60 m. ago How to avoid ‘fast furniture’ and deck out your home with goods that will last

That distinctive ‘new furniture smell’ is a sign that harmful compounds are being released. Here are ways to sidestep the environmental and health risks of cheap furnitureChange by Degrees offers life hacks and sustainable living tips each Saturday to help reduce your household’s carbon footprintGot a question or tip for reducing household emissions? Email us at changebydegrees@theguardian.comYou’ve heard of fast fashion – but what about fast furniture?It’s the cheap stuff churned out in mass quantities with little regard for quality, all designed to be ditched within just a few years. Continue reading...

Politics

10 h. ago Summer cruise deals have just dropped for 2025 – these are the best to book now

From summer sailings this year to planning ahead, there are lots of cruise deals available for passengers to hit the high seas

Economics

24 h. ago Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy hails ‘historic’ minerals deal as an equal partnership with US

Ukrainian president says the deal was the result of Vatican meeting with Donald Trump. What we know on day 1,164See all our Ukraine war coverage Continue reading...

Economics

31 h. ago Trump approves first weapons shipment to Ukraine since becoming president, report says, after minerals deal agreed – Europe live

Trump administration suspended delivery of US military aid to Ukraine in March but is now set to restore exportsUkraine and the US signed a long-awaited minerals deal last night, signaling a major step forward in bilateral relations. But the full text of the agreement, including key details on the contentious small print issues that dragged out negotiations, has yet to be made public.Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal suggested yesterday that the process of ratifying the agreement could start today, with party consultations. Expect more details to emerge. Continue reading...

Politics

36 h. ago Best oven and hob deals for May 2025: Cheap offers on electric and gas models

Oven or hob not working as it should? Deals to make a new purchase easier on your wallet

Economics

38 h. ago Best tablet deals for May 2025, from Samsung, Amazon and more

Whatever type of tablet you’re looking for, these offers will help you save money

Economics

40 h. ago Ukraine’s PM hails ‘good and equal’ minerals deal with US – Europe live

Ukraine to retain ‘full control over resources and infrastructure’ under agreement, says Denys Shmyhal Full report: US and Ukraine sign minerals deal that solidifies investment in Kyiv’s defense against RussiaUkraine and the US signed a long-awaited minerals deal last night, signaling a major step forward in bilateral relations. But the full text of the agreement, including key details on the contentious small print issues that dragged out negotiations, has yet to be made public.Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal suggested yesterday that the process of ratifying the agreement could start today, with party consultations. Expect more details to emerge. Continue reading...

Economics

49 h. ago US and Ukraine sign minerals deal that solidifies investment in Kyiv’s defense against Russia

Move seals a deal to create a fund the Trump administration says will begin to repay roughly $175bn provided to UkraineThe US and Kyiv have signed an agreement to share profits and royalties from the future sale of Ukrainian minerals and rare earths, sealing a deal that Donald Trump has said will provide an economic incentive for the US to continue to invest in Ukraine’s defense and its reconstruction after he brokers a peace deal with Russia.The minerals deal, which has been the subject of tense negotiations for months and nearly fell through hours before it was signed, will establish a US-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund that the Trump administration has said will begin to repay an estimated $175bn in aid provided to Ukraine since the beginning of the war. Continue reading...

Economics

53 h. ago Ukraine war briefing: US and Kyiv ‘ready to sign’ minerals deal amid uncertainty over last

Ukraine’s first deputy PM travels to Washington to sign deal as later reports claim US pushing Ukraine to sign extra documents Kyiv felt were not ready Ukraine and the US said they were ready to sign a minerals deal, amid reports that a last-minute obstacle injected uncertainty into the timing. “Our side is ready to sign. The Ukrainians decided last night to make some last-minute changes,” US treasury secretary Scott Bessent told reporters. “We’re sure that they will reconsider that and we are ready, if they are.”Ukraine’s first deputy prime minister, Yulia Svyrydenko, is on her way to the US to sign the minerals deal, according to a senior source in the Ukrainian presidency. Ukraine’s prime minister, Denis Shmyhal, said on Wednesday that the reworked deal would be signed within the next 24 hours and would have to be ratified by the Ukrainian parliament.But later reports claimed the US was pushing Ukraine to sign additional documents, but that Kyiv felt they were not ready yet. The ...

Economics

56 h. ago Best vacuum cleaner deals for May 2025: Cordless, handheld, robot cleaners and more

Tidy deals on vacuum cleaners to bag right now

Economics

57 h. ago Best mattress deals for May 2025: single, double, king and super king beds

Find the best new mattress deals for the month right here

Economics

58 h. ago Best laptop deals in the UK for May 2025: Cheap offers on top models

Tip tap away on a discounted tech

Economics

58 h. ago Best TV deals in the UK for May 2025: Cheap offers from top brands like Sony and Samsung

The best TV offers on now from 42” to over 65”

Economics

61 h. ago Best microwave deals in May 2025: Save on top tried and tested models

We’ve found the cheapest options from Samsung, Sage and more

Economics

3 d. ago Dealer’s Choice review – Hammed Animashaun is the ace in a busted flush

Donmar Warehouse, LondonPatrick Marber’s debut play about a group of poker players brims with banter, but this pallid 30th-anniversary revival exposes its weaknessesIn 1995, two British playwrights made their debuts with all-male, six-character chamber-pieces strongly influenced by Pinter and Mamet, and set over one long, tense night in London. Jez Butterworth’s Mojo and Patrick Marber’s Dealer’s Choice proved to be superficially dazzling calling cards rather than enduring classics. Now a pallid 30th-anniversary revival of the latter reveals its weaknesses.Set in a restaurant where the manager Stephen (the Paul Bettany-esque Daniel Lapaine) and his employees Frankie (Alfie Allen), Sweeney (Theo Barklem-Biggs) and Mugsy (Hammed Animashaun) are gearing up for a late-night card game, the play brims with bants.At Donmar Warehouse, London, until 7 June Continue reading...

Economics

3 d. ago The best holidays to book for June 2025, from coastal Corsica to train rides through Canada

Whether walking the wild west coast of Wales or holing up in the Lazio countryside, there’s jet-setting and staycations to boot at the start of the summer season

Politics

7 d. ago National Pretzel Day 2025: Best giveaways and deals at Auntie Anne’s, Wetzel’s and more

Multiple chains are giving away free pretzels

Economics

7 d. ago In Kyiv, we don’t believe in the fantasy of Trump's ‘peace deal’. Our reality is more dead civilians | Nataliya Gumenyuk

At the scene of the deadliest attack on our capital this year, I see the war on Ukraine is still very real – and Putin shows no signs of ending itWar teaches you to believe only in what happens, rather than what is merely said or promised. A day after the “peace talks” in London, which the US secretary of state Marco Rubio didn’t even turn up for, Ukrainians were not anxiously waiting for the results of a possible deal, which looked unfeasible anyway. Instead, they were counting their dead.According to Ukraine’s air force, in the early hours of Thursday morning Russia launched 11 Iskander ballistic missiles, 37 KH-101 cruise missiles, six Iskander-K cruise missiles, 12 Kalibr cruise missiles, 4 KH-59/KH-69 missiles and 145 drones. For Kyiv and Kharkiv residents that night, this was not just a case of reading numbers on a news feed, but hearing and feeling explosions rock their cities. It turned out to be the deadliest night for the Ukrainian capital this year.Nataliya Gumenyuk is a ...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump’s transactional instincts could help forge a new Iran nuclear deal | Mohamad Bazzi

The president has a chance to make good on his reputation as a dealmaker as Iran moves closer to a nuclear weaponIn May 2018, Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the Iran nuclear deal and reimposed American sanctions that crippled the Iranian economy. Trump tore up the 2015 agreement, which had taken years for Iran to negotiate with six world powers, under which Tehran limited its nuclear program in exchange for relief from international sanctions. Trump insisted he would be able to negotiate a better pact than the one reached by Barack Obama’s administration.Today, in his second term as president, Trump is eager to fix the Iran deal he broke nearly seven years ago.Mohamad Bazzi is the director of the Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern studies and a journalism professor at New York University. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago UK deal with EU will not return to ‘arguments of the past’, minister says

Exclusive: Nick Thomas-Symonds says growth is highest priority of talks as Keir Starmer prepares to meet EU chiefNick Thomas-Symonds: A new deal with the EU is exactly what Britain needs. Here’s how Labour will achieve itUK politics live – latest updatesThe UK’s new deal with the EU will be a break from “debates and arguments of the past,” the UK’s chief negotiator, Nick Thomas-Symonds, has said, pledging that growth would be the highest priority of the talks.It comes as Keir Starmer prepares to meet the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, in London, as momentum builds towards a crucial EU-UK summit in May. Continue reading...

Politics