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187 headlines found — Page 5 of 16

The Guardian Politics16 Mar 2026

Minister plays down Trump’s Nato threat, arguing US alliance strong enough to ‘outlast’ current issues – UK politics live

Pat McFadden says Trump running a ‘transactional presidency’ and that ‘our job is to navigate this’ Good morning. Keir Starmer is holding a press conference in Downing Street this morning. As Kiran Stacey reports, the PM’s main intention will be to announce support for people most hit by rising energy prices, particularly householders reliant on heating oil. The measures are expected to be worth tens of millions of pounds. But, inevitably, most of the focus likely to be on how Starmer responds t

PoliticsDefenceHousing
The Guardian Politics16 Mar 2026

UK not obliged to support every demand of ‘transactional’ US president, minister says

Donald Trump has threatened Nato allies over failure to send ships to protect strait of Hormuz, but Pat McFadden says UK relation with US remain strong Middle East crisis live Donald Trump is a “very transactional” president, whose repeated demands on Iran must be seen in this context, one of Keir Starmer’s most senior ministers has said in an unusually blunt UK assessment of relations between the countries. Asked about the US president’s threats of some sort of retaliation against allies who

Defence
The Guardian Politics15 Mar 2026

Decriminalising abortion: how could the House of Lords amend the legislation?

After MPs voted last year to change the law in England and Wales, members of the Lords will now put forward proposed amendments MPs voted last year to end the criminalisation of women who terminate pregnancies outside the legal framework. It was hailed as the biggest step forward for reproductive rights in England and Wales in six decades. On Wednesday evening, abortion law will again come under the parliamentary spotlight when members of the House of Lords put forward their proposed amendments

PoliticsDefenceCrime
The Guardian Politics15 Mar 2026

Labour has weapons in its arsenal to cushion the poorest from Iran war economic fallout | Heather Stewart

Timely end of two-child limit plus a healthy uptick in universal credit signals ‘lifechanging’ boost to Britons most exposed to ‘Trumpflation’ It doesn’t involve warships, drones or strategic oil stocks, but one of Labour’s most potent weapons for containing the economic aftershocks from the Iran war for the UK is about to be unleashed: the scrapping of the two-child limit. If the cost of essential goods spikes as a result of high oil prices it is the poorest households who will be the most expo

EconomyDefence
The Guardian Politics14 Mar 2026

Trump calls on UK to send warships to keep strait of Hormuz open

US president urges nations to deploy vessels to keep key oil shipping route open amid conflict with Iran Donald Trump has said the UK should send warships to help keep the strait of Hormuz open. In a post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday, the US president urged the UK and other countries to deploy vessels to the strait amid the conflict with Iran. Continue reading...

Defence
The Guardian Politics13 Mar 2026

UK signs ‘rebooted’ defence agreement to protect Irish waters

Most transatlantic cables go through or close to Ireland, making its waters particularly vulnerable to attack The UK has signed a “rebooted” defence agreement with Dublin that could mean the Royal Navy responding to hostile ships and other issues in Irish waters. The deal, announced at the second post-Brexit Ireland-UK summit, held in Cork on Friday, updates a 2016 agreement to include cyber-threats and the sabotage of critical internet and electricity undersea cables. Continue reading...

Defence
The Guardian Politics13 Mar 2026

UK petrol retailers claim ‘inflammatory language’ of ministers led to staff abuse

Trade body to attend Reeves meeting hours after saying it was pulling out over suggestions of ‘price gouging’ • Watchdog puts UK fuel retailers ‘on notice’ over profiteering from Iran war • Business live – latest updates • UK politics live – latest updates The trade body for the UK’s petrol station industry has fuelled a row with the government after claiming that the “inflammatory language” used by ministers to describe rising pump prices may have incited abuse against forecourt staff. The Petr

PoliticsDefenceReformCrime
The Guardian Politics13 Mar 2026

Give mayors more powers to tackle youth unemployment crisis, says Alan Milburn

Exclusive: Government’s work tsar warns that having young people not in work will create ‘long-term scarring effect’ Mayors across England should be given greater powers to tackle the youth unemployment crisis and avoid the “long-term scarring” of regions outside London, the government’s work tsar has said. Alan Milburn, who is leading a major review into increasing inactivity among Britain’s young people, said the issue could not be solved by Whitehall alone. Continue reading...

Defence
The Guardian Politics13 Mar 2026

Reeves vows to ‘crack down’ on energy and fuel bosses exploiting Britons through ‘rip-off’ prices – UK politics live

The chancellor is set to meet with energy bosses over concerns that companies are profiteering from oil and gas prices Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of UK politics. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has asked the competition watchdog, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), to “crack down” on “rip off” fuel prices as she prepares to meet energy bosses amid concerns companies are profiteering off the US and Israel’s war with Iran. The Conservative party continue to accuse the governme

PoliticsDefence
The Guardian Politics13 Mar 2026

UK economy unexpectedly flatlined in January, official figures show

Monthly GDP figure comes as higher energy prices look likely to drive up inflation, dashing hopes of interest rate cut Business live – latest updates The UK economy entered the Middle East crisis after a weak start to the year, according to official figures showing flatlining January output before the US-Israel war on Iran hit global energy prices. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed zero growth in gross domestic product (GDP), down from an increase of 0.1% in December,

EconomyDefence
The Guardian Politics12 Mar 2026

In linking Iran to Russia, Healey could be laying ground for hard choices ahead

Defence secretary connects Middle East conflict to plight of Ukraine, sympathy for which remains relatively high After a week or so of wearing media coverage about the deterioration of the Anglo-American relationship and the belated decision to deploy Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon to Cyprus, it was time to move the conversation on. On a visit to the UK’s permanent military headquarters in Northwood, north-west London, the defence secretary, John Healey, asked two senior British military office

Defence
The Guardian Politics12 Mar 2026

The Mandelson papers reveal a prime minister who would rather not hear from dissenting voices | Gaby Hinsliff

Warnings were ignored and processes rushed because No 10 had already made up its mind to let Peter Mandelson sail through The arrogance takes your breath away, even to the end. Sacked in disgrace for bringing shame upon those who trusted him, Peter Mandelson’s response, we now know, was to unsuccessfully demand half a million pounds of public money to go quietly, all while haughtily insisting upon his dignity as a servant of the crown. In other words, this week’s disclosures suggest Mandelson be

Defence