Category Archives: UK news

After experts find ‘no medical evidence’ of murder, will Lucy Letby get a retrial?

Posted on by

Former nurse is serving 15 whole-life terms in prison yet an appeal is not guaranteed despite findings of expert panel

Despite 14 leading experts concluding there was “no medical evidence” that Lucy Letby murdered babies, there is no guarantee that her case will be sent back to the court of appeal – let alone quickly.

Letby’s fate now sits with the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), the miscarriage of justice body that has the power to refer convictions back for appeal, and what the outcome will be remains uncertain.

Continue reading...

Home Office wasted nearly £100m on plans to house asylum seekers, watchdog finds

Posted on by

Public Accounts Committee examined series of site purchases and found ‘troubling culture that repeatedly wastes public money’

The Home Office’s plans to house asylum seekers reveal a “dysfunctional culture of repeated mistakes and weak internal challenge” that wasted nearly £100m, parliament’s spending watchdog has concluded.

A Public Accounts Committee report said the department had a “troubling culture that repeatedly wastes public money” after examining the acquisition of the £15.4m HMP Northeye site to house new arrivals.

Continue reading...

‘Basic lack of decency’ driving self-harm in women’s prisons, report says

Posted on by

Inspectorate points to challenges including ban on using washing machines for knickers and difficulties with family contact

Women in prison are resorting to self-harm because of “astonishing gaps” in basic services including strict time limits when contacting their children and bans from using washing machines for dirty underwear, according to a watchdog’s report.

A survey of women in prisons in England found that “the frustrations of day-to-day life” and a “lack of basic care” were driving many to hurt themselves.

Continue reading...

‘Watershed moment’ as three-year time limit on child rape claims scrapped in England and Wales

Posted on by

Under current rules, civil child sexual abuse cases must be brought within three years of turning 18

Hundreds of child rape survivors, including those targeted by grooming gangs, are expected to pursue their abusers in the courts after ministers scrapped a three-year time limit on compensation claims.

Under reforms hailed by campaigners as a “watershed moment”, ministers said civil claims will no longer have to be brought within three years of a child abuse survivor’s 18th birthday.

Continue reading...

UK childhood mental health crisis to cost £1.1tn in lost pay, study finds

Posted on by

Researchers estimate lifetime earnings lost as charities call for independent review of causes of the crisis

More than £1tn will be lost in lifetime earnings in the UK as a direct result of the mental health crisis in young people, research estimates.

Published to launch the new Future Minds mental health campaign, the study forecasts the financial burden of failing to tackle the mental health crisis.

Continue reading...

Minister promises to spend £250m to top up England’s flood defences

Posted on by

Labour pledges to protect 66,500 more properties, criticising previous Tory efforts

Ministers are topping up flood defence investment in England to a “record” £2.65bn, after accusing the previous government of “putting lives at risk” by under-spending.

An extra £250m is being pledged on top of the £2.4bn previously announced, to shore up defences and protect an extra 66,500 properties from flooding over a two-year period, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said.

Continue reading...

Labour MP to push for better maternal mental health care after friend’s suicide

Posted on by

Laura Kyrke-Smith says perinatal mental health care in England is ‘postcode lottery’, with disadvantaged women more likely to miss out

A new Labour MP will speak in parliament on Wednesday of her anguish over her friend’s suicide just 10 weeks after giving birth – despite the friend having repeatedly sought help for her anxiety.

Laura Kyrke-Smith, the MP for Aylesbury, will call for more specific mental health support to be embedded in maternity services.

Continue reading...

Mauritian PM expects ‘speedy resolution’ with UK over Chagos Islands

Posted on by

Navin Ramgoolam says Keir Starmer expressed confidence about finalising agreement within weeks

Downing Street has refused to comment on the prospect of an imminent deal over the Chagos Islands, after the Mauritian prime minister said Keir Starmer had told him he was confident about finalising an agreement in the coming weeks.

An interim deal on returning sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, which would maintain the key UK-US military base on the largest of the islands, Diego Garcia, was agreed last year, building on work that began under the Conservative government.

Continue reading...

Nigel Farage says UK’s Brexit deal with EU can be improved but struggles to explain how – UK politics live

Posted on by

Reform UK leader claims ‘industrial collaboration’ with EU will give UK ‘less flexibility’ to make deal with US

Nigel Farage has said the UK could be “friendly” with the EU but did not outline what kind of ties with the bloc his party would support, PA Media reports. PA says:

The Reform UK leader said that “industrial collaboration” with the EU will give the UK “less flexibility” to make a deal with the US.

His comments came in an interview on the Today programme after his party edged ahead of Labour to top a voting poll from YouGov for the first time.

Continue reading...

Johnnie Walker owner Diageo says Trump tariffs could hit profits by $200m

Posted on by

UK drinks company considering possible price rises as shares fall despite strong Guinness sales

Diageo, the company behind Smirnoff vodka and Johnnie Walker whisky, has said US tariffs could damage a nascent recovery in its sales and result in a $200m (£161m) hit to profits, with its tequila portfolio and Canadian whisky most affected.

The UK drinks company returned to sales growth in the latest half year, as strong performances for Guinness and tequila offset weakness in other spirits – but Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports could stop this recovery in its tracks, analysts said.

Continue reading...

‘No medical evidence’ to support Lucy Letby’s conviction, expert panel finds

Posted on by

Babies former nurse was convicted of killing were victims of ‘bad medical care’ or died of natural causes, panel says

Babies the former nurse Lucy Letby was convicted of murdering were in fact the victims of “bad medical care” or deteriorated as a result of natural causes, an expert panel has concluded.

Outlining what the senior Conservative MP David Davis described as “one of worst injustices of recent times”, the international team told a press conference there was “no medical evidence” to support claims of deliberate harm.

Continue reading...

British investigative journalist banned from Cambodia

Posted on by

Treatment of Gerald Flynn, who writes for the outlet Mongabay, condemned as attack on independent media

A British environmental and investigative journalist has been banned from entering Cambodia, in what press groups have condemned as yet another attack on independent media by the country’s authoritarian leaders.

Gerald Flynn, who writes for the news outlet Mongabay, was denied entry to Cambodia on 5 January as he returned from a holiday, according to the publication, which said he was forced on to a plane and flown to Thailand.

Continue reading...

UK grocery inflation slows for first time in six months amid rise in promotions

Posted on by

Kantar figures could be good news for government as food price rises have fuelled persistent UK inflation

Grocery inflation slowed in January – for the first time in six months – as retailers ramped up promotions to attract budget-conscious shoppers.

The price of groceries increased by 3.3%, easing from 3.7% in December, as the costs of toilet roll and cat food fell but those of chocolate, butter and chilled juices rose, according to analysts at Kantar.

Continue reading...

Ex-Tory MP reportedly joins Ukraine foreign legion in non-combat role

Posted on by

Former party deputy chair Jack Lopresti said to be carrying out support work to help the country’s fight against Russia

A former Conservative MP ousted in the 2024 election has reportedly joined the International Legion in Ukraine in a non-combat role to help the fight against Russia.

Jack Lopresti, who represented the Filton and Bradley Stoke constituency in South Gloucestershire from 2010 to 2024, is carrying out support work for the unit, including foreign relations and diplomacy duties, weapons procurement and work with veterans and charities, the Independent reported.

Continue reading...

Sun website to charge £2 a month for selected content including Clarkson

Posted on by

Exclusive: Paywall to return after a decade with new Sun Club offering also featuring Royal Exclusive video show

Sun readers will have to pay £2 a month to access columns by star writers including Jeremy Clarkson, popular content such as from the agony aunt Dear Deidre and some exclusive stories and investigations, as the UK’s biggest tabloid launches a paid-for content strategy.

Called Sun Club and initially priced at £1.99 a month, it launches on Tuesday and comes a decade after the Sun scrapped a subscription strategy that put all of its content behind a paywall.

Continue reading...

NHS to launch world’s biggest trial of AI breast cancer diagnosis

Posted on by

If successful, the scheme could speed up testing and reduce radiologists’ workload by around half

The NHS is launching the world’s biggest trial of artificial intelligence to detect breast cancer, which could lead to faster diagnosis of the disease.

AI will be deployed to analyse two-thirds of at least 700,000 mammograms done in England over the next few years to see if it is as accurate and reliable at reading scans as a radiologist.

Continue reading...

NHS England urged to publish full mental health report on Nottingham triple killer

Posted on by

Summary of care received by Valdo Calocane will be made public, but complete version to be kept confidential

NHS England (NHSE) has been urged to reconsider its decision to refuse to publish a report into the care received by Nottingham triple killer Valdo Calocane, despite the wishes of the victims’ families.

A summary of the independent mental health homicide report is due to be made public later this week, but the full version will be kept confidential due to “data protection legislation relating to patient information”, with only Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to be granted access.

Continue reading...

Over the moon: Billie Eilish sports 188-year-old Yorkshire wool brand at Grammys

Posted on by

The singer paid tribute to her home city wearing an LA Dodgers baseball cap crafted by English woollen mill Moon

When Billie Eilish took to the stage at the 67th Grammy awards wearing a hat with the branding of the baseball team the Los Angeles Dodgers, few would have noticed the much smaller logo on the side with two tiny union flags and the word “Moon”.

But in a small town in West Yorkshire, Moon is a household name, as one of the last surviving woollen mills in the UK.

Continue reading...

AI systems could be ‘caused to suffer’ if consciousness achieved, says research

Posted on by

Experts and thinkers signed open letter expressing concern over irresponsible development of technology

Artificial intelligence systems capable of feelings or self-awareness are at risk of being harmed if the technology is developed irresponsibly, according to an open letter signed by AI practitioners and thinkers including Sir Stephen Fry.

More than 100 experts have put forward five principles for conducting responsible research into AI consciousness, as rapid advances raise concerns that such systems could be considered sentient.

Continue reading...

GB Energy says it may not meet pledge to employ 1,000 people ‘for 20 years’

Posted on by

Chair Jürgen Maier also refused to put a date on when the agency would bring down energy bills

It could take 20 years for GB Energy to meet its pledge to employ 1,000 people, its chair acknowledged on Monday.

Jürgen Maier also refused to put a date on when it would bring down energy bills.

Continue reading...