Kemi Badenoch calls Trump’s repeated criticisms of Starmer ‘childish’
Kemi Badenoch has called Donald Trump’s repeated criticisms of Keir Starmer “childish”, as the Conservative leader continued her recent moves to distance herself from the US president and his military action against Iran.Speaking shortly before Trump yet again singled out Starmer, saying the prime minister had not been sufficiently supportive of the US war, Badenoch used a social media video to describe Trump’s actions as counterproductive.Describing herself as “Keir Starmer’s biggest critic”, Badenoch went on: “But the words coming from the White House are completely wrong.I think it’s actually quite childish.There is a lot that can be said behind closed doors.
“We have got [Ukraine’s] President Zelenskyy in our country today,The western alliance having an argument with itself, I think, sends the wrong signal to our opponents, in Iran or in Russia,“We need to be strengthening between the UK and the US, irrespective of who is president and who is prime minister,But I think those words coming from the White House were childish,”Such an open rebuke for Trump is a notable change of stance for Badenoch, who has previously sought to link her style of leadership to his, praising the president for, she said, having the bravery to take on the liberal elite.
When the US and Israel first attacked Iran, Badenoch criticised Starmer for not allowing the US to use UK bases, saying she stood “with our allies in the US and Israel as they take on the threat of the Islamic Republic of Iran and its vile regime”.However, a week ago Badenoch appeared to change her stance, denying that she had called for the UK to join in the war.Her evolving view is likely to be shaped in part by polling that has repeatedly shown the attack on Iran is largely unpopular with British voters, who do not want the UK to become more involved.Badenoch’s remarks followed overnight comments from Trump, who criticised Starmer as being overreliant on advisers in not immediately committing to sending a minesweeper to help reopen the strait of Hormuz.Speaking at the White House on Tuesday as he hosted the Irish taoiseach, Micheál Martin, Trump again condemned Starmer, with whom he had previously enjoyed a relatively warm relationship.
“Well, he hasn’t been supportive, and I think it’s a big mistake,” Trump said of the UK stance on Iran, indicating that it showed a lack of gratitude given US efforts on trade with Britain.Trump said Starmer had told him the UK “was willing to send two aircraft carriers” to the Middle East, but only once the conflict was over, adding: “And I said: ‘No, no, we want things sent before the war, not after the war is won’.So, yeah, I’m disappointed with Keir.I like him, I think he’s a nice man, but I’m disappointed.”Trump then repeated his view that “unfortunately Keir is no Winston Churchill”.
UK government sources disputed the idea that the US had asked for aircraft carriers, and said the situation in the strait of Hormuz was too volatile to send any vessels now,
Reeves plans to give England’s regional leaders a share of national tax revenues
Rachel Reeves has announced that the Treasury will draw up proposals to hand England’s mayors a share of national tax revenues as part of a radical plan to rebalance the economy.The chancellor promised “a genuine break with the past” that would shift spending power away from Westminster, as she promised to create investment-led growth across the UK.Reeves was delivering the Mais lecture – the second time she has given the high-profile annual address at Bayes Business School in London.It is no coincidence that the UK is “the most politically centralised of advanced democracies, and one of the most geographically unequal”, Reeves said.Treasury officials will bring forward a plan at the autumn budget to allow regional leaders to receive a share of national taxes, starting with income tax, she added
Oil and gas prices rise again after Iran attacks production facilities
Oil and gas prices rose again on Tuesday after Iran carried out attacks on production facilities for the first time since the start of the war with the US and Israel.Brent crude, the international benchmark oil price, climbed 2.3% to almost $103 (£77) a barrel and was up nearly 50% from levels before the war began on 28 February. Wholesale gas prices rose nearly 3% to €52 (£45) a megawatt hour, compared with about €30 before the war.For the first time, Iran successfully targeted oil and gas production facilities rather than just refineries, terminals and storage
UK must learn lessons from AI race and retain its quantum computing talent, says minister
The UK will not let quantum computing talent slip through its fingers and must learn lessons from US dominance of the AI race, the technology secretary has said, as the government announced a £1bn quantum funding pledge.Liz Kendall said the government hoped to retain homegrown quantum startups, engineers and researchers rather than lose them to competing countries, with the US stealing a march on its western rivals in AI.“I do look at what’s happened on AI,” said Kendall. “I do think we need to learn the lessons and make sure we give our brilliant scientists, spinouts and startups the ability to stay here and make it happen. And that requires a government that is bold and ambitious and confident in these technologies of the future
Child abuse material ‘systemic’ on Elon Musk’s X amid Grok scandal, Australian online safety regulator warned
The Australian online safety regulator warned Elon Musk’s X amid the Grok sexualised image generation scandal that it found child abuse material was “particularly systemic” on X and more accessible than on “any other mainstream service”, correspondence obtained by Guardian Australia reveals.The eSafety commissioner wrote to X in January after its chatbot, Grok, was used to generate sexualised images of women and children online, which the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, described as “abhorrent”.In the letter, obtained by Guardian Australia under freedom of information laws, eSafety’s general manager of regulatory operations, Heidi Snell, pointed to Musk’s promise when taking over the platform in 2022 that “removing child exploitation is priority #1”, but said “the availability of CSEM [child sexual exploitation material] continues to appear particularly systemic on X”.“eSafety has not identified CSEM to be as readily accessible on any other mainstream service,” Snell said.eSafety had found that while action by X to tackle bot accounts in October 2025 had reduced use of some previously commonly used hashtags and terms to advertise CSEM, eSafety found hashtags to advertise the material still prevalent
Venezuela win first World Baseball Classic title after taming USA in politically fraught final
Venezuela defeated the United States 3-2 on Tuesday night to win their first World Baseball Classic title, a landmark triumph in a politically charged final that resonated far beyond the diamond.Eugenio Suárez drove in the winning run in the top of the ninth inning to seal a dramatic victory for the South American side at Miami’s LoanDepot Park.After Daniel Palencia struck out Roman Anthony with a 100mph fastball for the final out, Venezuelan players poured onto the field, many draped in their national flag, celebrating a moment years in the making.“Nobody believed in Venezuela, but now we win the championship today,” an elated Suárez said afterwards. “What can I say about this? God is good! Jesus, he was with us the whole time
Sabalenka may avoid championships in Dubai after ‘ridiculous’ comment
Aryna Sabalenka says she may never return to compete at the Dubai Tennis Championships after she and Iga Swiatek were harshly criticised by the tournament director for their withdrawals from the tournament last month.“I think it’s ridiculous,” Sabalenka said during her pre-tournament press conference at the Miami Open. “I don’t think he showed himself in the best way possible. For me it’s actually so sad to see that the tournament directors and the tournaments are not protecting us as a player. They just care about their sellings, about their tournament and that’s it
Sale warn England ‘superhuman’ Tom Curry needs time off to prolong career
Joy of chess keeps dark times in check | Brief letters
Broncos reportedly send first-round pick to Dolphins in return for receiver Waddle
‘That’s why we wear USA’: US players embrace military ties before WBC final against Venezuela
The Breakdown | From Ramos to Carré: selecting the best XV of the 2026 Six Nations
‘Everyone in Nashville is a Vandy fan’: how Shea Ralph sparked a women’s basketball revival in Music City