Freeze

Downing Street says focus to remains on cutting bills, backing renters and lowering energy pricesDowning Street has dismissed a freeze on private sector rents even as Rachel Reeves left the door open to the idea, after the Guardian revealed the chancellor has been considering it as an option to cut the cost of living.A No 10 spokesperson said on Tuesday freezing private sector rents was “not the approach we will be taking” after sources told the Guardian it was Reeves’s preferred solution for dealing with a spike in housing costs in the wake of the Iran war. Continue reading...

FTSE 250 firms Paragon and OSB Group, owner of Kent Reliance and Precise Mortgages, slide on London Stock ExchangeRachel Reeves considering rent freeze to limit Iran war falloutBusiness live – latest updatesShares in some of the UK’s biggest buy-to-let lenders such as Paragon and One Savings Bank have fallen after it emerged that the chancellor may make private landlords commit to a one-year rent freeze.In an effort to protect households from rising living costs as a result of the Iran war, Rachel Reeves is considering whether to ban landlords in England from increasing rents for a limited period of time, the Guardian revealed on Monday night. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Sources say chancellor is examining exceptional measures to protect household budgetsRachel Reeves is considering imposing a one-year rent freeze on private sector homes amid growing alarm in government about the impact of the Iran war on voters’ budgets.Landlords in England would be banned from raising rents for a limited period of time under the proposals, which are being debated within government as part of a major cost of living package to be launched in the coming weeks. Continue reading...

Janet Mills says moratorium would’ve been ‘appropriate’ if it didn’t interfere with ongoing datacenter project in MaineThe Democratic governor of Maine on Friday vetoed a bill that would have made it the first US state to impose a moratorium on large new datacenters, even as local opposition to the electricity-hungry facilities grows.The decision reflects the difficult trade-off facing political leaders, who must weigh the impact of datacenters on the environment and household energy bills against the millions of dollars in investment and tax revenue they can bring. Continue reading...

• The European Union imposed sanctions on 45 Russian businessmen and military contractors on April 9, freezing their assets and banning transactions worth an estimated €8.3 billion in response to what Brussels termed "financing of the war in Ukraine and sanctions evasion."​ • The new measures target individuals accused of shell company networks used to circumvent previous sanctions, with particular focus on the defense and energy sectors supplying Russian military operations. • EU officials stated the expanded sanctions list represents the 14th round of measures against Russia since February 2022, with the bloc pledging continued escalation if Moscow does not halt military operations.

Trump has ordered pay be restored to TSA employees but it is unclear where money will come from and whether he has such legal powersHello and welcome to the US politics live blog.Airports continue to warn passengers to arrive several hours early due to unpredictable Transportation Security Administration (TSA) wait times, as the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) became the longest shutdown in US history.A generational divide over the Iran war has emerged between older attendees and their political heirs at this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Texas, as the group’s leaders pleaded for unity ahead of a challenging midterm election year for Republicans. More here.Iran has warned the US that it is prepared to confront any ground assault, accusing Washington of secretly planning a land attack while publicly seeking talks, as the war that has killed thousands of people and caused the biggest ever disruption to global energy supplies entered its second month. More here.US lawmakers have responded to reports that the Pentagon is preparing for weeks of ground operations in Iran as thousands of US troops assemble in the Middle East and the conflict showed signs of entering a more dangerous phase. More here.The abortion rate is holding steady in the US despite total and partial bans in some states – largely because of travel across state lines and a significant increase in telehealth appointments, a new report says. More here.Pope Leo has said God ignores the prayers of leaders who wage war and have “hands full of blood”, in an apparent rebuke to the Trump administration. The pontiff made the comments on Sunday as thousands of US troops arrived in the Middle East.More than 8 million people protested against the Trump administration at more than 3,300 No Kings events across the US and in more than a dozen countries on Saturday, according to organizers. Continue reading...

If the now-six-week partial shutdown continues after the weekend, it will become the longest of any shutdownThe shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the fourth largest agency in the US government, became the longest partial shutdown in US history on Sunday.If the now-six-week partial shutdown continues after the weekend, it will also become the longest of any shutdown, surpassing the impasse late last year that dragged on for 43 days. Continue reading...