Sicily deserves better than the looming prospect of a giant bridge that will never get built

Troubled waters over the world’s longest suspension bridge are no surprise. The Italian government should be funding public services, says Florence-based writer Jamie Mackay

British music stars urge Starmer to tackle ‘pernicious’ ticket tout websites

Radiohead, Dua Lipa and Coldplay among dozens of artists calling for cap on resale prices to stop exploitation of fans

‘Utter hypocrisy’: tobacco firm lobbied against rules in Africa that are law in UK

British American Tobacco pushed Zambian ministers to drop or delay ad bans, health warnings and restrictions on flavoured products, letter shows

The Whyalla steelworks might be the best place in the world to make low-cost green iron. Will Labor seize the moment?

If the government is committed to the energy transition and a future made in Australia, the choice that must be made is clear

Hybrid working could help get more disabled people into work, peers say

Lords committee says government should consider including remote working in back-to-work initiatives

The 5% first home buyers scheme is a miserable policy failure – and the latest chapter in Australia’s housing disgrace

The government is juicing demand to make houses more expensive for Australians while providing good public housing for … Americans

Labour infighting puts chancellor’s budget plan to reassure bond markets at risk

It was hoped manifesto-breaking tax rises might bring down borrowing costs – but party turbulence is likely to spook investors

SSE is a winner in the great grid upgrade. Who is looking out for consumers and small businesses?

Nobody doubts chunky spending is necessary to improve the grid. But how much of that money will be funded through consumer bills?

Atlanta Fed chair steps down as Trump attacks central bank’s independence

Raphael W Bostic will retire in February – creating another vacancy on Federal Reserve’s powerful policy committee

UK gets record demand at government debt auction; FTSE 100 index sets new closing high – as it happened

Sale of index-linked debt sees record demand, while UK bond yields are only marginally higher on the back of ‘political chaos’

ONS to cut reports on health and crime to improve quality of core data

UK’s statistics agency announces ‘recovery’ plan after concerns raised over reliability of its data

Bots and third parties to be banned from booking driving tests in DfT shake-up

In effort to tackle severe backlog and end resale market, only learner drivers will be able to make bookings

‘Part of the joy economy’: bumper year for UK toys as Wicked dolls and Pokémon appeal to ‘kidults’

Some of this year’s Christmas must-haves also expected to appeal to older generations

Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey hit by sales fall amid budget uncertainty

Weekly average for number of private sales per site drops 11% in key autumn period as property tax rumours swirl

Labour is standing on a precipice: if it breaks its election promise on tax, it will never be trusted again

Ruling out tax rises in its 2024 manifesto was utterly reckless and will fan the flames of the far right, says Guardian columnist Owen Jones