5 h. ago Major plan paves way for parental leave reforms in hope for millions of families

Deputy PM Angela Rayner said a major review into the parental leave and pay system would leave 'no stone unturned' as it looks to improve the situation for families

Society

5 h. ago Ministers launch full review of parental leave as current system ‘not working’

The Government will investigate the whole system for supporting new parents to take time off work when they have a baby.

Politics

17 h. ago Halifax customers urged to 'close accounts' after major change

The Money Saving Expert and consumer champion has warned that Halifax is making a change to its Reward current account which could leave thousands of people out of pocket

Economics

3 d. ago Angela Rayner's civil servants protest over working from home ban and London office closures

Officials in the deputy prime minister’s department will launch their ‘work to rule’ protest on Monday

Society

6 d. ago Minister defends Liz Kendall’s handling of welfare reform brief despite major rebellion before vote – UK politics live

Pat McFadden insists welfare reform change vote will go ahead as planned but says party will ‘engage with’ rebelsLabour MPs launch major rebellion to stop welfare billA senior minister in the UK government has said the country is “not starting from zero” when it comes to raising defence spending to 5% of GDP.Speaking on the BBC, Pat McFadden said one of the earliest actions of his party, which came to power of 2024, was to increase defence expenditure to 2.5% of GDP over the next couple of years.She has been central to the development of these reforms.She has argued for them, not as a difficult choice, but as the right choice, because she believes in a welfare state that should be there for people. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago ITV Love Island's Anna Vakili 'lost everything' and vows not to make same mistakes again

Love Island star Anna Vakili has revealed all on her struggles after leaving the hit ITV2 dating show and has urged the current batch of sexy singletons to "be smart"

Politics

9 d. ago Could this Greek resort make solo parenting a baby on holiday feel like an actual break?

Can you really relax while solo parenting a one-year-old abroad? Lucy Halfhead has high hopes as she checks into Eagles Resort

Politics

1 week ago First Minister visits Ayr to launch new job scheme for people recovering from addiction

First Minister John Swinney launched new guidance to support people with their recovery from addiction while on a visit to Ayr.

Politics

2 w. ago Confessions of a Parent Killer review – a grisly tale of the murderer who lived with her mum and dad’s corpses

This look at Virginia McCullough tells a deeply strange story. Unfortunately, it also leaves the viewer in suspense about her motive for so long it feels horrifically manipulativeWell, what do you think a 90-minute documentary entitled Confessions of a Parent Killer is going to be about? That’s right, well done! It’s the story of a murder by an (adult) child of her parents. Virginia – Ginny – McCullough killed her mother, Lois, and father, John, and confessed immediately to police when they raided her home in 2023 that she had done so four years previously. The twist was that she had been living with their bodies ever since. “She was weird at school,” says a childhood friend. “But not ‘kill your parents and hide the bodies’ weird.”You can probably tell from such unimpeachably phlegmatic commentary that this case occurred in England. Great Baddow, Essex, to be exact, and the film paints a portrait of quintessential small-town, almost-rural life in these sceptred isles that has gone u...

Events

2 w. ago John Swinney challenged to fix Scotland's housing emergency as Holyrood handed billlions in funding

SNP ministers have been urged to launch a "housing revolution" to end the rise in homelessness in recent years.

Economics

2 w. ago Nicola Sturgeon and Irvine Welsh join Edinburgh Book Festival line

The former first minister is preparing to launch a mammoth promotional tour ahead of the publication of her long-awaited political memoir.

Culture

3 w. ago Warning issued to anyone with £10,000 in their savings account

New research has found that millions of Brits are missing out on hundreds of pounds in interest by leaving large sums of money sat idle in their current accounts

Economics

3 w. ago Fact check: More people leave than arrive on current youth mobility schemes

Current schemes, which are mainly with countries with smaller populations, might not accurately predict how future schemes will perform.

Politics

3 w. ago Proof Rwanda scheme DID deter small boats! Labour tries to blame the weather for surge in crossings

Official figures show migrant arrivals were far lower when Conservative ministers were poised to finally launch Rwanda removals flights last year.

Politics

3 w. ago Labour ridiculed for blaming surge in Channel migrants on weather as data shows Rwanda deportation plan WAS a deterrent

Official figures show migrant arrivals were far lower when Conservative ministers were poised to finally launch Rwanda removals flights last year.

Society

4 w. ago Starmer defends not putting date on 3% defence spending target as UK to announce plans to build new submarines – politics live

Prime minister to launch strategic defence review in Glasgow this morningHere is the clip of Keir Starmer in his Today programme interview refusing to say when the government will raise defence spending to 3% of GDP.In an interview with the Times published on Saturday John Healey, the defence secretary, said that he had “no doubt” that Britain would reach the 3% target by 2034 – ie, before the end of the next parliament. Yesterday he described this as an “ambition”. Continue reading...

Politics

4 w. ago Keir Starmer to unveil strategic defence review and put UK on ‘war

Prime minister to launch strategic defence review in Glasgow this morningStarmer repeats his claim that he has an ambition to get defence spending up to 3% of GDP in the next parliament.Q: But “ambition” is not a commitment. I can have a commitment to lose weight. That does not mean it will happen.What you can take from this is, yes, that 3% but I am not, as the prime minister of a Labour government, going to make a commitment as to the precise date until I can be sure precisely where the money is coming from, how we can make good on that commitment, because I don’t believe in performative fantasy politics, and certainly not on defence and security.Nato has been the single most effective alliance for keeping the peace for 80 years, and our job is not just to celebrate that as we do, but to ask ourselves the searching question as I ask myself on a daily basis, which is, how do we ensure that Nato preserves the peace for decades to come for this generation? Continue reading...

Events