October 2026

Defence Secretary Wes Streeting warned that Britain must be ready for war within 1,000 days, a deadline that places the target around 2030. He said the country's enemies are modernising at breakneck speed and that Britain must outpace them.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he wants to see the UK rejoin the EU in his lifetime, and that he is open to an "honest discussion" on EU freedom of movement. He said he would like to discuss a return to freedom of movement with the bloc, while insisting the British public are the bosses on the question.

The Budget was billed as a micro Budget, with the BBC's Faisal Islam reporting that a 10-year plan will have to fill the gaps it leaves. The Guardian opened a reader Q&A with its money and economics correspondents on how the statement affects households personally.

Police Scotland has received information about time Jeffrey Epstein spent at Balmoral, the king's private estate in Scotland, with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Ghislaine Maxwell. Detectives are investigating those stays at the royal estate.

Brazilians voted in a presidential runoff between Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro, and Lula was re-elected president. The result gives Lula a historic fourth term in office.

The government gave the Jackdaw gas field in the North Sea a green light, clearing the way for drilling at a site that has drawn controversy. The approval was announced by the government and reported as drilling being approved at the field.

French 10-year government bond yields reached 5 percent, the highest level since 2002, as markets reacted to civil unrest and budget fears in France. The Guardian described the level as a 24-year high for French borrowing costs.

The Commons Defence Committee warned that Britain's armed forces have "glaring gaps" in Arctic capability that leave the country exposed to Russian attack in the High North. The committee's inquiry found the Royal Navy lacks the resources to counter Russia's fleet in the region, with submarines unable to repel it.

A detective raped by fellow officer David Carrick has called on the head of the Metropolitan Police to resign, saying the force's handling of her case left her feeling she was raped all over again. The officer said Met chief Mark Rowley is not fit for the job. LBC reported that the force's handling of the case drove her to suicide.

A public inquiry into the handling of Covid in care homes has concluded that government failures allowed the virus to spread "like wildfire" among residents. The report found that care home residents were effectively sacrificed to protect the NHS during the pandemic.