News

Libya and Italy seen set to sign compensation deal

Libya and Italy will soon seal a deal worth "billions" to compensate for the European country's three-decade colonial rule, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's influential son said on Thursday.

EU drops calls to take in more Iraqi refugees

European Union interior ministers dropped calls for the bloc to take in more Iraqi refugees after Iraq's prime minister said his government was trying to convince refugees to return home to help Iraq rebuild.

Glasgow loss deals crushing blow to Labour

Labour lost a parliamentary seat in one of its traditional strongholds, a stinging electoral setback for Prime Minister Gordon Brown, results showed on Friday.

Rate rise needed despite gloom

Interest rates need to rise to prevent the inflation genie escaping the bottle despite the bleakest growth outlook since the early 1990s, according to a report by a leading think-tank published on Friday.

Economy to slow slightly in second quarter

British economic growth is expected to slow a little bit more in the second quarter and analysts say it won't be long before the economy flatlines or even starts to shrink.

Ofgem says fuel poor must get cheapest deals

Retail energy suppliers must ensure their poorest customers are on the cheapest price plan to count towards their multi-million pound "social tariff" targets, UK energy regulator Ofgem said on Friday.

British Energy agrees to EDF takeover

Nuclear operator British Energy has agreed to be taken over by French utility Electricite de France for around 775 pence per share, a source briefed on the matter said on Friday.

Labour soul searching as voters jump ship

The Labour Party starts a brain-storming session on Friday to figure out how to win back disillusioned voters, make peace with unions, and lift Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government out of the doldrums.

IVF tourism seen as a growing worry

Thirty years after doctors delivered the world's first test tube baby, Louise Brown, fertility experts say they must tackle a growing problem of reproductive tourism that puts women and babies at risk.

Palau to distribute 'Friendly Dialogue' book at Olympics

The Chinese Government has granted a major evangelist permission to distribute a Christian-atheist book to athletes and coaches during the Beijing Summer Olympics.

Max Mosley wins sex privacy case

Motor racing boss Max Mosley won damages in the High Court on Thursday when a judge ruled his privacy was violated after The News of the World published a story about his part in a sado-masochistic orgy.

Plan agreed to tackle online music piracy

The music and film industries launched a fight back against online piracy on Thursday, persuading the six biggest Internet providers to send warning letters to those suspected of illegal file-sharing.

June retail sales slump at sharp rate

Retail sales slumped in June at the sharpest rate on record, official figures showed on Thursday, more than wiping out May's record rise and dragging three-month growth down to its weakest since late last year.

Afghan army says kills 'dozens' of insurgents

Afghan soldiers killed "dozens" of militants, including foreigners, in a clash on a highway in southern Zabul province on Thursday, the defence ministry said.

Court told Jill Dando accused seen before killing

Celebrity-obsessed Barry George "and no other" person killed popular BBC presenter Jill Dando, a jury was told on Thursday.

Obama to demand more from Europe in Berlin speech

U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama is expected to call on Europe to do more in hotspots like Afghanistan when he speaks in Berlin on Thursday in his only formal address of a week-long foreign tour.