As the energy crisis continues to reshape policy across the UK, a key question keeps coming up. Will national governments override local councils that refuse planning permission for renewable energy projects like wind farms and battery storage sites? The short answer is this is already happening and it’s likely to increase.
As people living in Highland prepare to go to the poll for the Scottish Parliament Election on Thursday 7 May, voters are being reminded to be ready to make sure their vote count. All polling stations will open at 7am on Thursday 7 May and will remain open until 10pm.
As oil prices sit around elevated levels and global energy markets remain volatile, one of the less visible but highly significant impacts is playing out across Scotland’s public sector. Local councils, health boards, police forces, schools, and other public bodies collectively manage thousands of buildings and large vehicle fleets, all of which depend heavily on electricity, gas, and fuel.
When global headlines focus on oil trading around $114 per barrel, it is easy to assume that oil is the main driver of household energy costs. In reality, that is only part of the picture and for UK consumers, gas prices are just as important—if not more important than oil when it comes to determining electricity bills, heating costs, and the overall direction of inflation.
Something very strange is happening in global markets right now. Every week brings another headline involving billions or tens of billions being thrown at companies, funds, and infrastructure bets tied to AI, energy, or automation.
The recent slide in the FTSE 100 still often referred to as the “Footsie” is not an isolated event but part of a broader global market reaction driven by a single, powerful chain of forces: geopolitics feeding into oil prices, oil prices feeding into inflation, and inflation shaping expectations for interest rates and economic growth. What looks on the surface like a routine market dip is, in reality, a tightly connected macro story unfolding in real time.
Two months after the United States, along with Israel, launched a war against Iran, that conflict appears far from a lasting resolution. Much commentary on the protracted nature of the conflict has centred on the limits of both the military and diplomatic approaches to the war.
The idea that Britain is losing two pubs a day sounds like the kind of statistic designed to provoke nostalgia or alarm, but in early 2026 it has the uncomfortable distinction of being both real and well-sourced. According to figures compiled by the British Beer and Pub Association, around 160 pubs closed across the first quarter of the year—equivalent to roughly two every day.
For months there have been many stories about what happens if oil prices go even higher but many analyst are now saying the end of May is crunch time. For decades, $200 oil was the stuff of doomsday forecasts just a theoretical ceiling invoked by analysts to illustrate the fragility of global energy markets.
As the cost of living continues to rise, a common assumption emerges. If prices go up enough, people will simply cut back on food, cigarettes, alcohol, and especially unhealthy treats.
When Donald Trump announced that the United States would begin escorting stranded commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz, he framed it as a humanitarian mission to “free up” vessels trapped for weeks. But behind the rhetoric lies a hard economic truth.
When Britain launched the “Dig for Victory” campaign in 1939, it wasn’t nostalgia or whimsy it was survival. The country imported 70% of its food, U‑boats were sinking merchant ships, and the government needed every garden, verge, and allotment to produce calories.
Global oil markets have been thrown into renewed uncertainty following a fresh escalation around the Strait of Hormuz one of the most strategically vital chokepoints in the world. Recent comments from Donald Trump, outlining a potential US role in guiding ships through the strait, have added a new layer of complexity to an already tense situation.
The ECIU analysis argues that the UK’s electricity system is becoming increasingly self-reliant, even as North Sea oil and gas production continues its long-term decline. The key shift is the rapid growth of domestic renewable energy—especially wind and solar—which is reducing dependence on imported fuels.
By late 2026, UK households are expected to face food prices that are dramatically higher than just a few years ago. Research from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) suggests that by November, grocery costs could be around 50% higher than they were at the start of the cost-of-living crisis in 2021.
The Bank of England has held interest rates, but the real story is what happens next. Beneath its decision, pressure is building to raise rates again, and that could prove disastrous.
In recent months, the Bank of Japan has spent tens of billions of dollars intervening in currency markets to support the Japanese yen. At first glance, this may look like a technical financial issue.
The recent collapse of Spirit Airlines in USA has sent shockwaves through the aviation industry, raising an urgent question. Could other low-cost airlines face the same fate? Spirit was long known as a pioneer of the ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) model offering extremely cheap base fares while charging extra for almost everything else.
Oil prices have surged—but the real crisis isn’t what you see on the surface. In this video, we break down why global oil markets still appear calm despite a major supply shock, and how hidden factors like falling inventories, limited spare capacity, and disrupted supply routes are masking a much deeper problem.
The question of whether the world’s food supply is under serious threat has become increasingly urgent. With war in key agricultural regions, rising geopolitical tensions, climate volatility, and shifting trade policies, it’s easy to assume that a global food crisis is imminent.