Morning Briefing: Tuesday 28 July 2026
- Petrol: Oil is near its lowest in weeks — Brent below $88 — as the US–Iran truce holds, which should ease pump prices. But an overnight drone strike on a major Saudi oil plant is a fresh risk to watch.
- NHS & Benefits: The Prime Minister is expected to set out his first welfare changes today, making some benefits conditional. Labour MPs are already warning against “punitive” cuts, so expect a political fight over what it means for claimants.
- Heat: The fourth heatwave of the summer has arrived, with amber health alerts and temperatures set to reach 35C by Wednesday. Take care in the heat and check on vulnerable neighbours.
Drones Strike Saudi Aramco’s Giant Abqaiq Oil Plant
Drones struck Saudi Aramco’s Abqaiq facility — the world’s largest crude-processing plant — overnight, in an attack that threatened to shatter the fragile lull in the Gulf war and reverse a slide in oil prices. Saudi Arabia blamed Iran-bac…
US-Iran Pause Holds a Fourth Day as Trump Warns Time Is Short
The pause in fighting between the United States and Iran held into a fourth day, as indirect, Oman-mediated talks continued over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. President Trump said the two sides were in “very deep” talks but warned…
Netanyahu Meets Trump in Washington With Iran Top of the Agenda
Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel arrived in Washington for a meeting with President Trump, their first since the war with Iran began, with Iran policy at the top of the agenda. Mr Netanyahu, who travelled under unusual secrecy amid repor…
France’s Megafire Stabilises as Spain’s Emergency Deepens
The huge wildfire that had threatened Bordeaux was “stabilised” but not yet contained, France’s interior minister said, after it burned an area roughly four times the size of Paris in under a week. More than 220,000 people have been evacua…
Zelensky Meets Trump as the Senate Weighs Russia Sanctions
President Zelensky is due to meet President Trump at the White House, as the US Senate prepares to vote on sanctions that would impose steep tariffs on the biggest buyers of Russian oil and gas. The talks come after a night of Russian stri…
Burnham to Unveil His First Welfare Shake-Up as MPs Warn on Cuts
Andy Burnham is expected to set out his first major welfare changes on Tuesday, making some benefits conditional and tightening eligibility, as part of a drive to cut a rising bill. Labour MPs have already warned the Prime Minister against…
Burnham Names Phillipson Party Chair to Steady Labour
The Prime Minister has appointed Bridget Phillipson as chair of the Labour Party and brought figures from the party’s left into government, in a round of appointments read as an effort to shore up support before a difficult fight over welf…
Britain’s Fourth Heatwave Arrives With Amber Alerts
Britain’s fourth heatwave of the summer has arrived, with amber heat-health alerts now in force across much of England and temperatures forecast to peak around 35C on Wednesday. The UK Health Security Agency warned of a likely rise in deat…
Cairngorms Fire Burns On as Another Scottish Village Flees
The Cairngorms wildfire burned into its thirteenth day, now covering some 25 square kilometres, though firefighters reported “encouraging” progress. Elsewhere in Scotland, nearly a hundred households were evacuated from the former mining v…
FTSE Holds Near a Record as Oil Slips Again
The FTSE 100 held near a record after closing at a five-month high, as oil slipped again on the pause in the US–Iran war and the retreat of the war-risk premium. Brent crude fell below $88 a barrel, its lowest in weeks, though an overnight…