UK Independent
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:59:31 GMTStarmer lands in Beijing after claiming that engaging with China will make UK richer and safer
The PM is under pressure to raise several difficult subjects, including China’s espionage activity, when he meets with President Xi Jinping on Thursday
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:47:57 GMTHS2 starts digging Euston tunnel despite station funding doubts
Old Oak Common will be the London terminus for HS2 services when they start because of delays in developing Euston station
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:47:00 GMTNew hope for IPP prisoners as five men held on indefinite jail terms referred to appeal courts
IPP prisoner Luke Ings, who served more than 18 years after he was jailed for robbery and a fight in McDonalds aged just 17, is among cases which will be reviewed by judges
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:29:48 GMTThe home heating mistakes inflating your energy bills by hundreds - and what to do instead
Simple and inexpensive changes can make a big difference to bills across the cold winter
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:29:29 GMTFormer banker sued by millionaire Knightsbridge neighbours over leaking shower claim
Lennox Gardens is one of the most exclusive garden squares in London
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:27:55 GMTVoices: ‘Liverpool is wonderful, warts and all’: Readers on swapping London for other cities
Our community can see why regional cities like Liverpool are winning over newcomers as London becomes tiring, expensive, and harder to put down roots in
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:07:40 GMTStorm Chandra floods latest: Rail chaos and hundreds of flood alerts still in place as disruption drags on
Somerset Council said there had been ‘extensive flooding overnight’ with a further 99 flood warnings in place on Wednesday
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 08:43:43 GMTAngela Rayner declares ‘I’m not dead yet’ as supporters plot Starmer’s downfall
Former deputy PM was speaking before Andy Burnham’s pathway back to parliament was blocked
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 08:38:21 GMTLabour launches attack on Greens as pollster tips Polanski’s party to win crucial Gorton and Denton by-election
Exclusive: Green Party leader Zack Polanski tells The Independent the Gorton and Denton by-election is ‘Greens vs Reform’
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 08:24:35 GMTStorm Chandra map: Where heavy rain and flooding hit UK after ‘danger to life’ warning issued
A major incident has been declared in Somerset
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 06:56:56 GMTTrump’s man in London hits out as UK’s clean energy deal
The Hamburg Declaration signed by Ed Miliband was described as ‘historic’ by the Department for Energy Security ad Net Zero
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 00:41:06 GMTHamnet cast meet Queen Camilla after making Bafta nomination history
The cast of Hamnet met Queen Camilla ahead of a special screening, just hours after the film received a record-breaking number of Bafta nominations.
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 00:01:00 GMTThe remarkable number of toads being helped across Britain’s roads – and why
Two million toads have been helped across British roads since Froglife started collecting records in 1974
Wed, 28 Jan 2026 00:01:00 GMTWholesale gas costs blamed for rises in household energy bills
Energy prices have eased since the height of the energy crisis in 2022-23 but pressure is still on the Government to tackle high bills
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 22:41:52 GMTPornhub to restrict access for UK users from next week – with one exception
Pornhub’s parent company said it will “no longer participate in the failed system that has been created in the United Kingdom” as a result of the Online Safety Act’s introduction
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 22:37:52 GMTBritons hit by record January rainfall as Storm Chandra causes travel chaos and flooding
Storm Chandra has led to several parts of the country setting new January daily rainfall records
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 22:30:43 GMTVets told to publish price lists under major reforms
The proposals would make the system clearer, fairer and more transparent for owners
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 22:30:33 GMTAll UK adults to get access to free AI training under new scheme
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology announced that the modules will take less than 20 minutes to complete
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 22:03:12 GMTUrgent recall for children’s play sand after Hobbycraft admits it contains asbestos
Hobbycraft has recalled the product Giant Box of Crafts after tests found asbestos in a ‘limited number of samples’
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 20:37:28 GMTHome Office opens probe into migrants ‘buying fake jobs to remain in UK illegally’
The skilled worker visa sponsorship scheme at the heart of the investigation was set up in 2020 when Boris Johnson was prime minister
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 20:33:35 GMTMissing People launches new SafeCall lifeline after The Independent’s successful campaign
With the support of our readers, the charity has officially launched SafeCall, a new lifeline designed to reach the 72,000 children who disappear in the UK every year
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 19:35:09 GMTLabour councillors made ‘vile’ and ‘racist’ remarks in WhatsApp chat, damning report finds
The independent report was into councillors who were members of the WhatsApp group, which led to former Labour MP Andrew Gwynne being suspended from the party before leaving parliament
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 19:20:14 GMTKeir Starmer and his team ‘to take burner phones to China to prevent spying’
The prime minister’s trip to Beijing has prompted concerns over security risks
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 19:15:11 GMTLabour MPs warn Reeves’s business rates U-turn for pubs doesn’t go far enough
Government climbdown, first revealed by The Independent, comes after warnings that changes in the autumn Budget would lead to mass closures, as one pub a day has shut its doors since Keir Starmer took office
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 19:08:06 GMTBurnham says claims that he was told in advance about by-election block are ‘simply untrue’
Senior Labour figures have called for unity as a growing number of MPs express concern over the decision to block the Greater Manchester mayor from standing in a by-election
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 18:43:25 GMTChildren could be sent to pubs if cafes and soft plays shut down, Labour MP warns
Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced every pub in England will get 15 per cent off its business rates bill
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 18:42:46 GMTBritain must get ‘war ready’ and can no longer rely on the US, MPs say
Those not in education, employment or training (Neets) should expect to find themselves drafted into war work in a long conflict, a new report by MPs and a former senior adviser to Nato warns
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 18:36:20 GMTPaedophile headteacher who ‘loved young girls’ found with hundreds of indecent images
Dean Juric, 54, was handed a suspended sentence after being found with hundreds of indecent images on his phone
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 18:29:53 GMTGovernment protecting HIV funding could be important ‘success story’ for UK
The Independent’s Bel Trew tells parliament’s International Development Select Committee that our call to protect funding could have a big impact in ending the AIDS pandemic by 2030
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 18:26:44 GMTMatt Goodwin: GB News presenter who ate page of his book after wrong election prediction unveiled as Reform candidate
Reform UK announce candidate in highly anticipated Gorton and Denton by-election
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 17:59:30 GMTMet Police made ‘homophobic assumptions’ in ‘botched investigation’ into son’s death, family claims
Edward Cornes was found dead in a hotel room in King’s Cross, with the Met Police accused of a series of investigation failures
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 17:41:53 GMT‘Happy, healthy’ girl tragically drowned in hotel pool on first family holiday abroad
Her mother remarked ‘a part of me died’ on the day she lost her daughter
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 17:15:49 GMTBoy, 14, charged over death of teenager in e-scooter crash
Jacob Calland died following the crash in Wythenshawe, Manchester, in March last year
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 16:12:15 GMTBachelor’s £2.7m fortune sparks High Court DNA battle over heirs
McDonald Noel died in 2018, leaving a substantial fortune unclaimed
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 16:06:11 GMTRapper DigDat jailed for life after drive-by shooting in west London
DigDat, whose real name is Nathan Tokosi, was convicted of attempted murder and firearms offences
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 16:03:59 GMTMore migrants come to UK than leave under ‘one in, one out’ deal with France, home secretary admits
Shabana Mahmood admits that ‘relatively small numbers’ of migrants have been deported from or brought into the UK through the one in, one out scheme with France
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 15:06:58 GMTStorm Chandra flooding rips through Devon cafe as heavy rain causes chaos
Heavy rain from Storm Chandra wreaked havoc on a cafe in Devon, which was overcome with floodwater after a nearby river burst its banks.
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 15:02:36 GMTShabana Mahmood reveals the ‘naughtiest thing’ she has ever done
The confession is reminiscent of when Theresa May confessed that she had run through ‘fields of wheat’ as a child
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 14:55:23 GMTConor McGinn: Former Labour MP charged with sexual assault
The 41-year-old, from Lambeth, London, will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on February 27 to face one count of sexual assault
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 14:45:40 GMTWill Labour lose Gorton and Denton by-election after Burnham snub and who is most likely to win?
Recent polling in the northern constituency puts Nigel Farage’s party ahead
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 14:34:40 GMT‘Social media played its part in my son’s suicide - we need a ban to protect young people’
Jane Johnson believes social media damaged her son’s health - she told The Independent why she supports a ban for under-16s
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 14:27:37 GMTPolice officer left with phobia of police stations sues Met for £1m
The Met said it is ‘incredible’ for a serving officer to claim they should not have been asked to attend police stations
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 13:56:25 GMTWheelie bin washes up on UK beach after 5,000-mile journey
The bin is believed to have washed into the sea during Hurricane Sally in September 2020
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 13:26:49 GMTWhy Starmer’s China trip has come at the worst possible time
Keir Starmer is the first PM since Theresa May to visit China, but political editor David Maddox explains why a trip to Beijing now – amid faltering relations with the US and speculation about a leadership challenge at home – leaves the prime min...
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 13:17:37 GMTIdris Elba convicted after being caught speeding at 28mph on scooter
Idris Elba was caught going 28mph in a 20mph zone on his BMW moped
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 12:51:29 GMTMinister refuses to say if UK HIV funding will be fully protected from aid cuts
Jennifer Chapman, the minister of state for international development and Africa, says the UK will still work with organisations that have ‘proved themselves effective’
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 12:41:11 GMTKing’s private estate owns part of Wigan site that has become ‘UK’s worst illegal waste dump’
Duchy of Lancaster claimed it is exempt from cleaning up the site, due to an ancient feudal law
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 11:57:46 GMTVoices: ‘It’s chaos’: Readers on Labour infighting, Tory defections and Britain’s broken political system
Our community sees the Burnham by-election row and Suella Braverman’s defection as the latest symptoms of Britain’s broken politics, warning that Labour is increasingly mirroring the Conservatives it once opposed
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 11:50:05 GMTBBC considers using iPlayer to catch out licence fee dodgers
Last year over £500m was lost due to licence fee evasion
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 11:38:47 GMTWilliam Hill owner to close shops after ‘significant blow’ from Rachel Reeves’ Budget
Evoke stated it has acted to mitigate the financial blow from the November Budget
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 11:04:46 GMTShabana Mahmood defends rollout of live facial recognition to all police forces
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the technology is ‘a really big opportunity’ and there is ‘no true liberty’ if people are scared of crime.