OBR says budget unlikely to lift economic growth over next five years

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Forecaster says extra spending revealed by Rachel Reeves will give only a short-term lift to economy

Labour has embarked on a “large, sustained increase in spending, tax and borrowing”, according to the government’s economic forecaster, as it judged that Labour’s first budget for 15 years is unlikely to increase economic growth over the next five years.

Assessing Rachel Reeves’s policies, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said the economy would expand at the same rate as predicted in March by the end of the parliament, despite a £70bn-a-year rise in spending.

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Labour wants to reverse decline – but with a big budget comes a big risk

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The government knows cynical voters will need to see tangible change in public services and to feel better off

At the final political cabinet before Rachel Reeves delivered her first budget this week, ministers were presented with internal party research on what the public was expecting.

In the months since the general election, they had been fed a regular diet of gloomy warnings about the state of the economic inheritance and, more recently, high levels of pre-budget news coverage, so it was firmly on their horizon.

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Russia fines Google $20.5 decillion — more than the entire world’s GDP — for allegedly blocking Kremlin propaganda – New York Post

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  1. Russia fines Google $20.5 decillion — more than the entire world’s GDP — for allegedly blocking Kremlin propaganda  New York Post
  2. Russia Fines Google $2.5 Decillion Over YouTube Bans – RBC  The Moscow Times
  3. A Russian court hit Google with a fine larger than the world's GDP, stretching credulity  Business Insider
  4. Russia fines Google more than the world’s total GDP over YouTube bans  Euronews
  5. A Russian court fined Google more money than the world's GDP  Quartzy
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Taliban prohibits Afghan women from speaking to each other: ‘System of gender apartheid’ – New York Post

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  1. Taliban prohibits Afghan women from speaking to each other: ‘System of gender apartheid’  New York Post
  2. Taliban bans women 'hearing other women's voices' in latest decree  Fox News
  3. Taliban further restricts women's voices with ban on praying aloud in front of other women  ABC News
  4. Taliban bans women from ‘hearing other women’s voices’  The Telegraph
  5. Has the Taliban banned women from speaking?  The Week
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Chancellor announces £22.6bn cash injection for NHS in England

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Rachel Reeves hails biggest increase ‘outside of Covid’ since 2010 but health experts say patients may not feel impact

The NHS in England is to receive a £22.6bn cash injection over two years, the chancellor has announced, in what she called the biggest spending increase outside Covid since 2010. But health experts said patients may not feel the impact as much of the increase would be absorbed by pay rises and higher care costs.

Announcing the “down payment” on the government’s 10-year plan for the NHS, due in spring 2025, Rachel Reeves said the NHS was the nation’s “most cherished public service” and that the extra funding would help the government cut waiting lists.

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US identified 500 cases where its weapons harmed Gaza civilians but hasn’t taken action

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Some the incidents might have violated international humanitarian law, according to the sources

US state department officials have identified nearly 500 potential incidents of civilian harm during Israel’s military operations in Gaza involving US-furnished weapons, but have not taken further action on any of them, according to three sources, including a US official familiar with the matter.

The incidents – some of which may have violated international humanitarian law, according to the sources – have been recorded since 7 October 2023, when the Gaza war started. They are being collected by the state department’s Civilian Harm Incident Response Guidance (CHIRG), a formal mechanism for tracking and assessing any reported misuse of US-origin weapons.

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Biden’s ‘garbage’ comments gaffe hastens Harris’s slow-mo breakup with president

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Harris faces conundrum of showing deference to president while distancing herself after his ‘garbage’ comments

The delicate dance by Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign to simultaneously show deference to Joe Biden, separate herself from his presidency and thwart his ambition to campaign for her has reached a critical juncture as the 2024 election approaches its climax.

The steps of the dance, which has been ongoing since Harris assumed the Democratic party nomination in August and involves efforts to shield the 81-year-old president’s ego and feelings, became even more leaden overnight on Tuesday after Biden appeared to call supporters of Donald Trump “garbage”.

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Readout of President Joe Biden’s Meeting with President Nikos Christodoulides of the Republic of Cyprus – The White House

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  1. Readout of President Joe Biden’s Meeting with President Nikos Christodoulides of the Republic of Cyprus  The White House
  2. Lebanon ceasefire possible within weeks, Cypriot president says after Biden talks  Reuters
  3. Biden, Cyprus president discuss administration push to win cease-fires in Gaza and Lebanon  The Associated Press
  4. White House releases statement ahead of Biden-Christodoulides meeting  Kathimerini English Edition
  5. Ceasefire in Lebanon could be reached in next 1-2 weeks, Cypriot president says  The Jerusalem Post
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National Insurance hike ‘pain’ to hit jobs and pay, firms warn – BBC.com

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  1. National Insurance hike 'pain' to hit jobs and pay, firms warn  BBC.com
  2. Budget 2024 live: Rachel Reeves admits tax rises will impact wage increases for workers  The Independent
  3. ‘That’s two people we won’t hire now’: bosses react to Reeves’s tax rises  The Guardian
  4. Autumn Budget 2024: National Insurance for employers increased to 15%  Portfolio Adviser
  5. Workers warned they will bear burden of tax raid on employers  The Telegraph
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At least 95 people dead in Spain’s worst floods in three decades

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Soldiers aid search for dozens still missing as prime minister warns extreme weather may not be over

At least 95 people have died in eastern, central and southern Spain after torrential rains triggered the country’s deadliest floods in three decades, unleashing torrents of muddy water that surged through cities, towns and villages, trapping people in their homes, bringing down trees, and cutting off roads and railway lines.

As the search for dozens of missing people continued, motorists were urged to stay off the roads and away from swollen rivers amid warnings that the severe weather was not over and that the number of deaths could still rise.

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World must act to prevent ‘ethnic cleansing’ of Gaza, António Guterres warns

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Secretary general makes appeal as civilian casualties mount amid intensive Israeli strikes on north

The UN secretary general, António Guterres has warned Israel could carry out the “ethnic cleansing” of Gaza if the international community does not make a determined stand to prevent it.

Guterres made his appeal at a time of mounting civilian casualties from the Israeli bombardment of northern Gaza. A strike on Tuesday in Beit Lahiya district killed at least 93 people, in what the UN said was just one of at least seven “mass casualty incidents” across Gaza in the past week.

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Georgia must change course to open EU membership talks, says European Commission

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Western powers call for investigation into Georgian Dream party election win amid reports of voter intimidation and fraud

The European Commission has said it will not recommend opening EU membership talks with Georgia unless the country changes course, days after the increasingly anti-western Georgian Dream (GD) party won pivotal parliamentary elections amid reports of irregularities and voter intimidation.

The commission recommended that Georgia be granted EU candidate status last year – something Ukraine and Moldova had already achieved – but made clear at the time that this could be withdrawn if the government in Tbilisi did not follow through on agreed reforms.

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This is not a Budget we want to repeat, says Rachel Reeves – BBC.com

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  1. This is not a Budget we want to repeat, says Rachel Reeves  BBC.com
  2. Wages, stamp duty, tax: What does the Budget mean for your money?  BBC.com
  3. Budget 2024: Reeves crushes hopes of higher growth with record tax raid  The Telegraph
  4. UK Budget: Labour Party to Raise Taxes by 40 Billion Pounds  The New York Times
  5. UK borrowing costs spike after extensive tax hikes announced in budget  CNBC
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Palestinian student stripped of UK visa after Gaza remarks wins human rights appeal

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Home Office failed to show presence of Dana Abu Qamar ‘not conducive to public good’, according to tribunal ruling

A Palestinian student who was stripped of her student visa after remarks she made about the Israel-Gaza war has won a human rights appeal against the Home Office’s decision.

The Home Office failed to demonstrate that the presence of Dana Abu Qamar, 20, was “not conducive to public good” after the law student’s visa was revoked in December 2023, according to a tribunal ruling.

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