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Whitbread Plc said on Wednesday its first-quarter room revenue was hit by tough market competition and ongoing Brexit uncertainty, and the company was cautious about near-term conditions as it tries to build out its Premier Inn brand. Whitbread, which was originally a brewer, has focused on its hotel business after it sold Costa Coffee to Coca-Cola Co for 3.9 billion pounds ($4.90 billion) in a cash deal completed in early January. The company said total like-for-like revenue per available room...

Kyle Ashton and twins Christopher Pyatt-Pierce and Lucy Pyatt-Pierce have been jailed for a total of 14 years between them for the shocking attack on a 15-year-old boy

 British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn will back a move on Wednesday for the Labour Party to change its Brexit policy and support a second referendum in all circumstances, The Times reported, citing a senior Labour source. A paper by Corbyn's head of policy, Andrew Fisher, recommends that Labour support a second referendum on any deal negotiated with Brussels, the newspaper reported, adding that most shadow cabinet members are yet to see the paper. The shadow cabinet will on Wednesday discuss...

Every UK river tested by Greenpeace found to contain microplastics

Hope Hicks, once a close aide and communications director for President Donald Trump, becomes on Wednesday the first member of his inner circle to testify to the congressional panel leading a probe into possible obstruction of justice by Trump, reports Reuters in Washington. Democrats who control the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee believe Hicks can provide important insights into troubling chapters of former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, and Trump's efforts to...

Boris Johnson has cemented his lead in the collossal waste of time that is the Tory Party leadership contest. Remember when the EU warned the UK not to waste any time before the Brexit deadline they agreed to put back to the end of October? The plea appears to have fallen on deaf ears among the Conservative Party keen to drag out a sure coronation of Boris Johnson until MPs break up on holiday for the summer. In the second...

Facebook Inc plans to launch a cryptocurrency called Libra next year as part of its wider efforts to expand beyond social networking into e-commerce and global payments. Facebook said it has linked with 28 partners to form Libra Association, a Geneva-based entity governing its new digital coin, which it will launch in the first half of 2020, marketing materials and interviews with executives show. Facebook also created Calibra, a subsidiary which will offer digital wallets connected to messaging platforms Messenger...

Paris Saint-Germain striker Neymar's off-pitch woes continue to mount, as Brazilian tax authorities put a freeze on dozens of his mansions and other properties amid a long-running tax dispute, local media reported Monday. The Folha de S.Paulo newspaper reported that Brazilian authorities blocked 36 properties in Brazil as they seek 69 million reais (£14 million) in back taxes. They claim that amount is due in connection with Neymar's 2013 transfer from Santos to Barcelona. The action means Neymar can use...

President Donald Trump said on Monday that U.S. authorities would begin next week removing millions of immigrants who are in the United States illegally. "Next week ICE will begin the process of removing the millions of illegal aliens who have illicitly found their way into the United States," Trump tweeted, referring to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. "They will be removed as fast as they come in," he said. He did not offer specifics. There are an estimated 12...