Happy Monday. Science has gone bananas, and it’s Old Blighty at the forefront!

Norfolk based Tropic Biosciences have used some cutting edge science wizardry to alter three genes in our favourite fruit, creating a sort of brown-proof banana. The changes prevent the production of an enzyme that starts the browning process, so theoretically, the bananas stay fresher for longer.

Notable UK earnings this week: Tesco (TSCO), Volution Group (FAN), Next 15 Group (NFG).

Notable US earnings this week: PepsiCo (PEP), Delta Air Lines (DAL), Levi Strauss (LEVI), Applied Digital (APLD).

📈📉

🌊 Welsh tidal energy lagoon being explored. Read more

🐟 Hinkley fish pipe tunnelling complete. Read more

🏗️ £4.3bn civils framework winners named for Pagabo. Read more

Diesel hits all time high at £2 a litre
Britain has crossed another deeply depressing milestone: diesel has nudged past £2 a litre for the first time, and the knock-on effect could show up in your food bill before long. Because, naturally, when one basic necessity gets more expensive, the rest of the household budget starts eyeing up the exit.

Fuel analysis from the RAC shows diesel now stands at 200.01p a litre, up from 199.79p on Thursday. The average family car is now costing around £110 to fill up, which is roughly £32 more than it was at the start of the United States’ war with Iran in February. As price shocks go, this one has the grace of a dropped tray in a quiet restaurant.

Barclays staff dig in against return to office proposals
Barclays’ latest attempt to tighten its office attendance rules has run straight into the sort of resistance that would make even a Victorian railway strike blush. Talks between management and the Unite union, which represents most of the bank’s staff, ended last week without agreement, after employees objected to a proposed rise from two office days to three for most workers, and from three to four for senior leaders.

The union is not merely grumbling into its tea. It wants Barclays to back off the plan altogether, or at the very least help with commuting costs and offer extra flexibility for people living 40 minutes or more from the office — especially during school holidays, when the childcare juggle turns into a full-contact sport. More than 5,200 people have signed an open letter to the bank’s leadership, which suggests this is not a rounding error of discontent.

Unite says Barclays has failed to provide an “evidence-based rationale” for the changes, which is civil-service language for: “show your workings, please.” The union accepts that face-to-face working can help collaboration and team building, but says that does not justify a blanket, one-size-fits-all return.

Channel deal drifts
The UK and France have scrapped their “one in, one out” migrant scheme after just 1,500 people were returned to France in a year. The arrangement paired some Channel arrivals being sent back with legal migrants coming the other way. Ministers wanted bigger numbers; instead, the scheme has been shown the door.

Sheen shines
Michael Sheen’s investigation into toxic waste has won rare cross-party backing in Wales. Senedd members want polluters to pay for clean-up, better testing and a UK fund for sites where nobody can be made to cough up. With potentially 45,000 contaminated sites in Wales, the nation may have rather more buried beneath it than coal and secrets.

Dog licence dodged
Ministers have rejected a universal dog licence, despite a government taskforce recommending stronger rules for owners. Dog bites have risen sharply alongside the UK’s growing canine population, prompting calls for better training, recording and control. So no annual fee for Fido—yet. The government is still pondering other ways to ensure owners sit and stay good boys and girls.

Trump rules out diesel export ban
President Donald Trump has said he is ruling out a diesel export ban, and — in a move that will shock precisely nobody who has watched this White House operate like a headline generator on low battery — insisted it was never seriously on the cards anyway. The announcement came just hours after Europe, under heavy pressure from Washington, agreed to release fuel from its stockpiles.

The climbdown effectively ends a frantic week of transatlantic lobbying, driven by surging fuel prices linked to the war with Iran and Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries. Farmers have been fuming, politicians have been sweating, and the Trump camp has been trying to stop the economic pain from spilling into the November midterms. Fuel, it turns out, remains annoyingly important in a world that still runs on lorries, tractors and geopolitics.

Jobs market slows ahead of midterms next month
America’s labour market has hit the handbrake, with employers adding just 29,000 jobs in September — a steep drop from August’s revised 133,000. The unemployment rate also nudged up from 4.1% to 4.2%, hardly a five-star review for a White House insisting the economy is “the hottest” on earth. Bit of a clash there, really.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics figures suggest the US economy is cooling, which in turn has made further Federal Reserve interest rate hikes look less likely. Hiring was broadly flat across major sectors from tech to retail, while economists pointed to a softer backdrop and fewer government roles as part of the slowdown.

Parental pondering
WhatsApp is giving parents more control over teenagers’ accounts, from group joins to privacy and AI settings, without letting them read messages. The tools are optional, though, leaving regulators with the awkward question: will anyone actually switch them on?

Space race, Shetland shuttles
SpaceX’s latest crew reached the ISS in a record eight hours, led by Jessica Watkins, the first Black woman to command a crew into orbit. The six-month mission includes research, a forthcoming space birth, and a crocheted lucky dragon—because apparently even astronauts enjoy a bit of insurance.

Across the pond, German firm HyImpulse has won UK approval to launch its SR75 rocket from Shetland in spring 2027. The suborbital vehicle will carry research rather than satellites, adding another boost to Britain’s increasingly busy space-launch ambitions.

Bus bans
Ghana is cracking down on pastors preaching aboard moving buses, with offenders facing prison, fines or both. Supporters call it religious outreach; critics call it noisy. For preachers, it is both a calling and a source of income, so the new rules leave them facing an awkward choice: adapt, or hush up.

French fires and fracas
Thousands of French students are protesting overcrowded classrooms, staff shortages, poor buildings and planned education cuts. More than 700 schools have been disrupted, while clashes with riot police have brought arrests, fires and injuries. The government says the protests have tipped into public disorder; students say the heavy-handed response is simply adding fuel to the bonfire.

Spanish homes, spanish heat
Tens of thousands have protested Spain’s housing crisis after 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal was forcibly evicted from her Madrid home with just 30 minutes’ notice. Parliament rejected emergency measures including rent protections, prompting demonstrations in around 50 cities. Abascal has since been told she can return home—small comfort in a crisis that has clearly left the public wanting considerably more.