Uk

Starmer has resigned, but what can new PM do differently against Reform UK?

When Starmer led Labour into the election in 2024, he was facing down the party's traditional rivals in the Conservatives

From landslide win to downfall: How Keir Starmer lost backing of supporters

Dutiful rather than dynamic, Keir Starmer was elected Britain's prime minister to be a safe pair of hands who would end years of political chaos under the Conservatives. His term is ending less than two years later after missteps, party infighting and one colossal error of judgment that indirectly ensnared him in the scandals surrounding Jeffrey Epstein, a man he had never met and whose sexual crimes he was not complicit in. On Monday, Starmer said in an emotional statement that he is stepping down as leader of the governing Labour Party, though he will remain caretaker primer minister until a new Labour leader is chosen in coming weeks. "The question my party is asking now is whether I am best placed to lead us into the next general election," he said. "I have heard the answer of my parliamentary party to that question, and I accept that answer with good grace." Starmer's selling point was "no more soap opera politics," said Rob Ford, a political science professor at the Universit

Britain's economic woes fuel Brexit discontent a decade after EU exit

Simon Boyd's firm makes prefabricated steel structures on the south coast of England and ships them to customers as far away as Ghana and Barbados. Mike Hawes represents Britain's carmakers as the head of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. The business leaders were on different sides of the debate when Britain voted to leave the European Union in 2016. But 10 years later they are both frustrated by Brexit. A decade ago, backers promised that Brexit would be the key to a bright new future where, freed from the edicts of EU bureaucrats, Britain would regain control of its laws and its borders and the economy would boom. But the reality failed to live up to the hype as Britain struggled to adjust to life without unfettered access to the 27-nation free trade bloc and its market of 450 million people. Economic growth is anemic, taxes are high, public services are creaking and successive governments have been unable to stem the flow of migrants who wash up on the English ...

UK's Starmer considers political future, could decide as soon as Monday

Keir Starmer weighed his future as PM amid growing Labour calls to quit after Andy Burnham's election win intensified leadership pressure

10 years after Brexit vote: How Britain's financial industry recovered

A decade after Brexit, London's finance sector remains resilient but has lost market share as the UK grapples with weaker investment appeal

Donald Trump says Keir Starmer will step down as UK prime minister

Trump claimed Keir Starmer will resign as UK prime minister, blaming him for failures on immigration and energy policy

Starmer vows to fight as Burnham's win fuels Labour leadership showdown

Labour's Andy Burnham, the current mayor of Greater Manchester, has won a special election for a seat in Parliament that puts him in a position to challenge embattled Prime Minister Keir Starmer for leadership of the country. Burnham decisively won the seat of Makerfield in northwest England over Rob Kenyon of the anti-immigration party Reform UK. The victory announced early Friday cements the status of Burnham, a 56-year-old politician nicknamed the King of the North, as the top contender to replace Starmer as leader of the Labour Party and the country. Burnham won almost 55 per cent of the 45,510 votes cast for a field of more than a dozen candidates, over 9,000 more than runner-up Kenyon. Burnham's victory speech left no doubt that he wants to lead the country, and not just be one of the more than 400 Labour lawmakers in the 650-seat House of Commons. "Everyone knows that politics isn't working," he said. "Everyone can feel that the country isn't where it should be. Tonight coul

UK bypoll could hasten the rise of Andy Burnham and the end for Starmer

Keir Starmer isn't on the ballot, but the U.K. prime minister's future is on the line in a special election on Thursday. Voters in the Makerfield district of northwest England are electing a new lawmaker, and the leading contender is Andy Burnham of the governing Labour Party, the current mayor of Greater Manchester and oddsmakers' favorite to be the next prime minister. If Burnham defeats a candidate from the anti-immigration party Reform UK and wins the seat for Labour, he's almost certain to challenge the embattled Starmer for leadership of the party, and the country. Burnham has pledged that "if people put their trust in me, I will change politics" - a big promise for a politician who, if he wins, will be just one of 650 lawmakers in the House of Commons. But the scores of journalists from around the world who have flocked to Makerfield during the campaign are evidence that this is no normal by-election, the results of which are due early Friday. Starmer struggles since landsl

French Navy, backed by UK, intercepts sanctioned Russian oil tanker: Macron

The French Navy, with support from the United Kingdom, has intercepted an oil tanker under international sanctions that was travelling from Russia, the latest effort by nations that support Ukraine to target Russian oil exports helping to finance President Vladimir Putin's war. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the interception in a post Monday on X, saying the Tagor was boarded on Sunday in the Atlantic. The post included a video showing a person rappelling from a helicopter onto a ship. "It is unacceptable that boats skirt international sanctions, violate the law of the sea and finance the war that Russia has been waging for more than 4 years against Ukraine," Macron wrote. "These ships, that don't respect the most elementary rules of maritime navigation, are also a threat to the environment and everyone's security." Oil revenue is a key part of Russia's economy, allowing Putin to pour money into the war effort against Ukraine without worsening inflation for everyday peo

Exceptionally early heat wave shatters records, causes deaths across Europe

The United Kingdom smashed a century-old temperature record for the second time in 24 hours on Tuesday as a spring heat wave scorches parts of Western Europe, triggering government warnings about risks to life. Several drownings were reported in Britain and France as people tried to cool down. A temperature of 35.1 degrees Celsius (95.2 degrees Fahrenheit) was recorded at London's Kew Gardens, Britain's Met Office weather service said, breaking the 34.8 C (94.6 F) record set a day earlier at Kew. The provisional readings smashed the long-standing record of 32.8 C (91.4 F) set in 1922 and matched in 1944. London also recorded a rare "tropical night", defined as one in which the temperature does not fall below 20 C (68 F). Records also fell in France, where temperatures reached 36 C (97 F) on Monday in the country's southwest and widely remained above 20 C at night. The national weather service, Meteo-France, said a "heat dome", with heat held in place by a high-pressure weather fron

Hinduja family tops UK's rich list under new generation of brothers

The Hindujas retained their top spot as the UK's richest family in the 2026 'Sunday Times Rich List', released on Friday, under a new generation of brothers following the death of Gopichand Hinduja last year. "Sanjay and Dheeraj Hinduja and family" emerged as the UK's richest for the fifth successive year with an estimated 38 billion pounds, up from last year despite global headwinds. The Hinduja Group operates in 38 countries with investments across several sectors, including mobility, digital technology, banking and financial services, media, project development, lubricants and specialty chemicals, energy, real estate, trading, and healthcare. "The death of their father, Gopi Hinduja, at the age of 85 last November has handed his place at the top of the 'Sunday Times Rich List' to his London-based sons, Sanjay and Dheeraj," the newspaper notes. "Sanjay, 62 this month, chairs Gulf Oil International while Dheeraj, 54, oversees the automotive giant Ashok Leyland. The latter has had

Trump to remove scotch whiskey tariffs in 'honour' of UK royals' visit

Trump added that the decision was driven by longstanding trade ties between the two regions, particularly in barrel production and the whiskey supply chain

King Charles meets top company CEOs in bid to promote US-UK investment

The British monarch and his wife, Queen Camilla, focused on economic and cultural exchanges on the third day of a visit timed to mark the 250th anniversary of America's independence

Trump claims King Charles aligns with US against Iran's nuclear ambitions

Trump claimed that the US remains resolute in its mission to prevent Tehran from achieving atomic capabilities, suggesting the King shared this conviction

Beneath King Charles's jokes and decorum, there is subtle rebuttal to Trump

King Charles III gently pushed back against President Trump's attacks on Britain and Nato

South Korea passes UK to become world's eighth-largest stock market

The total market capitalization of Korean-listed companies has surged more than 45 per cent this year to $4.04 trillion, while the UK's has climbed about 3 per cent to $3.99 trillion

UK inflation rises to 3.3% in March as Iran war impact begins to hit

The British central bank is expected to keep borrowing costs on hold on April 30 at the end of its next scheduled Monetary Policy Committee meeting

Datanomics: Rupee weakens, Indian economy slips to sixth-largest

India's GDP in domestic currency terms records a CAGR of 8.56 per cent between 2021 and 2025, reflecting highest economic growth among major economies

UK govt puts Chagos Islands deal on hold after Trump's opposition

Trump in February said a plan to hand over Chagos Island to Mauritius, while retaining control of the joint US-UK military base of Diego Garcia through a lease, was a 'big mistake'

India, UK discuss enhancing defence cooperation, interoperability

Navy's official spokesperson said the interaction took place on Wednesday and focused on strengthening collaboration across maritime and aerospace domains