British consulate in East Jerusalem will stay open as UK mission, says Ed Miliband 08. October 2026 (08:51) Foreign secretary says former consulate general will remain independent, operational and serving Palestinian peopleThe foreign secretary, Ed Miliband, has said Britain’s consulate general building in East Jerusalem will not be closing but will be known as a UK mission, remaining independent, operational and serving Palestinian people.Israel had ordered the British consulate in East Jerusalem to close on Thursday over the UK’s plans to impose sanctions on settlements in the West Bank. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
University students say procrastination is biggest threat to their academic performance 08. October 2026 (08:00) More than half of US students surveyed said the problem damaged their ability to do academic work, study findsProcrastination is the biggest problem that can harm students’ academic performance at university, according to a study of more than 65,000 young people who placed it above issues such as ADHD, anxiety or financial worries.The study found that nearly half of the students surveyed named procrastination as the thing damaging their ability to do academic work, more than twice the number who named depression, while the same proportion said procrastination caused them significant distress above any other problems including family pressures or bullying. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Voting opens in high-stakes Holborn and St Pancras byelection 08. October 2026 (08:00) Zack Polanski has led energetic campaign for the Greens, while Labour will hope to hold on to Starmer’s old seatVoting has opened in the Holborn and St Pancras byelection, a contest seen as a key gauge of Andy Burnham’s ability to energise voters and whether Zack Polanski’s Greens can still peel off support from Labour’s left.Polanski, who leads the Greens in England and Wales, is standing for his party in the north London constituency, previously held by Keir Starmer before he stood down as an MP shortly after resigning as prime minister. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK’s military needs to focus spending on domestic defence, not overseas missions – report 08. October 2026 (08:00) Exclusive: Thinktank says Britain’s drive towards global commitments is symptom of ‘outdated foreign policy’The UK’s military is too focused on global commitments at the expense of domestic defence, meaning the government’s planned increase in defence spending is likely to result in even greater waste, a thinktank report has warned.According to an analysis by researchers at the Transition Security Project, Britain has the most overseas-oriented military among European nations, with almost a quarter of the defence budget spent on commitments across five continents. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
