The Know Daily - Wednesday 24 June 2026

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Grocery shopping just got a little easier for thousands of families in Portland, USA, where a new free food market has opened its doors. Set up to help more than 100,000 households over the next year, the market offers fresh food and other daily essentials in a welcoming supermarket-style setting. It's a heartwarming initiative that will help more people put fresh, healthy food on the table while bringing a little extra support to the community.

🏡 Cohabiting rights

Millions of unmarried couples who live together could gain stronger legal protections under new government plans, after ministers launched a consultation in England and Wales for family law to better reflect modern relationships.

OK, what are my current rights?
Many people are surprised to learn that there is no such thing as a "common law marriage" in England and Wales. Living together for a long time does not automatically give couples the same legal protections as marriage. If a cohabiting couple separates, assets are generally treated according to ownership rather than the relationship itself. And, as The Telegraph reports, if one partner dies without a will, the surviving partner currently has no automatic right to inherit.

So what could change?
The government is considering giving eligible cohabiting couples stronger legal protections if a relationship ends or if one partner dies without a will. This could include allowing surviving partners to inherit under intestacy rules (the laws that decide who inherits when someone dies without a will), which currently apply to married couples and civil partners. The consultation is also part of a broader review of family protections. As highlighted by The Guardian, separate housing reforms could make it easier for social landlords to remove perpetrators of domestic abuse from a property and allow courts to transfer a joint tenancy into the victim's sole name, helping ensure they are not the one forced to leave their home.

Who would qualify?
Under the proposals, couples would likely need to have lived together for at least three years or have a child together. Courts would also need to be satisfied that they are in what the government describes as an "enduring family relationship". Supporters say the reforms would bring legal protections more in line with the reality of modern family life, particularly for women who can be left financially vulnerable after a separation or bereavement.

So what happens next?
Nothing is changing just yet. The consultation is open to the public and professionals for comment until August, after which the government will decide whether to bring forward legislation. If adopted, the reforms could affect millions of people, with cohabiting couples now making up one of the fastest-growing family types in the UK, and would represent one of the most significant updates to family law in recent years.

🇪🇺 Three in five Gen Z Brits say they would vote to rejoin the EU if given the chance, according to new polling.

• The bigger story: The research, carried out by More in Common, suggests a strong generational divide in attitudes towards Brexit, with 60% of 18 to 28-year-olds saying they would back rejoining the bloc compared with just 9% who would prefer to stay out. Among those likely to vote in a future referendum, support for rejoining rises to 81%. The findings add to growing debate about the long-term direction of UK-EU relations, with half of respondents describing Brexit as a failure. However, the data also shows younger voters are split on whether Brexit was fundamentally flawed or simply poorly implemented.

💊 The world’s first drug that can delay the onset of type 1 diabetes is to be made available on the NHS in what’s been described as the biggest breakthrough in tackling the disease in over a century.

⚽ England drew 0-0 with Ghana at the World Cup last night, while Scotland face Brazil later today, with both home nations hoping to secure their places in the last 32.

🗽 New Yorkers have voted in a series of closely watched primaries that could help determine control of Congress and offer an early sign of whether the Democratic Party is shifting in a more progressive direction.

🪭 The hottest June day on record was recorded in the UK yesterday – here are eight handy tips to sleep better during the steamy weather. 

🪸 Sunflower sea stars that were once thought to have been lost to disease have been found in waters off Northern California.

✈️ A seaplane is now available to transport holidaymakers between these two Mediterranean countries for the first time.

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Trivia answer: C) According to Airbnb's report, travellers are choosing short-haul domestic escapes designed around this trend.

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