British actor and presenter Russell Brand steps out of a black Mercedes in front of the Southwark Crown Court in London. His sunglasses, the tie undone over his chest, the way he adjusts his trousers, and his air of superiority are more reminiscent of a celebrity arriving at Paris Fashion Week than a defendant appearing before the justice system. Brand faces seven charges related to sexual offenses, including three allegations of rape. Six women accuse him of acts that allegedly took place between 1999 and 2009. He maintains he is innocent. In the photograph, his bodyguard is carrying the Bible in his hand. A grotesque detail that has to do with the new image this individual is trying to build for himself following the accusations.

The G7 tries to lower the price of diesel through strategic reserves. The leaders of the seven main Western economies agreed this Friday to release up to one hundred million barrels of crude oil and petroleum products over the next four months, under the umbrella of the International Energy Agency (IEA). A substantial part of the diesel will hit the market during the first twenty days. This week the price of diesel had reached historic highs in numerous markets.

Andy Burnham has managed to stir up the British political hornet's nest with his first speech as Labour leader at the party's annual conference, which concludes this Wednesday in Liverpool. And he has done so with three proposals that could mark his future as premier –reform of the electoral law, implementation of a free and universal social care system for the elderly, and a rethink of the relationship with the European Union–, which he launched during his speech on Tuesday. Some have turned up their noses; others have seen a glimmer of light.

An almost ecstatic Andy Burnham at some moments of his first speech as Prime Minister before the Labour Party conference, he promised this Tuesday "a clear direction" and a "profound change of course" for the United Kingdom. A new model that aims to break with what was imposed in the 80s of the 20th century, with Thatcherism, which must be articulated around "a ten-year plan" that he will present in November, and with which he wants to regain public control over areas considered essential: from water to electric energy, and with which he also wants to foster economic growth, which the country needs like the air to breathe.

In the world of politics, everything is used. And everything is recycled. The announcement that the British Ministry of Defence made last week, according to which the construction of British submarines will begin next year within the framework of the Aukus agreement with the United States and Australia, has allowed Andy Burnham's executive to claim both national security and industrial policy. This was expressed this Monday by the Treasury Secretary, John Healy, in his speech before the annual Labour Party conference, which is taking place in Liverpool until Wednesday.

The British police have reported that they have arrested five people for handling explosives near the Royal Air Force base in Fairford in the county of Gloucestershire, in southwest England. The authorities, who consider this a "serious incident" and have established a security perimeter in the town of Whelford, suspect that it could be the preparation of a terrorist attack. In fact, the counter-terrorism unit has assumed control of the investigation, according to the British government. The military base has an American presence and, specifically, it has been used by the United States Air Force (USAF) during the war against Iran. Army bomb disposal experts examined vehicles in the area this Sunday and several homes have been evacuated.

In the film Passport to Pimlico (1949), the explosion of a World War II bomb uncovers an ancient royal charter proving that a part of this neighborhood in South London legally belongs to the Duchy of Burgundy. The discovery triggers a delirious debate over sovereignty and the identity of its inhabitants, who try to take advantage of the legal loophole to escape postwar restrictions. An administrative absurdity ends up becoming a matter of state.

The leaders of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have staged a common front in Cardiff, the Welsh capital, to intensify pressure on London for independence. "Westminster's time is running out," says a joint statement signed by the First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney, of the Scottish National Party (SNP); the First Minister of Wales, Rhun ap Iorwerth, of Plaid Cymru, and the First Minister of Northern Ireland, Michelle O'Neill, of Sinn Féin.

The ultra Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform Party, regained the seat for the Clacton-on-Sea constituency – southeast England – in Thursday's by-elections called following the his own resignation, in early July. Farage had turned the by-election into a plebiscite between his figure and the Westminster establishment. In objective terms, Farage has achieved a solid victory (22,239 votes, 63.34%), just over a thousand more ballots than in the 2024 general election, with lower turnout now (44.37% compared to 58.7% two years ago).

The drought situation is worsening in England. The Environment Agency officially declared a drought on Wednesday in seven regions covering approximately half of the territory, following months of exceptionally scarce rainfall and a succession of heatwaves that have driven up water consumption. The affected areas are London and Hertfordshire, East Anglia, the Thames Valley, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Devon and Cornwall, West Midlands, and Wessex (which includes Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire, and south Gloucestershire).

In a typical populist move, Nigel Farage, the leader of the Reform Party, announced this midday that he is resigning as a Member of Parliament for Clacton-on-Sea, a decision that will trigger a by-election in which he has already confirmed he will stand again as a candidate. Farage justified the move by stating that he wants the voters, not the Westminster "establishment", to judge his conduct after the controversy generated in recent weeks by parliamentary investigations into his finances.

A new episode of intense and widespread heat is setting record highs across much of Western and Central Europe. Sustained high temperatures for several days and sleepless nights are affecting countries accustomed to heat this week—though not this early—such as France, Catalonia, Spain, and Italy, and parts of the United Kingdom, Belgium, and Germany, where it is increasingly less exceptional for the mercury to soar. The impact of the heatwave on health is high, and several states have issued meteorological alerts to warn the population of dehydration, heatstroke, and even death.

Post-Brexit United Kingdom has become a devourer of political leaderships. That referendum, held ten years ago, condemned the country's will to leave the European Union and has ended up becoming a point of no return. It was the beginning of a fracture that crossed the English Channel, but also the British society. Brexit marks the point where United Kingdom politics became unmanageable. Six prime ministers in a decade. The latest victim is the Labour politician Keir Starmer, who had to resign just two years after achieving the third most important majority for his party, after Tony Blair's victories. Starmer has fallen victim to his colleagues and a majority that was never his. That overwhelming result in July 2024 was, above all, a forceful rejection of the conservative disarray and not a closing of ranks around a uncharismatic politician who promised tranquility and technocratic competence.

The Russian war frigate Admiral Grigorovich reportedly fired warning shots at a British-flagged yacht in the English Channel on Tuesday, in an incident that the UK Ministry of Defence is investigating, and which occurs at a time of high tension between London and Moscow. The war in Ukraine and the activities of the so-called ghost fleet of tankers at the Kremlin's service have maximally strained relations between the two capitals, as already happened in 2018 following the attempted assassination on British territory of former spy Sergei Skripal by agents of Vladimir Putin.

The impunity of big tech companies is over in the United Kingdom. Or at least that is what Prime Minister Keir Starmer intends, who this Monday made a 180-degree turn and announced the prohibition of access for minors under sixteen years of age to social networks. Furthermore, adolescents up to 18 years of age will also have their ability to continuously browse social networks until late at night restricted, in what has been compared to a kind of curfew, in this case, technological. The legislative reform also aims to go further with changes to video game and live streaming platforms, so that strangers cannot contact minors. Last week, Starmer already gave an "ultimatum to Google and Apple to activate mechanisms that prevent minors from sending, receiving, or making sexually explicit images from their mobile phones.

The British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has issued an ultimatum to major technology companies to activate mechanisms that prevent minors from taking, sending, or receiving sexually explicit images from their mobile phones. If they do not voluntarily take action within three months, the government will push for new legislation to force them to do so. The announcement, made this Monday during the inauguration of London Tech Week, would make the United Kingdom the first country in the world to require specific measures from device manufacturers and operating system developers in this regard.ad hoc for device manufacturers and developers of their operating systems in this direction.

If in a country the central bank governor has to publicly deny having carried out a covert coup d'état to overthrow a democratic government, it is logical to think that the country may have a problem with its central bank – and with the governor in question. This is exactly what Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, had to do in November 2022, following the resignation of Liz Truss as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, only 44 days after taking office. As if Truss's bad luck were not enough, during her brief term, Queen Elizabeth II died.

Amidst widespread shock in the United Kingdom over the death of young Henry Nowak, the House of Commons on Wednesday witnessed an unusual episode of unity against the far-right and against the politicization that Reform Party leader Nigel Farage has sought to make of the murder. Indeed, after a night of riots in Southampton, he went as far as to predict more violence if "a large number of white youngsters think the police are prejudiced against them." At the same time, both the government and police organizations and forces are questioning whether a review of law enforcement protocols is necessary.

The Damm brewery group opens a new chapter in its internationalization strategy initiated four years ago. After acquiring The Eagle Brewery, located in the English town of Bedford, the company announced this Tuesday a new foray into the British market. Damm has bought –for an unspecified amount– the British beer Old Speckled Hen, one of the premium brands within the ale-style drinks segment in the UK and which until now belonged to the company, Greene King.

The Damm brewery group opens a new chapter in its internationalization strategy initiated four years ago. After acquiring the brewery The Eagle Brewery, located in the English town of Bedford, the company announced this Tuesday a new foray into the British market. Damm has bought – for an unspecified amount – the British beer Old Speckled Hen, one of the premium brands within the ale style drinks segment in the United Kingdom, which until now belonged to the company Greene King.