business

The Co-operative Group plans to open at least a further 120 grocery shops this year after profits rose more than fivefold, but told the government that “layering costs” on retailers could hit high streets and communities. The mutual, which owns more than 800 funeral parlours and an insurance and legal advisory business as well as … Read more

Russian authorities on Thursday banned the Elton John Aids Foundation (EJAF), which focuses on HIV/Aids prevention, citing its support for LGBTQ+ rights as a reason for the move. Founded by the British singer and songwriter in 1992, the organisation funds HIV treatment programmes in countries including Russia. It also advocates for LGBTQ+ people, who have … Read more

Luton Airport will be allowed to almost double in capacity after the government overruled planning inspectors who recommended blocking the scheme on environmental grounds. Transport secretary Heidi Alexander granted the development consent order for the airport’s plans to expand its perimeter and add a new terminal, allowing a potential 32 million passengers a year. The … Read more

The deaths of a British couple who were found in their renovated rural home in Aveyron, south-west France, are being treated as a murder followed by a suicide. The bodies of Andrew Searle, 62, a retired fraud investigator, Dawn Kerr, 56, a project manager, were discovered on 6 February at their home in the village … Read more

A megafarm which would have produced almost one million chickens and pigs at any one time has been blocked by councillors in Norfolk over climate change and environmental concerns. Councillors on King’s Lynn and West Norfolk borough council unanimously rejected an application to build what would have been one of the largest industrial poultry and … Read more

The US Naval Academy has removed nearly 400 books from its library after being told by the office of the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, to review and get rid of any that promote diversity, equity and inclusion, US officials said on Tuesday. Academy officials were told to review the library late last week, and an … Read more

The New York City mayor, Eric Adams, announced on Thursday that he would forgo the Democratic primary for mayor in June and run as an independent candidate in the general election. The move comes after the federal corruption indictment against Adams was dismissed this week, on the heels of the Trump administration moving to dismiss … Read more

The World Bank is embarking on a multimillion-dollar programme in response to alleged human rights abuses against Tanzanian herders during a flagship tourism project it funded for seven years. Allegations made by pastoralist communities living in and around Ruaha national park include violent evictions, sexual assaults, killings, forced disappearances and large-scale cattle seizures from herders … Read more

The makers of Gore-Tex, a popular product commonly used to waterproof clothing by companies such as the North Face and Mountain Hardware, poisoned drinking water and sickened residents around their facilities in rural Maryland, two lawsuits allege. The facilities, about 90 miles north-east of Baltimore, polluted drinking water with levels up to 700 times above … Read more

More than 200 health facilities run by the World Health Organization in Afghanistan, providing medical care for 1.84 million people, have closed or ceased operating after the US aid cuts announced by the Trump administration shut off life-saving medical care, including vaccinations, maternal and child health services. On his first day in office in January, … Read more