5 top UK news stories today (3 March 2026)

Here’s your UK news roundup for Tuesday (3 March 2026):

Rachel Reeves’s plans could be hit by the Middle East conflict

Soaring global energy prices as a result of the widening Middle East conflict will jeopardise Rachel Reeves’s plan to conquer inflation and rekindle growth, economists have warned as she prepares to deliver her spring forecast later today. Responding to the latest projections from the independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), the chancellor will insist she has ‘the right economic plan for our country, in a world that has become more uncertain’. The new forecasts are expected to show the public finances moving in the right direction, with the £22 billion fiscal buffer she left herself against her fiscal rules in the November budget little changed. [Guardian]

Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33 million deal

Hundreds of people have been made redundant and dozens of bars have closed after craft beer firm Brewdog went into administration. US beverage and medical cannabis company Tilray has bought the company’s UK brewing operations, brand and 11 pubs in a £33m deal. Administrators said the sale had preserved 733 jobs – but that 484 jobs had been lost and 38 bars had closed after they were not included in the rescue deal. And they said no equity holders – including those who invested in the brewer’s Equity for Punks scheme – would get any return from the deal. [BBC]

Greens close gap with Labour in polls

The Greens are now biting at the heels of the Labour Party in national polling after its candidate Hannah Spencer stormed to a historic by-election win in Gorton and Denton last week. The latest City AM/Freshwater Strategy poll puts the Greens on 15 per cent, with Labour ahead of them by three points, a smaller margin than previously recorded by pollsters. Compared to the time of the General Election, it would represent an eight-point increase for the Green Party and a collapse of 17 points for Labour. Reform UK topped the polls on 30% of the voter share, the Conservatives were level with Labour on 18% and the Liberal Democrats trailed the Green Party on 13%. The numbers reflect the seismic shift in UK politics over recent months, with the by-election in suburban Manchester last week being the first where neither Labour or the Tories finished in the top two spots. [CityAM]

SpaceX lines up Starship launch next year as Elon Musk targets $1.5 trillion IPO

SpaceX expects to have its flagship Starship rocket ready to launch a new fleet of its Starlink satellites by the middle of next year, as the company prepares for a crucial test ahead of an initial public offering. Speaking at the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona, executives at Elon Musk’s rocket company gave the clearest timetable yet for the commercial debut of its next-generation rocket. Michael Nicolls, senior vice-president for Starlink at SpaceX, said that Starship would be ready in time to launch a new, upgraded constellation of Starlink’s mobile satellites in ‘mid-2027’. [Financial Times]