CATEGORIES

ShoeZone says budget tax rises led to decision to close stores

The low-cost footwear retailer Shoe Zone has blamed extra costs resulting from changes to wages and national insurance contributions (NICs) in October's budget and weakening confidence for its decision to close stores.

Nissan is relying on cost-cutting, not innovation, to catch up in China's electric car fast lane

Until recently, the plan at crisis-hit Nissan was to muddle through somehow.

Still miles to go before people feel the effect of recovery

Keir Starmer's latest \"milestone\" for the economy is growth that can be \"felt in people's pockets\".

Energy firms to spend £77bn to rewire British electricity grid for clean power

Energy companies have promised to spend up to £77bn over five years to help rewire Great Britain's electricity infrastructure in the global race to shift from fossil fuels to clean electricity.

Bank likely to hold interest rates as inflation hits 2.6%

UK inflation has risen to its highest level in eight months, adding to pressure on the Bank of England to keep interest rates unchanged today despite a slowdown in the British economy.

Injured caver lifted out after four days stuck underground

An injured woman trapped in a cave in northern Italy was lifted to safety early yesterday, ending her four-day ordeal.

The fast and the festive: police stop car decorated for Christmas

It was a vehicle so festive it could have almost been Santa's sleigh. There was just one problem: it wasn't legal.

'Living hero': death row survivor welcomed back to Philippines

After 14 years on death row in Indonesia, Mary Jane Veloso arrived in Manila yesterday to the tight embrace of her family.

Sarkozy must wear electronic tag for a year, French appeals court confirms

France's highest appeals court has confirmed a verdict against the former president Nicolas Sarkozy for corruption and influence peddling, ordering him to wear an electronic tag for a year – a first for a former head of state.

Google Maps car snaps vital clue in missing person case

On a nearly deserted street in northern Spain, the images appeared to show a man hunched over the back of a red Rover car, gingerly loading a bulky white sack into the boot.

Death toll rises as Cyclone Chido batters Mozambique and Malawi

The death toll from Cyclone Chido has continued to rise, with authorities confirming that 45 people were killed in Mozambique and 13 in Malawi.

South Korea's impeached leader fails to appear for questioning

South Korea's impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, failed to appear before the country's corruption watchdog yesterday after he was summoned for questioning over his attempt to impose martial law.

Rescue efforts under way after deadly quake hits Vanuatu

Rescuers in Vanuatu are racing to save victims trapped under rubble after a 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck the Pacific country, killing at least 14 and injuring hundreds more.

Pelicot trial to end with verdicts and hope of change

The mass rape trial that has sent shockwaves through France and horrified the world is expected to end today with the conviction of Dominique Pelicot, who has admitted drugging his ex-wife, Gisèle, and inviting strangers into their bedroom to rape her.

Asylum Syrians in Europe report coercion to return

After the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, Bulgaria is attempting to force out Syrian asylum seekers by reportedly pressing them into signing \"voluntary return\" documents, sometimes with the use of violence.

'Jabaliya is like hell' How airstrikes reduced a refugee camp to rubble

On the morning of 9 October 2023, the Trans area of the open market in Jabaliya refugee camp was bustling.

Netanyahu says IDF will stay in Syria buffer zone as long as needed

Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israeli troops will occupy a recently seized buffer zone in Syria for the foreseeable future, as efforts continue to reach a ceasefire deal in Gaza.

Squirrels' grisly hunting habits amaze scientists

They may have twitchy noses and a quizzical expression, but California ground squirrels are not as cuddly as they appear: they repeatedly hunt and eat voles, decapitating their prey and pulling flesh from the torso.

Theatre review Edgar-Jones shows her claws in chilly drama

A family crisis brings out the best and the worst in every member of it,\" reflects a character in Tennessee Williams’ explosive 1955 drama about mendacity and marital love.

'In a good place' Hodgkinson's win marks golden age for women's sport

The applause for Keely Hodgkinson was still reverberating around Media City on Tuesday when this year's BBC Sports Personality of the Year began to stare intently at the previous winners carved into the trophy.

Not guilty pleas are entered for Southport child murder suspect

Axel Rudakubana, the 18-year-old accused of being behind the fatal knife attack at a dance class in Southport, has had not guilty pleas entered on his behalf to charges of the murder of three children and 10 counts of attempted murder.

Pair sentenced for buying pills to induce miscarriage

A man and woman who were accused of buying pills to induce an illegal abortion have been sentenced to community orders.

Unspeakably graphic The workers who are paying a high price for policing the internet

Smashing bricks against the side of your house is not a normal way to wind down after work. Nor is biting your own arm or being scared to go to sleep.

6 mins |

Alexa is Amazon secret weapon in battle for Christmas No 1 slot

Alexa, can you make a Christmas No 1? As this year's battle for the most played and purchased track of the festive season reaches its climax, Amazon are continuing their push to dominate the Christmas charts.

Prince Andrew to miss festive family lunch

The Duke of York will not attend the royal family's traditional pre-Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace today amid controversy over his links with an alleged Chinese spy.

Prison for laughing gas crash driver who killed three friends

A teenager has been jailed for more than nine years for causing the death of three of his friends by dangerous driving after inhaling nitrous oxide.

Man jailed for rape after deceiving woman into sex without a condom

An man who claimed to have worked as a movie stand-in for Brad Pitt has been jailed for rape after he deceived his then partner into believing he had used a condom during sex.

'You're not planning a murder?' How the killer researched his attack

Most young people who study criminology at the University of Greenwich in south London do so in the hope of getting a job in the police or perhaps probation or the Prison Service.

4 mins |

Student, 20, guilty of fatally stabbing woman on beach in Bournemouth

A 20-year-old criminology student with a fascination for knives has been found guilty of stabbing a woman to death on a Dorset beach after spending months plotting the attack and questioning university lecturers about how a killer would get away with murder.