The Office for National Statistics reports that total construction output in Great Britain rose by 1.6% in the three months to April 2026, marking a second consecutive quarterly increase. The monthly picture for April was much flatter.
Thousands of young people in Scotland are to be offered free vaccination against meningococcal B disease (MenB) ahead of the 2026-27 academic year. Meningococcal disease, which can include meningitis and/or septicaemia, is life-threatening and can result in life-changing disabilities including amputations, hearing loss, and brain damage.
Fiscal drag is a “stealth” tax rise. By freezing tax thresholds while wages rise, more of your pay is pushed into higher bands so you pay more tax even though rates haven’t changed.
Uncle Sam, that venerable cartoon uncle with the stern hat and the taxpayer’s wallet, has taken to pacing the global stage with the same confident gait as the Grand Old Duke of York. He gathers his battalions of policy, rhetoric and procurement, marches them up the hill of strategic purpose, and then, with equal ceremony, marches them down again leaving behind a trail of invoices, supply‑chain tangles and a public ledger that looks suspiciously like a marching band’s expense report.
People keep asking me whether the UK is heading for a house price crash. The honest answer is that nobody knows for certain.
The Office for National Statistics reports that total goods and services trade deficit widened by £7.7 billion to £39.9 billion in the three months to April 2026, compared with the three months to January 2026. On the monthly headline, goods exports and goods imports each rose by £0.8 billion in April 2026, equivalent to a 2.6 percent increase in exports and a 1.5 percent increase in imports versus March.
Convener of the Council comments on Scottish Parliament Public Service Reform debate. “The public sector continues to operate in an extremely challenging financial environment, where funding has not kept pace with rising service demand and the priorities we face as a region.
For most people, council committee papers and audit reports are not the sort of documents that attract much attention. They are full of technical language, financial terminology and governance structures that can make even the most determined reader give up after a few pages.
The Accounts Commission has warned today that Scotland’s councils are heading into their most difficult financial year in decades, with a £529 million shortfall opening up for 2026/27. For Caithness, where services already operate at the limits of geography and staffing, the implications are starker than the national headlines suggest.
New Resolution analysis published (Wednesday 10 June 2026) shows why time should be called on the expensive and wasteful Triple Lock on the State Pension. The briefing shows that the Triple Lock has been far too expensive.
Workers report AI is already actively making their jobs worse as well as outright taking their jobs. Paul Nowak says: “AI must be designed, governed and negotiated by and for workers”.
The renewed exchange of strikes between the United States and Iran today has increased the likelihood that the Bank of England will adopt an even more cautious tone next week, although it is still unlikely to change the expected decision to hold interest rates at 3.75%. Oil prices remain the biggest concern.
The rise in U.S. inflation to 4.2% is important for the UK, even though Britain's own inflation has recently fallen to 2.8%.
Universities across England awarded a share of £80 million to offer up to 2,500 student places, as well as help build new facilities to support increased capacity growth over the next decade. £80 million of grants for institutions to offer 2,500 new student places so more young people can land key jobs in defence.
For decades, the Strait of Hormuz has been one of the world's most important maritime chokepoints. Around one-fifth of the world's oil supply normally passes through this narrow stretch of water linking the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean.
For months now, Highland residents have been bombarded with ads claiming that “half a cup before bedtime will melt your belly fat like crazy.” The branding changes — WellnessGaze Health, SlimLeaf, UltraBurn, Night Melt Tea. But the promise is always the same.
Across UK town and city centres, authorities are stepping up action against shops linked to illegal activity from illicit tobacco and vapes to money laundering and organised crime networks. But while the direction of travel is broadly the same across the UK, the way enforcement works and how quickly shops can be shut varies significantly between England, Scotland and the devolved nations.
What was once largely speculation is now beginning to show up in real sales data. While weight-loss drugs such as Wegovy, Mounjaro and Ozempic are still used by a minority of people, retailers and food manufacturers are already adapting because the changes in shopping habits are becoming measurable.
Weight-loss drugs such as GLP-1 receptor agonists (for example semaglutide and tirzepatide) are producing a wider set of health benefits than just reducing body weight. Because they work on appetite regulation, blood sugar control, and metabolic signalling, the effects extend across several major disease risks.
Pension savers will be better protected from scams under new plans announced (Tuesday 9 June 2026), as the Government acts to stay ahead of increasingly sophisticated fraudsters who rob people of their lifetime savings. New safeguard proposed to tackle pension fraud.