2 h. ago Water bills are going to keep going up, Government minister says

Steve Read said a 'steady increase in bills is what people expect'

Politics

3 h. ago Water bills to see ‘small, steady’ rise despite reform plans, says Reed

But the Environment Secretary has promised that families will never again see ‘huge shock hikes’ to their bills.

Politics

8 h. ago Suella, Jacob, even Liz? Inside Reform’s unofficial plan to bag a Tory big beast

Officially, the party says there is no mission to court Conservative defectors, but insiders suggest otherwise, and warn against the dangers of doing soAt last year’s GB News Christmas party, Suella Braverman was the centre of attention. The former home secretary is popular in rightwing media circles, but it wasn’t her straight-talking brand of conservatism that was topic of the evening, rather it was the growing whispers about what some thought was her imminent defection to Reform UK.“It was like a panto – everyone saying: ‘Oh yes you will’, and her saying: ‘Oh no, I won’t’,” says one Reform party guest. “We all thought she was just biding her time until the right moment.” Continue reading...

Politics

12 h. ago Middle class families could be hit with soaring water bills under Labour's new plan to subside the costs for Britain's poorest households

The proposed national social tariff is due to be presented to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in a review of the water industry on Monday.

Society

16 h. ago Huge changes to water companies set out this week will 'make bills fair'

Ministers have told firms they must do more if they want to restore public trust - as complaints continue to rise and half of Brits feel they’re being ripped off.

Politics

28 h. ago ‘Green shoots’ or coalmining past? Welsh town reacts to Labour and Reform’s visions for future

In the final part of a series, we look at the political battle for Bridgend after the closure of its Ford plantBattle over solar as Reform UK attacks net zeroTeesside divided over net zeroHow a refinery closure is hitting jobs and politicsWhy Reform is targeting manufacturing heartlands“It’s sad. I think it killed the town,” says Debbie, sitting in a cafe in Bridgend and recalling the closure of Ford’s south Wales engine plant almost five years ago. “There were lots of men and women working there at the end.”During its 40 years of operations, workers at Bridgend Ford produced 22m engines for Ford, Volvo and Jaguar cars, before it closed quietly in September 2020 during ongoing Covid restrictions. Continue reading...

Events

39 h. ago Ministers to pledge ‘root and branch reform’ of water industry

Water bills rose by an average of 26% in April, with the cost of repairing long-neglected infrastructure said to be a significant factor.

Politics

40 h. ago Reform’s war on net zero plans will cost one million jobs, Labour say

Energy minister Michael Shanks said Reform’s plans are ‘anti-jobs’ and ‘anti-growth’

Economics

40 h. ago Labour accuses Reform of threatening almost one million jobs with net zero plans

Reform deputy leader Richard Tice wrote to energy companies urging them not to invest in the latest round of green energy contracts.

Events

62 h. ago Water shortages and soaring bills as MPs issue 'monumental' warning

MPs on the public accounts committee said the system of regulating water companies needs 'a complete overhaul' to rebuild trust and ensure its poor performance improves

Events

3 d. ago DWP boss defends welfare reform changes after PIP plans put on hold

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall acknowledged it had been a “bumpy ride when she appeared before the Work and Pensions Committee on Wednesday.

Economics

3 d. ago High water bills, filthy rivers – and now drought. This is England's great artificial water crisis of 2025 | George Monbiot

In its refusal to renationalise water, it’s clear the government operates in the interests of private capital and not of the countryFor a rich and fairly stable country, we are staggeringly ill-prepared for climate shocks. We respond to predictable crises as if we had had no warning. Lessons from previous disasters go unlearned, mistakes are recycled, failures lodged so deeply that they come to define the system.This is not because of a deficiency in the national character, but because of a deficiency in the ideology of government: an elite belief, shared by scarcely any citizens, that public intervention should be used only when all other measures have failed. Until that point, our problems should be addressed by the private sector. As drought rolls across the country once again, England’s privatised water system guarantees an irrational response.George Monbiot is a Guardian columnistOn Tuesday 16 September, join George Monbiot, Mikaela Loach and other special guests discussing the...

Events

4 d. ago Kendall defends welfare reform plan after Government forced to ditch key parts

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall insisted she was motivated by getting people into work rather than cutting costs.

Politics

4 d. ago Defiant TikTokers vow to ignore hosepipe ban 'because they pay their water bills'... as experts share tips on how to get around it without breaking the law

Britons claim they are flouting the hosepipe ban as they continue to fill up paddling pools while the country struggles with the driest start to the year since 1976.

Economics

5 d. ago Thames Water boss receives £1m despite doubling in "serious" pollution

Thames Water also reveals it made a £1.6 billion loss last year

Economics

5 d. ago Thames Water boss receives £1m package despite "disappointing" surge in pollution

Thames Water also reveals it made a £1.6 billion loss last year

Economics

1 week ago Before the government overhauls special educational needs, lessons must be learnt

Editorial: The welfare reform bill fiasco has made rethinking education, health and care plans infinitely more difficult. Any reforms must clearly be for the benefit of the recipients – not driven by the Treasury’s need to make savings

Politics

1 week ago Brits given 'cash ISA reform warning' as Labour's plans could hike mortgage costs

The bosses of Britain's biggest building societies have warned that plans to slash the amount savers can put into cash ISAs could hike borrowing costs for homeowners

Events

1 week ago London's 'super sewer' exec gets £600,000 pay rise whilst Thames Water customers foot the project cost

Thames Water customers are expected to foot the bill for the project through bills increases

Economics

1 week ago Nigel Farage says flaws in Reform UK’s candidate vetting process were not his fault – UK politics live

Farage says any errors in the runup to the 2024 general election cannot be laid at his door as he was not party leader at the timeThe Conservatives will try to change the government’s welfare Bill to tighten up access to personal independence payments (Pip) and universal credit, PA Media reports. PA says:Kemi Badenoch will pledge that the Tories are “now the only party committed to serious welfare reform” after Keir Starmer shelved plans to restrict eligibility for Pip in the face of a backbench revolt this week.The Tories will look to lay amendments to the legislation – set to be renamed the universal credit bill – and party leader Badenoch is due to deliver a speech on welfare on Thursday. Continue reading...

Politics