Category Archives: UK news

‘Widely wet’ start to new year expected with flood warnings across UK

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Met Office issues yellow warnings, as heavy rain expected in Wales and strong winds across England

A “widely wet” start to the new year is expected for many areas, with heavy rainfall predicted for parts of the UK and dozens of flood warnings in place.

The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for rain and wind for large parts of England and Wales on Tuesday. The heaviest rain is more likely across parts of Wales, the Midlands towards eastern England and Yorkshire while gusts could reach 60mph in coastal areas or 40 to 50mph elsewhere, the forecaster said.

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Divorces delayed by cost of living crisis, research finds

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Financial pressures have led to postponement of 19% of divorces, involving 270,000 couples, Legal & General claims

The start of the new year is often boom time for divorce lawyers, but 2024 may be different as new research shows the cost of living crisis has delayed more than 270,000 couples from splitting.

Financial pressures delayed 19% of divorces, researchers at Legal & General found. The impact has been particularly pronounced since 2020, with income concerns, cost of living pressures and the price of divorce all cited as reasons to postpone the split.

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Why Labour needs to decide whether to break the consensus on Israel

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Airstrikes against Houthi rebels and the prospect of a year-long Gaza conflict will test cross-party thinking at Westminster

Two developments in the past 48 hours could test the cross-party consensus in Westminster on the conflict between Israel and Hamas: the signal sent by the Ministry of Defence that it is prepared to join the US in launching airstrikes against Houthi sites in Yemen, and statements by the Israeli political and military leadership that the war may take months or even a whole year to complete.

Labour has so far largely concurred with UK government policy, which in turn has largely shadowed thinking inside the White House.

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Meet the Outlaw escaping from prisons in protest against indefinite detention

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Joe Outlaw is one of 2,921 inmates still on IPP sentences, which were abolished in 2012

It should be impossible to escape from a high-security prison, doubly so for prisoners held on the segregation unit, who are allowed only to exercise in a caged yard.

But on 21 June, the summer solstice and the hottest day of the year at that point, Joe Outlaw managed to break through the cage and get on to the roof of HMP Frankland, a Durham prison dubbed “Monster mansion” due to many of its inmates being convicted murderers, terrorists and sex offenders.

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New Year’s Eve celebrations around the world as 2024 begins – as it happened

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Macron says Olympics will bring France a 2024 full of ‘pride’ and ‘hope’; some UK New Year’s Eve firework events cancelled due to weather

New Year’s Eve is a time of both looking forward, and of looking backward, so before it slips off into the distance, why not test your knowledge on what you can remember from 2023 with our news quiz? Probably best attempted earlier in the evening rather than later.

Do the quiz set by Will Dean: Barbie, Beatles and Bankman-Fried: how well do you remember 2023?

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Lewis Capaldi extends touring break as his health improves: ‘I want to make absolutely sure I’m 100%’

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Scottish singer says six-month hiatus from live shows after struggling during his performance at Glastonbury helped him ‘cope better with my Tourette’s and anxiety issues’

Lewis Capaldi has said he is “going to continue taking some time to carry on looking after myself” after his six-month hiatus from touring yielded an improvement in his health.

The Scottish singer-songwriter announced in June he would be taking a break from touring “for the foreseeable future” after he struggled with his voice during a Glastonbury set, during which the crowd stepped in to sing the lyrics to his final songs.

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Britain ‘considering airstrikes’ on Houthi rebels after Red Sea attacks

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Defence secretary says UK would not hesitate to take ‘direct action’ after US sank boats targeting a container ship

Britain is reportedly considering airstrikes on Houthi rebels after the US said its navy sank three boats that had been targeting a container ship in the Red Sea.

Grant Shapps, the defence secretary, said the government would not hesitate to take “direct action” to prevent further attacks amid reports the UK and US are preparing a joint statement to issue a final warning to the Yemeni group.

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Labour pledges ‘new deal for farmers’ to boost UK agriculture

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Measures include target for British food in public institutions and seeking veterinary deal with EU

Labour has pledged to improve food security and boost the UK’s agriculture sector with a “new deal for farmers”, including a target that at least half of the food used in hospitals, schools and prisons is British.

Condemning what the party called an abandonment of farmers under the Conservatives, the plan also includes a reiteration of Labour’s proposal to seek to sign a new veterinary agreement with the EU.

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‘I can’t celebrate 2023 now’: Jack Grealish ‘devastated’ by burglary

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  • Manchester City midfielder says experience was ‘traumatic’
  • Robbers reportedly took £1m worth of jewellery and watches

Jack Grealish has spoken of his devastation and the “traumatic experience” of burglars targeting his home. Raiders struck at the England and Manchester City midfielder’s Cheshire mansion during his club’s Premier League match at Everton on Wednesday.

Members of Grealish’s family and his fiancee, Sasha Atwood, were reportedly watching the televised match at the property when they heard a disturbance. An alarm was raised and an emergency response was launched with a helicopter, police dogs and a number of officers sent to the property near Knutsford, but no suspects were detected.

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Great Ormond Street to look at home air pollution when diagnosing illnesses

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Pioneering initiative to consider children’s addresses after coroner ruled air pollution a factor in death of Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, nine

Doctors at Great Ormond Street are being encouraged to consider air pollution levels at their patients’ home addresses when assessing the causes of their illnesses, under an innovative pilot scheme.

Data showing the average annual air pollution rates at patients’ postcodes has been embedded in patients’ electronic files, so that clinicians can help families understand whether their child has been exposed to elevated risk.

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Family of UK mother and son killed in Alps avalanche ‘beyond heartbroken’

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Kate Vokes, 54, and Archie Vokes, 22, from Manchester, killed while skiing off-piste near Mont Blanc

The family of a mother and son who died in an avalanche in the French Alps have said they are “beyond heartbroken” by the tragedy.

Kate Vokes, 54, and Archie Vokes, 22, from Manchester were killed when the avalanche swept through an off-piste section of the resort of Saint-Gervais-les-Bains, near Mont Blanc, on 28 December.

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‘Absolute mayhem’: Eurostar passengers tell of stress and tears

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Those affected decry ‘disgusting’ lack of communication, while others had to pay £1,000 to travel the next day

What promised to be a romantic New Year’s Eve in Paris ended in tears and travel trauma for Sean Winterbottom and his partner, Amy. The couple were among about 30,000 passengers to have their Eurostar journey cancelled on Saturday because of a flooded tunnel under the Thames.

“We were going to go for a flash dinner and … we had bookings, hotel reservations and everything,” Sean said of the trip they had been looking forward to for months.

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Labour should make UK leader in wellbeing-informed policy, says peer

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Call by economics of happiness expert Richard Layard comes as research agency set up under David Cameron is to be axed in Whitehall cuts

A Labour government should make the UK the world’s first country to make policy based on its impact on wellbeing as well as the economy, one of the world’s leading experts on the economics of happiness has said.

With Keir Starmer in No 10, Downing Street should require Whitehall departments to appraise the potential impact on citizens’ wellbeing when they make funding bids, Richard Layard said. The next chancellor should announce measures of happiness and misery alongside GDP in their annual budget statements, he added.

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Dominic Cummings ‘held secret election talks with Rishi Sunak’

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Tories express alarm over claim, with some saying it showed prime minister’s lack of judgment

Conservative MPs have expressed anger and alarm at the claim that Rishi Sunak offered Dominic Cummings a secret deal to help him win the election, with one saying Boris Johnson’s former chief aide should have “no place in political life”.

Other Tory MPs have commented in WhatsApp groups to express opposition to the idea, first revealed in the Sunday Times, with some saying it showed a lack of judgment by Sunak.

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John Pilger, campaigning journalist, dies aged 84

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Renowned Australian journalist and documentary filmmaker covered conflicts in Vietnam, Cambodia, Bangladesh and Biafra

The Australian journalist and documentary film-maker John Pilger has died aged 84, his family have announced.

A statement posted to his account on X said: “It is with great sadness the family of John Pilger announce he died yesterday 30 December 2023 in London aged 84.

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Civil servant at MoD alleges sexual assaults by three male colleagues

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Woman came forward to Prospect trade union after feeling allegations were not sufficiently dealt with

A Ministry of Defence civil servant has told of being subjected to three separate incidents of sexual assault by male colleagues, after allegations emerged of a “hostile” and “toxic” culture at the department.

The woman came forward to Prospect, the trade union, after feeling that her allegations were not sufficiently investigated and dealt with by the Ministry of Defence.

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Rick Astley: why we’re never gonna give up the evergreen 80s pop idol

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As the singer prepares to host the BBC’s new year special, it caps a stellar 2023 for the star who launched a meme phenomenon

Some may think: why is the BBC welcoming in 2024 with “Mr 1987”? Though that suggests they missed the memo about the spectacular revival of Rick Astley. On Sunday night, 1980s pop star Astley will host BBC One’s New Year’s Eve show from the Roundhouse in Camden, north-west London, following in the footsteps of Sam Ryder and Years & Years, fronted by Olly Alexander.

Stars come back. It’s what they do. But few manage to do it in a way that makes them look infinitely cooler than before. As Astley, 57, continues to ride the Rickrolling phenomenon (more of which anon), his 2023 has been stellar.

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Judicial review hearing granted over XL bully ban

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From Sunday it is illegal to rehome, sell or transfer ownership of the dogs in England and Wales

A judicial review hearing has been granted for campaigners seeking to overturn the UK government’s ban on XL bully dogs, with owners of the animals now subject to tight restrictions as the legislation comes into force.

From Sunday, it is illegal to rehome, sell or transfer ownership of XL bully dogs in England and Wales, and they must be muzzled and kept on a leash when in public, with animal rescue centres fearing they could be forced to euthanise hundreds of dogs.

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Call to end ‘cruel’ winter rises as energy bills go up by £100 a year

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Campaign groups call on regulator to abolish January bill increase, saying households are facing an ‘assault from all sides’

Midwinter energy price increases should be abolished to protect households from unaffordable bills “at the worst possible time”, according to a coalition of leading charities.

Charities and campaign groups have called on Ofgem, the energy regulator, to scrap future January bill increases as it prepares to raise the cap on energy prices by 5% from Monday.

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