Category Archives: UK news

King Charles sends ‘heartfelt thanks’ to police for restoring order after riots

Posted on by

The monarch held calls with Keir Starmer and senior officers and paid tribute to the emergency services

King Charles has sent his “heartfelt thanks” to the police for restoring order after speaking to Keir Starmer and senior officers following the week of unrest across the UK.

The king and the prime minister held a phone call on Friday evening, Buckingham Palace said. Gavin Stephens, a chief constable and chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, and the UK gold commander Ben Harrington, chief constable of Essex police, held a separate joint call with the king.

Continue reading...

Tears, denials and excuses: a week in court amid far-right riots in England

Posted on by

More than 300 people have been charged for their roles in the riots, from teenagers to pensioners

There were teenagers and pensioners. Some with a string of convictions and others with none. There were hardened criminals and baby-faced schoolboys, some with the support of parents and others without.

“He’s a pain in the arse,” said one defendant’s longsuffering dad. The father of another told reporters his teenage son was “a moron”.

Continue reading...

Two men jailed for social media posts that stirred up far-right violence

Posted on by

People who threw stones, hurled racist abuse and pushed a burning wheelie bin at police also sent to prison

Two men have been sent to prison for stirring up hatred and violence online after the Southport attack, in the first cases of their kind linked to the recent riots seen across the country.

Jordan Parlour, 28, was jailed for 20 months after pleading guilty to inciting racial hatred with Facebook posts in which he advocated an attack on a hotel in Leeds as part of the violent public disorder that swept England last week.

Continue reading...

Surgeon suspended for sexual harassment at Oxford Transplant Centre

Posted on by

Medical tribunal suspends James Gilbert for eight months for the ‘serious misconduct’ it uncovered

A transplant surgeon found to have sexually harassed four colleagues has been suspended for eight months.

Three of the women James Gilbert, 47, harassed were trainees at the Oxford Transplant Centre, a medical tribunal heard.

Continue reading...

Suspended Labour councillor charged with encouraging violent disorder

Posted on by

Charge relates to speech in which Ricky Jones ‘appeared to … encourage others to act violently towards far-right protesters’, CPS says

The suspended Labour councillor Ricky Jones, 57, has been charged with one count of encouraging violent disorder after he was filmed addressing a crowd at a London demonstration on Wednesday evening.

Jaswant Narwal, the chief crown prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service – London North, said: “The Crown Prosecution Service has authorised the Metropolitan police to charge Ricky Jones, 57, with one count of encouraging violent disorder.

Continue reading...

Anti-racism activist in London reports break-in attempt after far-right threats

Posted on by

Ulrike Schmidt says police have not investigated incident in Walthamstow, which was interrupted by passersby

A key organiser of Walthamstow’s mass anti-racism rally on Wednesday has said someone tried to break into her home after she received threats on social media from the far right.

Ulrike Schmidt, an activist with Stand Up to Racism (SUTR) and Amnesty International, said she woke up at 5am on Friday to the sounds of someone trying to break into her home in the north-east London borough.

Continue reading...

UK government will not repay ‘bed and board’ deductions to all wrongfully imprisoned

Posted on by

Miscarriage of justice victims say money taken from compensation payouts is additional punishment

A government minister has ruled out reimbursing some victims of miscarriages of justice after living expenses for the time they spent in prison were deducted from their compensation payments.

Last year, the then justice secretary, Alex Chalk, scrapped the policy of making deductions from all future payouts after the case of Andrew Malkinson, who was wrongfully imprisoned for 17 years.

Continue reading...

UK riots: police to remain on ‘high alert’ heading into weekend, says Keir Starmer – live

Posted on by

Prime minister says he believes swift processing of rioters in courts has deterring effect but says police are poised for any further disruption

Ministers will keep the Online Safety Act under review , a government minister has said, after the London mayor called it “not fit for purpose” in light of the spread of misinformation, which he said contributed to this month’s far-right riots.

Appearing on BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme, Nick Thomas-Symonds, the paymaster general, said Sadiq Khan raised a “legitimate policy challenge” when he told the Guardian there needed to be amendments to the Online Safety Act.

Our officers dealt with a fifth night of incidents such as criminal damage, disorder and arson. Those who are intent on causing disorder or committing offences, need to think of the consequences of their actions.

Yesterday we issued six images of people we want to speak to in relation to this recent disorder. One individual has since been identified and we thank the public for their assistance with this.

Continue reading...

From Charli xcx to a Team GB golfer, is smoking making a comeback?

Posted on by

Campaigners warn of complacency about effects of habit picked up by celebrities and showcased on fashion catwalks

“It’s what makes life interesting, finding the balance between cigarettes and tofu,” said Gwyneth Paltrow, slightly surprisingly, back in 2013. Even more eyebrow-raising is the news that, in some quarters, smoking is coming back into fashion.

The harm that smoking does to our health is well researched and widely understood. It is known to increase the risk of at least 16 types of cancer and 94% of UK adults recognise smoking as a risk factor for cancer.

Continue reading...

Speculation rife about Banksy’s London murals after five appear in a week

Posted on by

Whether comment on far-right rioters, Gaza or the climate crisis, one expert suspects a grand reveal is imminent

It began with the silhouette of a goat perched atop a narrow wall near Kew Bridge in London, with tumbling rocks signifying the animal’s perilous position.

Over the course of the week, more silhouettes began popping up around the capital: two elephants with their trunks reaching towards each other from blocked-out windows on the side of a house in Chelsea; three monkeys swinging across a bridge on Brick Lane; and a wolf howling towards the sky, painted onto the face of a satellite dish on Peckham’s Rye Lane.

Continue reading...

UK shortage of drug used to prevent brain damage in alcoholics

Posted on by

Experts say addiction patients are being treated as second-class citizens as ‘essential’ Pabrinex is withdrawn

Doctors have warned that a severe shortage of an “essential” medicine used to help protect alcoholics from degenerative brain conditions could disproportionately affect “some of the most vulnerable” in society.

Pabrinex, a multivitamin injection, is used to protect heavy drinkers from conditions such as Wernicke’s encephalopathy and Korsakoff syndrome, which can have symptoms similar to dementia. Doctors are concerned the incidence of these debilitating conditions may increase as a result of the shortages.

Continue reading...

BBC asks disgraced presenter Huw Edwards to return £200,000 of salary

Posted on by

Corporation says journalist brought BBC ‘into disrepute’ and requests return of money paid since his arrest

The BBC has asked Huw Edwards to return £200,000 that he was paid following his arrest in November last year, after the disgraced presenter admitted making indecent images of children.

A statement from the corporation said Edwards, who announced the death of Queen Elizabeth II, had “undermined trust in the BBC and brought us into disrepute” and they wanted him to repay his salary.

Continue reading...

Wall Street banker bonuses forecast to rise 35% this year

Posted on by

Surge caused by rebound in market activity very likely to influence payouts for European outposts of banks

Bonuses for Wall Street’s investment bankers are forecast to jump as much as 35% this year – although experts have warned that payouts could be knocked by stock market volatility and an economic slowdown in the US.

Fresh predictions suggest that staff across a range of financial firms – including hedge funds, asset managers and investment banks – will see payouts rise for the first time in two years. It follows a rebound in business confidence and market activity, with companies more willing to take risks amid easing inflation that has started to translate into lower borrowing costs.

Continue reading...

Humza Yousaf concedes sacking Scottish Greens was a mistake

Posted on by

At Edinburgh fringe event, former first minister uses colourful language in recalling events that led to his resignation from Holyrood

The former Scottish first minister Humza Yousaf has admitted that he “fucked up” by sacking the Greens from his government.

Earlier this year, the Greens forced a vote on the Bute House agreement – the alliance of the Scottish National party and the Greens – over the ditching of a key climate pledge.

Continue reading...

Online Safety Act not fit for purpose after far-right riots, says Sadiq Khan

Posted on by

Exclusive: London mayor warns law must be revisited ‘very, very quickly’ due to falsehoods that contributed to unrest

Laws designed to counter misinformation are “not fit for purpose” and must be revisited after the spread of online falsehoods contributed to this month’s far-right riots, the mayor of London has said.

Sadiq Khan, one of the UK’s most senior Muslim politicians, said ministers should act “very, very quickly” to review the Online Safety Act after the violent unrest in England and Belfast over the past week. There have been calls to hasten the act’s implementation.

Continue reading...

Man, 69, given prison sentence for violent disorder in English riots

Posted on by

Retired welder William Morgan thought to be oldest person charged as a result of recent unrest

A man thought to be the oldest person charged for taking part in the far-right-led riots, and two brothers who looted a library, were among those jailed on Thursday for their part in a crime “committed against the whole community”.

William Nelson Morgan, 69, was sentenced to 32 months in prison, having previously admitted violent disorder and carrying a cosh during a riot on County Road in Liverpool on Saturday.

Continue reading...

Sellafield apologises after guilty plea over string of cybersecurity failings

Posted on by

Nuclear site awaits sentencing over breaches that it admitted could have threatened national security

Sellafield has apologised after pleading guilty to criminal charges relating to a string of cybersecurity failings at Britain’s most hazardous nuclear site, which it admitted could have threatened national security.

Among the failings at the vast nuclear waste dump in Cumbria was the discovery that 75% of its computer servers were vulnerable to cyber-attacks, Westminster magistrates court in London heard.

Continue reading...

Record homeless figures in England prompt calls to tackle ‘national scandal’

Posted on by

Latest housing data show 151,630 children in temporary accommodation – the most since records began

More than 150,000 children in England are living in temporary accommodation, prompting calls for the government to address what it calls a “national scandal”.

Living in temporary accommodation is considered a form of homelessness and can involve people staying in hostel or bed and breakfast (B&B) accommodation.

Continue reading...

Labour needs X to get its message out however much it may wish it didn’t

Posted on by

The Elon Musk-owned platform remains a vital tool for politicians despite misinformation about disorder in Britain

When Keir Starmer was running to be Labour leader in 2020, his aides seriously considered whether they should leave Twitter for good.

A number of those who remain close to Starmer as prime minister were then enthusiastic about moving off the platform. The party was still feeling wounded by the brutal election campaign and by the bitterness of the way it had been conducted on social media.

Continue reading...

Family of British doctor missing in French Pyrenees appeal for help

Posted on by

Tom Doherty, 67, messaged his family to say he had fallen and could not move shortly before they lost contact

The family of a retired British doctor have issued an urgent appeal after he went missing in the French Pyrenees almost 48 hours ago.

Tom Doherty, 67, from St Albans, was hiking and camping near Col d’Escots when his family lost contact with him on Tuesday evening, just after he sent messages saying he had fallen and couldn’t move.

Continue reading...