Disruption expected as rain turns to snow, after major flooding incident declared in Greater Manchester
An ice warning is in force for much of the UK as temperatures have dropped, after a major incident was declared due to flooding.
The yellow Met Office warning indicates there could be some difficult travel conditions across Scotland, Northern Ireland and north Wales, and stretching down to the Midlands, until 10am on Thursday.
Continue reading...Patients waiting many hours for ambulances to arrive, while those phoning 999 struggle to get through
A “critical incident” was declared by the Welsh ambulance service on Monday evening due to significantly increased demand and extensive handover delays.
The ambulance service, which covers 3 million-plus people across Wales, said more than 340 calls were waiting to be answered at the time the critical incident was declared.
Continue reading...Fourth named storm of the season follows concern over lack of flooding warnings for Storm Bert last week
An amber warning for wind has been issued for large parts of the UK, with power cuts and flying debris possible amid the arrival of the fourth named storm of the season.
Storm Darragh is expected to bring gusts of up to 80mph and heavy rain late on Friday and into Saturday.
Continue reading...MPs vote to give leave to bring in private members’ bill on PR but it will have no practical effect
Lord Robertson, the former Labour defence secretary and former Nato secretary who is leading the government’s strategic defence review, is giving evidence to the Commons defence committee. He has told MPs that the Americans are being fully consulted about the review. This is from Shashank Joshi, the Economist’s defence editor.
Listening to George Robertson & Richard Barrons, who are writing the UK’s defence review alongside Fiona Hill, giving evidence to the Commons defence committee. They’re in “constant contact” with allies, Robertson says, and have a US officer on the review team.
Continue reading...Companies say higher returns are needed to ensure record infrastructure investment across industry is delivered
Water companies want to see higher returns for shareholders to ensure record investment into sewage infrastructure, pipes and treatment plants is delivered.
As Ofwat, the water regulator for England and Wales, prepares to announce its decision on how much customer bills will be allowed to rise by to fund tens of billions of pounds in investment across the industry, water companies said higher returns were needed.
Continue reading...James Howells seeking go-ahead to search for hard drive that was accidentally thrown into landfill in 2013
For more than a decade, a computer expert from Newport in south Wales has doggedly fought to recover £500m of bitcoin he says was accidentally thrown into a council tip.
James Howells’ bid to become extremely rich reached a judge on Tuesday with a team of lawyers arguing that it was still possible to launch a hunt for his missing hard drive containing the bitcoin.
Continue reading...Layla Moran and Diane Abbott say end-of-life care needs more funding after bill passed for England and Wales
MPs on both sides of the debate over assisted dying have called for improvements to palliative care, regardless of whether parliament eventually enacts legalisation.
Layla Moran, who supported the bill at its second reading on Friday, and Diane Abbott, who did not, agreed that more funding was required to improve end-of-life care during a joint-interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Continue reading...Terminally ill adults with less than six months to live will be given right to die under proposed legislation
MPs have taken a historic step toward legalising assisted dying in England and Wales by backing a bill that would give some terminally ill people the right to end their own lives.
Campaigners in favour of the terminally ill adults (end of life) bill said it was a significant move towards giving people more choice over the way they die, after the Commons backed the bill by 330 votes for to 275 against.
Continue reading...Peter Young says agency sought information from him about Daniel Andreas San Diego, who was on ‘most wanted terrorists’ list
A former animal rights activist who was on the run from the FBI for more than seven years claims that he was offered a deal to inform on one of the organisation’s most wanted fugitives who was arrested this week in Wales.
Peter Young, 47, who now lives in Boulder, Colorado, went on the run after being indicted in 1998 over a string of fur farm raids across three states the previous year. He was jailed in the US for two years in 2005 after spending years hiding from the FBI in the UK.
Continue reading...Welsh first minister to ask UK government for more money to make coal tips safe after Cwmtillery landslip
More than 500 homes and businesses were flooded across Wales and England during Storm Bert, it has emerged, as forecasters issued another severe weather warning for rain in parts of southern Britain.
In Wales, the first minister, Eluned Morgan, said 400 homes had been damaged as well as businesses and infrastructure, and reviews were being done to find out why some householders appeared not to have received warnings in time.
Continue reading...Proposal would give councils option to charge 75p-£1.25 a night to help alleviate pressure on local services
People who stay in Wales overnight, including children, are set to be charged a visitor levy under a scheme that could raise up to £33m a year to be ploughed back into tourism and culture.
All visitors would be charged 75p a night to stay in campsites and hostels and £1.25 for all other accommodation including hotels, B&Bs and holiday lets.
Continue reading...Natural Resources Wales to investigate whether sufficient warnings of Storm Bert and the flooding it caused were given to people in advance
Northamptonshire Police have warned people in the area “while the flooding remains ongoing, please avoid all unnecessary travel and do not drive through floodwater of any depth – it is not worth the risk.”
In Yate in the west of England, BBC Bristol reports that about 100 properties were flooded overnight, and residents had to be evacuated.
Continue reading...Critics claim warnings and defences were inadequate but Met Office says storm was ‘well forecast’
Weather forecasters and politicians have come in for strong criticism after hundreds of homes and businesses across the UK suffered devastating flooding in Storm Bert but the Met Office has said it issued sufficient warning.
There were growing complaints in south Wales, one of the areas most heavily hit, that the Met Office issued only a yellow warning, rather than an amber or red, and that not enough new defences had been put in place by the Welsh government since storms last wreaked havoc in the area four years ago.
Continue reading...Rhondda Cynon Taf declares emergency as at least four deaths reported across England and Wales
Several people have been killed as Storm Bert battered the UK, with a major incident declared in south Wales.
At least four deaths have been reported in England and Wales since the storm hit amid flooding brought by heavy rain and thawing snow. Thousands of homes have been left without power.
Continue reading...Councils, politicians and campaigners hope a ‘tourist tax’ would raise money to fund services in areas affected by high visitor numbers
Millions of tourists to the UK could soon be asked to pay a local visitor levy as cash-strapped councils try to raise money to fund services.
Nearly half of Scotland’s local councils are considering a mandatory levy on overnight stays, known as a tourist tax, to help cope with a surge in visitors that has overwhelmed places such as Skye, the Callanish stones on Lewis and Orkney’s neolithic sites.
Continue reading...Labour’s Charlie Falconer says vocal opponents are leading voters to think government is against change
Senior ministers who have spoken out against assisted dying are giving voters a “false impression” about the government’s position, a leading proponent of changing the law has said.
Charlie Falconer, a Labour peer and former justice secretary, said opponents to the change were “getting more coverage” because ministers in favour of legalising assisted dying were “playing by the rules”.
Continue reading...Weather warnings for wind, rain and snow cover much of country, with 16 flood alerts in place
Storm Bert has hit the UK, with snow closing roads and strong rains and winds expected to cause further travel disruption and potential flooding.
Weather warnings and 13 flood alerts have come into effect across much of the country.
Continue reading...Plans are understood to show where cameras and sensors are, triggering fears of weapon smuggling and escapes
Detailed prison blueprints have been leaked, triggering a security alert at jails in England and Wales, it has emerged.
The leak, first reported by the Times, involves prison layouts being shared on the dark web in the last fortnight, prompting an investigation by the National Crime Agency.
Continue reading...Several weather warnings in place for weekend, with snow, wind, rain and ice predicted
Storm Bert is expected to bring wind, rain, ice and snow to much of the UK over the weekend in what forecasters have called a “multi-hazard event”.
The Met Office has issued several weather warnings – mostly yellow, but also including the more severe amber in Scotland – for Saturday and Sunday.
Continue reading...Ofwat uses new powers to ensure investors pay at Thames, Yorkshire, and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water
Investors at Thames Water, Yorkshire Water, and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water will be forced to pick up the tab for executive bonuses after the regulator determined that the sector had awarded “undeserved” extra payments, worth £6.8m.
Ofwat said on Thursday it had used new powers to ensure that shareholders and bondholders at the three companies paid for bonuses because they had not “adequately reflected overall company performance issues”.
Continue reading...