News 04/12/25

A female police officer has been sacked after groping two colleagues at a drunken party.

PC Pamela Pritchard, 29, twice touched a male colleague’s groin and later sat on his knee and kissed him at a leaving do at Caernarfon Rugby Club, Gwynedd, in March 2024. She also grabbed a female colleague’s breasts while twerking on the dance floor and attempted to kiss a senior officer. A misconduct panel in Colwyn Bay, Conwy, found all allegations proven, ruling she breached force standards of behaviour.

President Vladimir Putin has warned that Ukrainian troops must withdraw from the eastern Donbas region or Russia will seize it, rejecting compromise over ending the war.

“Either we liberate these territories by force, or Ukrainian troops will leave these territories,” he told India Today. Moscow controls around 85% of Donbas. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has refused to cede territory. Putin’s comments follow US President Donald Trump’s statement that his negotiators believe Russia’s leader “would like to end the war” after talks in Moscow on Tuesday.

Thames Valley Police is appealing for information on a man wanted in Slough.

Officers are seeking Aaron Challis, 28, in connection with a fraud investigation. He is described as 5ft 8ins tall, with short brown hair bald on top, and a full beard with thick moustache and sideburns. Challis is believed to have links to Slough and Hayes. Detective Constable Angela Bartley asked anyone with information to contact Thames Valley Police urgently.

Around 200 homes in Derby were evacuated after police arrested two men on suspicion of explosives offences.

The warrant in Vulcan Street led to the detention of a man in his forties and another in his fifties. Residents were warned they might hear a controlled bang as the Army deals with the situation. Police confirmed it is not terror related and there is no wider risk.

Four people have been arrested in East Sussex in an investigation into extreme right wing terrorism.

Officers in Eastbourne and Brighton detained a 27-year-old woman from Hailsham and three men from Eastbourne aged 33, 36 and 41. All are held under section 41 of the Terrorism Act while searches continue at residential properties.

An inquiry has concluded that the assassination attempt on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal was authorised by Vladimir Putin, who it says is morally responsible for the death of a woman poisoned by the same nerve agent.

Chairman Lord Hughes said there were failings in managing Skripal after he arrived in the UK in 2010, though assessing him as not at significant risk was not unreasonable at the time.

Israeli army radio says a Palestinian anti Hamas militia leader has been killed in Gaza.

Yasser Abu Shabab, commander of the Popular Forces, died along with many members of his group and senior commander Ghassan al Duhine after what was described as a well planned ambush by resistance factions. Reuters reports Abu Shabab later died of his wounds in a hospital in southern Israel.

A woman diagnosed with ADHD at 48 says her local trust pausing new referrals will be devastating.

Berkshire Healthcare Trust stopped accepting new adult ADHD referrals from 1 December because of rising demand, a step taken by other NHS trusts under similar pressure. The trust says it is committed to redesigning the service so it can meet patients’ needs as quickly and safely as possible.

NHS data shows flu pressures in England are sharply higher than last year, with an average of 1,717 patients in hospital beds each day last week, including 69 in critical care.

That is a 56 percent rise on the same week in 2024, when 1,098 patients were recorded, with 39 in critical care. The total also exceeds 2023 and 2022 levels. This year’s early flu season has yet to peak, meaning pressure on hospitals is likely to grow in the run up to Christmas.

Reform UK has received the largest single donation from a living person in UK political history.

New figures show political parties took more than £24 million between July and late September, with almost a third coming from Christopher Harborne, who donated £9 million to Nigel Farage’s party on 1 August 2025, setting a new UK record.

Joe Root has scored his first Test century in Australia after coming in with England struggling at 5 for 2 inside the first three overs.

He reached his 40th Test ton with a shot off his hip for four and followed it with another boundary. England closed day one on 325 for 9 after choosing to bat, with Zac Crawley making 76. Root is unbeaten on 135 and Jofra Archer not out on 32 from 26 balls.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is supporting an inquiry into pre-Budget leaks from the Treasury that affected business and consumer confidence and moved markets.

The chief secretary to the Treasury told the Commons the investigation is being led by senior civil servant James Bowler and has the chancellor’s full backing. Reports revealed policies including freezing income tax thresholds, a pay-per-mile levy on electric vehicles and a tourist tax in the run-up to the 26 November Budget. Briefings also included a downgrade of UK productivity from the Office for Budget Responsibility and a plan to raise income tax rates, which was later abandoned.

Household energy bills are set to rise to fund a £28bn investment in the UK’s energy network.

Ofgem says most of the funding will maintain gas networks, while £10.3bn will strengthen electricity transmission. Under the plan, bills will rise by an extra £108 by 2031. Ofgem adds that overall energy costs will only increase by around £30 a year because the investment will reduce reliance on imported gas and lower wholesale energy prices.

A 3.3 magnitude earthquake has shaken parts of Lancashire, with many people saying it woke them or caused their homes to move.

The British Geological Society says it was felt across the South Lakes and Lancashire, including Kendal and Ulverston. It struck off the coast of Silverdale at 11.23 last night at a shallow depth. The BGS records hundreds of UK quakes every year.

Hundreds of UK online safety staff at TikTok have already signed agreements to leave, despite the company telling MPs the cuts were only proposals.

More than four hundred workers have agreed to go, with only five still in consultation. Union officer John Chadfield says staff have signed binding termination agreements and handed in equipment.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting will launch an independent review into rising demand for mental health, ADHD and autism services in England.

He says a clinical approach is needed for accurate diagnosis. The Department of Health and Social Care says the review comes also with six hundred and eighty eight million pounds of funding.

Hundreds of thousands of people went to accident and emergency in England last year with issues such as sore throats, blocked noses and earache that could have been treated by GPs or pharmacists.

NHS England says more than two hundred thousand cases could have been dealt with elsewhere. Staff also saw large numbers of minor conditions including itchy skin, hiccups and ingrowing toenails between November 2024 and March 2025.

Miley Cyrus has confirmed her engagement to musician Maxx Morando after four years together.

The Grammy winner was seen wearing a gold and diamond ring at the premiere of Avatar Fire and Ash in Los Angeles. She told Good Morning America that Morando proposed during a trip to Asia and said she had been completely surprised despite usually liking to control situations.