Category Archives: UK news

Digitisation of food vouchers for UK families left them hungry and desperate

Posted on by

Analysis: in a botched upgrade the fruit and veg Healthy Start scheme turned away numerous eligible low-income families

As the cost of living crisis blew up in March, and millions faced “starve or freeze” choices, it emerged – with dismal timing – that the rollout of the government’s newly digitised Healthy Start fruit and veg voucher scheme for low-income mothers was in chaos.

About 550,000 mothers who are pregnant or who have children aged three or under are in theory eligible for the scheme, which is worth between £4.25 and £8.50 a week. Designed to ensure their kids get their five-a-day portions, milk or formula, it should have been a timely boost.

Continue reading...

Former British soldier killed fighting Russian forces in Ukraine

Posted on by

Jordan Gatley’s family say he died in the battle for the strategic eastern city of Sievierodonetsk

A former British soldier has died fighting Russian forces in the Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk, his family have said.

Jordan Gatley left the British army in March “to continue his career as a soldier in other areas” and had been helping Ukrainian troops defend their country against Russia, his father Dean wrote in a statement posted on Facebook on Saturday.

Continue reading...

Hope of finding Dom Phillips alive has gone, say mother-in-law and wife

Posted on by

The British journalist was travelling in the Amazon with Indigenous expert Bruno Pereira when they went missing

The wife and mother-in-law of missing British journalist Dom Phillips have said their hopes of finding him alive had gone, in a heartfelt and heart-breaking message that paid tribute to him and his travelling companion Bruno Pereira.

Phillips, a longtime contributor to the Guardian, and Pereira, an experienced Indigenous advocate, went missing on 5 June in a remote part of the western Amazon.

Continue reading...

‘A gift from God’: Binley Mega Chippy owner basks in TikTok fame

Posted on by

Kamal Gandhi, 70, and his Coventry chip shop became a sensation after its name was turned into a catchy song

It has been two weeks since his Coventry chip shop became a TikTok sensation drawing in crowds from around the country, and 70-year-old Kamal Gandhi is exhausted.

He has had to take on and train four new staff members, ensure a continuous supply of stock to deal with hundreds of new customers and help manage the long queues snaking down the road outside the now world famous Binley Mega Chippy.

Continue reading...

‘I am amazed’: 101-year-old Dutch woman reunited with painting looted by Nazis

Posted on by

Exclusive: she will sell the 1683 portrait of Steven Wolters by Caspar Netscher through Sotheby’s so her family can benefit from the proceeds

At the age of 101, a Dutch woman has been reunited with a painting that had been looted from her father by the Nazis during the second world war, but she has decided to sell it through Sotheby’s in London so that her family can benefit from the proceeds.

Charlotte Bischoff van Heemskerck, a non-practising Baptist who joined the Dutch Resistance, had never given up hope of finding the 1683 portrait of Steven Wolters by Caspar Netscher, a Dutch master whose paintings are in the National Gallery, London.

Continue reading...

Liz Truss accused of ignoring evidence of rendition of UK citizen to Nigeria

Posted on by

Family of Nnamdi Kanu, a separatist leader, say he was seized and tortured in Kenya and then flown to Nigeria

The family of a British citizen have accused the foreign secretary of ignoring “overwhelming evidence” he was taken to Nigeria in an act of extraordinary rendition and failing to end his “unlawful” imprisonment there.

Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob), a prominent separatist movement proscribed in Nigeria, has been held there since June last year.

Continue reading...

Family pays tribute to Ceredigion father who died saving children from rip tide

Posted on by

‘Selfless’ Hywel Morgan, 47, recovered from sea at Poppit Sands after helping rescue group of children but could not be saved

Tributes have been paid to a father who died after rescuing a group of children caught in a rip tide.

Hywel Morgan, 47, had helped save the children who had got into difficulty in the sea at Poppit Sands, St Dogmaels, Ceredigion.

Continue reading...

Poll says Keir Starmer worse choice for PM than Boris Johnson

Posted on by

Labour ahead of Tories by two points, but Labour’s leader failing to make a personal breakthrough

Boris Johnson makes a better prime minister than Keir Starmer would despite Partygate, the cost of living crisis and the confidence vote in Johnson held by his MPs, according to the latest Observer poll.

The Opinium figures, which will raise further concerns within Labour over the party leader’s performance, shows that the prime minister has a two-point lead over his opponent. It also reveals that Starmer’s party holds a narrow two-point lead, compared with a three-point lead in the last poll a fortnight ago. Labour are on 36% of the vote, with the Tories up one point on 34%. The Lib Dems are on 13% with the Greens on 6%.

Continue reading...

Boris Johnson faces rural fury over post-Brexit food strategy

Posted on by

Anger grows before West Country byelection as farmers say they will be left poorer and unable to compete with foreign producers

Boris Johnson’s hopes of surviving as prime minister have been dealt a serious blow after farmers and environmentalists condemned his government’s post-Brexit food strategy as a disaster for people in the countryside – with less than two weeks to go before a key rural byelection.

In an interview with the Observer, the president of the National Farmers Union, Minette Batters, said ambitious proposals to help farmers increase food production, first put forward last year by the government’s food tsar, Henry Dimbleby, had been “stripped to the bone” in a new policy document, and meant farmers would not be able to produce affordable food.

Continue reading...

200 protesters block immigration officers’ van during Peckham arrest

Posted on by

Met police called to help enforcement officers get past crowd of demonstrators after Nigerian man detained for overstaying visa

A man arrested for immigration offences was released on bail after protesters gathered in south-east London on Saturday for hours to block a van he was being transported in from leaving.

Video footage posted on Twitter showed a crowd of about 200 people sitting on the ground in front of the vehicle in Peckham while another clip showed members of the public standing and shouting “let him go”.

Continue reading...

15-year-old boy stabbed to death in Manchester named by police

Posted on by

Jakub Szymanski was attacked during a domestic incident in Miles Platting, reportedly as he attempted to protect his mother

A 15-year-old boy who died after he was stabbed in Miles Platting has been named by Greater Manchester police as Jakub Szymanski.

A 44-year-old man was arrested in Kent on Friday night on suspicion of murder after the teenage boy was stabbed to death and his mother was injured at a Manchester home, police confirmed.

Continue reading...

Commons will be a ‘menopause-friendly’ employer, says Speaker

Posted on by

Sir Lindsay Hoyle unveils plans to ‘break the taboo’, and agrees to sign the Menopause Workplace Pledge

The House of Commons is to become a “menopause-friendly” employer, with Sir Lindsay Hoyle unveiling plans to “break the taboo” and offer practical adjustments for those affected.

The Commons Speaker will sign the Wellbeing of Women charity’s Menopause Workplace Pledge, which will commit the House of Commons Service to supporting employees going through the menopause.

Continue reading...

Boris Johnson warned NI protocol ‘rule-breaking’ will repeat mistakes of Partygate

Posted on by

Tory tensions high over risk of illegality in imminent bill to improve trade between Northern Ireland and rest of UK

Boris Johnson is being warned that he will repeat the mistakes of Partygate by backing “rule-breaking over the rule of law”, when he publishes plans on Monday that are expected to prompt a new Tory rebellion over Brexit.

Frantic legal and political negotiations have been taking place this week among Johnson, his cabinet and MPs in advance of the government’s bill designed to improve trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. The legislation will be published on Monday.

Continue reading...

Greek pilot jailed for murdering British wife ‘fears contract killing’

Posted on by

Babis Anagnostopoulos claims he is living in fear from those he initially blamed for Caroline Crouch’s death

The Greek helicopter pilot given a life sentence for the brutal murder of his British wife in Athens last year claims to be living in fear of those he initially blamed for the crime.

Weeks after being found guilty of suffocating Caroline Crouch, Babis Anagnostopoulos has said his own life is in danger because he has become the target of a “contract killing”.

Continue reading...

Family of UK man sentenced to death by Russia call for cooperation

Posted on by

Shaun Pinner’s loved ones ‘devastated’ after he received verdict alongside Aiden Aslin in what UK calls a ‘sham’ sentence

The family of a British man sentenced to death for fighting Russian forces have said they are “devastated” and called for “urgent cooperation” to secure his release.

Shaun Pinner, 48, received the death penalty, along with fellow Briton Aiden Aslin, this week in what the UK government has branded a “sham” sentencing.

Continue reading...

NHS needs reform rather than more money to deliver, Sajid Javid says

Posted on by

Health secretary says service has enough resources but admits waiting lists will grow before they shrink

The NHS needs reform rather than more money, the health secretary has said, while admitting that record-high waiting lists will continue to rise before they fall.

Sajid Javid said the health service already had the resources it needed and did not require more to care for patients effectively. “The NHS now has locked in the resources it needs. It doesn’t need any more money. What it needs to deliver for more people is not money. It needs reform,” he said.

Continue reading...

Student loan interest rate to be capped at 7.3% in autumn, says DfE

Posted on by

Ministers intervene to stop interest rate in England and Wales reaching 12% with inflation by September

Ministers have intervened to reduce a sharp rise in interest rates charged on student loans, after the recent increase in inflation which meant rates would treble for many graduates by the autumn.

The Department for Education said the maximum rate from September is to be fixed at 7.3% rather than the 12% it would have reached by September, based on earlier inflation figures plus 3%.

Continue reading...

Not full of confidence: Labour frets over Starmer’s response to Tory chaos

Posted on by

Many in the opposition fear their leader is not sufficiently punishing the government’s weakness

At Tuesday’s shadow cabinet meeting, less than 24 hours after Boris Johnson’s humiliating confidence vote, Keir Starmer gave his troops what one called “a bit of cold reality” about how much work remains to be done in developing Labour’s policies and message in the months ahead.

Many could not agree more. Conversations with shadow cabinet members, party aides and other senior Labour figures this week revealed deep disquiet about whether Starmer and his team are ready to capitalise on the Tories’ weakness.

Continue reading...

First post-Covid school leavers face fight for fewer university places

Posted on by

Parents and teachers say some students predicted to gain A* grades are being rejected after a surge in applications

The first post-Covid cohort of school leavers face a summer of uncertainty that “threatens to hold back a generation”, as students compete for fewer places on popular university courses.

After A-level grade inflation during the pandemic forced universities to take on more students, institutions are now retrenching in popular subjects despite a surge in applications.

Continue reading...