内容摘要：A separate survey by the British Retail Consortium, which represents UK retailers ranging from Marks and Spencer to Tesco, suggested a "January spending squeeze on the horizon" for consumers.

A separate survey by the British Retail Consortium, which represents UK retailers ranging from Marks and Spencer to Tesco, suggested a "January spending squeeze on the horizon" for consumers.

They said there had been little recognition that reducing benefits like the Personal Independence Payment, which helps people keep their independence, had the potential to push up costs.Labour MP Diane Abbott said she would have liked to query the impact of the prime minister's proposed cuts to welfare but was told the meeting was full.

In a letter to Reeves, a dozen charities have argued there is "little evidence to suggest cutting benefits increases employment outcomes".The charities - including Disability Rights UK, Citizens Advice, Scope and Sense - urged her to "think again about cuts to disability benefits".They said: "There are disabled people out of work who want to work given the right support. And for some disabled people, work isn't appropriate.

"Changes to welfare must start here. Not with cuts."But ministers are worried about the surge in the number of people claiming benefits since the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost to the taxpayer.

As of January, 9.3 million people aged 16 to 64 in the UK were economically inactive - a rise of 713,000 since the pandemic.

The Department of Work and Pensions says some 2.8 million people are economically inactive because of long-term sickness., when waste containing sodium cyanide flowed into the River Tisza, a tributary of the Danube, following a dam burst at a goldmine in Romania.

The accident killed about 80% of fish in the river and devastated local populations of birds and other animals.Sodium cyanide dissolves in water and can have serious adverse health effects if people or pets come into direct contact with it, the council advised.

Anyone exposed to the water who felt unwell should seek medical advice through the NHS 111 service or phone 999 in an emergency, a spokesperson for the authority added.People living on boats on the canal in the affected area were being made aware of the spill, the Canal and River Trust said.