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    As the clock ticks down on Britain’s departure from the EU with no deal in sight, the country’s car industry is braced for its biggest blow in more than a decade with the closure of a major automobile plant. The decision by Honda to shut its Swindon factory by 2022, expected to be confirmed as early as Tuesday, throws into doubt 3,500 direct jobs, at a site responsible for about one in every 10 cars made in the UK last year. Thousands more jobs are at risk in the supply chain and associated businesses. “It’s a big shock,” said David Bailey, a professor of industrial strategy at Aston University. “But it’s not a surprise. Many of us have been warning for several years of the risks to UK automotive over Brexit, that we needed to nail down the uncertainty as soon as p...

    Meghan Markle and Prince Harry 's wedding was watched by millions around the world. The beautiful Hollywood actress became a princess when she wed the young royal. But it seems moving across the pond hasn't been the only thing Meghan has changed - her accent has altered too. Experts claim the way the Duchess of Sussex now pronounces certain words is much more British. They say it was especially profound during a trip to Birkenhead last month when Meghan told well-wishers I do appreciate that. Assistant professor in linguistics at the University of Toronto, Marisa Brook, told the BBC: I think a lot of it is deliberate on her part. She's developed a style to be used when directly talking with the British public. These are situations where people might be judging h...

    Chuka Umunna led a group of Labour MPs in quitting the party over Jeremy Corbyn's handling of Brexit and claims of anti-Semitism. The MPs, including Luciana Berger, stood down today and formed a new group of Independent MPs in a protest over the future of British politics in a significant party split. The MPs who quit Labour are: Chuka Umunna, Luciana Berger, Chris Leslie, Ann Coffey, Angela Smith, Gavin Shuker and Mike Gapes. Announcing the move, Luciana Berger said: "This morning we have all now resigned from the Labour Party. This has been a very difficult, painful, but necessary decision. We represent different parts of the country, we are of different backgrounds, we were born of different generations, but we all share the same values. From today, we will al...

    The UK is on “the wrong side of the law” by sanctioning arms exports to Saudi Arabia for the war in Yemen and should suspend some of the export licences, an all-party Lords committee has said. The report by the international relations select committee says ministers are not making independent checks to see if arms supplied by the UK are being used in breach of the law, but is instead relying on inadequate investigations by the Saudis, its allies in the war. It describes the humanitarian plight of Yemenis as “unconscionable”. It is the first unanimous report from a parliamentary committee describing Saudi arms export sales as unlawful, and comes ahead of an imminent high court appeal by campaigners to block arms sales to Saudi Arabia on the grounds they are in breac...

    Twelve angry ministers could quit Theresa May’s cabinet if she refuses to delay Brexit , it has been claimed. Former attorney general Dominic Grieve claimed resignations on this scale could bring down the Government within the next few weeks. But Brexiteer Commons leader Andrea Leadsom insisted Mrs May’s 45-vote defeat last night was “more of a hiccup than the disaster that is being reported.” And she blamed the defeat on the Labour party “playing politics”, rather than the 71 members of her own party who abstained or voted against their Prime Minister’s plan. And she suggested Mrs May could survive six ministers quitting her cabinet, saying: “Resignations from government do happen.” Asked how many ministers could resign, Mr Grieve said: "I think we are talking a...

    Keen royal watchers will recall the sense of disappointment that set in after Kate married William and the queen announced that she would be known as the Duchess of Cambridge, and not by the much more regal title of Princess Catherine. We didn’t want a duchess, we wanted a princess and that was what reports at the time had led us to expect we would be getting. But, no, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge it was, and so there was little surprise when Meghan and Harry were given the same treatment after their marriage last year. Technically, Kate is also  known as Princess William and Meghan is Princess Henry, and there is no reason why they could not be referred to as princesses by the palace. In fact, the failure to do so has been a bit baffling. But now a new theory...