16 h. ago ‘We promised change but people aren’t feeling it yet’: Labour rues poor first year

MPs, aides and other party figures reflect on what went wrong and how they could still turn things aroundIn a stiflingly hot room at a health centre in East London, as he announced the government’s 10-year plan for the NHS on Thursday, Keir Starmer was confronted with a brutal assessment of his first year in power.“You’ve U-turned on your reforms, your MPs don’t trust you, and markets worry that you’ve lost resolve on fiscal discipline. It’s the epitome, isn’t it, of sticking-plaster politics and chaos that you promised voters you would end?” a television journalist asked. Continue reading...

Politics

30 h. ago Text therapy: study finds couples who use emojis in text messages feel closer

Using emojis in text messages enhances connection and fun in close personal relationships, US study findsThe secret to a good relationship may be staring smartphone users in the face.A new study published in the journal Plos One found that using emojis in text messages makes people feel closer and more satisfied in their personal lives. Continue reading...

Politics

47 h. ago How people are celebrating, protesting and traveling for July Fourth

People are approaching this Independence Day with mixed feelings

Events

3 d. ago Scottish hypnotherapist Elle Kay launches new free wellness app for busy overwhelmed minds

Most people already know what they should be doing to feel healthier, but constant pressure and stress can make it hard to follow through. In fact, 91% of UK adults say they’ve experienced high or extreme levels of pressure or stress in the past year (Mental Health UK, 2025).

Politics

3 d. ago Cass review: how has report affected care for transgender young people?

Review led to profound changes, some of which made young people feel unsupported, yet new clinics are openingAt the heart of the controversy about how to meet the needs of young people questioning their gender has been the huge rise in referrals to the Tavistock – previously the only dedicated clinic in England and Wales treating children with gender dysphoria.The clinic was closed one month before the Cass review into youth gender identity services, commissioned by NHS England and led by the British paediatrician Hilary Cass, which found that children had been “let down” by the NHS amid a “toxic” public discourse. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago GP reveals exact number of drinks it takes for most people to feel hungover...and drunk

Just one alcoholic drink a day raises the risk of more than a dozen health conditions-but for most people its not enough to cause a hangover.

Politics

4 d. ago I was getting lonely. Here’s what happened when I tried to make new friends in my 30s

From streaming services to food-delivery apps, the modern world conspires to keep us home and alone. But I went out looking for a human connectionI am lucky enough to have some wonderful friends. But recently many of them have moved away because they can’t afford, or simply can’t be bothered, to live in a huge city like London any more. And when you’re in your 30s, meaningfully connecting with new people is no mean feat.I’m not alone in feeling a little lonely: in 2023, the World Health Organization said that social isolation was becoming a “global public health concern”. From the decline of the office to the rise of single-occupancy flats, our social lives are being leached away from us. Meanwhile, streaming services and food-delivery apps discourage us from going out, their ads extolling the safety and convenience of staying home and not seeing or talking to another human. It’s almost as if they want to keep us single and friendless, with nothing to spend our money on but a d...

Politics

4 d. ago Leading Labour rebel backs welfare bill amid sustained defiance

Meg Hillier to vote for government’s legislation on Tuesday though dozens of Labour MPs still expected to oppose itDowning Street has “listened” and “honoured” the promises it made on changes to the welfare bill, one of the key rebels, Meg Hillier, has said, saying she would vote for the bill on Tuesday.The Treasury select committee chair, who authored the original amendment that would have killed off the government’s flagship welfare changes, offered her support amid a continued backlash over the bill from dozens of MPs. Continue reading...

Economics

5 d. ago No state is safe: Trans people are planning to move overseas rather than live in Trump’s America

Conservatives’ increasingly frenzied attacks on trans rights have made many people feel the USA is no longer safe for them — and the Court’s ruling in US v Skrmetti is just the latest ‘domino’, Io Dodds reports

Politics

5 d. ago Is it OK to read Infinite Jest in public? Why the internet hates ‘performative reading’

Posts mocking strangers for cracking open classics have become popular. So where are we supposed to read them?I consider no activity more luxurious than posting up at a bar solo with a good book. The creasing of a paperback in one hand, the weight of a wine glass in the other, the feeling of being alone in a crowd of people all make for a lovely evening. Or at least, I thought so, until recently, when two twentysomethings approached me during this ritual. “Are you reading alone?” one asked. “I could neverrrr,” the other said, and then uttered the universal mean girl slight: “I wish I had your confidence.”Reading in public – not cool. Or at least “performative reading”, as it’s been dubbed on social media, is worthy of ridicule. Continue reading...

Politics

6 d. ago ‘No one is coming to save us’: Trans people are planning to move overseas rather than live in Trump’s America

Conservatives’ increasingly frenzied attacks on trans rights have made many people feel the USA is no longer safe for them — and the Court’s ruling in US v Skrmetti is just the latest ‘domino’, Io Dodds reports

Politics

7 d. ago ‘Trying to claim PIP was awful – Labour still wants to make it harder’

More than half of disabled people who attend a health benefit assessment say they feel humiliated by the process

Politics

7 d. ago ‘You have to fight tooth and nail’: PIP claimants tell of struggle to get awarded as Labour accused of making it harder

More than half of disabled people who attend a health benefit assessment say they feel humiliated by the process

Events

9 d. ago After 14 devastating miscarriages, I found a surrogate couple who promised to change my life

Gold Coast photographer Kirby Hood, 36, says she was 'blindsided' when the woman she trusted to be her surrogate booted her from the hospital after deciding to keep the baby.

Politics

9 d. ago A real issue: video game developers are being accused of using AI – even when they aren’t

Generative AI is causing new and unusual problems for developers as players become more sensitive to the use of artificially generated ‘slop’ imagesIn April, game developer Stamina Zero achieved what should have been a marketing slam-dunk: the launch trailer for the studio’s game Little Droid was published on PlayStation’s official YouTube channel. The response was a surprise for the developer. The game looks interesting, people wrote in the comments, but was “ruined” by AI art. But the game’s cover art, used as the thumbnail for the YouTube video, was in fact made by a real person, according to developer Lana Ro. “We know the artist, we’ve seen her work, so such a negative reaction was unexpected for us, and at first we didn’t know how to respond or how to feel,” Ro said. “We were confused.”It’s not wrong for people to be worried about AI use in video games – in fact, it’s good to be sceptical, and ensure that the media you support aligns with your values. Common arguments against ...

Culture

9 d. ago The world wants China’s rare earth elements – what is life like in the city that produces them?

More than 80% of China’s rare earth reserves are located in Baotou, an industrial hub of 2.7 million people that abuts the Gobi desertCentral Baotou, an industrial hub of 2.7 million people that abuts the Gobi desert in north China, feels just like any other second-tier Chinese city. Large shopping malls featuring western chains including Starbucks and KFC stand alongside street after street of busy local restaurants, where people sit outside and children play late into the evening, enjoying the relative relief of the cooler temperatures that arrive after dark in Inner Mongolia’s baking summer.But a short drive into the city’s suburbs reveal another typical, less hospitable, Chinese scene. Factories crowd the city’s edges, with chimneys belching white plumes of smoke. As well as steel and silicon plants, Baotou is home to China’s monopoly on rare earths, the metallic elements that are used in oil refining equipment and car batteries and that have become a major sticking point in the...

Politics

1 week ago RFK Jr. promises change to health insurance prior authorization policies

Pledge from insurers to cut red tape could impact 257 million Americans

Events

1 week ago Kirsty Coventry takes over as Olympic president and promises to change lives

First woman in the role replaces Thomas Bach‘We are guardians of the Olympic movement’Kirsty Coventry has promised to change lives and inspire hope during an official ceremony to mark her taking over from Thomas Bach as president of the International Olympic Committee.The 41-year-old from Zimbabwe, who in March became the first woman and the first African to be elected to the most powerful job in sports politics, also paid tribute to the strong women in her life as she was given the golden key to the IOC by Bach. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Interactive quiz that reveals colour of your soul's aura and helps you find your true purpose: Don't scoff

Have you ever wondered, 'Who am I?', 'Why am I here?' and 'How can I be happy?' I think we've all asked ourselves these questions at some point in our lives.

Politics

2 w. ago Brits pinpoint the exact temperature where the heat becomes unbearable

A new study has found the exact temperature where British people feel most comfortable, with the research also revealing the average time it takes for the effects to wear off

Politics