International News

The UK has had one of its hottest days on record, with a high of 38.1C (100.6F) - and forecasters are warning it will be warmer still on Tuesday. The high was recorded in Santon Downham, Suffolk, on Monday, while 37C was exceeded in several places. The Met Office has issued a red extreme heat warning for Monday and Tuesday in much of England, with temperatures of up to 41C forecast. The current highest temperature in the UK is 38.7C, in Cambridge in July 2019. A high of 38.5C was rea...

Britain, already a favourite destination for those heading overseas, became more attractive this year with the exchange rate sinking to a new low at around HK$9.30 (US$1.18) to a pound, a level last seen in 1985. DSE results out recently, but many applied for popular courses earlier as pound kept sliding Angus Tang Chi-wing, director of Hkies Overseas Education & Study Tours, said inquiries about overseas studies had risen by more than 20 per cent, partly because of the exchange rate. He esti...

Those who have moved across the world to the United Kingdom on a British National (Overseas) visa will find efforts have been made to make them feel welcome as it specifically recognizes Hongkongers as Commonwealth citizens who are eligible to vote. According to a note on the democratic rights of Hongkongers published by the Greater London Authority, Hongkongers living in the UK on a BNO visa can vote in all UK elections. This is because they are considered Commonwealth citizens, meaning t...

M&S is removing best before dates from loads of fresh fruit and vegetables to try to cut food waste. Supermarkets are beginning to end use-by dates to cut down on food waste. Morrisons has scrapped the dates on its own-brand milk and the Co-op has done the same for yoghurt, while many retailers have stopped putting the dates on vegetables. Now M&S is scrapping best before dates on more than 300 fruit and veg - around 85% of all its produce. This includes foods like apples, potatoes a...

Savills has done the research on how much you can really save if you buy a new-build compared with an old home, as energy prices continue to rise. Investing in a brand-new home has become even more popular in 2022, with new-build reservations up by 7% in the first quarter of the year compared with Q1 2021, according to Savills. Compared to before Covid, there’s been a huge 41% rise in this arena, demonstrating the growth in desireability. Some of this could be down to a lack of large...

How long will Boris Johnson stay in power? In the past, prime ministers choosing to step down have usually stayed in office until a successor is found. That means he would stay in office until the Conservatives choose a new leader, as his predecessors Theresa May and David Cameron did when they resigned. It's been suggested that process could last until October, although it could be much shorter - the replacement of Theresa May as leader took two months. In his resignation statement M...

House prices in the UK rose at the fastest annual rate in 18 years last month as demand – especially for larger homes – continued to outstrip the number of properties on the market. Halifax, one of the country’s biggest mortgage lenders and part of Lloyds Banking Group, said the market “defied any expectations of a slowdown”, with prices rising year on year in June by 13%, the highest since late 2004. Prices rose 1.8% compared with May, which was the biggest mont...

A real estate listing for a suburban home has left internet users in stitches over its unusually green lawn. Real estate agency Property Gurus South Australia recently advertised the four bedroom brick home in Elizabeth Downs, north Adelaide, for $350,000. But the listing has now gone viral online with house hunters roundly mocking how poorly Photoshopped the home's lush front and back lawn appears to be. 'That's the new strain of grass called 'Chernobyl', you shoul...