Good evening. School strikes in the autumn have been called off after teachers in England’s biggest education union voted to accept a 6.5 per cent pay rise.
Elsewhere, Rishi Sunak has announced hundreds of new oil and gas drilling licences to “increase homegrown sources of energy”.
The National Education Union (NEU) said 86 per cent of its teacher members in England who took part in an electronic ballot voted to accept the progress made in the pay dispute and call off industrial action, with a 60 per cent turnout.
It comes after teacher members of the NEU staged eight days of strike action in state schools in England since February.
Our Education Editor Louisa Clarence-Smith writes that four education unions had been considering further walkouts in the autumn term, but earlier this month their leaders urged members to accept a new pay offer from the Government.
Rishi Sunak said it would make “absolutely no sense” for the UK not to take advantage of its domestic fossil fuel resources as he announced hundreds of new oil and gas drilling licences.
The Prime Minister said the new licences showed the Government’s commitment to backing the North Sea oil and gas industry and would help to make Britain more energy independent.
Jack Maidment writes that the decision to give the green light to new drilling operations is likely to prompt a backlash from climate change activists.
Britain’s national debt stands above the EU as a proportion of the size of the economy, new data shows.
The UK’s general government gross debt was equivalent to 100.5pc of GDP in the first three months of the year, according to the Office for National Statistics. This was 16.8 percentage points above the EU average during the period.
It comes as the Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates again this week from the present level of 5pc, putting further strain on the public finances. You can follow all the latest business news on our live blog.
France | A British woman is among three dead and “several” members of her family of seven are in a critical condition after a horrific motorway pile-up in northern France.
A daredevil climber fell to his death from a high-rise building in Hong Kong after last being seen knocking on a window on the 68th floor. Remi Lucidi, 30, also known as “Remi Enigma”, was seen by a building worker knocking from the outside of the window, suggesting he may have been trapped and asking for help.
‘Seriously concerning’: The drone crash that has brought Army technology into question
Initially designed to fight the Taliban, Watchkeeper is ill-suited to counter novel threats
BT has named telecoms veteran Allison Kirkby as its first ever female chief executive in a surprise move. Ms Kirkby, who has served as a non-executive director on the board of BT since 2019, will take up the role by the end of January 2024, writes James Warrington.
Global Health | How a ‘Jihadi drug’ resurrected war-torn Syria as a narco-state
Travel | Have tourists ruined St Ives? I visited on the busiest week of the year to find out
Fashion | If Prince William wants to look more fashionable, he should wear a kilt
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