Category Archives: UK news

Tata Steel’s UK losses hit £1.1bn on cost of closing Port Talbot blast furnaces

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Losses quadruple from a year earlier after decision to end primary steelmaking in south Wales with loss of 2,500 jobs

Losses at Tata Steel’s UK operations ballooned to £1.12bn due to the cost of closing Port Talbot’s two blast furnaces.

Accounts for the Indian-owned company show that pre-tax losses quadrupled from £279m to £1.12bn in the year to the end of March due to restructuring costs associated with the closure of its blast furnaces and coke ovens at the site in south Wales.

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Two-child benefit cap ‘will be scrapped’ in Scotland, vows SNP

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Scotland’s finance secretary, Shona Robison, reveals plans in budget to end ‘pernicious’ policy

The Scottish government has unveiled plans to scrap Westminster’s controversial two-child benefit cap to lift thousands of “children out of poverty”.

Scotland’s finance secretary, Shona Robison, said her budget for the coming year “offers hope for Scotland’s future”, announcing that the two-child cap on benefits would be scrapped in Scotland as she pledged record spending for both the NHS and councils.

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Lucy Letby questioned over suspicious deaths of babies in Liverpool

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Jailed neonatal nurse’s lawyer condemns ‘leaking by police’ as possible link to Liverpool Women’s hospital emerges

Lucy Letby maintains her innocence, her lawyer said on Wednesday as he condemned “leaking by the police” after it was confirmed the neonatal nurse had been interviewed over more suspicious deaths of babies.

Letby, who is serving a whole-life sentence for killing and maiming newborns in her care, was questioned under caution about other unexpected deaths and collapses of babies at the Countess of Chester hospital and, for the first time, at Liverpool Women’s hospital where she trained as a student, Cheshire police said.

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British army could be wiped out within six months of Ukraine-scale war, minister warns

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Alistair Carns says a casualty rate similar to Russia’s invasion could lead to the army being ‘expended’ within six to 12 months

The British army would be wiped out in as little as six months if it was forced to fight a war on the scale of the Ukraine conflict, a defence minister has warned.

Alistair Carns said a rate of casualties similar to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would lead to the army being “expended” within six to 12 months.

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Police raid migrant smuggling ring accused over small boat Channel crossings

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More than 500 officers participated in the operation, which was co-ordinated with British, French and European agencies

Police have carried out dawn raids in several cities in Germany and France in an internationally coordinated operation to smash a network accused of smuggling migrants to Britain in small boats.

Coordinated with Europol, the French security service and British police after months of intelligence-gathering, the raids on Wednesday concentrated on western German cities where gangs are believed to have procured small boats and found migrants wanting to be taken to the UK from France across the English Channel.

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UK interest rates to fall more slowly than expected after budget, claims report

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Government’s spending and borrowing plans mean rates will stay higher for longer, according to OECD

UK interest rates will fall by less than expected over the next two years after Rachel Reeves revealed significant spending and borrowing plans in the budget, according to an influential report.

In its annual economic survey, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said UK inflation would also surpass previous forecasts next year, and upgraded growth projections for the economy, because of boost from October’s budget.

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Rail renationalisation should reduce delays but may not cut fares, says UK minister

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Heidi Alexander refuses to confirm cost of setting up Great British Railways but insists it is lower than fees paid to train operators

The renationalising of train companies will not necessarily bring cheaper rail fares but should reduce cancellations and late trains, the UK transport secretary has suggested.

South Western Railway is to become the first train operator nationalised under the Labour government, ministers announced on Wednesday. Greater Anglia and C2C will also be brought into public ownership next year.

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Rio Tinto investor urges mining giant to drop primary London listing

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Hedge fund with £197m stake leads push to prioritise Sydney exchange as FTSE 100 firm outlines ambitious copper production targets

An activist investor in Rio Tinto has demanded the miner scrap its primary London listing and focus on Australia, as the FTSE 100 firm outlined its long-term investment strategy.

Palliser Capital called on the metals and minerals firm to drop its “outdated” dual listing structure across the London and Sydney financial markets.

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English pupils do better than expected in international maths and science tests

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England maintained good maths scores and improved in science, coming ninth and fifth among 70 countries

English pupils have made a strong showing in the latest round of prestigious international tests, maintaining their scores in maths and improving in science, a subject in which they rose to fifth in the league tables.

They were among students from 70 countries who participated in the 2023 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (Timss), which takes place every four years, providing education policymakers with international comparisons.

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Police seek dog owner after fatal attack on young deer in royal park

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Footage released of spaniel chasing deer in ‘deeply distressing’ incident in Richmond Park

Police are looking for the owner of a pet dog that is believed to have chased and killed a deer in Richmond Park in south-west London.

Video footage of what appeared to be a Spaniel relentlessly chasing a deer was released by the Royal Parks Police following the incident on Monday at about 12.30pm near to Sheen Cross.

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Journalists strike over proposed sale of Observer to Tortoise Media

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Forty-eight-hour strike, first at Guardian in more than 50 years, to take place on Wednesday and Thursday

Journalists at the Guardian and the Observer are holding a 48-hour strike in protest at the proposed sale of the Observer newspaper to Tortoise Media.

The strike, the first at the Guardian in more than 50 years, is due to take place on Wednesday 4 December and Thursday 5 December.

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MPs back PR bill in vote, a symbolic win for electoral reform campaigners – UK politics live

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MPs vote to give leave to bring in private members’ bill on PR but it will have no practical effect

Lord Robertson, the former Labour defence secretary and former Nato secretary who is leading the government’s strategic defence review, is giving evidence to the Commons defence committee. He has told MPs that the Americans are being fully consulted about the review. This is from Shashank Joshi, the Economist’s defence editor.

Listening to George Robertson & Richard Barrons, who are writing the UK’s defence review alongside Fiona Hill, giving evidence to the Commons defence committee. They’re in “constant contact” with allies, Robertson says, and have a US officer on the review team.

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Water firms push for higher shareholder returns as Ofwat considers bills increase

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Companies say higher returns are needed to ensure record infrastructure investment across industry is delivered

Water companies want to see higher returns for shareholders to ensure record investment into sewage infrastructure, pipes and treatment plants is delivered.

As Ofwat, the water regulator for England and Wales, prepares to announce its decision on how much customer bills will be allowed to rise by to fund tens of billions of pounds in investment across the industry, water companies said higher returns were needed.

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South Western Railway to become first train operator nationalised under Labour

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As part of a comprehensive programme of renationalisation, the service will come under public ownership in May

South Western Railway will be the first train operator nationalised under the Labour government, ministers have announced.

One of the UK’s biggest commuter services, which operates out of London Waterloo, it will be taken into public hands in May.

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MPs back proportional representation system for UK elections in symbolic vote

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Lib Dem proposal is passed by 137 votes to 135 with some Labour backbench support but is unlikely to become law

MPs have voted narrowly in favour of introducing a proportional representation electoral system, in a move that will almost certainly not change the law but is nonetheless a symbolically significant moment for UK politics.

The vote on a Liberal Democrat bill calling for a PR system for UK parliamentary elections and for local elections in England was passed by 137 votes to 135. It is believed to be the first time the Westminster parliament has backed such a plan.

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Humbled pie thieves ditch Yorkshire chef’s food-laden van in Middlesbrough

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Tommy Banks says £25,000 of stock, which included 2,500 pies bearing his name, was ‘not really very saleable’

A van that which was stolen containing 2,500 pies has been found abandoned, although inquiries are continuing into the fate of its contents.

The Michelin-starred chef Tommy Banks had appealed to thieves to “do the right thing” and give the van’s contents, which also included custard and gravy, to people in need.

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Man has ‘finely tuned’ plan to find £500m bitcoin thrown in tip, Cardiff court told

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James Howells seeking go-ahead to search for hard drive that was accidentally thrown into landfill in 2013

For more than a decade, a computer expert from Newport in south Wales has doggedly fought to recover £500m of bitcoin he says was accidentally thrown into a council tip.

James Howells’ bid to become extremely rich reached a judge on Tuesday with a team of lawyers arguing that it was still possible to launch a hunt for his missing hard drive containing the bitcoin.

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BBC pulls two MasterChef Christmas specials amid Gregg Wallace scandal

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Change in festive schedule comes after Wallace stepped away from hosting cookery show amid allegations about his behaviour

Two MasterChef celebrity Christmas specials have been pulled from the BBC’s schedule after Gregg Wallace stepped away from hosting the cookery show, a BBC spokesperson said.

The broadcaster had previously announced a Celebrity MasterChef Cook-Off and a Strictly Festive Extravaganza as part of its festive schedule, both billed as hour-long programmes for BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

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China’s share of global electric car market rises to 76%

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Market share increases after strong demand within country offsets risks from western tariffs on Chinese-made EVs

China’s share of the global electric vehicle market reached 76% in October, the country’s automotive trade body said, reflecting strong demand for EVs in the country even as western tariffs risk hobbling exports.

Between January and October, sales of EVs reached 14.1m units, according to the China Passenger Car Association, with 69% of those sales in China. In October, China’s share surpassed three-quarters.

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Tamils arriving in UK after three years stranded on Diego Garcia speak of relief

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Lawyers and campaigners hail removal of 47 people from remote Indian Ocean island as ‘a big day for justice’

Dozens of people stranded in hellish conditions for more than three years on the remote Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia have arrived in the UK and told of their relief that their journey is over.

Lawyers and campaigners hailed the arrival of 47 Sri Lankan Tamils on Monday night as a “big day for justice”, with a further eight arriving on Tuesday morning from Rwanda, where they had been receiving medical treatment. Twelve children were among them.

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