Flooding likely in Wales and many areas of England, with severe cold to follow in some areas late on Sunday
Heavy rain and blustery winds across much of the UK will result in a washout weekend.
The Met Office has issued yellow warnings for rain in Wales and many parts of England which are in place from Friday night until midday on Saturday.
Continue reading...Rain and flood warnings issued for much of Wales and western parts of England and Scotland
Some homes and businesses could be flooded in parts of the UK on Tuesday, forecasters have warned.
The Met Office has issued three yellow warnings for “persistent heavy rain” throughout the day, covering much of Wales and north-west England.
Continue reading...Industrial action over pay and working conditions has caused almost four weeks of disruption
The last day in the latest stretch of railway strikes has begun, ending a run of almost four weeks of continuous disruption caused by industrial action over pay and working conditions.
Only about one in five trains across Great Britain will run on Saturday as a 48-hour walkout by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers union concludes, with no early morning or evening services and a pared-back schedule on main intercity and urban lines.
Continue reading...Offences committed in England and Wales have included murder, kidnap, and child rape, study of data shows
Nearly 900,000 offences including murder, kidnap, and child rape, have been committed by people on bail in England and Wales since the Conservatives came to power, a new analysis has found.
The latest government figures show more than 20,000 offences were committed by those released from custody as they awaited a hearing, equating to 55 offences a day.
Continue reading...Met Office issues yellow alerts for heavy rain on Tuesday and Wednesday with localised flooding predicted
Forecasters have warned that heavy rain could lead to flooding and travel disruption this week.
The Met Office has issued a yellow warning of rain for southern Scotland and parts of central Scotland, the Highlands, and Argyll and Bute, valid from 2pm on Tuesday until 6am on Wednesday. It states that occasionally heavy rain, and a thaw of snow lying on the hills, is expected to lead to localised flooding and transport disruption.
Continue reading...Figures uncovered by Lib Dems show that only 1.7% of 74,421 cases over 12 months resulted in a charge
Almost 90% of all bicycle theft cases reported to police over the past year were closed without a suspect even being identified, and just 1.7% resulted in someone being charged, analysis of crime statistics shows.
The Liberal Democrats, who uncovered the data from statistics for England and Wales from July 2021 to June this year, said it was indicative of under-funded police forces being unable to properly investigate such crimes.
Continue reading...First minister claims Tories in Westminster are ‘staggering’ and could be months away from collapse
The Welsh first minister has told the Labour party in Wales to be prepared for a general election in the new year, believing the UK government could be months away from sudden collapse.
Mark Drakeford claimed the Conservative government in Westminster was “staggering”, and that at any moment it could be “overwhelmed” and forced to call a snap UK election.
Continue reading...Dyfed-Powys police arrested 33-year-old on suspicion of child neglect after sudden death of child in Lampeter
A woman has been arrested on suspicion of child neglect in Wales over the death of an eight-year-old linked to the strep A infection.
According to the BBC, a 33-year-old woman was arrested by Dyfed-Powys police on 23 December after the “sudden death” of a child the day before in Lampeter, Ceredigion and has been released as inquiries continue.
Continue reading...Network Rail advises users of some routes to avoid travel unless necessary until at least 9 January
Rail passengers have been told to avoid some services for two weeks and that trains will be “significantly disrupted” across most of the country into the new year.
The warning from Network Rail came as some services juddered back to life on Tuesday after the Christmas shutdown and several days of strikes by RMT union members.
Continue reading...Judge at Cardiff hearing rejects families’ complaint, saying relationships curriculum does not advocate any one gender identity
A group of parents has lost a legal challenge against the teaching of children about gender identity and sex in primary schools across Wales.
Campaigners launched a judicial review in the high court against the Welsh government’s new relationships and sexuality education (RSE) curriculum, which they depicted as “dangerous” and “woke”.
Continue reading...Ambulance workers and other NHS staff strike for between 12 and 24 hours in England and Wales
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Barclay is doubling down on his refusal to negotiate on pay and told staff struggling now that they should “look forward” to next year’s pay process.
We’re already three quarters of the way through this year. So, what you’d be saying is, go all the way back retrospectively to April to unpick what has been an independent decision by the pay review body.
But we’re already now under way in terms of next year’s pay review process, the remit letters have gone out.
It took place in February and the world was a rather different place in February and therefore I think some of the evidence they considered was probably out of date by the time it was published. Because the process is very slow, the decision is a bit lagged.
I think [ministers] should ask the pay review body to reconsider what they did last year, and not reopen last year, because I think it’s too late to do that, but actually say I want you to do a very quick turnaround for this year’s recommendations and I want you to take account on anything you might have missed last time round.
No, it reflects the very different action we’ve seen from these trade unions – the GMB, Unite and Unison – compared to what we saw from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), where we agreed national exemptions in terms of what would be covered by the RCN, whereas the three unions striking today have refused to work with us on a national level.
Life and limb cover will be provided. The last thing that our members want to do is put patients in harm’s way … The government has to play their part, they have to come to the table and talk to us. Our members want a resolution to this.
Continue reading...Bodies representing NHS care in England also call for Rishi Sunak intervention but PM refuses to budge on pay
NHS leaders have urged the public to avoid risky activity on Wednesday for fear they may be left helpless and unable to reach A&E during the ambulance strike.
The industrial action by staff across England and Wales comes as the ongoing pay dispute between ministers and NHS workers looks poised to descend into an increasingly bitter and disruptive war of attrition that could go on for months.
Continue reading...Tuesday’s strike goes ahead as Royal College of Nursing highlights low pay
Nurses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland went on strike on Tuesday in an ongoing dispute with the government about pay and concerns about patient safety.
Up to 100,000 members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) took part after it balloted its members in October. It has said that low pay is the cause of chronic understaffing that is putting patients at risk and leaving NHS staff overworked.
Continue reading...Patients with serious conditions and injuries will have to get themselves to A&E, NHS chiefs say
Thousands of patients who have had strokes, heart attacks or broken bones will have to get themselves to A&E on Wednesday when ambulance staff strike over pay, NHS bosses have warned.
The disruption is expected to last for up to three days, with crews not reaching some patients who called 999 on Wednesday until Thursday or Friday.
Continue reading...Ambulance service blames demand, staff sickness, and patient handover times for elderly man being taken to hospital on plank
The health board for the area where an 89-year-old man was taken to hospital strapped to a plank because no ambulances were available has said the flow of patients through its hospitals is blocked because hundreds of medically fit people have nowhere safe to be discharged to.
They have urged people to stay away from emergency departments unless their need is dire.
Continue reading...Royal College of Nursing leader criticises ‘belligerence’ in meeting with Steve Barclay at which ministers refused to discuss pay
Nurses’ strikes will go ahead this week after a meeting between the union and the health secretary ended in deadlock, with the Royal College of Nursing condemning ministers’ “belligerence” for refusing to discuss pay.
Six hundred military personnel from all three armed forces will start training to drive ambulances to cover for striking NHS workers across the UK later this month. A further 150 are being readied to act as logistical support, defence sources said, with training for both groups to start “shortly”.
Continue reading...Labour leader says, though he argued for remain, he could not argue against leave voters calling for more control over their lives
Starmer is now taking questions.
Q: [Beth Rigby from Sky] When people are struggling with the cost of living, you are talking about constitutional issues. This might look to people as if you are out of touch. Are you talking to Westminster about stuff that won’t happen. What in this will improve people’s lives from day one of a Labour government?
When you come to the next election, it may be that the Scottish National party will have a one-line manifesto and want a one-issue general election.
But we have done a huge amount of research on Scottish public opinion and people want a better health service immediately, people want living standards improved immediately, people want jobs for young people immediately, people want better housing immediately and people of course want change in the way that we are suggesting immediately.
People up and down this country are crying out for a new approach. During the Brexit referendum I argued for remain. But I couldn’t disagree with the basic case that many leave voters made to me.
They wanted democratic control over their lives so they could provide opportunities for the next generation, build communities they felt proud of, and public services they could rely on.
Continue reading...Thousands of prisoners still serving indefinite sentences in England and Wales, even for low-level crime
Dominic Raab is being urged to show mercy to prisoners in England and Wales who remain jailed under a sentencing scheme abolished 10 years ago.
The imprisonment for public protection (IPP) sentence was a form of indeterminate sentence in which offenders were given a minimum jail tariff but no maximum for a range of crimes. Nearly 3,000 legacy prisoners remain in jail under the scheme.
Continue reading...Head of West Midlands police warns of rising crime in poorest areas as forces are stretched beyond capacity
A child experiencing a mental health crisis had to live in a police station for two days due to a lack of psychiatric places, a chief constable has revealed, as he condemned austerity for hitting the poorest areas hardest.
Sir David Thompson, who leads West Midlands police, said his force – which is still missing officers and funding after cuts – was being asked to do too much, and warned of rising crime as desperation increases in the poorest areas.
Dismissed attacks from government and rightwing media that claim the police are too woke.
Condemned those trying to drag policing into the “culture wars”.
Revealed fears that the poorest areas would be hit hardest again by the cost of living crisis, fuelling a “real risk” of rising crime.
Said that bias explained some of the reasons that black people experienced more use of force and coercive powers than other groups.
Called for a radical rethink on tackling the problems blighting society, as public services work in “silos”.
Warned that police were being expected to do too much, including in the field of mental health.
Continue reading...Campaigners hit out after teams including England and Wales say players will not wear armband at World Cup in Qatar
LGBTQ+ rights activists and campaigners have condemned Fifa’s threats to impose sanctions on players who wear OneLove armbands at the World Cup in Qatar.
England, Wales and five other European nations have confirmed their players will not wear the armband, saying the football governing body had made it clear their captains could be booked or forced to leave the pitch if they did so.
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