Wheat price heading for biggest jump in two months as Iran war drives up food insecurity fears – business live
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news

• Cuts to overseas aid will worsen shocks to global economy, David Miliband says

UK mortgage rates have dipped slightly today, as some lenders begin to cut their offerings.

Moneyfacts reports that the average 2-year fixed residential mortgage rate today is 5.87%, down from 5.88% on Thursday.

“We’re going to see what happens. But I think we’re very close to making a deal with Iran.”

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Cuts to overseas aid will worsen shocks to global economy, David Miliband says
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

Exclusive: Former UK foreign secretary says poor and rich countries alike will be hit amid humanitarian crisis sparked by Iran war

Cuts to overseas aid by countries including the US and the UK risk stoking global economic instability amid the humanitarian crisis resulting from the Iran war, David Miliband has said.

The former British foreign secretary and head of the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said the US “abandoning” of its aid programme under Donald Trump would worsen shocks to the global economy that would impact poor and wealthy countries alike.

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Rachel Reeves warns other budgets may be cut to lift defence spending
Posted on Thursday April 16, 2026

Chancellor says she is ‘working through a range of options’ to boost the armed forces but does not want to put up taxes

Rachel Reeves has warned “difficult choices” are required to increase defence spending and other budgets may have to be cut, including welfare.

Under pressure for a faster rise in the military budget amid the Iran conflict and Russia’s war in Ukraine, the chancellor said she was “working through a range of options” but preferred not to increase taxes or add to government borrowing.

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Finance leaders warn over Mythos as UK banks prepare to use powerful Anthropic AI tool
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

Release of new Claude model, so far limited to US firms, will expand to British institutions in coming days

British banks will be given access in the next week to a powerful AI tool that was deemed too dangerous to be released to the public, as a series of senior finance figures warned over its impact.

Anthropic, which has so far limited the release of the new model to a small clutch of primarily US businesses, including Amazon, Apple and Microsoft, said it would expand that to UK financial institutions.

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Finance leaders warn over Mythos as UK banks prepare to use powerful Anthropic AI tool
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

Release of new Claude model, so far limited to US firms, will expand to British institutions in coming days

British banks will be given access in the next week to a powerful AI tool that was deemed too dangerous to be released to the public, as a series of senior finance figures warned over its impact.

Anthropic, which has so far limited the release of the new model to a small clutch of primarily US businesses, including Amazon, Apple and Microsoft, said it would expand that to UK financial institutions.

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Liz Kendall urges UK public to embrace AI as government makes first £500m fund investment
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

Technology secretary plays down fears over jobs and cyber security as stake taken in British startup

The UK technology secretary has urged the country to “make AI work for Britain”, brushing off fears about its impact on jobs and cybersecurity as the government announced its first investment under a £500m sovereign AI fund.

Liz Kendall said the UK had to “seize” the opportunity offered by AI despite concerns underlined this month when US startup Anthropic revealed it had developed an AI model that posed a potentially significant cyber threat.

Asked how the government makes the case for embracing a technology that could disrupt jobs and now cybersecurity, Kendall said: “We have to seize this to make it work, for Britain, for our jobs, for solving the biggest challenges we face as a world.”

Speaking on Thursday as the government unveiled its first investment in a UK company as part of a £500m sovereign AI fund, Kendall acknowledged “people are worried about the risks and what it means for their jobs”, but AI entrepreneurs also believed they can “make it work … they can create jobs”.

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Premier League set for crunch weekend, European reaction, and more – football live
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

⚽ Fixtures | Latest tables | Premier League top scorers
⚽ Premier League: 10 things to look out for | Mail David

Manchester City v Arsenal will attract incredible worldwide viewing figures. Ahead of Sunday’s showdown at the Etihad, John Duerden has been talking to Gunners fans from around the globe. It seems there’s panic on the streets of Thailand ahead of the trip to Manchester.

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Inspirational success stories are great but is ADHD really a superpower for elite athletes? | Emma John
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

Researchers say mainstream framing of the condition as a characteristic for success can be invalidating for those who are struggling

Kirsty Brown is a keen golfer. “If I could just transport myself straight to the first tee, that would be amazing,” she says. “But getting there on time, remembering all my kit, making sure I’ve eaten before I play – all those aspects are more challenging than competing itself.” Brown, who has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), admits that can be hard to explain to coaches or teammates. “It doesn’t necessarily make sense to them – it doesn’t really make sense to me either.”

A researcher at the University of Birmingham, Brown is studying neurodivergent athletes in sport. And while plenty of well-known sportspeople now talk openly about their ADHD diagnoses, no one truly knows the condition’s impact on participation or performance. “There’s not a huge amount of research yet,” Brown says. “We have some case studies but in terms of data, we’re not there.”

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