Tens of thousands of nurses in England will strike in February for the third time in as many months, adding further pressure on British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak over crippling disruption to key services caused by industrial action.

Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill said on Monday that Britain is at risk of persistent inflationary pressure from a tight labour market, even if natural gas prices stabilise or fall, implying further rate rises may be needed.

With foreign workers making up the vast bulk of private sector jobs in the United Arab Emirates, the Gulf's second-largest economy wants to boost opportunities for its own citizens.

UK nurses stage unprecedented walkout

A ninth interest rate hike in a row by the Bank of England looks to be a foregone conclusion on Thursday and investors will be looking for clues on how many more will be needed with the economy sliding into recession but inflation still above 10%.

Britain's jobless rate rose for a second month and there were other signs in data on Tuesday that some of the inflationary heat in the labour market is cooling as the economy stumbles, including an increase in older people looking for work.

Up to 100,000 members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will hold a one-day stoppage on Thursday

British main opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer warned business bosses on Tuesday "the days of low pay and cheap labour" must end, putting him in line with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak who has also rejected calls for looser immigration rules.

Britain's unemployment rate unexpectedly rose and vacancies fell for a fifth report in a row as employers worried about the outlook for the economy, official data showed on Tuesday, ahead of a tough government budget plan later this week.

British employers are planning the biggest pay hikes in a decade to fill roles but real-term wages will still grow more slowly than inflation, a survey showed on Monday.

British employers cut their hiring of permanent staff via recruitment firms for the first time in nearly two years in October as the country's political upheaval added to concerns about the economy, a survey showed on Thursday.

The exact nature of the strike is yet to be determined, but is likely to disrupt operations and appointments even as patients are already facing record waiting lists.

Britain reported a record jump in the number of people leaving the labour market in the three months to August, adding to the Bank of England's inflation headaches.

British recruiters saw the weakest growth in hiring in more than a year and a half last month, as signs of an economic downturn made workers more wary about changing jobs and businesses more cautious about hiring, a survey showed on Friday.

Britain on Wednesday announced a six-month plan to pay about half of energy bills for businesses.

While higher rates aim to tame runaway inflation by slowing economic activity, they can cause a recession if borrowing costs become too steep for businesses and individuals.

Britain's jobless rate hit its lowest since 1974 but the drop was due mostly to a fall in the size of the workforce and there were other signs that the country's jobs boom is petering out, adding to the Bank of England's inflation headache.

More than a year after the Great Resignation took hold in the United States, Canada is grappling with its own greyer version: The Great Retirement.

It was meant to be Europe's stellar year.

Britain's state-run National Health Service (NHS) is facing its worst ever staffing crisis with thousands of vacancies and the government has no credible strategy to address the problem, a committee of lawmakers said in a report published on Monday.

Britain is set to have the lowest economic growth of any Group of Seven country, projections show.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will face questions in parliament followed by a grilling by senior lawmakers on Wednesday, with his premiership on the brink after a slew of resignations from ministers saying he was not fit to govern.

British manufacturing firm Corbetts the Galvanizers used to rely on a stream of workers from Poland and Romania to fill its shop floor, where steel is dipped into a long vat of molten zinc at temperatures of around 450?C (842?F).

Britain's economy is struggling under the strain of two major risks in the form of double-digit inflation and a possible recession, leaving the Bank of England in a dilemma about how much further it should raise interest rates.

As interest rates rise, consumers and businesses will find it more costly to borrow to invest and spend, and aggregate demand will fall further.

After 21 years as a service agent at Air France, Karim Djeffal left his job during the COVID-19 pandemic to start his own job-coaching consultancy.

The pound slumped one percent against the dollar following the announcement, one day after the Federal Reserve hiked US interest rates far more aggressively to fight runaway consumer prices in the world's biggest economy.

The Bank of England looks set to override its worries about a sharp slowdown in the British economy and raise interest rates again on Thursday as it tries to tackle an inflation rate on course for double digits.

Britain's jobless rate rose for the first time since late 2020 and other measures of the country's hot labour market cooled, potentially easing inflation worries at the Bank of England which is due to raise rates again this week.

British citizens planning to spend their summer holidays in the Spanish town of Benidorm may be in for a bad experience due to a staff shortage there.