Morning Briefing: Tuesday 7 July 2026
- Heatwave Declared: The third heatwave of the summer is now official, building to a possible 35C in the South East by Friday or Saturday with “tropical nights” that stay warm — amber health alerts activate at 9am tomorrow across the Midlands, London, the East, South East and South West, so tonight is the time to prepare: fans out, medication stored cool, plans made to check on older relatives.
- House Prices: Prices rose 0.2% in June — the first monthly increase in four months, taking the typical home to £299,330 — a sign the market is steadying, though lenders caution it remains subdued and the Bank of England’s August decision is the next test for mortgage rates.
- Petrol: The tanker attack in the Strait of Hormuz has pushed oil back up over 1% to nearly $73 — the first upward pressure in weeks, which may pause the run of falling pump prices if it holds.
Damascus Bombs Rock Macron’s Landmark Syria Visit
Two explosive devices detonated near the Damascus hotel where President Macron had spent the night, wounding at least 18 people, as the French president held talks with Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa — the first visit by a major Western…
Tanker Set Ablaze by Projectile in Strait of Hormuz
A tanker caught fire after being struck by an unknown projectile east of Limah, Oman, while southbound through the Strait of Hormuz, the UK’s maritime agency reported — the first strike on commercial shipping since the strait reopened unde…
NATO Summit Opens in Ankara as Trump Flies In
The alliance’s first Turkish-hosted summit opened today, with President Trump arriving this afternoon for a bilateral with President Erdogan and a leaders’ dinner tonight, before tomorrow’s working session and his meetings with President Z…
Ukraine Strikes Siberian Refinery in Deepest Attack of War
Ukrainian drones hit the Omsk refinery — Russia’s largest, some 2,500km from Ukraine — in the deepest strike of the war, with President Zelensky saying his country’s “long-range sanctions” now reach Siberia. The attack answered a weekend i…
Khamenei’s Cortege Reaches Qom as His Heir Stays Invisible
Ayatollah Khamenei’s funeral procession moved to the shrine city of Qom after Monday’s vast Tehran procession, where crowds marched beneath red banners demanding vengeance — the coffin travels on to Iraq’s shrine cities before Thursday’s b…
Labour Refers Farage to Elections Watchdog Over Gifts
Labour asked the Electoral Commission to investigate whether Nigel Farage broke electoral law by failing to declare benefits from convicted fraudster George Cottrell — staff, security and use of a London mansion — while the standards commi…
Starmer Attends Final NATO Summit as Caretaker PM
Sir Keir Starmer travelled to Ankara for his final NATO summit, thirteen days before the expected handover to Andy Burnham, facing American pressure over defence spending after the US ambassador to NATO called on allies “lagging behind” to…
Third Heatwave Declared With 35C Peak Forecast
The UK formally entered its third heatwave of the summer, with temperatures building towards a possible 35C in the South East on Friday or Saturday, London expected to reach 34C, and forecasters warning of “tropical nights” that stay above…
House Prices Rise for First Time in Four Months
UK house prices rose 0.2% in June — the first monthly increase since February, when the war’s outbreak froze the market — taking the typical property to £299,330, slightly ahead of forecasts. The lender behind the index cautioned that the…
GP Tests to Cut Endometriosis Diagnosis to 45 Minutes
Two new tests that can be carried out by GPs have been approved for NHS use, promising to cut the diagnosis of endometriosis from an average of nine years or more to as little as 45 minutes. The condition — in which tissue similar to the w…