Safety of train users and staff is paramount | Brief letters

The new east-west train service between Oxford and Milton Keynes has been delayed due to the government and rail companies insisting on driver-only trains. We have just experienced a mass stabbing of passengers by a lone attacker on a busy train in Cambridgeshire, where a railway employee made a heroic attempt to protect them (Report, 2 November). Is this really the time for leaving the public and the train driver at the mercy of single manning?Jessica HolroydMilton Keynes Three cheers for the lost, lamented A-level history personal study. Some students undertook original research and some, like Cathy O’Neill in 1977, unearthed a real gem (Lost grave of daughter of Black abolitionist Olaudah Equiano found by A-level student, 1 November). Worth 25% of their final grade, it was the part of the course which students enjoyed most and from which they learned the most about history

UK factories return to growth after JLR restarts operations; US manufacturing exports hit by tariffs – as it happened

UK manufacturing output has expanded for the first time in a year, helped by the restart of production at Jaguar Land Rover following its recent cyberhack.The latest poll of purchasing managers at UK factories, just released by S&P Global, shows that manufacturing output rose for the first time in a year in October.S&P Global reports that production volumes rose in the consumer and intermediate goods industries, partly due to a boost from the staged restarting of production at JLR last month.This helped to lift the wider UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index to a 12-month high of 49.7 in October, up from 46

UK economy ‘doomed’ under Labour, says Ryanair chief

The UK economy is “doomed” under the Labour government, the boss of Ryanair has said before this month’s budget, as the airline revealed a jump in first half profits.Michael O’Leary, the chief executive of the budget airline, hit out at Rachel Reeves, accusing the chancellor of failing to deliver on her programme of economic growth.“The UK economy under the current leadership is doomed,” he said. “The UK badly needs growth, but the way to deliver growth is through selective tax cuts … you are not going to grow the UK economy by taxing wealth or by taxing air travel.”It comes as airlines brace for the possibility of another increase in air passenger duty (APD) at the budget on 26 November

Kimberly-Clark to buy Tylenol maker Kenvue in landmark $40bn merger

Kleenex and Huggies maker Kimberly-Clark unveiled plans to buy Kenvue, the embattled consumer health conglomerate behind Tylenol, in a landmark deal for more than $40bn.The blockbuster takeover comes weeks after Donald Trump claimed Tylenol heightens the risk of autism in children when it is used by pregnant women, an assertion hotly contested by scientists and contradicted by studies.The high-profile claims compounded months of struggles for Kenvue, which ousted its CEO in July and endured sharp stock market declines.Kenvue, which also makes Listerine mouthwash, Neutrogena skincare products and Johnson’s baby oil, was spun out of Johnson & Johnson two years ago. Its shares jumped 17% on Monday morning, while Kimberly-Clark dropped 12% in New York

Nearly 90% of jobseekers unable to get long-term work despite millions spent on private job agencies

Australia’s private employment services are failing to get jobseekers into long-term work, despite costing taxpayers millions of dollars each year, department documents show.Just 11.7% of jobseekers in Australia found long-term employment through a job provider in the latest financial year, according to the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations’ annual report.Service providers are allowed to claim publicly funded outcome payments when clients have completed four, 12 and 26 weeks in employment – regardless of whether the client or provider found the job.Guardian Australia has previously revealed many jobseekers who find their own employment were bullied into handing over payslips so providers can claim the public money

Jaguar Land Rover restart helps UK factories return to growth

UK factories staged a recovery in October after the reopening of Jaguar Land Rover operations and a pick-up in consumer spending, according to a closely watched survey of the manufacturing sector.The S&P Global purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose to a one-year high as business optimism improved and factory output expanded.Jaguar Land Rover, Britain’s biggest carmaker, supported the recovery after it began reopening facilities hit by a cyber-attack that some experts estimated cost the UK economy about £1.9bn.Manufacturers were able to shake off some of the uncertainty from Donald Trump’s tariffs