Closing summary
It’s coming up to 9pm in the UK. This blog will be closing shortly but you can find all the Guardian’s UK politics coverage here.
According to the Metropolitan police, about 110,000 people were in attendance in central London for a ‘unite our kingdom’ march featuring far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon. Crowds of people waving St George’s and union flags made their way from near Waterloo Bridge to Whitehall.
A smaller counter-protest led by Stand Up to Racism, with a march led by a Women Against the Far Right contingent including the MPs Zarah Sultana and Diane Abbott, saw supporters gather in Russell Square before heading towards Whitehall. The Met police estimated there were about 5,000 in the crowd, with many holding placards that said “refugees welcome” and “oppose Tommy Robinson” while chanting “say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here”.
Police said they had to intervene in multiple locations to try to stop supporters of the “unite the kingdom” march from entering sterile areas. The force also said that a number of officers had been assaulted, and that some members of the crowd breached police cordons or tried to reach opposing groups.
There were nine arrests, with many more likely, the Met said, as violence flared at the protest. More people were identified to be committing offences. “We will find them and they will face police action, even if it is not possible to do so today,” the force wrote in a social media post.
Elon Musk addressed the crowd attending the march via video link. He said a “dissolution of parliament” and a “change of government” is needed in the UK, and also railed against the “woke mind virus”. Other speakers included Katie Hopkins and French far-right politician Éric Zemmour.
Elsewhere, away from the demonstrations near Whitehall, Keir Starmer was photographed attending the Arsenal v Nottingham Forest football match taking place at the Emirates Stadium in north London.
Updated
Home secretary condemns protesters
The home secretary condemned protesters who attacked and injured police officers at the march.
Shabana Mahmood posted on X on Saturday evening: “The right to peaceful protest is fundamental to this nation. I thank the police who worked hard to ensure much of today’s protest was peaceful.
“But I condemn those who have attacked and injured police officers. Anyone taking part in criminal activity will face the full force of the law.”
Also on X, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey criticised Elon Musk for comments delivered via video link in which he said a “dissolution of parliament” and a “change of government” were needed in the UK.
Davey said: “Our democracy is too precious to be a plaything for foreign tech barons.
“Elon Musk doesn’t care about the British people or our rights. He only cares about himself and his ego.”
Updated
Counter-protesters penned in
Ben Jamal, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, was one of the anti-fascist counter-protesters who was blocked in by supporters of the “unite the kingdom” march in central London.
Jamal said that as the some of the supporters of the counter-protest, led by Stand Up to Racism, attempted to get to Whitehall, they were surrounded by thousands of marchers from the “unite the kingdom” march, led by far-right activist Tommy Robinson. This created a blockade and meant they were unable to move without intimidation from marchers.
The Metropolitan police said it was trying to create a safe route for these counter-protesters to leave. However Jamal said those in the anti-fascist crowd were told the force did not have the resources to help at the time.
Jamal said that the counter-protesters aimed to keep morale high through music and dancing, although there was still “a degree of fear” created by the sheer scale of the “unite the kingdom” march. “There was a sense of astonishment that this was allowed to happen, there were fascists on top of government buildings,” he said.
He criticised the police’s “inability or unwillingness” to get them out of the blockage.
He said: “It is a deeply depressing spectacle when there are many people marching in support of racist narratives.
“For 22 months I’ve been leading pro-Palestine marches which have been demonised by the police. But today, they seemed unable or unwilling to stop fascists effectively imprisoning fellow citizens for three to four hours.
“There need to be extremely important questions asked to Mark Rowley and the home secretary.”
Updated
More scuffles broke out between police and supporters of the “unite the kingdom” march as they moved out of Whitehall, PA reports.
Objects including a traffic cone, bottles and pieces of wood were thrown at the line of officers as they started to push the group back towards Trafalgar Square and Northumberland Avenue at around 5.25pm.
After this, at about 5.45pm, than a hundred helmeted officers on foot, backed up by dozens of police horses, have rushed at supporters and them along Northumberland Avenue and towards Embankment station. Some marchers - now largely dispersed - faced them carrying flags.
Here are some more images coming in from central London today:
Watch the Guardian’s video about how communities in Luton, where “unite the kingdom” march leader Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, grew up, are resisting division and fighting back against far-right radicalisation.
Elon Musk addresses the "unite the kingdom" march crowd via video link
Elon Musk has addressed crowd attending the “unite the kingdom” march, via video link. He spoke to march leader, far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, over the video call.
Musk claimed that a “dissolution of parliament” and a “change of government” is needed in the UK. He said: “I really think that there’s got to be a change of government in Britain. You can’t – we don’t have another four years, or whenever the next election is, it’s too long. Something’s got to be done. There’s got to be a dissolution of parliament and a new vote held.”
Musk told the march rally: “My appeal is to British common sense, which is to look carefully around you and say ‘If this continues, what world will you be living in?’
“This is a message to the reasonable centre, the people who ordinarily wouldn’t get involved in politics, who just want to live their lives. They don’t want that, they’re quiet, they just go about their business.
“My message is to them: if this continues, that violence is going to come to you, you will have no choice. You’re in a fundamental situation here. Whether you choose violence or not, violence is coming to you. You either fight back or you die, that’s the truth, I think.”
The X owner told the crowd “the left are the party of murder”, referring to the death of Charlie Kirk. He said: “There’s so much violence on the left, with our friend Charlie Kirk getting murdered in cold blood this week and people on the left celebrating it openly. The left is the party of murder and celebrating murder. I mean, let that sink in for a minute, that’s who we’re dealing with here.”
Musk also said that the British public are “scared to exercise their free speech” and claimed the BBC was “complicit in the destruction of Britain”.
When they finished their conversation, Robinson said: “Not only are we in the fight right now, but we’re on the advance thanks to free speech being fought for, for us, by Elon Musk.”
Updated
Nine arrests have been made so far for various offences, police say
The Metropolitan police have said nine arrests have been made so far at the Tommy Robinson-led “unite the kingdom” march, although “many more people have been identified as committing offences.”
Writing on X, the force said: “We will find them and they will face police action, even if it is not possible to do so today.”
The post by the Metropolitan police also said officers are continuing to face aggression in multiple locations, in particular at the north of Whitehall. This is where the police are attempting to create safe routes for those attending the anti-fascist counter protest, led by Stand Up To Racism.
According to the police, officers also faced “unacceptable violence” by attendees of the “unite the kingdom” march at Victoria Embankment, where supporters went to try to access Whitehall as the turnout for the march was too large.
Officers were reportedly kicked and punched. Bottles, flares and other projectiles were thrown.
An update as of 16:50hrs.
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) September 13, 2025
The turnout for the 'Unite the Kingdom' protest was too big to fit into Whitehall. Protesters left the route onto Victoria Embankment and sought to access Whitehall from multiple directions as shown on the map below.
When officers moved in to stop… pic.twitter.com/ovvYKEWrFR
A giant dance party has erupted among the anti-fascists who are trapped on Whitehall with far-right groups on every side.
The sun has almost come out and people of all ages are dancing to Lose Yourself to Dance by Daft Punk. Some of the moves are questionable but everyone is in good spirits.
Meanwhile, at the Trafalgar Square end of Whitehall, clashes are continuing between police and the supporters of the “unite the kingdom” march, but the police are slowly gaining ground. Fireworks were fired at mounted police from the supporters.
On the other side of the barrier, antifascists are chanting. An injured man with blood coming from a head wound was carried through the barrier by police medics and brought through the crowd of antifascists who jeered and shouted “nazi scum”.
Updated
Drinks cans have been thrown by supporters of the “unite the kingdom” march towards anti-fascist counter-demonstrators as thousands from both sides stared each other down on Whitehall – PA reports.
A line of police horses were facing the union flags, and at one point a glass bottle appeared to smash against a police horse, causing the horse and rider to stagger backwards.
There were only metres between the crowds from both sides, and reportedly a stick was seen being thrown from the Stand Up to Racism side. A Stand Up to Racism speaker reiterated from the stage that stewards were working to find a safe route for protesters to exit Whitehall, as Robinson supporters had congregated on each adjoining road.
Whitehall was so full so quickly that it was closed to marchers before the first speakers even took to the stage, leaving thousands stuck on Westminster Bridge and in Parliament Square.
On Whitehall, crammed in front of three big screens, the crowds swelled to what sometimes felt like dangerous levels. People stood on bus stops and portable toilets to get a better view of speakers including Katie Hopkins, Tommy Robinson, Laurence Fox and the Canadian podcaster Ezra Levant.
One man waved a sign saying: “Why are white people despised when our tax money pays for everything?” Another had a placard that said: “Call centres: speak English.”
Updated
The Metropolitan police has said it had to intervene in multiple locations to try to stop supporters of the “unite the kingdom” march from entering sterile areas.
The force also said that a number of officers had been assaulted, and that some members of the crowd breached police cordons or tried to reach opposing groups.
Officers are having to intervene in multiple locations to stop Unite the Kingdom protesters trying to access sterile areas, breach police cordons or get to opposing groups.
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) September 13, 2025
A number of officers have been assaulted. pic.twitter.com/QcQ5EyN2Pw
Updated
It appears as though officers have allowed one of Tommy Robinson’s supporters through the police line in efforts to calm the crowd, some of whom have clashed with riot police and could be seen throwing objects at the police line.
The group seem agitated, with lots of shouting and shoving. The police have brought in reinforcements in the form of another line of riot officers.
The anti-fascist group are now penned in at either end of a section of Whitehall, with the “unite the kingdom” group occupying Trafalgar Square.
Updated
Here are some more images coming in from central London today:
Updated
Police have asked Stand Up to Racism protesters to stay on Whitehall as ‘unite the kingdom’ supporters have gathered on all of the adjacent roads, a speaker has said.
A large crowd waving union jack flags could be seen in the distance on Trafalgar Square, which is at the top of Whitehall, reports the PA news agency.
Summary of the day so far
Here is a summary of the day so far:
According to the Metropolitan police, about 110,000 people are in attendance in central London for a ‘unite our kingdom’ march featuring far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon. Crowds of people waving St George’s and union jack flags made their way from near Waterloo Bridge to Whitehall.
A smaller counter-protest by Stand Up to Racism, with a march led by a Women Against the Far Right contingent including the MPs Zarah Sultana and Diane Abbott, saw supporters gather in Russell Square before heading towards Whitehall. The Met police estimated there were about 5,000 in the crowd, with many holding placards that said “refugees welcome” and “oppose Tommy Robinson” while chanting “say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here”.
Police carrying riot shields have been keeping the two demonstrations apart, but the Met police said that officers were attacked by projectiles thrown from the ‘unite the kingdom’ crowd and had to “use force to avoid their cordon being breached”. Stand up to Racism protesters shouted “fascist scum” while the opposing group shouted at the line of officers and towards the anti-fascist crowd, as they waved union jack flags and a metres-wide St George’s flag that said “stop the boats”.
Tommy Robinson, also known as Stephen Yaxley Lennon, urged his followers to remain calm because of frustration from crowds at the ‘unite the kingdom’ rally not able to get close enough to the stage and hear the speeches being made. He wrote on X: “We are asking all of you, everyone who is understandably frustrated, to please remain calm and peaceful. Let’s keep things safe and civil.”
Prior to the Stand Up to Racism march, independent MP Diane Abbott warned that “the far right are a menace to the whole of society”. She added: “Their first targets, asylum seekers and Muslims, are broadening to all migrants, black people and on to trade unionists, all religious minorities and anti-racists.”
Away from the demonstrations near Whitehall, Keir Starmer was photographed attending the Arsenal v Nottingham Forest football match taking place at the Emirates Stadium in London.
Updated
Tommy Robinson, also known as Stephen Yaxley Lennon, urged his followers to remain calm because of frustration from crowds at the ‘unite the kingdom’ rally not able to get close enough to the stage and hear the speeches being made.
He said on X:
We understand peoples frustrations at not being able to get near the stage or the PA system. We are asking all of you, everyone who is understandably frustrated, to please remain calm and peaceful.
Let’s keep things safe and civil.
Despite this, the Metropolitan police said that officers were attacked by projectiles thrown from the crowd.
The PA news agency reports that Stand up to Racism protesters have been shouting “fascist scum”, metres from a group of Robinson’s supporters who are behind police carrying riot shields. In return, the group could be seen shouting at the line of officers and towards the anti-fascist crowd, while waving union jack flags and a metres-wide St George’s flag that said “stop the boats”.
The ‘unite the kingdom’ rally crowd are at the edge of Horse Guards Avenue while the anti-fascist protesters are gathered on Whitehall. The two streets are perpendicular.
Officers attacked with projectiles thrown from 'unite the kingdom' crowd, say Met police
A crowd of ‘unite the kingdom’ supporters have attacked police officers, the Metropolitan police said.
It said on X:
A crowd of ‘unite the kingdom’ protesters attempted to enter the sterile area on Whitehall that is [in] place to keep the two protests apart.
Officers were attacked with projectiles and have had to use force to avoid their cordon being breached.
Thousands of anti-fascist protesters have arrived on Whitehall shouting “our streets” and “the people united will never be defeated”. They turned the corner into the street shortly before 2.30pm and walked towards a stage where speakers will soon address the crowds, reports the PA news agency.
St George’s and union jack flags could be seen on the other end of Whitehall where the ‘unite our kingdom’ march is being held, with the two demonstrations divided by a large police presence including vans.
Meanwhile, prime minister Keir Starmer has been photographed at the Arsenal v Nottingham Forest football match taking place at the Emirates Stadium in London today.
The prime minister is a longtime Arsenal fan with Jeremy Corbyn previously having described Starmer as “a genuine Arsenal supporter”.
Updated
About 110,000 people at 'unite the kingdom' rally, say Met police
The Metropolitan police believe that there are about 110,000 people in attendance at the ‘unite the kingdom’ demonstration and about 5,000 at the Stand Up to Racism march.
Speaking to the Guardian on Saturday afternoon, the Met police said:
It is difficult to estimate numbers in attendance at busy protests but we use a combination of CCTV and police helicopter footage to do so.
We believe the number of people in attendance at the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ demonstration is around 110,000.
We believe the number of people in attendance at the ‘Stand Up To Racism’ demonstration is around 5,000.
Estimates provided by organisers and the police will often differ.
Updated
Scotland Yard also said there had been “no incidents of note” as the Stand Up To Racism march set off.
Hundreds of Stand Up to Racism protesters have started to march towards Whitehall from Russell Square. The crowd chanted “stand up fight back” and “we are the women, we won’t be silenced, stop the fascists now, now, now, now”.
Counter-protest march sets off from Russell Square towards Whitehall
The anti-fascist counter protesters are now on the move towards Whitehall.
The final speech, before the crowd set off was from Weyman Bennett, founder of Unite Against Fascism. He said:
Where does racism and fascism come from? It comes from the top of our society. They start off by telling lies to divide and rule.
Speaking of Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, and those attending the ‘unite the kingdom’ march, he said:
They talk about freedom of speech. There’s no such thing [as] freedom of speech if you say you want to kill someone else.
There were boos from the crowd as he explained that Charlie Kirk, the rightwing activist shot dead in the US this week, had previously said black people shouldn’t have the right to vote. He said:
Don’t tell us to feel sorry for someone like that.
He added:
Tommy Robinson said we shouldn’t march today because we should be afraid of him. We stay to the racists and fascists, they should be afraid of us!
Updated
The Labour government has been “trying to out-racist the racists all summer”, the co-convener of Stand Up to Racism said as she opened the rally speeches at Russell Square.
According to the PA news agency, Sabby Dhalu thanked the “very happy” and “militant” crowd of hundreds, before telling them:
We’ve got to acknowledge that the events over the summer – all of the far-right protests, all of the far-right uniting behind this toxic narrative, and Reform UK and Nigel Farage, along with Tory politicians like Robert Jenrick and Suella Braverman encouraging the protesters, attending the protests in various parts of the country – has meant that we are going to see a very big Tommy Robinson demonstration today.
She added:
Sadly that narrative has been conceded to by the Labour government who have been trying to out-racist the racists all summer, which has just fed this toxic narrative and hatred and racism towards refugees.
Dhalu was followed by author, historian and child sexual abuse survivor Louise Raw – the founder of Survivors Against Fascism – who claimed some far-right protesters who have spoken out against sex attacks were offenders themselves.
“We know the far-right do not stand with survivors, they create survivors”, she said, adding: “Tommy Robinson will not ever speak to you about them ever.”
'Unite the kingdom' march gets under way as Tommy Robinson says 'Britain has finally awoken'
Scotland Yard said there “have been no incidents of note so far” as the ‘unite the kingdom’ march set off towards Whitehall.
Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, said “patriotism is the future, borders are the future” as he claimed it was the “biggest demonstration is British history”. As we mentioned previously, any estimate on numbers at this stage is exactly that – an estimate – and organisers of marches are likely greatly inflate the number of those present.
In a video from the protest, Robinson added that “Britain has finally awoken” and that “this is never going away”.
The PA news agency reports that people could be seen displaying a variety of messages on flags and placards on London’s south bank at the march meeting point. Some waved St George’s flags with the words “stop the boats”, “Charlie Kirk RIP” and “enough is enough, save our children”.
Several US and Israeli flags could also be spotted among the crowd which had gathered on and around Stamford Street.
Updated
Large crowds have begun marching across Westminster Bridge towards Whitehall, with various chants of “Tommy”, “Keir Starmer is a wanker”, “Whose street? Our street” and “England”.
Some are holding signs in support of Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon.
Updated
Thousands of counter-protesters are wrapped around one side of Russell Square, coming from trade unions and anti-racist groups including Stand Up to Racism. The crowd is chanting “refugees are welcome here”.
The MP for Poplar and Limehouse, Apsana Begum, is giving a speech calling for solidarity among communities in the UK in opposition to fascism.
“Let’s stand here and send a message to the far right who continue to spread division and hate,” she said. “Not here!”
Updated
Ant Middleton, Katie Hopkins and an MEP for the populist German AFD party featured in a video posted by Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, titled “the A team” on X.
They, along with other right-wing social media personalities were sitting and laughing around a table, waiting for the march to Whitehall to begin, reports the PA news agency.
Outside on the streets, people waving flags, some adorned in knight outfits or union jack flag suits could be heard chanting Robinson’s name on his livestream which at the time of reporting had more than 250,000 viewers.
From the crowd, a man from New Zealand said he had flown over with “about 100 of my warriors” to take part in the march, reports the PA news agency.
Updated
Far-right activist Tommy Robinson said the “revolution is on” in a video posted to X where he claimed his ‘unite the kingdom’ march was the largest demonstration in British history.
As we mentioned previously, any estimate on numbers at this stage is exactly that – an estimate – and organisers of marches are likely greatly inflate the number of those present.
Robinson told his followers that London was full of “patriots” before saying “the spark has started, the revolution is on”.
There are more than 400,000 people watching Robinson’s live stream on X as they chanted his name and “Keir Starmer is a wanker”.
A presenter on the stream said Robinson is “on his way” to the crowds now.
Updated
Here are some images from one of our reporters on the ground, Helen Pidd:
Counter-protesters in Russell Square, meanwhile, are milling around with placards that say “refugees welcome” and “oppose Tommy Robinson”, chanting: “Say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here.”
Many thousands of people are gathering for the march on Stamford St near Waterloo.
The crowd is 70-80% male and almost exclusively white.
Flags and banners are everywhere and people keep singing “Keir Starmer’s a wanker” to the tune of Seven Nation Army.
Hundreds of people were gathered outside Blackfriars station and lined along Blackfriars Bridge before the rally, PA reports.
Pockets of the crowd started chanting “fuck you Starmer” while many were wearing or holding England and Union flags
London Underground trains heading towards the station were packed with people seemingly on the way to the demonstration.
We’ve got a few more pictures from central London:
Updated
As ever with large protests or marches, it can be hard to get an accurate figure on how many people are attending, with estimates often relying in inflated figures from organisers.
However, the PA news agency is reporting that the number of attendees is already in the ‘thousands’.
The ‘unite the kingdom’ march and rally organised by Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, began in Stamford Street near Waterloo Bridge with crowds building since mid-morning.
The crowds will march towards the southern end of Whitehall.
Around 1,000 officers will be deployed in London in a bid to prevent clashes between protesters with opposing views.
Updated
More than a hundred people have gathered outside Russell Square before the ‘march against fascism’ counter-protest against the ‘unite the kingdom’ march, featuring far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon. Both are being held in central London on Saturday.
According to the PA news agency, people in Russell Square milled around with placards that said “refugees welcome” and “oppose Tommy Robinson”. Chants of “say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here” started at about 11.20am, the news agency reports.
Meanwhile men carrying union jack and St George’s flags were seen sitting outside central London pubs, while others carrying tins of alcohol walked towards the start point of Robinson’s march which will begin near Waterloo Bridge, reports the PA.
Eight police vans – from Warwickshire police, West Midlands police and the Metropolitan police – lined Woburn Street which runs alongside the square.
Updated
'Far right are a menace to the whole of society', says Diane Abbott
The Stand Up to Racism march to a rally at Whitehall will be led by a Women Against the Far Right contingent including the MPs Zarah Sultana and Diane Abbott.
Abbott said:
The far right are a menace to the whole of society. Their first targets, asylum seekers and Muslims, are broadening to all migrants, black people and on to trade unionists, all religious minorities and anti-racists.
Nick Lowles, of Hope Not Hate, said:
This is going to be big, but we are also talking about movement to the right of Reform UK and we still don’t know where it is going.
Updated
Badenoch accuses Starmer of lying about what he knew about Mandelson's involvement with Epstein
Kemi Badenoch has accused the prime minister of lying about what he knew and when about Peter Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The Conservative party leader posted on X on Saturday:
Looks like the prime minister and Labour MPs spent the week lying to the whole country about what they knew regarding Mandelson’s involvement with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Badenoch referred to reports that Downing Street officials were aware of emails between Mandelson and Epstein when Keir Starmer defended the peer during prime minister’s questions. She wrote:
If No 10 had those emails for 48 hours before acting, it means he lied at PMQs and ministers lied again about new additional information. These are yet more errors of judgment.
The prime minister has very serious questions to answer. The only way to clear this up is full transparency about who knew what, and when.
Updated
Stand Up to Racism have organised a ‘Unite Against Tommy Robinson’ march which will begin at 12pm in Russell Square, before going down towards the Strand and ending in Whitehall.
TODAY! See you at 12pm Russell Square. Route of the Unite Against Tommy Robinson march ⬇️ #NoFascismNoRacism #StandUpToRacism #StopTommyRobinson pic.twitter.com/qJgrZGoWCZ
— Stand Up To Racism (@AntiRacismDay) September 13, 2025
Updated
Crowds gather in London for 'unite the kingdom' march featuring Tommy Robinson
Here are some images coming in today via the newswires of crowds gathering in central London for a march featuring far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon.
The rally is expected to attract upwards of 40,000 attenders, according to the anti-extremism group Hope Not Hate. A smaller gathering organised by the group Stand Up to Racism is also taking place.
Updated
Police are not using live facial recognition in its policing of the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ demonstration which is beginning on London’s south bank, reports the PA news agency.
It said:
We’re using a mobile CCTV van to help monitor the build up of crowds. Officers have been asked if it’s using ‘live facial recognition’ – we can confirm it is not.
The live facial recognition technology – which captures people’s faces in real-time CCTV cameras – was used in the policing operation at the Notting Hill carnival.
It is the work shortcut that dare not speak its name. A third of people do not tell their bosses about their use of AI tools amid fears their ability will be questioned if they do.
Research for the Guardian has revealed that only 13% of UK adults openly discuss their use of AI with senior staff at work and close to half think of it as a tool to help people who are not very good at their jobs to get by.
Amid widespread predictions that many workers face a fight for their jobs with AI, polling by Ipsos found that among more than 1,500 British workers aged 16 to 75, 33% said they did not discuss their use of AI to help them at work with bosses or other more senior colleagues. They were less coy with people at the same level, but a quarter of people believe “co-workers will question my ability to perform my role if I share how I use AI”.
The Guardian’s survey also uncovered deep worries about the advance of AI, with more than half of those surveyed believing it threatens the social structure. The number of people believing it has a positive effect is outweighed by those who think it does not. It also found 63% of people do not believe AI is a good substitute for human interaction, while 17% think it is.
Next week’s state visit to the UK by Donald Trump is expected to signal greater collaboration between the UK and Silicon Valley to make Britain an important centre of AI development.
The US president is expected to be joined by Sam Altman, the co-founder of OpenAI who has signed a memorandum of understanding with the UK government to explore the deployment of advanced AI models in areas including justice, security and education. Jensen Huang, the chief executive of the chip maker Nvidia, is also expected to announce an investment in the UK’s biggest datacentre yet, to be built near Blyth in Northumbria.
Keir Starmer has said he wants to “mainline AI into the veins” of the UK. Silicon Valley companies are aggressively marketing their AI systems as capable of cutting grunt work and liberating creativity.
Charlie Kirk killing invoked to bolster UK’s largest far-right rally in decades
The killing of Charlie Kirk is being used by Tommy Robinson to mobilise support before what is expected to be Britain’s largest far-right rally in decades, which will include speakers from Britain, the US and Europe.
Steve Bannon, Donald Trump’s former chief strategist, is among those listed to appear on stage at the rally in central London, which is expected to draw tens of thousands for an event that Robinson has been heavily attempting to monetise.
Other planned speakers on Saturday include Ant Middleton, a former UK special forces soldier who has increasingly used far-right rhetoric, as well as an MP for Germany’s far-right AfD party and a far-right Polish MEP.
Other Americans making the trip include Joey Mannarino, a self-styled US rightwing commentator who said: “All rape cases have just become fake to me” after a civil case alleging sexual assault by Trump.
However, there are doubts about whether one of the most high-profile speakers, the Canadian psychology professor and culture warrior Jordan Peterson, will appear.
While he is listed in the lineup and has been a supporter of Robinson online, he has made no mention of the event recently. His appearance would also pose questions about his continued association with the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (ARC), a yearly gathering in London involving businesses and conservatives that has included the Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, and Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK.
A pause on any new leave being booked has been imposed by police, who have had to contend with violence on the fringes of previous events involving Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon.
The rally is expected to attract upwards of 40,000 attenders, according to the anti-extremism group Hope Not Hate. A smaller gathering organised by the group Stand Up to Racism is also taking place.
The Stand Up to Racism march to a rally at Whitehall will be led by a Women Against the Far Right contingent including the MPs Zarah Sultana and Diane Abbott.
There has been a joke going around Labour MPs over the past week about three envelopes in Soviet Russia. “Whenever you run into trouble, open them in order,” the instructions go. Envelope one says: “Blame your predecessor.” So he does – and it works. The party officials are satisfied. A year later, problems arise again. He opens envelope two. It says: “Restructure the organisation.”
He does a big reshuffle, changes some titles, and again buys himself some time. Finally, another crisis comes. He opens envelope three. It says: “Prepare three envelopes.”
The problem for Keir Starmer is that the MPs sharing the joke believe he has already opened his first two. It is becoming increasingly hard to find anybody in the Labour party who will argue that things are going anything other than disastrously for the government.
They fear that attempts to deal with the multiple difficulties faced by the prime minister over the past year – many of them self-inflicted errors such as the winter fuel duty decision, the freebies row and the handling of welfare cuts – have instead unleashed more chaos.
The most recent example of this is the sacking of Peter Mandelson. When ministers warned that his scandal-ridden history indicated he was more of a risk than an asset – even when the security services allegedly shared concerns – Starmer went ahead and appointed him.
Then, even though Mandelson had warned publicly that more “embarrassing” emails from him to convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were about to be published, Starmer defended him at prime minister’s questions.
With his political judgment repeatedly questioned, Labour people turn to his “vision” for Britain. The problem is they can’t identify what the prime minister really believes in. Allies say he doesn’t like the “V word” and has made no secret of being a distinctly non-ideological politician.
Instead, he believes the government should demonstrate change by making a material difference to people’s lives, through schools, the NHS, the immigration system and the economy, even if that is in relatively slow, incremental steps.
“It’s hopeless,” one minister said. “Too many people feel the country is in decline and the only route back is big, radical solutions. We’re doing lots of good stuff but it barely gets noticed. It just doesn’t hit the mark.”
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Starmer's operation has 'gone into the bunker' after cabinet reshuffle, says Labour MP
Backbench Labour MP Olivia Blake said it feels like Keir Starmer’s operation has “gone into the bunker”.
Discussing last week’s reshuffle, she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme:
It does feel like they’ve gone into the bunker, but they’ve actually thrown half the people out of the bunker at the moment, and we need to get back to a much more inclusive parliamentary Labour party (PLP), inclusive discussions happening with ministers and better representation around the cabinet table.
After a disastrous week in which Angela Rayner resigned and Peter Mandelson was sacked as ambassador to Washington, Labour MPs have begun to ask whether Starmer could be challenged as prime minister.
A number of MPs said a challenge was likely if local and Welsh elections went badly next May. Some said the one thing now protecting Starmer was the lack of an agreed replacement.
Blake said last week’s reshuffle saw a “narrowing” of representation of different parts of the party in ministerial positions:
People just felt that it was such a large reshuffle and, you know, people who were actually delivering in their posts were moved. And it just kind of felt like there was a real narrowing in who was sat around the table, and that can’t be positive, because I think there’s a sense that the leadership don’t like to be challenged.
Asked about the No 10 operation, she said it was “really embarrassing” if Starmer was not told about Lord Mandelson’s emails to Jeffrey Epstein soon enough, amid suggestions Downing Street was aware of the messages before the prime minister defended the ex-ambassador on Wednesday.
Blake said:
We saw through the welfare reforms that they did the same again. They didn’t tell Keir, they didn’t tell the prime minister how bad it was on the back benches. So, you know, he was putting statements out saying, ‘oh, some people can sound off’.
Well, the strength of feeling in the PLP was much, much deeper than that. And again, I just think that whoever’s gatekeeping the information to the prime minister needs to stop. They need to be getting stuff to him much earlier.
She also said backbenchers are frustrated after a number of “own goals” for the government. Blake, the MP for Sheffield Hallam, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme it is “frustrating” that the good work the government has done is “not cutting through” and added:
Instead, we’ve had a number of kind of own goals, and that has meant that we’ve slipped heavily in the polls, and that we seem to be more interested in focusing on each other rather than what’s in the best interest of the country at the moment.
More on this story in a moment. Here are some other key developments:
The killing of Charlie Kirk is being used by Tommy Robinson to mobilise support before what is expected to be Britain’s largest far-right rally in decades, which will include speakers from Britain, the US and Europe.
Senior Labour MPs and the UK’s largest anti-fascist campaign group have called on Keir Starmer to mount a more heartfelt defence of diversity and anti-racism. They say they fear that Labour is not yet putting its “heart and soul” into the battle against Nigel Farage and the far right. Hope Not Hate’s chief executive has written a letter to Starmer in the lead up to a planned far-right demonstration in London on Saturday, demanding the prime minister speak up more against hate and racism.
Lucy Powell has called for a “change of culture” inside Starmer’s Downing Street to make it more inclusive and better connected to MPs, promising that as Labour’s deputy leader she would when needed deliver difficult truths to the prime minister. Speaking to the Guardian after she secured 117 MP nominations in the battle to replace Angela Rayner, Powell said a sequence of what she called “unforced errors” by the government had left many Labour MPs and members frustrated.
The bill to legalise assisted dying is a “licence to kill” that puts vulnerable people at risk, Theresa May has said, as the legislation was debated in the House of Lords for the first time. The former prime minister said she opposed the bill because she said people in England and Wales with disabilities, chronic illnesses or mental health conditions could feel under pressure to end their lives, and “because there is a risk that legalising assisted dying reinforces the dangerous notion that some lives are less worth living than others”.
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