Chancellor gets banks to step up mortgage support for customers |
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Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves said, “In uncertain times, people need clear reassurance and practical help. That’s why I’ve brought the biggest lenders together to step up support and make sure anyone who is worried can access the Mortgage Charter options quickly, without their credit score being affected.” |
Cap on donations from overseas electors and ban on crypto donations to protect democracy |
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Landmark changes to protect UK democracy from scourge of foreign actors and financial influence are set to come into force – including a hard cap on donations from overseas electors. Under the new rules, British citizens living abroad will face an annual cap on their political donations of £100,000 and regulated transactions such as loans of the same value. The measures, outlined in detail in Parliament this week, also include a ban on all cryptocurrency donations, which will prevent bad actors using untraceable means of influencing elections. |
Communities to benefit from health centres on their doorstep |
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Tens of thousands of patients in England will benefit from improved healthcare on their doorstep, as the government rolls out the first 27 neighbourhood health centres – bringing more services into the community. Once completed, patients will immediately be able to access a greater range of health services from these centres – all under one roof and closer to their homes – including urgent treatment, GP and pharmacy services. In time, centres will also include wider services like debt advice, employment and family support and other voluntary sector support, and will be open 12 hours a day, 6 days a week. |
Thousands of forces homes to be built or modernised |
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The Government is delivering on its commitment to fix the dire state of forces family housing, building on the 1,250 worst-condition properties already brought up to standard. Ministers are determined to deliver at pace as British personnel and their families continue to make extraordinary sacrifices to keep Britain safe – including working round the clock on the crisis in the Middle East. Enabling works are now underway on 265 new-build military family properties at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire – the first such MOD development since 2017. In addition, across the UK, 2,000 more military properties will be modernised in the next financial year alone. |
Nationwide plans announced to design safer streets as 9 in 10 women report feeling unsafe walking at night |
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New government guidance will be issued to councils nationwide to help them consider how to make their streets safer for women and girls, Active Travel England has today announced. New polling by YouGov has found that almost 9 in 10 (88%) women have felt unsafe while walking at night, while 7 in 10 (71%) have changed their route to avoid walking in the dark during winter or darker months. New government guidance will be published in 2026 alongside training sessions in the spring, outlining how local authorities can design their streets to be safer for women and girls. The guidance will introduce how looking at active travel through the lens of gender can help create safer and more inclusive places, including explaining the importance of implementing better-designed street lighting and improved visibility, as well as established walking routes along roads that are generally busy and overlooked by other people and CCTV. |
