China became the first major economy to grow since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, recording an unexpectedly strong 3.2% expansion in the latest quarter after anti-virus lockdowns were lifted and factories and stores reopened. Growth reported on Thursday for the three months ending in June was a dramatic improvement over the previous quarter’s 6.8% […]

Northern accents are becoming more similar, research suggests. Linguistics experts at the University of Manchester suggested the existence of a General Northern English accent among educated people in the north. Accents from Liverpool and Newcastle still maintained their distinction, researchers added. The University of Manchester study used machine learning to analyse speech patterns of people […]

UK workers on company payrolls have fallen 649,000 during lockdown as the coronavirus crisis claimed another 74,000 jobs last month, according to official figures. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said early estimates showed the number of paid employees fell by 1.9% year on year in June to 28.4 million, and by 0.3% compared with […]

Boris Johnson says he will commit to a full independent inquiry into the handling of Covid-19, but stopped short of saying when it would take place. Lib Dem acting co-leader Sir Ed Davey called on the Prime Minister to “commit in principle to a future public inquiry” on the handling of the coronavirus pandemic. He […]

Fundraising hero Captain Sir Tom Moore is to be knighted by the Queen in his own personal ceremony at Windsor Castle on Friday. The 100-year-old Second World War veteran will travel to the Berkshire royal residence with members of his family for the rare, special investiture with the monarch. Captain Sir Tom raised almost £33 […]

More than a million British smokers have kicked the habit since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, a charity has estimated. Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) has calculated that 1,036,000 smokers and recent ex-smokers had quit or continued their abstinence since coronavirus cases started circulating in the UK. The charity surveyed more than 10,000 […]

Marcus Rashford is to become the youngest person to receive an honorary doctorate from The University of Manchester for his work campaigning against child poverty. The 22-year-old Manchester United and England forward will follow in the footsteps of United greats Sir Alex Ferguson and Sir Bobby Charlton in earning the accolade from the university, which […]