Author: Fatimah Idera

The Chief Executive of Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, has urged Chancellor Rachel Reeves to move the green levy from household energy bills to general taxation, arguing that the current system places an unfair burden on consumers. Chris O’Shea said the UK’s transition to net zero requires substantial investment, and the costs should be more equitably distributed. He warned that, under the current approach, households are footing too much of the bill. Read also: UK’s largest gas storage facility faces shutdown Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Broadcasting House, O’Shea explained: “The cost of the energy transition is not…

British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves will allocate £86 billion ($116 billion) to research and development as part of this week’s comprehensive spending review, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) announced on Sunday. The investment package will support a wide range of initiatives from pioneering drug treatments and next-generation batteries to breakthroughs in artificial intelligence. According to the DSIT, annual funding for R&D will grow to more than £22.5 billion by the 2029/30 fiscal year, with the goal of fostering innovation, job creation, and long-term economic growth. On Wednesday, Reeves is set to distribute over £2 trillion ($2.7 trillion)…

President Donald Trump’s administration announced the deployment of 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles on Saturday, following escalating tensions between federal agents and demonstrators protesting immigration raids. Clashes broke out in the city’s Paramount neighbourhood, where federal agents faced off with hundreds of protesters and some waving Mexican flags during the second consecutive day of demonstrations. Later Saturday evening, a smaller protest of around 60 people gathered in downtown Los Angeles, chanting slogans such as “ICE out of L.A.!” Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth warned that the military was ready to mobilise active-duty troops if unrest continues, saying the Marines…

The NHS app is set to become the default way for millions of patients in England to receive healthcare information, as part of a government plan to modernise services and reduce costs. According to the Department of Health and Social Care, this shift is expected to save the NHS £200 million over the next three years. Backed by a £50 million investment, the move will see more test results, screening invitations, and appointment reminders delivered directly to patients’ smartphone reducing reliance on traditional methods like letters. Currently, around 50 million letters are sent to patients each year. For those unable…

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday allowed the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a central agency in President Donald Trump’s initiative to downsize the federal workforce, temporary access to extensive personal data held by the Social Security Administration (SSA), despite ongoing legal challenges. In a brief, unsigned order, the Court paused a ruling by U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander, which had blocked DOGE from accessing sensitive records, including medical histories, financial data, Social Security numbers, and immigration files. Judge Hollander had found that unrestricted access likely violated federal privacy laws. The Court’s conservative majority (6-3) granted the emergency request from…

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously ruled in favor of a Catholic nonprofit seeking exemption from Wisconsin’s unemployment insurance tax, marking another significant decision expanding religious rights. In a 9–0 decision written by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the court sided with the Catholic Charities Bureau, an arm of the Catholic Diocese of Superior and four of its affiliated service organizations. The ruling overturned a lower court’s decision that denied the group a religious exemption, citing the First Amendment’s protection of religious freedom and government neutrality toward religion. At the center of the case was whether Wisconsin’s refusal to grant the…

A federal judge ruled Thursday that the Trump administration must reinstate AmeriCorps-funded programs in 24 Democratic-led states, following a lawsuit challenging the administration’s efforts to dismantle the national service agency. However, the judge declined to prevent mass layoffs within the agency. U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman, based in Baltimore, issued a partial injunction in response to a legal challenge brought by those states and the District of Columbia. They argued that the administration acted unlawfully in ending over 1,000 AmeriCorps grants and placing 85 per cent of the agency’s workforce on administrative leave, with plans to terminate them by June…

A woman who posed as a qualified psychiatrist and worked in the NHS for more than two decades has been ordered to repay over £400,000 or serve additional time behind bars. Zholia Alemi, 62, of Burnley, secured jobs across the UK by submitting forged medical credentials to the General Medical Council (GMC), despite never completing her medical degree. She was convicted of 20 offences, including forgery, and sentenced to seven years in prison in 2023 following a trial at Manchester Crown Court. On Wednesday, a judge ruled that Alemi must return £406,624 to the NHS in compensation or face a…

In a move that intensifies an ongoing battle with one of the nation’s most prestigious universities, President Donald Trump on Wednesday suspended the entry of foreign nationals seeking to study or participate in exchange programs at Harvard University, citing national security concerns. The presidential proclamation, effective for an initial period of six months, blocks new international students from entering the U.S. to attend the varsity. It also directs the State Department to consider revoking the academic or exchange visas of current students who fall under the directive’s criteria. The suspension could be extended beyond six months. The school swiftly condemned…

A deported immigrant and Guatemalan man who was mistakenly deported to Mexico despite expressing fear of persecution had been flown back to the United States (US) on Wednesday, following a federal judge’s order directing the Trump administration to facilitate his return. The man’s return marks a significant development in a series of judicial rulings requiring the U.S. government to bring back migrants who were unlawfully deported. It appears to be the first successful reentry among those cases. Recall that on May 23, U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston ordered the man’s return after the Department of Justice admitted its…