Labour urged to accelerate reset with Brussels as many exporters struggling to trade in the EU after Brexit deal Keir Starmer’s government has been told a closer EU trade deal is a “strategic necessity” for companies in Britain as growing numbers of exporters find it tougher to do business under the UK’s post-Brexit agreement. Calling on Labour to accelerate its reset with Brussels, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said the UK’s existing trade and cooperation agreement (TCA) was failing to help them grow their sales in the EU. Continue reading...

From better prospects for consumer spending to tentative signs of improving productivity, the doom and gloom of 2025 could be behind us

Mary-Ann Stephenson defends convention as ‘really important’ and warns against demonisation of migrants Taking the UK out of a European human rights treaty to quell rightwing anger over immigration would be a mistake, the new chair of Britain’s equalities watchdog has said, as she warned against the demonisation of people who migrate to the UK. Mary-Ann Stephenson, who became head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission in December, said the European convention on human rights was part of a framework that provides rights most people would agree were fundamental. But she said the tone of public conversation on it was often dangerous. Continue reading...

MPs and next of kin of prisoners Amu Gib, 30, and Kamran Ahmed, 28, call for immediate government intervention

Water company says it needs two new reservoirs and a recycling plant to cope with demand in Suffolk.

Donald Trump is suing the BBC for $10 billion over a Panorama edit which cut together two clips from his 2021 speech ahead of the Washington riot by MAGA supporters. The BBC’s next steps are not…

The molluscs are decimating food chains in Switzerland, have devastated the Great Lakes in the US, and this week were spotted in Northern Ireland for the first time