he is open to the idea of an Australian-style ban on social media for young people after becoming concerned about the amount of time children and teenagers are spending on their phones.The prime minister told Labour MPs on Monday evening he had become alarmed at reports about five-year-olds spending hours in front of screens each day, as well as increasingly worried about the damage social media is doing to under-16s. Continue reading...

Politics

5 h. ago Scottish budget LIVE: Shona Robison to unveil SNP spending for 2026/27

Follow along live as Finance Secretary Shona Robison sets out the 2026/27 budget.

Economics

5 h. ago Wes Streeting criticises Labour colleagues who blame Whitehall for blocking reform – UK politics live

Health secretary says: ‘If we tell the public that we can’t make anything work, then why on earth would they vote to keep us in charge’Here is Jessica Elgot’s report on Wes Streeting’s speech. (See 9.45am.)Here is a fuller version of the quote from Wes Streeting’s speech, from the Times’ Steven Swinford.Bafflingly, some on my own side of the political divide have begun to parrot the same argument. They complain about the civil service. They blame stakeholder capture.This excuses culture does the centre-left no favours. If we tell the public that we can’t make anything work, then why on earth would they vote to keep us in charge? Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago Scottish Budget LIVE as half of Scots question value of higher taxes imposed by SNP Government

Shona Robinson is set to announce the final Holyrood Budget before Scots go to the polls in May for an election that could redraw the political map.

Politics

23 h. ago Nadhim Zahawi failed in bid for peerage from Tories before Reform defection, sources say

Ex-chancellor asked Badenoch’s team for seat in Lords but was apparently rebuffed over sacking for tax affairsUK politics live – latest updatesNadhim Zahawi was rejected for a peerage by the Conservatives just weeks before he defected to Reform UK, Tory sources have told the Guardian.The former chancellor asked Kemi Badenoch’s top team for a seat in the House of Lords but was rebuffed because he had been sacked as Tory chair in 2023 over his tax affairs. Continue reading...

Events

23 h. ago How Iran’s protest movement has gained increasing momentum – a visual guide

Demonstrations initially focused on economic issues but as they have grown and become political the regime has responded with deadly forceIran crisis live – latest updatesA protest movement in Iran that started as a small demonstration by shopkeepers in Tehran over a weakening currency has exploded into the largest nationwide uprising in years against the country’s theocratic leaders.Fearing a threat to its decades-old grip on the country, the government has responded with deadly force. Rights groups have reported that hundreds of people have been killed by security forces and the state-backed Basij militia. Continue reading...

Events

27 h. ago ‘Hundreds more’ federal agents being deployed in Minnesota after killing of Renee Good – US politics live

Kristi Noem says that more officers are being deployed amid protests in several citiesPowell announced on Sunday he is facing criminal investigation by federal prosecutors – a decision he said should be “seen in the broader context of the [Trump] administration’s threats and ongoing pressure.”Trump has repeatedly criticised the head of the Federal Reserve for refusing to set monetary policy according to his preferences. Continue reading...

Events

52 h. ago Mandelson praises Trump’s ‘graciousness’ and declines to apologise for friendship with Jeffrey Epstein – UK politics live

In first TV interview since he was sacked as UK ambassador to US, Mandelson says association with Epstein was ‘terrible mistake’ but adds: ‘I was not culpable’Laura Kuenssberg asks Peter Mandelson if he liked Donald Trump when he was the UK ambassador.Mandelson says he did like Trump, listing of numerous reasons why, but said he did not like all of his “language”.I like him, yes, I liked his humour, his graciousness I liked his directness. You knew exactly what he was thinking and where you stood and what he wanted. And how he was proposing to engage, with you. Did I like in all his language? No, I didn’t, did I? Did he make me gasp? What’s going to happen is there’s going to be, another discussion, a lot of consultation and a lot of negotiation.At the end of the day, we are all going to have to wake up to the reality that the Arctic needs securing against China and Russia. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Congress rails against the DOJ’s skirting of Epstein: ‘The exact opposite of what they’re supposed to do’

Reps. Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna also push for the appointment of a special master to force the files’ release

Politics

3 d. ago US military forces seize fifth tanker in effort to control Venezuelan oil

Pre-dawn assault on the Olina oil tanker was carried out by US marines and navy sailors in the Caribbean near TrinidadUS politics live – latest updatesThe US early on Friday boarded another oil tanker, the US military said, as part of efforts to target sanctions-busting vessels traveling to and from Venezuela.US forces were seen in video footage that officials posted online landing on the ship’s deck as the vessel named Olina was seized in the Caribbean near Trinidad. It is the fifth interdiction of such ships in recent weeks, separately from the series of previous US operations since the start of the fall to strike suspected drug boats off the coast of Venezuela. Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago ‘A more convenient dictatorship’: fear and uncertainty in Venezuela after fall of Maduro

US capture of president gave many Venezuelans hope, but a week on, an even more draconian atmosphere pervades the South American countryUS politics live – latest updatesFreddy Guevara will never forget the 34 excruciating days he spent inside Venezuela’s most notorious political prison after being snatched by masked men from President Nicolás Maduro’s intelligence agency.The black hood, the interrogations, the stress positions, the salsa music his captors blasted at him in an attempt to make him crack. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago US in process of seizing fifth tanker in effort to control Venezuelan oil

The Olina, seized in the Caribbean, was falsely flying the flag of Timor Leste, according to a public shipping databaseUS politics live – latest updatesThe US is in the process of seizing the Olina tanker in the Caribbean near Trinidad in the fifth such interdiction of ships in recent weeks as part of Washington’s efforts to control Venezuelan oil exports, two US officials said on Friday.The Olina, according to public shipping database Equasis, was falsely flying the flag of the tiny south-east Asian nation of Timor Leste. The vessel had previously sailed from Venezuela and had returned to the region, said an industry source with direct knowledge of the matter. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago No 10 condemns ‘insulting’ move by X to restrict Grok AI image tool

Spokesperson says limiting access to paying subscribers just makes ability to generate unlawful images a premium serviceUK politics live – latest updatesDowning Street has condemned the move by X to restrict its AI image creation tool to paying subscribers as insulting, saying it simply made the ability to generate explicit and unlawful images a premium service.There has been widespread anger after the image tool for Grok, the AI element of X, was used to manipulate thousands of images of women and sometimes children to remove their clothing or put them in sexual positions. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago UK ministers considering leaving X amid concern over AI tool images

Labour party chair says government having conversations about use of platform in light of sexualised Grok images UK politics live – latest updatesUK ministers are considering leaving X as a result of the controversy over the platform’s AI tool, which has been allowing users to generate digitally altered pictures of people – including children – with their clothes removed.Anna Turley, the chair of the Labour party and a minister without portfolio in the Cabinet Office, said on Friday that conversations were happening within the government and Labour about their continued use of the social media platform, which is controlled by Elon Musk. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Trump claims to have cancelled ‘previously expected’ second wave of attacks on Venezuela – US politics live

US president says move was reaction to Caracas releasing large numbers of political prisoners as ‘sign of seeking peace’US border patrol agents shot two people outside a hospital in Portland, Oregon, a day after an ICE officer shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis.The Portland police bureau (PPB) said in a statement on Thursday afternoon that two people were in hospital after a shooting involving federal agents, adding that the conditions of those shot were not known.Venezuela is releasing large numbers of political prisoners as a sign of “Seeking Peace.” This is a very important and smart gesture. The U.S.A. and Venezuela are working well together, especially as it pertains to rebuilding, in a much bigger, better, and more modern form, their oil and gas infrastructure. Because of this cooperation, I have cancelled the previously expected second Wave of Attacks, which looks like it will not be needed, however, all ships will stay in place for safety and security purposes. At least ...

Politics

4 d. ago ICE shooting updates: Protests erupt in Minneapolis as officer who killed Renee Nicole Good is identified

Protesters clash with federal agents Thursday in Minneapolis following fatal shooting of mother-of-three

Events