Lettings experts from Linley & Simpson, Yorkshire, give advice for landlords and renters when it comes to the right to request pets Today, 20th February 2026, marks National Love Your Pet Day – a dedicated day to show some extra love and shower our furry friends with treats.

No credible forecast shows UK oil and gas demand falling to zero by 2050, even under net zero scenarios – oil and gas are essential ingredients in plastics, fertilisers, medicines and modern technology. The 78% headline tax rate is forcing a decline in North Sea production and driving investment overseas, with the workforce forecast to halve to as low as 57,000 by the early 2030s – losing up to 1,000 jobs a month. Replacing domestic production with imports increases overall emissions by around 50% and risks gas shortages on cold winter days as early as 2026/27.

New research into the link between longer stays in A&E and mortality rates makes a significant contribution to the evidence about the consequences of overcrowding in Emergency Departments. That’s the key message from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine following a new study on delay-related harm in EDs which was published in the Emergency Medicine Journal (EMJ) today, 12 February.

Long-distance train operator CrossCountry has unveiled the first refurbished train of its Voyager fleet - marking the start of a £75 million investment to deliver a brighter, more comfortable experience for passengers across Britain.

Presenter and BAFTA-winning filmmaker Professor David Olusoga, and Adrianne Chapman, Vice Principal of the BRIT School, among speakers at North East event focusing on how to re-centre education around creativity. Education Insights event series explores collaborative approaches to better support young people

Governments are constantly tempted to push flexible working because it allows them to support a popular social change without having to pay for it themselves. The new, stronger “right to request” flexible working in the Employment Rights Act will be much harder for managers to resist, and even dealing with such requests will impose costs on companies. While private businesses may be able to control some of these costs, the widespread strengthening of flexible working rights is likely to damage productivity, slow growth, and undermine wages and employment. This will be all the more true if unions or workplace rules stop wages adjusting, for example to reflect whether particular jobs can in practice be done remotely. This is likely to be a particular problem in the public sector, reinforcing its existing poor productivity record.

AVA: The Vending & Automated Retail Association has welcomed the government’s announcement of the UK deposit return scheme, officially named 'Exchange for Change'. The AVA has played a significant role in the scheme’s creation, ensuring the full representation of the needs of vending and automated retail operators.

When news broke recently of two Chinese spies who were caught but then allowed to walk away on legal grounds, followed by MI5’s warning that a proposed super-embassy could conceal a nest of intelligence operatives, it felt like an echo from another age. Espionage had slipped back into public view.

The life of a remarkable artist and pioneering inventor who lived and worked in Lancaster more than a century ago will be celebrated this year, thanks to The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Lancashire-based arts and heritage charity, Mirador, has been granted £91,430 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to mark the centenary of Karel Klic’s death.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) is urging people to take immediate safety precautions as amber weather warnings are issued ahead of the arrival of Storm Chandra. Storm Chandra, the third major storm to affect the UK this month, is expected to bring a combination of damaging winds and heavy rainfall from Monday into Tuesday.

One hundred MPs have joined forces to demand compensation for WASPI women ahead of a crucial update from ministers promised next month. The letter, signed by 100 MPs across 10 different parties, calls on the Work and Pensions Secretary to “reach the right decision” and to set out plans to compensate affected women as quickly as possible.