Blog horizontal

Several Middle East and Arab countries have condemned Israel over its strike on Doha. Qatar called the attack a criminal assault and a cowardly act that violated international law. Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged the kingdom’s full support to Qatar and warned Israel of grave consequences if such actions continue. A woman has died following small boat activity in the English Channel. The Coastguard alerted Kent Police just […]

Labour’s Socialist Campaign Group has begun discussions over who should stand as their candidate in the deputy leadership contest triggered by Angela Rayner’s resignation. The group, which represents the party’s left wing, is expected to unite behind a single name. Streatham MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy has already declared her candidacy, saying she looks forward to putting her case to members despite what she described as an undemocratic three-day window to do […]

The new Home Secretary will hold her first major engagement on Monday by hosting talks on tackling people smuggling. Shabana Mahmood will meet with security ministers from the so-called Five Eyes alliance, which includes the US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. The discussions come after around a thousand people arrived in Britain by small boat in a single day, with French authorities confirming 24 more were rescued attempting the Channel […]

More than 425 people have been arrested during a mass protest in central London against the government’s ban on Palestine Action. Demonstrators filled Parliament Square carrying placards declaring their opposition to the group’s proscription. The Metropolitan Police said most arrests were for supporting a proscribed organisation, while more than 25 were detained for assaults on officers and other public order offences. The government made membership or support of Palestine Action […]

David Lammy has been appointed deputy prime minister and justice secretary, while Shabana Mahmood takes over as home secretary, in a reshuffle triggered by Angela Rayner’s resignation. Rayner stepped down from her roles as deputy prime minister, Labour deputy leader and housing secretary after the prime minister’s ethics adviser ruled she had breached the ministerial code by underpaying stamp duty on a property in Hove. In her resignation letter, she […]

Former Conservative minister Nadine Dorries has defected to Reform UK, calling the Conservative Party “dead”. Speaking to the Daily Mail, the former culture secretary said members must now “think the unthinkable and look to the future.” Her move comes on the eve of Reform’s annual conference, where she is expected to open proceedings with a speech. A man whose arrest triggered protests outside an Essex hotel housing asylum seekers has […]

At least fifteen people have been killed and eighteen others injured after the Gloria funicular in Lisbon derailed and crashed. Emergency services say five of the injured are in a serious condition. The tram-like funicular, popular with tourists, was left almost completely destroyed. Video showed rescuers pulling people from the wreckage. Authorities say foreign nationals are among the victims but have not released identities. Two women have been arrested after […]

A driver has appeared in court accused of failing to stop after a crash that killed two children riding an e-scooter in Essex. Sixteen-year-old Roman Casselden and his nine-year-old sister Darcie died at the scene in Ashlyns, Pitsea, on the first of February. Twenty-one-year-old Deimante Ziobryte appeared before Basildon Magistrates’ Court and will return in January. Police say she is charged in connection with the fatal collision. A US judge […]

Thames Water’s largest group of creditors is preparing to put more than a billion pounds on the table to help rescue Britain’s biggest water utility. It's understood that creditors holding about 13 billion pounds of Thames Water’s senior debt will propose injecting hundreds of millions in new equity and writing off a further chunk of existing capital. The extra package, worth roughly 1.25 billion in total, is expected to be […]