The British Council is preparing to shed hundreds of jobs and scale back operations across Europe as the fallout from Keir Starmer’s aid cuts collides with years of financial strain at one of the U.K.’s key soft power institutions. The Council, which is tasked with promoting British culture and education overseas, is grappling with the looming repayment of a government loan of almost £200 million dating back to the pandemic. In the midst of bruising negotiations with the Foreign Office, it has