Category Archives: UK news

Michelle O’Neill accuses DUP minister of inflaming racial tensions on social media

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Gordon Lyons rejects calls to resign after posting information about leisure centre hours before it was set on fire

Northern Ireland’s first minister has accused a DUP politician of inflaming tensions after a leisure centre in Larne was set on fire.

Gordon Lyons, the communities minister, should “consider his position”, Michelle O’Neill said. Hours before the centre was set on fire by a mob of masked youths on Wednesday, Lyons had posted on social media that the building was being used to accommodate several people who had fled from Ballymena, about 20 miles (32km) away.

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Gibraltar agrees 15% sales tax on goods in post-Brexit settlement with Spain

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Transaction tax ‘acceptable’ to EU is part of deal to allow greater freedom of movement and link with customs union

Gibraltar will apply a 15% sales tax on goods to avoid unfair competition with Spain, as a result of the agreement on the post-Brexit future of the British overseas territory, it has emerged.

The territory has agreed to ensure a 15% minimum “transaction tax” on goods within three years of the ratification of the agreement, according to a senior European official.

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‘Panic and sadness’: British Gujaratis in Harrow gather to mourn Air India dead

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At community centre in north-west London, dozens share names of flight AI171 victims they knew, from relatives to dignitaries

In Harrow, north-west London, home to a large community of British Gujaratis, there was a sense of shock and profound sadness as people gathered at a community centre to mourn those who had been killed in the Air India flight.

Everyone’s phones had been buzzing all day on Thursday, said Aneka Shah-Levy, a local Labour councillor, as friends and family members across the world anxiously checked in on each other, and shared rumours and snippets of what information they knew.

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Ministers to offer olive branch on welfare plans to avert Labour rebellion

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Exclusive: Liz Kendall pledges sick and disabled people will be protected but MPs are pushing for more substantial changes to bill

Ministers are to offer mutinous Labour MPs an olive branch on the government’s welfare plans to help avert a major rebellion in a crucial vote early next month.

Liz Kendall, the welfare secretary, wants to reassure angry MPs who have threatened to rebel over fears that sick and disabled people will be hardest hit.

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BYD launches cheapest UK model in bid to overtake Tesla as biggest electric carmaker

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Dolphin Surf will start at £18,650 – among the cheapest new vehicles on sale in Britain

The Chinese manufacturer BYD has launched its cheapest model in the UK, in the latest stage of its efforts to overtake Tesla as the world’s biggest electric carmaker.

The Dolphin Surf will start at £18,650, a price that puts it among the cheapest new vehicles on sale in Britain.

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Stormzy takes first acting role as he launches film production company

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After music, publishing, sports and philanthropy, rapper expands into film-making with lead role in Big Man, a short film premiering on YouTube

After conquering the charts, Glastonbury’s Pyramid stage and launching his own publishing imprint, Stormzy is taking his first steps into the world of movies with starring in a short film about the travails of an ex-rapper.

Big Man will be made by the rap star’s own production company Merky Films in association with Apple, and feature Stormzy – in a sizable wig – as the lead character Tenzman, “a former rap star now navigating a restless and uncertain chapter of his life”.

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‘Dad strikes’ in London and Edinburgh demand better paternity leave

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Hundreds of fathers protest with children to call for two weeks’ statutory paternity leave to be increased

Hundreds of fathers took to the streets of London and Edinburgh on Wednesday to demand better paternity leave, in a protest that was billed as the world’s first dad strike.

They came with babies in papooses and pushchairs, as they brandished placards and dad jokes to call for an overhaul of the meanest paternity leave system in Europe.

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UK yet to commit to Nato plan for rise in defence spending to 3.5% of GDP

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Nato chief Mark Rutte wants members to agree to plan at summit this month but UK remains cautious

Britain has still not committed to an increase in defence spending to 3.5% of GDP by the mid-2030s at this month’s Nato summit in line with a proposal from the alliance’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, defence sources said.

Though Rutte visited Downing Street on Monday and expressed confidence afterwards that countries would sign up, senior insiders said Britain was dragging its heels.

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Keir Starmer faces Kemi Badenoch at PMQs ahead of government’s spending review – UK politics live

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Prime minister faces Conservative party leader as chancellor to reveal how government plans to spend almost £1.4tn in 2026-27

Green party MPs and activists staged a protest outside parliament today saying the government should use the spending review to announce a wealth tax. In a post on social media, Adrian Ramsay, the party’s co-leader, said:

We expect the Chancellor to take another axe to public spending today: decline by design from a govt that refuses to tax wealth to properly fund our overstretched public services & support the most vulnerable. We need to invest in a secure & fairer future. #TaxExtremeWealth

Senior SNP figures held a secret meeting on Monday night to discuss removing John Swinney as party leader, The Herald has learned, following last week’s defeat in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse byelection.

One of the 25 attendees said the first minister had two weeks to come up with a new strategy on independence — or risk facing a leadership challenge at the SNP conference in October.

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Two more Labour MPs suggest they could vote against assisted dying bill

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Andrew Gwynne and Paul Foster express concerns about safeguards as growing number of MPs change stance on bill

Two more Labour MPs have expressed significant doubts about the assisted dying bill, suggesting they would now oppose the legislation.

The former health minister Andrew Gwynne, who previously abstained, wrote to his constituents in Gorton and Denton to say: “To date I don’t think that the bill has been strengthened enough and that safeguards should go much further.”

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Competition watchdog to investigate Evri merger with DHL’s UK parcel arm

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CMA to decide whether deal will substantially lessen competition in delivery market

The UK’s competition watchdog has announced an investigation into the proposed merger of the delivery company Evri with DHL’s UK e-commerce business, a deal set to create one of the biggest parcel couriers in Britain.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Wednesday it was investigating Evri’s purchase of DHL eCommerce UK, as well as the parent company DHL Group’s acquisition of a minority stake in Evri.

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Reefs made from human ashes could revive British seabeds, says startup

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UK company offers alternative to land-based burials after success of memorials in Bali made from remains of pets

Death is killing our planet. That is the stark assessment of a new business offering an innovative alternative: having your loved one’s ashes made into a reef and anchored to the British seabed.

There are increasing concerns about the environmental cost of traditional funerals: a single burial generates 833kg of CO2, while a typical cremation has a footprint of about 400kg of CO2. In the US alone, 1.6m tonnes of concrete and 14,000 tonnes of steel is used each year for building graves. Chemicals from embalming processes seep into the soil.

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BT considers takeover move for struggling rival TalkTalk

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TalkTalk has been hit by financial difficulties and customer exodus but it is thought no approach has been made

BT is weighing up a potential takeover of the rival telecoms and broadband company TalkTalk, which is struggling amid financial difficulties and a customer exodus.

The UK’s biggest broadband provider is understood to have discussed the strategic possibility of buying TalkTalk. However, it is understood no approach has been made or talks held with TalkTalk, and that bankers have not been asked to draw up takeover plans.

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Fire breaks out at Larne leisure centre as Antrim unrest enters third night

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Local MLA blames ‘masked thugs’ for attack on centre that had been hosting people in need after Ballymena rioting

A fire broke out at a leisure centre during a third night of disorder in Northern Ireland on Wednesday.

People wearing masks smashed windows at the Larne leisure centre in County Antrim and set fires outside which spread inside the building.

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Rachel Reeves to unveils £39bn housing boost in spending review shake-up

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Chancellor promises biggest investment in social and affordable homes in a generation to hit 1.5m target

Rachel Reeves will raise government spending on affordable housing by nearly double on Wednesday, providing a major boost to the housebuilding sector and bringing the government’s housing targets a step closer.

The chancellor will announce nearly £40bn worth of grants to be spent over 10 years for local authorities, private developers and housing associations – a major increase on the previous programme.

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UK media regulator investigates possible online safety breaches at 4chan

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Ofcom looks into whether 4chan and file-sharing services failed to put measures to protect users from illegal content

Britain’s media regulator, Ofcom, on Tuesday launched nine investigations into the internet message board 4chan as well as several file-sharing services over possible breaches of online safety laws.

Britain’s Online Safety Act, passed in 2023, sets tougher standards for platforms to tackle criminal activity, with an emphasis on child protection and illegal content.

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Cheaper imported chicken and beef increasingly seen in UK supermarkets

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Grocers turning to Australia, Poland and Uruguay for meat, prompting claim they are undermining British farmers

Cheap chicken and beef from Australia, Poland and Uruguay is on the rise on UK supermarket shelves, according to the National Farmers’ Union, as supermarkets look for money-saving options.

The NFU regularly monitors supermarket shelves and notes that Morrisons is now selling raw chicken from Poland in its poultry aisle. Chicken in Poland is generally produced to different standards from those in the UK, and is cheaper as a result. Morrisons requires that for its UK chicken, poultry must be kept at a maximum stocking density of 30kg/m2, giving the chickens more space to roam. In Poland, this is up to 39kg/m2.

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Survivors of Ireland’s mother and baby homes risk losing UK benefits over compensation

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Campaign pushes to change law that could lead to survivors living in UK being disqualified from means-tested benefits

Survivors of Ireland’s mother and baby homes are being “retraumatised” by the prospect of losing benefits in the UK if they accept compensation from the Irish state, Westminster has been told.

The warning comes amid a campaign backed by representatives of almost every political party in the UK and figures including Steve Coogan, who starred in Philomena, a film about the mother and baby homes scandal.

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Loss of data relating to inquiry at NHS trust most likely deliberate, say police

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Nottingham university hospitals is subject of maternity care investigation involving nearly 2,500 cases

A missing data file containing the details of hundreds of maternity cases was most likely deleted “intentionally or maliciously”, a police investigation has concluded.

Nottinghamshire police began an investigation in February into the temporary loss of the computer file at Nottingham university hospitals (NUH) NHS trust.

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UK sanctions two far-right Israeli ministers for inciting West Bank violence

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Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich face travel bans and asset freezes as Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway also impose measures

The UK has been joined by Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway in placing sanctions on two Israeli government ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, largely for inciting violence against Palestinians in their campaign to gain control of new settlements in the West Bank.

Ben-Gvir, the security minister in Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government, and Smotrich, the finance minister, will face travel bans and have any assets in the five countries frozen. It was stressed that they were being sanctioned in their personal capacity, placing no restrictions on the ministries they lead. Netanyahu has promised to retaliate.

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