Forecasters issue yellow warnings for entire island and stronger warning of ‘severe and damaging gusts’ for 18 Irish counties
Weather warnings have been issued for the entire island of Ireland as forecasters said Storm Debi would bring a new spell of heavy rain and strong winds. Parts of the island are still recovering from
floods during intense spells of rain in the preceding storms, Babet and Ciarán.
Continue reading...With waiting times on the rise and a challenging winter ahead, analysts claim the ‘financial bottom line’ is being prioritised
Rishi Sunak’s pledge to slash NHS waiting lists has effectively been downgraded, the Observer has been told, amid an increase in the number of patients in England waiting longer than 18 months for treatment.
Hospital leaders are warning that morale is low, staff absences are high, and funds for new equipment and repairs are having to be raided ahead of winter. They have now been told to prioritise controlling costs in favour of some of the extra work being done towards the prime minister’s pledge to bring down waits.
Continue reading...Party loyalty would force Conservatives to vote against plan for fiscal responsibility
Read more: ‘I challenge Rishi Sunak: vote with Labour to stop a Truss-style disaster happening again,’ writes Rachel Reeves
Labour will force a Commons vote this week aimed at creating new legal safeguards against fiscal disasters such as Liz Truss’s catastrophic mini-budget, which sent the financial markets into meltdown and drove up mortgage rates.
The party’s plan for a “fiscal lock” to protect personal, family and the national finances from reckless politicians will be contained in an amendment to the king’s speech that will be voted on by MPs on Tuesday. The manoeuvre will present Conservative backbenchers with a dilemma over whether to back a Labour amendment, or vote against what is a plan designed to embed fiscal responsibility into the budgetary process, and protect it from wild or accidental political misjudgments.
Continue reading...The soaring price-tag of a plan to fly rock samples back to Earth is jeopardising other space projects, say critics
It is one of the most complex space missions ever contemplated. A flotilla of unmanned probes and robot rovers will be flown to Mars to gather rock samples which will then be blasted back to Earth for study for signs of life.
This is Nasa’s Mars Sample Return and it would involve the first-ever space launch from another planet, as well as the first-ever rendezvous in orbit around another planet.
Continue reading...Association of Clinical Psychologists must pay £20,000 after intervening in family justice case where it mounted ‘critique of expert’
A professional body ordered to pay costs of £20,000 by the president of the family division after intervening in an appeal regarding the qualifications of a court-appointed expert has said the ruling was “unfair” and could have a “chilling effect”.
The Association of Clinical Psychologists UK (ACP-UK) said it had acted in good faith on a matter of “public protection”, after being criticised for conducting itself in a “wholly exceptional manner” during an appeal before the most senior family judge in England and Wales.
Continue reading...Closures at subsidiary Coutts led to resignation of Alison Rose, the chief executive of NatWest
Nigel Farage is to launch a legal battle with NatWest over the closure of his accounts at its private bank subsidiary Coutts. The debanking scandal ultimately led to the resignation of Alison Rose, the chief executive of NatWest, in July and the departure of Peter Flavel, the chief executive of Coutts, soon after.
The former leader of Ukip and the Brexit party said he is instructing lawyers to take action against NatWest, with the aim of turning it into a class action.
Continue reading...Police escort communities secretary as protesters shout ‘Shame on you’ shortly after London station sit-in
Michael Gove has been mobbed by protesters as he walked through London’s Victoria station, moments after a sit-in protest for Palestine ended.
Pro-Palestinian protesters chanted “shame on you” as the communities secretary, escorted by police officers, made his way through the concourse. Video footage posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, shows a number of protesters waving flags and surging towards Gove as Metropolitan police officers pushed them away and shouted at them to “get back”.
Continue reading...The latest Opinium poll shows Keir Starmer’s personal rating has slumped but the Tories are also suffering from internal divisions
Labour is perceived by voters as far more divided in the wake of party splits over the conflict in Israel and Gaza, amid concerns that there may be further frontbench resignations on the issue this week.
Keir Starmer has also taken a hit, with the latest Opinium poll for the Observer showing a slump in the proportion of voters who regard him as a strong leader compared with a month ago.
Continue reading...Met assistant commissioner Matt Twist says nine officers were injured while preventing a violent crowd reaching the Cenotaph
Scores of people have gathered in Hyde Park for a “stewards’ meeting” before the march, the PA Media agency reports.
They are all wearing hi-vis jackets, while many have also donned keffiyehs, Palestinian scarves.
Armistice Day is a moment of solemn national reflection in remembrance of those who have given their lives in service of our country. It’s important that people can use our rail network to safely travel, free from intimidation.
That’s why I have granted consent for the British Transport Police to make orders under section 14A of the Public Order Act 1986 prohibiting planned protests at various London stations today, meaning anyone taking part will be subject to arrest.
Continue reading...Animal welfare groups urge retailers to switch to slow-growing birds in face of record deaths last year
More than 80 million chickens died before reaching slaughter weight in the UK last year, with mortality rates the highest for at least a decade, reveal official figures.
Animal welfare organisations say the fast-growing chicken breeds that dominate production have higher mortality rates, lameness and muscle disease than slower-growing breeds. They are calling on retailers to switch to slower-growing breeds and provide more space for the birds.
Continue reading...Royal British Legion says public supported appeal as usual with no evidence volunteers were targeted
On the concourse of Waterloo station in London on Friday morning, poppy seller David Poynter, 45, was relishing the bumper demand. He had set up the stall at 6.30am and commuters were queueing to donate and support the fundraising campaign.
Poynter, a train driver, has volunteered each November for nearly 30 years and takes holiday to support the cause. He is so dedicated to the role that he regularly works a shift lasting 12 hours.
Continue reading...As sci-fi show’s 60th anniversary nears, a collector pleads for BBC to offer amnesty to those with recordings discarded by corporation
For Doctor Who-lovers they are the missing crown jewels: lost episodes of the first series of the TV sci-fi drama, shown in the 1960s. But now film recordings of not just one, but two of the early BBC adventures, both featuring the first doctor, William Hartnell, has been found in Britain by amateur sleuths.
The episodes, one featuring the Daleks, would offer viewers a chance to travel back in time without the use of a Tardis. But the Observer has learned that the owners of the rare, rediscovered footage are not prepared to hand it over to the BBC, even as the clock ticks down to the 60th anniversary of the show’s launch this month.
Continue reading...Organisers say rally on Armistice Day could be one of the largest political marches in British history
Protesters have begun assembling for a pro-Palestinian rally in London that is expected to draw hundreds of thousands on Saturday, while police have jostled with far-right groups attempting to reach the Cenotaph.
Organisers say that the pro-Palestine march, which has been the backdrop to a political row over Suella Braverman’s public criticism of the policing of protests, could be one of the biggest political marches in British history.
Continue reading...Fears grow that Rishi Sunak’s anti-green policy shift is driving investment in renewable energy abroad
The government has received no new applications for onshore wind farms in England since cabinet ministers eased planning rules earlier this year – in a further sign that Rishi Sunak’s anti-green policy shift is driving investment abroad.
So far this year, only one new project, with a single turbine, has become fully operational in England, with many more being built in the EU – and in Scotland and Wales, where planning rules are less burdensome. This is despite renewables being seen as the cleanest and safest form of power, and having wide public support.
Continue reading...Four years after it fell out of the FTSE 100 the high street brand is again boasting strong sales
Fours years after it fell out of the FTSE 100, M&S has turned around its fortunes to become the UK’s best retailer for women’s wear.
In May, strong sales figures were driven not only by bog-standard basics such as underwear and T-shirts, but by more fashion-forward categories, too. Now, sales of women’s party wear are up 49%, and knitwear up 23% in October compared with last year.
Continue reading...BMA raises concerns with minister about planned data platform, which could be run by US firm Palantir
Patients fear that their personal information may be misused by the NHS’s new data store, especially if the US spy technology company Palantir runs it, doctors’ leaders have warned ministers.
The planned creation of the “federated data platform” (FDP) has prompted concerns about privacy and trust in the NHS and suggestions that suspicion around it will lead patients to refuse to share their data.
Continue reading...Police to put tight controls on protesters’ movements with hundreds of thousands expected at event on Armistice Day
The organisers of the pro-Palestine march due to take place in London on Armistice Day believe “hundreds of thousands” of people will turn out for what they say will be one of Britain’s biggest days of mass protest.
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan police said the policing of the remembrance weekend would be “far greater and more complex than we’ve delivered before” and that officers would draw on “an extensive set of powers to prevent any disruption whatsoever”, with tight controls put on the movements of protesters.
Continue reading...Developers say higher prices across their supply chains mean costs have climbed by about 40%
The government is poised to offer higher subsidies for new offshore windfarms to avoid missing its green energy targets as developers grapple with a rise in supply chain costs.
Ministers are expected to set out within the next week a new starting price for the next subsidy auction, which is likely to offer higher levels of support to offshore wind developers.
Continue reading...This live blog is now closed, you can read more on this story here
According to Sky’s Beth Rigby, some ministers think No 10 would be wrong to wait until the middle of next week before deciding Suella Braverman’s fate.
Senior minister: “We can’t continue like this” “No 10 may want to wait & see what happens at w/end & & poss wait for Supreme Court on Weds [Rwanda decision] But relationship with police is v damaged. Credibility generally is low. Delay makes the govt look weak unfortunately”
The home secretary’s aides submitted a draft of the article to No 10 on Wednesday. Officials came back that evening with a series of amendments, toning down some of the most incendiary claims.
Braverman accepted some of the amendments, including removing a warning to the police not to take a “soft touch” approach at the Armistice Day protest, along with claims that there was “ample evidence” that senior police officers were biased. She also removed a direct reference to Sunak at No 10’s request. But she rejected further changes, including suggestions that she remove the comparison to rallies in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.
One minister familiar with No 10’s thinking said that Sunak’s team would wait until after the Supreme Court publishes its judgment. They said: “The bigger problem is the fact that we’ve got the Rwanda ruling next Wednesday. Surely people will want that to be finished before moving forward. You’d want to know the outcome of that before deciding what kind of home secretary you want going forward.”
Continue reading...Crowdfunding and significant donation from Nigel West – who has a family connection to Charlotte’s husband – secure property, with plans to transform it into a cultural and education centre
Campaigners have saved the birthplace of the Brontë sisters and are now fundraising to turn the building into a cultural and education centre – helped by a man with a link to the literary family.
Nigel West, who traces a family connection to Charlotte Brontë’s husband, made a “significant donation” to the crowdfunding appeal, which aims to transform 72-74 Market Street in Thornton, Bradford, into a tourist destination.
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