News – World and UK

Consumer confidence has fallen again amid further worsening sentiment around the upcoming autumn Budget, according to a long-running survey. GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index fell one point in October to minus 21, as people’s predictions for the general economy worsened over the coming year despite a slight improvement in their forecasts for personal finances. The drop was significantly less than the seven-point plunge in September. Experts said that was also driven […]

More than 127,000 young people start smoking tobacco regularly each year in the UK, according to a new study. The Cancer Research UK-backed study found the equivalent of around 350 young adults aged 18 to 25 start smoking every day, with some 35,000 having taken up the habit since the King’s Speech in July. The charity is calling on the Government not to delay bringing in the Tobacco and Vapes […]

Some parents are feeling pressured to go private in order to get a dentist appointment for their children, according to the health watchdog. Issues with access to NHS dentistry are having a “clear impact on children and young people”, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) said in its annual report. The watchdog asked 1,000 parents and carers of children about access to health and social care services, with 31% saying they […]

Six towns and cities have been selected to develop England’s first clean heat network zones, the Government has announced. The Energy Department (DESNZ) said these urban areas will roll out technology that recycles excess heat from sources like data centres or factories to warm several buildings at once. The schemes will be set up in Leeds, Plymouth, Bristol, Stockport, Sheffield and two areas of London. They will receive a share […]

The Home Office has announced a new charter with the insurance sector to “crack down” on fraud. The department said the voluntary agreement would target fraudsters “seeking to manipulate the insurance market with bogus claims and duping innocent people into buying fake insurance policies”. It added that the charter includes pledges to “identify and address loopholes, enhance collaboration and improve victim support”. The Home Office said the charter covers the […]

The world is on track for a “catastrophic” 3.1C of global warming, the UN has warned as it called for massive efforts to cut the emissions driving climate change. In its annual report on the gap between the emissions cuts needed to limit global warming to 1.5C and what countries are doing and have pledged to do, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said the goal would “soon be dead” without […]

Taxes and borrowing are both set to increase as Rachel Reeves signalled she would rewrite the way Government debt is measured in her first Budget. The Chancellor said she faced difficult choices but insisted her Budget would “begin to fix the NHS and start to rebuild our economy”. The cost of Government borrowing increased in response to speculation the Chancellor would change debt rules to spend billions more on investments. […]

Child serial killer Lucy Letby has lost a Court of Appeal bid to challenge her conviction for the attempted murder of a baby girl. Letby’s lawyers asked senior judges for approval to appeal against her most recent conviction after being found guilty following a retrial in July of attempting to kill a newborn known as Child K. On Thursday, lawyers for the former nurse told the Court of Appeal that […]

A Windrush Commissioner is to be appointed and funding made available for groups which help victims apply for compensation, Yvette Cooper announced as she committed to a “fundamental reset of the response to this scandal”. The Home Secretary said £1.5 million will be made available for organisations providing advocacy for applicants to the compensation scheme, which has been criticised by many as complicated and too slow. Labour had committed in […]