The Guardian Europe
Government raises slot machine duty to 25% but leaves bingo licence loophole wide open, letting Merkur and Admiral keep raking in profits while pretending to be bingo halls.
The Guardian
Netanyahu's coalition loses its mandate, the opposition has a majority if it dares to partner with Palestinian Israeli parties, and somehow that's the least awkward coalition math in the news today.
BBC Politics
Chancellor John Healey asks all departments to find 1% cuts to fill a £4.7bn defence funding hole, while Kemi Badenoch quips that Putin must be terrified. Spoiler: he's probably not.
BBC Politics
The Budget will feature a fuel duty freeze, tariff cuts on 100 food items saving £21 a year, and cheaper gherkins - which the Tories say is an insult to struggling families.
BBC Business
Chancellor John Healey will deliver Labour's first Budget on 28 October, refusing to rule out tax rises while ruling out almost everything else, because nothing says "fiscal responsibility" like a well-timed non-denial.
The Guardian
Chancellor John Healey wants to drill Rosebank; Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh is leaning no; the prime minister may have to referee. The climate, as ever, waits patiently.
The Guardian
Healey's 'military-style' budget secrecy has leaked like a sieve, proving that compartmentalisation is no match for a well-placed source or a traditional embargo.
BBC Politics
The government is throwing £1bn at housing, devolving powers to mayors, and supporting small breweries - because nothing says 'fixing the housing crisis' like a pint.
The Guardian Europe
Chancellor John Healey drops £7m to study if northern England can host the Olympics in the 2040s - because nothing says 'fiscal prudence' like spending millions to potentially spend billions.
BBC Business
The UK launches a £2bn Energy Wealth Fund, only 50 years after Norway started building a $2.4tn one from the same North Sea. Treasury modelling suggests Britain's missed fund could have been worth £1tn.
BBC Politics
UK inflation hits 3.5% and borrowing soars to £24.5bn, leaving Chancellor Healey to deliver a Budget that promises 'breathing space' while everyone holds their breath at the petrol station.
The Guardian
Chancellor backs Heathrow's £33bn third runway as a growth engine, while the PM continues to treat the question like a hot potato he didn't order.
The Guardian
Alan Milburn wants a national pre-apprenticeship route because Britain's youth apprenticeship pipeline is less a pipeline and more a dripping tap.
BBC Business
Diesel hits 199.33p per litre, charities cut minibus trips, hauliers consider parking up, and the government promises to think about it by late October.
BBC Business
UK government borrows £18.3bn in August - almost a fifth more than last year - as inflation and debt interest costs pile pressure on Chancellor John Healey ahead of his 28 October Budget.
BBC Business
Ed Davey wants a 10p fuel duty cut until Christmas, cheaper buses and trains, and no VAT on EV charging - all self-funding, apparently, which is certainly one way to do maths.
BBC Politics
The Conservatives want Burnham to rule out tax rises, Griffith won't commit to scrapping inheritance tax, and everyone is very concerned about the pips.
BBC Business
Chancellor John Healey unveils a £150m fund for northern firms, promising growth in every postcode, while experts and opposition leaders question whether it's enough to move the needle.
The Guardian
British army suspends non-essential training to save money, but rest assured, the tanks will be back - eventually, probably after the budget review.
BBC Politics
Andy Burnham's summer of love ends as Parliament returns, where he'll face PMQs, a tricky prisons row, and a Budget that could define his premiership - all while trying to keep his own MPs happy.
The Good Times
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