Are you sitting uncomfortably? | Letter

Creating a network of public seating at regular intervals can hugely increase the independent mobility of people who need to sit and rest frequently. This sometimes means bench positioning can mystify those who don’t actually need them (Emma Beddington, 16 February).But sometimes, complainants are just plain mischievous. I was involved in improvements in the heart of Windermere, Cumbria, a few years back, when a complaint was made that a bench facing a butcher’s shop window “may distress vegetarians”. In truth, of course, the bench was very much welcomed – especially by those needing to rest their plates of meat

UK manufacturing still beset by low orders and price pressure, says CBI

British manufacturing orders remain well below average and price pressure continues to persist, according to a closely watched survey.The CBI industrial trends survey found that manufacturers’ orders for the month were below average in February, while most firms expected to raise their prices and for output to decline over the next three months.The survey compiled by the Confederation of British Industry adds to a mixed picture for the UK economy since the start of the year. Households are feeling “dismal” about their finances, while companies have been cutting staff amid rising cost pressures. However, some business surveys have suggested a rise in optimism among companies since the start of the year after uncertainty over the government’s autumn budget lifted

Oil prices rise amid fears of US strikes on Iran – as it happened

Oil prices are on the rise as traders react to growing concerns that the US could launch military action against Iran.Both the US and Iran embark on military posturing despite trying to de-escalate a standoff over Tehran’s nuclear programme.Brent crude is up 1.55% at $71.44 a barrelWTI is up 1

Is Tim Wilson an ‘inflation nutter’? Why the new shadow treasurer’s RBA comments are making waves

There was good news on Thursday.Another solid month of jobs growth left the unemployment rate steady at 4.1% in January.The impressive resilience of Australia’s jobs market has been the positive story of the post-pandemic economy.We have come out the other side of the global health crisis and a once-in-a-generation inflationary event with a jobless rate that has tracked consistently one percentage point below where it was through the dog days of the late 2010s

Airbus suggests split solution for Europe’s faltering fighter jet programme

Airbus has suggested splitting Europe’s faltering future fighter jet programme into two separate warplanes, amid a dispute between manufacturers over who leads the €100bn (£87bn) project.The company’s defence arm – which represents Germany and Spain – and the French partner, Dassault Aviation, are locked in a battle over the jet part of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), a wide-ranging project that will also include autonomous drones and a futuristic “combat communications cloud”.Guillaume Faury, Airbus’s chief executive, said on Thursday that the deadlock over the planned next-generation jet “should not jeopardise the entire future of this hi-tech European capability, which will bolster our collective defence.“If mandated by our customers, we would support a two-fighter solution and are committed to playing a leading role in such a reorganised FCAS delivered through European cooperation.”Earlier this week, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, signalled that the planned warplane did not suit Germany’s needs, in the latest blow to the project

MPs in call to halt Drax’s £2m-a-day subsidy over sustainability doubts

Ed Miliband is under pressure from MPs to suspend subsidies worth £2m a day paid to the owner of the Drax power plant in North Yorkshire after court documents cast doubt on the company’s sustainability claims.A cross-party group of 14 MPs and peers have called on the energy minister to halt the subsidies for Britain’s biggest power plant while the financial watchdog investigates the company’s claims about how it sources the millions of tonnes of wood pellets burned to generate electricity.In a letter, seen by the Guardian, the politicians said they were “deeply concerned” that Drax may have been given “substantial billpayer subsidy” while the company “may have knowingly and consistently concealed information” about the green credentials of its wood sources.The FTSE 250 owner of the Drax power plant gets about £2m a day in renewable energy subsidies, paid by consumers, on the condition it generates electricity from biomass pellets made from waste or low-value wood from sustainable forests.Drax, Britain’s single biggest source of carbon emissions, imports millions of tonnes of wood pellets from across the Atlantic every year and is projected to receive £11bn in subsidies by the end of 2027