Morning Briefing: Friday 3 July 2026
- Weekend Heat: Yellow heat-health alerts cover southern and eastern England from midday Saturday, with 30C possible on Sunday and much of next week hot — check on older relatives and neighbours; risk concentrates among the over-75s and those with existing conditions.
- Petrol & Diesel: Petrol is at roughly 151p a litre and diesel 167p after June’s record falls — the cheapest motoring since the war began, with petrol expected below 150p within days if wholesale trends hold.
- Taxes: Andy Burnham says Labour’s manifesto leaves room for “movement on tax” — nothing changes immediately, but the direction of the first Burnham Budget is being set now, with higher business rates on warehouses to fund relief for pubs and high streets the first concrete signal.
Kyiv Toll Nears Forty as Russia Strikes Ukraine Again Overnight
Kyiv observes a day of mourning today after the death toll from Thursday’s eleven-hour barrage rose to at least three dozen — the deadliest attack on the capital this year. Fresh Russian strikes overnight killed four more people, including…
Iran and Oman Float Hormuz Toll Plan as Warnings Continue
Iran and Oman have proposed a fee scheme for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and European governments are reported to be resigned to some form of transit charge — a day after Tehran’s military warned tankers defying its designated ro…
Damascus Cafe Bomb Toll Rises to Nine as IS Suspected
Nine people are now known to have died, with twenty wounded, after a bomb packed with metal shrapnel exploded in a crowded cafe near Damascus’s Palace of Justice on Thursday. No group has claimed the attack; officials suspect Islamic State…
Washington Tells ICC It Has No Jurisdiction Over Americans
The United States told the International Criminal Court in a formal letter that it will not cooperate with any of the court’s investigations and rejects its jurisdiction over Americans entirely, calling any attempt to assert such authority…
Le Pen Says Electronic Tag Ruling Would End 2027 Bid
Marine Le Pen said she will not stand in France’s 2027 presidential election if judges order her to wear an electronic tag when the Paris appeals court rules on Tuesday. “If I can be a candidate, I will be a candidate, provided that I am a…
Burnham Opens Door to Tax Rises in First Interview
Andy Burnham used his first interview since becoming the sole Labour leadership candidate to say “there is some room within that manifesto for movement on tax”, while promising to take responsibility for funding the defence plan “extremely…
Pakistan Blocks Deportation of Freed Rochdale Grooming Ringleader
Pakistan has blocked the deportation of Shabir Ahmed, the Rochdale grooming gang ringleader released from prison this week after 14 years, prompting demands for the Government to change the law to remove him. Ministers are examining amendm…
Nandy Quits X and Pulls Her Department Off the Platform
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy announced that she and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are leaving X, saying the platform “isn’t healthy for our democracy or our communities” and that it favours abuse and misinformation. She cited…
Eight Arrested Over Global Network Drugging and Raping Women
The National Crime Agency has uncovered an international network of men who drugged and raped women, identifying 270 individuals linked to online forums that encouraged the abuse. At least eight men have been arrested in Britain and eight…
Yellow Heat Alert From Saturday as Third Heatwave Builds
Yellow heat-health alerts covering the East Midlands, East of England, London, the South East and South West come into force at midday on Saturday, with 30C possible on Sunday and temperatures near or above 30C across much of next week. Th…