British politics is hooked on flashy fake numbers – and the AI investment debacle proves it

A claim that the UK is attracting billions of pounds in AI investment has been debunked. That’s no surprise when our establishment runs on dubious ‘good news’, says Jonathan Portes, a professor at King’s College London and former senior civil servant

Miliband reveals plans that could mean nuclear power plants built near homes

Changes to regulation to speed up development could also make it easier to build on sensitive nature sites

Patients face long journeys for medicines as pharmacies cut weekend hours

More than 20% of weekend availability lost in England since 2022, forcing some to turn to A&E, says national association

Bleak economic data shows UK plc in trouble well before Middle East crisis

Zero GDP growth in January will not help Rachel Reeves claim she has put UK in position to weather oil price storm

UK economy unexpectedly flatlined in January, official figures show

January’s GDP figure comes as higher energy prices look likely to drive up inflation, dashing hopes of interest rate cut

MPs launch student loans inquiry amid ‘perfect storm’ for young people in UK

Influential Treasury committee chair Meg Hillier says review follows growing concern over graduate debt

The Guardian view on Adam Smith: he deserves rescuing from the free-market myth

Editorial: On the 250th anniversary of The Wealth of Nations, the Scottish philospher is still invoked by the right. Yet he worried about inequality, monopoly and the power of wealth

UK companies struggling to hire young people amid cost pressures, MPs told

Business lobby groups say firms less likely to take on staff with few qualifications or who have gaps in their CVs

‘Nothing off the table’ as Rachel Reeves considers ‘targeted support’ over energy costs

Chancellor does not rule out ditching planned fuel duty rise but tells MPs it is too early to gauge if consumers need extra help

Wednesday briefing: From missing billions to nonexistent datacentres, inside Britain’s AI drive

In today’s newsletter: Enormous investments in artificial intelligence promised to transform Labour’s growth problems. The reality is much murkier

UK junk food ad ban so diluted it may be largely ineffective, experts say

Exclusive: Report suggests only 1% of annual spend on food and drink adverts will be affected after industry lobbying

Lammy defends jury reforms against claims they will worsen racial bias in legal system – as it happened

Justice secretary says changes designed to reduce courts backlog will benefit remand rates

Scrapping North Sea windfall tax would not reduce UK energy bills, say experts

Rachel Reeves said to be considering levy cuts for oil and gas firms, but economists say this would just fatten profits

UK inflation likely to rise because of Middle East war, says Rachel Reeves

Chancellor says she is ready to help households with rising costs but stops short of setting out specific steps

Missing money, shipped chips and a 350,000% profit: key takeaways on AI ‘phantom investments’

A Guardian investigation has put the UK government’s AI plans under the microscope. Here are the key details