Author: News Desk

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Good morning! ☕ Let’s grab a coffee and dive into the headlines for Thursday, 12 June 2025. The sun is making a welcome appearance over the capital, with temperatures reaching a pleasant 25°C. However, a touch of afternoon rain might have dampened your day, so keep an umbrella handy just in case.

Unsurprisingly, the chancellor’s spending review dominates the UK news this morning, with some publications seeing the plans as a huge investment that will boost the UK economy, and others arguing it will lead to huge tax hikes in the autumn.
The UK economy shrank by 0.3% in April, the chancellor has said, just a day after her spending review. The decline was sharper than expected.

Elsewhere, there is coverage of violence in Northern Ireland, as “protesters” set fire to a leisure centre – the violence began after an alleged sexual assault by two foreigners.

Elon Musk publicly acknowledged on X early 11 June that he “regret[s] some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far,” following a heated public feud sparked by his criticism of Trump’s sweeping “One Big Beautiful Bill” and allegations tying Trump to Jeffrey Epstein’s withheld files.

The UK Economy shrank by 0.3% in April, exceeding economists’ expectations of a 0.1% contraction, largely due to President Trump’s tariff policies.

A group of masked rioters set fire to Larne Leisure Centre—used as temporary housing for displaced families—on the third consecutive night of unrest linked to an alleged sexual assault case in Ballymena.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has unveiled a bold, near‑£113 billion, four‑year investment‑led spending review ahead of the next general election, marking a clear shift from austerity to a “renewal” agenda. 

South Korea’s military ceased loudspeaker broadcasts aimed at North Korea, fulfilling President Lee Jae-myung’s campaign promise to ease tensions between the two nations.

Rachel Reeves announced a funding increase for key sectors: the Ministry of Defence will see a rise in spending from 2.3% to 2.6% of GDP by 2027, while the NHS receives an additional £29bn per year.

Israel is contemplating a unilateral military strike on Iran as negotiations between the US and Iran progress towards a preliminary nuclear agreement, which Israel deems unacceptable.