32 h. ago Estimated cost of asylum seeker accommodation treble what expected, says watchdog

The original estimate for asylum seeker housing was £4.5billion for 2019-2029, but that is expected to rise to £15.3billion, according to the National Audit Office

Events

34 h. ago PMQs: Starmer under fire from Tories, Lib Dems and SNP on winter fuel payment cuts and net zero

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch was first to raise winter fuel payment cuts, saying her party ‘wouldn’t balance (the public finances) on the back of pensioners’

Events

48 h. ago Friedrich Merz warns the US to ‘stay out’ of Germany’s politics

Germany’s new chancellor cautions after far-right AfD receive strong backing from Donald Trump alliesGermany’s new chancellor Friedrich Merz has warned the US to “stay out” of his country’s politics after the far-right AfD received strong backing from allies of the US president, Donald Trump.Merz, 69, a conservative who was elected as chancellor of Europe’s biggest economy earlier in the day, also said he planned to speak by phone with Trump on Thursday. Continue reading...

Events

48 h. ago Friedrich Merz calls for US to ‘stay out’ of German politics

Germany’s new chancellor issued warning after far-right AfD received strong backing from Donald Trump alliesGermany’s new chancellor Friedrich Merz has warned the US to “stay out” of his country’s politics after the far-right AfD received strong backing from allies of the US president, Donald Trump.Merz, 69, a conservative who was elected as chancellor of Europe’s biggest economy earlier in the day, also said he planned to speak by phone with Trump on Thursday. Continue reading...

Politics

50 h. ago Chaos at Alpine as F1 team boss resigns ahead of expected Jack Doohan axe

Oliver Oakes has left the team amid speculation Doohan is set to lose his seat to Franco Colapinto

Events

54 h. ago Welsh Labour could slump to historic low in 2026 Senedd elections, poll finds

Plaid Cymru is predicted to be biggest party in the next Welsh elections, with Reform UK in second and Labour third.

Politics

56 h. ago Badenoch ‘confident’ of leading Tories into next election despite drubbing

Many of the Conservatives’ losses came at the hands of Reform UK as well as the Lib Dems.

Politics

65 h. ago The lesson for Labour? Until it can improve local lives and stop fearing Farage, more losses are coming | Polly Toynbee

Rapid, highly visible action in communities and a forthright attack on the new right – that is what’s needed nowIf you thought these elections were bad, just wait for the locals next May. Expect far worse for Labour, unless they act fast. As they tussle over which way to turn, left or right, stop and consider what’s ahead. They will be challenged by Reform UK in towns such as Barnsley, while their progressive city heartlands will be ravaged by Greens, Liberal Democrats, and pro-Palestine and other independents. Expect shocks in London boroughs that have been forever Labour. (Worth recalling that amid Labour’s landslide, Keir Starmer’s vote share in Holborn and St Pancras dropped by 17% in the general election when challenged by a pro-wealth tax radical.) With council elections in a third of seats in English cities, expect an eruption of local leftward rebellions.Those around Starmer may well be misidentifying the threat that matters most. Heavy vote losses to Lib Dems and Greens in ...

Politics

66 h. ago Scottish hospitals face nearly 1,200 sewage leaks in just five years

The figures were uncovered by the Scottish Lib Dems.

Politics

4 d. ago Lib Dems laugh off 'party of posh Pimm's drinkers' jibe after taking control of councils in leafy 'Boden Belt'

The party celebrated wins across swathes of the Home Counties and southern England, and became the largest party in Devon, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire and Wiltshire.

Politics

5 d. ago Local elections in numbers: 677 new Reform councillors – while Labour gets no votes in some wards

The Independent’s data correspondent Alicja Hagopian crunches the numbers from this year’s local elections

Politics

5 d. ago Local elections 2025 mapped: Full results for every council and mayoral race

Reform swept up this year’s local elections, winning 677 seats across all contested councils. While the Lib Dems also saw success, the Tories and Labour faced devastating defeats

Politics

6 d. ago Lib Dems now ‘party of middle England’, says Davey as party makes gains

As the Tories faced a Reform UK surge in the North and parts of the Midlands, the Lib Dems put the squeeze on their vote further south.

Politics

6 d. ago Alone centre stage, for Nige this was his triumph and no one else’s | John Crace

No thanks for Reform’s new MP and mayor, they were mere decoration on Farage’s victory lapNigel Farage is one of this century’s survivors. A man who walked away from not just a plane crash but any number of iterations of parties carved in his image. Rising from near-death experiences time and again. The last cockroach standing after a nuclear holocaust.In Reform, Nige has found his most successful reinvention yet. You’ve got a grievance? Then Farage is there to verbalise it and sell it back to you. Always on hand to spot division and feed on it. The politics of the far right may be his preferred habitat – he’s never yet come across an asylum seeker he didn’t want to deport – but he’s nothing if not the consummate opportunist. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Greene writes to Tory voters urging them to back Lib Dems following defection

But the Scottish Tories suggested the move could in fact boost support for them.

Politics

8 d. ago Welsh Government's 'botched' bus promise will only help some teens

The pilot scheme announced as part of a deal with Lib Dem MS Jane Dodds will not currently apply to those aged 11 to 15

Politics

8 d. ago Sir Ed Davey signs ‘magic spatulas’ during local election visit

Sir Ed visited Lib Dem campaigners in Tunbridge Wells feeling ‘optimistic’ about their chances in the elections on Thursday.

Politics

8 d. ago Voters name ‘none of the above’ as most popular candidate before local elections

Labour’s Keir Starmer, Reform’s Nigel Farage, the Conservative’s Kemi Badenoch and Lib Dem’s Ed Davey all trailing as voters prepare to go to the polls on Thursday

Politics

8 d. ago Asylum seeker who came to Britain on small boat is jailed for raping woman after she left nightclub

Eritrean Dan Tesfalul, 27, targeted the woman who was so drunk she couldn't remember the attack in Norwich. He bought her drinks, then followed her outside the club.

Events

8 d. ago Ghanaian asylum seeker wins right to remain in UK because he is too traumatised by getting Covid to return to his home country

Winfred Kwabla Dogbey was diagnosed with PTSD after he was hospitalised with the virus in 2020, where he suffered an extreme version of the illness with multiple organ failure.

Events