4 hours ago Brits can save hundreds of pounds next year as Monzo launches 1p challenge

This new feature will help bankers save more than £600 in a year

Politics

6 minutes ago Hobbit home boom in New Zealand: Nation embraces tiny house living amid affordable housing crisis where average home price is $1m

Tiny houses - small, functional dwellings with floor spaces of up to 60 square metres - are becoming increasing popular among families and single occupiers.

Society

11 hours ago Charities to get cash from £15m fund to redistribute surplus farm food

The scheme will give grants of £20,000 or more to the not-for-profit food redistribution sector in England.

Economics

28 minutes ago Weather tracker: storm brings well over a metre of snow to peaks in Alps

Several days of snow brought avalanche risk at Christmas, as wintry weather also caused four deaths in IndiaA snowstorm developed across the Alps on Saturday 21 December due to a low-pressure system situated over the Adriatic Sea. This depression allowed relatively warm and moist air to push into the Alps, condensing and falling as snow as it met the much colder alpine air mass. Snowfall continued for several days, allowing some of the peaks to see well over 1 metre of snow, with significant snowfall also seen across many ski villages. Consequently, there was a significant avalanche risk over the Christmas period.Ski resorts in Bulgaria also experienced significant snow starting on Christmas Day, which caused disruption in the mountainous west, where ski resorts had to temporarily shut down due to road closures. Towns such as Troyan, Samokov and Teteven were particularly badly affected with snowdrifts and power failures. Continue reading...

Events

5 hours ago What Queen Elizabeth really felt about Meghan Markle laid bare by insider

Her Majesty initially went out of her way to make Prince Harry's then-girlfriend feel welcome in the Royal Family. But things started to turn sour as the Sussexes' wedding drew closer, according to an expert.

Politics

6 hours ago Climate crisis exposed people to extra six weeks of dangerous heat in 2024

Analysis shows fossil fuels are supercharging heatwaves, leaving millions prone to deadly temperaturesThe climate crisis caused an additional six weeks of dangerously hot days in 2024 for the average person, supercharging the fatal impact of heatwaves around the world.The effects of human-caused global heating were far worse for some people, an analysis by World Weather Attribution (WWA) and Climate Central has shown. Those in Caribbean and Pacific island states were the hardest hit. Many endured about 150 more days of dangerous heat than they would have done without global heating, almost half the year. Continue reading...

Society

19 hours ago Best Boxing Day sales for major supermarkets revealed: from Aldi and B&M to Tesco and M&S

Major supermarkets including Aldi and Tesco , as well as several other UK retailers, Superdrug and The Perfume Shop, have revealed discounts on hundreds of must-have products.

Economics

34 minutes ago Sheikh Jassim's Man United masterplan 'revealed' amid Ineos crisis as fresh takeover hope given

Manchester United owners the Glazer family chose the Sir Jim Ratcliffe-led minority takeover by Ineos instead of Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani's 'Project Ruby'

Events

17 hours ago The Guardian view on digital media: the case for better regulation must be made | Editorial

Over the holidays, this column will explore next year’s urgent issues. Today we look at the crisis in western democracy, Donald Trump’s victory and the role played by digital mediaIn November 2020, shortly after Donald Trump’s defeat in the US presidential election, Barack Obama observed that America risked entering “an epistemological crisis”. The prospect of Mr Trump’s return to the White House in January validates his predecessor’s premonition.Mr Obama was talking about media fragmentation and polarisation: different segments of society existing in discrete information spaces; arguments no longer drawn from a common reservoir of facts; no shared reality, no foundation of truth. “Then by definition the marketplace of ideas doesn’t work,” he said. “And by definition our democracy doesn’t work.” Continue reading...

Politics

13 hours ago Destructive hurricanes, sweltering heat waves: Extreme weather events cost Americans hundreds of billions of dollars this year

Climate change is making extreme weather events more frequent and severe with expensive and deadly consequences

Society

20 hours ago What’s actually worth spending your beauty vouchers on as retailers kick off their Boxing Day sales

If you received some beauty vouchers for Christmas, today is the perfect day to get the most use out of them as retailers launch their Boxing Day sales with hundreds of discounts

Economics

1 hour ago Houthis claim missile attack on Tel Aviv after Israel strikes Yemen airport – Middle East crisis live

Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for the overnight firing of a missile at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airportThe Israeli military demanded that medical staff and patients leave the premises of Kamal Adwan hospital to make room for their forces to storm the facility, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported this morning.Gaza’s health ministry has said the three main hospitals in northern Gaza – of which Kamal Adwan is one – are barely functioning and have been under repeated attack since Israel sent tanks into Beit Lahiya and nearby Beit Hanoun and Jabalia in October.This morning, Israel pushed deeper into the area surrounding Kamal Adwan hospital. Israeli armoured tanks advanced deeper under heavy cover from quadcopter machineguns.Explosive devices had already been planted in the vicinity of the hospital. Four were set off near the northern gate, at the back entrance, causing damage to the compound and sparking fires in some of the buildings around it. Continue reading...

Events

17 hours ago Labour preparing for private school closures after VAT raid on fees, reports suggest

A Whitehall source said the government was bracing itself for possible school closures – although a spokesperson said that was misleading

Politics

22 hours ago Festive cheer as homeless charity cooks up Christmas dinners for hundreds of Manchester's most vulnerable

"I've never seen so many clean plates."

Society

23 hours ago A Silicon Valley nudist resort is on sale for $30m – but will its new owner ‘go textile’?

Members are in limbo as Lupin Lodge is on the market after nearly 90 years – with next buyer likely to require clothesAfter nearly 90 years as a historic nudist resort, California’s Lupin Lodge is up for sale – and its next owners are likely to require guests to wear clothes.The 112-acre Silicon Valley property became a retreat for members of the “naturist” movement in 1935. Today, its hundreds of members enjoy the resort’s clothing-optional hiking trails, pickleball court and its nude-only community pool. (Yes: the members really do hike naked.) Continue reading...

Economics

2 hours ago Philippe Clement's make or break Rangers run laid bare as he faces nightmare New Year and battle of the crisis clubs

After brief respite, the heat is well and truly back on the Belgian after defeat in Paisley

Events

18 hours ago Nottingham Forest vs Tottenham LIVE! Premier League result, match stream and latest updates today

Spurs sees defensive crisis deepen on miserable day against former manager

Politics

2 hours ago Send more convicts to open prisons to ease overcrowding crisis in jails and reduce reoffending, urges Labour adviser

David Gauke, the ex-Tory justice secretary who is now leading Labour's sentencing review, claimed the current prisons crisis offered 'an opportunity' for change.

Events

19 hours ago North Lanarkshire Council confirms series of road closures in Shotts and Newmains

Three closures will take place in January.

Politics

2 hours ago Motherwell v Rangers injury news: 7 out and 2 doubts as Philippe Clement faces Fir Park injury crisis

Here is the early team news ahead of Motherwell vs Rangers in the Scottish Premiership at Fir Park.

Events

23 hours ago Dining across the divide: ‘I tried to push him on reparations, but I didn’t get very far’

They chewed over slavery and the climate crisis, then moved on to gender issues – did they leave on good terms?Joshua, 29, EdinburghOccupation Part-time PhD student and full-time charity worker Continue reading...

Politics

3 hours ago Netanyahu warns Yemen airstrikes will continue after WHO chief caught up in airport attack – Middle East crisis live

Head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said he was at Yemen’s international airport when it was hitThe Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen have been attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea for more than a year to try to enforce a naval blockade on Israel, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Israel’s year-long war in Gaza.The strikes on shipping by the Houthis, who have also launched missiles at Israel, have prompted retaliatory strikes by the US and Britain. Here is an extract from our explainer on the group:The Houthis are a Yemeni militia group named after their founder, Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, and representing the Zaidi branch of Shia Islam.They emerged in the 1980s in opposition to Saudi Arabia’s religious influence in Yemen. Continue reading...

Events

29 hours ago Scotland faces an existential crisis that politicians are doing almost nothing about

Like many Western countries, Scotland’s falling birth rate is its most under-rated crisis

Politics

6 hours ago AP PHOTOS: A river route for food and crime: The dual nature of a major South American waterway

From its headwaters in Brazil, the Paraguay River flows hundreds of miles south to where it joins the Parana River to form a single 2,100-mile waterway that carries much of the agricultural and mineral wealth of South America to the Atlantic

Events

30 hours ago Why this Scottish menstrual health innovation matters in chase for multi

“The evidence from the review indicates a global femtech market which is expected to treble in size over the next 10 years, alone providing major opportunities for Scottish businesses capable of accessing this market” - Scottish Enterprise

Politics

9 hours ago Yoon Suk Yeol impeachment: court hearings to begin in South Korea over president’s martial law crisis

Yoon’s legal team will attend the first hearing in impeachment review on Friday, the same day that the acting president also faces an impeachment voteSouth Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol’s legal team are set to attend court on Friday as the constitutional court begins hearings into his impeachment by parliament over his short-lived imposition of martial law,The court has 180 days to decide whether to reinstate Yoon or remove him. In the latter scenario, a new presidential election would be held within 60 days. Continue reading...

Events

31 hours ago ScottishPower thanks Record after 'overwhelming' response from Grangemouth workers to jobs call

Hundreds of staff facing redundancy at Scotland’s last oil refinery thrown jobs lifeline by ScottishPower earlier this month, as revealed in the Record.

Politics

12 hours ago Azerbaijan Airlines plane 'shot down by Russian air defences' killing 38

The Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed hundreds of miles away from its intended destination in Russia with dozens killed in the impact on Christmas Day.

Events

35 hours ago Britain's equalities chief intervenes after Labour insisted tightening law to protect single

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has demanded to see the transgender policies of hundreds of public bodies after concerns about them were dismissed by ministers.

Politics

14 hours ago New UK Weather maps show when two walls of snow will hit with half a foot settling

The latest snow maps show two massive snow systems set to cover several hundred miles of UK land in the new year - with only one patch of the country to be spared

Events

35 hours ago Labour preparing for private school closures after VAT raid on fees, suggest reports

A Whitehall source told The Times the government was bracing itself for possible school closures - although a spokesperson said that was misleading

Politics

35 hours ago Argos’ Boxing Day 2024 sale has hundreds of discounts, here are the best

Find massive discounts across fitness gear, home essentials and tech gadgets that are perfect for upgrading your space

Politics

16 hours ago UK police 'give up' on investigating crimes at record levels as 'system in crisis'

UK police forces have been urged to take 'urgent action' after it was revealed more criminals than ever are getting away with crimes due to authorities calling off investigations

Events

18 hours ago Middle East crisis live: WHO chief at Yemen airport during Israeli airstrikes; Netanyahu says attack ongoing ‘until we complete the job’

Houthi television reports say three people were killed in Israel’s strikes on Yemen; Israel says airstrikes target military infrastructureAn IDF reservist soldier was killed in fighting in the central Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said.The 35-year-old was named as Amit Levi, the Jerusalem Post reported.The Israeli army justifies or excuses this targeting by claiming it is aimed at individuals involved in Palestinian organisations and cells.However, on the ground, these individuals were on journalistic assignments, residing in press vehicles and covering events.May God take revenge on them, may God take revenge on them. He’s the one that makes the news and broadcasts the crimes to the world, this is what they do to them. Continue reading...

Events

18 hours ago Erling Haaland shoulders Man City blame as Pep Guardiola's crisis continues

Manchester City extended their poor run of form to one win in 13 games after Erling Haaland missed a penalty against Everton as his struggles in front of goal contine

Events

18 hours ago 'I didn't like us': Hearts' shortcomings laid bare as Hibs storm Tynecastle

Hearts boss forthright after Tynecastle side slump to derby defeat

Events

19 hours ago Labour claims to have broken the link between migrant crossings and good weather

It comes as more than 450 people made the dangerous crossing of the English Channel in small boats on Christmas Day, according to Home Office figures

Events

20 hours ago Chilling detail explains 'truth' of horror Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash which killed 38

The Azerbaijan Airlines flight ended up hundreds of miles away from its intended destination with the plane crash resulting in dozens of deaths and many unanswered questions

Events

20 hours ago Pep Guardiola's flops 'forgotten how to win' as Man City crisis engulfs Erling Haaland

Manchester City's dismal season that has included one humiliation after another continued with a dire draw against Everton after Pep Guardiola rang the changes but Erling Haaland missed a penalty

Events

21 hours ago Dirty water, sentient trees and hope in a climate crisis: 10 environmental long reads to digest over Christmas

In this week’s Down To Earth newsletter: These essential features – chosen by the Guardian’s Long Reads editors, cover everything from dirty water and sentient trees to how to find hope in a climate crisis• Don’t get Down to Earth delivered to your inbox? Sign up here to get the newsletter in fullThis year the Guardian Long Read series celebrates its 10th anniversary. Since we launched in 2014, we’ve run more than 1,000 pieces, on everything from Algerian sheep fighting to the trials and tribulations of Durex’s chief condom guy. Over the years, we’ve also run plenty of great environment stories, and for this special edition of Down to Earth we want to highlight a few of our favourites from the archive.Below we’ve picked 10 of our favourite climate pieces to dig into over the Christmas break – but first, this week’s most important reads.CO2 emissions from new North Sea drilling sites would match 30 years’ worth from UK householdsGhosts of the landscape: how folklore and songs are a k...

Events