National News

US seizes Venezuela linked oil tanker off British waters

The US has seized a Venezuela-linked oil tanker which is travelling off British waters, an official has said.

Most adults not aware of scale of primary school reading gap

Many adults are not aware of the scale of the UK’s primary school reading gap, a survey has found.

Rightmove records busiest ever Boxing Day as home hunters prepare for 2026 moves

Rightmove recorded its busiest ever Boxing Day for website visits in December 2025, in signs of a bigger-than-usual housing market bounce.

Number of apps recommended for NHS to help asthma patients manage condition

A number of apps that can be downloaded onto smartphones and tablets have been recommended to help people with asthma manage their condition.

Trump discussing range of options to acquire Greenland White House says

Donald Trump has been discussing a “range of options” to acquire Greenland, the White House has said, after Sir Keir Starmer joined European leaders in insisting the US president must climb down from threats to take over the territory.

45 of porn users have accessed sites without age checks since July

Nearly half of adult pornography users have accessed sites without age checks since new verification rules came into force, research suggests.

Drink drive limit set to be cut in road safety strategy

Cutting the drink-drive limit in England and Wales is among Government plans in response to the “stalled” progress on road safety.

Waitrose to create 550 jobs for new Bristol warehouse as it eyes expansion

Waitrose is planning to hire around 550 staff to work at its new warehouse in Bristol as the upmarket grocer eyes expansion in the region.

Sainsburys launches new graduate programme with AI focus

Sainsbury’s has announced it is launching a new graduate programme focused on developing skills in artificial intelligence.

Government locked into 4m a year spending on unusable prison

The Government is spending £4 million a year on the upkeep of an “unusable” prison which currently holds no inmates, MPs have revealed.

Plans unveiled for new events space at Kings Foundation headquarters

Plans have been unveiled for a new events space at the headquarters of The King’s Foundation, which was set up by Charles more than 35 years ago.

Council declares major incident as heavy snow continues

Aberdeenshire Council has declared a major incident as the region deals with ongoing heavy snow.

Starmer and European allies will not stop defending Greenland amid US threat

Sir Keir Starmer and European counterparts have said they will “not stop defending” Greenland’s territorial integrity in the face of continued threats from Donald Trump to annex it.

Atrocious AE figures show worst November on record for waiting times in Scotland

Ministers have come under fire over “atrocious” waiting-times figures in Scotland’s accident and emergency departments – with new data showing the worst November on record for waits.

Kendall calls on Musks X to take urgent action over appalling deepfakes

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said Elon Musk’s X must urgently deal with its artificial intelligence Grok being used to create sexualised deepfake images.

Temperatures fall to 125C in coldest night as snow brings more disruption

Temperatures plummeted to as low as minus 12.5C in the UK overnight as more snow brought a second day of school closures and travel disruption.

Liam Rosenior has agreed verbally to become next Chelsea boss

Liam Rosenior has “agreed verbally” to become the next Chelsea manager.

New car sales grew by 35 last year fuelled by surge in demand for EVs

Sales of new cars grew by about 3.5% last year amid a surge in demand for electric vehicles (EVs), new figures show.

Shop price inflation driven up by rising food costs

Shop price inflation edged up in December as food price rises continued to add pressure to household budgets, figures indicate.

Royal Mail celebrates Stranger Things finale with stamp set

Royal Mail is releasing a set of Stranger Things stamps in celebration of the Netflix show’s finale.