Braintree Council spent £17K maintaining empty buildings
A Freedom of Information request submitted by the Times has found Braintree Council currently owns 30 empty commercial units and two empty houses. In the financial year from 2024 to 2025, the council spent £17,190.12 on associated maintenance costs for those buildings, which it says was limited to changing locks, securing the property and minor repairs. Braintree Council also no longer owns or runs social housing, which was transferred to housing association providers. The commercial units are mostly vacant short-term, the Times is told, as the units remain in high demand and are advertised and re-let when tenants leave. The use of the council’s portfolio of buildings it owns is regulated through planning policy, where any change of use would be subject to planning permission.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 18:02 UTC
10-year-old Indian-origin British prodigy Bodhana Sivanandan shocks chess world, wins UK Women’s Blitz Championship
Bodhana Sivanandan. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)Ten-year-old Bodhana Sivanandan from Harrow Primary School secured the women's first prize of £500 at the UK Open Blitz Championships in Leamington Spa on Saturday.This achievement adds to her growing list of age-related records.Sivanandan scored an impressive 13.5/15 points. She nearly faced a challenge from defending champion Elmira Mirzoeva in the second-to-last round, but Mirzoeva lost after making a crucial pawn error in a winning rook endgame.Daniel Gormally, a 49-year-old grandmaster from Alnwick, claimed the Open Blitz title and £1,000 prize with 11.5/15 points.He narrowly defeated 16-year-old Stanley Badacsonyi from north London by half a point, with GM Gawain Maroroa Jones and Frederick Waldhausen Gordon finishing close behind.Badacsonyi, who lacks IM norms, shows promise as a dedicated and creative player with potential for future success.Last month, in a major accomplishment, Sivanandan defeated former World Champion Grandmaster Mariya Muzychuk at the European Club Cup in Greece.Born in London in 2015 to parents from Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, Sivanandan represented the 12th-seeded team She Plays to Win Lionesses.Earlier this year, Sivanandan became the youngest female chess player to defeat a grandmaster by beating 60-year-old Grandmaster Peter Wells at the 2025 British Chess Championships in Liverpool.Her victory at 10 years, five months and three days surpassed the 2019 record held by American Carissa Yip, and she also became the youngest player to secure a WGM norm.The Harrow schoolgirl, who started playing chess during lockdown, made history in 2024 as the youngest person to represent England internationally in any sport at the Chess Olympiad in Hungary.Sivanandan is now part of a new generation of English chess talent making their mark in international competitions.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 14:16 UTC
Tory chairman compares Reform UK badge to a Nazi one
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Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 13:55 UTC
TotalEnergies to offload 5% stake in Adani Green Energy
SynopsisTotalEnergies plans to sell up to a 5% stake in Adani Green Energy, according to people familiar with the matter. The French energy company holds nearly 19% in the renewable energy firm and is looking to book gains after its $2.5-billion investment in 2021 rose in value to about $8 billion. The proposed stake may be offered to Adani Green for evaluation.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 13:36 UTC
UK reportedly set to approve new Chinese embassy in London; delays reveal contradictions in Britain’s China policy: expert
An exterior view of the Royal Mint Court, an 18th-century Grade II-listed complex, which will also serve as the possible future Chinese embassy in London, on June 10, 2025. "China has repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with the prolonged delays. Both China and the UK have plans to build new embassies in each other's capitals, and both sides should facilitate each other's efforts. BBC claimed that Conservative shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel warned the approval would "put Britain at risk. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said in the recent rounds of communication between the two sides for the early approval of the project, "China has shown utmost sincerity and patience.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 13:34 UTC
Some primary school pupils ‘can swipe a screen but can’t speak’
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Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 12:43 UTC
Fiscal ‘headroom’ obsession creates budget tax migraine
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Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 11:43 UTC
Entrepreneurs are leaving the UK in droves, minister admits
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Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 11:06 UTC
Lost wardrobe space becomes a cosy reading nook with Colours of Arley
Monday November 24 2025, 5.00am ,Design Clinic tackles everyday interior design dilemmas with smart solutions from leading guest interior designers, hosted by The Times and Sunday Times interiors editor Katrina Burroughs. In this episode, Katrina is joined by Louisa Tratalos, the founder of the textile design studio Colours Of Arley, who brings her approach to colour, pattern and storytelling to transform a tricky wardrobe space into a cosy reading nook. Do you have an interior design problem you’d like us to solve? Email us at lifeandstyle@thetimes.co.uk
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 11:01 UTC
Chancellor urged to take ‘hard choices’ rather than hit businesses with more tax
At the CBI’s conference in Westminster, Ms Newton-Smith urged Ms Reeves to stand up to Labour’s backbenchers to take tough decisions on issues such as cutting welfare spending. She said Ms Reeves had to prove she was committed to economic growth and make the hard choices to deliver it. “That means making hard choices for growth now before they get harder, having the courage to take two tough decisions rather than 20 easier ones. But Ms Reeves will extend a crackdown on benefit fraud in a bid to save £1.2 billion by March 2031. At the CBI conference, Business Secretary Peter Kyle promised measures to slash red tape for firms in the hope of boosting economic growth.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 10:51 UTC
Prostate Cancer Symptoms: David Cameron, former UK Prime Minister, has prostate cancer: Early signs of the most common cancer seen in men
The revelationProstate Cancer Guide: Expert Reveals Causes and Prevention StrategiesWhat is prostate cancer? The 59-year-old disclosed that the discovery came after his wife, Samantha, urged him to get tested following a radio interview about prostate cancer. Cameron shared that his medical process began with a PSA (prostate-specific antigen) blood test, which showed elevated levels. According to the Mayo Clinic, many prostate cancers are detected in early stages — when the cancer is still confined to the prostate — and don’t cause obvious problems. Because of this, screening (like PSA blood tests) plays a vital role in catching the disease early.Despite that, as prostate cancer develops, there are several early signs that men should be aware of.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 09:47 UTC
Rachel Reeves set to tax 100,000 aspirational homeowners
Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT The Treasury is banking on the revamped 'mansion tax' to bring in a much-needed £400-£450 million, with the surcharge set to be tacked onto council tax bills. Homeowners at the very top of the property ladder will be hit hardest, facing significantly higher bills. But a government insider insisted the fallout for the housing market would be "minimal." "The OBR has factored in a behavioural response to this with a knock-on effect on the housing market. He branded the 'mansion tax' a "compromise measure" that was more about "righting the perceived wrongs" of the council tax system than a serious attempt to fill the Treasury's depleted coffers.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 09:14 UTC
Strictly's Alex Kingston breaks silence after rib injury
!”This prompted the Doctor Who favourite to “reassure everyone that I am completely fine” as it is just a “minor” injury, and that she will be returning to rehearsal’s this morning (November 24) ahead of her Cha Cha Cha next Saturday (November 29). Strictly's Alex Kingston suffers 'minor' rib injury on BBC showAlex posted on her Instagram stories last night (November 23): “I just want to reassure everyone that I am completely fine. “It is a minor injury… it’s all part and parcel of dancing at these levels. Cha Cha Cha.”After Saturday’s show, worried fans took to Strictly’s Reddit page and said they fear the 2025 series is “cursed”. It does seem the season is cursed.”One fan chimed in: “Worried for Alex hope she recovers!
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 09:04 UTC
Times: ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih owner left the UK over taxes
This was reported by the newspaper The Times citing sources close to the businessman. The founder of the ArcelorMittal mining and metallurgical group, which includes the Ukrainian ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, is the eighth-richest person in the list of The Sunday Times with a fortune of 15.4 billion pounds. He became the wealthiest person to leave Britain as part of the current "exodus" of the rich. A source familiar with Mittal's affairs said that he was not so much concerned about income tax as inheritance tax, which is 40% in the UK. Mittal has lived in the UK since 1995.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 08:56 UTC
Slender Man stabber Morgan Geyser who knifed pal 19 times captured after cutting off ankle monitor & going on the run
Geyser lured classmate Payton Leutner into the woods and stabbed her 19 times to “please” fictional internet character Slender Man. Read more on slender man STAY CAGED Slender Man attacker who stabbed girl, 12, loses release bid from psych hospitalGeyser was last seen at the group home at 8:15pm. Geyser was arrested, and she told detectives she had attacked her classmate to impress the fictional internet character Slender Man. After being arrested, Geyser disturbingly said her actions were meant to “please” Slender Man – a creepy internet myth that was said to steal children. The criminal said Slender Man would have taken her from her family if she didn’t do his murderous bidding.
Source:The Times
November 24, 2025 06:53 UTC