Swift leads with 1.6m vinyl sales of The Life of a Showgirl in 2025 while Sabrina Carpenter and Kendrick Lamar round out the LP charts

For the first time in over four decades, US vinyl sales have topped $1bn in annual revenue.

Vinyl purchases reached $1.04bn in 2025, per a new report by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) published on 16 March. It marks the 19th consecutive year of growth for the format that was once considered a niche interest.

Perhaps you are limiting car journeys or reducing the amount of cooking you do. Tell us

The conflict in the Middle East has disrupted global shipping routes and caused a surge in global oil market prices.

The strait of Hormuz, one of the most important waterways in the world, through which about a fifth of international oil supplies usually travel, has been all but closed since the start of the US-Israel war on Iran.

The answers to today’s problems

Earlier today I posed four puzzles from the Hyde Park Math Zine, a maths fanzine from Austin, Texas. Here they are again with solutions.

1. Ring it

Readers respond to articles by Zoe Williams and Clive Lewis about the party’s popularity crisis

Zoe Williams’s conjecture that pragmatism might be the solution to Labour’s polling woes is surely a triumph of hope over experience. ( There is no denying Labour is in crisis – but in a strange way, Keir Starmer is equipped to save it, 12 March ). Disavowal of ideology in favour of pragmatism is the precise cause of the apparent aimlessness and inability to convey Labour’s mission that she describes, compounded by unforced policy errors, U-turns and poor judgment. Labour members may well be discussing whether Keir Starmer should be tacking more to the left, but the underlying question remains whether he is the right person to lead a party that needs, as she says, a complete step change in orientation in the new multiparty environment.

Unlike Andy Burnham, for example, he has shown no interest in either proportional representation or cross-party collaboration to defeat the far right. The future of both the party and country are more important than the fate of any individual leader. With electoral disaster forecast for May, Labour MPs are increasingly likely to be considering that the best medicine for the party’s current malaise might be Starmer replacement therapy.
Dr Anthony Isaacs
London

Melissa Hayhurst says the government should ensure children are getting the support they need instead of attacking the lawyers helping parents

The claim by the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, that lawyers are “exploiting” parents of children with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) is not only wrong, it is deeply insulting to the thousands of families who are forced to rely on legal advice simply to secure the support their children are already entitled to under the law ( Report, 13 March ).

I am one of those parents. My daughter Jessica has complex needs and is unable to speak or communicate. Like many families across the country, we depend on the legal protections within the Send framework to ensure that she receives the education, care and support she requires.

Sue Morgan of SongBird Survival warns of dangers such as fur left out for nesting birds by well-meaning pet owners

I was pleased to read Stephen Moss’s account of blue tits starting to sing in his garden as they gear up for nesting season ( Birdwatch: Blue tits are feisty and fascinating but often taken for granted, 11 March ). But while blue tits remain a familiar sight, they, along with many other garden birds, now face a growing number of hidden threats in the very place we imagine them to be safest: our gardens.

Scientific research funded by SongBird Survival has shown how everyday gardening choices can have serious consequences. Around a third of UK gardeners use pesticides, and our studies found that house sparrow numbers, for example, were nearly 40% lower in gardens where the pesticide metaldehyde was used.

Baby lies | Fuel price fairness | Gut feelings | Fifa fiasco | Human connection | Cooking instructions

When gently asked about a pen scribble in a picture book “Goodness, I wonder who did that?”, 27-month-old Emily confidently retorted “Nancy!” – our miniature dachshund ( Little liars: babies younger than one practise deceit, study suggests, 16 March ).
Dianne Ball
Nottingham

• The government’s fuel duty is set, but the VAT element is a percentage of the retail price. Reducing VAT, perhaps to zero, could be a way to show an intent for fuel price “fairness” and avoid accusations that the government is profiteering, as it is suggesting that others might be ( Watchdog puts UK fuel retailers ‘on notice’ over profiteering from Iran war, 12 March ).
Mic Porter
Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear

Donald Trump is pressuring European allies to protect the strait of Hormuz, warning that Nato faces a ‘very bad’ future if members fail to offer assistance.

The strait of Hormuz is one of the most important shipping routes in the world. A fifth of international oil supplies pass through the waterway, which has been disrupted since the start of the war.

Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian’s south Asia correspondent, Hannah Ellis-Petersen – watch on YouTube

Even Belgium’s foreign minister says Bart De Wever’s suggestion would give Putin ‘exactly what he wants’

Belgium’s prime minister, Bart De Wever, has been criticised for calling for the normalisation of relations with Russia to re-establish cheap energy supplies.

The Flemish nationalist leader’s judgement was questioned in Belgium and beyond after he said on Saturday that the EU needed to make a deal with Russia. “We are losing on all fronts, we must end the conflict in Europe’s interest,” he told the Belgian newspaper L’Echo .