The gender pay gap for full-time employees has continued to decline in the UK. It was 6.8% in April 2026, down from 7.2% in April 2025. This compares with 9.4% a decade ago and 16.4% 25 years ago.
Secondly, I asked Healey whether he sees the banks as making excessive profits, which would be the coherent justification for him to increase the surcharge on bank profits – as he is expected to do in the Budget next week.
He said: “You know the banks are the engine of investment in this country. The banks are doing well at the moment and that is good to see.
European Union negotiators have reached a provisional agreement to revise the rules governing the bloc’s carbon market, increasing the number of emissions allowances that can remain in reserve before being permanently cancelled.
The agreement, reached by the Council and European Parliament on 20th October and announced the following day, raises the invalidation threshold of the EU Emissions Trading System’s market stability reserve from 400 million to 700 million allowances.
The compromise reached by EU negotiators follows months of pressure from energy-intensive industries concerned about carbon prices, electricity costs and competition from manufacturers operating under less restrictive environmental regimes.
The measure requires formal approval before entering into force and forms part of a wider review of the EU’s principal carbon-pricing mechanism.
A larger reserve for future market disruptions
Established in 2019, the market stability reserve was designed to address the accumulation of surplus emissions allowances that had weakened the effectiveness of Europe’s carbon market.
Under the Emissions Trading System, companies in covered sectors must surrender allowances corresponding to their greenhouse gas emissions. The total quantity available is progressively reduced, creating a financial incentive to cut emissions.
The reserve adjusts the supply of allowances entering the market, withdrawing them when there is a substantial surplus and releasing them under specified conditions when supply becomes scarce.
Existing rules also provide for the permanent cancellation of allowances held above a threshold of 400 million.
Under the new agreement, that threshold would increase to 700 million, allowing a larger stock to remain available for potential future release.
The change does not automatically introduce 300 million additional allowances into circulation. Releases would continue to depend on the reserve’s operating rules and market conditions.
According to the Council, more than three billion allowances have been invalidated since the mechanism began operating in 2023.
The Commission initially proposed ending automatic invalidation indefinitely, while the Council’s September negotiating position envisaged a temporary suspension followed by a higher threshold.
The compromise retains invalidation but increases the amount protected from cancellation.
Industry competitiveness enters climate negotiations
The agreement follows growing concern about the cumulative cost of European climate regulation, particularly for steelmaking, chemicals, cement and other energy-intensive sectors. Manufacturers have warned that carbon costs, combined with relatively expensive electricity and industrial gas, complicate investment decisions and weaken their ability to compete internationally.
The latest reserve agreement does not directly change the allocation of free allowances, the emissions cap or the obligations imposed on individual industrial installations. Its principal effect would be to preserve a larger buffer that could become available if future market conditions trigger the release mechanism.
For manufacturers planning investments extending into the 2030s, the availability of allowances and the future trajectory of carbon prices influence production costs and the commercial case for decarbonisation technologies.
Carbon market figures reveal changing conditions
The European Commission reported in May that the total number of allowances in circulation during 2025 stood at approximately 1.023 billion.
These withdrawals reflect the existing mechanism for reducing market surpluses. The proposed higher invalidation threshold concerns how many allowances can subsequently remain in reserve rather than being cancelled.
The overall emissions cap will continue to decline under the legislation already governing the ETS.
Consequently, preserving a larger reserve does not remove the long-term constraint on emissions or guarantee lower carbon prices for European industry.
The agreement also concerns the established ETS covering power generation, industry and certain other sectors, rather than the separate ETS2 regime for emissions associated with road transport and buildings.
The Council and Parliament have agreed that the question of gradually reducing the invalidation threshold should be considered during the broader ETS review.
That exercise will address the carbon market’s operation over a longer period, when the declining supply of allowances could create tighter conditions.
The present agreement therefore provides an adjustment to the reserve mechanism without reopening the entire emissions trading framework. Following legal and technical finalisation, the provisional deal must be endorsed by both institutions and formally adopted.
The new 700 million threshold would apply after the legislation takes effect, while the larger review of the ETS continues through the EU legislative process.
A California mayor insisted that handing out monthly cash payments is an effective tool to combat the state's soaring cost of living, even as local leaders face steep hurdles in securing permanent taxpayer funding to keep guaranteed income programs alive.
"I believe that guaranteed income programs like our Rise Up Alameda (RUA) pilot program are a valuable and effective tool to address the affordability crisis, based on the documented experiences of program participants," Alameda Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft told Fox News Digital.
"The average age of the 150 program participants was 49 years, with 26% being 62 years or older, and most participants were either employed or retired."
Ashcraft’s comments follow the completion of Rise Up Alameda, the city's first-ever guaranteed income pilot project. City staff presented the program's final 24-month evaluation report to the Alameda City Council on Oct. 6.
According to city documents, the pilot aimed to "reduce economic instability for program participants, help to change local narratives and perceptions surrounding poverty and the provision of public benefits and help to support and inform the national discussion regarding public benefits and anti-poverty policies."
The Alameda City Council previously allocated $4.6 million in federal pandemic relief funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to finance the initiative, which provided 150 low-income households with $1,000 per month in no-strings-attached cash over two years. However, city notices confirm that because ARPA was a one-time federal allocation, the pilot has officially concluded, and the city has no plans or budget allocated for a permanent continuation.
"As mayor, I believe our responsibility is to advance practical, compassionate and evidence-informed policies that help residents meet their basic needs, preserve their dignity and build a more stable future for themselves and their families," Ashcraft told Fox News Digital when asked whether she planned to implement a permanent program.
Ashcraft highlighted several personal accounts of local residents who received monthly payments through the pilot.
Among them was Andrea, a certified nursing assistant who used the funds to stay afloat following the death of her mother. The financial boost helped cover medical bills, rent, gas and Bay Area bridge tolls while allowing her to care for her father and ailing brother.
Another participant, Dolores, a retiree in her 70s living in affordable senior housing after a 41-year career at AT&T, used the extra $1,000 a month to pay off credit card debt and build an emergency savings account.
Other recipients included Haroon, a rideshare and transit driver; Julia, a woman with a disability who was able to buy new mattresses, groceries and a set of car tires after an eviction forced her to move in with her sister; and Tyronne, a Navy veteran and former truck driver at the decommissioned Alameda Naval Air Station who relied on the extra money to cover medical bills and stabilize his housing.
While Ashcraft praised these personal outcomes, she acknowledged that direct cash payments are not a full remedy for California's economic pressures.
"These stories demonstrate the value of direct, unrestricted cash in helping residents navigate financial hardship, maintain stability and improve their overall well-being," Ashcraft said.
"While guaranteed income is not a stand-alone solution to the affordability crisis, programs like Rise Up Alameda can provide meaningful support as we pursue longer-term solutions to the high cost of housing, health care, transportation and other basic needs."
Alameda's program underscores a funding challenge local governments face across the nation regarding how to sustain guaranteed income pilot programs now that temporary federal pandemic relief funding is ending.
Many local guaranteed income pilots were underwritten by temporary pandemic-era ARPA allocations. With federal deadlines requiring municipalities to spend remaining relief funds, mayors and advocacy groups are searching for ways to convert short-term experiments into permanent, taxpayer-funded government programs.
A major organization advocating for guaranteed income is the Economic Security Project (ESP). Founded in 2016 by a network of entrepreneurs, activists and researchers, ESP has helped support more than 100 guaranteed income pilots nationwide. California leads the country with more than 60 pilot launches.
ESP has urged governments to consider taxpayer-funded measures to establish permanent minimum-income guarantees.
When asked by Fox News Digital whether local pilots are transitioning into permanent public policies, ESP indicated that multiple municipalities are actively working on legislative proposals.
"We can say, however, that there’s an active and growing movement for cash in hundreds of communities across the country," Shafeka Hashash, director of cash initiatives at the Economic Security Project, told Fox News Digital.
"We regularly take calls from some of the 1,500 members of the Guaranteed Income Community of Practice — researchers, nonprofits, local government officials and community leaders all interested in bringing cash to their neighborhoods," Hashash added.
"We just can’t announce any pilots or policies before the localities do."
One pilot program has become permanent in Cook County, Illinois. To sustain the initiative without federal aid, the Cook County Board of Commissioners approved $7.5 million for guaranteed income in the county budget, signaling a shift toward long-term local funding.
Republican state officials and conservative policy groups have sought to block guaranteed income programs. Critics argue unconditional handouts discourage work, increase dependence on government assistance and misuse taxpayer funds.
"The affordability crisis is hitting Americans across backgrounds, geographies and party lines, and it's imperative that state and federal leaders adopt a solutions-focused approach," Mayors for Guaranteed Income founder Michael Tubbs told Fox News Digital.
"Banning policies that have proven effective at the local level is not only undemocratic, it is incredibly counterproductive to solving the key problem facing American families," he added.
"We should be unlocking innovation at the local level to boost economic security, stabilize households and restore faith in the American dream."
Reports emerge of similar withdrawals in UAE, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain amid concerns about a return to conflict with Iran after US midterm elections
The US state department has ordered some diplomats and the families of US government employees to leave Saudi Arabia, as the gulf kingdom faces a barrage of near-daily attacks, with at least three people killed at an airport and oilfield on Wednesday evening.
Attacks on “civilian airports and other critical infrastructure” by the Iranian-supported Houthis in Yemen were highlighted as the reason for the drawdown. State department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said: “The safety and security of department personnel and their families remain our highest priority.”
Some speakers at the conference suggested that it is time for Jews to stop accusing Israel critics of antisemitism, and start recognizing that it may be time to cut the cord.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg considered moving out of California because of a proposed billionaire tax.
Zuckerberg would get $20 billion in "immediate liquidity" if the billionaire tax passes.
Meta made the offer to Zuckerberg to help keep him in California after he considered leaving.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg considered moving out of California because of its proposed billionaire tax, Meta disclosed in a new SEC filing on Wednesday.
Next month, Californians will vote on Proposition 40, a one-time tax on the assets of the state's billionaires.
The filing said that Zuckerberg told a special committee formed by Meta that he was considering moving.
In response, the committee concluded that it was "critically important" for Zuckerberg to keep running Meta close to its Silicon Valley headquarters — particularly to its AI division, Meta Superintelligence Labs.
The filing said the committee got Zuckerberg to agree to remain in California or any other jurisdiction where Meta has its corporate headquarters for eight years, barring unforeseen circumstances.
As part of its efforts to ensure he can remain in charge as it raises more cash for its AI initiatives, the company is granting the Meta CEO a new stock class.
The shares would give Zuckerberg $20 billion in "immediate liquidity" to cover the tax by selling stock without losing control of Meta, if the tax passes. The new shares wouldn't add to Zuckerberg's net worth or increase his percentage ownership of Meta.
"The goal is to keep Mr. Zuckerberg continuing to lead the Company from California," the filing says.
Meta declined to comment. A person familiar with the matter said that the new class of shares, which totals $150 billion, is also intended to raise capital, compensate employees, and keep Meta's stock price on the right track.
Meta's filing showcases how tech billionaires are responding to the tax proposal. Some, including Google cofounder Sergey Brin and former CEO Eric Schmidt, poured hundreds of millions of dollars into attack ads against the proposal.
While Zuckerberg has taken a lower-key approach, it's clear he's been taking the proposed tax seriously.
The Meta CEO, who is worth about $240 billion according to Forbes, has multiple residences in California, including in Palo Alto and Lake Tahoe.
He also has a sprawling property portfolio outside the state, including a doomsday bunker in Hawaii, a waterfront mansion in Miami, and a castle in Ireland.
Have a tip? Contact this reporter securely on Signal at charlesrollet.12 or +1-628-282-2811. Use a personal email address and a non-work device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.
Committee cites shortfalls of submarines and warships and says ‘dramatic progress’ needed by end of decade
Britain risks failing to deter future Russian aggression in the high north beyond the UK because of shortfalls in the number and availability of Royal Navy submarines and warships, MPs on the defence select committee have said.
The committee focused on the slow deployment of HMS Dragon to Cyprus this spring, declining numbers of frigates, and reports that all five Astute-class attack submarines were in dock this summer as evidence of a navy under-resourced for the threat.
The Trump administration has ordered non-emergency U.S. government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia as deadly Houthi attacks intensify across the kingdom, raising the stakes as President Donald Trump weighs direct military action against the Iran-backed group.
State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott confirmed Wednesday that the mandatory departure order applies only to Saudi Arabia, pushing back on reports that Washington was preparing a broader evacuation of diplomatic personnel across the Gulf.
"The U.S. Department of State issued an ordered departure for non-emergency U.S. government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia only," Pigott said.
The order comes amid a surge in Houthi missile and drone attacks that has left civilians dead, disrupted air travel and sent Saudi Arabia scrambling for additional missile defenses.
"Iranian-supported Houthis have increasingly engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia, including attacks on civilian airports and other critical infrastructure resulting in civilian casualties and severe travel disruptions," Pigott added.
President Donald Trump is weighing whether to launch direct U.S. military strikes against the Houthis, whose expanding missile and drone campaign has increasingly threatened Saudi cities, airports and energy infrastructure.
Houthi strikes and attempted strikes on Saudi Arabia more than doubled in a single week this month, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, with airports in Riyadh, Jizan, Najran, Dammam and Abha targeted since Oct. 5.
The deadliest barrage struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, killing at least 13 people and wounding more than 300.
The escalating attacks have prompted Saudi Arabia to seek additional military support from its allies. Britain announced Tuesday that it would deploy Typhoon fighter jets to help defend Saudi cities and critical infrastructure, while Egypt is assisting the kingdom and Israel has offered to help.
Riyadh has also asked Washington for additional missile interceptors, though U.S. officials have warned that global demand is straining available supplies.
"I also talked to Saudi Arabia today; they'd like interceptors. Israel would like interceptors. We would like interceptors. Every country in the world would like interceptors," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday.
Rubio described the weapons as "probably the most in-demand product right now in the defense field," acknowledging that the United States must balance requests from allies against its own military requirements.
The growing threat has exposed the difficulty of defending Saudi Arabia's vast territory against relatively inexpensive missiles and drones, even with some of the world's most sophisticated air defenses.
"Saudi Arabia is a huge geography to protect, and this speaks to a larger threat we're facing globally: a relatively small nonstate actor can pose a serious challenge to even a sophisticated and extremely expensive military," Farea Al-Muslimi, a research fellow at Chatham House, told Fox News Digital in an interview published Wednesday.
"The Houthis can impose enormous costs without having to spend very much themselves," he said.
Trump has left open the possibility of direct military intervention against the Houthis, telling reporters earlier this month that the U.S. could join Saudi strikes against the group.
"We may. We're gonna look at it," Trump said. "We'll make a decision. We move very quickly."
The U.S. conducted a roughly two-month bombing campaign against Houthi targets in Yemen in 2025 before Trump halted the operation following an Oman-brokered agreement.
The U.S. continues to provide intelligence and targeting support to Saudi Arabia as Trump weighs whether to launch another round of strikes against the Houthis.
Relatives recount distress and loneliness their loved ones went through in pandemic as a result of isolation policy
“At the time it felt like a devil’s bargain – it was horrible, but it was what [we thought] we had to do to keep people safe,” says Amy of the “devastating” and “terrifying” restrictions that led to her maternal grandparents being locked down in separate care homes during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Eva and Eric had been married for more than 60 years when her dementia and his increased frailty meant they needed separate residential support. When the first lockdown was announced in March 2020, however, it in effect cut them off from each other and their granddaughter, to whom they had been especially close after the early death of Amy’s mother.
Steve Witkoff’s flattery of the Russian leader could be just the start of a mendacious stratagem from a US president who says Moscow ‘has been fine on Ukraine’
They say the first casualty of war is truth. For the Trump administration, the road to peace with Russia now encompasses some extraordinary lies.
Steve Witkoff delivered one as he sat down with Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg on Wednesday, aiming to close the deal on Russia’s land grab in Ukraine with the White House’s strategy of maximum pressure on Kyiv and saccharine flattery of the Kremlin.
Steve Witkoff’s flattery of the Russian leader could be just the start of a mendacious stratagem from a US president who says Moscow ‘has been fine on Ukraine’
They say the first casualty of war is truth. For the Trump administration, the road to peace with Russia now encompasses some extraordinary lies.
Steve Witkoff delivered one as he sat down with Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg on Wednesday, aiming to close the deal on Russia’s land grab in Ukraine with the White House’s strategy of maximum pressure on Kyiv and saccharine flattery of the Kremlin.
Governor Yaron urges next coalition to cut debt and pursue growth reforms to fund security needs; bank raises forecasts but warns overseas production distorts domestic picture
President Trump told an audience in North Carolina that if Republicans retain control of Congress in the upcoming November midterm elections, he would direct the Justice Department to quickly settle “all remaining legitimate claims” related to contaminated water at the nearby Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, where thousands of cases remain unresolved. “If we don’t…
President Trump told an audience in North Carolina that if Republicans retain control of Congress in the upcoming November midterm elections, he would direct the Justice Department to quickly settle “all remaining legitimate claims” related to contaminated water at the nearby Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, where thousands of cases remain unresolved. “If we don’t…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told "Fox & Friends" on Wednesday that he is open to freezing the front lines of the Ukraine-Russia war in an effort to bring the long-running conflict to an end.
Zelenskyy made the remark after being asked by Brian Kilmeade if he would "accept a peace deal that freezes everything the way it is right now, where you still keep 75% or more of your country, regardless of how it started."
"Yes, right now, we have to freeze," Zelenskyy responded. "And I think this is [a] real way to end this war. We call it ceasefire or ‘stop killing’ like President Trump called it.
"Freeze and stop. And, of course, this is the minimum of what we need from Russia today. Then, of course, we will go to [the] president and to Europeans, and we'll ask security guarantees," he continued.
"This is the most important … not to be afraid," Zelenskyy also said. "We need 9.5 million people [who have] lost their houses, which are abroad, everywhere. We need them to come back to Ukraine just to live and to build their country."
"There will be no ceasefire to bring him back to his senses and pump him full of weapons," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said last week, according to the Interfax news agency.
Zelenskyy said on X Wednesday that "Russia strikes our country virtually every hour."
"Of course, we are not losing this war. But we are losing people. Because of the Russian attacks, we're losing people and time. It's such a pity, because our children don't have a real life and childhood. Not only children, but all people," he wrote in another post.
"That's why we need to end this war as quickly as possible. I hope that our partners, Americans and Europeans, will help us. God bless, our strong soldiers stay strong on the battlefield. It helps me stay strong during any kind of negotiations," Zelenskyy added.
The remarks come as President Donald Trump on Wednesday secured the release of Stephen Hubbard from Russia, a retired U.S. teacher who was locked up on charges of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also agreed Wednesday "in principle" to resume trilateral negotiations with the U.S. and Ukraine after Nov. 10, Putin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said, according to The Associated Press.
Fox News Digital's Alex Nitzberg contributed to this post.
Russia frees Stephen Hubbard after US request while Steve Witkoff praises Putin, wanted by ICC as war criminal, as a ‘humanitarian’
Vladimir Putin ordered the release of an American man from a Russian jail as he met Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg on Wednesday for fresh talks on ending the war in Ukraine, amid increasingly close relations between Moscow and Washington.
Trump had previously asked Putin to free Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old former teacher who had spent more than four years in Russian jails on charges of fighting as a mercenary for Ukraine.
Russia frees Stephen Hubbard after US request while Steve Witkoff praises Putin, wanted by ICC as war criminal, as a ‘humanitarian’
Vladimir Putin ordered the release of an American man from a Russian jail as he met Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg on Wednesday for fresh talks on ending the war in Ukraine, amid increasingly close relations between Moscow and Washington.
Trump had previously asked Putin to free Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old former teacher who had spent more than four years in Russian jails on charges of fighting as a mercenary for Ukraine.
As recently as 2012, Aberdeen boasted the highest concentration of millionaires in the UK. An ATM reportedly had the highest withdrawal rate in Europe in the 90s, as oil and gas wealth flowed through the city. House prices skyrocketed in the scramble for space as fossil fuel firms transformed the city’s grand granite houses into company offices. But that was then.
Today, “for sale” and “to let” signs punctuate the city’s main thoroughfares. Disposable income in Aberdeen has fallen by nearly 20% between 2013 and 2023 – more than any other large UK city – after a 2014 oil price shock sparked a brutal reversal in Aberdeen’s fortunes.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his powerful allies in Congress are seeking to use President Trump’s desire for Kyiv to stop targeting Russian diesel facilities to boost his support for Ukraine in other ways. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, returned from a trip to Ukraine last week proposing…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his powerful allies in Congress are seeking to use President Trump’s desire for Kyiv to stop targeting Russian diesel facilities to boost his support for Ukraine in other ways. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, returned from a trip to Ukraine last week proposing…
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