Author: INDEPENDENT

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsThe FTSE 100 ended a bruising week on the back foot with oil heading above 90 US dollars a barrel sending UK bond yields soaring as inflation fears mount.A soft US jobs report added to the downbeat mood as European and US markets also fell sharply.The FTSE 100 index ended down 129.19 points, 1.2%, at 10,284.75.The FTSE 250 closed down 199.25 points, 0.9%, at 22,500.95 and the AIM…

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture emailGet the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Why Our Town? When Newport-born thespian Michael Sheen announced last year that Thornton Wilder’s canonised 1938 play would be the inaugural production for his new Welsh National Theatre (an ambitious, self-funded replacement for the recently shuttered National Theatre Wales), it seemed, perhaps, an odd choice. Set in the fictional New Hampshire town of Grover’s Corners, Our Town is about as Welsh as corn dogs or Super Bowl…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsShopping visits across the UK fell in February as wet weather kept consumers at home, figures show.Total UK footfall was down 4.7% year on year, a plunge from January’s 0.6% decrease, according to British Retail Consortium (BRC)-Sensormatic data.Shopping centres saw a 5.5% fall while high street footfall was down 5.4%.London was among the weaker performers, recording its steepest drop in footfall since April 2024.Footfall decreased year-on-year across all…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsRachel Reeves reaffirmed her commitment to end the windfall tax on North Sea oil and gas as she met energy bosses, while warning that the Middle East war has created a “more uncertain context for policy decisions”.The Chancellor discussed the gas and oil prices sent soaring by Iran’s threats to block a key shipping route in talks with firms including BP, Adura and Offshore Energies UK.Ms Reeves came…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsThe UK economy could face a “very significant” hit from the conflict in Iran, the official budget watchdog has warned.The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said that the outlook for inflation would be “particularly uncertain” following spikes in gas and oil prices in recent days following attacks in the Middle East.It came as the budget watchdog reduced its inflation forecast for this year, indicating that UK inflation will…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSir Keir Starmer has said the Government is “looking at all options to support our people” as a flight from Abu Dhabi landed in London.Etihad Airways flight EY67, carrying stranded UK nationals, departed from the United Arab Emirates capital on Monday afternoon and landed at Heathrow’s Terminal 4 at 7.17pm, according to flight tracking company Flightradar24.Larges areas of airspace remained closed across the Middle East amid the intensifying…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsLabour MPs are among a group of more than 60 parliamentarians to have made public their opposition to the planned Rosebank oil field – with one of Sir Keir Starmer’s backbenchers urging the Government to rule against the development and take a stand “against Trump, Reform and their fossil fuel paymasters”.Clive Lewis is one of more than 50 MPs at Westminster who have signed a pledge from campaign…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsA Scottish dairy company is significantly ramping up its cottage cheese production, responding to “all-time record demand” for the once-retro foodstuff largely fuelled by a surprising TikTok trend.Graham’s Family Dairy has completed a £3.5 million extension at its Glenfield site in Fife. This investment will increase cottage cheese production by 50 per cent and create 25 local jobs.The resurgence, shedding its 1970s and 80s image, is driven by…

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture emailGet the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter The National Theatre’s director has shared her fears over the decline in new writing for the stage – cautioning that a failure to act on the downturn risks “betraying” William Shakespeare. Indhu Rubasingham, who became the first woman and person of colour to lead the National Theatre when she took up her post last year, issued the stark warning as she delivered the Jennie Lee lecture to…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsConsumer confidence has fallen in a blow for retailers as customers veer away from big-ticket purchases, figures show.GfK’s long-running Consumer Confidence Index dropped three points to minus 19 in February to a level last seen in November, despite easing inflation.The decline was mainly driven by weaker perceptions of personal finances – looking back over the last year and ahead to the next 12 months – which both fell…