The article reports that recent government measures — including a rise in Employer National Insurance and business rates changes — have increased costs for pubs, and that the government is preparing to reverse the planned business rates change after industry backlash; details are still awaited.
Home Office figures show the number of asylum caseworkers fell to 2,113 from 2,464 under the previous government, while appeals in the immigration tribunal have more than doubled to about 69,670.
Brendan Banfield is going to trial on aggravated murder charges in the February 2023 deaths of his wife and another man; prosecutors say he and the family's au pair staged the scene, and the trial begins Monday.
Caleb Williams and teammates celebrated Chicago's comeback 31-27 playoff win over the Green Bay Packers by wearing foam 'cheese grater' hats and shredding cheese during a postgame Amazon broadcast; Williams passed for 361 yards with two touchdowns.
Macclesfield beat holders Crystal Palace 2-1 in the FA Cup third round, and chairman Rob Smethurst said he joined a pitch invasion at full-time to celebrate.
Officials report President Trump has been briefed on military options against Iran but has not decided to strike; Iranian leaders warned US and Israeli forces would be legitimate targets if Tehran were attacked.
The Crave series Heated Rivalry centres on a romance between two professional hockey players and highlights queer joy that unsettles hockey's hypermasculine norms, prompting wide online discussion and watch parties.
Sir Keir Starmer's call for an international response to X's AI bot, Grok, was weakened after Canada publicly stepped back from an outright ban; Downing Street has been discussing a coordinated approach with allies.
Andrea Bocelli and Mariah Carey are set to perform at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics opening ceremony on Feb. 6, centered at San Siro with additional segments beamed from Cortina, Livigno and Predazzo.
CES 2026 featured new RGB panel technology (branded as RGB mini-LED or Micro RGB) and brighter OLED updates; the reviewer lists five TVs they most want to test, highlighting LG and Samsung mid-range and flagship OLEDs and Hisense's RGB efforts.
