5 important things happening in the UK today

Here are 5 important things happening in the UK today, Friday (5 December 2025):

Farage under fire for past claims: Reform leader Nigel Farage has turned on broadcasters for questioning him about his alleged teenage racism and antisemitism as the number of school contemporaries who recalled such behaviour to the Guardian reached 28. In an angry performance at a press conference in London, the Reform leader suggested he would boycott the BBC and said ITV had its own case to answer, as he repeatedly shouted “Bernard Manning”. [Guardian]

UK pubs to stay open later for World Cup: Pubs in England and Wales could stay open until 01:00 next summer if a home nation reaches the quarter-finals or further at the football World Cup. The government has launched a six-week public consultation on extending pub licensing hours to allow fans to come together and support the teams. The tournament kicks off next June in the US, Canada and Mexico – which feature time zones at least five hours behind the UK. [BBC]

Savers pull £600 million from pensions over Budget fears: Tax raid fears prompted savers to pull about £600 million from their pension pots before the budget, according to one of Britain’s biggest DIY investment platforms, which also criticised “crazy” changes to Isas by the government. Michael Summersgill, the boss of AJ Bell, said the drawn out period of speculation before the budget on November 26 had fuelled “damaging” fears among the wealth manager’s clients that Rachel Reeves might cut tax-free pension lump sum withdrawals. [The Times]

Trustpilot accused of running ‘mafia-style extortion racket’: Trustpilot has been accused of waging “mafia-style extortion campaigns” against businesses to try and force them to sign up to its service. Shares in the online customer review platform slumped to a two-year low on Thursday after an American research firm accused it of using “illegal tactics” to push companies into signing up for accounts. Trustpilot disputed the claims, calling them “selective, misleading and framed to support a predetermined narrative”. [The Telegraph]