A British couple imprisoned in Iran have warned their situation has become dangerous amid the region’s latest fighting and say they feel abandoned by the UK government.Craig and Lindsay Foreman, both 53 and from East Sussex, recorded a message relayed by their son Joe Bennett from Evin prison in Tehran.The pair were detained in January 2025 during a motorbike trip and later given 10-year...

Firefighters and police are at the scene of a suspected arson attack in Golders Green, north London.The London Fire Brigade says crews are tackling the incident, with further information expected as the situation develops.A local resident reported hearing a loud blast shortly after 01:30 GMT and said several ambulances were seen burning nearby, waking people in the neighbourhood. Residents...

Germany's shortage of skilled workers has pushed employers to recruit abroad, and India has emerged as a major source of talent.With retirees outnumbering young entrants, businesses from bakeries to construction sites are looking overseas to keep operations running.Demographic trends are at the heart of the problem. A recent study by the Bertelsmann Foundation found Germany needs roughly 288,000...

France’s Socialist-led administrations kept control of the country’s four biggest cities — Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Lille — in local elections that offered a boost to established parties ahead of next year’s presidential vote.The night also saw gains for both the far left and far right, with notable wins for a Le Pen ally in Nice and for France Unbowed (LFI) in Roubaix, underscoring a...

When Finland prepares for national emergencies, supermarkets are part of the plan.Companies like S Group and Kesko have detailed contingency programs to keep food moving if the country faces military aggression, a widespread cyberattack, or other major disruptions.Finland’s approach builds on a long-standing Nordic practice of integrating civilian and military readiness. Since 2022, after...

Garden expert Alan Titchmarsh is urging gardeners to use March to get ahead of the season, calling it one of the most important months for outdoor work.In a recent video he outlined five practical tasks to prepare gardens for spring and secure an early harvest.At the top of his list is planting early potatoes — a job he says rewards gardeners quickly. Planted now, those early tubers can...

When Frances Tophill told colleagues she might end up living in a van after losing out on house bids, veteran gardener Alan Titchmarsh admits he was alarmed.The Love Your Garden star eventually secured a home in Devon, but she hasn’t ditched the van she once joked she could live in.Tophill, 34, from Kent, shot to fame after joining ITV’s Love Your Garden with Titchmarsh, Katie Rushworth and...

Survivors who fled northern Mali say Russian-linked mercenaries carried out summary killings, brutal interrogations and other abuses as part of counter-insurgency operations, forcing thousands to escape across the border.One man, who is now in a refugee camp in Mauritania, described being seized in the town of Nampala last August and subjected to repeated water torture and threats after fighters...

Rachel Reeves arrives at today's Budget under intense scrutiny, aiming to steady a struggling government and buy a little breathing room for Labour.She will frame the package as a set of difficult but necessary trade-offs, focused on three headline goals: easing pressure on household budgets, shortening NHS waiting lists and beginning to bring public debt under control.Delivering on those aims...

As Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to deliver the Budget, ordinary Britons are voicing clear and varied priorities.From housing taxes to care for disabled people, voters across incomes have specific asks they want reflected in government plans.Wesley Thorne, 52, and his wife Toni run a sweets business near Bristol and say moving into a larger home is out of reach because stamp duty could tack...