The British economy is on course to expand by 1.5% this year after the budget gave a boost to public spending but could be blown off course if Donald Trump goes ahead with threatened tariffs, a leading economic thinktank has warned.more

The Home Office has been accused of quietly blocking thousands of refugees from applying for citizenship if they arrived in the UK by small boats or hidden in vehicles. Guidance for staff assessing people who have applied for naturalisation says that, since Monday, applicants who have “made a dangerous journey will normally be refused citizenship”.more

Online retailer Amazon is banning the sale of car number plates on its platform after a BBC London investigation exposed they were being illegally supplied. The BBC found seven companies on the platform were selling plates without checking customers' documents and establishing their legal entitlement to the plate.more

Heathrow Airport is set to confirm a multi-billion pound investment plan to expand two of its terminals ahead of submitting proposals for a third runway to the government this summer.more

Shoppers inspired by health food trends on social media helped lift retail sales in January, easing pressure on high-street stores after a gloomy festive period. Barclays said credit and debit card spending grew 1.9% year on year in January – the highest upsurge since March 2024.more

Celebrities urged Nando’s yesterday to take responsibility for its supply chain, warning that industrial chicken farms are killing Britain’s rivers.more

UK jobseekers say employers are hiring fewer staff – whom they expect to do more for less pay. "This is the worst I’ve ever experienced in the job market, including the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, which also left me unemployed for a time, and the pandemic," said David Hoghton-Carter, 46, a corporate strategy professional from Leeds.more

Jeremy Clarkson has said he can’t get on with people who voted for Brexit, weeks after experiencing the nightmare ramifications of leaving the EU.more

The government’s hike in employer national insurance contributions (NICs) has left 96 per cent of nurseries planning to increasing fees, while UK parents already face some of the highest childcare costs in the world. According to a survey of 728 nurseries nationwide by the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA), one in six estimate that they will make a loss this year due to tax hikes. more

Migrant workers who come to the UK to bolster the country’s care system are having to share beds, sleep rough, and are in some cases being charged more than £20,000 in illegal fees, according to research.more

A West London council has revealed it is hit by around 20,000 attempted cyber attacks every day. Hammersmith and Fulham says it has applied measures such as anti-phishing and enhanced firewall rules to combat the attempted attacks.more

Britain has not seen the details of US President Donald Trump's plan to introduce new tariffs on steel and aluminium, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's spokesman said, according to Reuters. The British government has no plans to retaliate at this time.more

Legalise Loos initiative intended to halt slump in number of conveniences in town centres, parks and other locations. It will involve spending more than a penny, but it’s a call that is likely to be viewed sympathetically by anyone who has ever been caught short while out and about.more

A study has found that 27 per cent of Londoners are classed as inactive. ZAVA, a digital healthcare provider, has ranked the capital's boroughs based on factors such as green spaces, gyms, outdoor routes, and pollution levels to find out which are the healthiest.more

The average annual service charge for a leasehold flat in England and Wales has jumped by an inflation-busting 11% to £2,300, according to data. more

Sir Sadiq Khan has said London "cannot afford" to become a city where "the centre has been hollowed out" due to people working from home. Speaking at an event on Wednesday, the mayor repeatedly outlined his concerns about the post-lockdown decline in office working across the capital, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.more

An online petition which urges the Government to ensure everyone in England over 60 can access free bus travel - in line with Scotland - is gaining momentum online with over 15,000 signatures.more

Claims that Nigel Farage may be the biggest problem for Reform breaking the political mould and winning the next election have been supported in a new poll. The findings by Opinium suggest that while voters are tempted to support Reform UK, particularly on immigration, the party leader is the main reason they may not bother.more

Hundreds of migrants have been arrested since the start of this year as part of a UK-wide crackdown on illegal working, the government has said. Enforcement teams raided 828 premises including nail bars, car washes, and restaurants and made 609 arrests - a 73% increase from January 2024 and the highest figure for any January on record.more

All animals live in or seek a set of climate conditions they find tolerable. This “climate envelope” partially determines where animals are found, but the continued existence of many species now rests on the outcome of human-driven climate change.more

In 2025, savvy travellers are turning away from crowded capitals in favour of lesser-known cities — places that still offer the thrill of discovery far from the cruise ship hordes. For now, Lublin is Eastern Europe’s best kept secret but it’s unlikely to stay that way for long., writes 'Independent'.more

Britain’s broken welfare system is fuelling the “greatest unemployment challenge of a generation”, ministers have concluded as they draw up a root-and-branch overhaul designed to counter the spiralling numbers deemed too unwell to work.more

Ahead of Valentine's Day next week, we reveal the true financial cost of being alone - and it's thousands more than living in a couple. But lovebirds haven't got off scot-free, with experts warning the single tax affects us all eventually. more

Most New Year's resolutions tend to have fizzled out by February, but deciding to move house is one aspiration people usually hold on to quite stubbornly. Research shows house hunters often are abuzz with activity in the New Year, especially when planning a fresh start in another town or city. more

British security services have demanded that Apple access encrypted data stored in the cloud by users around the world, the US daily Washington Post reported, citing its sources.more