The chairman of the Environment Agency, Lord Smith, is expected to back the expansion of the controversial "fracking" method of extracting natural gas from shale rock.

The horse was first domesticated 6,000 years ago on the grasslands of the Ukraine, southwest Russia and west Kazakhstan, genetic evidence suggests.

A lack of exposure to a "natural environment" could be resulting in more urban dwellers developing allergies and asthma, research suggests.

The scientific maverick James Lovelock says climate catastrophe is not so certain as he previously suggested.

The highest-generating onshore wind farm in England and Wales is given the go-ahead for development in south Wales.