6 h. ago Grandmother, 70, lost her life savings after 'cowboy' builder promised her dream extension but kept demanding more cash before leaving her garden like a 'scrap yard'

Grandmother Yvonne Elloitt, 70, had wanted a small extension to her living room in Leeds, West Yorkshire - but she claims a builder rook her £14,000 life savings and failed to complete the work.

Economics

4 d. ago Storm Goretti wreaks havoc across UK after 100mph winds leaves 40,000 without power

Storm Goretti brought 'danger to life' 100mph winds and left a trail of destruction in multiple parts of Britain as forecasters warned the effects will continue to be felt into the weekend

Events

7 d. ago Elon Musk is moving back into politics. Can’t he take up a new hobby instead? Arwa Mahdawi

It didn’t go very well for him last time, but the tech billionaire seems to have abandoned his plans for a third party and has renewed his bromance with the president “You know, I’ve generally found that when I get involved in politics, it ends up badly,” Elon Musk mused on Nikhil Kamath’s podcast in November.Oh, we know, Elon, we most definitely know. The world is still reeling from the tech billionaire’s little experiment in politicking last year. Musk’s “department of government efficiency” (Doge) slashed federal jobs, dismantled foreign aid programmes and left a trail of chaos in its wake. It’s not clear whether any taxpayer money was saved, but experts are warning a lot of lives will be lost. By one calculation, there could be about 14 million excess deaths across the globe by 2030 if the US fails to restore aid funding. Thanks, Elon! Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Bradford 'high speed crash' sees one car flipped on its roof after police pursuit

A street in Bradford has turned to chaos this morning after a suspected high speed crash has left a trail of destruction, including one vehicle left flipped on its roof

Events

3 w. ago Britain's worst cowboy builder who fleeced customers out of more than £1.25m to fund luxury holidays and gambling is jailed for 14 years

Mark Killick, who was known to customers as Marc Cole, 56, from Paulton, Somerset, faces 14 years behind bars after callously fleecing his customers out of more than £1.25million.

Economics

3 w. ago Cowboy builders bullied customers and left trail of misery, debt and shoddy work

A judge said the father-and-son builders had ruthlessly manipulated their victims to extract as much money as possible from them

Economics

3 w. ago Combat training is a rite of passage for police recruits. It's left a trail of deaths and injuries

Combat training drills are a rite of passage for police recruits nationwide, and an Associated Press investigation finds they've left a trail of deaths and injuries

Events

3 w. ago Cowboy builder jailed after fleecing couple of £150k for work he never carried out

Martin Ritchie, 35, conned Jim and Jean Shaw into working on their dream new bungalow in Lenzie, East Dunbartonshire.

Economics

3 w. ago A winter tour of Luxembourg’s fairytale chateaux – on the country’s free bus network

This tiny country is awash with atmospheric castles, many of which you can stay in, making for a magical wintry break. And it won’t cost you a cent to travel between themThe top of the tower had disappeared in the mist, but its bells rang clear and true, tolling beyond the abbey gates, over the slopes of frost-fringed trees, down to the town in the valley below. Final call for morning mass. I took a seat at the back of the modern church, built when the Abbey of Saint Maurice and Saint Maurus relocated to this hill in Clervaux, north Luxembourg, in 1910. Then the monks swept in – and swept away 1,000 years. Sung in Latin, their Gregorian chants filled the nave: simple, calming, timeless. I’m not religious and didn’t understand a word, but also, in a way, understood it completely.Although mass is held here at 10am daily, year-round, the monks’ ethereal incantations seemed to perfectly suit the season. I left the church, picked up a waymarked hiking trail and walked deeper into the for...

Society