Ignore the howls around pay-per-mile, chancellor. We can’t afford not to tax electric cars

If you want a document to give you sleepless nights, the Office for Budget Responsibility’s biennial Fiscal Risks and Sustainability report is a go-to publication. This is the one that looks to the horizon and covers everything from demographic trends to state pension promises to the climate crisis.The headline finding in this July’s version was a true jaw-dropper. The UK’s public finances are on an unsustainable long-term trajectory because government debt would rise to a remarkable 270% of GDP by the early 2070s – up from almost 100% today – if current policies were left unchanged.The “if nothing changes” qualification is important because some of the risks to the public finances are so blindingly obvious – and have been for ages – that it is astonishing successive governments have ignored them

Bank of England opens door to December rate cut as it signals inflation has peaked

The Bank of England has opened the door to a December interest rate cut after signalling that inflation had peaked, as it kept borrowing costs unchanged before Rachel Reeves’s make-or-break budget.With less than three weeks before the chancellor’s tax and spending statement, the Bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) voted by a narrow five-four majority to keep borrowing costs unchanged for a second consecutive meeting.However, City economists said the knife-edge decision and the Bank’s latest predictions for a fall in inflation from 3.8% would pave the way for the Bank to cut rates after the budget.Holding the casting vote, Andrew Bailey, the Bank’s governor, said he wanted to “wait and see” whether inflationary pressures would continue to fade and if Reeves’s budget would have an impact

Google plans to put datacentres in space to meet demand for AI

Google is hatching plans to put artificial intelligence datacentres into space, with its first trial equipment sent into orbit in early 2027.Its scientists and engineers believe tightly packed constellations of about 80 solar-powered satellites could be arranged in orbit about 400 miles above the Earth’s surface equipped with the powerful processors required to meet rising demand for AI.Prices of space launches are falling so quickly that by the middle of the 2030s the running costs of a space-based datacentre could be comparable to one on Earth, according to Google research released on Tuesday.Using satellites could also minimise the impact on the land and water resources needed to cool existing datacentres.Once in orbit, the datacentres would be powered by solar panels that can be up to eight times more productive than those on Earth

LOL: is this the ultimate texting faux pas (and what should you use instead)?

From abbreviations to happy poos, gen Z has strong opinions on appropriate texting behaviour. But can anyone keep up with the ever-changing rules?Name: “LOL”.Age: The Oxford English Dictionary first included LOL in 1997.Not to be confused with: Loll, which is what dogs sometimes do.So as in “laugh out loud”? Or laughing out loud, though David Cameron thought it stood for “lots of love” and used to sign off to Rebekah Brooks, the former Sun and News of the World editor, with a LOL

WTA Finals tennis: Jessica Pegula beats Jasmine Paolini, Aryna Sabalenka v Coco Gauff – as it happened

Jessica Pegula and Aryna Sabalenka delivered excellent performances in seeing off Jasmine Paolini and Coco Gauff respectively, setting up enticing semi-finals against Elena Rybakina and Amanda Anisimova.Pegula, who played superbly in losing to Sabalenka earlier in the week, dominated Paolini – struggling with illness – from start to finish, her forehand particularly effective in 6-2 6-3 victory.In the day’s second match, Gauff began superbly, her serve and forehand looking much improved as she took a 4-2 15-40 lead. But just as she looked poised to seize the first set, Sabalenka found her best self, saving the break points with two service winners, then responding from advantage down with three aces in a row.Gauff, though, stuck with her, holding under pressure to secure a tiebreak and earning its first mini-break

Reece Walsh lives up to star billing to become toast of English rugby league

Australia’s talisman, likened to LeBron James, has left lasting legacy in Ashes series amid gloom of sport’s futureThe debrief is yet to begin over the failure of England’s Ashes campaign both on and off the field, and just how big a missed opportunity the past few weeks could prove to be for the game in this country. But amid all the gloom, there has been an unlikely beacon of hope for the sport’s promoters.As the 52,000-plus crowd filtered away from Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday evening, there was a huge ruckus outside the players’ entrance. Not for any of the home players, who had once again flattered to deceive. Not even for Nathan Cleary, regarded as the world’s biggest star for a number of years and someone with genuine worldwide cut-through