International News

The cost of living continued to soar last month, laying bare the challenge the chancellor faces ahead of his spring spending statement on Wednesday. Prices rose by 6.2% in the 12 months to February - the fastest for 30 years - as fuel, energy and food costs surged. Chancellor Rishi Sunak faces growing calls to offer more support as household budgets are squeezed. Prices are rising faster than wages and the Bank of England thinks it could hit double digits this year. There is speculat...

Millions of vulnerable people will begin receiving invitations for a fourth Covid jab. As of 7am this morning, immunosuppressed people and anyone aged 75 and over in England will be able to book their spring booster. This latest jab will be made available to around five million people, with 600,000 set for the call up this week. NHS teams will also be contacting care homes to arrange jabs after the UK’s top scientists recommended a spring top-up as a precautionary measure. Heal...

People looking for property in the UK could save as much as £1,400 by buying instead of renting, new research has shown. The latest housing research report from Halifax has revealed that annual home ownership costs were £1,378 ($1,807) cheaper than renting last year, with monthly costs for first-time buyers at £115. This is 13% lower than the cost of renting an equivalent home, and the difference could add up to more than £27,600 over a 25-year mortgage. The stud...

Diesel prices in the UK rose by an average of more than 2p in a day as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues to affect global oil costs. The fuel jumped to a record £1.76 per litre on Tuesday, up from almost £1.74 on Monday. Petrol prices, which have also increased to record highs, rose to almost £1.65p a litre from about £1.64. The continuing price rises come amid warnings of potential global oil supply problems. Recent rises in the global price of oil h...

London offices are fuller than at any time since the start of the pandemic as the return to commuting gathers pace, data has revealed. Office occupancy reached 42 per cent last Thursday, exceeding the previous highwater mark of 40.1 per cent recorded on October 14 last year when London was still opening up after the third lockdown. Average occupancy was about 63 per cent before the first work-from-home order was issued by Boris Johnson in March 2020, but immediately fell to close to below 10 ...

Boris Johnson will meet leaders in Saudi Arabia later as he tries to build an "international coalition" against the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The PM will discuss securing energy supplies from the region, saying the world needed to "wean itself off" Russian oil and gas. But Mr Johnson faced criticism for going on the trip due to the Saudi government's human rights record. On Saturday, they carried out a mass execution of 81 men in one day. A number of MPs called on the PM to ca...

EXCLUSIVE: Phil Spencer's biggest house buying mistakes and why you might want to avoid the pub Property guru Phil Spencer has been giving expert advice on our screens for two decades along with on-screen partner Kirstie Allsopp. The housing market has changed drastically over that time, but the pair have evolved with the times and are still at the top of their game. Phil has told The Mirror what the biggest mistakes people are making when buying a house - and the best way to get on...

The Crossrail project will launch by the end of June, Transport for London has pledged. The Elizabeth line will be transformational when complete but the project is running over budget and more than three years behind schedule. Here's what we know so far. An exact opening date has yet to be announced but the service is currently more than three years behind schedule and expected to have a total cost of almost £19 billion. Test trains are running along the line in advance of it...