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180 headlines found — Page 3 of 15

The Guardian Politics29 Apr 2026

Reform’s Scottish leader called ‘tone deaf’ after boasting about his houses, cars and yachts

SNP leader John Swinney suggests Malcolm Offord and other leaders should publish tax returns before 7 May UK politics live – latest updates The leader of Reform UK in Scotland, Malcolm Offord, has been dismissed as “tone deaf” and “entitled” after he boasted in a televised election debate about the number of cars, houses and boats he owned. Responding to the row on Wednesday morning, the SNP leader, John Swinney, proposed that all party leaders should publish their tax returns before the elect

PoliticsEconomyReform
The Guardian Politics29 Apr 2026

Rachel Reeves’s tax shake-up: time to plan ahead, from Isas to self-assessment

The chancellor’s changes will come into force in April 2027, affecting everyone from savers to landlords and sole traders. Experts say to act now Millions of people will be affected by a range of savings, investment and tax changes that take effect in just under a year’s time. “April 2027 may feel some way off, but when it comes to financial planning, a year is not a long time,” says Jason Hollands at the wealth management firm Evelyn Partners. Continue reading...

PoliticsEconomyHousing
The Guardian Politics28 Apr 2026

No 10 dismisses Reeves’s reported plan for freeze on private rents

Downing Street says focus to remains on cutting bills, backing renters and lowering energy prices Downing Street has dismissed a freeze on private sector rents even as Rachel Reeves left the door open to the idea, after the Guardian revealed the chancellor has been considering it as an option to cut the cost of living. A No 10 spokesperson said on Tuesday freezing private sector rents was “not the approach we will be taking” after sources told the Guardian it was Reeves’s preferred solution for

PoliticsEconomyHousing
The Guardian Politics28 Apr 2026

Rachel Reeves’s fiscal rules buffer should be ‘significantly larger’, say peers

Lord committee says chancellor and recent predecessors have allowed themselves too little room for manoeuvre Business live – latest updates Rachel Reeves should aim to run a “significantly larger” buffer against her fiscal rules, according to a report from a House of Lords committee that says the UK’s public debt is on an unsustainable trajectory. The chancellor raised taxes at last year’s budget in order to more than double the “headroom”, or buffer, against her fiscal rules to £22bn – some o

PoliticsEconomy
The Guardian Politics27 Apr 2026

Mandelson and McSweeney: a partnership forged on winning and crushing the Labour left

Former chief of staff who helped bring Mandelson out of Labour shadows for Washington post to be questioned by MPs on vetting process Like many Labour stories, Peter Mandelson’s and Morgan McSweeney’s both start at Lambeth council. Mandelson was in his mid-20s. It was 1979, and he was a new councillor under the leadership of “Red” Ted Knight. He came to despise the local party, describing the Lambeth Labour party’s leadership as “contributing very little to the economic development of south Lond

PoliticsEconomy
The Guardian Politics27 Apr 2026

Rachel Reeves considering rent freeze to limit Iran war fallout

Exclusive: Sources say chancellor is examining exceptional measures to protect household budgets Rachel Reeves is considering imposing a one-year rent freeze on private sector homes amid growing alarm in government about the impact of the Iran war on voters’ budgets. Landlords in England would be banned from raising rents for a limited period of time under the proposals, which are being debated within government as part of a major cost of living package to be launched in the coming weeks. Conti

PoliticsEconomyDefenceHousing
The Guardian Politics27 Apr 2026

What the parties promise Welsh voters on the NHS, schools, childcare and tax

Labour, Plaid Cymru, Reform, the Greens, the Tories and the Lib Dems set out competing plans but offer little detail on how they would pay for them The parties most likely to win the Senedd election next month offer radically different futures for Wales, but all six are facing criticism for not being “upfront” in their manifestos about the fiscal challenges the next Welsh government will face. Labour, Plaid Cymru, Reform UK, the Green party, the Conservative party, and the Liberal Democrats are

PoliticsEconomyEducationEnvironmentReformHousingHealthcare
The Guardian Politics26 Apr 2026

UK urged to deploy EU-style ‘trade bazooka’ against Trump’s tariffs

‘Inadequate economic security’ is putting growth and jobs at risk, says British Chambers of Commerce UK business leaders have called on the government to build an EU-style “trade bazooka” to protect Britain’s economic interests in response to the latest tariff threats from Donald Trump. As transatlantic tensions rise, the British Chambers of Commerce said the UK’s “inadequate economic security” was putting growth and jobs at risk. Continue reading...

Economy
The Guardian Politics26 Apr 2026

UK departments at odds over energy demands of AI datacentres

Discrepancy in forecasts raises questions over government planning for net zero One vision of the UK’s future involves a decarbonised economy powered by clean, renewable energy. Another involves making the UK an AI superpower. The government departments responsible for these two visions do not appear to have agreed on their numbers. Continue reading...

EconomyEnvironment
The Guardian Politics25 Apr 2026

Unlucky chancellor? Iran shock hits Reeves just as UK seemed to turn corner

The economy and public finances were on the right path, bond yields were falling, interest rates likely to drop further … then came the US-Israeli attack Donald Trump’s war on Iran is “folly”; shadow chancellor Mel Stride should be “lined up for the sack”; and the Liberal Democrat Daisy Cooper’s plan for managing fuel shortages is “fundamentally economically illiterate”. Rachel Reeves has always relished a political fight, but in recent days she has been swinging at her opponents with what looks

PoliticsEconomyDefence
The Guardian Politics24 Apr 2026

Britain should seek to rejoin EU, says civil servant who led Brexit department

Philip Rycroft says promises on issues from economics to immigration have not lived up to expectations Britain should start talking about rejoining the EU, according to a former senior civil servant who ran the Brexit department. Philip Rycroft, who was permanent secretary of the Department for Exiting the EU, said the “argument was there to be won” about going back into Europe, adding that a “clear-headed appraisal of what is in the country’s best interests” was needed. However, he said rejoini

EconomyImmigration
The Guardian Politics24 Apr 2026

Trump says he will ‘probably put a big tariff on the UK’ if it doesn’t drop digital services tax

US president accuses UK of thinking it can ‘make an easy buck’ from US tech companies, weeks after warning that UK–US trade deal can be changed Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on the UK if it does not drop its digital services tax on US social media firms. The digital services tax, introduced in 2020, imposes a 2% levy on the revenues of several major US tech companies. Continue reading...

EconomyDefence