NATIONAL

British inflation has jumped to a 41-year high on soaring energy and food bills in a worsening cost-of-living crisis, data showed Wednesday on the eve of a key budget.

A lawsuit accusing the British government of refusing to acknowledge that jailed Biafran separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu was the victim of extraordinary rendition to Nigeria began at a court in London on Tuesday.

Skipping lunch each day and watching television in blankets to keep warm is not how Ann and Keith Hartley envisaged their retirement in Burnley, the northern English town hit hardest by Britain's cost of living crisis.

Britain's unemployment rate unexpectedly rose and vacancies fell for a fifth report in a row as employers worried about the outlook for the economy, official data showed on Tuesday, ahead of a tough government budget plan later this week.

Britain will Thursday hike taxes and slash public spending in a government budget that signals a return to austerity despite a cost-of-living crisis and recession headwinds.

The moment of truth is almost here for Britain's new prime minister Rishi Sunak and finance minister Jeremy Hunt.

His birthday fell a day after Remembrance Sunday, when he led a sombre tribute to Britain's war dead at London's Cenotaph for the first time as monarch.

The British government said on Monday it would contribute 1 billion pounds ($1.18 billion) to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, more than six weeks after other countries made their commitments.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will call on the Group of 20 (G20) for coordinated action to address international economic instability and the rising cost of living in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, his government said on Monday.

Britain agreed to pay France another 72.2 million euros ($74.5 million) to prevent migrant boat crossings under a new deal signed on Monday that underlines improving ties between the neighbours.

British employers are planning the biggest pay hikes in a decade to fill roles but real-term wages will still grow more slowly than inflation, a survey showed on Monday.

Sunak, who took office just three weeks ago, swiftly restored a fracking ban that was controversially lifted by his short-lived predecessor Liz Truss.

Asking prices for British residential properties are dropping and there are signs that the fallout from the "mini-budget" bond market rout is weighing on first-time buyers, property website Rightmove said on Monday.

Now king and commander-in-chief of British forces, he laid his first wreath at the war memorial as reigning monarch, dressed in a field marshal's ceremonial uniform.

Britain's economy shrank in the third quarter as inflation soars, official data showed Friday, likely confirming it is already in a recession, dealing a fresh blow to new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Former UK finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng has finally spoken out about his unceremonious exit from Liz Truss' cabinet.

Thelwell, a York University student and environmental activist who opposes the monarchy, said he had received death threats.

The number of people who have dropped out of Britain's job market since 2019 and who now cite a long-term illness or mental health problems has risen by half a million or about 25%, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

The European Commission proposed on Thursday two action plans to address the deteriorating security situation following Russia's invasion of Ukraine to bolster cyber defence and to allow armed forces to move faster and better across borders.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday hosts his Irish counterpart Micheal Martin, as they bid to end a dispute over post-Brexit trade in Northern Ireland that has stymied power-sharing.

Millions of Londoners faced travel misery on Thursday as another strike by Underground staff shut down most of the network, including almost all lines and city centre stations.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday hosts his Irish counterpart Micheal Martin, with renewed focus on talks to end a dispute over post-Brexit trade in Northern Ireland.

Commuters in London and Paris scrambled for alternatives Thursday -- or simply stayed home -- as public transport workers went on strike for higher pay, the latest industrial action seeking relief from soaring prices in Europe.

A woman who got her driver's licence just a few weeks ago managed to drive her car straight into a lake.

A Tory MP has been left fuming with anger after someone left a box of faeces outside her constituency office in Gloucestershire.

British fashion retailer Next will buy the Made.com brand for 3.4 million pounds ($3.8 million) after the online furniture seller collapsed into administration, resulting in about 400 job losses.

British employers cut their hiring of permanent staff via recruitment firms for the first time in nearly two years in October as the country's political upheaval added to concerns about the economy, a survey showed on Thursday.

The British government on Wednesday pushed back a deadline to hold a new election in Northern Ireland until at least March to provide space for progress in talks between London and Brussels on post-Brexit trade rules governing the region.

Britain is stepping up its support for Ukrainian soldiers through the winter as a key battle in Kherson looms and as mobilised Russian troops struggle, British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told Reuters on Wednesday.