Author: News Desk

Government opponents in Venezuela have reported a new wave of repression ahead of Friday’s inauguration of President Nicolas Maduro for a third term, including a brief arrest of opposition leader Maria Corina Machado amid murky circumstances.  Venezuela's Maduro set for third presidential term despite domestic, global outcry

Russian President Vladimir Putin has asked for a meeting with Donald Trump to try to end the “bloody mess” of the Ukraine war, the US president-elect revealed Thursday, just days before his January 20 inauguration. Trump has often criticised the massive military aid Washington has sent to Kyiv.

Friday’s front pages cover the ongoing LA wildfires as exhausted firefighters battle to contain the fires spreading over the iconic city. The front pages reflect the growing death toll and the more than 100,000 homes reduced to ash.

The latest from Downing Street – and the UK economy – also find space on the front pages this morning as the pound sinks to its lowest level since 2023. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is facing criticism from several publications as she jets off to China amid economic uncertainty. However, the chancellor’s trip is an attempt to revive closer ties with Beijing for economic benefits.


Elon Musk continues to find a scrap of space on the front pages, as the foreign billionaire has said he wants to oust Keir Starmer – and Labour – from power. Elon Musk is an American billionaire who does not live in Britain. His continued interference in British politics continues to infuriate the public. The tech billionaire is also facing a probe by a counter-extremism unit to see if they create a risk to Britain.

Several papers carry a newly released image of Princess Kate, who celebrated her birthday yesterday. Other papers carry images from Jimmy Carter’s funeral – as the previous five American presidents came together.

The world has just experienced the first full year in which global temperatures exceeded 1.5C above pre-industrial times, scientists have said. The milestone was confirmed by the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) on Friday, which said the climate crisis is pushing the planet’s temperature to levels never before experienced by modern humans. “The trajectory is just incredible,” C3S director Carlo Buontempo told the Reuters news agency, describing how every month in 2024 was the warmest or second-warmest for that month since records began. The planet’s average temperature in 2024 was 1.6 degrees Celsius higher than in 1850-1900, the…

Reform level with Labour in new poll as Treasury responds to gloomy economy update: Politics live Sir Keir Starmer has been dealt a further blow with a new poll predicting Labour would lose its overall majority if an election was held now. The poll by FindOutNowUK has put Reform level pegging with Labour on 25 per cent and the Tories five points behind on 20 per cent. According to the calculations, if the result was repeated in a general election Labour would lose 173 seats but remain the largest party on 238. Reform would leap into second place from the…

UK snow map: Where and when heavy snow, rain and flooding will hit the strongest A number of weather warnings are in place for parts of the UK on Friday, as more snow is forecast to fall across the country and flooding is expected. The Met Office has issued five yellow weather warnings for snow and ice following a days of wintry conditions across the country weather. A snow and ice warning has been issued from midday on Wednesday to 10am on Friday marning, covering northern Scotland. A warning for ice is in place from 4pm on Thursday until 10am…

Peer suspended from House of Lords for launching tirade at parliament security staff A former Marks and Spencer boss has been suspended from the House of Lords for six months after he was found to have launched a tirade of abuse at members of parliamentary staff. The lengthy suspension was handed down to Lord Stone of Blackheath after he was found to have been rude and aggressive, with the decision noting he poses a “continuing risk to those on the parliamentary estate”. The incident showed the “clear pattern” of the non-affiliated peer’s poor behaviour continued, according to the House of…

Bitcoin miner refused access to landfill site to retrieve £598m hard drive, judge rules A man’s bid to sue a council over his attempts to excavate a rubbish tip to find a Bitcoin hard drive worth nearly £600m has had his case thrown out of court by a judge. James Howells says his former partner had mistakenly dumped the hard drive in 2013, only for it to increase in value over the last year to be now worth an estimated £598m. While the landfill in Newport in Wales holds more than 1.4 million tonnes of waste, Mr Howells said he…

Warning food prices could soar by 20% as pressure mounts on Reeves over flailing economy Rachel Reeves has been hit by a triple whammy of setbacks that appear to have shattered Labour’s dreams of boosting Britain’s economic growth. With the chancellor set to fly to China on Friday, the pound fell amid fears of surging borrowing costs and future tax rises – and a shocking new report seen by The Independent suggested that the price of food and household staples could rise by 20 per cent. The Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS) revealed that massive problems with supply…

Religion, police and education leaders unite with grooming survivors to demand immediate government action Police chiefs, head teachers, faith groups and charities are among groups urging the government to implement recommendations from the child sex abuse inquiry as the row over grooming gangs continues. A coalition, made up of 65 major charities, community leaders and abuse survivors, says it has “significant concerns” about the government’s failure to act on proposals made by the chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) in 2022. The inquiry is back in the limelight after the Tory party backed calls from tech…