Four US bombers land at RAF base in UK after warning of surge in strikes on Iran

B-1 Lancers arrive at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire after Starmer allows US to use UK as a base for ‘defensive’ action

Four US bombers have landed at an RAF base in Britain to carry out “specific defensive operations” to stop Iran firing missiles into the Middle East, the Ministry of Defence has said.

The B-1 Lancers, which are 45 metres (146ft) long and capable of carrying 24 cruise missiles, arrived at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, one on Friday evening and three on Saturday morning, after Keir Starmer had granted permission for “defensive” US action against Iranian missile sites from UK bases.

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Children to have free bus travel in west of England during summer holidays

About 150,000 under-16s will benefit across West of England combined authority and North Somerset

Children under the age of 16 will be able to travel for free on buses in the west of England during the school summer holidays in a move benefiting about 150,000 young people.

The West of England combined authority (Weca) – covering Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire – plus North Somerset will allow children aged from five to 15 to travel for free with no bus pass or registration required.

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Two adults and a teenager die after single-vehicle collision on M5

Another child in critical condition after suffering serious injuries in south Gloucestershire crash involving a BMW

Two adults and a teenager died and a second child suffered serious injuries in a car crash on the M5 in south Gloucestershire.

A white BMW crashed at about 9pm on Friday when it left the northbound carriageway between junction 14 and Michaelwood services, Avon and Somerset police said. Officers believe no other vehicle was involved.

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Gloucester ranked best motorway service station in Great Britain

Popular stop on M5 tops Which? survey with Tebay second, while Bridgwater is judged the worst with one-star rating

There are less than 80 miles between them, but the gulf in quality is massive, according to a Which? survey that ranked Gloucester services top of the stops, and Bridgwater bottom.

For many people motorway service stations are a place to take a break, grab a snack and use the toilet, but the rankings from the consumer recommendation group, which surveyed users of nearly 100 service stations across Great Britain, highlight the best and worst.

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Gloucestershire NHS trust to discharge 140 patients over ‘extreme winter pressures’

People told to attend A&E alone as acute trust cancels operations, declaring ‘critical incident’ amid rise in flu cases

An NHS trust is preparing to cancel operations, urgently discharge 140 patients and restrict admissions to help it cope with “extreme winter pressures”.

The Gloucestershire acute trust declared a “critical incident” on Wednesday as hospitals in England asked patients seeking medical help to come alone to reduce overcrowding in A&E.

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Briton who died on Singapore Airlines flight named as Geoffrey Kitchen

Retired insurance professional, 73, was en route to Australia with his wife for six-week holiday when plane hit by severe turbulence

The British passenger who died after a flight to Singapore was hit by severe turbulence has been named as a 73-year-old grandfather, Geoffrey Kitchen.

Kitchen, a retired insurance professional turned amateur dramatics performer, had travelled to Singapore on Monday on the 10pm flight from Heathrow.

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Women at Cheltenham feel threatened by pop-up strip clubs, says minister

Alex Chalk urges local council where racing festival takes place to stop granting licences to such venues

The presence of pop-up strip clubs at Cheltenham is making women feel “threatened and intimidated” at one of Britain’s biggest race festivals, the justice secretary has said.

Alex Chalk, the MP for Cheltenham, challenged the local council to stop granting licences to so-called sexual entertainment venues (SEVs).

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