A “Twitter troll” has been ordered not to contact Coldplay singer Chris Martin and Countdown presenter Rachel Riley after sending hundreds of abusive tweets, the UK's Crown Prosecution Service said.

Gatwick Airport chiefs face a possible investigation over the Christmas travel misery as more stormy weather is set to hit the UK.

St Jude’s storm has left a teenage girl dead, hundreds of thousands of homes without power and transport chaos for rush-hour commuters.

The number of workers employed in the British public sector has fallen by almost 660,000 since the coalition government came to power, with further cuts being planned, according to new research.

Forced marriage is “little more than slavery”, Prime Minister David Cameron has said as the UK Government announced plans to make it a criminal offence.

Experts are investigating whether watermelons are linked to an outbreak of salmonella across the Ireland and the UK.

The number of UK companies in critical financial distress increased by 24% in the final quarter of 2011, fuelling fears that the British economy is approaching "rock bottom".

The prospects of finding a job are likely to get "much worse" in the face of fresh cuts in public spending this year, union leaders warned today ahead of new unemployment figures.

Travellers given a reprieve from the threatened clearance of the UK's largest illegal site in Essex are celebrating today - but have warned the fight is not over yet.

Rents in the UK have resumed their upward march during February as there continued to be too few properties available to meet demand, research indicated today.

The big freeze gripping the country will get worse this week with snow spreading inland and some temperatures plunging as low as minus 20C, forecasters warned.

Barclays is to become the first major bank to offer basic accounts to prisoners reaching the end of their sentence, an ex-offenders association said today.

THOUSANDS of photographs from a collection belonging to Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw are to be made available to the public online.

More details are expected to emerge today about the first UK death of a patient suffering from swine flu.

Two more people have been confirmed with the swine flu virus in the UK today, taking the total to 122.

Seven new cases of swine flu have been confirmed today in the UK, health officials said.

Firefighters in England are battling a blaze at an oil refinery.

Anglian Water owner AWG found itself back in the spotlight today as speculation mounted that it could be on the brink of a bid battle.

One in every 20 households in London is worth £1m (€1.5m) or more, according to research out today.

Three contact centres employing almost 1,000 people are set to be sold in a deal worth £4m (€6m), it was announced today.

An assessment of the evidence against a 14-strong group of plane spotters detained in Greece accused of spying was due to be presented to three judges today.