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Aug 12, 2026 - World

Proposal to cut building costs by scrapping the construction code would increase bills for the poorest households, critics sayGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA Coalition plan to abolish compulsory energy standards for new homes that help reduce people’s exposure to heat and cold has been criticised by advocates as a “cost-of-living timebomb” that would deepen inequality.The opposition’s housing and environment spokesperson, Andrew Bragg, said a Coalition government would cut the National Construction Code from more than 2,000 pages to 80, and strip away all requirements for new homes beyond demanding they were “basic and safe”. Longstanding compulsory energy and accessibility measures would become “optional extras”. Continue reading...

Aug 12, 2026 - World

Mortgage and student loan balances saw ‘small decline’ with increases elsewhere, says post alongside Fed reportCredit card debt in the United States is growing close to a record high, having creeped up from $54bn to $1.26tn between April and June compared with the same period last year, according to a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.That figure is just shy of last year’s record high of $1.28tn. Continue reading...

Aug 12, 2026 - World

Supporters of the MAGA movement finally understand their needs come last with President Donald Trump, a new political analysis contends.The Guardian columnist Arwa Mahdawi argued Wednesday that cash-strapped conservative voters may not understand the nuances of international finance — but they can't help but see the widening gap between their incomes and the Trump's. Wrote Mahdawi, "It’s becoming more obvious to even the most diehard MAGA fan that they are being put last."While Mahdawi called out Trump for slashing USAID and sending major cash to conservative think tanks abroad, she also warned such policy shifts were unlikely to land with MAGA voters. "What does the average Trump voter, who was promised an America-first agenda, think about all this money going to 'public education' programmes in the UK instead of all the underfunded public schools at home?" she wrote before suggesting, "The short answer is: they’re not thinking about it at all."But what they are beginning to realize is that Trump's estimated $2.2 billion earnings last year had to have come from somewhere, the columnist argued. And Trump isn't doing himself any favors with his apparent lack of concern, she concluded. "Trump, for his part, has brushed off cost-of-living concerns, declaring last year: 'I don’t want to hear about the affordability,'" she wrote. "[The president] should start listening."

Aug 12, 2026 - World

David Crowley speaks after accepting Democratic nomination for Wisconsin governor; progressive Francesca Hong had led polls by a large margin in election lead-upDavid Crowley wins Wisconsin Democratic primary for governorKey takeaways from primary nightSign up for the Breaking News US emailCore inflation, which measures prices without volatile goods like food and gas, rose by 0.2% in July, after not really changing in June compared to the month prior.While the latest data shows there has been a 2.9% drop in gas prices from June to July, there has been a 25% hike compared to this time last year. Continue reading...

Aug 12, 2026 - World

Prime minister suggests possible measure as he prepares to chair emergency Cobra meeting in response to extreme heatHere’s today’s latest Met Office forecast for UK cities:Aberdeen 22CBelfast 24CBirmingham 32CCardiff 33CGlasgow 25CLiverpool 32CLondon 32CNewcastle 29CPlymouth 31CSheffield 31C Continue reading...