Closing post
Time to wrap up, so here are today’s main stories so far:
British households have been warned there could be a lack of home grown leeks, with supplies likely to run out by the end of April.
Turnips may be running out too, after environment secretary Thérèse Coffey said yesterday people should cherish the UK’s food specialisms. Disappointed shoppers have struggled to find the root vegetable at some online supermarkets today.
The shortage of some fruit and vegetables could last until May, producers in one of the UK’s biggest growing regions have told the BBC.
UK shoppers have been hit by increased shortages of food in the shops this month, new data from the Office for National Statistics shows.
And UK households who rely on supermarket value ranges are being hit the hardest by the cost of living squeeze, after grocers hiked their prices sharply.
Elsewhere…
Members of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) have voted to accept offers by train companies in the long-running dispute over pay, job security and conditions, the union has announced.
Back in the currency markets, the Russian rouble has hit a 10-month low against the US dollar.
The Russian currency has dropped ove 1% to 76 rouble to the dollar, the weakest level since last April.
It dropped as the US marked the first anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by announcing new sanctions on Russian banks,suppliers of defence equipment, and entities in the Russian metals and mining sector.
At the start of 2022, the rouble traded at around 75 to the dollar, before slumping to 120/$1 when the first wave of sanctions were announced.
