Labour urges Nigel Farage to say whether he has financial interest in his Clacton home

Labour has asked Nigel Farage to confirm whether he has any financial interest in his constituency home, after it emerged that his partner bought the house – saving him a £44,000 tax bill.The Reform UK leader has come under scrutiny over the property in Clacton, Essex, after saying four times earlier this year that he had bought a house there.However, the Guardian revealed in May that the £895,000 house had in fact been bought by his partner, Laure Ferrari, with Farage saying his name did not appear on the deeds “for security reasons”. If he had made the purchase, he would have been liable for 10% stamp duty rather than 5% because it was an additional property.Since then, tax experts have pointed out that if Farage had any beneficial ownership in the property it could mean a tax liability

Boris Johnson’s integrity nowhere to be found in leaked files | Brief letters

Pippa Crerar and Jessica Elgot tell us that the leaked files obtained by the US non-profit Distributed Denial of Secrets “raise further questions about [Boris] Johnson’s integrity” (Boris Johnson had dinner in lockdown with peer funding flat refit, files suggest, 8 September). What integrity?Patricia Baker-CassidyOxford So Boris Johnson is revealed to have possibly ignored rules for his own benefit and at our expense. In other news, the pope is revealed to be Catholic.Jonathan HarrisPoundon, Buckinghamshire Talking to my young neighbour as we sat on the grass in Parliament Square on Saturday, holding our placards against the banning of the protest group Palestine Action (Report, 7 September), I asked her what she was reading. She said it was George Orwell

Starmer’s reshuffle and march of Reform dominate discussions at TUC conference

For union delegates gathering in Brighton, sunshine glimmered on the Channel outside the annual TUC conference but the focus for many inside was on stormy developments elsewhere.After a tough first year in power for Labour, two big spectres dominated the meeting: disappointment with Keir Starmer’s government, and the march of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.The prime minister’s unexpectedly far-reaching reshuffle had provoked union fears that Labour may temper its plan to boost workers’ rights in yet another pro-growth reset.Business leaders are already sensing an opportunity: Britain’s economy is weak, inflation is rising, Rachel Reeves’s tax on employment in her first autumn budget has chilled the jobs market, and the prospect of further rises, in her second act on 26 November, are looming.For many it was ironic that the union gathering was taking place while the London Underground was brought close to a standstill by striking RMT members

Peter Mandelson called Jeffrey Epstein ‘my best pal’ in 50th birthday letter

The UK ambassador to the US, Peter Mandelson, called the deceased billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein “my best pal” in a letter included within an alleged birthday book released by US lawmakers.The handwritten note, which is interspersed with photographs of Lord Mandelson, Epstein and some of his properties, was provided to the House committee on oversight and reform, the main investigating committee in the US House of Representatives.The bundle of correspondence was collated by Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted sex offender, for Epstein’s 50th birthday and includes a sexually suggestive letter and drawing that appears to bear the signature of Donald Trump. The White House denied the letter was authentic.The UK embassy in Washington was approached for comment but Mandelson, one of the architects of the New Labour project in the UK, has previously said he regrets “ever meeting” Epstein or “being introduced to him” by Maxwell

How Keir Starmer’s polling became one of the worst in the west – in charts

By his own admission, Keir Starmer has focused intently on foreign affairs since entering No 10, mediating between Europe and the US.But a year after his election, the British prime minister is standing out on the global stage for another reason: his approval rating at home is among the lowest of any western leader.A pan-European survey conducted at the end of August by the polling company YouGov found just 22% of British people have a favourable opinion of Starmer, in contrast with the 69% who view him unfavourably – a net rating of -47%.The polling was conducted before the resignation of the former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner forced Starmer into a cabinet reshuffle.Only one other European leader is more unpopular at home than Starmer: Emmanuel Macron, the embattled French president of eight years whose party lost the most recent legislative election

Peter Kyle, the ‘tech bro’ minister charged with kickstarting UK growth

When Peter Kyle begins a 7,000-mile flight from Washington to Beijing this week, Britain’s new business secretary could reflect on how far he has already come.Kyle struggled at school due to dyslexia and left, in his own words, “without any usable” qualifications. He made it to university in his 20s after several failed attempts.Now, days after accepting his second ministerial brief in the reshuffle triggered by Angela Rayner’s resignation, Kyle is leading talks with White House officials about the US-UK technology partnership. With no time to celebrate his 55th birthday on Tuesday, the business secretary will then jet off for tentative and delicate discussions with China about deeper economic cooperation