UK News

The Masked Singer host Joel Dommett has said the new series is “the best” yet and that he is viewing it “in an entirely different way” following the birth of his child. The ITV1 reality singing competition will return to screens this month with TV presenter Davina McCall, singer Rita Ora, chat show host Jonathan Ross and comedian Mo Gilligan in the detective chairs. On the programme, contestants are disguised […]

The value of UK drinks exports increased by more than £1 billion in the past year, new research suggests. The total jumped from £8.3 billion in 2021/22 to £9.4 billion in the 12 months to July this year, said business advisers Hazlewoods. Spirits are playing a key role in rising drinks exports, with continued demand for whisky from traditional markets in EU countries, including France, Germany, Spain and Poland, as […]

The UK’s tax level across the economy has increased to its highest rate on record, according to new data from the OECD. It came as separate figures showed the UK also now faces the highest level of property taxes across the developed world. The OECD’s (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) annual revenues statistics update found the total tax-to-GDP ratio across the UK hit 35.3% for the 2022/23 financial year […]

Around a third of young people are worried their friends or classmates will not get presents or be able to celebrate Christmas because of their family’s money worries, according to a survey by a children’s charity. Just over a fifth (22%) told of concerns their friends or classmates will not be able to visit family for the holidays thanks to travel costs, while around three in 10 expressed fears their […]

Conservative MPs are meeting today to decide whether to back the legislation tomorrow Rishi Sunak faces the most perilous week of his leadership as factions in his bitterly divided Conservative party weigh up whether to derail his Rwanda legislation and his authority with it. The Prime Minister faces a threat from both the right and left as the tribes hold separate meetings on Monday to consider if they will back the flagship […]

Secondary schools with the most disadvantaged pupils have been hit hardest by funding cuts over the last decade, according to new research. A new study by the respected Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think tank found that between 2010 and 2021, the most deprived secondary schools saw a real-terms cut of 12%. In contrast, the least deprived schools saw only a 5% funding cut in the same period. But the […]

Annabel Croft has become the 10th celebrity eliminated from Strictly Come Dancing leaving finalists Bobby Brazier, Ellie Leach and Layton Williams. The 57-year-old former tennis player lost out following a dance-off with EastEnders star Brazier, 20, and professional dancer Dianne Buswell. Croft, whose husband died earlier in the year, thanked her dance partner Johannes Radebe and told him he had given her “a reason to get out of bed”. In […]

The Mayor of London has outlined major concerns that a sustained cycle of protests and vigils held in the capital is creating a funding gap for the Metropolitan Police. In a letter to Home Secretary James Cleverly, Sadiq Khan said the funding gap could now be as high as £240 million, and appealed for more support. Mr Khan said London faces “unique pressures as a capital city” because of the […]

Rishi Sunak will face allegations his Eat Out to Help Out scheme fuelled the spread of coronavirus when he appears at the Covid inquiry on Monday. The Prime Minister is expected to be grilled on whether he believed scientists were handed too much power and if insufficient consideration was given to the impact of lockdowns. His questioning by lead counsel Hugo Keith KC in west London on Monday morning will […]