Category Archives: UK news

Great Ormond Street apologises after children suffered ‘severe harm’ under surgeon

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NHS hospital reviews care of 700 patients after inquiry found orthopaedic doctor caused lifelong damage to some, one of whom underwent an ‘avoidable limb amputation’

A leading NHS children’s hospital is reviewing the care 721 patients received after an investigation found that children treated by one of its surgeons came to “severe harm” during limb reconstruction operations.

Great Ormond Street hospital (Gosh) in London has offered its “sincere apologies” to children who have suffered what the Sunday Times reported was in some cases lifelong damage.

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Oasis fans affected by ticket sales debacle invited to join second ballot

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Fresh chance for ‘eligible’ fans to buy reunion tour tickets after many people’s transactions failed last Saturday

A select number of Oasis fans who missed out on tickets for the band’s reunion concerts in a disastrous sales launch last week have been invited to try their luck again in a second ballot.

The band said they would send invitations out to “eligible fans we have been able to identify”, including some of those who were signed in to the Ticketmaster website last Saturday but were unable to complete their transactions.

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Keir Starmer’s summit with European Commission chief delayed

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Sources fear meeting with Ursula von der Leyen postponed due to Labour’s doubts about reinstating EU student exchange schemes

Keir Starmer’s anticipated summit with the president of the European Commission has been postponed over what some see as the British government’s caution about reinstating programmes such as the youth mobility and Erasmus university exchange schemes.

The prime minister was expected to meet Ursula von der Leyen in the first or second week of September, but sources have said a meeting may now not happen until the end of October at the earliest.

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UK music industry presses government to solve post-Brexit limits on touring

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As documents reveal EU ‘not prepared’ to change, Keir Starmer is reminded of Labour’s manifesto pledge

Industry insiders have urged the UK government to find a solution to post-Brexit restrictions on live music touring, after EU documents suggested Brussels was “not prepared” to change regulations.

In Labour’s manifesto, Keir Starmer pledged to improve trade and investment relations with the EU to “help our touring artists” . Since Brexit, musicians touring the EU have faced barriers introduced in the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA). They can work up to 90 out of every 180 days, which causes problems for longer tours, musicians who work in multiple bands or orchestras, and crew required on site before and after performances.

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More than a million British workers not having a single day of paid time off, says TUC

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Employees have lost out on holiday pay worth £2bn, according to new trade union research

Workers across Britain have lost out on holiday pay worth £2bn, with more than a million people going without a single day of paid time off, according to new research.

With unions gathering in Brighton this weekend for the first TUC conference under a Labour administration for 15 years, the body revealed new research showing the extent to which workers are being denied holiday pay. Workers are entitled to 28 days paid leave for a typical five-day week.

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Antony Blinken to visit UK for talks on Ukraine and Middle East

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US secretary of state will be most senior US official to have travelled to London since Labour’s election victory

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, will head to London next week to discuss the Middle East and Ukraine, the state department announced on Saturday, in advance of a US visit by prime minister Keir Starmer.

Blinken’s visit to London on Monday and Tuesday will be the most senior by a US official since the Labour party won the general election in July, ending 14 years of Conservative rule.

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Post Office campaigner Alan Bates marries partner on Richard Branson’s private island

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Bates and Suzanne Sercombe invited to Necker Island after publicly soliciting a holiday from Virgin tycoon

The Post Office campaigner Alan Bates has married his partner, Suzanne Sercombe, on Richard Branson’s Necker Island in a ceremony officiated by the Virgin tycoon.

The wedding took place last month on the entrepreneur’s private island in the British Virgin Islands, the Sunday Times reported.

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Tory health reforms left UK open to Covid calamity, says top doctor’s report

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Britain’s pandemic response was among the worst and the NHS had been ‘seriously weakened’, says leading surgeon

• Three reports lay bare scale of NHS malaise, but will Reeves fund a remedy?

Britain was hit far harder by the Covid-19 pandemic than other developed countries because the NHS had been “seriously weakened” by disastrous government policies over the preceding decade, a wide-ranging report will conclude this week.

An assessment of the NHS by the world-renowned surgeon Prof Ara Darzi, commissioned in July by the health secretary, Wes Streeting, will find that the health service reduced its “routine healthcare activity by a far greater percentage than other health systems” in many key areas during the Covid crisis.

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BBC promises ‘innovative’ return for Casualty in Christmas special

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Broadcaster says episode will ‘celebrate gift of giving’ after news revealed in a cryptic teaser trailer for medical drama

Casualty is to return to TV screens for an “innovative” Christmas special, the BBC has revealed. The news was announced in a cryptic teaser trailer, which followed Saturday’s season finale on BBC One.

The BBC says the Christmas special will “celebrate the gift of giving” and be told in an “innovative, format-breaking way”. A teaser image for the trailer showed a hospital ward covered in snow, with a fluorescent jacket on the ground.

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Former Welsh first minister Vaughan Gething to stand down at next election

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MS for Cardiff South and Penarth, who stood down after 140 days as first minister, will not seek re-election in 2026

Vaughan Gething, the Labour former first minister of Wales who stood down after a series of scandals, has announced he will not seek re-election for the Senedd.

Gething, the MS for Cardiff South and Penarth, said it had been “an immense honour” to serve his constituents, and in the Welsh government, as he made the announcement.

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Keir Starmer optimistic for ‘deep’ reset of relations with Ireland

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Starmer to hold talks with Irish counterpart on first official visit of a British PM to country for five years

Keir Starmer has said he believes there can be a “deep” reset of relations with Ireland after arriving in Dublin for his first official visit, with Northern Ireland, Brexit and joint international interests on the agenda.

It is the first official visit of a British prime minister since Boris Johnson visited in 2019 to try to salvage a Brexit deal after years of strained relations.

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CIA boss says west should not be intimidated by Russia’s nuclear threats

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Bill Burns calls Vladimir Putin a ‘bully’ whose ‘sabre-rattling’ should not always be taken literally

Western leaders should not be intimidated by Kremlin threats of nuclear escalation, the head of the CIA said on Saturday, amid a debate over whether Anglo-French Storm Shadow missiles should be used inside Russia.

Bill Burns, on a visit to London alongside the head of MI6, said the US had brushed off a previous Russian nuclear scare in autumn 2022, demonstrating that threats from Moscow should not always be taken literally.

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‘À la carte’ new Brexit deal with EU not on table, Micheál Martin warns

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Ireland’s deputy PM welcomes warmer relations as Keir Starmer arrives for official visit – but cautions UK cannot ‘cherrypick’ issues

The UK cannot have an “à la carte” reset of the Brexit agreement, Ireland’s deputy prime minister has said, just hours before Keir Starmer headed to Dublin for his first official visit to Ireland.

The tánaiste said the EU wanted an improved EU-UK relationship but that the UK could not “cherrypick”.

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Heavy rain to hit parts of UK over weekend as flooding risks remain

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Met Office says new band of ‘heavy and thundery rain’ to sweep north through southern and central England and Wales

Heavy rain is due to sweep across large parts of the UK this weekend, with many at risk of flooding.

A new band of “heavy and thundery rain” will arrive on the south coast on Saturday and move northwards overnight, affecting central and southern England and Wales, the Met Office said.

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Elton John makes first appearance after revealing ‘limited vision’

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Singer speaks at Toronto film festival after announcing eye infection had left him with limited vision in one eye

Sir Elton John has made his first public appearance at Toronto international film festival, days after announcing a severe eye infection had left him with limited vision in one eye.

The British singer, 77, was pictured in good spirits as he arrived on the back of a buggy at the Canadian festival, alongside his husband, David Furnish.

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Body Shop’s remaining UK stores saved after rescue deal agreed

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British cosmetics tycoon Mike Jatania leads consortium to acquire UK’s 113 outlets and outposts in Australia and North America

The Body Shop has been rescued from administration by a consortium led by the British cosmetics tycoon Mike Jatania in a deal that will keep the ethical beauty brand’s remaining 113 UK stores trading.

Auréa, the growth capital firm founded by Jatania and former UBS, Credit Suisse and Merrill Lynch executive Paul Raphael, said it had bought all the Body Shop International’s assets, which include its UK stores and control of outposts in Australia and North America for an undisclosed sum.

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Labour’s ‘change of tone’ revives foreign students’ interest in UK universities

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Admissions officers report rise in number of inquiries from international students since general election

Applications by international students to UK universities have been revitalised in a welcome boost for the sector’s ailing financial health by the Labour government’s “change of tone” on immigration since the general election.

Vice-chancellors and admissions officers said a rise in the number of inquiries about courses and feedback from overseas recruitment agents suggested that the change in the government’s stance since the 4 July election had been widely noticed by potential international students and their families.

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Drinking wine to 5: Dolly Parton launches prosecco and rosé range in UK

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Country music star’s ‘down to earth’ range at Asda goes head to head with Kylie for the ‘easy drinking’ top spot

Whether it’s 9 to 5, Jolene or Islands in the Stream, Dolly Parton fans are no stranger to belting out her hits with a glass of wine in hand, but now they can sip her vino, too, as the singer’s “down to earth” wine range goes on sale in the UK.

The brains behind Dolly Wines say they have bottled Parton’s “vivacious spirit and love for life” with the decision to branch out from selling albums to alcohol pitting the US country music star against the pop princess Kylie in the battle for the “easy drinking” top spot.

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Starmer leads with compromise for new family pet – and gets ‘dog-like’ cat

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Siberian kitten at No 10 may get frosty reception from chief mouser Larry, who took on George Osborne’s cat, Freya

On the face of it, the kitten that joined Keir Starmer’s family appears to have had a peaceful first week at an address where feline and human rivals have been known to get their claws out.

The arrival of the Siberian cat – as yet unnamed in public – was revealed on Monday by the prime minister, who said his children had been pushing for a dog to join them at Downing Street.

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Sixth-generation wire-maker blames Brexit for shredding its business

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Owner of Ormiston Wire in London urges Keir Starmer not to forget small manufacturers in his dealings with EU

The head of a family-owned company that has made specialist wires and cables for six generations for clients ranging from naval vessels to film sets has blamed Brexit for shredding its business.

Mark Ormiston, the owner of Ormiston Wire, said small businesses such as his had been flushed “down the toilet” by the masterminds of Brexit who gave little thought to the real-life consequences for UK manufacturing.

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