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Charities and community groups struggling to deal with increased demands from society’s most vulnerable people are to get a share of a £100 million support package announced in the Budget. Charities and community groups struggling to deal with increased demands from society’s most vulnerable people are to get a share of a £100 million support package announced in the Budget. The money is likely to go to organisations in England

The BBC has apologised directly to the mother of missing university cook Claudia Lawrence over letters about licence fee payments being sent to her daughter’s property. In an interview published in The Sun on Wednesday, Joan Lawrence said the letters, which she said had threatened up to £1,000 in fines, were causing her “untold heartache”. The BBC has since apologised to Mrs Lawrence and confirmed to her that no further

Unions criticised the Budget for failing to tackle the pay disputes ongoing across the country. As the Chancellor delivered his speech in the Commons, thousands of workers staged a demonstration outside Downing Street as part of a day of action by unions involved in long-running disputes over pay, jobs and conditions. Fire Brigades Union general secretary Matt Wrack said: “The multimillionaire Chancellor has declared war on hard-pressed workers today, with

Jeremy Hunt says the UK will avoid entering a recession as the Chancellor hailed an economy “proving the doubters wrong”, although growth remains sluggish. The Chancellor used the improved economic picture to promise an extension of support for household energy costs and he is also expected to promise a major expansion of free childcare. He said the economy would avoid a technical recession, although the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR)

A major expansion of free childcare and an extension in support for household energy costs will help ease the cost of living as Jeremy Hunt sets out a “Budget for growth”. The Chancellor confirmed that the energy price guarantee, which caps average household bills at £2,500, will be extended at its current level from April to June. It had been due to rise to £3,000 in April and the cost

More than 300 academic experts in migration have signed a joint letter to the Government to object to the UK’s Illegal Immigration Bill, arguing the policy is not “evidence based, workable, or legal under human rights law”. The scholars, from mostly British universities, warned the Bill will not stop small boats crossing the Channel, but would, however, increase “the chance of death” as people were funnelled into more dangerous journeys.

The cost of a mortgage on a first home is typically around £42 per month cheaper than renting, but the difference has reduced and in some parts of the UK renting may be the less expensive option, analysis suggests. First-time buyers could typically pay around £971 per month for a three-bedroom home, while renters would potentially be forking out around £1,013, according to calculations by Halifax. The difference of around

It is one of a number of announcements to be made in the Commons on Wednesday Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will pledge to tackle labour shortages and get people back to work when he delivers his Budget on Wednesday. Announcements on energy bill support, benefits reform and pensions allowances are all expected to form part of the Budget package when Mr Hunt addresses MPs on Wednesday afternoon, even if he is

The new series of the show will feature William’s time at the Scottish university The sixth series of Netflix show The Crown has started filming in St Andrews, where the Prince of Wales met his now wife. The new series of the show will feature William’s time at the University of St Andrews, where in 2001 he met and later fell in love with Kate Middleton, now the Princess of