Hesut

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has delivered his first Budget in the House of Commons, announcing the government's tax and spending plans for the year ahead. Here is a summary of the main points. Coronavirus and public services Image copyright…

The government says it wants to "raise the bar" on smart motorway safety, following criticism of the scheme. Under the plan, opening motorway hard shoulders for traffic in busy periods will be scrapped. On those smart motorways where the…

The European Central Bank (ECB) has announced steps to tackle the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak. It is offering cheap loans to commercial banks to encourage them to lend to small businesses. It is also expanding its…

The Budget measures to tackle the coronavirus are substantial, but limited, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).The IFS gave its assessment the day after the chancellor announced a £12bn package to mitigate the economic…

It's a rout on global stock markets, not far off crash territory. That follows the travel ban speech from US President Donald Trump that triggered a pan-European sell-off. The failure of the European Central Bank to follow the Bank of…

The Bank of England is considering the introduction of electronic banknotes for use by consumers and businesses. Governor Mark Carney said: "We are in the middle of a revolution in payments," saying the Bank must look into how electronic…

Not far from Cairo stood a remarkable dam, the Sadd el-Kafara, more than 100m long, and 14m high, and able to store about half a million cubic metres of water. These statistics are modest, by modern standards - but the Sadd el-Kafara is…

 Image caption Rishi Sunak delivered the Budget to the Commons on Wednesday Borrowing more money to invest into the UK is "the right economic thing to do", the chancellor has said. Rishi Sunak told the BBC that interest rates were at a…

 Image copyright La Voix du Nord Image caption Toilet queues spurred Nathalie Des Isnards to start her company making women's urinals A few years ago, Nathalie Des Isnards was attending a music festival with her husband David, and planning…

Wall Street shares rallied on Friday after US President Donald Trump declared the coronavirus outbreak a national emergency, freeing up money to fight the spread of the disease. As the president spoke, the three main US indexes jumped…