UK Independent
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 09:56:23 GMTJeremy Corbyn backs iconic Hackney music venue in battle against local development
Former Labour leader calls on government to do more to protect music venues
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 09:53:43 GMTUS plane dubbed the ‘nuke sniffer’ lands in UK amid growing tensions with Iran
US president Donald Trump has warned ‘massive armada’ of American forces building up in the Middle East
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 09:42:58 GMTUK-China latest: Minister says ‘bonkers’ not to deal with Beijing after Trump blasts Starmer’s Xi meeting
PM met Chinese president on Thursday as he made case for ‘more sophisticated’ relationship between two nations
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 09:26:02 GMTDaughters of forest recluse win £1m inheritance battle against ‘domineering’ aunt
Michael Gwilliam was suffering from ‘insane delusions’ when he drew up his will, judge rules
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 09:17:16 GMTWatch: Killer teen pretends to be witness at murder scene of schoolboy Leo Ross
The teenage killer of Leo Ross gave a false account of finding the schoolboy already injured, police bodycam video shows.
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 08:53:11 GMTBayeux tapestry move ‘at risk’ due to UK potholes
Experts have warned vibrations caused by poor road conditions could risk ripping the fragile cloth during its journey
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 08:50:25 GMTMillions of families to get £150 off energy bills every year to 2030
Around six million families will benefit from the extension
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 08:32:54 GMTNo 10 welcomes EU move to label Iran’s Revolutionary Guards terrorists – but won’t say if UK will do the same
The EU agreed to include Iran’s IRGC on its list of terrorist organisations on Thursday
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 07:36:39 GMTQuestion Time audience erupts as Reform UK branded ‘care home for old Tories’
The BBC Question Time studio erupted into laughter as an audience member took a swipe at Reform UK.
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 07:02:05 GMTUK weather map: Where heavy rain is expected to hit after Storm Chandra flooding
Storm Chandra continues to cause chaos as two weather warnings issued for rain on Friday and another on Saturday
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 06:35:03 GMTWhy train passengers are missing out on £80 million a year in compensation
Trainline has launched a petition calling on the Government to enable “one click” claims to be made by all online ticket buyers
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 01:33:58 GMTDesperate search for missing British girl, 7, swept out to sea on holiday in Morocco
Inaayah Makda was with her family on holiday in Morocco when she was swept out to sea
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:53:25 GMTBoots and Superdrug accused of misleading shoppers with ‘dodgy’ reward card deals
The consumer protection watchdog has been asked to intervene over the issue
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:50:43 GMTAI-supported breast cancer screenings result in fewer aggressive cases
Routine screening prevents around 1,300 deaths from breast cancer each year in the UK, but AI-supported mammography screenings could save more lives
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:01:00 GMTPetrol prices drop to lowest level in almost five years
A litre of petrol at UK forecourts costs an average of 131.91p, the RAC said
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:01:00 GMTCo-op to open new stores as part of UK expansion
A few stores are also set to be refurbished
Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:01:00 GMTGovernment and NHS fail to take ‘any meaningful steps’ to tackle spiralling medical negligence costs
The government and NHS England have been sharply criticised by MPs for their failure to take "any meaningful steps" to slash the rising costs of clinical negligence in England, despite two decades of warnings.
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 23:35:47 GMTKing Charles gets go-ahead for huge slurry pit on Sandringham estate despite villagers’ concerns over smells
Villagers had raised fears over “safety issues and unpleasant odours” from the slurry lagoon
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 22:24:22 GMTStarmer urged to secure Jimmy Lai’s release during visit to China – saying he faces ‘de facto death sentence’
Sir Keir’s visit to China has largely focused on fostering closer economic ties with the East Asian trading giant, aiming to mend relations after a strained period under the previous Conservative government
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 21:57:21 GMTReform demands Badenoch apologises to Braverman over mental health claim - or face legal action
Reform says Kemi Badenoch has until Friday afternoon to publicly apologise
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 19:46:41 GMTScotland’s first-ever deputy first minister Jim Wallace dies aged 71
His family confirmed the news in a short statement
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 19:24:03 GMTBritons travelling to China will no longer need visas, No 10 announces after Starmer meeting with Xi
Britons will be able to travel to China for 30 days without a visa under the new deal, which will apply to both tourists and business travellers
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 19:17:03 GMTMillions of Waspi women ‘betrayed’ as government refuses to grant compensation over state pension age changes
Labour work and pensions secretary Pat McFadden apologised that women born in the 1950s were not sent individual letters about their state pension changes earlier, but said a flat-rate scheme could have cost £10bn
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 19:03:51 GMT‘Not moral’: Martin Lewis takes student loan repayment swipe at Rachel Reeves
Martin Lewis has issued a stark message to Chancellor Rachel Reeves over the decision to freeze the student debt repayment threshold.
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 18:37:44 GMTPaedophile nursery worker admits 30 new sexual offences
Vincent Chan is facing years behind bars for molesting girls aged three and four while working at a London nursery
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 18:10:13 GMT‘Madonna is my idol – now she’s a regular at my Margate restaurant’
Bottega Caruso in the Kent seaside town has been named by the singer as her ‘favourite Italian restaurant’
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 17:57:02 GMTGraduates being ‘squeezed’ for cash-strapped government, experts warn amid fury over student loans
Anger grows as chancellor insists current system is ‘fair’
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 17:29:01 GMTGrey squirrels could be given contraceptives to control invasive species
Native red squirrel numbers have meawnhile plummeted to just 38,900,
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 17:07:25 GMTBaby born in serious condition after pregnant mother struck by e-bike in hit-and-run
The e-bike hit-and-run happened in Poole, Dorset, on Monday
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 17:07:09 GMTMHRA issues warning after seizing illegal fillers worth up to £4m
The medicines agency warned unlicensed fillers could ‘put your health at risk’ as they have not passed safety standards
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 16:51:30 GMTRussian cargo ship anchors over trans-Atlantic cables in Bristol Channel
Sinegorsk anchored in Minehead for 14 hours while reportedly under surveillance by HM Coastguard and the Royal Navy
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 16:47:05 GMTJudge rules that baldness is a disability in tax row with wig makers
The groundbreaking judgement found that severe hair loss can ‘adversely affect’ the ability to carry out everyday activities
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 16:07:47 GMTPigeon flock could be given contraceptives after taking over city’s market
The contraceptives would be stocked in bird feeders and mixed with grain
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 16:00:26 GMTMan was kept alive on artificial lung for two days while he waited for double transplant
Only about 150 to 200 lung transplants are carried out in the UK each year and it can be hard to find a suitable donor
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 15:06:34 GMTTeen pleads guilty to murdering schoolboy on walk home
At just 12 years old, Leo Ross is believed to be the youngest victim of knife crime in the West Midlands
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 14:49:23 GMT50,000 prisoners to be freed early in bid to tackle overcrowded jails
It is part of a scheme which allows eligible prisoners to be released after serving only 40% of their fixed-term sentence
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 14:09:06 GMT‘I work as a doctor in the NHS – I’ll never be able to pay back my student loan’
Taking out a student loan was once seen as an investment in your future. But as graduates face soaring rates of inflation, they say the loans are leaving them ‘locked’ into debt
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 13:28:15 GMT‘Hero’ bus driver sacked after chasing down thief who stole passenger’s necklace
Mark Hehir had worked as a London bus driver for Metroline for about two years before the incident
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 13:10:46 GMTAstraZeneca pledges $15 billion China investment during Starmer trip
The deal is the largest of Starmer’s visit to China as Britain seeks to strengthen ties
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 13:05:29 GMTMoment police snare Neo-Nazi bomb maker who fantasised about ‘turning Muslims into mincemeat’
Bodycam footage shows the moment Harry Whittaker, a neo-Nazi fanatic who made homemade explosives in his garden shed and spoke of turning Muslims into “mincemeat”, was arrested.
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 12:27:22 GMTHolyrood election must be ‘referendum on SNP’s record’, says Liz Kendall
The UK Science and Technology Secretary was speaking as she visited the site of Scotland’s first AI Growth Zone in Lanarkshire on Thursday.
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 12:13:38 GMTAndy Burnham says he was in a ‘better position than anybody’ to beat Reform in by-election
The Greater Manchester mayor was blocked from standing in the northwest seat
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 11:42:54 GMTStarmer signs landmark deal with China to tackle small boats crisis
The agreement to share data is significant because 60 per cent of the engines used to power the small boats come from China
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 11:34:58 GMTMan arrested after 600 artefacts stolen in Bristol museum robbery
Four men are believed to have been involved in the raid at Bristol museum last year
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 11:33:04 GMTWaspi compensation decision from DWP expected imminently
Waspi have long-campaigned for redress for the way state pension changes were communicated
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 11:12:19 GMTPost Office guarantees money on the high street until 2030 as UK cash use rises
A new five-year agreement with banks and building societies comes into effect from now
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 11:10:04 GMTPolice who raised child welfare concerns at burgled home ‘disgraceful’, MP says
North Yorkshire Police has defended officers’ actions while responding to burglary report
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 11:09:56 GMTAnother arrest made over fires at properties linked to Keir Starmer
A fifth suspect has been arrested in connection with arson attacks on properties linked to the prime minister
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 10:50:31 GMTPrimary school teacher banned after drinking can of beer in classroom and eating mints after every sip
Steven Ward claimed a ‘witch hunt’ had been carried out against him, but was banned from teaching indefinitely
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 10:20:23 GMTNorovirus hospital cases hit new winter high
An average of 950 hospital beds were filled each day last week by people with norovirus symptoms
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 10:09:31 GMTWater bills set to rise again: Check how much more you’ll be paying
Household water bills across England and Wales will rise by an average of 5.4 per cent from April
Thu, 29 Jan 2026 10:06:24 GMTNo more drunken sailors? Navy to restrict alcohol in health kick on ships
Sailors will be restricted to 14 units each week and must fill in a form to show what drinks they have consumed