Morning Briefing: Friday 17 July 2026
- Petrol & Energy: Oil is holding around $84 to $85 a barrel as the US blockade keeps shipping through the Strait of Hormuz near a two-month low, and pump prices — close to 151p a litre — are climbing again. The wholesale gas price that sets energy bills is exposed to the same shock.
- A New Prime Minister on Monday — and Tax Rises Ahead: Andy Burnham is confirmed Labour leader today and becomes Prime Minister on Monday, with Shabana Mahmood tipped as his Chancellor. He has not ruled out a wealth tax and has hinted at “asking for a little more”, so plan for tax rises in the autumn Budget.
- Heat, Fire & Water: Today brings another hot day, with up to 35 to 36C possible in the South, before a cooler, more unsettled spell with thunderstorms reaches the country over the weekend. Two more hosepipe bans, from Cambridge Water and Affinity Water, take effect today. Keep saving water and check on the elderly and unwell.
US Strikes Hit Iranian Airport, Railway and Bridges Overnight
American forces struck Iran again overnight, US Central Command said, in another night of a campaign now approaching a week, hitting air-defence, logistics and coastal-surveillance sites. Iranian state media reported strikes on Iranshahr a…
US Spares Kharg’s Oil Terminal as Trump Holds Off Wider Action
For all the talk of escalation, the US has so far stopped short of its most drastic options. American forces struck military targets on Kharg Island but deliberately avoided the oil terminal that handles the bulk of Iran’s crude exports, w…
Iran’s Strikes Reach the Gulf Mediators, Straining Diplomacy
Iran’s retaliation continued to rain on US-linked sites across the Gulf — Jordan and Kuwait reported intercepting missiles and drones, with debris damage but no deaths — and, more damagingly for any peace effort, reached the mediators them…
Zelensky’s Wartime Reshuffle Sparks a Backlash
President Zelensky’s decision to overhaul his government in the middle of the war has drawn an unusually public backlash. The dismissal of the popular defence minister Mykhaylo Fedorov, architect of Ukraine’s drone programme, along with th…
Congo’s Ebola Outbreak Remains the Fastest-Growing on Record
The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo stands at more than 2,000 confirmed cases and over 750 deaths, the fastest-growing outbreak of the disease ever recorded and now the third-largest, according to the World Health Organi…
Burnham to Be Confirmed Labour Leader Today
Andy Burnham will be formally confirmed as Labour leader at a special party conference today, having secured the leadership unopposed, and becomes Prime Minister on Monday when the King appoints him after Sir Keir Starmer resigns. In his f…
Mahmood Set for Chancellor as the Cabinet Takes Shape
Reports say Andy Burnham is set to name the Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, as his Chancellor, passing over the early favourite Ed Miliband, who is now tipped for the Foreign Office. Mahmood is said to have beaten Mr Miliband, Yvette Coop…
The Heat Reaches Another Hot Day as More Hosepipe Bans Begin
The heatwave brings another hot day on Friday, with the Met Office forecasting widely above 30C across England and Wales and up to 35 or 36C in the hottest spots, under yellow heat-health alerts that run until this evening. A cooler, more…
Widdecombe Suspect Still Held as Scotland Brings a Charge Over Online Abuse
The man arrested over the killing of Ann Widdecombe remains in custody without charge, held under a Terrorism Act warrant while Counter Terrorism Policing leads what it has called a targeted attack; officers stress it has not been declared…
The Starmer Government’s Final Acts: Kyiv and British Steel
Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership closed on two deliberate notes. On his last overseas trip he travelled to Kyiv, pledging £255m with Sweden towards 16 Gripen fighter jets for Ukraine and being awarded the Order of Freedom, telling Kyiv Brita…