Trump’s tariff salvo blindsides UK manufacturers August 24, 2025 Donald Trump has blindsided UK manufacturers by slapping fresh tariffs of up to 25 per cent on more than 400 categories of British goods, from shampoo and children’s highchairs to motorcycles and diggers. Conservative shadow trade secretary Andrew Griffith accused ministers of failing to protect exporters, saying: “When it comes to protecting UK businesses from [...]
Lammy and Vance host national security advisers ahead of Trump-Putin summit August 9, 2025 The Foreign Secretary will host a meeting of allied national security advisers on Saturday as Donald Trump pushes for a peace deal in Ukraine. Downing Street announced that the meeting at David Lammy’s official country retreat, Chevening, would bring together advisers from the US, Europe and Ukraine to “discuss progress towards securing a just and [...]
Lionesses to celebrate Women’s Euros triumph with open-top bus parade July 28, 2025 The Lionesses will celebrate their Women’s Euros triumph with an open-top bus parade through central London on Tuesday. England defeated Spain on penalties in a dramatic final on Sunday in which Chloe Kelly netted the decisive kick after the Lionesses once again came from behind to force extra time. The Lionesses flew home from Switzerland [...]
Rishi Sunak will donate Goldman Sachs salary to charity July 8, 2025 Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has rejoined Goldman Sachs as a senior adviser, adding to post-government roles he holds while still sitting as an MP, though his salary from the investment banking giant will be donated to a maths charity. Sunak worked at Goldman Sachs as a summer intern in 2000 and as an analyst [...]
Downing Street flirts with wealth tax despite exodus fears July 7, 2025 The UK’s unprecedented exodus of wealthy people could be set to accelerate after the government opened the door to introducing a wealth tax, following calls for such a move by former Labour Party leader Neil Kinnock and a host of union leaders. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has all but conceded that taxes will have to rise [...]
Badenoch: Welfare ‘fudge’ driven by ‘panic not principle’ July 1, 2025 Kemi Badenoch has branded Labour’s welfare reforms a “fudge” that will fail to curb the government’s spiralling welfare bill on health and disability benefits. MPs are set to vote on work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall’s welfare bill aimed at getting more inactive Brits back into the national workforce by changing eligibility for personal independence [...]
Government urged to add AI minister to every department June 10, 2025 The UK government has been urged to create an AI oversight body with ministerial posts dedicated to advanced technology, with former Tory leader William Hague calling on the “very structures of government” to be re-imagined in the coming years. A new Policy Exchange report calls on the government to create a new Office for Superintelligence [...]
Zonal pricing proposals backed by peers June 5, 2025 Plans to introduce a “zonal pricing” regime to the UK’s electricity market have been backed by an influential group of Lords. A report from the Industry and Regulators Committee found regional pricing “should enable better use of existing grid capacity” and lower the cost of electricity, provided the transition and its risks are “managed well.” [...]
Thames Water mess could soon swamp ministers – and taxpayers June 4, 2025 Water takes the path of least resistance, and so – on this occasion as least – does private equity. Apparently deterred by the increasingly hostile political and regulatory environment KKR, the US giant which secured ‘preferred bidder status’ for a takeover of Thames Water, pulled the plug on its £4bn investment over the weekend. They [...]
Downing Street denies lobbying for Trump Turnberry to host Open in 2028 April 29, 2025 Downing Street says the selection of hosts of the Open is a matter for the organisers amid claims US President Donald Trump has made repeated requests to Sir Keir Starmer for golf’s oldest major to be held at his Turnberry course in 2028. The Prime Minister’s official spokesman did not deny that Whitehall officials had [...]