Plans to help working parents with nursery bills are to be  extended to cover carers and  people taking maternity or paternity leave.

i Newspaper
 
TheIPaper
The Independent around the web
E-break Time
Independent Crossword

Rent out your driveways, Eric Pickles tells homeowners as he vows to clamp down on 'parking tax'

Communities Secretary argues renting out spaces can help households increase their income 

Anthony Hilton: Recovery will tip many families over the edge

At a media breakfast on Tuesday Andrew Sentance, the in-house economist for Pricewaterhouse-Coopers, pointed out an oddity in the national income figures.

3D printers could 'pay for themselves' in just two months

New study by Michigan Technological University showed yearly savings of between $300 and $2,000

British Gas has said it could offer free electricity on Saturdays

British Gas plans to offer free electricity on Saturdays

British Gas has said it could offer free electricity on Saturdays in a bid to reduce demand on weekdays.

Parents are increasingly allowing children to use their tablets

Back to the future: How the iPad has recreated that 1950s feeling

Ofcom claims tablet devices are helping families to come together in the living room

Postcard from... Brussels

Britons are making fewer journeys

Britons are venturing outside their homes less, government figures have revealed.

Always keep the key handy: Fire Fighters have linked rise in call-outs to people trapped in handcuffs to Fifty Shades of Grey phenomenon

Fifty Shades hotter? London Fire Brigade blames 'mummy porn' for rising number of handcuff incidents

Fire fighters have linked increasing call-outs to people trapped in handcuffs to the popularity of books such as EL James' "mummy porn" trilogy Fifty Shades of Grey.

The cost of funding renewable energy schemes is being passed on to even the poorest households

'Perverse' environmental charges on even the poorest families could see energy bills go up by a third

The cost of meeting the Government's climate change commitments means all households can expect big price increases, MPs said

Ofwat hires its former star Cathryn Ross to tackle tough times

Ofwat has turned to a star alumna to lead the water regulator, which is facing one of the most testing times in its 24-year history.

Student guide attacked for sexist messaging

A guide published by Endsleigh and promoted by UCAS has come under fire for negative gender stereotyping

Vince Cable, the Business Secretary

Vince Cable accuses Bank of England officials of 'acting like the Taliban'

Business Secretary argued Bank demands are deterring small business lending and preventing recovery

MPs are calling on ministers to give more money to rural areas

Families in the countryside pay more tax for fewer services

MPs conclude that rural communities get a raw deal on education, social care and broadband

Man in his sixties sought after five people are killed

Japan: Hunt on for serial killer who left a haiku clue

Man in his sixties sought after five people are killed in remote rural village

Career Services

Day In a Page

Independent Travel Shop See all offers »
Berlin - East meets West
Three nights from only £399pp Find out more
Europe’s finest river cruises
Four nights from £669pp, seven nights from £999pp or 13 nights from £2,199pp Find out more
Historic Sicily
Seven nights half-board from only £799pp Find out more
Lake Como and the Bernina Express
Seven nights half-board from only £749pp Find out more
Pompeii, Capri and the Bay of Naples
Seven nights half-board from only £719pp Find out more
Special report: How my father's face turned up in Robert Capa's lost suitcase

Special report: How my father's face turned up in Robert Capa's lost suitcase

The great war photographer was not one person but two. Their pictures of Spain's civil war, lost for decades, tell a heroic tale
The unmade speech: An alternative draft of history

The unmade speech: An alternative draft of history

Someone, somewhere has to write speeches for world leaders to deliver in the event of disaster. They offer a chilling hint at what could have been
Funny business: Meet the women running comedy

Funny business: Meet the women running comedy

Think comedy’s a man's world? You must be stuck in the 1980s, says Holly Williams
Wilko Johnson: 'You have to live for the minute you're in'

Wilko Johnson: 'You have to live for the minute you're in'

The Dr Feelgood guitarist talks frankly about his terminal illness
Lure of the jingle: Entrepreneurs are giving vintage ice-cream vans a new lease of life

Lure of the jingle

Entrepreneurs are giving vintage ice-cream vans a new lease of life
Who stole the people's own culture?

DJ Taylor: Who stole the people's own culture?

True popular art drives up from the streets, but the commercial world wastes no time in cashing in
Guest List: The IoS Literary Editor suggests some books for your summer holiday

Guest List: IoS Literary Editor suggests some books for your summer holiday

Before you stuff your luggage with this year's Man Booker longlist titles, the case for some varied poolside reading alternatives
What if Edward Snowden had stayed to fight his corner?

Rupert Cornwell: What if Edward Snowden had stayed to fight his corner?

The CIA whistleblower struck a blow for us all, but his 1970s predecessor showed how to win
'A man walks into a bar': Comedian Seann Walsh on the dangers of mixing alcohol and stand-up

Comedian Seann Walsh on alcohol and stand-up

Comedy and booze go together, says Walsh. The trouble is stopping at just the one. So when do the hangovers stop being funny?
From Edinburgh to Hollywood (via the Home Counties): 10 comedic talents blowing up big

Edinburgh to Hollywood: 10 comedic talents blowing up big

Hugh Montgomery profiles the faces to watch, from the sitcom star to the surrealist
'Hello. I have cancer': When comedian Tig Notaro discovered she had a tumour she decided the show must go on

Comedian Tig Notaro: 'Hello. I have cancer'

When Notaro discovered she had a tumour she decided the show must go on
They think it's all ova: Bill Granger's Asia-influenced egg recipes

Bill Granger's Asia-influenced egg recipes

Our chef made his name cooking eggs, but he’s never stopped looking for new ways to serve them
The world wakes up to golf's female big hitters

The world wakes up to golf's female big hitters

With its own Tiger Woods - South Korea's Inbee Park - the women's game has a growing audience
10 athletes ready to take the world by storm in Moscow next week

10 athletes ready to take the world by storm in Moscow next week

Here are the potential stars of the World Championships which begin on Saturday
The Last Word: Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale's art of manipulation

The Last Word: Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale's art of manipulation

Briefings are off the record leading to transfer speculation which is merely a means to an end