LATEST NEWS

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's approval rating fell to 49.1%, below 50% for the first time since she took office last October, in a Kyodo poll conducted October 17-18, with 57.7% saying her replacement of farm minister Kazuo Yana came too late. Alex and Jordan unpack how Yana's road-funding gaffe dragged down Japan's first female prime minister — and why response speed is now the story.

Pope Leo XIV made his first major public appearance since October 13 lung cancer surgery, leading the Sunday Angelus from the Apostolic Palace balcony before about 15,000 people in St. Peter's Square, a day after his discharge from Rome's Gemelli hospital. Alex and Jordan cover the pontiff's message of closeness to the ill, the strong voice that greeted the crowd, and why doctors see no reason to cancel his November 6-17 Latin America trip.

France woke on Sunday to the wreckage of one of its most violent days of unrest in years, after protests over high prices and public services left one demonstrator dead, more than 500 police injured and nearly 1,800 people arrested, with over half a million marching nationwide. Alex and Jordan cover the record 855 arrests in Paris, the torched 143-year-old Limoges city hall, Macron's prosecution vow, and what it means six months before the presidential election.

The European Union 'strongly condemns' attacks by violent Israeli settlers in the West Bank, including against European diplomats attacked near Taybeh on Saturday, as US diplomats including Riley Barnes and Ambassador Brian Burch visited the town's Latin Convent church on Sunday. Alex and Jordan trace how the attacks on diplomats, a French mayor, Palestinian civilians and a Washington Post photojournalist turned a local crisis into a diplomatic one.

Labour is planning a fresh ban on supermarket deals for items deemed 'less healthy' that could push up prices of cereals, yoghurts and lunchbox favourites by as much as 65%, with a Quaker porridge multipack at Asda jumping from 3 for £6 to £11.25. Alex and Jordan dig into the shopping-basket math, the backlash from economists and Reform UK, and why the 'cost of living government' faces its first big test ahead of next week's Budget.

A key UK minister said Prime Minister Andy Burnham's government disagrees with Donald Trump's approach to sanctions on Russia, after Trump waived tariffs linked to Russian energy exports on Friday and claimed a diesel supply deal with Vladimir Putin. Alex and Jordan unpack the allies' growing divergence over Ukraine — and how fuel-price politics sixteen days from the US midterms is driving the White House timeline.

Health Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg she has asked NHS England for urgent plans to eliminate corridor care for children as a priority, after the parents of Finlay Roberts — a two-year-old who died in 2024 after his final hours in a crowded A&E corridor — spoke on the programme. Alex and Jordan cover the on-camera apology, the £140m urgent-care announcement, and why the Royal College of Nursing calls it 'just another sticking plaster'.

ALCS Game 5 was played Sunday at Progressive Field with the series tied 2-2, and at press time the Tampa Bay Rays led the Cleveland Guardians 3-1 entering the seventh inning, with rookie starter Parker Messick faltering after crossing the 200-inning mark. Alex and Jordan break down the swing game live — the rookie's workload wall, Tampa's 9-1 hitting edge, and why the Game 5 winner stands one win from facing the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series.

71% of Americans believe they will not receive the $5,000 dividend Donald Trump pledged at the GOP's midterm convention in Dallas, with experts estimating the plan would cost $1.2 trillion and require Congress's approval, while even Republicans like Ron DeSantis and Susan Collins push back. Alex and Jordan break down the brutal poll math, the $1.2 trillion price tag, and why a promise almost nobody believes may be the most telling number of the midterm season.

President Trump's approval rating fell to 33% in a Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll released Sunday, his lowest mark in the outlets' polling, with 66% disapproving and independents at a record-low 22%. Alex and Jordan break down the numbers, the cost-of-living crisis driving them, and what sixteen days before the midterms looks like.