A government minister has criticised plans to cancel road building projects to pay for a funding boost for defence.

Keir Starmer announced that an extra £1.5 billion had been found for the Defence Investment Plan (DIP).

Energy and transport projects will be axed in order to fund the extra spending, which will see the defence budget increase to £80bn a year by 2029.

That decision has angered Hamish Falconer, the minister for the Middle East and North Africa, who is seen as a loyalist within the Starmer government.

The Lincoln MP said: “I am disappointed by the uncertainty today about the A46 Newark Bypass widening scheme.

“I support further funding for the DIP, but the A46 upgrade programme is well-advanced, long-awaited, excellent value for money and of strategic importance to both Lincoln and the region.

“Following the Labour Party leadership contest, I will be seeking an urgent meeting with the incoming prime minister, incoming chancellor and incoming secretary of state for transport to discuss this decision and explore whether there is a credible route forward for this vital project.

“I will continue to make the strongest possible case for the investment that both Lincoln and the wider region need and deserve.”

Overall, Starmer said the DIP will provide an extra £15 billion for defence by the end of the decade.

That is £1.5bn more than the amount John Healey was promised, prompting him to resign as defence secretary earlier this month.

But it is still well short of the £28bn that defence chiefs say is needed to meet the needs of Britain’s armed forces.

Starmer has been under pressure to explain how the UK will increase defence spending amid growing international threats, particularly from Russia.

The general secretary of TSSA union, Maryam Eslamdoust, also warned about the consequences of cutting transport projects to fund defence.

She said: “It is because of decisions like this that Keir Starmer’s premiership came to an end.

“At a time when Britain is crying out for investment in our economy, infrastructure and communities, it is alarming that the prime minister appears willing to abandon much-needed transport and road projects in order to arm Britain to the teeth.

“Instead of backing the domestic investment that will drive growth, create jobs, and improve living standards, taxpayers’ money is being diverted away from Britain’s priorities.

“The prime minister must not use his final days in office to quietly shelve vital infrastructure improvements and must urgently clarify exactly what this extra defence spending will mean for transport and other essential public services.”

Healey weighed in on the new defence investment plan too, saying on X that he “welcomes the extra funding” from the Treasury.

But he noted the DIP must also help grow British industry with new jobs, and “provide the British leadership alies are looking for”.

He added: “The world has changed. Threats have increased. Demands on defence have risen. The PM has made important new UK commitments. So we must now do more.”

“Today is the next downpayment for defence. It builds on the record defence investment Labour in government has already made. But Britain will still be spending just 2.7% of GDP in 2030, the date when Nato has warned we could face a Russian attack,” he said.

“European security is at stake. The PM has said today that 3% must be the number 1 priority for the next spending review. We need a target date for 3% and a clear, credible funding plan to meet our Nato commitment for 3.5% on defence by 2035.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Meta’s messaging app WhatsApp is about to introduce usernames, which will allow users to connect without needing each other’s numbers.

The company has said this is “a major privacy feature”, describing sharing your number with someone as a “big step”.

It’ll work for group conversations and one-on-one chats alike.

And Meta added that you’ll probably want to reserve your username sometime soon.

You’ll still need a phone number to sign up to WhatsApp. But when usernames are introduced in your area, you’ll no longer have to give that number to somebody in order for them to reach you on the platform.

Instead, you can give them your username. This isn’t the same as your social media handle, though, Meta said.

That’s partly because no other suggestions will appear when someone types in a username.

Like your number, they’ll have to get every character of your unique username correct in order to reach you on WhatsApp. Your name won’t auto-fill in a list of suggestions if they almost get it right, as can happen on a site like Instagram.

“For most people, choosing a WhatsApp username should be something unique that only people you want to contact you will know. If you need help picking one, we have a username generator to make one work just for you,” the information page reads.

If you’ve enabled your username and you choose to message someone, your number won’t appear in the chat, as it does currently.

Names will be limited to 35 characters. They can’t be made up only of numbers or contain “restricted words or phrases”.

Some usernames are already reserved for businesses, governments, or public figures.

If you’re a business or public-facing creator or organisation, you’ll be able to reserve your Facebook or Instagram username for WhatsApp.

• Tap the three dots in your WhatsApp profile > settings
• Tap the area around your profile photo
• Select ‘create username’
• Tap ‘use Instagram username’ or ‘use Facebook username’
• Follow the prompts to add your accounts to the same Accounts Centre.

Reserving a username isn’t currently possible on WhatsApp Web.

To reserve a username on your personal phone, you’ll need the latest version of the app. The option to reserve usernames should roll out this week.

You can do this by taking the following steps:

• Tap the three dots in your WhatsApp profile > settings
• Tap your profile photo
• Select reserve username > create username
• Enter the username you want
• Select save > done.

“If you are reserving a username, your username will become active when the feature launches in your region. You will receive a notification when your username is ready to use,” Meta added.

“Usernames on WhatsApp are rolling out gradually over the next few months and might not be available to you yet,” Meta said.

You’ll be notified when your username is activated.

The company has told people to “make sure you have the latest version of WhatsApp downloaded and keep an eye on your app”.

Zoe Ball has announced she’s making a return to the airwaves after stepping down from her BBC Radio 2 show last year.

In December 2025, Zoe announced she was leaving her Saturday afternoon slot on Radio 2, which she took up after leaving the station’s flagship breakfast show so she could spend more time with her family.

“Spending Saturday lunchtimes with the Radio 2 gang has been an absolute hoot,” she said at the time, saying she’ll miss “the listeners, the stories, and of course my weekly giggles with Romesh [Ranganathan] and Rylan [Clark]”.

Zoe added that she was “over the moon for the fabulous Emma [Willis] to take the reins” describing her successor as “pure sunshine”, while the BBC added that Zoe would “continue to host specials” on Radio 2, “as she has done throughout 2025”.

However, on Tuesday, it was revealed that Zoe would be picking up a new weekday afternoon show on Greatest Hits Radio, which is already the home of her former Radio 2 colleagues Simon Mayo and Ken Bruce.

“There’s something truly special about radio – the relationship you build with listeners, the energy, the music and the moments of joy and laughter you share together,” she enthused.

“I’ve missed it and this felt like the right time to begin a new chapter with Greatest Hits Radio.”

Zoe’s latest venture has been announced just weeks after she made no secret of her disappointment at not landing the role as one of Strictly Come Dancing’s new hosts.

Speaking on her podcast Dig It, she said: “I didn’t get it. But it’s OK! I have worked through the seven stages of grief and rejection over the last couple of days.

“I didn’t get it, but I tell you what, if who I think has got it, we’re in safe hands and our new hosts are going to be fabulous.”

Shortly afterwards, it was revealed that Emma Willis would be taking over at the helm of Strictly alongside professional dancer Johannes Radebe and comedian Josh Widdicombe.

You might have been disappointed to hear that Jesse Eisenberg won’t reprise his role as Mark Zuckerberg in the upcoming sequel to The Social Network (director Aaron Sorkin certainly seems to have been).

Sorkin previously told Vanity Fair that Jesse “simply did not want to be conflated with Mark Zuckerberg anymore, that he has his problems with the guy.

“He doesn’t like kids coming up to him in airports with business cards that say ‘I’m CEO, bitch’ for him to sign.”

In a new interview with Variety from Sunday, 18 June, Jesse gave his side of the story.

Eisenberg, who received an Oscar nomination in 2011 for his depiction of the Meta CEO in the first movie, said at the premiere of Minions & Monsters that he’d had conversations with Sorkin about coming back.

“We talked about doing the movie for several days. The way [director Aaron Sorkin] speaks, he speaks so wonderfully, as he writes that, in a way, if you’re not going to do something with him, it feels almost like you’re letting down America,” he told the publication.

“I just told him I’m moving in different directions in my life, and you know, what he said sums it up nicely. I don’t want to be associated with that character, but all of my reasons for not wanting to do the movie have nothing to do with how wonderful the movie is, and will be, and I’m sure is already.”

The director previously claimed he’d spent three days trying to win the actor back for The Social Reckoning, which follows the first movie.

It’s not the first time Jesse has spoken about his former character.

In 2025, he said he couldn’t “justify or defend” Mark Zuckerberg after the CEO made the decision to scrap the fact-checking system on Meta’s platforms.

Zuckerberg will be played by Succession’s Jeremy Strong in The Social Reckoning instead.

Its release date is 9 October, 2026. You can watch the trailer below.

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If there’s one thing I’m awful at doing (apart from laundry) it’s remembering to track my workouts. I got to the gym two to three times per week, but every time it simply slips my mind to write down what I’ve done.

It’s a trait I find myself endlessly ruminating over every time I remember, but obviously not enough to do anything about it.

That’s why, when I discovered Huawei had released a new fitness watch, I knew this could be my opportunity to change.

Now, I’ve tested fitness devices before, but none of them have ever quite worked for me.

I often find they prioritise active fitness over anything else, or gamify relaxing or sleeping so much that they end up having the opposite of the intended effect and stressing me out.

Fitness trackers also give me awful throwbacks to being scorned by the sternest of school sports teachers, which makes me avoidant and want to exercise even less.

And, I’m sorry, but I don’t need to know that I’ve not been sleeping enough for the whole week because I already know! I’m tired, godammit.

Considering the Huawei website promises that the Watch Fit 5 Pro blends style with ‘smart’, I had high hopes.

Although the watch comes in three colours: black, white, and orange, I went for the white because, well, it’s summer.

You can choose from a range of different coloured straps, including nylon and rubber options, but I went for a simple matchy matchy moment.

After all the boring stuff was out of the way, it was time to sync it with the Huawei Health app. You get three months of Huawei Health+ for free when you buy a watch, which gives you access to a range of workout masterclasses, personalised workout plans and nutritional analysis – or you can choose to stay on the free plan for fewer options.

Downloading the app also lets you customise your watch face – a feature I personally love because it means you can match your watchface to your outfit! I currently have mine on one with a spiky metallic silver heart on a black background to match my silver jewellery, but there are plenty of free and paid options available.

From the get go, it’ll ask for permissions to access your health data, including your heart rate, skin temperature, sleep data, and step count.

Once you’re all set up, you can completely personalise the kind of data you want your watch to give you – as well as other basic features you’d expect from a smart ring, like contactless payments, contact syncing so you can call or text, calendar syncing, timers, voice recording, and features.

Just like other fitness devices, the Fit 5 Pro tracks your essential health data and allows you to set goals for movement and nutrition.

Personally, I’m not bothered about setting nutrition goals because I kind of CBA, crucially, and also I find it makes me obsessive about my eating habits.

However, I do need help tracking my workouts. As someone who goes to the gym two to three times a week, I often forget just where I’m up to with my strength training.

Also – and this might just being a woman at the gym – I find myself doubting whether I’m doing something right.

One thing about the Fit 5 Pro I love is that you can start a fitness training programme to help you keep on track, whether that’s running, golfing, strength training, yoga or pilates.

You’ll also have access to classes with personal trainers so you can check your form. or the watch can be connected with third-party apps like Fiit, Komoot, and URUNN, depending on the kind of exercise you enjoy.

The only downside of this is you’ll need to remember to turn the volume on your watch down, so it doesn’t blast your business to everyone in a five-mile vicinity (read: it’s loud).

If you’re already a pro or prefer to wing it, the watch lets you track any kind of workout you could possibly think of so you can keep an eye on your training times. There is truly an option for everything, down to the nichest of sports – think: belly dancing, hula hoop, bobsleigh, bungee jumping.

But for some of the more popular options like cycling (which I can’t say I do on the reg) it it loaded with state-of-the-art tracking that stops recording when you stop at a traffic light, or draws a custom run route in the shape of a lion (or trophy cup) to keep things interesting.

But it’s not just exercise the watch keeps track of – it also prioritises living a holistically healthy life, which is what would make me more loyal to it in the long run.

As someone who exercises out of necessity, not for the love of the game, I’m not particularly interested in a watch or ring that bullies me into exercising five times a week – I more need something to keep me on track and to offer positive reinforcement throughout the day.

I’m yet to find a fitness tracker that does this better than Huawei. Rather than send me 50 alerts when I’ve not reached my step count, it sends a few notifications to encourage me to keep moving throughout my day.

Plus, there’s even an option for a ‘mini workout’ where an adorable little panda leads you through a series of quick stretches and standing exercises to remind you to step away from your screen every now and again.

I get quite severe eye strain, and also work probably way too much, so this is a welcome feature to keep me grounded.

It doesn’t stop there, though: you can also listen to focus white noise music through the Huawei app, or ask it to run a quick meditation or breathing exercise with you.

One of my favourite features is that the watch tracks your mood throughout the day; while I have absolutely no idea what it bases this information off, it always makes me laugh when I look at the watch face and it tells me I’m in a ‘pleasant’ (or even ‘unpleasant’) mood. Because… thanks?

Of course, it’ll also track your sleep, including your breathing stability, how much deep sleep you get compared to light sleep, and you can listen to sleep music through the app.

Honestly, though, I’ve been sleeping better than ever now that the watch prompts me to walk that little bit extra.

It’ll even prompt you to be social: you can create groups with other Huawei watch users to hold yourself accountable, or share your statistics on social media.

• Looks at your health more holistically than any other fitness tracker I’ve tried
• Can sync to third party apps to deepen your training, and the Huawei app gives you a free trial to most of them
• As customisable as you could like
• The charge lasts for 10 days
• It’s easy to set up
• I love that it doesn’t pester you
• The mini workout feature is really impressive
• Easy to use interface
• It’s social

• The volume is quite loud
• I wish the watch face was *slightly* less chunky
• There are sooo many features it can be overwhelming

Overall, this is the best fitness device I’ve tried. I don’t feel as though I’m being pestered by a perniciously petulant personal trainer who wants me to be the skinniest mini in the room.

Instead, the Huawei Fit 5 Pro encourages you to keep an eye on your holistic health, and encourages you rather than berates you when you’re behind on your goals.

There are no red marks or angry notifications telling you off, and there is plenty built into the app to teach you how to have a healthier lifestyle, whether that’s by exercising, winding down before bed, or taking a break from your desk in the middle of the day.

The fact the interface is easy to use and customisable means it would be suitable for anyone, from a 50+ year old, to a teenager. The price point is reasonable for what it is and, best of all, the charge lasts for up to 10 days, so you really never have to take it off (apart from when you’re having a bath or shower).

I’d recommend this to anyone, from those who are simply trying to level up their lifestyle and be more health-conscious, to hardcore cyclists and athletes.

Singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams has weighed in on the ongoing discourse around Hollywood’s so-called “nepo babies”.

Debates about nepotism in the entertainment industry are nothing new, but the conversation has become much more prominent in the 2020s, thanks in part to a piece in New York magazine about the new generation of A-listers whose parents are already established figures in the entertainment industry.

The “nepo baby” label is one that has repeatedly been levelled against Gracie since her emergence on the pop scene, as her dad is Star Wars filmmaker JJ Abrams.

During a recent appearance on the New York Times’ Popcast, Gracie shared her take on the subject, admitting she thinks it’s “appropriate” that people are aware of the privilege she grew up around.

“The nepo stuff is obviously in the discourse appropriately,” she claimed. “I think about the privilege there and… it’s like, I had a safety net, and that allowed me the ability to experiment and to concentrate.”

She continued: “I had the gift of time to dedicate to doing this thing I loved. I wasn’t growing up afraid financially, and that’s the biggest deal.”

Gracie’s major breakthrough came in 2024 when her album The Secret Of Us spawned international hits like Close To You and That’s So True.

She also served as the opening act on Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, collaborating with the Grammy winner on the album cut Us.

Outside of her music career, Gracie has also made headlines thanks to her relationship with the Oscar-nominated actor Paul Mescal, with the pair hard-launching their romance at the Baftas earlier this year.

Discussing her relationship during her latest interview, Gracie claimed that being with Paul was “a part of my life that brings me so much peace and joy”.

“I’m not going to pretend like that’s not true, but I also think it’s not like an open-door policy,” she said of the media attention the two have received since they began dating.

Speaking to HuffPost UK previously, etiquette expert and author William Hanson, who paired with Hotels.com to create a Grand Etiquette Hotel guide, shared the worst way to treat hotel staff.

“The height of rudeness is treating staff as though they are invisible, or worse, beneath you,” he shared with us.

“Snapping fingers, avoiding eye contact, or issuing demands without a ‘please’ or ‘thank you’ is quite beyond the pale”.

Hanson explained that includes leaving your room in a “reasonable” state for cleaning staff when you finish your stay. But what’s the etiquette when you’re still in there?

Here, we asked him whether we should vacate the area when it’s due a clean.

The etiquette expert’s answer was pretty definitive: “You should vacate the room while it is being serviced. It is simply more considerate”.

He added, “Most housekeepers will wait until you are out and will always knock and announce themselves first.

“If you are inside and would like the room cleaned, answer promptly, greet
them politely, and make your exit. Linger not.”

And, Hanson stressed, it’s important to leave your room in decent nick throughout your stay, rather than just rushing through it at the end.

“As I note in Rule Five of my Grand Etiquette Hotel Guide… ‘Housekeeping Is Not an Archaeological Activity.’ They are there to clean, not excavate,” he stated.

Yes – Hanson has a “golden rule” when it comes to hotel staff.

“If you wouldn’t speak that way to a colleague, don’t do so in a hotel simply because you are paying to be there. Good manners, one finds, are often quietly rewarded,” he said.

A hotel etiquette study commissioned by Hotels.com found that 90% of Brits think our hotel manners are pretty perfect.

But the same research also found that over a third of us have tried to sneak in an extra guest after booking, and about the same amount say they’ve snuck out breakfast buffet food to eat later.