Exclusive: As well as citing personal reasons, Ridley says she is making way for a successor ‘to work alongside new leader’
Hollie Ridley, Labour’s general secretary, is to step down this autumn after two years in the job, she has announced to party staff.
Ridley, an ally of Keir Starmer who ran Labour’s field operations in the 2024 general win election, said in an internal email she would stand down after the party’s annual conference in September.
Continue reading...One of 11 surviving copies of ‘Exeter printing’ and only one known outside US was taken from American privateer ship
For Michael Scurr, a volunteer at the National Archives in Kew, west London, it was “just a boring old Thursday morning” when he sat down in late May to catalogue a collection of documents from the British national collection that had never previously been recorded in detail.
As he opened a volume of 18th-century Royal Navy correspondence, however, Scurr unfolded a document whose opening words he recognised. “In Congress, July 4, 1776. A declaration by the representatives of the United States of America …”
Continue reading...NEC told it must take steps to address fears – including not hiring Everton stadium to announce new leader before nominations even open
Labour chiefs have been warned they must placate disgruntled Labour members who are angry at the lack of party democracy because Andy Burnham is not expected to face a challenge to become Labour leader.
MPs have told the party there are growing complaints from members about the lack of involvement from members if Burnham does not face a leadership contest from any other MP.
Continue reading...Study suggests even light activity such as ironing could reduce health risks linked to prolonged sedentary behaviour
Sitting for longer than half an hour at a time each day raises the risk of dying from cancer, a study suggests.
Researchers who tracked more than 90,000 people over a decade found that sitting or lying down while awake for more than 30 minutes in one period each day was associated with an increased risk of cancer death. The risk increases for every additional hour of continuous inactivity, the findings suggest.
Continue reading...Culture secretary says her department will stop using platform, citing concerns over far-right content fuelling violence and division
The UK’s culture and media department will stop using X because the site “now favours abuse and misinformation over meaningful debate”, Lisa Nandy has announced.
The culture secretary’s department is the UK’s second to quit the Elon Musk-owned platform over increasing concerns about the way it highlights and prioritises often inaccurate far-right and racist content and is used to incite violence and division.
Continue reading...NCA says offenders arrange to sexually assault and film victims via online networks with crimes often taking place in trusting relationships
Criminal investigators in the UK say they have uncovered a “truly international network” of organised drug-facilitated sexual assault in which victims are sedated before being raped and sexually assaulted.
The National Crime Agency [NCA] has said online networks, “many as yet unidentified by law enforcement”, were allowing offenders to arrange to rape and abuse victims or arrange for sexual assaults to be filmed.
Continue reading...Reasons for increase not clear but experts say it could be welcome sign marine ecosystem is becoming healthier
The Farne Islands off the Northumberland coast have long drawn fans of the natural world keen to catch sight of the resident guillemots and puffins.
But as recently as last week, another much bigger black-and-white animal has been delighting wildlife spotters. Orcas have been appearing more regularly than ever before.
Continue reading...Free choice of repertoire and an increased upper age limit part of the changes in a competition that will emphasise individuality and imagination
The Leeds International Piano Competition is to be relaunched under the artistic direction of Sir Stephen Hough. The pianist is leading significant reforms to the triennial contest that first began in 1963. He will also chair an international jury that includes fellow pianists Piotr Anderszewski, Lucas Debargue, Yeol Eum Son, Kathryn Stott and Master of the King’s Music, composer Errollyn Wallen.
The 2027 competition will have its upper age limit increased to 35, and competitors will have complete free choice over the music they perform, be it Couperin or Copland, Boulez or Busoni.
Continue reading...Watchdog criticises ‘lack of proactive, effective casework quality assurance’ but says CCRC ultimately fit for purpose
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) must urgently improve its investigations to avoid a repeat of failings such as those in the Andrew Malkinson scandal, a watchdog has found.
Anthony Rogers, the chief inspector of the Crown Prosecution Service, delivered the warning after carrying out an independent inspection of casework by the body that investigates potential miscarriages of justice.
Continue reading...Restructuring plan involves writing off debts to suppliers and cutting rent for many landlords
Up to 150 former WH Smith high street stores are to close after the high court approved a swingeing restructure that could affect thousands of jobs.
The retailer, which has 450 stores and employs about 5,000 staff, was bought last year by the private equity firm Modella Capital, which also owns Hobbycraft, and rebranded as TG Jones.
Continue reading...Minister and MPs have raised concerns that his ‘poisoned chalice’ plan will take cash from much-needed road projects
Dan Sabbagh is the Guardian’s defence and security editor.
Andy Burnham is a “true patriot” who will provide the money needed to maintain Britain’s security when he becomes prime minister, the new defence secretary, Dan Jarvis, said on a visit to a factory in Cambridge today.
I’ve known Andy Burnham for more than 15 years, he is a true patriot, and I absolutely believe that he will make sure that we have the resources that we need to field the kind of capabilities that are required given the nature of the world that we’re operating in.
I know what we need to do to keep Britain safe, and I’m absolutely confident that Andy Burnham, as the next prime minister, knows that as well, and we’ll make sure in the context of the next spending review that we’ve got the resources we need to keep the country safe.
Continue reading...Three-year-old remains in hospital after undergoing multiple surgeries but is now in a stable condition
The family of a three-year-old boy who was seriously injured in a crocodile attack at a zoo have thanked staff at the attraction in a new statement released through the police.
Last month, officers were called to Johnsons of Old Hurst zoo in Huntingdonshire over “reports of an incident involving a three-year-old boy, during which he ended up in the crocodile enclosure”.
Continue reading...Group confirms it will stop opening new accounts under the name and move existing ones to Lloyds
Lloyds Banking Group has announced it is axing the Halifax brand, scrubbing the 173-year-old former building society’s name from UK high streets.
The group will stop opening new accounts under the Halifax brand and kickstart a process of shifting existing accounts to Lloyds branding over the coming days.
Continue reading...Airlines and airports say passengers are struggling in queues of up to five hours for biometric checks
Airlines and airports have called for the new EU biometric border check system to be suspended during the peak summer holiday period,saying some flights are leaving half full and passengers are struggling in queues of up to five hours.
In a letter to Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, airlines and airports asked for an option to suspend checks under the system over fears the situation will get much worse during the busy summer season.
Continue reading...Ahead of England’s first knockout game of the World Cup, Love Letter to England celebrates what English people have in common
What does it mean to be English? Ahead of England’s first knockout game of the World Cup, Ian McKellen and the award-winning playwright James Graham have released a short film that attempts to answer that deceptively simple question.
The film, Love Letter to England, explores and celebrates what people across the country have in common. It draws on early contributions to the National Conversation, a UK-wide initiative that began last month.
Continue reading...Doctors say survey shows need for morning-after pill to be available at corner shops, petrol stations and supermarkets
Almost half of the UK population believe it would be difficult to access emergency contraception on a Sunday, while nearly two-thirds think they would struggle after 10pm, according to a survey.
The research, carried out by YouGov, found that only 7% of people believe it would be difficult to access emergency contraception during the daytime on a weekday.
Continue reading...Polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome is underdiagnosed and inconsistenly managed, according to Nice
Up to 4 million women with irregular periods should be investigated for polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, according to new NHS guidance.
PMOS, previously known as polycystic ovarian syndrome, is believed to affect up to 13% of reproductive age women, the World Health Organization estimates.
Continue reading...Critics call proposed limits on asylum claims a ‘quick fix that will create long-term chaos’
More than half of the people whose asylum and visa claims will be rejected under tightened human rights laws will continue to live in the UK, according to the Home Office’s own assessment.
Documents released on Tuesday show that plans to set new limits on article 8 of the European convention on human rights are expected to result in another 11,700 people having their claims rejected annually.
Continue reading...Past and present leaders of wealthy nations such as UK and Germany have argued their actions are insignificant
On first hearing, it is a position that sounds reasonable. “When our share of global emissions is less than 1%,” Rishi Sunak argued when he was the UK prime minister in 2023, “how can it be right that British citizens are now being told to sacrifice even more than others?”
Sunak is not the only world leader to have cited such figures while delaying cuts to pollution. In 2019, Scott Morrison, Australia’s then prime minister, used his country’s 1.3% of global emissions to reject any suggestion Australia was not “doing our bit” on climate breakdown. In July, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, pointed to his country’s 2% share of global emissions while supporting loopholes in European climate targets. A few months later the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, followed suit, flagging the EU’s 6% share.
Continue reading...Starmer says defence spending cannot be ‘bottomless pit’ and MoD has to ‘spend better’
Keir Starmer is speaking now.
They are at Malloy Aeronautics, a firm that designs heavy-lift drones, and Starmer says this morning they showed him one of the heaviest drones he had ever seen.
Last year, I made the decision in the national interest to reprioritise aid spending towards defence and achieve the biggest uplift in defence spending since the end of the cold war.
That was the right choice because the world has changed. National security is economic security.
Continue reading...