Category Archives: UK news

Hosting Ukraine’s Eurovision party – podcast

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Hannah Moore reports from Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena where Britain is preparing to host the Eurovision song contest on behalf of last year’s winners Ukraine

On the eve of the Eurovision song contest finals, Hannah Moore travels to Liverpool to watch the rehearsals and hear from Ukrainians running stalls in ‘Eurovision Village’.

Chris West, the author of Eurovision! A History of Modern Europe Through the World’s Greatest Song Contest explains politics always plays a big part in the event but this year is particularly poignant.

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Almost two-thirds of young women have been sexually harassed at work, says TUC

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Most victims do not report it for fear of not being believed or damaging career prospects, says union body

Almost two in three young women have experienced sexual harassment, bullying or verbal abuse at work, according to a TUC poll.

However, most victims do not report it for fear of not being believed or of damaging their relationships at work or their career prospects, the TUC said.

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Wealth tax of 0.5% could cover UK’s share of loss and damage fund, says charity

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International fund set up at Cop27 is intended to provide compensation to countries worst hit by climate breakdown

A tax on wealthy Britons of just 0.5% could more than meet the UK’s entire “fair share” contribution to the international loss and damage fund established to support countries worst hit by global climate breakdown, a charity has suggested.

Taxing 5p of every £10 of individuals’ wealth over £1m would raise £15bn a year by 2030, well in excess of an estimated $15bn (£12bn) UK contribution to the new fund, according to an analysis by the anti-poverty campaigners Christian Aid.

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Eurovision organisers rebuff Zelenskiy request to give video speech at final

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European Broadcasting Union, which oversees song contest, says appearance by Ukrainian president could politicise the event

The owners of the Eurovision song contest have turned down a request from Volodymyr Zelenskiy to make a video appearance during the final on Saturday in Liverpool.

The Ukrainian president had hoped to appeal to the global audience of about 160 million people to continue their support for his country in the war with Russia.

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Sussex police ‘committed to solving’ Vishal Mehrotra murder case

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Father had criticised force for failing to reinvestigate killing of 8-year-old son who disappeared in 1981

Sussex police are to re-examine the case of a murdered schoolboy who disappeared on his way home more than 40 years ago.

Vishal Mehrotra, eight, vanished from west London in July 1981 and part of his remains were found in Rogate, West Sussex, seven months later. No one has been convicted for his murder.

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Police officer filmed appearing to punch man repeatedly in head during arrest in Wales

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Independent Office for Police Conduct has launched investigation into incident in Porthmadog

The police watchdog has launched an independent investigation after a police officer in Wales was filmed appearing to punch a man repeatedly in the head before arresting him.

Footage of the incident is circulating on social media and has caused considerable “public concern”, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said.

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UK sending long-range Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine, says defence minister

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Britain donating arms capable of striking targets in occupied Crimea as Kyiv prepares counteroffensive against Russia

Britain has become the first western country to provide Ukraine with the long-range Storm Shadow cruise missiles that Kyiv wants to boost its chances in a much-anticipated counteroffensive, prompting a threat from the Kremlin of a military response.

Hours after Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said he needed more western weapons to be confident of a victory this summer, Ben Wallace, the UK defence secretary, told MPs that the missiles – which cost more than £2m each – were “now going in, or are in the country itself”.

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Senior civil servants vote to take a stand against bullying from politicians

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FDA union votes to use ‘all means available’, including ‘targeted legal action’ in wake of Dominic Raab scandal

Senior civil servants have voted to take a stand against inflammatory language from politicians and in favour of legal action to combat bullying, as former cabinet ministers Jacob Rees-Mogg and Dominic Raab renewed their attacks on officials.

Members of the FDA union passed a motion in favour of using “all means available” to challenge bullying and harassment of officials, including “use of targeted legal action”, in after the scandal that forced Raab to resign.

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‘Skeletal’ body of man who lay dead in Bolton flat for six years discovered

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Robert Alton, 70, is believed to have died in 2017 with his death going unnoticed by his landlord and local council

The body of a retired bookkeeper lay undiscovered in his flat for six years with his “skeletal” remains found only after housing officials forced entry to carry out a gas safety check, an inquest heard.

Robert Alton is believed to have died in 2017 aged 70, but his death went unnoticed by both his landlord, which continued to receive his rent automatically through housing benefit, and his local council, which seemingly failed to act on Alton’s mounting council tax arrears.

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State to take control of TransPennine Express after ongoing poor service

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Northern rail network to be run by state-owned operator of last resort when contract expires on 28 May

TransPennine Express (TPE) is to be run by the state after ministers announced that the failing rail company would not have its contract renewed.

The transport secretary, Mark Harper, said the northern rail network would be run by the state-owned operator of last resort after passengers experienced disruption, cancellations and a significant decline in the extent and reliability of the service.

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Kemi Badenoch criticised by ERG chief and other Tories over ‘massive climbdown’ on retained EU law – UK politics live

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Business and trade secretary answers urgent question in Commons on retained EU law

Sir William Cash, chair of the European scrutiny committee, used his follow-up to his urgent question to say that Kemi Badenoch has declined three times to appear before this committee to discuss this issue.

He said the new amendments to the bill announced yesterday have not been scrutinised by the Commons.

The amendments published today, apart from her very short written ministerial statement yesterday and her article in the press today, are not accompanied by any explanation to this house despite the utter reversal in vital respects to the bill as passed by this elected house, why not?

The amendments have not been subjected to any analysis or questioning by this house, which is now essential given the fundamental change in government policy. This house is being treated in a manner which is clearly inconsistent with clear promises already made.

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Mirror Group: phone-hacking trial initiated by Prince Harry and others continues – live

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Piers Morgan accused of knowing about illegal phone hacking when he was editor of Daily Mirror on day one of trial

Lawyers are going through documents they say will give background on evidence the court is due to hear later. We’ll bring you details of that evidence as the court hears it.

Good morning, welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of phone hacking claims against Mirror Group Newspapers at the high court in London.

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Actor Stephen Tompkinson found not guilty of grievous bodily harm

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DCI Banks lead actor was accused of punching drunk man making noise outside his house

The actor Stephen Tompkinson has been found not guilty of inflicting grievous bodily harm by punching a drunk man who was making noise outside his house.

The DCI Banks lead actor had been accused of inflicting grievous bodily harm on Karl Poole on 30 May 2021.

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Plaid Cymru MP defends efforts to keep leader Adam Price after damning review

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Liz Saville Roberts denies party tried to put own interests before need to ‘detoxify’ internal culture

A senior Plaid Cymru figure has defended attempts by some in the party’s hierarchy to keep Adam Price in place as leader despite a damning review into the culture of the party, arguing that they did so because they believed stability was needed to bring about change.

Price announced his resignation as leader late on Wednesday – a week after a review said his party had failed to “detoxify” its culture and found evidence of misogyny, harassment and bullying.

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Penny Mordaunt says she took painkillers before sword-carrying role

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Lord president of privy council says coronation was ‘humbling day’ and democracy ‘is about dissent’

Penny Mordaunt has revealed how she took painkillers before her role of carrying the ceremonial sword during King Charles’s coronation.

Mordaunt, wearing a custom-made teal outfit with a matching cape and headband with gold feather embroidery, was the first woman to perform the role as lord president of the council. She was responsible for bearing the sword of the state and presenting the jewelled sword of offering to the king. They were two of four swords used during the ceremony, and it is a practice that dates back to the coronation of Richard the Lionheart in 1189.

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Liz Truss’s plan to visit Taiwan called ‘worst kind of Instagram diplomacy’

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Alicia Kearns, foreign affairs select committee chair, launches blistering attack on former prime minister

The Conservative chair of the foreign affairs select committee has launched a blistering attack on Liz Truss over the former prime minister’s planned trip to Taiwan, calling it “the worst kind of Instagram diplomacy”.

Alicia Kearns said she thought Truss’s trip planned for next week was little more than a vanity project aimed at keeping her profile high after her brief spell as prime minister last year.

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Son of jailed Hong Kong media tycoon condemns UK government ‘weakness’

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Sebastien Lai, son of Jimmy, also criticises Vatican over failure to hold China to account over human rights abuses

The British son of the jailed Hong Kong media entrepreneur Jimmy Lai has criticised Britain and the Vatican for failing to speak out strongly against the crackdown on dissent in the Chinese territory.

At a Washington event about the human rights situation in Hong Kong, Sebastien Lai said self-censorship in the former British colony was the anticipated result of the national security crackdown there, but the “hypocrisy” of some governments trying to trade with China was unexpected.

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Sheku Bayoh’s struggle in restraint may have played role in death, inquiry told

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Pathologist says struggle ‘has to be considered as being important’ in 2015 death in custody in Fife

Sheku Bayoh’s struggle while being restrained by at least six police officers should be considered a major part of what caused his death, according to the pathologist who examined his body.

The inquiry into Bayoh’s death in custody heard from Dr Kerryanne Shearer that the 31-year-old had taken ecstasy and another stimulant drug before being restrained by officers in Kirkcaldy, Fife, on 3 May 2015.

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Man remanded in custody after ‘gimp suit’ incidents in Somerset

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Joshua Hunt, 31, arrested after motorist reported someone in black latex suit jumped out in front of her

A man has appeared in court over a series of incidents in which he allegedly frightened people while wearing a black “gimp” suit.

Joshua Hunt, 31, has been accused of two counts of affray and one count each of possession of a bladed article and committing an act of outraging public decency, all of which are said to have taken place in Somerset.

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Number of adults living with parents in England and Wales rises by 700,000 in a decade

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A large majority of those returning to the roost – or who never left it – are men, census data reveals

It is enough to make parents wonder: whatever happened to the bachelor pad?

At least 620,000 more grown-up children are now living with their parents than a decade ago – and most of those doing so are young men, census figures reveal.

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