55 m. ago Is Britain really the new North Korea? Let us consider the evidence | Martin Kettle

Yes, there were some serious problems for Labour this week, but overblown claims in the press undermine what remains of our political debateSign up for our new weekly newsletter Matters of Opinion, where our columnists and writers will reflect on what they’ve been debating, thinking about, reading and moreTell me, fellow Brits, how are you getting used to our island version of North Korea? How are you coping with life, now that we are a global pariah alongside Pyongyang? How do you feel about modern Britain having to vie with North Korea, Myanmar and Afghanistan for the wooden spoon on every international index of oppression?For that is the country Wednesday’s Daily Mail front page insists we have now become. It is tempting to laugh off a headline that asks “When did Britain become North Korea?” as just another here-today-gone-tomorrow piece of journalistic hyperbole. That’s even more the case when you read the cobbled-up pandemonium of provocations that form the contents of the hea...

Politics

86 m. ago Nigel Farage meets Donald Trump in the Oval Office after hitting out at Keir Starmer's 'awful, authoritarian' UK over civil liberties

Nigel Farage has met with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office shortly after lambasting Sir Keir Starmer's online safety laws as 'awful' and 'authoritarian.'

Politics

99 m. ago Reform UK attacked over 'insensitive' Farage letter on day of MS's funeral

"Reform’s behaviour is crass, disrespectful and shows they are more interested in fuelling Nigel Farage’s personality cult than standing up for the people of Caerphilly"

Events

2 h. ago While Starmer struggles with a broken system in Westminster, real power keeps leaking elsewhere | Rafael Behr

Far from No 10, Nigel Farage has been amassing power in the sprawling, networked space where 21st-century politics happensSign up for our new weekly newsletter Matters of Opinion, where our columnists and writers will reflect on what they’ve been debating, thinking about, reading and moreWith a buzz of activity in parliament and mandatory back-to-school metaphors, a new political season opens in Westminster, but is that where politics really happens? Yes, in terms of people making policy and law in buildings that are world-famous for that purpose, the SW1 postcode is where it is at.But the heart of the machine beats with a weak pulse. The UK state is heavily centralised by the standards of most democracies, yet the people at the centre don’t feel powerful. Ministers can’t enforce bin collections in remote areas or call a halt to Middle East wars but they are made to feel answerable for all that is ill in the world, from hyperlocal to geopolitical.Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnist ...

Politics

3 h. ago MIKEY SMITH: 7 unhinged Donald Trump moments as Nigel Farage roughed up by Democrats

Farage's testimony raised a number of questions over here in the States. Most of them along the lines of "who on earth is this guy?"

Politics

4 h. ago Nigel Farage meets with Donald Trump during Washington visit

The Clacton MP was earlier dubbed a ‘Putin-loving free speech impostor and Trump sycophant’ by a Democratic representative.

Politics

5 h. ago Vlad and Kim's love in! Russian and North Korean despots laugh, joke, hug and even enjoy a breakfast date together during trip to Beijing

Images captured candid moments between the two leaders as they sat across the table from one another and shared a car ride -underscoring a growing closeness in Russia-North Korea ties.

Politics

8 h. ago Nigel Farage branded 'false patriot' who doesn't care about working class

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak has lashed out at 'fake patriot' Nigel Farage, accusing him of sowing division for political gain as he urged Labour to take the fight to Reform

Economics

10 h. ago Tories call for HMRC to open investigation into Angela Rayner over stamp duty

Ms Rayner’s explanation that she was given inaccurate legal advice ‘cannot withstand scrutiny’, Tory chairman Kevin Hollinrake said.

Events

13 h. ago Nigel Farage likens UK to North Korea in US congressional testimony

Reform party leader cites arrest of a comedy writer as an example of ‘big threat’ the UK posed to free expression

Politics

14 h. ago Nigel Farage compares Britain to North Korea in 'free speech' warning to US politicians in Washington

The Reform UK leader told US lawmakers the Online Safety Act is a danger to trade between the two countries

Events

15 h. ago Nigel Farage's lunch date with Trump after claims US visit to 'impress Elon Musk'

The Reform leader found himself squirming when repeatedly questioned about the Epstein Files - which one Congressman suggested might make his lunch with the US President "awkward for your lunch"

Politics

15 h. ago Nigel Farage meets Donald Trump to badmouth Britain after squirming through Epstein questions

Nigel Farage e squirmed as he was repeatedly asked questions about the Epstein Files - which a US Congressman said might be "awkward for your lunch" with Donald Trump this afternoon.

Politics

15 h. ago A summit and parade in China may signal a geopolitical shift. They might also be political jockeying

The pictures from this week’s military parade in Beijing commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and the earlier economic gathering would seem to offer a striking, maybe even sinister, message to the United States and its allies — evidence of a possible new reconfiguration of rising power in Eurasia, an “Axis of Upheaval,” as one U.S. analyst has called it

Politics

15 h. ago Nigel Farage called out in US for 'backing free speech' while banning journalists

Farage is in the states arguing Britain's online safety laws are an attack on free speech, while his own party has banned journalists from covering them

Events

15 h. ago 'At what point did we become North Korea?' Nigel Farage blasts Keir Starmer's 'awful, authoritarian' UK as Reform leader tells US politicians free speech is under threat

The Reform leader warned that Americans - including tech moguls - could face arrest at Heathrow over online content disliked by British authorities in the wake of the arrest of Graham Linehan.

Politics

15 h. ago Nigel Farage accused of badmouthing Britain to impress Elon Musk in Congress showdown

An evidence session to the House Judiciary committee descended into a furious row between Farage and Democrat member Hank Johnson of Georgia, who claimed Farage was "carrying water" for Elon Musk

Politics

16 h. ago Nigel Farage warns US tech chiefs may be arrested when entering UK after Linehan arrest

Father Ted creator Graham Linehan yesterday (September 2) said he was arrested at Heathrow Airport over posts he shared on X which voiced his views on trans rights, opening up a 'freedom of speech' debate

Events

17 h. ago Trump’s belligerence is pushing Xi, Putin and Kim together – and tearing the old world order apart | Simon Tisdall

The three-way partnership on show in Beijing is united in opposition to US hegemony and a western-dominated financial systemSign up for our new weekly newsletter Matters of Opinion, where our columnists and writers will reflect on what they’ve been debating, thinking about, reading and moreDonald Trump’s first reaction to the disconcerting spectacle of China’s Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un marching side-by-side at a huge military parade in Beijing was, predictably, all about him. This show of solidarity and strength, he complained, was nothing less than an attempt to “conspire” against the United States. Trump likes military parades – his own, that is. Even more, he likes to be on the podium, at the centre of attention. He casts himself as world number one. The images coming out of the Chinese capital this week challenged him on all three counts.This puncturing of Trump’s insecure ego, and the striking feebleness of his response, will greatly grat...

Politics

18 h. ago Reform media ban in Nottinghamshire is a disturbing glimpse of a future with Farage in power

As Nigel Farage prepares to attack the state of free speech in the UK in front of a Congressional committee in Washington DC, The Independent’s political editor discusses Reform UK’s real attitude to a free press

Politics