5 important things happening in the UK today

Here are 5 important things happening in the UK today, 22 August 2025.

Britain is facing an autumn of strikes: Britain is facing an autumn of discontent with strikes set to disrupt crucial services across the country. The RMT union announced on Thursday that commuters would endure a week of industrial action on the London Underground at the start of September. GPs, junior doctors, and nurses may strike during winter, the health service’s busiest time of year, over demands for pay and funding. Meanwhile, strikes have already hit the residents of Birmingham, where bin collectors are poised to continue a five-month walkout until Christmas over pay cuts. [Telegraph]

UK asylum applications hit record of 111,000 in Starmer’s first year: A record 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK during Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s first year in office, reflecting a surge in small boat arrivals to the country despite Labour’s pledge to smash the gangs bringing migrants across the channel. [Financial Times]

UK’s third-largest steelworks collapses into government control: The UK’s third-largest steelworks has been placed under government control, creating an uncertain future for nearly 1,500 workers in Rotherham and Sheffield. Insolvency courts granted a compulsory winding up order sought by creditors owed hundreds of millions of pounds by Speciality Steels UK (SSUK) – part of the Liberty Steel metals empire of controversial tycoon Sanjeev Gupta. [BBC]

Calls to block Elon Musk’s bid to supply UK home energy: Elon Musk’s company, Tesla, should have its application to supply energy to UK homes blocked on national security grounds, Ed Davey has told ministers. The Liberal Democrat leader argued that giving the electric car manufacturer a foothold in the British energy market would be “a gravely concerning move considering Elon Musk’s repeated interference in UK politics”. Tesla has a clean energy arm and applied in July for a licence to supply power to British homes. [Guardian]