Business

Drax Group says it will stop burning wood sourced from British Columbia within the next year and has reduced use of Canadian pellets after recording almost £200m of impairments amid scrutiny and export tariffs.

President Trump used the State of the Union to propose a program that would give workers without employer plans access to new accounts and match contributions up to $1,000 annually; congressional action would be needed to expand the match.

Geothermal Engineering Ltd's United Downs plant in Cornwall has been switched on and will generate continuous electricity from a well more than 5km deep while extracting lithium to produce battery-grade lithium carbonate.

Kuwait observed its 65th National Day and 35th Liberation Day, and a regional report says sovereign wealth funds exceed $1 trillion while banking assets top 100 billion Kuwaiti dinars (about $326 billion).

Rolls-Royce said underlying operating profit rose to £3.5 billion in 2025, helped by large defence engine contracts and stronger power revenues, and it raised its profit outlook to between £4.9 billion and £5.2 billion by 2028.

Construction on 2 World Trade Center is expected to start this spring and the building will become American Express's new headquarters, with completion slated for 2031.

People are leaving Tigray amid reports of troop movements, brief clashes, drone strikes and rising shortages, while disputes over territory and party status have strained the 2022 Pretoria peace deal ahead of June elections.

Aldi will raise hourly pay for more than 28,000 store workers from April 1, with base rates of £13.50 nationally and £14.88 inside the M25 and higher rates for longer service.

Aldi will offer paid breaks to all colleagues, a benefit estimated at about £1,500 per year for the average store colleague; the change is reported to affect 28,000 staff and follows recent announcements of higher pay rates and extended maternity pay.

Canada pledged C$8 million in food aid to Cuba, to be delivered through United Nations agencies, while Mexico has sent a separate shipment of more than 1,100 tons of supplies amid worsening fuel and supply shortages on the island.

About 8.7 million people over state pension age now face bills from HMRC, roughly three-quarters of all pensioners, an increase of almost 30% in four years. The personal allowance remains £12,570 a year tax-free.

Average annual energy bills are reported to fall by about £117 and the reduction is set to apply from April; Ofgem will update its price cap in July which could change future levels.

The National Fish & Chip Awards 2026 shortlist of Britain’s top ten takeaway fish and chip shops was announced, with the overall winner to be crowned tonight. Finalists include four shops from Yorkshire and two from Scotland.

Martin Lewis said shopping around and moving to cheaper fixed-rate deals can reduce household energy costs, noting Ofgem’s price cap will fall by an average 6.7% from April. He added that many fixed deals are already below the cap and that most fixes will also drop on 1 April.

Zoopla reports the UK housing market began 2026 with a strong rebound, noting about 6% more homes for sale than a year earlier and February was on course for its highest number of new listings in a decade.

About 26,000 people in Aceh remain displaced months after severe monsoon floods, and residents say government reconstruction and aid delivery have been slow.

Spiro has secured $50 million in debt financing from Afreximbank, Nithio and the Africa Go Green Fund to expand its battery-swapping and charging network across several African countries.

Researchers warn climate change will leave few past Winter Olympic host cities reliably cold by the end of the century, and experts say clearer, enforceable sustainability standards are needed after the IOC's Olympic Games Impact programme was abandoned in 2017.

Canada says it is preparing an aid plan for Cuba but has not released details; Foreign Minister Anita Anand declined to provide more information. Cuba is experiencing acute fuel shortages after oil shipments from Venezuela and Mexico were halted, and some airlines have canceled flights.

A former DJ has been jailed after admitting he sold nearly £7m of counterfeit aircraft engine parts using forged authenticity certificates, prompting international safety alerts and aircraft groundings in August 2023; he was sentenced to four years and eight months and will face proceeds of crime proceedings later this year.

Morrisons has begun selling items from its Nutmeg clothing range through its website so customers can add fashion and home pieces alongside groceries, with items delivered to the home; Nutmeg includes womenswear, menswear, children's clothing, shoes, accessories and home items.

The Conservative leader, Mrs Badenoch, pledged to cut 100,000 university places and redirect the savings to double the number of apprenticeships, and Department for Education figures show 142,780 people began apprenticeships in 2025/26, a 7.7% rise from the prior year.

Team GB's athletes landed at London Gatwick after winning five medals, including three golds, at the Winter Olympics in Italy.

A 33-year-old man from London says he cleared about £10,000 of personal debt after buying an 85p property in Sicily under Italy's one-euro housing scheme, renovating it and earning more through social media and paid seminars.

The government says it will recruit 6,500 new teachers for mainstream secondary schools, special schools and further education colleges over this Parliament and will use annual workforce data to monitor progress.

Russian president Vladimir Putin announced plans to strengthen the military and speed up development of the nuclear triad, while Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said he views Russia's actions as amounting to a broader war.

London Gatwick will add flights to 12 new destinations this summer, and the airport says Jet2's arrival will create more than 300 direct jobs and support hundreds more through the wider supply chain.

Jane Andrews, who once worked as a personal dresser to Sarah Ferguson, was convicted in 2001 of murdering her partner and later escaped from an open prison before being recaptured; she was released on licence in 2015 and had a later custody episode but was freed again in 2019.

Ofgem is expected to announce a reduction to the energy price cap on April 1 after the Government said households would receive an average £150 cut when it ends the Energy Company Obligation; actual savings will vary by household.

A 200m section of the A379 Slapton Line was washed away by the recent storm, leaving Torcross largely cut off and many residents unable to return to seafront homes. Repairs are reported to cost up to £18 million and could take until 2027, while a government decision on funding and work has not yet been confirmed.