First graduates complete groundbreaking forestry apprenticeship
21 apprentices have graduated from the UK’s first degree-level forestry apprenticeship at the University of Cumbria, marking a significant milestone in efforts to grow the next generation of professional foresters. The graduation on Wednesday 26 November coincided with National Tree Week (22 – 30 November), the UK’s largest annual tree celebration, and its 2025 theme […]
Budget 2025 – MHCLG – GOV.UK
The Chancellor yesterday (26 November) announced the Budget, focused on taking the fair choices to deliver on the country’s priorities of cutting the cost of living, reducing NHS waiting lists and driving down our borrowing and debt. For the department, the Budget brings with it the prospect of thousands of new homes, new powers for Mayors to drive improvements in local communities, hundreds more […]
New national standards on taxi licensing proposed to protect passengers
Ministers will change the law to strengthen safety and protections for passengers in taxi and private hire vehicles (PHVs). The proposed new standards come after Baroness Casey’s audit into Group-based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, which was published in June of this year. Since then, the government has acted fast to keep passengers and young […]
Report by the Representative on Freedom of the Media to the OSCE Permanent Council: Joint Statement, November 2025
Thank you very much Mr Chair, I am delivering this statement on behalf of the following participating states, members of the Informal Group of Friends on the Safety of Journalists: Austria, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and my own country Germany. We welcome the Representative on Freedom of […]
Challenges to media freedom in the OSCE region: UK statement to the OSCE, November 2025
Thank you, Chair. And thank you for your report to the Permanent Council, Representative Braathu. And thank you for the dedicated work of you and your team. Our predecessors at the OSCE recognised that media freedom is a cornerstone of regional security and democratic societies. Regrettably, as your report makes clear, there are a range of severe and growing challenges to media freedom in […]
What does the Autumn Budget mean for your energy bills?
We announced in the Autumn Budget that we will cut the cost of living, including by taking an average of £150 off the costs of household energy bills from April next year. This energy bill support is on top of extending the £150 Warm Home Discount to around a further 2.7 million of the poorest households, with up to 6 million households now receiving the discount. Where is the saving coming from? The Energy […]
First fast-track cyber defenders now protecting UK from daily digital threats
First fast-track cyber recruits graduate from Defence Cyber Academy, Shrivenham, delivering on the Strategic Defence Review More than 30 new training places available for people aged 18-39 years old as 2026 recruitment opens to expressions of interest Graduates join new Defence Cyber & Electromagnetic Force to fight 90,000 annual cyber-attacks on UK defence, safeguarding our […]
An update on the Employment Rights Bill
The Government convened a series of constructive conversations between trade unions and business representatives. On the basis of the outcome of these discussions, the Government will now move forward on the issue of unfair dismissal protections in the Employment Rights Bill to ensure it can reach Royal Assent and keep to the Government’s published delivery […]
New local plan system launching early 2026: latest update
On 27 November 2025, the Minister for Housing and Planning, Matthew Pennycook, announced further details regarding the new system for local plan development that will begin operating in the new year. The reforms, introduced through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023, aim to strengthen and streamline how local plans are prepared and examined across […]
Appointment of Mark Hamilton OBE, Non-Executive Committee Member
The Parole Board announces new Non-Executive Director of the Management Committee Source link