If seeing a lone, desolate banana on a supermarket shelf leaves you feeling a little blue, you are not alone. Researchers have found that labelling unsold loose fruits as “sad singles” tugs on shoppers’ heartstrings and increases the likelihood that they’ll be sold.more

Net migration to the UK was 906,000 in the year up to June 2023 - far higher than previous estimates. About 1.3 million people came to live in the UK in this period, while 414,000 people leftmore

Supermarket loyalty cards do offer genuine savings, the UK's competition watchdog has found, but it said people should still shop around. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) looked at 50,000 products on loyalty price promotions across Tesco, Sainsbury's, Morrisons, Co-op and Waitrose. more

MPs have backed proposals to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales in a historic vote which paves the way for a change in the law. Under draft legislation being considered by Parliament, terminally ill adults expected to die within six months could seek help to end their own life. In the first Commons vote on the issue in nearly a decade, MPs supported the bill by 330 to 275.more

A team of Bulgarians carried out surveillance on a U.S. military base in Germany where Ukrainian forces were being trained, one of six operations they undertook as part of a spying conspiracy for Russia, prosecutors told a London court on Thursday.more

Britain and Iraq have agreed an unprecedented joint plan to tackle people smuggling gangs responsible for thousands of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats. On a three-day visit to the country, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper also signed a new agreement to ensure failed Iraqi asylum seekers are returned home more "swiftly".more

A former soldier whose prison escape led to a prolonged manhunt in 2023 has been convicted of spying for Iran but cleared of carrying out a bomb hoax. Daniel Khalife was found guilty of two counts relating to his espionage on Thursday. Wearing a blue shirt and pale trousers in court, he calmly put his glasses back on as the verdicts were read out and did not show any emotion.more

Researchers say injection will be ‘game changing’ for people with the respiratory condition.more

A West London council has issued £34,000 in civil fines to rogue landlords since April but data shows only one was prosecuted through the courts in recent years. Kensington and Chelsea Council said it has also handed out 14 notices of intent to serve civil penalties and has introduced a new licensing scheme for larger house shares.more

A SEASIDE town in the UK with two sandy beaches is one of the best to visit during the winter instead of the summer. While most Brits flock to the coast in the summer, Lossiemouth on the north east coast of Scotland may have holidaymakers rethinking their choice of winter hols.more

Net migration to the UK hit a record high in 2023 of 906,000 in a period covering Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak’s premierships, revised estimates show. The measure for the difference between the number of people arriving and leaving the country then dropped by 20% in the latest period, the 12 months to June 2024, and now stands at 728,000.more

The scheme is being rolled out across all UK cities served by the ride-hailing app, after being trialled in the US and Canada.more

The pop-up will be next door to where it plans to open a new large store in spring 2025.more

A London court today ruled that former British Army soldier Daniel Khalife is guilty of spying for Iran. The 23-year-old's sentence will be announced early next year.more

Major supermarkets and food industry leaders have backed calls for the Government to ban cages for egg-laying hens. In a letter to Environment Secretary Steve Reed on Wednesday, food companies urged ministers to bolster action on phasing out cages, which restrict the ability of hens to move and cause the birds to suffer high levels of stress.more

Public satisfaction with how often potholes are seen locally is no better than 10% in more than a third of English council areas, according to new research. The AA described the figures as “dismal” and called for an end to the “vicious cycle” of potholes being patched up only to reappear.more

The number of single women and female couples undergoing IVF or artificial insemination in the UK has risen over the past decade, a report from the fertility regulator, external shows.more

More than 6 million UK consumers have fallen prey to online fraudsters in the past year, with social media platforms and online marketplaces emerging as the most frequent avenues for scams, according to consumer watchdog Which?.more

Eurostar are back this winter for another season of whisking adventure-seekers between London and various French ski resorts on their handy, high-speed train.more

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) warns of scam attempts targeting Self Assessment customers. Customers urged to be cautious of refund scams as the 31 January tax return deadline draws closer.more

Plans to end the deepening crisis in access to NHS dental care are failing, leaving patients unable to get treatment, according to a warning from the government’s spending watchdog.more

The number of animals dumped by their owners in winter has increased by more than 50 per cent in three years. - The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) reported yesterday. At the same time, it launched an appeal for support for its ‘Christmas Rescue’ campaign.more

Russia said it was expelling a British diplomat for alleged spying as tensions between London and Moscow rose after Ukraine’s recent use of British weapons to strike deeper into Russia. The FSB, Russia’s domestic intelligence agency, announced on Tuesday that it had acted on documents accusing a British diplomat of engaging in “reconnaissance and subversive activities that threaten the country".more

Quarter of teens who see violence online are being served clips via algorithms, survey in England and Wales findsmore

One of the FBI’s most wanted fugitives has been arrested in the Welsh countryside. Daniel Andreas San Diego, 46, has been on the FBI’s “most wanted terrorists” list for almost two decades for his alleged involvement in two office building bombings in San Francisco in 2003.more