14 h. ago Local government workers consulted on industrial action amid pay dispute

Unison said the latest pay offer amounts to a real-terms pay cut.

Politics

28 h. ago MP warns of 'plague of rats' as city's bin bags pile up due to ongoing industrial dispute

The industrial action, which went 'all out' yesterday, has led to scenes of overflowing bins and rubbish bags piling high in streets right across the city

Events

63 h. ago Ambulance workers vote for industrial action over proposed policy ‘bandage’

The move comes after a proposed new shift system was to be piloted in the South Eastern Trust area.

Politics

66 h. ago Justice Minister warns industrial action over legal aid causing ‘serious damage’

Naomi Long said there is a risk that innocent people will remain longer in custody, and the guilty go free.

Events

69 h. ago Major city descends into wasteland as bin workers go on strike: Mountains of rubbish overflowing onto the streets and rats scurrying around everywhere

Nearly 400 council bin workers in Birmingham have walked out indefinitely as part of an escalating dispute over jobs and pay.

Events

2 d. ago Major city descends into wasteland as bin workers go on strike: Mountains of rubbish overflows onto the streets and rats scurry around everywhere

Nearly 400 council bin workers in Birmingham have walked out indefinitely as part of an escalating dispute over jobs and pay.

Events

3 d. ago Fears for historic villages in green belt as Labour scraps rules against 'unrestricted sprawl' and blocks campaign groups from objecting

Fresh planning guidance issued by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has made clear that significant green belt safeguards don't apply to villages.

Politics

3 d. ago Households earning £31,000 or less can get free energy help through DWP scheme

The help comes from the Household Support Fund - which is a government-funded scheme run by the DWP - that has given local councils pots of cash to support struggling households in their area.

Economics

4 d. ago English and Welsh councils to have greater powers to seize land for affordable housing

Exclusive: Compulsory purchase orders will no longer need Whitehall permission under shake-up of planning rulesCouncils and mayors will be granted greater powers to seize land to build affordable housing under the Labour government’s shake-up of planning rules this week.Local authorities in England and Wales will no longer need permission from central government to make compulsory purchase orders (CPOs), in a change that ministers hope will unlock vacant and derelict land. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Long Island fire: Apocalyptic scenes at Westhampton as enormous blaze breaks out

State Governor Kathy Hochul said authorities are in ;'lose communication with local partners on Long Island to coordinate assistance and make sure they have the resources they need to protect their communities'

Events

5 d. ago Islamophobia charity Tell Mama facing closure after funding pulled by government

Police sources raise alarm over cut as anti-Muslim hate incidents in Britain hit record highThe government is cutting all funding for the Islamophobia reporting service Tell Mama, leaving it facing closure weeks after it revealed a record number of anti-Muslim hate incidents in Britain.Since its foundation in 2012, Tell Mama has been wholly funded by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to run its reporting service, which received almost 11,000 reports in 2023-4, and support victims of Islamophobia. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Chess returns to the screen on Monday with Chess Masters: The Endgame

The new programme on BBC Two will be very different from 42 years ago when the eighth and final series of The Master Game was never shown due to industrial actionFour decades ago, the eighth and last series of BBC Two’s much-admired chess programme The Master Game was never screened in the UK, because of industrial action by technicians. Tony Miles defeated Anatoly Karpov in the 1983 final, the Englishman’s second victory over the then world champion after his stunning 1 e4 a6 win at the 1980 European Teams.It was the end of an iconic programme, first launched in 1975 in the wake of the Fischer-Spassky boom. The Master Game’s innovative production made it appear that the players were speaking their thoughts on the game while it was in progress. Nigel Short, later a world title challenger, competed aged 11, in 1977, when his opponent Bill Hartston asked: “Has nobody told this boy never to accept pawns from strange men?” Short went on to win the event in 1981. An entire generation of ...

Politics

7 d. ago Canadians protest imports of US toxic waste amid Trump tariff war

Move to expand landfill for US hazardous waste stirs disputes between leaders in Quebec and Montreal suburbThe proposed expansion of a Quebec landfill that accepts hazardous waste from the United States has ignited a turf war between the Quebec provincial government and local leaders, who say they oppose putting US trash into a local peat bog.Local leaders are protesting the move – saying the state is capitulating to a US company in the midst of a tariff war between Canada and the United States. Continue reading...

Events

8 d. ago Government announces plans to axe oil and gas windfall tax in 2030

Ministers will consult with North Sea businesses, trade unions, workers, green groups and communities over plans for the energy sector’s future.

Politics

1 week ago Councillor calls for local government reform follwoing budget setting process

The discussions came as part of the council's final budget setting process for the 2025-26 financial year

Politics

1 week ago Councillor calls for local government reform following budget setting process

The discussions came as part of the council's final budget setting process for the 2025-26 financial year

Politics

1 week ago Sex worker who consulted Mikey Madison in Oscar Best Picture Anora reveals which scenes went too far

Andrea Werhun says she risked being 're-traumatized' by the most brutal moments in the movie, including when Mikey Madison's character 'Ani' is assaulted by a pair of Russian mobsters.

Politics

1 week ago Households struggling with energy costs can get free £147 payment from DWP scheme

The help is from the government's Household Support Fund scheme which gives local councils pots of cash, which they then use to provide support to those struggling with the cost of living

Economics

2 w. ago Rayner to tout ‘power shift’ of devolution plans to leaders in the North

The Government is re-organising local authorities and bringing in new mayoral powers under its devolution plans.

Politics

2 w. ago Alarms raised over legitimacy of Fyre festival 2: ‘An event that does not exist’

After the announcement of a follow-up festival in Mexico, tourism and local officials have denied any knowledge of its existenceWhen tickets to the second Fyre festival went on sale this week, there was just one concrete detail: it would take place on Isla Mujeres, a tropical island off Cancún, Mexico.But the festival seems to be repeating its own history as an improvised disaster after the local government in Isla Mujeres denied knowing anything about it. Continue reading...

Events