Rachel

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...

Chancellor aims to curb rising household bills as she consults on reforms to weaken link between gas and electricity pricesRachel Reeves is poised to raise the government’s windfall tax on low-carbon electricity generators to help to limit UK household energy bills, the Guardian understands.The chancellor is ready to hike the levy introduced in 2022 to target the excess profits made by the owners of older renewable energy and nuclear plants as electricity market prices soared after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Continue reading...

Zegler won the Olivier award for best actress in a musical for her role in Jamie Lloyd’s ‘genius’ productionOlivier awards 2026: full list of winners‘I want to thank my amazing husband, who doesn’t exist!’ – Olivier awards’ best quotesIt was the most talked about theatre scene of the year: Rachel Zegler performing Don’t Cry for Me Argentina from the balcony at the London Palladium to crowds gathered on the street below. At the Olivier awards on Sunday night, Zegler delivered the song from Evita again – this time on the stage of the Royal Albert Hall – and took home the award for best actress in a musical.Host Nick Mohammed said that Zegler had become “a new landmark for London sightseers” during Evita’s run last summer. “People who hadn’t bought a ticket could effectively watch it live for free whereas everyone inside had to pay to watch it on a giant screen,” he explained, jokingly calling it “a business model that I’m sure could really catch on”. Continue reading...

• Rachel Recchia from The Bachelorette broke down emotionally while discussing the intense hate comments she has received online. • The reality star opened up about the toll of public scrutiny in a candid Us Weekly feature. • Her story highlights ongoing mental health struggles faced by reality TV personalities in the U.S.

Chancellor says the government is looking at ways they can support people based on household income Good morning. Keir Starmer is giving a press conference this morning where, according to No 10, he will discuss the Iran war, and how the government is supporting people at home. Now we are in April, the new financial year is starting, and the government is highlighting measures it has introduced that will help people with the cost of living. The Conservatives have an alternative list, and they are claiming this morning that “Keir Starmer and his chancellor have piled on extra costs leaving families almost £1,000 worse off this year”.The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has been doing her own media too. She is on the Jeremy Vine show later, but she has already given an interview to BBC Breakfast in which she gave a marginally clearer idea of what she is planning to do to help people with energy bills than she did when she made a statement to MPs last week.From July to September, gas usage, especially by families and pensioners, is the lowest of any months of the year because it is the summer months …It will be really from the autumn onwards that people’s gas usage starts increasing. So at the moment we are working on a range of contingencies. And we are looking at more targeted measures. We are looking at ways we can support people based on their household income.I want to learn the lessons of the past because when Russia invaded Ukraine, the richest, the best-off third of households got more than a third of the support. That makes no sense at all. Continue reading...

Charities say taxes should rise for banks, defence and energy companies which stand to make windfall profitsMiddle East crisis liveRachel Reeves is being urged to raise taxes on businesses generating “windfall” profits linked to the US-Israel war on Iran to fund emergency cost of living support for UK households.With the government under pressure to respond, a group of leading charities, campaigners and trade unions said the chancellor could raise billions by taxing “excess profits” linked to the conflict. Continue reading...

Chancellor says package offered by Liz Truss’s government was unaffordable and any future help will be targetedRachel Reeves has ruled out universal support to deal with any future rise in energy bills, saying any government help would be targeted, and criticised the support offered by Liz Truss’s government as unaffordable and irresponsible.The chancellor also said she would review the planned fuel duty rise in September, but she did not commit to delaying or postponing it. Continue reading...