Ferret Underground: Itchy

Hi ,

It's the iconic centre of British politics, where prime ministers take decisions which impact the history of the country.

Downing Street is an ever-present feature on our news screens, in recent years usually when someone is resigning.

So it will come as a shock to many to find out one of the apartments used by an ex-prime minister (one of those resignees) was apparently infested with fleas.

Former PM Liz Truss' new book reveals she "spent several weeks itching" when she moved into the flat at number 11 Downing Street in 2022.

When new chancellor Jeremy Hunt took over the flat from Truss, he changed the carpets to remove the unwanted fleas, which seemingly survived longer in Downing Street than Truss herself.

Luckily for you, The Ferret is here to stay. This is what we've been up to this week.

A Scottish investment giant upped its shares in a host of US fossil fuel firms last year, while also claiming millions of taxpayer money for a carbon offsetting scheme to plant trees in the Highlands.

Analysis by The Ferret found that Edinburgh firm, Abrdn, increased the amount of US shares it owned in 33 coal, oil and gas firms between the end of 2022 and the end of 2023.

The value of its US shares in these companies increased by nearly £234m last year.

Abrdn also became a new shareholder in three companies drilling for oil in Texas in 2023, purchasing over£44m of their shares.