The UK is forecast to be the second-fastest growing of the world's most advanced economies this year and next, according to new projections from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The rates of growth remain modest at 1.3% for both years, but that outperforms the other G7 economies apart from the US, in a torrid year of trade and geopolitical tensions.

However, UK inflation is set to rise to the highest in the G7 in 2025 and 2026, the IMF predicts, driven by larger energy and utility bills.

UK inflation is forecast to average 3.4% this year and 2.5% in 2026 but the IMF says this will be "temporary", and fall to 2% by the end of next year.

The G7 are seven advanced economies - the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan - but the group doesn't include fast-growing economies such as China and India.

The IMF is an international organisation with 190 member countries. They work together to try to stabilise the global economy.

In the IMF's forecast for economic growth, the UK overtook Canada, after its trade-war-affected economy was hit by the biggest downgrades for 2025 and 2026. Germany, France and Italy are all forecast to grow far more slowly at rates of between 0.2 and 0.9% in 2025 and 2026.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves welcomed the fresh upgrade to the IMF's outlook for the UK's economy.

"But know this is just the start. For too many people, our economy feels stuck," she said.

"Working people feel it every day, experts talk about it, and I am going to deal with it."

But highlighting the inflation forecasts, shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride said the IMF assessment on made for "grim reading".

He said that UK households "were being squeezed from all sides", adding: "Since taking office, Labour have allowed the cost of living to rise, debt to balloon and business confidence to collapse to record lows."

The IMF said a slight overall upgrade for the UK in its World Economic Outlook, from its previous outlook in April, was due to "strong activity in the first half of 2025" and an improved trade outlook, partly thanks to the recently announced US-UK trade deal.

Trump tariffs loom large

The global outlook is dominated by the so far "muted response" of the world economy to the imposition of hefty tariffs on almost all imports into the US, a weakened dollar, questions about the independence of the US Federal Reserve and sky high valuations of US tech companies.

The IMF expect some of this to unwind soon, saying "resilience is giving way to warning signs". In the US tariff costs which had been absorbed by exporters and retailers, are now feeding into higher goods prices.

So far tariffs have been reflected in higher prices for American shoppers of household appliances, but not for food and clothing.

The IMF cited Brexit as an example of how uncertainty around major changes in trading arrangements can, after a delay, lead to steady falls in investment.

AI warning

The Fund also pointed to a possible bursting of the US AI tech boom.

"Excessively optimistic growth expectations about AI could be revised in light of incoming data from early adopters and could trigger a market correction," the IMF said.

Disappointing profit numbers could lead to a "reassessment of the sustainability of AI-driven valuations and a drop in tech stock prices, with systemic implications. A potential bust of the AI boom could rival the dot-com crash of 2000–01 in severity".

The concentration of the stock market surge on a tiny number of firms and massive funding from less regulated sources outside the banking sector, were particular risks.

Slow growth could hit household wealth, with a lesser ability of major economies to use government borrowing to support their economies, as occurred in recent crises.

Conversely, the IMF also said that "faster AI adoption" could help unleash significant gains in productivity, helping the global economy is handled appropriately.

Elsewhere, the IMF again pointed to the outperformance of the Spanish economy, the fastest-growing large western economy. But the war economy growth seen in Russia last year has now petered out.

There are also concerns about funding for the world's poorest countries now that aid budgets in many countries, such as the UK and US are being slashed in favour of increased defence spending.

The forecasts were released on the eve of the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank attended by the world's finance ministers and central bankers in Washington DC, with considerable attention on a new US bailout for Argentina.

Far-right activist Tommy Robinson was unlawfully stopped driving a Bentley at the entrance to the Channel Tunnel, and counter terrorism officers made a disproportionate use of their powers, his lawyer has told a court.

The 42-year-old, who was charged under his real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon is standing trial at Westminster Magistrates Court for refusing to give the Pin for his mobile phone to officers during the stop. He has pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutor Jo Morris said that while the stop may not have been "perfect", that does not mean it was unlawful.

Judgement in the trial has been delayed until 4 November following closing arguments.

If found guilty, Mr Lennon could be jailed for up to three months and/or receive a £2,500 fine.

He was stopped by police on 28 July, 2024, using their counter-terrorism powers as he prepared to enter the Channel Tunnel while driving a silver Bentley Bentaygo.

Officers from Kent Police said they did so partly because he was driving someone else's car and had not pre-booked his ticket.

They said they became more suspicious when Mr Lennon would not make eye contact with them and said he was driving all the way to Benidorm. When asked for the Pin to his phone he refused.

A person who is detained under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act is legally obliged to provide the password or Pin for electronic devices.

In his closing submissions to the judge on Tuesday, Mr Lennon's barrister, Alisdair Williamson KC, said: "The question for you. Is this a lawful stop? If it is not, you cannot convict Mr Lennon."

Mr Williamson described the power that police officers have at ports and airport as "extraordinary" and said there needed to be "assiduous oversight" of this power, which he described as the only one there was to "compel people under pain of criminal penalty to answer questions".

He described Mr Lennon as a "public figure" whose views are "well known" and asked what the justification was for the police's use of "coercive powers".

"What were they going to find out that wasn't in the public domain?" Mr Williamson asked.

He pointed out that the officers did not ask any further questions about the Bentley after Mr Lennon told them it belonged to "a mate" and said his client travelled to Benidorm regularly.

In her closing speech, prosecutor Jo Morris said "we accept that the stop may not have been a perfect one but that does not make it unlawful."

She said "there was no real dispute over the facts" and that Mr Lennon had been warned of the consequences and was offered legal advice but still refused to give officers his Pin.

Before the hearing began on Monday, Mr Lennon - the former leader of the English Defence League (EDL) - said on X that the social media platform's billionaire owner, Elon Musk - who has previously championed him - had "picked up the legal bill" for the case against him, which Mr Lennon described as "state persecution".

Mr Musk has not publicly confirmed this.

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has told parliament he backs suspending controversial 2023 pension reforms, in the face of crucial votes of no-confidence later this week.

The changes, which raised the retirement age from 62 to 64, were seen as signature reforms in Emmanuel Macron's presidency.

"This autumn I will propose to parliament that we suspend the 2023 pension reform until the [2027] presidential election," Lecornu said to applause from left-wing parties.

Lecornu was reappointed prime minister last week only four days after he resigned, and needs the support of Socialist MPs in parliament if his government is to survive.

Opposition parties on the far right and far left have called confidence votes, known as "censure" votes in Lecornu, for Thursday morning and are demanding parliamentary elections.

The Socialists said they would be prepared to support the new government, but only if it promises a complete suspension of Macron's pension changes.

"If he does not explicitly say the words 'immediate and complete suspension of the pension reform', it will be censure," Socialist MP Laurent Baumel said earlier on French TV.

"He is holding his destiny in his own hands. He knows what he has do if he doesn't want to be the prime minister who resigns every week."

The reforms were finally pushed through parliament in March 2023, less than a year after Macron was voted in for a second presidential term.

There had been months of political debate, strikes and street protests, and in the end the bill had to go through without a vote in parliament using a constitutional mechanism known as 49:3.

Last week, Lecornu said it was something many French people remembered as a "wound on democracy" .

On Tuesday he made it plain to MPs that suspending the pension reform would cost €400m (£350m) in 2026 and a further €1.8bn (£1.57bn) in 2027. This will have to be "compensated by other savings," Lecornu said.

Lecornu is France's third prime minister in the past year but even if he does survive he needs to get a budget through parliament that brings down a budget deficit heading for 5.4% of economic output (GDP) this year.

France's public debt earlier this year stood at €3.4tn, or almost 114% of GDP, the third highest in the eurozone after Greece and Italy.

Read more: Macron reappoints Lecornu as French PM after days of turmoil

Lecornu has been one of Macron's most loyal allies, so his decision to row back on such a contested reform shows how keen the president is to avoid further turmoil.

Philippe Aghion, who was jointly awarded the 2025 Nobel economics prize on Monday, said earlier that he also backed a suspension of the pension reform, because it would still come at a smaller cost than the instability that would follow another government collapse.

Buenos Aires, September 2023. Hundreds of people crowded around to wave flags and film on their phones. The man with unruly hair and sideburns in the centre of them, clad in a black leather jacket, hoisted a roaring chainsaw above his head.

This was an election rally taking place in the San Martín area of the Argentine capital a month before the presidential election - and the metaphor was explicit.

The candidate Javier Milei believed the state was far too bloated, with annual debts that were bigger than Argentina's entire annual economic output.

Rather than 'trimming the fat', as some politicians delicately put it, he said he would take a chainsaw to ministries, subsidies and the ruling political class he derided as "la casta" - the caste.

Milei had form for stunts. In 2019, he dressed up in a "libertarian superhero" costume, purporting to be from Liberland - a land where no taxes are paid. In 2018, he smashed a piñata of the Central Bank on live television.

According to official data, inflation in 2023 topped 211% annually - Milei took office in December of that year. Roughly 40% of the population lived in poverty. Years of high public spending, and a reliance on printing more money and borrowing to cover deficits, had left the country in a cycle of debts and inflation.

Yet nearly two years on, the headline figures are vastly different: Argentina recorded its first fiscal surplus in 14 years -the state spending less than it's collecting - and inflation, which had hit triple figures annually, has tumbled to about 36%.

The UK Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch called the measures Milei has taken a "template" for a future Conservative government. And in the US, President Donald Trump described Milei as "my favourite president".

They will meet in Washington on Tuesday.

Foreign investors regained confidence in Argentina too. Although that recently slipped, Washington's decision last week to swap $20bn (£15bn) in dollars for pesos, effectively propping up Argentina's currency with International Monetary Fund (IMF) backing, is a sign Milei's fiscal shock therapy has appeased international lenders. Trump and Milei's meeting will hail the deal.

Yet for all the international praise, this is just one side of the story. On the streets there have been heated protests over Milei's reforms, with police firing tear gas, rubber bullets and a water cannon during clashes.

"He said in his campaign that this adjustment would be paid for by 'la casta' – the wealthy, the politicians, the evil businessmen," says Mercedes D'Alessandro, a left-wing economist and senate candidate.

But, she argues, the result was less money for pensioners and hospitals. "The adjustment in the end was directed at the working classes, not the caste."

Milei's critics argue that the price of his changes have been recession, job losses, weaker public services and declining household budgets. And now some economists say the country could be about to enter a recession.

Milei has created a paradox.

On paper, his chainsaw has achieved some of the macroeconomic successes he set out to do. But Milei has lost political support and that has spooked the markets, which in turn has destabilised his economic project.

With midterm elections looming on 26 October, Argentina is about to deliver its verdict: will Milei be punished for doing what he set out to do — and could losing political support completely unravel his economic gains?

Argentines feeling the cost

Around 700 miles from the capital in the Misiones province, tea farmer Ygor Sobol looks anxious. "We're all going backwards economically," he says. "I had to close the payroll. Now I am completely without employees."

For three generations his family has grown yerba mate, a drink popular with Argentines, but since Milei deregulated his industry by scrapping minimum prices, he says that his crops have become worth less than the cost of producing them.

Now, Mr Sobol says he can't afford to do basic tasks like cleaning and fertilising his plantation. And with the business making a loss, he's deciding what his family will have to go without too.

Argentina's multibillion dollar textile industry is also affected. Luciano Galfione, chairman of a non-profit for the sector Fundacion Pro Tejer, describes "daily" closures and job losses.

Unlike Trump's approach of raising tariffs to promote "America First", Milei cut tariffs and other criteria for imports.

"I have environmental controls, labour controls - we don't pay people $80 (£60) a month, or have 16-hour work days that might be allowed in places like Bangladesh or Vietnam. This creates an unequal playing field," Mr Galfione argues.

He believes that boosting imports has battered domestic producers. "Our sector lost more than 10,000 direct jobs. If you add indirect jobs, there are many more."

Mr Galfione also blames rising costs of utilities, health and schools for reducing the disposable income of average people, and in turn making them less likely to buy clothes.

And yet amid it all, Milei is adamant that his measures will improve the lives of ordinary Argentines.

'Everything was a huge mess'

In the run-up to the election Milei had said there was no alternative to big cuts.

As well as the soaring inflation, vast government subsidies had kept energy and transport prices down. Public spending was high, even before the Covid-19 pandemic. Price controls set fixed prices for certain goods. Argentina, still, owes £31bn in debt to the IMF.

"The demand for public spending was brutal," argues Ramiro Castiñeira, an economist at the consultancy Econométrica who supports Milei.

"Society seemed willing to live with so much inflation. Or didn't recognise that inflation was a product of so much public spending."

Inflation ate away the peso currency's purchasing power. Many ordinary Argentines handed over disproportionate sums of pesos to illegal street traders to buy dollars, fearing their money would lose value overnight.

"Everything was a huge mess," explains Martin Rapetti, an economics professor at the University of Buenos Aires and executive director of think tank Equilibria.

"People felt money slipping like water through their fingers."

For many economists, drastic change (even if painful) was essential to restore credibility. And Milei promised radical change.

He went viral for ripping government ministries such as Culture and Women off a whiteboard while shouting 'afuera!' - 'out!'

Among other austerity measures, he halved government ministries, cut tens of thousands of public jobs, slashed budgets including for education, health, pensions and infrastructure, and removed subsidies – spiking utility and transport prices.

His initial devaluing of the peso by 50% caused inflation to spike but then it fell as people spent less and demand fell.

'Echoes of Thatcherism'

When I met him in April 2024 at his office, there were sculptures of him with a chainsaw on display and coasters showing Margaret Thatcher's face. Thatcher is loathed by many people in Argentina owing to the Falklands War, but Milei told me he admired her and that she was "brilliant."

Last month one British newspaper described Milei's own approach as having "echoes of Thatcherism".

Miguel Boggiano, an economist on Milei's economic advisory board, is full of praise for Milei getting inflation down and reducing the deficit. "When you bear in mind the starting point, that's a huge accomplishment," he says.

He believes this will help alleviate poverty in the long-run and enable lower taxes, but also help people to plan their own spending more easily with inflation currently fluctuating less.

But Alan Cibils, an independent economist and former professor, warns reduced inflation is only a success if it is sustained over time which he believes will not be the case.

The outsider advantage

Javier Milei is not a career politician. Before becoming president he had two years experience as a deputy in Argentina's Congress.

"Being so detached kind of shields him," Prof Rapetti observes, citing a lack of "signs of empathy in public life".

On 7 September Milei's party lost unexpectedly badly in the Buenos Aires provincial elections. His convoy was pelted with rocks on the campaign trail. The markets panicked: foreign investors sold off pesos and bonds of Argentine government debt.

Financial markets had generally supported his economic programme. But the midterm elections were upcoming and the £15bn of debt repayments are due next year.

Trump's £15bn currency swap lifeline has provided some stability: Argentine bonds and the peso rose in value in response to the announcement. But D'Alessandro argues that though US intervention might solve a wider problem, nothing will change in "people's real lives".

"We're going to continue with no investment in hospitals, education, social programmes. This money from the United States is not going to improve Argentina's infrastructure."

Flawed leader or model for other countries?

Some of Milei's supporters - like Mr Boggiano - believe there is something else at play in the round criticism of the president: In this view much of it comes down to the opposition trying to "break" what Milei has done, in order to get back into power.

"Once everyone starts to believe stability is here to stay, investment will come back," says Mr Boggiano. "I think Milei will become a model for other countries."

Others are unsure. "There is some stability which helps things not to explode," said Mr Cibils. "But I think that stability is also a mirage."

Milei had also kept inflation under control by spending the country's reserves on propping-up the peso so it didn't crash. Meanwhile, Argentina owes $20bn of debt next year.

One former central bank economist, who wished to speak anonymously, warns Milei's strategy of keeping inflation down could unravel if Argentina can't pay its debts.

"If at the end of the day we have a financial crisis that partially undoes all the effort, then it's a failure. If it ends with social unrest, any good done will be reversed," says the economist.

The left-wing governor of Buenos Aires, Axel Kicillof, has been touted as a future presidential candidate, long ahead of the elections in 2027. He has spoken in favour of the welfare state. Some investors are calculating whether this could mean a return to the days of big spending.

As to the question of whether Milei has succeeded, the answer largely depends how you define success - and who it is for.

Many workers see shuttered factories, rocketing bills, and a vanishing safety net.

Meanwhile, some investors see a success story of fiscal discipline, tamed inflation, an ally in Washington and simply a "normalisation".

But even as leaders abroad watch Milei's experiment with fascination, politics may explain why few are unlikely to copy it.

If normal people lose faith in what he is doing, markets will also lose confidence that his programme is sustainable – and that could wipe out even the 'macro' successes.

"He has no political expertise, and I think you need it," Prof Rapetti argues.

Still, he believes it is too early to judge: "We are in the middle of his term… The story hasn't finished."

Top picture credit: WPA Pool/Getty Images, Bloomberg via Getty Images

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An asylum seeker from Sudan danced and laughed after murdering a Walsall hotel worker in a "vicious and frenzied attack" on a train station platform, a trial has heard.

Prosecutors allege Deng Majek, who claims to be 19, stabbed 27-year-old Rhiannon Whyte 23 times with a screwdriver at Bescot Stadium railway station on 20 October 2024. She died in hospital three days later.

Opening the case for the prosecution at Wolverhampton Crown Court, Michelle Heeley KC told the jury that the defendant was "clearly excited about what he had done".

Mr Majek denies murder.

The jury heard Mr Majek was seen on CCTV at the Park Inn Hotel in Walsall, laughing shortly after killing Ms Whyte.

The defendant had been living at the hotel, which houses asylum seekers, while Ms Whyte had worked there for about three months.

The court heard her job included cleaning and serving food and co-workers could not recall any issue which might have led to the attack.

"There had been an issue about some broken biscuits with some of the residents but nothing serious," Ms Heeley said.

In a statement released following her death, Rhiannon Whyte's family described her as "selfless... brave, quirky, funny" and always there for other people.

The prosecution said CCTV showed the defendant staring at Ms Whyte, before he followed her from the hotel to the railway station when she finished her shift at 23:00 BST.

"He had been hanging around waiting for her to leave and waited until she was on her own before he followed her," Ms Heeley said.

The court was told Ms Whyte called a friend at 23:04 and he was seen on CCTV cameras closing the gap on her as she approached the deserted platform.

Ms Heeley said: "It was then that the prosecution say that this defendant attacked her."

Her friend heard a scream and then another scream, before the phone went dead at 23:19.

The prosecution said Mr Majek could then be seen running back up the stairs with an object in his hand, which they said was Ms Whyte's mobile phone.

Ms Heeley said he then went to a local shop to buy himself a drink before returning to the hotel.

Slumped on platform

She added: "In between the station and the hotel he had thrown Rhiannon's phone into a river.

"Once at the hotel he was seen dancing and laughing, clearly excited about what he had done."

The train she had been due to catch pulled in at 23:24 and the driver saw a figure slumped on the platform, the court was told.

Ms Heeley said the guard tried to help her, along with another employee from the hotel, but nothing could be done to save her and she died on 23 October, having never regained consciousness.

The court was told 11 of the 23 stab wounds penetrated her skull, one of which damaged the brain stem, causing her death.

She also had injuries to her chest and arm, indicating she had tried to defend herself, the court heard.

The puncture wounds had the appearance of a cross-headed screwdriver, which has never been found.

The jury was told the defendant's jacket, sandals and ring had Rhiannon Whyte's blood on them, and her DNA was found under Mr Majek's fingernails.

Ms Heeley said: "He left her bleeding to death and then casually went back to his hotel. We say you can be sure he is guilty of murder."

The trial is expected to last about three weeks.

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Graduate student Nicole Lobo moved back to the US in late August after a year in the UK, shipping 10 boxes of possessions back home to Philadelphia that she expected to arrive within a few days.

Six weeks later, she is still waiting for the shipment - and fears it is lost, destroyed by UPS as the company struggles to handle a flood of packages facing new customs and tariff rules.

"It's been horrific," says the 28-year-old, who was notified last month that her boxes would be disposed of, leaving her to make frantic phone calls and send emails to try to head off the outcome.

It's an ordeal facing many UPS customers since the Trump administration in late August stopped allowing parcels worth less than $800 to enter the US without inspection, taxes or tariffs.

The decision abruptly made an estimated 4 million packages each day subject to new, more onerous processing and documentation rules.

As the influx leads to longer processing times and higher, sometimes unexpected, costs across the industry, some customers of UPS like Nicole, say they fear their packages have been lost in the backlog.

"It's beyond comprehension to me," says Janani Mohan, a 29-year-old engineer living in Michigan, who has also spent hours on hold and sent repeated emails since a tracking alert listed a box sent by her parents in India as set for disposal.

The parcel held her wedding dress, which had also been worn by her mother, an heirloom sari from her grandmother and wedding photos, among other items.

"I literally cried to them on the phone," she says. "Everything in there is very close to my heart."

Oregon-based Mizuba Tea Co, which has used UPS for more than a decade to import matcha from Japan, has five shipments together worth more than $100,000 held up in processing.

The firm has received conflicting alerts about their status, including some saying the items were set for disposal.

"My whole team is basically on scan watch," says Lauren Purvis, who runs the business with her family and is now starting to worry about running out of inventory if the limbo continues.

"It's just clear to us that the current importing systems were not prepared to handle the sheer amount of volume and paperwork."

Importers typically have 10 days after goods enter the US to submit documentation about the goods, pay tariffs and other fees, allowing the package to go to its recipient.

But the Trump administration's rapid changes to tariff rules have made it increasingly difficult to meet customs deadlines requirements, say shipping companies like FedEx and UPS, which offer customs services and often act as importers of record.

For example, businesses are now responsible for paying tariffs on any steel or aluminium contained in a product , and in many cases vouching for its country of origin - information that many businesses, let alone their shipping companies, do not know.

"Because of changes to US import regulations, we are seeing many packages that are unable to clear customs due to missing or incomplete information about the shipment required for customs clearance," a UPS spokeswoman said.

While acknowledging longer shipping times, the company said it was still successfully clearing more than 90% of international packages within a day of arrival.

The spokeswoman said its policy was to contact customers three times before moving to dispose of a package.

But seven people interviewed by the BBC, including several businesses responsible for shipping the items, said they had received no word from UPS about issues before seeing the tracking alert that their package would be trashed.

FedEx, another major player in the industry, said it does not typically destroy packages, unless directed to do so by the shipper.

Nicole, the graduate student, says she has been asked to supply more information about her items, which she did promptly in early September.

She did not hear more until seeing the notice about disposal in late September. After the BBC enquired about her package, the tracking information was updated for the first time in weeks to say it was "on the way", raising her hopes.

Likewise, Janani says the company reached out last week, after the BBC got in touch, for a few more documents and her package now appears to have cleared customs.

But for businesses, the chaos has already had real costs.

Swedish candy exporter Swedish Candy Land says more than 700 packages it sent via UPS to customers in the US in the first few weeks of September have been held up.

Co-founder Tobias Johansson says the business switched to FedEx after becoming aware of the problem and its shipments were now arriving without incident, although the process took a few days longer than before .

But the lost packages, some of which have been reported destroyed, have cost the firm roughly $50,000 in refunds, not including the expenses they incurred in shipping and brokerage fees.

"That was a big hit for us and we haven't gotten any answers yet for anything," says Mr Johansson.

Experts say the ripple effects are being felt across the supply chain, even on businesses, like Mizuba, that were not bringing in shipments using the $800 exemption from tariffs, known as de minimis.

"This can be felt pretty much across the board," says Bernie Hart, vice president of business development at Flexport, a logistics and customs business.

In a call with financial analysts last month, FedEx executives said it had been a "very stressful period" for its customers, especially smaller players.

"That is a big headwind," chief executive Raj Subramanian said, warning that changes to the trade environment would likely lead to a $1bn hit this year, including $300m in additional expenses as the firm hires and faces other costs related to the new rules.

But John Pickel, vice president of supply chain policy for the National Foreign Trade Council, which represents many shipping firms, fears the issues may get worse before they get better.

Overall trade volumes last month were lower than is typical, in part because many businesses rushed goods into the US early to beat tariffs.

"There's always been this prevailing thought that companies will figure it out," he says. "What we've seen is that is much harder than anyone anticipated."

India is losing sunlight.

A new study by six Indian scientists finds that over the past three decades, sunshine hours - the time direct sunlight reaches the Earth's surface - have steadily declined across most of India, driven by clouds, aerosols and local weather.

Data from 20 weather stations from 1988 to 2018 shows a persistent decline in sunshine hours nationwide, with only the northeast region seeing a mild seasonal reprieve, according to the paper published in Scientific Reports, a peer-reviewed journal published by Nature Portfolio.

Scientists from Banaras Hindu University, the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology and the India Meteorological Department report that the steepest annual declines occurred in the northern inland region - notably Amritsar and Kolkata - as well as along the Himalayan belt and the west coast, particularly Mumbai.

All of nine India's geograpically diverse regions showed an overall annual decline in sunshine hours, though the rate of decrease varied across India. Monthly analysis revealed significant increases from October to May, followed by sharp drops from June to July in six of the nine regions.

This seasonal pattern of sunshine intersects with a deeper, long-standing problem: India's severe air pollution crisis - it's now among the world's top 10 polluted countries - which scientists trace back to the 1990s. Rapid urbanisation, industrial growth and land-use changes drove up fossil fuel use, vehicle emissions and biomass burning, sending aerosols into the atmosphere and dimming the Sun's rays.

In winter, high air pollution from smog, temperature inversions and crop burning across the Indo-Gangetic plains produces light-scattering aerosols, which reduce sunshine hours.

These aerosols - tiny solid or liquid particles from dust, vehicle exhaust, crop burning, and other sources - persist in the air long enough to affect sunlight, climate and health.

During June-July, monsoon clouds blanket much of India, sharply reducing sunlight even though aerosol levels are lower than in winter.

Scientists note that higher sunshine hours from October to May don't indicate cleaner air; rather, they reflect more cloud-free days. Hazy winter sunlight may scatter or diffuse, lowering intensity without entirely blocking sunshine, which instruments still record as sunshine hours.

"Our study found that shrinking sunshine hours are linked to clouds that linger longer without releasing rain, blocking more sunlight. These longer-lasting clouds form indirectly due to aerosols that alter weather and climate," says Manoj Kumar Srivastava, a professor of geophysics at the Banaras Hindu University, and one of the authors of the study.

Aerosols have reduced the amount of sunlight reaching the ground in India by about 13%, while clouds accounted for an additional 31-44% drop in surface solar radiation between 1993 and 2022, according to Sachchida Nand Tripathi, an atmospheric scientist at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur.

These patterns raise concerns for agriculture, daily life and India's solar energy ambitions, while highlighting where solar panels could be most effective.

Solar now makes up 47% of India's renewable energy capacity. The government says it's on track for 500GW of renewables by 2030, with more than 100GW of solar installed as of early 2025. But declining sunlight could cast a shadow on the country's solar ambitions.

According to Prof Tripathi, air pollution compounds the problem. It reduces solar panel output by 12-41% depending on the type of photovoltaic system - the technology that converts sunlight into electricity - and costs an estimated $245-835m in lost power generation.

Studies also show that cleaner air could boost India's annual solar energy production by 6-28 terawatt hours of electricity - enough to power millions of homes for a year.

But the impact of pollution doesn't stop at solar energy. It also takes a heavy toll on agriculture, causing an estimated 36–50% loss in crop yields - mainly rice and wheat - in the country's most polluted regions, according to Prof Tripathi.

India isn't alone in losing sunshine; across the world, rising air pollution and shifting weather patterns have dimmed the skies.

A study published in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics observed that Europe likely experienced reduced sunlight reaching the ground because of air pollution between1970–2009. In Germany, sunshine hours decreased by approximately 11% from 1951 to 1980, attributed to industrial gas emissions and associated cloud formation.

Research also showed that stricter clean-air laws in the 1990s led to a rebound in sunshine hours across Europe.

China also experienced a significant decline in sunshine hours from the 1960s to the 2000s, primarily due to increased aerosol emissions from rapid industrialisation. Sunshine duration varied across Chinese cities, with some areas experiencing more significant declines due to factors such as air pollution.

The good news: scientists say the Earth's surface has gradually been receiving more sunlight since the 1980s - a trend known as global brightening, following decades of dimming.

New analysis of satellite data from 1984 to 2018 appears to confirm this, showing the effect is strongest over land and in the Northern Hemisphere, driven mainly by falling aerosols in the 1980s and 1990s and shifts in cloud patterns.

The bad news: heavily polluted countries like India are missing out. If the Sun keeps hiding behind smog, India risks running on fumes instead of full power.

A man who came to the UK on a small boat and threatened to kill Nigel Farage has been jailed for five years.

Fayaz Khan, 26, made a gun gesture with his hand, pointed to an AK-47 tattoo on his face and named the Reform UK leader in a TikTok post in October 2024.

Authorities believed the Afghan migrant had given them a false name and he was actually a 31-year-old called Fayaz Husseini, Southwark Crown Court heard.

Farage described the threat as "pretty chilling", adding: "Given his proximity to guns and love of guns, I was genuinely worried."

In the video, Khan pointed towards his face tattoo and said he was going to "pop, pop, pop" the MP for Clacton, in Essex, referring to him as "Englishman Nigel".

Sentencing him, judge Mrs Justice Steyn said: "Your video was not more abuse, it was a threat to kill with a firearm and it was, as Mr Farage put it, 'pretty chilling'."

Khan was one of 65 migrants on board a black inflatable boat that entered the UK by crossing the English Channel.

"The defendant livestreamed the recording of his crossing, which appears to have gathered a large online viewing," said prosecutor Peter Ratliff.

The court heard Khan gave a false name because he had "enemies he did not want to find him".

However, the prosecution said it was "more likely" he had given misleading details due to his criminal record while living in Sweden.

Mr Ratliff also disputed Khan's claim that he was unaware it was illegal to arrive in the UK by small boat.

He claimed Khan "intended to encourage others" by documenting his journey from Sweden to the UK, sharing it with hundreds of thousands of viewers online.

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The government's national security adviser Jonathan Powell made no decisions about the content of any evidence provided in the collapsed case against two men accused of spying for China, a minister has said.

Prosecutors unexpectedly dropped charges against Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry - who deny the allegations - in September.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch claimed the case collapsed because the government had refused to give the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) "vital information" as it wanted to "curry favour" with China.

Security Minister Jarvis dismissed claims the government deliberately collapsed the case as "baseless".

Mr Powell, who is one of the prime minister's most senior advisers and political allies, is facing pressure over whether he played a role in the collapse of the trial, with the Conservatives saying he has "questions to answer".

Sir Keir Starmer has insisted he has "full confidence" in his national security adviser, telling broadcasters: "He is doing an excellent job."

Christopher Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, and Christopher Berry were charged under the Official Secrets Act in April 2024, when the Conservatives were in power.

They were accused of gathering and providing information prejudicial to the safety and interests of the state between December 2021 and February 2023.

But last week the head of the CPS said the case collapsed because evidence could not be obtained from the government referring to China as a national security threat.

Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Parkinson said while there was sufficient evidence when charges were originally brought against the two men in April 2024, a precedent set by another spying case earlier this year meant China would need to have been labelled a "threat to national security" at the time of the alleged offences.

Giving a statement to MPs in the Commons, Jarvis denied reports Mr Powell had ruled China could not be defined as a national security threat at a meeting of Whitehall officials in September, shortly before the charges were dropped.

"Of course, [the national security adviser] takes part in discussions about national security and diplomatic relations. That is literally his job," he said.

"But any discussions were on the basis that the case would be going ahead and how to handle the implications.

"The national security adviser was not involved in any decisions about the substance of the evidence."

Jarvis said it was deputy national security adviser Matthew Collins who provided a witness statement in December 2023 under the previous Conservative government, with further witness statements requested and provided in February and July this year.

He said Mr Collins was given "full freedom to provide evidence without interference", adding: "Ministers and special advisers did not take decisions about that evidence and they were not cited on the contents."

Jarvis said all the evidence provided was based on the law and the Tory government's position on China at the time of the alleged offences.

He added that the decision about whether to proceed with the prosecution was taken by the CPS, "who were hamstrung by antiquated legislation".

The Official Secrets Act of 1911 has since been replaced by the 2023 National Security Act, which Jarvis said closed "the loopholes that have been exposed by this particular case".

"Suggestions that the government concealed evidence, withdrew witnesses, or restricted the ability of witnesses to draw on particular bits of evidence are all untrue," he said.

"The [deputy national security adviser] did not materially change his evidence and was under no pressure from anyone to do so...

"What has changed is the CPS's assessment of the case law."

Jarvis sought to blame the previous Tory government for not classifying China as a threat to national security and being too "slow" to update national security laws.

Defending her party's record, Badenoch pointed to a number of examples where Tory ministers and government documents had described China as a "threat".

"The trial has collapsed because for months and months, the government has been refusing to give the CPS vital information," she said.

"This wasn't a mistake. This wasn't a misunderstanding. This looks like a deliberate decision to collapse the case and curry favour with the regime in China."

She added: "I suspect that [ministers] have decided that closer economic ties with China were more important than due process and our national security."

The Liberal Democrats have called on the government to "come clean on why this case fell apart" and publish all correspondence between the deputy national security adviser and the CPS.

The party's foreign affairs spokesperson Calum Miller said: "The government's attempts to duck scrutiny and scapegoat a single official simply won't wash.

"It's inconceivable that neither Keir Starmer nor his national security adviser knew what evidence was being submitted in such an important case.

"The buck for this fiasco ultimately stops with the prime minister."

Meanwhile, Jarvis confirmed that MI5's National Protective Security Authority had published new advice for politicians on how to protect themselves from espionage and foreign interference.

The guidance warns MPs they are a potential target for foreign spies, with China, Russia and Iran identified as particular risks to British institutions.

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YouTube double act Dan and Phil have confirmed their relationship after 16 years of fan speculation, ending what they called the "apolcapyptic constant stress of the Dan and Phil dating conspiracy".

Dan Howell and Phil Lester have amassed millions of followers, hosted a BBC Radio 1 show, published best-selling books, and been on world tours.

Many of the British pair's comedy and gaming videos show them in the house they share, and they separately came out as gay in 2019, but they hadn't directly spoken about their relationship.

"We fell into it hard and fast in 2009, and here we are almost 16 years later," Dan said in the new video, telling followers they "can't live in fear any more".

The couple spoke about the impact of intrusion and intense speculation from fans, which Dan said "could have killed me".

He also explained it had taken time to discuss the relationship publicly because of the effects of his "extremely homophobic childhood", which meant he had been "deep in the closet" for years.

"In my mid 20s I felt we had to hide the relationship because I was still hiding who I was to my friends, family, myself," he said.

"This is why all of the digging from people online hit a nerve, because Phil was my safe space. You were my first boyfriend... You were a literal ray of light in my life back then."

Dan continued: "And what we had was the most important thing to me and I wanted to protect it, so when other people tried to grab it and drag it into the light, I felt completely violated.

"Having all of these people trying to out us, and being so hostile to me when I tried to hide it, was so triggering. Honestly, it could have killed me."

Dan added that he felt like someone had put a curse on them, with them achieving huge success "but half the time it's going to suck for years, wake up in the night with anxiety, you're going to have panic attacks".

He said there were times when he thought he might be "happier without all of this".

"Yeah, [in] 2017 I'm thinking, my solo comedy content is killing it on YouTube, this could just be my life. I could be like every other YouTube boy and just enjoy this without the apocalyptic, constant stress of this Dan and Phil dating conspiracy."

'A cycle of never-ending closets'

He said he had decided to make the relationship public after a recent therapy session.

"My therapist said, 'Dan, you love being in the closet'. And I was like, 'Excuse me?'"

He continued: "I spent so long not being authentic and being trapped in a situation, that I am comfortable being miserable in an environment where I don't do the thing that would suddenly make me feel better. I am in a cycle of never-ending closets, and this secret conspiracy is just another thing that I'm trapped inside."

Phil added that some followers may have already guessed, but making the announcement was "a big scary deal for us, it's kind of like another mini coming out".

He acknowledged that the move may attract more homophobia.

"Look, sure, this is a scary time in the world," Dan replied. "Let's be real, it feels like things are sliding backwards because the fighting for what was important was going a bit too well.

"But I think that's why it's more important than ever that we're like, 'You know what? Hey, here we are, gay. And what?'"

'Happy and relieved'

Their reveal was met with praise and love from longtime fans.

"I just adore you both so much," wrote one.

Another wrote: "Listen. Not our business. Never been our business. Fully aware it's parasocial. But after all these years, I'm both very, very happy for you both and feeling a bizarre sense of relief."

"Thank you for making me feel accepted just as I am throughout the years. I am glad you both feel safe enough to be your authentic selves!" posted someone.

"This is like gay independence day," said another.

Followers also celebrated what a big part of their lives the pair have been over the years.

"I've finished my bachelor's, master's, med school, and a PhD by the time they hard-launched their relationship," wrote one.

"Big day for girls who were on Tumblr from 2012-2015," said someone else.

"There's at least 20 people I haven't spoken to in seven years that I need to call RIGHT NOW," wrote another.

"I've literally had to go outside and have a cigarette," someone else posted.

A mental health trust says it is planning to install CCTV following the death of a patient in mysterious circumstances.

Maria Morris, 44, was found unresponsive at Bethlem Hospital in south London on 21 September 2021 with four socks down her throat, and a large unexplained bruise on her back.

She died hours later in hospital from a brain injury caused by a lack of oxygen. A consultant who treated her questioned whether she had been assaulted.

An inquest jury at South London Coroners' court concluded that her death was accidental, but her family says they still have questions about what led to her death.

Large bruise on her back

The inquest heard that Maria Morris, who worked as a teaching assistant, had bi-polar affective disorder.

In September 2021, her family and friends became concerned when she started acting erratically and found that she had stopped taking her medication.

Police were called after she ran away from a friend while on a walk in a park. When found, she was delusional and taken to Croydon Hospital.

She was transferred to Bethlem Royal Hospital, a mental health hospital run by South London and Maudsley NHS Trust (SLAM), on 18 September where she was sectioned under the Mental Health Act.

The jury was told that while Maria was on the unit, she raised a number of concerns about how staff were treating patients. She told one member of staff that patients were being "punished" at night.

On the evening of the 21 September, Maria was observed by staff in her room at 20:00 and then again at 20:30.

At 21:23 a member of staff found her unconscious on the floor of her room, having had a cardiac arrest.

During attempts to resuscitate her, a sock was found in her throat. When paramedics arrived, three further socks were removed from her throat.

By the time she was transferred to Croydon University Hospital, she had suffered a hypoxic brain injury. A few hours later she went into cardiac arrest again and died on 22 September.

The jury was told that Dr Simon Wood, an intensive care doctor at Croydon Hospital who treated Maria, alerted the police to a large bruise on her back.

He also said that, in his view, a patient wouldn't have been able to push socks down their own throat without gagging. He was concerned that this may have indicated she'd been assaulted.

The jury heard that there was no CCTV used on the wards at Bethlem Hospital and there was nothing in Maria's notes or observations to explain the bruising.

Maria's room was locked when she was found. The court heard that most patients had keys for their own rooms, but there was no record on who had what key.

Staff had master keys that could unlock all the patients' rooms.

Untested blood

In a statement read to the court, Metropolitan police officer DC Herdeep Jugdev said that his investigation had been hindered because Maria's room in Bethlem had been cleared, and the sock disposed of, before they got there 19 hours after her death was reported.

During their investigation, the police spotted what appeared to be blood under Maria's nails, although this did not appear to have been tested to see whose it was.

John Taylor, the South London Coroner, told the jury that there was not sufficient evidence to conclude that Maria was assaulted on the ward, or that someone else had pushed socks into her airway.

The inquest heard conflicting evidence from staff at Bethlem about how often Maria was checked on the night she died.

Some documents and witnesses suggested she should have been checked four or five times an hour. Others suggested she should have been checked once an hour.

The jury concluded that Maria had pushed the socks down her own throat, but that her death had been accidental. They were unable to reach a conclusion on whether a lack of observations contributed to her death, because of the conflicting evidence.

'Immense pain'

In a statement, Maria's family said she was a much-loved mother, daughter and sister, and that her death "has left a profound and lasting void in the hearts of her family and all who loved her".

"We are grateful to the jury for having identified that there were missed opportunities around communication, documentation and observations.

"As a family, the idea that more could have been done to keep her safe causes us immense pain."

The family also said it felt the jury was not allowed to comment on all the issues it considered to be important.

"As a family we still have questions about exactly what happened that night."

South London and Maudsley NHS Trust (SLAM) says it will be rolling out CCTV in all its wards and opening a new CCTV control centre in November.

Personal data may have been stolen in the ransomware attack that forced Asahi to halt beer production, the company has said.

Japan's biggest brewer was forced to halt production at the majority of its 30 factories in the country, after a cyber-attack late last month disrupted everything from beer shipments to its accounting system.

All of Asahi's facilities have now partially reopened and restarted production but computer systems remain down, meaning orders are being processed using pen, paper and fax machines.

In a statement on Tuesday, Asahi said it was investigating whether personal information was stolen in the attack.

The company said its Emergency Response Headquarters were working with cybersecurity experts to "restore the system as quickly as possible", and will contact those affected by the hack.

"As we continue investigating the extent and details of the impact, focusing on the systems targeted in the recent attack, we have identified the possibility that personal information may have been subject to unauthorised data transfer," it said.

"Should the investigation confirm this, we will promptly notify those concerned and take appropriate measures in accordance with applicable laws on the protection of personal information."

It remains unclear what personal information was stolen, and Asahi declined to provide more detail as the matter is currently under investigation.

Asahi Group also owns Fullers in the UK and global brands including Peroni, Grolsch, and Pilsner Urquell. But Asahi said only its systems and operations in Japan - which account for around half of its sales - have been affected by the attack.

Asahi apologised for "any difficulties" caused by the incident.

The company also said it would delay the disclosure of its third-quarter financial results, citing the disruption caused by the attack.

The disclosure would be more than 45 days after the end of the October to December quarter, Asahi said, but when exactly would depend on the progress of restoring its system.

Russia-based ransomware group Qilin claimed responsibility for the attack, which has previously hacked other big organisations, including the NHS.

The cyber-attack is the latest to have hit operations at major firms.

Jaguar Land Rover, Marks and Spencer, and Co-op are among the major British companies that have been affected this year.

The UK's National Cyber Security Centre has reported a record rise in "nationally significant" cyber-attacks in the last year, with an average of four happening every week.

They urged businesses to take "concrete action" to protect themselves from attacks.

Former Premier League referee David Coote has pleaded guilty to a charge of making an indecent image of a child.

The 43-year-old was charged in August following an investigation by Nottinghamshire Police.

He admitted making an indecent photograph of a child on 2 January 2020 at Nottingham Crown Court on Tuesday.

Coote, from Woodhill Road, Collingham, Nottinghamshire, was granted conditional bail and will next appear at court on 11 December.

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Former prime minister Rishi Sunak has stepped up his call for a targeted screening programme for prostate cancer.

In a BBC interview he said he was "convinced of the urgency " of introducing such a programme which would be affordable, deliverable and "save countless lives".

His comments come as the UK National Screening Committee reconsiders its decision from five years ago not to recommend routine screening.

Media reports suggest it may stick with its current stance.

Olympic cycling champion Sir Chris Hoy, who has advanced prostate cancer, wants younger men to be checked.

He wants the age threshold for requesting a PSA (prostate-specific antigen) blood test lowered.

Currently, it is not routinely offered to men without symptoms who are under 50.

The PSA test is controversial though. Levels can rise for reasons other than cancer, such as infections, leading to false positives. Critics say this can result in unnecessary treatment and side effects.

Sunak is an ambassador for Prostate Cancer Research, which is publishing a report on the costs and benefits of a targeted screening programme.

It would focus on men aged 45–69 with a family history of prostate cancer and black men, who face double the risk. This group includes around 1.3 million men in the UK.

The charity estimates the programme would cost £25 million a year - or about £18 per patient - similar to bowel and breast cancer screening. It assumes 20% of eligible men would be invited annually, with a 72% uptake rate. Diagnostic activity (scans and biopsies) would need to rise by 23%, with only a modest increase in NHS staffing, it says.

The benefits of introducing targeted screening for those at the highest risk outweigh the financial and logistical costs, according to the report authors.

Speaking to the BBC, Sunak said: "I've had family and friends that have been impacted by it – thankfully not lost their lives – but that partly has made me aware of why its so important we catch it early – the doctors are so brilliant now at treating you if you catch it early."

He said men, including himself, were often shy of coming forward to discuss health issues: "That's why a proactive targeted screening programme could make a difference in helping save lives."

The screening programme backed by the Prostate Cancer Research Charity would involve an MRI scan as well as the PSA test and then a biopsy.

Asked whether he might have done more while in Downing Street to push the case for prostate cancer screening, Sunak said testing had now become more reliable: "The thing that has changed is use of MRI scans so we can now much more effectively and safely target the people who most need our help - the moment is now – its deliverable and affordable".

But some medical experts are sceptical about the value of screening. They argue there is still a risk that patients will be treated for the cancer when it is not strictly necessary and will then have to live with side effects such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction.

Professor Hashim Ahmed, Chair of Urology at Imperial College, says more research is needed to determine the potential value of screening.

"The problem is we can often find disease that doesn't need to be treated and we end up causing harm...and my concern at the moment is that harm to benefit equation isn't quite right."

The National Screening Committee will have to weigh up the evidence and arguments. While the new report by Prostate Cancer Research says the implications for staffing and availability of a screening programme would be manageable, others have argued that it would take scanning capacity away from patients being treated for other conditions.

Patient voices are also shaping the debate. On a recent visit to a prostate cancer clinic at Guy's Hospital in London, Sunak met David Bateman who is 66. After asking for a PSA test he was diagnosed with the cancer at the age of 59 and was told it had spread to his pelvis.

He has since been given chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment but cannot be cured. David supports screening for those who are potentially vulnerable.

"That is very important to me because of my sons – they are 38 and 40 – I want them checked as soon as possible. If I had been screened at 50 I am sure I wouldn't be in the position I am today," he said.

People should plan for potential cyber-attacks by going back to pen and paper, according to the latest advice.

The government has written to chief executives across the country strongly recommending that they should have physical copies of their plans at the ready as a precaution.

A recent spate of hacks has highlighted the chaos that can ensue when hackers take computer systems down.

The warning comes as the National Cyber-Security Centre (NCSC) reported an increase in more serious cyber attacks this year.

Criminal hacks on Marks and Spencer, The Co-op and Jaguar Land Rover have led to empty shelves and production lines being halted this year as the companies struggled without their computer systems.

Organisations need to "have a plan for how they would continue to operate without their IT, (and rebuild that IT at pace), were an attack to get through," said Richard Horne, chief executive of the NSCS.

Firms are being urged to look beyond cyber-security controls toward a strategy known as "resilience engineering", which focuses on building systems that can anticipate, absorb, recover, and adapt, in the event of an attack.

Preferably the plans should be in paper form or stored offline, the agency suggests.

Although the total number of hacks that the NCSC dealt with in the first nine months of this year was, at 429, roughly the same as for a similar period last year, there was an increase in hacks with a bigger impact.

The number of "nationally significant" incidents represented nearly half, or 204, of all incidents. Last year only 89 were in that category.

A nationally significant incident covers cyber-attacks in the three highest categories in the NCSC and UK law enforcement categorisation model:

• Category 1: National cyber-emergency.
• Category 2: Highly significant incident.
• Category 3: Significant incident.
• Category 4: Substantial incident.
• Category 5: Moderate incident.
• Category 6: Localised incident.

Amongst this year's incidents, 4% (18) were in the second highest category "highly significant".

This marks a 50% increase in such incidents, an increase for the third consecutive year.

The NCSC would not give details on which attacks, either public or undisclosed, fall into which category.

But, as a benchmark, it is understood that the wave of attacks on UK retailers in the spring, which affected Marks and Spencer, The Co-op and Harrods, would be classed as a significant incidents.

One of the most serious attacks last year, on a blood testing provider, caused major problems for London hospitals. It resulted in significant clinical disruption and directly contributed to at least one patient death.

The NCSC would not say which category this incident would fall into.

The vast majority of attacks are financially motivated with criminal gangs using ransomware or data extortion to blackmail a victim into sending Bitcoins in ransom.

Whilst most cyber-crime gangs are headquartered in Russian or former Soviet countries, there has been a resurgence in teenage hacking gangs thought to be based in English-speaking countries.

So far this year seven teenagers have been arrested in the UK as part of investigations into major cyber-attacks.

As well as the advice over heightened preparations and collaboration, the government is asking organisations to make better use of the free tools and services offered by the NCSC, for example free cyber-insurance for small businesses that have completed the popular Cyber-Essentials programme.

A government scheme aimed at cutting energy use by insulating homes was botched on a vast scale, a spending watchdog has found, leaving tens of thousands of homes in need of remedial work.

According to the National Audit Office (NAO) 98% of homes that had external wall insulation installed under the scheme have problems that will lead to damp and mould if left unaddressed.

Nearly a third, or 29%, of the homes that were given internal insulation also need fixing, it said.

Energy Consumer Minister Martin McCluskey said the government was taking action and that the homes would be fixed "at no cost to the consumer".

Mohammed Mahedi, who had external wall insulation fitted to his Luton home two years ago, is living with the consequences.

''Some mornings I wake up breathing really, really heavily. I feel it in my neck. I feel it in my lungs,'' he says.

The BBC first reported the impact of faulty insulation in Luton last year.

Mohammed is still fighting to get the problem fixed.

"We got a scheme done that was meant to be helping us but it's made everything worse.''

In 2022 the previous government directed energy companies to spend billions of pounds, raised via levies on energy bills, on insulating homes across the UK, targetting people receiving benefits and those in very poorly insulated homes.

However, the NAO found there were "clear failures" in the design of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme, which resulted in "poor-quality installations as well as suspected fraud".

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said it was now up to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) to ensure the businesses responsible repaired "all affected homes as quickly as possible".

"It must also reform the system so that this cannot happen again," he said.

The NAO, which monitors how public money is spent, cited an "under-skilled workforce", businesses cutting corners and uncertainty over which standards to apply to which jobs, as some of the reasons for the substandard work.

It found that between 22,000 and 23,000 homes that had received external wall insulation, and up to 13,000 properties with internal wall insulation were now in need of repairs.

A small percentage of installations - 6% for external and 2% of internal insulation - posed an "immediate health and safety risk" from faults such as exposed live electrical cabling or blocked boiler ventilation, it said.

The NAO report focused on two specific schemes, ECO4 and the Great British Insulation Scheme.

But it also directed criticism at TrustMark, a consumer protection scheme set up in 2021 to monitor the quality of insulation programmes. It said there had been "weak" oversight and insufficient auditing of the schemes.

The NAO said that had allowed installers to "game" the system. Last year the whole-industry regulator, Ofgem, estimated that businesses had falsified claims for ECO installations in up to 16,500 homes, potentially claiming between £56m and £165m from energy suppliers.

TrustMark said it accepted that more needed to be done and said it remained "completely committed to ensuring strong consumer protection and confidence".

It said the organisation took "firm, fair and decisive action" when it first noticed issues with the work in 2024 and "kept industry groups and government fully informed at every stage".

Energy minister, McCluskey said the NAO report revealed "unacceptable, systemic failings" left by the previous government.

He said there would be "comprehensive reforms" and "clear lines of accountability" in future.

Wage growth in the UK cooled slightly over the summer, as unemployment ticked up slightly.

Annual growth in employees' average earnings was 4.7% in the three months to August, down from 4.8% over the previous three months, according to new data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The national unemployment rate was 4.8% in August, a slight increase from 4.7% in July.

The ONS has said the unemployment figures should be treated with caution and it is taking additional steps to address concerns about the quality of the data.

Liz McKeown, the ONS's director of economic statistics, said: "The increase in unemployment was driven mostly by younger people."

Private sector earnings growth was the lowest in four years but was still ahead of inflation.

Annual growth in workers' average earnings was 6% for the public sector and 4.4% for the private sector.

The ONS said the public sector annual growth rate is affected by some public sector pay rises being paid earlier in 2025 than in 2024.

After the public sector, the wholesaling, retailing, hotels and restaurants sector showed the strongest regular annual growth rate.

Cameron McGerr should have been with his parents to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary last month.

Instead, Lynne and Kevin McGerr's 16-year-old son stood in front of MSPs in the Scottish Parliament and revealed he had lost both to heart conditions.

He believes he might have been able to help at least one of his parents in their moment of crisis if he had been taught life-saving CPR skills at a younger age.

Having already persuaded his school in Inverclyde to introduce the first aid training, he now wants to see it introduced to schools across Scotland.

Cameron's dad Kevin died from a cardiac arrest in February this year. It came three years after Lynne suffered a fatal heart attack.

The couple had been married since 30 September 1995.

"After my dad died I kind of thought maybe I should do something about this," explains Cameron, a pupil at Clydeview Academy in Gourock.

"The first time I kind of thought it was bad luck but the second time I thought 'well I was 15, I really should have been able to know what to do'."

Now Cameron and his classmates are learning how to give CPR - a potentially life-saving treatment using chest compressions to restart a person's heartbeat.

He hopes more schools across Scotland will soon do the same and adopt his campaign, which is called Pulse of Life.

"It could be your mum, it could be your dad, it could be your sister or it could be a friend, neighbour, stranger," explains Cameron, who now lives with his aunt.

"The truth is it can happen to anyone at any time. I think that's what a lot of people don't realise, and I think that's why everyone needs to be fully equipped to be able to step in and do it."

When Cameron spoke to MSPs at Holyrood last month, he estimated that when his dad collapsed he lost about two and a half minutes of time panicking about what to do.

He said: "I believe that if I had known CPR, I would have been able to save my dad. I would have been more confident while performing CPR, worrying less as his ribs broke under the force of my hands.

"I would not have had to wait for the 999 operator to instruct me in what to do. In my panic, I lost probably two and a half minutes, which instantly decreased his chance of survival by 25%."

British Heart Foundation figures suggest around 3,800 people experience a cardiac arrest out of hospital in Scotland each year – with a survival rate of one in 10.

Health groups and medical charities believe that number could improve if more people felt confident about performing CPR, and were able to take action quickly.

"I'm not doing it for me and I'm not doing it to try and prove the point - I'm doing it because I know it will make a difference" says Cameron of the campaign.

Clydeview pupils and staff have responded with enthusiasm to the CPR lessons, saying it has given them confidence about performing it if needed.

Craig Gibson, the headteacher at Clydeview, told BBC Scotland News that Cameron had shown "outstanding resilience in the face of such tragedy" over the past three years.

"Cameron and I have met a number of times and he's spoken to me quite openly about the impact of the loss that's had on him, but more importantly the changes that he would like to make," says Craig.

The school is hopeful all current S1 pupils will be taught CPR by the end of the current academic year. The teaching model will then be shared with other secondary schools throughout the region.

However, Cameron has already seen his campaign go further afield, leading to his appearance at the Scottish Parliament.

It came on the day of what would have been his parents' wedding anniversary.

Despite his nerves, he movingly recalled waking up to his dad screaming, unsure of what to do after his mum's heart attack.

"I wonder whether, if I had been given CPR training, I would have been able to step in and make a difference.

"However, I cannot live life wondering 'what if?'. I need to live to make a difference for other people who might encounter the same problem."

Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth has now written to Cameron offering to meet him.

A Scottish government spokesperson said it would continue to work with partners to make sure pupils have the opportunity to learn CPR, with many schools already doing so.

However far his campaign goes, and whatever difference it makes, Cameron is sure of one thing - that his parents would be proud of what he's doing.

"I think they'd be a bit, not caught off guard, but a bit shocked because here's this shy boy that didn't like confrontation, didn't like public speaking, who just went and addressed the country's parliament.

"They would be immensely proud, and I knew that even before I'd done this.

"They would always be proud, no matter what, and I think that's what keeps me going."

A government scheme aimed at cutting energy use by insulating homes was botched on a vast scale, a spending watchdog has found, leaving tens of thousands of homes in need of remedial work.

According to the National Audit Office (NAO) 98% of homes that had external wall insulation installed under the scheme have problems that will lead to damp and mould if left unaddressed.

Nearly a third, or 29%, of the homes that were given internal insulation also need fixing, it said.

Energy Consumer Minister Martin McCluskey said the government was taking action and that the homes would be fixed "at no cost to the consumer".

Mohammed Mahedi, who had external wall insulation fitted to his Luton home two years ago, is living with the consequences.

''Some mornings I wake up breathing really, really heavily. I feel it in my neck. I feel it in my lungs,'' he says.

The BBC first reported the impact of faulty insulation in Luton last year.

Mohammed is still fighting to get the problem fixed.

"We got a scheme done that was meant to be helping us but it's made everything worse.''

In 2022 the previous government directed energy companies to spend billions of pounds, raised via levies on energy bills, on insulating homes across the UK, targetting people receiving benefits and those in very poorly insulated homes.

However, the NAO found there were "clear failures" in the design of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme, which resulted in "poor-quality installations as well as suspected fraud".

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said it was now up to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) to ensure the businesses responsible repaired "all affected homes as quickly as possible".

"It must also reform the system so that this cannot happen again," he said.

The NAO, which monitors how public money is spent, cited an "under-skilled workforce", businesses cutting corners and uncertainty over which standards to apply to which jobs, as some of the reasons for the substandard work.

It found that between 22,000 and 23,000 homes that had received external wall insulation, and up to 13,000 properties with internal wall insulation were now in need of repairs.

A small percentage of installations - 6% for external and 2% of internal insulation - posed an "immediate health and safety risk" from faults such as exposed live electrical cabling or blocked boiler ventilation, it said.

The NAO report focused on two specific schemes, ECO4 and the Great British Insulation Scheme.

But it also directed criticism at TrustMark, a consumer protection scheme set up in 2021 to monitor the quality of insulation programmes. It said there had been "weak" oversight and insufficient auditing of the schemes.

The NAO said that had allowed installers to "game" the system. Last year the whole-industry regulator, Ofgem, estimated that businesses had falsified claims for ECO installations in up to 16,500 homes, potentially claiming between £56m and £165m from energy suppliers.

TrustMark said it accepted that more needed to be done and said it remained "completely committed to ensuring strong consumer protection and confidence".

It said the organisation took "firm, fair and decisive action" when it first noticed issues with the work in 2024 and "kept industry groups and government fully informed at every stage".

Energy minister, McCluskey said the NAO report revealed "unacceptable, systemic failings" left by the previous government.

He said there would be "comprehensive reforms" and "clear lines of accountability" in future.

Former prime minister Rishi Sunak has stepped up his call for a targeted screening programme for prostate cancer.

In a BBC interview he said he was "convinced of the urgency " of introducing such a programme which would be affordable, deliverable and "save countless lives".

His comments come as the UK National Screening Committee reconsiders its decision from five years ago not to recommend routine screening.

Media reports suggest it may stick with its current stance.

Olympic cycling champion Sir Chris Hoy, who has advanced prostate cancer, wants younger men to be checked.

He wants the age threshold for requesting a PSA (prostate-specific antigen) blood test lowered.

Currently, it is not routinely offered to men without symptoms who are under 50.

The PSA test is controversial though. Levels can rise for reasons other than cancer, such as infections, leading to false positives. Critics say this can result in unnecessary treatment and side effects.

Sunak is an ambassador for Prostate Cancer Research, which is publishing a report on the costs and benefits of a targeted screening programme.

It would focus on men aged 45–69 with a family history of prostate cancer and black men, who face double the risk. This group includes around 1.3 million men in the UK.

The charity estimates the programme would cost £25 million a year - or about £18 per patient - similar to bowel and breast cancer screening. It assumes 20% of eligible men would be invited annually, with a 72% uptake rate. Diagnostic activity (scans and biopsies) would need to rise by 23%, with only a modest increase in NHS staffing, it says.

The benefits of introducing targeted screening for those at the highest risk outweigh the financial and logistical costs, according to the report authors.

Speaking to the BBC, Sunak said: "I've had family and friends that have been impacted by it – thankfully not lost their lives – but that partly has made me aware of why its so important we catch it early – the doctors are so brilliant now at treating you if you catch it early."

He said men, including himself, were often shy of coming forward to discuss health issues: "That's why a proactive targeted screening programme could make a difference in helping save lives."

The screening programme backed by the Prostate Cancer Research Charity would involve an MRI scan as well as the PSA test and then a biopsy.

Asked whether he might have done more while in Downing Street to push the case for prostate cancer screening, Sunak said testing had now become more reliable: "The thing that has changed is use of MRI scans so we can now much more effectively and safely target the people who most need our help - the moment is now – its deliverable and affordable".

But some medical experts are sceptical about the value of screening. They argue there is still a risk that patients will be treated for the cancer when it is not strictly necessary and will then have to live with side effects such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction.

Professor Hashim Ahmed, Chair of Urology at Imperial College, says more research is needed to determine the potential value of screening.

"The problem is we can often find disease that doesn't need to be treated and we end up causing harm...and my concern at the moment is that harm to benefit equation isn't quite right."

The National Screening Committee will have to weigh up the evidence and arguments. While the new report by Prostate Cancer Research says the implications for staffing and availability of a screening programme would be manageable, others have argued that it would take scanning capacity away from patients being treated for other conditions.

Patient voices are also shaping the debate. On a recent visit to a prostate cancer clinic at Guy's Hospital in London, Sunak met David Bateman who is 66. After asking for a PSA test he was diagnosed with the cancer at the age of 59 and was told it had spread to his pelvis.

He has since been given chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment but cannot be cured. David supports screening for those who are potentially vulnerable.

"That is very important to me because of my sons – they are 38 and 40 – I want them checked as soon as possible. If I had been screened at 50 I am sure I wouldn't be in the position I am today," he said.

Venezuela announced on Monday it would close its embassy in Oslo, days after opposition leader María Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In a statement, the Venezuelan government did not comment on Machado's prize, saying that the closure was part of a restructuring of its foreign service.

Norway's foreign ministry confirmed that Caracas had closed its embassy in Oslo without providing a reason.

The Nobel Committee in Oslo awarded her the prize on Friday in recognition of what it called "her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela", while Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro referred to the 58-year-old laureate as a "demonic witch".

The Norwegian foreign ministry called the decision "regrettable".

"Despite our differences on several issues, Norway wishes to keep the dialogue open with Venezuela and will continue to work in this direction," a ministry spokeswoman said.

She added that the Nobel Prize "is independent of the Norwegian government".

Machado has for years been campaigning against Maduro, whose 12-year rule is viewed by many nations as illegitimate.

Caracas also closed its embassy in Australia while opening new outposts in Zimbabwe and Burkina Faso, which it called "strategic partners in the fight" against "hegemonic pressures".

She has been forced to live in hiding for much of the past year.

• María Corina Machado wins Nobel Peace Prize

In honouring her achievement, Nobel chairman Jørgen Watne Frydnes called Machado a "key, unifying figure in a political opposition that was once deeply divided... in a brutal authoritarian state that is now suffering a humanitarian and economic crisis."

Machado told BBC Mundo her award was "like an injection" for her political movement. "It infuses energy, hope, strength on the Venezuelan people because we realise that we are not alone," she said.

Venezuela's closure of embassies in two close US allies comes after weeks of heightened tension between Caracas and Washington.

The US military has destroyed at least four boats that it said were carrying narcotics from Venezuela to the US, killing at least 21 people on board, in what the Donald Trump administration calls a war on drugs.

The strikes have attracted condemnation in countries including Venezuela and Colombia, with some international lawyers describing the strikes as a breach of international law.

The last time Norway suffered a diplomatic blow over the Nobel Peace Prize was with China in 2010, when it was awarded to political dissident Liu Xiaobo. Beijing suspended trade and other relations, and only normalised ties with Oslo six years later.

People applying for a driving licence will be encouraged to donate blood as part of a campaign to boost numbers of donors.

Officials estimate the message - a link to register as a blood donor in emails following driving licence applications - will be seen by millions of people each year.

By encouraging driving licence applicants, the NHS hopes to make a direct appeal to young people, as more than half of regular blood donors are over the age of 45.

Tim Moss, chief executive of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), said his organisation is "in a unique position to help raise awareness" as it handles millions of driving licence applications each year.

People can donate blood from the age of 17 and register from the age of 16.

The new scheme is jointly rolled out by the DVLA and NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), the body that oversees England's blood donation system.

"At 17 you can both learn to drive and start giving blood," said Altaf Kazi, assistant partnerships director for NHSBT.

"So this new partnership with the DVLA is a fantastic opportunity for the NHS to reach more younger people who have a lifetime of donating ahead of them," Kazi added.

The two bodies hope to repeat an earlier success where the driving licence application has included an option to join the organ donor register since 1994.

Around 70% of people signed up to the register did so through this prompt, according to NHSBT.

Hospitals across England need 5,000 blood donations every day to treat patients with a wide variety of conditions, including traumatic injury, childbirth, blood disorders and cancer treatments, it added.

Earlier this year, the NHS warned that it continued to face a "challenging" blood shortage, as it called for 200,000 new donors to come forward in order to maintain a safe and reliable supply.

Concern over blood stocks prompted the health service to issue an "amber alert" last year, meaning supplies were running low enough to have an impact on patient treatment.

Supplies have remained low ever since, with officials warning there is a "critical" need for more donors who have O negative blood, which can be given to the majority of patients.

Law enforcement has identified the 16 people who were killed in a blast that levelled a munitions factory in the US state of Tennessee.

The names were released during a news briefing on Monday outside Accurate Energetic Systems (AES) in Hickman County, where an early-morning blast on 10 October left no survivors.

Sheriffs Chris Davis of Humphreys County and Jason Craft of Hickman County alternated reading the victims' names and emphasised a "need to take care" of their families in the aftermath of the tragedy.

The cause of the blast is still unclear. Agents from the national Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) are investigating.

The victims are Jason Adams, Erick Anderson, Billy Baker, Adam Boatman, Christopher Clark, Mindy Clifton, James Cook, Reyna Gillahan, LaTeisha Mays, Jeremy Moore, Melinda Rainey, Melissa Stanford, Trenton Stewart, Rachel Woodall, Steven Wright and Donald Yowell.

Authorities said the individuals are presumed dead, and the release of their names does not mean their remains have been identified. That process is ongoing.

Sheriff Davis, who has described the blast as one of the most devastating incidents of his career, said that one victim was a teacher.

Another was his neighbour's husband, he said, and a third one was one of his best friends, according to local newspaper, The Tennessean.

Authorities originally feared that 18 people had died, but two people who were thought to have been on site were later located elsewhere.

Sheriff Davis said that while he may not have known all of the victims personally, he knows their family members or extended family members.

The tragedy has hit hard in the close-knit town, where cell service is spotty and a gas station - adorned with a Confederate flag centrepiece - is the local watering hole.

Resident Jerri Newcombe told the BBC that her friend of more than 20 years, Reyna Gillahan, was among the victims. The two met when her granddaughter and Gillahan's daughter became close as little girls.

We "grew up together - we were in each other's homes," she said at a weekend vigil. "We celebrated birthdays together. It's just surreal, because she's gone and her babies are hurting."

Mrs Gillahan's daughter said on Facebook that her death is an "unimaginable loss."

"She was a beautiful soul — loving, strong, and always thinking of others before herself," Rosalina Gillahan wrote. In another post, she wrote simply, "We love you mama".

Another victim, Mr Yowell was a chemist at AES and lived in the nearby city of Waverly with his wife and son, according to WellSpring Christian Church.

They "were long-time WellSpringers before moving to Waverly a few years ago," the church said in a Facebook post. "Please lift them up in your prayers."

Another of those killed in the blast, Mindy Clifton worked for 20 years in corrections before moving from Florida to Tennessee to take a position at AES, according to her former colleague Matt Reinhart.

"During my 30-year career in Corrections, I had the privilege of working with many outstanding individuals. One of the very best was Mindy Clifton," Reinhart wrote on Facebook.

He asked everyone to keep her loved ones in their thoughts and prayers as "we come to terms with this heartbreaking loss," he wrote.

Local TV news station WSMV reported LaTeisha Mays was 26 and had worked for AES for eight months before being killed in the explosion. Her family called her "the glue" that kept them together.

Her former classmate, Tyler Bailey paid tribute to her on Facebook, writing on Monday that "she was the sweetest soul in school, always smiling, laughing, trying to make others laugh, and just so caring".

Tiffany Story, who attended a vigil for the victims, told the BBC that she used to babysit one of those killed in the explosion - Rachel Woodall.

"Everybody knows everybody here," Mrs Story said. "With everybody being so close, it's very comforting to have family. That's what we are - whether [by] blood, not blood, this whole community is family."

Woodall began working as a production manager at AES about a month before the explosion. She lived in McEwen and graduated from McEwen High School in 2016.

In March, Jeremy Moore celebrated his 17-year anniversary at the company, according to an AES Facebook post.

His mother Ava Hinson called for prayer when she did not hear from her son following the explosion. On Monday, after authorities confirmed Mr Moore was among the fatalities, she posted a tribute online also confirming his death.

"Well, I heard it directly from sheriff Davis's mouth so I guess I have to start believing it. Jeremy Moore 10-20-87 to 10-10-25. Rest in peace my sweet baby boy," she wrote. Moore died 10 days shy of his 38th birthday.

Trenton "Trent" Stewart lived in Waverly, where he also went to high school. He worked in production at AES, according to his Facebook account.

Mr Stewart was also a firefighter for the Waverly Department of Public Safety and served as a pastor at The Log Church.

He live-streamed his sermons on Facebook and wrote in early October that his goal as a pastor "isn't to have the biggest crowd, or to be the most perfect person, but to show the love of Christ in whatever way possible through our church and my own personal ministry".

Over the weekend, after nearly two days with little sign of survivors - and an explosion site still considered dangerous for first responders - the once-optimistic Sheriff Davis said the time had come to switch to a recovery strategy over a rescue mission.

The plant in Bucksnort, Tennessee - roughly 56 miles (90km) south-west of Nashville - specialises in the development, manufacture, handling and storage of explosives.

Aerial video from the scene showed charred debris, smouldering vehicles and little remaining of the facility but rubble.

The blast registered as a 1.6 magnitude earthquake, according to the US Geological Survey.

In a statement posted on its website, AES said that emergency response teams and investigative agencies remain on scene investigating what happened.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families, coworkers, and community members affected by this incident. We extend our gratitude to all first responders who continue to work tirelessly under difficult conditions," the company said.

With additional reporting by Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu in Tennessee.

The private phone numbers of several high-profile figures including Australia's Prime Minister and Donald Trump Jr have been published on a US website.

Both of their personal contact details remain publicly listed on the site, which uses AI to scrape the internet for information and the BBC has chosen not to name.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's office is aware of the situation - which was first reported by independent Australian media outlet Ette Media - and local authorities are investigating.

A spokesman for Australia's opposition leader Sussan Ley, whose private number was also published, said the matter was "obviously concerning" and they had requested the information be removed.

The site claims to have contact details for hundreds of millions of professionals and is used by recruiters and sales representatives.

The BBC has verified it includes a current private number for Albanese and a personal contact for Donald Trump Jr - though it is unclear if the latter still uses it.

It is also unclear how the site obtained the information, but Australia has suffered a series of large data breaches in recent years.

Users can search the databased for a limited number of contacts for free or sign up for a paid service.

According to its website, the site collects public information - including, for example, filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission - but also uses AI to collate data from social media networks, others website crawlers and job portals.

A government scheme aimed at cutting energy use by insulating homes was botched on a vast scale, a spending watchdog has found, leaving tens of thousands of homes in need of remedial work.

According to the National Audit Office (NAO) 98% of homes that had external wall insulation installed under the scheme have problems that will lead to damp and mould if left unaddressed.

Nearly a third, or 29%, of the homes that were given internal insulation also need fixing, it said.

Energy Consumer Minister Martin McCluskey said the government was taking action and that the homes would be fixed "at no cost to the consumer".

Mohammed Mahedi, who had external wall insulation fitted to his Luton home two years ago, is living with the consequences.

''Some mornings I wake up breathing really, really heavily. I feel it in my neck. I feel it in my lungs,'' he says.

The BBC first reported the impact of faulty insulation in Luton last year.

Mohammed is still fighting to get the problem fixed.

"We got a scheme done that was meant to be helping us but it's made everything worse.''

In 2022 the previous government directed energy companies to spend billions of pounds, raised via levies on energy bills, on insulating homes across the UK, targetting people receiving benefits and those in very poorly insulated homes.

However, the NAO found there were "clear failures" in the design of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme, which resulted in "poor-quality installations as well as suspected fraud".

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said it was now up to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) to ensure the businesses responsible repaired "all affected homes as quickly as possible".

"It must also reform the system so that this cannot happen again," he said.

The NAO, which monitors how public money is spent, cited an "under-skilled workforce", businesses cutting corners and uncertainty over which standards to apply to which jobs, as some of the reasons for the substandard work.

It found that between 22,000 and 23,000 homes that had received external wall insulation, and up to 13,000 properties with internal wall insulation were now in need of repairs.

A small percentage of installations - 6% for external and 2% of internal insulation - posed an "immediate health and safety risk" from faults such as exposed live electrical cabling or blocked boiler ventilation, it said.

The NAO report focused on two specific schemes, ECO4 and the Great British Insulation Scheme.

But it also directed criticism at TrustMark, a consumer protection scheme set up in 2021 to monitor the quality of insulation programmes. It said there had been "weak" oversight and insufficient auditing of the schemes.

The NAO said that had allowed installers to "game" the system. Last year the whole-industry regulator, Ofgem, estimated that businesses had falsified claims for ECO installations in up to 16,500 homes, potentially claiming between £56m and £165m from energy suppliers.

TrustMark said it accepted that more needed to be done and said it remained "completely committed to ensuring strong consumer protection and confidence".

It said the organisation took "firm, fair and decisive action" when it first noticed issues with the work in 2024 and "kept industry groups and government fully informed at every stage".

Energy minister, McCluskey said the NAO report revealed "unacceptable, systemic failings" left by the previous government.

He said there would be "comprehensive reforms" and "clear lines of accountability" in future.

People should plan for potential cyber-attacks by going back to pen and paper, according to the latest advice.

The government has written to chief executives across the country strongly recommending that they should have physical copies of their plans at the ready as a precaution.

A recent spate of hacks has highlighted the chaos that can ensue when hackers take computer systems down.

The warning comes as the National Cyber-Security Centre (NCSC) reported an increase in more serious cyber attacks this year.

Criminal hacks on Marks and Spencer, The Co-op and Jaguar Land Rover have led to empty shelves and production lines being halted this year as the companies struggled without their computer systems.

Organisations need to "have a plan for how they would continue to operate without their IT, (and rebuild that IT at pace), were an attack to get through," said Richard Horne, chief executive of the NSCS.

Firms are being urged to look beyond cyber-security controls toward a strategy known as "resilience engineering", which focuses on building systems that can anticipate, absorb, recover, and adapt, in the event of an attack.

Preferably the plans should be in paper form or stored offline, the agency suggests.

Although the total number of hacks that the NCSC dealt with in the first nine months of this year was, at 429, roughly the same as for a similar period last year, there was an increase in hacks with a bigger impact.

The number of "nationally significant" incidents represented nearly half, or 204, of all incidents. Last year only 89 were in that category.

A nationally significant incident covers cyber-attacks in the three highest categories in the NCSC and UK law enforcement categorisation model:

• Category 1: National cyber-emergency.
• Category 2: Highly significant incident.
• Category 3: Significant incident.
• Category 4: Substantial incident.
• Category 5: Moderate incident.
• Category 6: Localised incident.

Amongst this year's incidents, 4% (18) were in the second highest category "highly significant".

This marks a 50% increase in such incidents, an increase for the third consecutive year.

The NCSC would not give details on which attacks, either public or undisclosed, fall into which category.

But, as a benchmark, it is understood that the wave of attacks on UK retailers in the spring, which affected Marks and Spencer, The Co-op and Harrods, would be classed as a significant incidents.

One of the most serious attacks last year, on a blood testing provider, caused major problems for London hospitals. It resulted in significant clinical disruption and directly contributed to at least one patient death.

The NCSC would not say which category this incident would fall into.

The vast majority of attacks are financially motivated with criminal gangs using ransomware or data extortion to blackmail a victim into sending Bitcoins in ransom.

Whilst most cyber-crime gangs are headquartered in Russian or former Soviet countries, there has been a resurgence in teenage hacking gangs thought to be based in English-speaking countries.

So far this year seven teenagers have been arrested in the UK as part of investigations into major cyber-attacks.

As well as the advice over heightened preparations and collaboration, the government is asking organisations to make better use of the free tools and services offered by the NCSC, for example free cyber-insurance for small businesses that have completed the popular Cyber-Essentials programme.