55 minutes ago US Embassy in London on 'lockdown' as armed police race to scene to probe 'suspect package'

The US embassy in London is in a state of 'lockdown' as police officers probe a 'suspect package' nearby.

Events

58 minutes ago FTSE 100 Live 22 November: Games Workshop surges on strong update, retail sales disappoint

Household budgets are in focus after October’s retail sales figures showed a sharp fall and Ofgem increased the energy price cap.

Economics

58 minutes ago UK private sector contracting as firms give ‘thumbs down’ to the budget – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsAverage annual energy bill to rise to £1,738 in Great Britain from JanuaryWhat is the energy price cap and can I cut my bill?The pound has dropped to a six-month low against the US dollar, after this morning’s weaker-than-expected retail sales report.Sterling fell as low as $1.255, its weakest level since 14 May, extending recent losses as economic worries have risen. Continue reading...

Economics

63 minutes ago What is the Ofgem energy price cap? Households to face higher energy bills

Billpayers are bracing themselves for a colder season that could strain their budgets

Economics

69 minutes ago Police update as pensioner and teenager seriously injured after van hit shoppers in Caerphilly

Two people remain in hospital with serious injuries after a van hit pedestrians in Caerphilly

Events

70 minutes ago Britain's military 'is ready to fight Russia tonight': UK army chief's stark warning after Putin declared we are now 'directly involved' in Ukraine war

Lt. Gen Sir Rob Magowan, the deputy chief of the British defence staff, told the House of Commons defence committee: 'If the British Army was asked to fight tonight, it would fight tonight'

Events

72 minutes ago Laos methanol poisonings latest: Sixth tourist dies as police detain hostel owners over ‘tainted alcohol’

Holly Bowles was taken to a Thai hospital after consuming ‘tainted’ alcohol shots in the backpacking hotspot of Vang Vieng

Events

76 minutes ago Meet Ms Rachel, the YouTube goddess worshipped by toddlers and parents alike | Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett

Her videos offer so much more than speech therapy and a brief respite from childcare: she is part of the fabric of our livesThere’s a woman in my house every day who my toddler loves almost as much as he loves me, and her name is Ms Rachel. If you don’t spend much time with preschool-aged children, Ms Rachel – some people mistakenly say Miss, but the Ms is important, I feel – is probably not a name that will ring a bell. To parents and grandparents and other caregivers, however, she has become the closest thing that we have to a cult figure. You see, Ms Rachel is an angel, a goddess who has bestowed upon us her supreme gifts for entertaining and educating children. I have seen her referred to as “the world’s babysitter”; people jokingly offer to Venmo her cash for all the “childcare” sh...

Politics

76 minutes ago Warren says Trump’s ‘unprecedented’ actions during transition risk security

US Senator Elizabeth Warren sounds alarm over president-elect’s refusal to sign MOU and failure to release ethics planDonald Trump’s refusal to cooperate with the outgoing Biden administration is putting national security at risk and weakening safeguards against corruption, the US Senator Elizabeth Warren has warned.The president-elect has broken from precedent by refusing to sign memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with the current White House team and failing to release a comprehensive ethics plan. Continue reading...

Events

76 minutes ago Tracy Chevalier: ‘Woolf’s The Waves will be like medicine – I won’t like it, but it will do me good’

The novelist on the comfort of Dodie Smith, how Anne Tyler made her want to be a writer – and why she doesn’t reread booksMy earliest reading memoryMy parents read me most of the Dr Seuss books. My favourite was Ten Apples Up on Top, about a lion, a tiger and a dog counting apples. I can still conjure up the illustrations, including the last one where there’s an explosion of apples all over the page.My favourite book growing upThe Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I was riveted by her descriptions of pioneer life and all the how-to information: how to build a log cabin, plough a field, make a ball out of a pig’s bladder. I suspect those books affected my approach to my own writing of historical fiction. Also I related to Laura’s bad-tempered rebelliousness compared with her p...

Science