The UK borrowed £132 billion in the past financial year (2025-26), £20 billion below the £152 billion in borrowed in 2024-25, and £0.7 billion below the OBR’s March forecast. But conflict in the Middle East risks putting the brakes on the slow consolidation in the public finances apparent in today’s figures, the Resolution Foundation said on Thursday 23 April 2026.
With oil prices skyrocketing following the US and Israel’s bombing of Iran, and the subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz, motorists around the world have been looking for ways to save money. Improvements in electric vehicle (EV) technology, combined with the high price of oil, mean that the tipping point at which most consumers start ditching their petrol cars for electric ones may well have been reached.
A recent BBC analysis (23 April 2026) raises an uncomfortable but important question at the heart of Scottish politics. Are political parties being fully honest about the state of Scotland’s public finances? At a time when competing visions for the country’s future dominate the debate, the article suggests that the numbers underpinning those visions are often far less clear than they appear.
CPI inflation jumped to 3.3 per cent in March, up from 3.0 per cent in February – in line with market expectations – in the first sign of war-driven price rises feeding through to British households, the Resolution Foundation said this week. The rise in March was largely driven by petrol prices, which have increased sharply since the outbreak of the war.
Proposals to cap the price of basic foods have become one of the more eye-catching elements of the Scottish National Party’s current election platform. At first glance, the idea is simple and politically compelling to limit the cost of essential items such as bread, milk, and eggs in order to ease pressure on household budgets during a prolonged cost-of-living squeeze.
Waste criminals are running out of places to hide as the government launches its Digital Waste Tracking service to follow every piece of permitted waste across the country in real time. As part of its major crackdown on waste crime under the government’s Waste Crime Action Plan, new laws being laid in parliament will require businesses to create a real-time audit trail for the waste they handle.
UK airlines say that they are not currently seeing a shortage of jet fuel. The government is working with industry and international partners to keep passengers moving.
At the heart of the report is a simple but important tension: the UK economy is not in crisis, but nor is it convincingly recovering. Growth forecasts for the near term have been revised down across the board.
The Highland Council has confirmed the recent signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional State (Military) Administration in Ukraine. The MoU acknowledges bonds of friendship and common aims to promote knowledge transfer, educational and trade exchanges, and encourage investment opportunities between the two regions.
Brent crude rises to above $106 a barrel as the Middle East crisis is prolonged as a 9.00am 24 April 2026. President Trump says he’s in no rush to end the war after issuing shoot-to-kill orders in the Strait of Hormuz.
On paper, the US looks far ahead — with higher GDP per capita, faster growth, and booming stock markets. But does that actually translate into better living standards? In this video, I compare the real differences between the US and UK economy, looking beyond GDP to what actually matters.
Government boosts efforts to help young people find their Child Trust Funds. The Government will contact thousands of young people about forgotten Child Trust Funds (CTFs) in a bid to reunite account holders with their accounts, worth £2,200 on average.
Young people across the United Kingdom are set to benefit after McDonald’s becomes the latest major employer to support the Government’s Youth Guarantee and launches the biggest work experience programme in the country. McDonald’s becomes latest supporter of government’s drive to get more young people earning or learning.
It may sound hard to believe, but the almost trillion-dollar U.S. military is struggling to fight cheap drones in its war with Iran.
At first glance, a war in the Middle East might seem distant from the everyday realities of British households. Yet the latest analysis from the London School of Economics reveals just how tightly connected global conflict and domestic living costs have become.
New agreement between the UK and France to step up patrols and intelligence operations in France to reduce illegal crossings. The United Kingdom and France today signed an agreement to strengthen operations to combat illegal migration in northern France to prevent crossings to the United Kingdom with a significant increase in dedicated human, technological and intelligence resources.
Let’s begin with a simple question that rarely gets a straight answer: what would victory over Iran actually look like? In Washington and Jerusalem, the answers tend to sound definitive: eliminate Iran’s nuclear capability, break its regional power, perhaps even force political change at the top. It’s the language of decisive war, the kind with a clear endpoint.
As headlines fill with news of airlines cancelling thousands of flights across Europe, it’s natural to wonder what this means for smaller, regional airports. One such case is Wick John O'Groats Airport, a remote but vital transport link in the north of Scotland.
The Highland Council’s Workforce North initiative arrives at a critical moment for the Highlands. On one side, the region is seeing unprecedented levels of investment in renewable energy, infrastructure, and construction.
For many travellers planning a summer getaway in 2026, one thing is becoming increasingly clear - holidays are getting more expensive. While rising airfares have dominated headlines, the reality is broader and more complex.