Children’s tsar urges parents to ditch their phones during festive family time Parents should lead by example and get off their phones this Christmas when spending time with family, England’s Children’s Commissioner has said. Dame Rachel de Souza made the “heartfelt plea” as she spoke of young people telling her about their mothers and fathers
Alan Cumming ‘excited’ to be announced as Bafta film awards host Scottish actor Alan Cumming has been announced as the host of the 2026 Bafta film awards. The 60-year-old actor, writer and presenter – known for hosting the US version of The Traitors and starring in American drama The Good Wife – will helm the
Schools to teach about healthy relationships to tackle violence against girls All secondary schools in England will have to teach students about healthy relationships to tackle misogyny as Sir Keir Starmer said too often toxic ideas are “going unchallenged”. Ministers have announced plans to intervene early on worrying behaviour of young people as part of
Streeting apologises to patients as doctors begin five-day walkout The Health Secretary has apologised to patients as doctors began a five-day walkout in England in an ongoing row over jobs and pay. It comes as healthcare leaders warned the impact of the strike will be “felt all the way into January and beyond”. Wes Streeting
2025 ‘another record-breaking year’ for mobile data usage More than half of people began the year with plans to reduce the time they spent on their phone, but data indicates it was another record-breaking year for mobile data usage, new research suggests. Communications giant Virgin Media O2 said usage was up by 18%, with many
Driving test backlog not expected to end until November 2027 A target for reducing average driving test waiting times in Britain to seven weeks is not expected to be met for another two years, according to the public spending watchdog. Nearly one in three learners are paying third parties up to £500 to book a
Inflation drops sharply to 3.2% in November after food prices fall Inflation fell sharply last month as lower food prices helped to ease the cost of living for households across the UK, new official figures showed. The rate of Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation fell to 3.2% in November, from 3.6% in October, the Office
Children in overcrowded and damp homes miss three weeks more school – study Children who lived in overcrowded or damp homes missed three weeks more school than other pupils over the course of their education, a study has found. Pupils living in poor quality homes tend to be more likely to experience health problems and
FIFA makes World Cup tickets climbdown after backlash over prices FIFA has introduced cheaper World Cup tickets for national teams’ most loyal fans after an outcry over pricing erupted last week. Fans who are part of national team travel clubs and loyalty schemes discovered last week that the cheapest available tickets for the final would
Morrisons faces £17m tax bill after losing legal bid over rotisserie chickens Morrisons faces a £17 million tax bill after losing a legal challenge over whether VAT should be charged on its rotisserie chickens. The first tier tribunal ruled that whole cooked chickens sold by the supermarket chain should be subject to the standard 20%