Today in Focus

The inflation rate keeps going up – and some economists are warning that it’s time to take urgent action. So what is causing the change, what does it mean for ordinary people, and what’s the best way to deal with it?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

At least 27 people died when their boat sank in the Channel attempting to reach the UK. Diane Taylor reports on a tragedy that was long in the making – and avoidable. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

The Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai vanished after making an allegation of sexual assault against a senior political figure. Her subsequent reappearance has raised more questions than answers. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

When the television presenter Melanie Sykes and the model Christine McGuinness revealed they had been diagnosed with autism as adults, it brought new attention to the challenges for others like them whose symptoms have been missed. This is the story of one autistic woman - and how diagnosis in her thirties changed her life. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Qatar says it has reformed conditions for workers building its World Cup facilities, but change is hard to see on the ground, reports Pete Pattisson. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

As Hillary Clinton’s most trusted aide, it was her job to stay out of view. Even when her husband Anthony Weiner’s scandalous behaviour dragged her into the spotlight, she mostly stayed silent. In this interview, Huma Abedin explains why she is ready to tell her own story, in a new memoir that sheds remarkable light on what it cost her to become a public figure against her will. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

As the days get shorter and we huddle indoors, memories of 2020’s catastrophic winter are close at hand. Now a new surge of coronavirus cases is spreading across Europe. But as well as notes of caution, there are good reasons to hope that the UK will avoid the lows of last year – from lower hospitalisation rates to exciting treatments on the verge of approval. How optimistic should we be – and can we still go to Christmas parties?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

How the humanitarian crisis playing out on the border of Poland and Belarus became the latest front in the battle between President Lukashenko and the European Union. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Trump’s attempt to overturn the result of the 2020 US election was ultimately thwarted, but through efforts at state level to elect loyalists to key positions, the stage is set for a repeat showing in 2024. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

When Azeem Rafiq went public with the claim that he had faced a series of racist incidents throughout his time at Yorkshire cricket club, the incidents he described were written off as ‘banter’. But that defence has crumbled – and now he is ready to give evidence to MPs. What will he reveal about his experiences of bigotry in cricket?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Environment correspondent Fiona Harvey describes a global climate deal that makes some progress but goes nowhere near far enough to avert devastating global heating. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

If you dial 999, you might expect an ambulance to come in minutes – but in reality, the pandemic has pushed an already creaking service to its limits. This is the story of one shift, and how the people charged with saving our lives are navigating a system on the brink of collapse. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

During the second world war, Chinese sailors served alongside their British allies in the merchant navy, heroically keeping supply lines open to the UK. But after the war hundreds of them who had settled in Liverpool suddenly disappeared. Now their children are piecing together the truth. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

The model views her body as a ‘tool’ to make a living – but ever since 2013’s Blurred Lines video, it has also been treated as public property. In this interview, she explains why she has written a book about her experiences, from an allegation of assault by Robin Thicke to how motherhood has changed her. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Following the resignation of the former Conservative minister Owen Paterson, MPs have been debating changes to their disciplinary procedures and the government has been forced to defend itself against a number of allegations of ‘sleaze’. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Adelaide United’s Josh Cavallo says the response to his recent coming out as gay has been overwhelming. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

At the UN climate summit in Glasgow, global environment editor Jonathan Watts examines the emissions-cutting pledges from world leaders as time runs out to prevent catastrophic global heating. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Mark Zuckerberg changed Facebook’s name to Meta last week – and launched a vision for his company that he claims will transform the way we interact with the internet and each other. So what exactly is the metaverse? And will it ever leave the realm of science fiction?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

With a record number of Chinese fighters flying sorties over Taiwan in October, and rhetoric on all sides becoming more heated, many observers say the past few weeks have been the most tense in the region for decades. How serious is the prospect of an attempt by Beijing to take back the island that it has claimed since 1949 – and would an attack draw the US into a major international conflict?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Ridhima Pandey in India, Iris Duquesne in Canada and Raina Ivanova in Germany tell Michael Safi about their attempts to force their political leaders to change course on tackling the climate crisis. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

The majority of those dying of Covid-19 in the UK and the US are have not been vaccinated. Bereaved relatives are telling their stories to try to convince others to get their jabs. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

On the eve of Cop26, Mohamed Nasheed, the former president of the Maldives, argues that if countries do not get serious about reducing emissions, it will not be just the Maldives that faces a perilous future. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

A flurry of reports of students who fear they have been targeted in nightclubs has prompted social media outrage. Now the young women behind the Girls Night In campaign want to turn that anger into lasting change. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

He has risen smoothly from private schooling to Oxford, the City, and then parliament – and now he is a youthful and popular chancellor who many believe will be the next prime minister. How has Rishi Sunak managed it – and does the budget that will set the terms of the UK’s exit from the pandemic pose the biggest threat yet to his Teflon reputation?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

When anti-racism activist Lowri Davies got a call from a covert officer in Swansea, she played along. But she was recording the conversation – and what she learned sheds new light on how progressive movements are monitored by the state. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

It’s the phrase that will be on every world leader’s lips at the Cop26 summit – and it summarises the ambitious plan that will be central to efforts to limit the ravages of the climate crisis. So what is net zero? What kind of world could it create? And what needs to happen to to make it a reality?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

The Netflix hit is as fantastical as it is violent – but underpinning its macabre story of impoverished contestants risking their lives for money is a real crisis of personal debt in Korea. Why has it resonated all over the world?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

The government is demanding that GPs see more patients face-to-face in return for an injection of extra funding, but many in the profession say the pandemic has left them close to breaking point. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

The world is heating up at an alarming rate and world leaders are running out of chances to keep temperature rises below 1.5C, says Jonathan Watts. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

The shocking killing of the Conservative MP David Amess has been described as an attack on British democracy. Gaby Hinsliff looks at how politicians are responding. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

For Black History Month we’ve brought together star authors Ben Okri, Candice Carty-Williams and Caleb Azumah Nelson to discuss the past, present and future of black writing. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

After Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund bought Newcastle United, there was jubilation on Tyneside but revulsion among critics who view the deal as an egregious example of sportswashing. What does the deal tell us about the soul of the beautiful game – and what football clubs mean to their fans?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Ever since the order to work from home was lifted, workers in England have been heading back to the office – but mostly only a few days a week. Joanna Partridge looks at whether work will ever be the same again. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

A parliamentary report says the initial handling of the coronavirus outbreak was one of the worst public health failures in UK history. Could tens of thousands of deaths have been avoided – and what are the lessons for the future?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

A high court judge has ruled that Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum hacked the phone of his ex-wife Princess Haya using Pegasus spyware. In this episode we look at the implications of the affair. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Three weeks from today leaders will gather in Glasgow for the Cop26 climate summit. But will their individual pledges to reduce emissions carry enough weight to avert the growing threat of catastrophic global heating?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

After a set of leaks last month that represented the most damaging insight into Facebook’s inner workings in the company’s history, the former employee behind them has come forward. Now Frances Haugen has given evidence to the US Congress – and been praised by senators as a ‘21st century American hero’. Will her testimony accelerate efforts to bring the social media giant to heel?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

In the aftermath of the sentencing of Sarah Everard’s killer, women’s trust in the police has collapsed. Can anything be done to restore it? Is misogyny endemic in British policing? And is there a risk that such an appalling crime could happen again?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

With queues outside petrol stations and claims that selfish punters are using jerry cans to stockpile fuel, one word has become synonymous with the supply chain crisis that has hit the UK in recent weeks: panic. But the social psychologist Clifford Stott says something different is going on. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Fresh questions for the Conservative party today after it emerged one of its major donors was involved in structuring of a telecoms deal later alleged to be corrupt Pandora papers news and reaction – live updates See all of our Pandora papers coverage. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus