6:31 am, March 30, 2026
Kemi Badenoch to launch ‘Get Britain Drilling’ campaign amid living cost hikes
Kemi Badenoch is to launch a campaign calling for Britain to maximise the use of its oil and gas reserves.
The Conservatives will put a ‘Get Britain Drilling’ campaign at the heart of their proposals for bringing down the spike in energy prices caused by the war in the Middle East.
Badenoch and her party initially called for Britain to join America and Israel in their war against Iran. They have since turned their focus to calling for the UK to tap its oil and gas stores to beat price rises, though ministers argue the internationally set price will not be impacted by such action.
Asda boss Allan Leighton says ‘plenty to do’ in turnaround as sales fall
The boss of Asda has said the supermarket giant still has ‘plenty to do’ in its turnaround after revealing a slump in sales and earnings over the past year.
The UK’s third largest supermarket chain revealed on Friday that sales, excluding fuel, dropped by 3.3% to £21bn in 2025, compared with a year earlier. Adjusted earnings tumbled by a third to £764m for the year.
The Leeds-based retailer has been in the throes of a major turnaround under returning boss Allan Leighton, after losing share in the UK grocery market to rivals including Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Lidl. However, transformation efforts were set back by a botched £1bn IT upgrade last year.
Cupra Tavascan gains new entry-level powertrain
The Cupra Tavascan has received several updates to its model line-up including a new entry-level powertrain.
The new version gets a 58kWh battery pack and a 187bhp electric motor to give a claimed range of 270 miles.
Across the range, there’s a new 10.25-inch digital driver’s display, physical buttons for the steering wheel, and a new ‘Midnight Black’ paint colour. Prices will be revealed later.
The markets
Blue chips in London outperformed European and US peers on Friday, but closed marginally lower, as oil prices rose once more amid few signs of progress in ending the Iran war.
The FTSE 100 closed down just 4.82 points at 9,967.35. The FTSE 250 ended down 331.32 points, 1.6%, at 20,964.75, and the AIM All-Share closed down 13.43 points, 1.9%, at 705.63.
The pound fell to 1.3288 US dollars on Friday afternoon from 1.3338 dollars at the equities close on Thursday. Against the euro, sterling fell to 1.1554 euros from 1.1563 euros a day prior. The euro stood lower against the greenback at 1.1521 dollars from 1.1534 dollars. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was trading higher at 160.10 yen compared to 159.65 yen.
Starmer to meet business leaders amid Hormuz blockade
Sir Keir Starmer will gather business leaders in Downing Street on Monday to address the impact of the Iran war.
The Pprime minister is expected to meet senior representatives from the energy, shipping and financial services industries amid warnings the UK could suffer serious economic damage as a result of the conflict.
The meeting will also hear an update on the situation in the region from Major General Richard Cantrill, the UK’s maritime operations commander.
Pakistan to ‘host war talks’ as Iran says US ground troops would be set on fire
Pakistan has announced it will soon host talks between the US and Iran, although there was no immediate word from the two nations.
It was also unclear in the announcement on Sunday whether the talks would be direct or indirect.
Pakistan has emerged as a mediator, having relatively good ties with both Washington DC and Tehran.
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Weather
Scattered showers in the north will ease through the day, while the south stays mostly dry with morning sunshine turning cloudier later, reports BBC Weather.
It will be windy. Tonight, cloud spreads from the west, with eastern areas clear at first before turning mostly cloudy, bringing a few spots of rain by morning.
