As the UK economy enters a rough patch, government needs to give substance to its flagship soundbiteBritain’s economic recovery from lockdown is stalling and inflation is on the rise. With the approach of autumn, prophecies made earlier this year for a…
Want to ‘level up’ the UK? Just give places the power and money they need | John Harris
The government pits regions against one another in a battle for handouts. Meanwhile, it keeps cutting local authority fundingFor a term that has been in circulation for more than two years, “levelling up” has not been the catchiest of political concept…
Tory party has ‘ugly’ values under Boris Johnson, says Ed Davey
Lib Dem leader emphasises vulnerability of Conservative seats in ‘blue wall’ in conference speechBoris Johnson has reshaped the Conservative party to his own “ugly” values, Ed Davey has argued, using his speech to the Liberal Democrat conference to mak…
Majority of UK’s small energy suppliers could be left to collapse this winter
Government would rather protect households than prop up struggling companies, says industry sourceThe majority of the UK’s small energy suppliers could be left to collapse this winter, the Guardian understands, as the government’s crisis talks focus on…
Firms urged to protect workers from abuse in ‘wild west’ UK gig economy
Union says couriers reported being harassed at least once a week while doing their workGig economy firms are facing calls to better protect their workers, as an MP and a trade union warn of a wave of harassment and physical and emotional abuse facing c…
Tories repelled by Johnson can help the Lib Dems knock down the blue wall | Andrew Rawnsley
Ed Davey, the Lib Dem’s leader, has decided to stake his party’s chips on trying to take seats off the ConservativesThe world is hanging on every word from the virtual conference of Britain’s Liberal Democrats this weekend, as no one ever said. The Lib…
Child poverty now costs Britain £38bn a year, says new independent report
Despite Conservative claims to have reduced childhood deprivation, the burden on taxpayers has soared over the past eight yearsThe cost of child poverty has soared over the past eight years under the Conservatives and has now reached £38bn a year, acco…
Noisy neighbours spark 67% rise in police complaints
Cash-strapped councils ‘struggling to deal’ with spike in anti-social behaviour reportsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coveragePolice forces across England faced a sharp increase in complaints about noisy neighbours during last year…
Britain’s broadcast media is too valuable to be the toy of politicians and moguls | Will Hutton
Rupert Murdoch launches a new channel, C4 is threatened and notions of impartiality seem up for grabs. Are we seeing a challenge to the old order?Britain’s stubborn attachment to non-Tory values infuriates and worries Conservative politicians to equal …
Making waves in the Pacific: how Boris Johnson’s Global Britain went rogue
Defence pact with Australia and the US increases chance of confrontation with China and spurs nuclear proliferationLife got a little more dangerous last week. It wasn’t due to the pandemic or the climate crisis. It was entirely the result of the consci…