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Meta has appointed former Trump administration adviser Dina Powell McCormick to a newly created senior leadership role, underlining the tech giant’s determination to accelerate its push into artificial intelligence infrastructure. The owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp said Powell McCormick will join the company as president and vice chairman, with a remit spanning global strategy, government engagement and capital partnerships, with a particular focus on funding and scaling Meta’s vast AI ambitions. The appointment comes...

Rising costs are pushing UK manufacturers dangerously close to an investment tipping point, with businesses warning that planned spending could be cancelled or moved overseas unless pressures ease. A new survey by Make UK, the manufacturing trade body, found that almost nine in ten industry leaders expect employment costs to rise this year, while two thirds anticipate higher energy bills. The findings underline mounting concern that the cost base for British manufacturing is becoming unsustainable....

Former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has defected to Reform UK, becoming the most senior ex-Conservative figure to join Nigel Farage’s party. Zahawi, 58, was unveiled alongside Farage at a press conference in London, where he warned that Britain was “drinking in the last chance saloon” and said the country “really does need Nigel Farage as prime minister”. In a video message announcing his move, the former vaccines minister and chancellor said: “Nothing works, there is no...

Jeremy Clarkson has sparked a fresh debate about the pressures facing British agriculture after delivering a blunt response to a social media user who blamed Brexit for the struggles of UK farmers. The exchange followed a video Clarkson recorded in support of the farming advocacy campaign No Farmers, No Food, in which he called on the next government to put farming higher up the political agenda. In the video, filmed on his phone, Clarkson said...

Gold and silver prices have surged to fresh all-time highs, prompting experts to urge ordinary Britons to take a closer look at what they already own, including forgotten jewellery tucked away in drawers and boxes at home. Gold climbed to $4,603.87 while silver reached $84.69, as investors piled into traditional safe-haven assets amid rising geopolitical tension involving Iran, fears of potential US military action, and fresh instability in Washington following the launch of a criminal...