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Voices

The Independent View

If a miserable Starmer is to survive, he must show leadership

Editorial: The PM is struggling to atone for his colossal misjudgement in appointing Peter Mandelson, but his bigger problem is that the country has simply stopped listening to him

<p>Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump meet in Alaska, 2025</p>
Mary Dejevsky

Don’t panic! The end of New Start won’t trigger a new arms race… yet

Richard Godwin

Why do I feel like the only man outraged by the Epstein files?

<p>Georgina Fuller and her son Eddie at Legoland Dubai</p>
Georgina Fuller

Why can’t my autistic son jump the queue at Alton Towers?

<p>The newsreader Jan Leeming complained that noisy children had ruined the lunch she’d paid for</p>
Kat Brown

The only thing worse than children in restaurants is other adults

<p>‘Only a few hours after the release of the latest damning Epstein files, which shared further unsavoury details of his antics, Andrew was photographed on horseback in Windsor, looking as if he owned the place’</p>
Alexander Larman

Andrew’s exile to Marsh Farm is the punishment he deserves

    <p>Christine Keeler, the party girl who played a central role in the Profumo affair, outside Marylebone Court, where in 1963 she was tried for perjury and conspiring to obstruct the course of justice</p>
    Anne McElvoy

    Epstein will go down as an even bigger scandal than the Profumo affair

    <p>‘Bateman’s knee-jerk response of, essentially, “You just haven’t met the right guy yet!” when presented with a grown woman declaring that she’d rather stay child-free, remains frustratingly predictable’</p>
    Helen Coffey

    Men! Stop telling childfree women they ‘haven’t found the right guy’

    <p>Ofcom has launched new guidance for technology firms on the steps they should take to keep women safe online</p>
    Dear Vix

    I can’t believe what a nasty troll said to me online

    <p>The experience of being a doctor in the 1970s is very different to nowadays</p>
    John Cullimore

    I woke up in hospital – now I know why resident doctors are on strike

    <p>Peter Mandelson has offered an apology to the victims of Jeffrey Epstein</p>
    The Independent View

    Mandelson’s fate now intertwined with that of the Labour government

    <p>Peter Mandelson, here announcing his resignation from government in 2004, is implicated in the Epstein files</p>
    Chris Blackhurst

    Mandelson affair shows the UK has become prone to moles and grifters

    <p>Sarah Ferguson with her daughters, Eugenie and Beatrice</p>
    Joy Lo Dico

    Will Fergie’s disgrace now bring down Beatrice and Eugenie?

    <p>After Scott, left, lost his identical twin Brian, he entered a unique grief ‘focused on loss of the future and my identity’ </p>
    Scott Hinkle

    I have never known fear and pain like losing my identical twin

    <p>Shabana Mahmood’s rush to scrap PCCs, as part of her wider policing overhaul, instead of reforming them, looks less like a quest for efficiency and more like a masterclass in political manoeuvring</p>
    Festus Akinbusoye

    Trust me, we’ll miss police and crime commissioners when they’re gone

    <p>Kemi Badenoch: ‘By channelling her inner Nigerian, Kemi has signalled she wants to win</p>
    Ava Vidal

    At last! Kemi Badenoch has embraced her inner Nigerian…

    <p>Charlotte with her golden retriever, Muggles</p>
    Charlotte Cripps

    I’m sick of outrageous vets fees – it’s time for an ‘NHS for pets’

    <p>The case at the High Court on who could swim at Hampstead Heath ladies’ pond found that trans women should be welcome</p>
    Olivia Petter

    I am thrilled that trans women can swim in Hampstead ladies’ pond

    Explore news for you

    More Voices

    <p>‘Mandelson via Epstein was serving not the UK, but the other side. Not the Russians, the usual foe, but the banks’</p>
    Voices

    Epstein was in effect a secret member of the British cabinet

    Voices

    Epstein was in effect a secret member of the British cabinet

    Chris Blackhurst
    <p>‘Mandelson via Epstein was serving not the UK, but the other side. Not the Russians, the usual foe, but the banks’</p>
    <p>King Charles (Andrew Milligan/PA Wire)</p>
    Voices

    A personal design for life, according to King Charles

    <p>Morgan McSweeney, here with Keir Starmer, has a lot to answer for – but so does his boss</p>
    Voices

    If I were Morgan McSweeney, I’d fear being knifed by Starmer

    <p>Prime minister Keir Starmer addresses the Mandelson scandal</p>
    Voices

    What is keeping Keir Starmer in place is the lack of a successor

    <p>Angela Rayner shocked observers by siding with the Tories</p>
    UK Politics

    ‘Starmer has to go’: Readers on Mandelson files and Labour infighting

    <p>Angela Rayner shocked observers by siding with the Tories</p>
    UK Politics

    ‘Starmer has to go’: Readers on Mandelson files and Labour infighting

    <p>Christine Keeler, the party girl who played a central role in the Profumo affair, outside Marylebone Court, where in 1963 she was tried for perjury and conspiring to obstruct the course of justice</p>
    Voices

    Epstein will go down as an even bigger scandal than the Profumo affair

    The Independent View

    Keir Starmer cannot afford to break his promise of transparency

    Most commented

    I’m sorry for appointing Mandelson and believing his Epstein lies, Starmer says

    112 comments

    Starmer apologises over Mandelson-Epstein scandal amid calls to resign - live

    377 comments

    Wargame simulates how Russia could take Nato country ‘within days’

    125 comments

    Ukraine war live: ‘Catastrophe’ for Russia as troops cut off from Starlink satellites

    316 comments
    Join the Conversation

    More Voices

    <p>There has been a rapid adoption of GLP-1 medication</p>
    Health

    ‘Thin isn’t everything’: Readers on living with Ozempic side effects

    <p>The Bear features a chaotic family (PA/Disney)</p>
    Voices

    A friend has dropped me because of an argument between our kids

    <p>Some couples had spent tens of thousands on a single day</p>
    Love & Sex

    ‘No need to waste thousands on one day’: Readers on no-fuss weddings

    <p>Peter Mandelson was brought back in by Keir Starmer as ambassador to Washington, which seemed a gamble even at the time</p>
    Voices

    Epstein’s ‘dog muck’ is a smell that Labour can’t wash off

    <p>Peter Mandelson’s instinctive reaction to each of his many downfalls has been: ‘How do I get out of this one?’</p>
    Voices

    Mandelson clearly thinks scandal is for little people

    <p>Peter Mandelson has resigned from Labour to spare the party ‘further embarrassment’</p>
    The Independent View

    Mandelson must hand in his title and face up to Congress

    <p>Peter Mandelson was brought back in by Keir Starmer as ambassador to Washington, which seemed a gamble even at the time</p>
    Voices

    Epstein’s ‘dog muck’ is a smell that Labour can’t wash off

    <p>Peter Mandelson’s instinctive reaction to each of his many downfalls has been: ‘How do I get out of this one?’</p>
    Voices

    Mandelson clearly thinks scandal is for little people

    <p>Peter Mandelson has resigned from Labour to spare the party ‘further embarrassment’</p>
    The Independent View

    Mandelson must hand in his title and face up to Congress

    <p>A picture from the ‘Epstein Files’ which appears to show Lord Mandelson in his underwear speaking to an unknown person wearing a bathrobe</p>
    Voices

    Of course Peter Mandelson deserves to be thrown out of the Lords

    Voices

    Of course Peter Mandelson deserves to be thrown out of the Lords

    Sean O'Grady
    <p>A picture from the ‘Epstein Files’ which appears to show Lord Mandelson in his underwear speaking to an unknown person wearing a bathrobe</p>
    <p>Albert Besnard’s painting Peace and Justice hangs above the door to the Peace Palace in The Hague</p>
    Voices

    If the ICJ fails the Rohingya, international law will be weakened

    <p>‘The women in these photographs are living with permanent consequences. They will never see the justice they deserve’</p>
    Voices

    It is time for Andrew to come clean about everything he knows

    <p>Donald Trump blows a gold whistle to start the 2025 White House Easter Egg Roll</p>
    Voices

    Is Donald Trump wreaking havoc with the price of gold?

    <p>My very first thought when I saw the images, with all of their stark intimacy of detail (the former prince’s bare feet, the casual polo shirt, the hand resting on the stomach of the unknown young woman), is that it feels like a violation</p>
    Voices

    All women will recognise the same thing in the latest Epstein photos

    <p>My very first thought when I saw the images, with all of their stark intimacy of detail (the former prince’s bare feet, the casual polo shirt, the hand resting on the stomach of the unknown young woman), is that it feels like a violation</p>
    Voices

    All women will recognise the same thing in the latest Epstein photos

    <p>Federal agents grab a woman and drag her away from her car, days after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good, in Minneapolis</p>
    Voices

    Trump’s ICE crackdown is on pause… but not for long

    <p>Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is standing defiant in Iran<a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/ali-khamenei"></a></p>
    The Independent View

    Trump must proceed with caution on Iran

    <p>Plumber Hannah Spencer, 34, has been selected as the Green Party’s candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election</p>
    Voices

    The next election could be Reform vs Green… and nothing in between

    <p>Five years of revolutionary struggle have demonstrated that though the junta can massacre whole communities, it will never extinguish a people’s thirst for freedom, justice and dignity</p>
    Voices

    After five years of murder, it is time for a radical rethink on Burma

    <p>Julia Roberts visits an independent bookshop in the film ‘Notting Hill’</p>
    Voices

    Bookshops offer more than books – so why aren’t they prized like pubs?

    <p>Haroon Ahmed's IPP sentence was quashed after judges ruled it was not justified </p>
    The Independent View

    One man’s struggle lights up a wider scandal

    <p>Keir Starmer on his trip to China</p>
    Voices

    ‘Never Here’ Keir’s trip to China is not the cause of his problems

    <p>President Donald Trump waves as he walks from Marine One after at the White House, Jan 27, 2026</p>
    Voices

    Trump’s a bully – but even he’s running scared of ICE snatch squads

    <p>During an experiment, students preferred an AI article over one written by a human</p>
    Voices

    The author, me vs ChatGPT – why do young people prefer AI’s writing?

    <p>Elon Musk at the World Economic Forum in Davos</p>
    Voices

    Musk and Bezos have given Starmer a worrying glimpse of the AI future

    <p>Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage visits Gorton and Denton with candidate Matt Goodwin</p>
    Voices

    Why Matt Goodwin isn’t the Reform winner Farage thinks he is

    Voices

    Why Matt Goodwin isn’t the Reform winner Farage thinks he is

    Alan Rusbridger
    <p>Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage visits Gorton and Denton with candidate Matt Goodwin</p>
    <p>The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, pictured in 2019, is part of a ‘massive armada’ that has arrived in the Middle East</p>
    Voices

    As Iranians, we cannot witness these crimes and remain silent

    <p>The prime minister believes he is not returning from China empty-handed</p>
    The Independent View

    Starmer has a fragile China success – now he must handle it with care

    <p>A regime humiliated abroad is striking out at its own people</p>
    Voices

    In Iran, no one can breathe in this atmosphere of fear

    <p>Lloyds constantly tells us it is ‘backing the British economy’ to which the obvious riposte is ‘prove it’</p>
    Voices

    Do Lloyds bank’s rosy figures show the UK is about to boom?

    <p>Lloyds constantly tells us it is ‘backing the British economy’ to which the obvious riposte is ‘prove it’</p>
    Voices

    Do Lloyds bank’s rosy figures show the UK is about to boom?

    <p>Farage’s recruits may have frontline experience, but they are giving Reform an image problem and confusing their supporters</p>
    Voices

    Welcome to Reform, Nigel Farage’s crumbling care home for old Tories

    <p>‘It still accelerates faster than a cougar’</p>
    Voices

    Where my old car’s concerned, familiarity breeds contentment

    <p>Readers are increasingly turning their backs on dreams of US travel</p>
    Americas

    ‘I won’t go near Trump’s America’: Why tourists are ditching US trips

    <p>‘Just after Keir Starmer’s first King’s Speech, YouGov found that support for nationalising water had risen to 82 per cent from 59 per cent in 2017, more even than backing nationalising the rail or energy sectors’</p>
    Voices

    Think January’s bad for bills? Just wait until ‘awful’ April ...

    <p>Donald Trump has said ‘a massive armada’ led by the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln is heading to Iran</p>
    Voices

    Is Iran heading for its ‘Venezuela moment’?

    <p>In opposition, Labour gave the Waspi women the impression that they would be helped</p>
    The Independent View

    Yet another stinging betrayal for the Waspi women

    <p>Harry Styles fans have criticised the cost of tickets for his latest tour</p>
    Music

    ‘A week’s wages for a ticket’: Readers fume over soaring tour prices

    <p>Martin Lewis, Britain’s auxiliary chancellor of the Exchequer, was right to give Rachel Reeves both barrels</p>
    Voices

    Everyone can see student loans are unfair. Except the chancellor

    <p>Starmer knew last summer that he was already fighting for his political life</p>
    Voices

    Keir Starmer is too cowardly to do the right thing on welfare

    <p>Julianne Moore in ‘Still Alice’</p>
    Voices

    Dear Vix: I want to go and see my dying mum – but my dad won’t let me

    <p>‘China will at some point become the world’s biggest economy. Not engaging would be a case of Britain cutting off its nose to spite its face, one of those rare fields in which it leads the world’</p>
    Voices

    From Cool Britannia to Cringe: Starmer shows what he’s selling China

    Voices

    From Cool Britannia to Cringe: Starmer shows what he’s selling China

    James Moore
    <p>‘China will at some point become the world’s biggest economy. Not engaging would be a case of Britain cutting off its nose to spite its face, one of those rare fields in which it leads the world’</p>
    <p>Donald Trump with his ‘steely-eyed Slovenian-born glamazon’, Melania</p>
    Voices

    If ‘Melania’ flops, Donald Trump will get the blame

    <p>Vera Baird, chair of the Criminal Cases Review Commission</p>
    The Independent View

    At last, a turning point in the bid to end indefinite detentions

    <p>More than 6,000 people have been killed in Iran’s crackdown on nationwide protests </p>
    Voices

    Iran’s dead pile up in the streets – so why has the West been silent?

    <p>‘Starmer can hardly be criticised for following the King of Spain, the President of France and the Prime Minister of Finland on the path of homage to Beijing. The German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will not be far behind’</p>
    Voices

    Starmer must juggle China’s ‘red emperor’ with America’s orange one

    <p>‘Starmer can hardly be criticised for following the King of Spain, the President of France and the Prime Minister of Finland on the path of homage to Beijing. The German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will not be far behind’</p>
    Voices

    Starmer must juggle China’s ‘red emperor’ with America’s orange one

    <p>Sir Keir Starmer, as seen on the screen of a smartphone that’s made in China (PA)</p>
    Voices

    The PM is right – supporting British business in China is a smart move

    <p>‘You have never met my father, but if he were with you now, he would tell you that silence in the face of injustice is a form of complicity’</p>
    Voices

    My message to Sir Keir: Free my father Jimmy Lai before it is too late

    <p>Pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai was found guilty in Hong Kong of collusion with foreign forces, as well as conspiracy to print and distribute seditious publications</p>
    Voices

    My father Jimmy Lai’s imprisonment isn’t justice – Britain must act

    <p>Liverpool’s waterfront, including the Liver Building </p>
    Lifestyle

    ‘Liverpool is wonderful’: Readers on swapping London for other cities

    <p>Keir Starmer and Xi Jinping at G20 in 2024, as the two leaders prepare to meet again this week</p>
    The Independent View

    The perils and promise of Sir Keir’s visit to China

    <p>Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham was blocked from standing in the Gorton and Denton by-election</p>
    Voices

    I have not seen Labour turn on itself like this since the 1970s

    <p>The RAF F-35B Lightning jet, on the flight deck of the HMS Queen Elizabeth, is part of an ageing defence system</p>
    Voices

    America is the unreliable partner the UK really needs to worry about

    <p>Bruising on the president’s hand has been subject to frenzied debate</p>
    Voices

    Saying Trump may have Alzheimer’s is no way to bring him down

    <p>Suella Braverman told the crowd that Nigel Farage was the only man in UK politics who has been ‘courageously consistent’ </p>
    UK Politics

    ‘It’s chaos’: Readers on Britain’s broken political system

    <p>US Border Control Commander Gregory Bovino during a protest against ICE in Minneapolis</p>
    Voices

    Trump’s enforcers have unleashed a fascist fairytale on America

    <p>Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced plans for a major overhaul of policing in England and Wales </p>
    The Independent View

    Shabana Mahmood’s policing shake-up will be felt in our neighbourhoods

    The Independent View

    Shabana Mahmood’s policing shake-up will be felt in our neighbourhoods

    Editorial
    <p>Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced plans for a major overhaul of policing in England and Wales </p>
    <p>Nigella Lawson will bring a ‘mouthwatering charm’ to ‘Bake Off’... pity she has to content with ‘stale’ co-stars like Paul Hollywood</p>
    Voices

    Nigella Lawson cannot save Bake Off from its real problem... its men

    <p>At least Suella Braverman and Nigel Farage seem to be having fun</p>
    Voices

    Reform UK is filling up nicely with all the ‘wrong’ Tories

    <p>Approval for Trump’s signature policy has plummeted even among those who voted for it – so why is an appetite growing elsewhere?</p>
    Voices

    What’s happening with ICE in America could happen in Britain, too

    <p>Readers say Sir Keir Starmer’s plan to make Brexit the central election issue gives Labour a huge opportunity</p>
    UK Politics

    ‘Open goal’: Why readers think Brexit should define the next election

    <p>Readers say Sir Keir Starmer’s plan to make Brexit the central election issue gives Labour a huge opportunity</p>
    UK Politics

    ‘Open goal’: Why readers think Brexit should define the next election

    <p>Catherine, Princess of Wales, wears Russell & Bromley during a tour of Jaguar Land Rover in Birmingham in 2017</p>
    Voices

    What does Russell & Bromley’s fate mean for the ‘Kate effect’?

    <p>Prime minister Keir Starmer blocked Andy Burnham’s bid to stand in the Gorton and Denton by-election</p>
    Voices

    ‘Burned out’ Burnham was never the answer to Labour’s problems

    <p>Women-only carriages would not make public transport safer</p>
    Voices

    Sorry, but women-only carriages will only make things worse

    <p>Trump has developed a close friendship –some would say unhealthily so – relationship with head of Fifa Gianni Infantino</p>
    Voices

    Could a US World Cup boycott over Trump’s Greenland threat work?

    <p>The legacy of the Covid 19 vaccine should not be squandered</p>
    Voices

    5 years ago UK unis gave us a Covid jab – let’s keep the legacy alive

    <p>‘Trump is a T-rex,’ said Newsom. ‘You mate with him or he devours you’</p>
    Voices

    The Gavin Newsom I know is ready to take on ‘T-rex’ Trump

    <p>Something of the night?: Robert Jenrick may suffer the same ignominious fate as another aspiring right-wing prime minister, Michael Howard</p>
    Voices

    Robert Jenrick has a fatal ‘something of the night’ image problem

    <p>At the Reform UK conference on Thursday, Farage said, following Jenrick’s defection: ‘This is a big day in the realignment of the genuine centre-right of this country’</p>
    Voices

    Why would anyone vote for a dumping ground for disappointed Tories?

    <p>‘Trump is a T-rex,’ said Newsom. ‘You mate with him or he devours you’</p>
    Voices

    The Gavin Newsom I know is ready to take on ‘T-rex’ Trump

    <p>Something of the night?: Robert Jenrick may suffer the same ignominious fate as another aspiring right-wing prime minister, Michael Howard</p>
    Voices

    Robert Jenrick has a fatal ‘something of the night’ image problem

    <p>At the Reform UK conference on Thursday, Farage said, following Jenrick’s defection: ‘This is a big day in the realignment of the genuine centre-right of this country’</p>
    Voices

    Why would anyone vote for a dumping ground for disappointed Tories?

    <p>Reform UK leader Nigel Farage unveils Nadhim Zahawi as the latest Tory defector</p>
    Voices

    Why Farage may live to regret welcoming ‘loyal’ Zahawi into the fold

    <p>Tying Trump’s hands won’t be easy – but a growing number of Republicans are eager to try</p>
    Voices

    It’s time for Washington to step up and stop Trump

    <p>’How many national leaders will be tempted to ask themselves why, if the US can mount such unilateral action against a sovereign country in pursuit of what it may justify in terms of its own national security, they should not do the same?’</p>
    Voices

    How the capture of Nicolas Maduro will upend the global order

    <p>US President Donald Trump speaks during the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland</p>
    Voices

    Trump has chickened out again. And I think I know why…

    <p>Donald Trump can try to push him around all he likes, but Keir Starmer will do anything rather than get out of the way</p>
    Voices

    Donald Trump’s ambition is up against Keir Starmer, diplomatic bollard

    <p>Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer needs to communicate Labour’s message better</p>
    The Independent View

    Starmer needs to focus on Labour’s message to stop in-fighting

    <p>A supporter of the National Citizen Party, formed in the wake of the youth-led 2024 uprising</p>
    Voices

    As Bangladesh heads to the polls, human rights must come first

    <p>Andy Burnham has been blocked from contesting the Gorton and Denton by-election by Labour’s NEC (James Manning/PA)</p>
    Voices

    Andy Burnham blocked: Keir Starmer is ruthless but right

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