Morning Briefing: Monday 3 August 2026
- Petrol: Oil crashed more than 5 per cent to around $83 a barrel after President Trump called off a strike on Iran — welcome relief that should begin to ease petrol prices, though Iran denies any deal and the fall takes weeks to reach the pumps.
- Mortgages: Cheaper oil eased inflation fears, pulling the 10-year gilt yield down to about 4.95 per cent. Over time that could take some pressure off mortgage rates, after the Bank of England held them last week.
- Food: Farmers warn the record-dry summer and spreading drought could cause shortages and push up food prices — a squeeze that offsets some of the relief from cheaper oil, with 35C heat returning today.
Iran Denies Deal as Trump Announces Fresh Talks
President Trump said a fresh round of negotiations with Iran would begin on Monday, days after he called off a threatened strike, but Tehran again denied it was in any direct talks with Washington or had agreed to reopen the Strait of Horm…
Israel Escalates Gaza Strikes, Threatening Peace Plan
Israel intensified its strikes on Gaza in open defiance of President Trump’s peace plan, with a senior minister insisting the attacks would not stop until Palestinian groups had truly disarmed. Hamas told mediators that the continued bomba…
Nationwide Blackout Plunges Cuba into Darkness
Cuba was plunged into a nationwide blackout after its ageing electricity grid collapsed, leaving the entire island of some ten million people without power. The failure followed a weekend of intermittent outages and came amid acute fuel sh…
British Woman's Body Found in Suitcase in Greece
Greek police have arrested a suspect after the body of a British woman was discovered inside a suitcase at an abandoned site. Investigators allege the man transported her remains in the luggage and then used her bank cards to withdraw mone…
Wildfires Force 60,000 to Flee in Washington State
Wildfires around Spokane in Washington state have forced about 60,000 people to flee and destroyed hundreds of buildings, officials said, with some of the blazes still out of control. The fires have burned across a vast area amid hot, dry…
Farage Unveils Plan to Use the Navy Against Small Boats
Nigel Farage set out plans on Monday for a Reform UK government to deploy the Royal Navy and Royal Marines to intercept small boats crossing the Channel and turn migrants back to France. He billed it as the largest Channel military operati…
Reform Deputy Tice Faces Standards Investigation
The parliamentary standards watchdog has opened an investigation into Richard Tice, the deputy leader of Reform UK, over an alleged failure to declare an interest. The inquiry, reported to be linked to a debate on Israel, was announced on…
Amber Alerts as 35C Heat Returns to England
Amber heat-health alerts were issued across most of England on Monday as temperatures were forecast to climb back towards 35C, renewing the strain of a relentless summer. The warnings, covering London and much of the country for 48 hours,…
Fuel Theft Surges as Petrol Prices Stay High
Almost £200,000 of fuel is being stolen from British petrol forecourts every day since the Iran war sent pump prices to their highest in years, according to industry figures reported on Monday. Drive-offs and other thefts have climbed as m…
Burnham Pushes to "Rewire Britain" With Power Shift North
Andy Burnham pressed on with his drive to shift power out of London on Monday, opening a government hub in Manchester and floating the idea of a fresh King’s Speech to reset his priorities. The Prime Minister has cast his devolution agenda…