22 h. ago Keir Starmer hails 'incredible sacrifice' as he announces major change to pubs

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer urged pubgoers to 'come together' for the 80th anniversary of VE Day next month, which will be marked by concerts, street parties and a change to licensing hours

Politics

26 h. ago Could Trump’s tariffs give a green light for corporate profiteering?

Expectations of inflation, and recent waves of price rises, could be self-fulfilling and fuel ‘greedflation’ – and it may not only apply to US consumersOver the past few years consumers have grown used to seeing prices rise at an exorbitant rate. The cost of everything – from used cars to utility bills and the humble loaf of bread – has rocketed in the worst inflation shock across advanced economies since the 1980s.While inflation has cooled in the past year, talk of fast-rising prices is back on the agenda from Donald Trump’s escalating trade war. Continue reading...

Politics

30 h. ago Donald Trump will meet with 'his friend' the King at Windsor Castle to fix arrangements for 'unprecedented' second State visit

Sir Keir Starmer urged Donald Trump to drop his tariffs on British exports yesterday after the US President warned he could keep 'substantial' levies in place.

Politics

30 h. ago Senior Labour advisers urge Keir Starmer to ditch party's ban on North Sea oil and gas drilling in light of growing Reform threat

A handful of senior officials are understood to be quietly urging the PM to consider watering down or scrapping the manifesto pledge altogether to see off the growing threat from Reform UK.

Society

31 h. ago Gold standard! A bar is £1million for first time after investors raced to purchase the precious metal to protect their savings from the impact of Donald Trump's trade war

The precious metal has been in high demand among investors trying to protect their savings from the impact of Donald Trump's trade war.

Economics

32 h. ago Starmer urges free trade in first call with Trump after UK hit by sweeping US tariffs

It comes as Rachel Reeves is due to hold talks with the White House next week amid efforts to strike a trade deal

Politics

36 h. ago Keir Starmer and Donald Trump discuss 'ongoing and productive' trade talks in first call since the US slapped 10 per cent tariffs on British goods

The two leaders discussed the 'ongoing and productive discussions' on trade between the two countries, a Downing Street spokesperson said.

Politics

38 h. ago Starmer and Trump discuss ‘ongoing and productive’ trade talks

They also talked about the situation in Ukraine, Iran and recent action taken against the Houthis in Yemen.

Politics

38 h. ago Starmer will not be able to have his cake and eat it with a Trump trade deal and a Brexit reset

As two hard deadlines come up in the next three months over a Trump trade deal and a Brexit reset, The Independent’s political editor David Maddox looks at why Keir Starmer may be forced to make a choice he does not want to acknowledge

Politics

45 h. ago Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury's among supermarket giants demanding EU agree a deal with Britain on plant and animal exports amid Donald Trump's trade chaos

Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury's are among 12 firms to have written to European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic in support of a 'veterinary agreement'.

Economics

51 h. ago Canada makes defiant vow to 'fight back' against Donald Trump's bully

President Donald Trump wants to eliminate trade barriers within Canada, something the nation's Prime Minister Mark Carney has said will actually benefit Canadians

Politics

51 h. ago Tech industry fears Trump’s trade war will hamper US AI ‘dominance’

Tariffs and threat of new duties on chips and computing infrastructure could frustrate American ambitions to lead artificial intelligence race

Politics

60 h. ago Donald Trump says there will '100% be a trade deal' with Europe after meeting with Giorgia Meloni

President boasts that he will have “little problem” securing an agreement between the US and the bloc

Politics

2 d. ago Keir Starmer faces plea to stop wasting money on asylum hotels using aid cash

More than 100 organisations have written to Keir Starmer urging him to cancel asylum accommodation contracts and stop diverting cash from the UK's aid budget, which is being slashed

Economics

2 d. ago Britain could sign a trade deal with Donald Trump 'within three weeks'

Sir Keir Starmer has been pushing for an agreement with America in a bid to lower the 10 per cent tariffs on British goods imposed by the US President.

Politics

2 d. ago Shein and Temu issue warning to shoppers as Donald Trump trade war with China escalates

The price hikes also come ahead of the end of the 'de minimis' tax loophole, which allows imports that are worth under $800 can enter the US duty-free

Events

3 d. ago Trump weighs in on Japan trade talks but Tokyo team leaves without deal

First-in-queue negotiations closely watched for signs of US strategy

Politics

3 d. ago Trump claims ‘big progress’ in tariff talks with Japan after surprise appearance at negotiations

Japan’s PM says there are still gaps between the two countries’ stances

Politics

3 d. ago Can we stop pretending a trade deal with Trump will be a gamechanger for the UK. It won’t | Martin Kettle

I’m not saying Britain should refuse every sort of free trade agreement with the US, but there may be options that better suit Labour’s purposeIt’s a deal. The words sound good. Most human beings are primed to think of a deal as desirable in itself. It isn’t hard to see why. Agreement is generally better than disagreement. In most aspects of life, shaking hands under shared rules makes sense. So it takes a bit of effort to think more objectively. But it is important to do that now, especially in the case of the proposed UK trade deal with the United States.Even before Donald Trump became president again, and long before the US started its current tariff wars, there were already plenty of reasons for caution about what a free trade deal with the US might look like. In the wake of Brexit, these concerns centred on whether a deal could be struck – and sold at home – on bilateral trade issues such as pharmaceuticals, food products and digital regulation, on all of which very different s...

Politics

3 d. ago Japan reports a $63 billion trade surplus with the US as it talks with Trump on tariffs

Japan recorded a trade deficit for the fiscal year that just ended but racked up a $63 billion surplus with the United States

Economics