13 h. ago Reform hits 30% landmark as more than half of Tory voters switch to Farage

The latest Techne UK tracker poll results for The Independent

Politics

16 h. ago The Guardian view on billionaire Britain: tax wealth fairly or face democratic unravelling | Editorial

Without bold reform which makes the rich pull their weight, rising inequality risks eroding public trust and fracturing social stabilityBritain for the last decade has experienced a bleak paradox: rising child poverty alongside a dramatic increase in billionaire wealth. This inequality has been tolerated partly because greed has been rehabilitated as virtue. The Billionaire Britain report, published this week by the Equality Trust, reveals what many instinctively feel but few in parliament will admit: the UK economy has become a machine for the upward redistribution of wealth.Using Sunday Times Rich List data, the report found that the 50 wealthiest UK families now own more than the poorest half of the population combined. Their opulence is no accident. It’s largely built on the labour and consumption of those 34 million other Britons. The gains of society are being hoarded by those least in need. There’s a lexicon that sells it all as “entrepreneurial spirit” and bus...

Economics

17 h. ago The 10 English councils left with no overall party control and who leads them

Gains for Reform and Liberal Democrats saw some councils left under no overall control

Politics

17 h. ago Sarwar: Reform voters are not racist, they are ‘scunnered’ and ‘frustrated’

Scottish Labour leader says Scotland is diverse and “welcoming” country

Politics

18 h. ago Reform UK promises to reverse ban on new North Sea oil drilling if elected

Party spokesperson says policy has ‘clear benefits for securing jobs and energy independence’Reform UK has promised to reverse the government’s ban on fresh North Sea oil and gas drilling as a “day one” priority if elected to power, with the taxpayer taking a stake in the projects.Richard Tice, the party’s deputy leader, has met with senior UK oil executives in recent weeks to pledge the party’s support for the industry, which has been hit hard by the government’s windfall tax and moves to block fresh North Sea exploration licences. Continue reading...

Politics

19 h. ago Reform UK's new mayors take centre stage: Nigel Farage's troops join other regional leaders for talks with Angela Rayner... as Deputy PM warns 'you have to deliver'

Dame Andrea Jenkyns, the Greater Lincolnshire mayor, and Luke Campbell, the Hull and East Yorkshire mayor, both attended the meeting alongside 12 other mayors.

Events

20 h. ago Voices: I’ve spent decades inside prisons – here’s how I’ll fix them for good

In light of the Gauke sentencing review, prisons minister Lord Timpson explains why, to end the perma-crisis in our justice system, we must now embark on the largest expansion of jail places since the Victorian era

Events

21 h. ago Bangladesh stares at crisis as interim leader ‘threatens to quit’ over lack of reform progress

Muhammad Yunus ‘feels trapped between demands from political camps and growing public impatience’

Events

25 h. ago The 10 councils left with no overall control after local elections

Gains for Reform and Liberal Democrats saw some councils left under no overall control

Politics

27 h. ago ‘Declining’ is the most common word associated with Britain, damning poll shows

Exclusive: Seven in 10 voters feel ignored by politicians, fuelling the rise of Reform UK, a report by an influential group of Labour backers warns

Politics

34 h. ago MPs demand ‘root and branch reform’ of Criminal Cases Review Commission and call for chief to step down

The justice committee has warned the watchdog’s leadership has shown ‘has shown a remarkable inability to learn from its own mistakes’

Events

38 h. ago The Gauke report tells us how to reform British prisons – now, it’s up to politicians to make it happen

Editorial: Without a much stronger effort to monitor miscreants and prevent reoffending, David Gauke’s recommendations will, tragically, fail – with all the gruesome societal and political consequences that implies

Events

41 h. ago Which parties are leading hung councils after the local elections?

All 10 councils left with no party in overall control after ballots this month have confirmed their executive arrangements.

Politics

42 h. ago Reform advert targeting Anas Sarwar branded 'blatantly racist' by Scottish Labour

A social media advert by Reform UK has been branded “blatantly racist” by Scottish Labour.

Events

44 h. ago Watch: Justice secretary update on prisons review as chemical castration considered for sex offenders

The justice secretary has said that many sentencing reforms aimed at easing prison overcrowding have been accepted by the government, including chemical castration for sex offenders.

Events

45 h. ago Watch live: Justice secretary update on prisons review as chemical castration considered for sex offenders

Watch live as the justice secretary delivers an update on UK prisons reform, in what is the biggest shakeup of sentencing in more than 30 years, in Parliament on Thursday (22 May).

Society

48 h. ago Scotland faces £647m gap as Dario Schiraldi, Derek Yule, Hoy & Griffin call for reform

Scotland's councils are facing a £647m budget shortfall this year despite an increase in government funding, a watchdog has said.

Economics

48 h. ago Voices: Everyone wants prison reformed – even Reform. Labour must be bold

There is widespread public support, even among Nigel Farage’s supporters, for increasing community sentences for non-violent crime, writes Andrea Coomber, Chief Executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform

Events

54 h. ago Reform UK accused of racism by Anas Sarwar over 'Pakistani community' by

EXCLUSIVE: Holyrood parties united to condemn an advert branded 'despicable'.

Events

58 h. ago Net migration data due after Starmer’s warning on ‘island of strangers’

The Office for National Statistics will give its first estimate of net migration for the 12 months to December 2024.

Events