Retailer says underwear that could become male equivalent of push-up bra is intended to ‘help men feel their most confident’
For men who lament the decline of the codpiece, or who lack confidence at the office when their pants are not pushing up their genitals all day, Marks & Spencer is riding to the rescue.
The retailer, the UK market leader in selling underwear, has launched what could be considered the male equivalent of the push-up bra.
Continue reading...Women’s rights groups say announcement sends important message to survivors of abuse
The historic statement from Buckingham Palace stripping Andrew Mountbatten Windsor of his title is an “acknowledgment” that something happened to the late Virginia Giuffre, her family has told the Guardian.
In its announcement on Thursday, the palace said Andrew Mountbatten Windsor – as he is now known – will also leave his mansion in Windsor, Royal Lodge, as his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein continue to cause controversy.
Continue reading...Alana Odysseos, 32, was pregnant with her third child when she was killed by Shaine March in July last year
A man who murdered his pregnant girlfriend after being released from prison on licence has been jailed for 42 years.
Alana Odysseos, 32, was in the early stages of pregnancy with her third child when she was killed by Shaine March last year at her home in Walthamstow, east London. She died at the scene from stab wounds after the attack on 22 July 2024.
Continue reading...YouGov poll say only 26% of people say immigration is an issue locally but more than half believe it to be a national issue
There were six council byelections yesterday. Here are the results, from Election Maps UK.
Reform gained two seats, from Labour and from an independent group.
Continue reading...Exclusive: No cyber-attack assistance cash has gone into carmaker’s accounts or to struggling suppliers
Jaguar Land Rover has not drawn down any of a £1.5bn loan facility guaranteed by the government, with suppliers expressing anger over ministers’ claims to have supported the carmaker’s supply chain after a crippling hack.
Britain’s biggest automotive employer was forced to shut down all of its wholly owned factories from 1 September for more than a month, after cyber-attackers compromised key computer systems.
Continue reading...Older people left in their own excrement and wet beds for hours and forced to watch others die, Age UK report finds
Almost 150,000 people aged 90 and over in England are forced to wait longer than 12 hours in A&E every year, with some experiencing “truly shocking” waits of several days stuck in corridors, a report warns.
Older people are also being left in their own excrement and wet beds for hours, denied pain relief and forced to watch and hear other patients die next to them because they end up waiting so long for care, according to Age UK.
Continue reading...Agency says staff member offered to apply for licence to allow chancellor to rent out family home, but failed to do so
Keir Starmer appears to have escaped the huge political damage of potentially losing his chancellor weeks before the budget, after 24 hours of intense scrutiny over whether Rachel Reeves broke the law when she rented out her family home.
The Conservatives said Reeves must be sacked if she committed an offence by not obtaining a council licence before letting out her four-bedroom house in south London when the family moved into 11 Downing Street. No 10 was initially unable to explain why Starmer believed an apology from the chancellor was sufficient.
Continue reading...King’s brother will become known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, Buckingham Palace says, in latest fallout from Epstein scandal
Prince Andrew is to be stripped of his royal titles and will move out of his home at the Royal Lodge in Windsor, Buckingham Palace has announced.
King Charles has initiated a “formal process to remove the style, titles and honours of Prince Andrew”, who will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, the palace said.
Continue reading...Jettisoning of ex-prince became unavoidable when king’s loyalty to his brother collided with task of keeping public on side
To strip his brother of his titles and to evict him from his home is the most consequential action King Charles has taken since he ascended the throne in 2022.
The defenestration of Prince Andrew, now to be known only as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, and the removal of his cherished privilege of royal status is an act of utmost ruthlessness by a king. Ascending the throne at 73, Charles always knew he would play a caretaker role for the monarchy and so could not allow rot to set into an institution that lives and dies by public consent.
Continue reading...Despite pledges to run a squeaky clean administration the prime minister and some in his cabinet have been caught out
There is a theory in British politics, often attributed to Tony Blair, that you need to be careful about throwing a boomerang in opposition, because when you make it to power it could come back and hit you in the face.
As opposition leader, Keir Starmer became adept at landing blows on the Conservatives. Over the Partygate scandal in particular, he called for Boris Johnson to quit over his rule-breaking. “You cannot be a lawmaker and a lawbreaker and it’s time to pack his bags,” he said.
Continue reading...French magazine publishes judicial notice after using paparazzi images of family holiday in Alps
The Prince and Princess of Wales have won a privacy case against a French magazine after it published paparazzi photographs of them and their children on a private family ski holiday, Kensington Palace said.
William and Catherine launched legal action after their break was featured in Paris Match magazine in April, with a series of images documenting their activities with their children at a French resort in the Alps.
Continue reading...Previous visa policy had forced the students ‘to choose between their education and their family’
Some Palestinian students taking up scholarships at UK universities will be allowed to bring their families with them from Gaza after the government announced it would consider case-by-case exemptions to its evacuation policy.
After lobbying by MPs and supporters, the UK government has said partners and children could be allowed to accompany students on government-backed Chevening scholarships or studying for longer research degrees, such as PhDs.
Continue reading...UK rail regulator approves Richard Branson firm’s application to use Temple Mills site in London
Richard Branson’s train company is a step closer to challenging Eurostar’s monopoly on transporting passengers across the Channel after the UK rail regulator approved Virgin Train’s application to use a key depot in east London.
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) approved Virgin’s application to use the Temple Mills depot in Leyton – which is used for maintaining and storing trains. It said the move would unlock £700m of investment in new services and create 400 jobs.
Continue reading...Conservationists hail ‘remarkable’ rediscovery after 40 years, at nature reserve only accessible by boat
A tiny spider thought to have vanished for ever from the UK has been rediscovered on a remote area of a nature reserve accessible only by boat.
The Aulonia albimana, a member of the wolf spider family with orange legs, was found on the Isle of Wight in a spot grazed by a flock of Hebridean sheep.
Continue reading...Former PM says he has not seen party ‘soaring in the polls as a result of saying what rubbish net zero is’
Boris Johnson has warned the Conservatives they will not win the next election by “bashing the green agenda”.
The former prime minister said he had not seen the Conservatives “soaring in the polls as a result of saying what rubbish net zero is”.
Continue reading...Starmer signs agreement with visiting Vietnamese leader after surge in clandestine arrivals from country
Vietnamese people who arrive in the UK by irregular means will be fast-tracked for deportation under a new agreement, Downing Street has said.
After a surge in clandestine arrivals from the south-east Asian country last year via small boats and in the back of lorries, the deal is supposed to cut red tape and make it faster and easier to return those with no right to be in the UK.
Continue reading...Safi Dawood to appear in court charged with murder of one man and attempted murder of another man and a 14-year-old boy
A man has been charged with murder after a triple stabbing in Uxbridge, west London, police have said.
Safi Dawood, 22, was charged with the murder of a 49-year-old man and the attempted murders of another man, 45, and a 14-year-old boy. He will appear on Thursday at Westminster magistrates court.
Continue reading...Ed Miliband says pushing for renewable energy and lower emissions will reduce household bills and boost economy
The UK government will go “all in” on clean energy and climate policy, the energy secretary has said, as he unveiled plans to put the UK back on track to reach its net zero commitments.
In the face of intensifying attacks on climate policy from the poll-leading Reform UK party and the Conservatives, the government insists that pushing for renewable energy and lower carbon emissions will reduce household bills and boost the economy.
Continue reading...This blog is now closed, you can read more of our UK political coverage here
Mark Sedwill, the former cabinet secretary and former national security adviser, goes next. He is now a peer, and a member of the committee.
He says the deputy national security adviser, Matthew Collins, thought there was enough evidence for the case to go ahead. But the CPS did not agree. Who was right?
In 2017, the Law Commission flagged that the term enemy [in the legislation] was deeply problematic and it would give rise to difficulties in future prosecutions.
And I think what has played out, during this prosecution exemplifies and highlights the difficulties with that.
Continue reading...Shares jump on higher profits as Emma Walmsley is ‘hopeful’ standoff with NHS can be resolved
GSK’s outgoing chief executive, Emma Walmsley, has said Britain will struggle to be a “life sciences superpower” unless it overhauls drug pricing.
As ministers draw up proposals to increase the amount the NHS spends on new medicines by up to 25%, Walmsley said she was “hopeful and ambitious” that the standoff with the pharma industry could be resolved.
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