The latest monthly GDP release from the Office for National Statistics offers a surprisingly upbeat snapshot of the UK economy in February 2026—though one that comes with clear warnings about what may lie ahead. After a sluggish end to 2025 and a largely flat January, February delivered a marked shift in momentum, suggesting the economy entered the year on firmer footing than many had expected.
Lord George Robertson - a former Labour defence secretary, and former Secretary General of NATO - has made a claim about the UK's defence capability that is not merely wrong. It is dangerously wrong.
The Government has announced that electricity bills will be cut by up to 25% for over 10,000 businesses through the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme. Chancellor announces bold action on businesses' electricity bills during IMF meetings in Washington, as Government strengthens Britain’s economic security - helping deliver stability, keeping costs down, and boosting competitiveness.
As postal packs start to be dispatched for the Scottish Parliament Election from today, Wednesday 15 April, postal voters are being reminded to make sure they return them in time. They are also advised to read the instructions carefully when completing their pack to ensure their vote counts.
The latest UK trade figures from the Office for National Statistics for February 2026 provide a cautiously encouraging picture of the country's external position. But one that still highlights deep structural imbalances in how the UK trades with the world.
Recent reports that Russia has begun selling portions of its gold reserves have sparked understandable interest in financial markets. Gold is typically seen as a last-resort asset a store of value held for times of extreme stress.
A key focus for the MHRA as we develop our forthcoming strategy is enabling safe and timely access to innovative technologies, while maintaining public trust. This includes strengthening our approach to regulating adaptive AI, enhancing both pre-market evaluation and robust post-market surveillance, and ensuring that safety, performance and equity remain central as technologies evolve in real-world settings.
Thousands across the UK set to benefit from re-opening of the historic Erasmus+ programme. Students, apprentices and young people will soon be able to study and work across Europe, as the UK and EU sign the legal text in Brussels today to formally bring the UK into Erasmus+ in 2027.
Biggest ever UK drone package for Ukraine announced, including more than 120,000 drones, supplying cutting-edge battlefield technology. The UK has announced the biggest ever drone package for Ukraine, delivering at least 120,000 drones for Ukraine this year and driving growth and jobs across the UK.
Scotland's councils are now facing a financial crisis that is deeper and more structural than anything seen since devolution. The pressures have been building for more than a decade, but they have now reached a point where several councils are openly warning that they may not be able to balance their budgets in the coming years.
It sounds like something from a Cold War thriller, not a family day out: fragments of radioactive material, invisible to the naked eye, quietly lying in the sand. Yet for decades, beaches near Dounreay and Sellafield have been the final resting place for exactly that.
The latest outlook from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) paints a picture of a global economy that is slowing but not collapsing. Growth is weakening, inflation is proving stubborn, and geopolitical tensions—particularly energy-related—are once again shaping the trajectory of markets.
If the IMF's current outlook plays out—especially with prolonged energy disruption and sticky inflation the price increases won't hit everything equally. Some categories tend to spike hard and fast because they sit at the centre of supply chains.
The AA Driving School and BSM Driving School - both of which are owned by the AA - must refund more than 80,000 customers and pay a fine of £4.2 million. CMA orders more than £760,000 be repaid to customers - the first time it has used its new powers to secure money back for consumers.
Finding a home is harder, keeping one is more precarious, and the financial pressures on both tenants and landlords are converging in a way that threatens the stability of thousands of households. The lived reality for prospective tenants and families already in private rented homes when social housing is very hard to get.
Landlords in Scotland and especially in the Highlands are selling up in significant numbers, and the reasons are even sharper than in the rest of the UK. The combination of rising mortgage rates, higher operating costs, new regulations, and rural‑specific pressures has pushed many small landlords to exit the sector.
Building on the Government's recently published fusion strategy, UK Fusion Energy Ltd (UKFE) has published its new Fusion Strategy. The strategy sets out how the UK will deliver its prototype fusion power plant, STEP Fusion, and secure a leading position in the emerging global fusion market estimated to be worth up to £12 trillion by 2100.
It has become a familiar rhythm in the UK. Another investigation, another scandal, another quiet admission that customers have been overcharged, misled, or simply treated as a revenue stream rather than people.
Commodities are where the real stress in the global economy is showing up first—often before consumers feel it. And what's happening is not uniform.
In its latest assessment of the world economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has delivered a clear message. Global growth is weakening again, and risks are rising.