News 11/11/25

Allies of the Prime Minister have dismissed talk of a leadership challenge, insisting Sir Keir Starmer will fight off any attempt to remove him.

Reports in The Times suggest some within Labour may push for a change following the Chancellor’s autumn budget. Sources close to Starmer say he’s aware of unease within the party, particularly after the election of Lucy Powell as deputy leader — seen by some as the “anti-Starmer” candidate. Despite Labour trailing Reform UK in several polls, supporters say he has no plans to resign and remains focused on governing.

A senior NHS manager described by a judge as “devious, scheming and manipulative” has been jailed for 28 years for raping and sexually assaulting girls he groomed on Snapchat.

Paul Lipscombe, aged 51, from Rothley in Leicestershire, admitted 34 offences against six girls aged between 12 and 15. Leicester Crown Court heard police discovered his crimes after a missing 15-year-old told officers she’d been raped. He was arrested in April this year after officers stopped his car near Birstall.

A man in his sixties has died and two others have been seriously injured after a bin lorry crashed into a building in Herefordshire.

The crash happened in Leominster at around 6.40 this morning. Police say the driver and a second passenger were airlifted to hospital with serious injuries. The man who died was also a passenger in the vehicle. An investigation is under way to determine the cause of the crash.

Shamima Begum, the former east London schoolgirl who joined Islamic State, should be brought back to the UK along with other British-linked detainees in Syria, according to a major review of counterterrorism policy.

The Independent Commission on UK Counterterrorism says leaving them in legal and physical limbo is “unsustainable” and risks creating “Britain’s Guantanamo” in the detention camps of northeast Syria. The report describes conditions at Al Hol and Al Roj as “inhuman and degrading”, urging ministers to find a long-term solution.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy says the BBC must fight to restore public trust after claims that a Panorama documentary misled viewers by editing a speech from US President Donald Trump.

She told MPs that the broadcaster remains a “national institution” but must be “genuinely accountable.” It follows a leaked memo suggesting the programme spliced together Trump’s words from 6 January 2021, implying he incited the Capitol Hill riot. BBC chair Samir Shah has apologised, while Director General Tim Davie insists “we’ve got to fight for our journalism.” President Trump is threatening to sue the corporation for one billion dollars.

The government has agreed to review its decision to deny compensation to women affected by changes to the state pension age.

Campaigners say 3.6 million women born in the 1950s were not properly told about the rise to bring their retirement age in line with men. Ministers have confirmed a document not seen by then-Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall will now be reconsidered. While there’s no guarantee of payouts, campaigners have welcomed what they call a “major step forward.”

Ninety-one prisoners have been mistakenly released in England and Wales since April, the Ministry of Justice has confirmed.

Justice Secretary David Lammy says there’s “a mountain to climb” to fix the prison system. Among those freed was convicted sex offender Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, recaptured after a journalist tracked him down in north London.

An NHS ward manager has been sentenced for health and safety failings, and a mental health trust fined more than half a million pounds, after the death of a young woman in care.

Alice Figueiredo, aged 22, took her own life at Goodmayes Hospital in east London in July 2015. A jury earlier this year found that the North East London NHS Foundation Trust and ward manager Benjamin Aninakwa failed to take sufficient action to prevent her death. The verdicts came after one of the longest jury deliberations in English legal history.

Asylum seekers will continue to be housed at the Bell Hotel in Essex after a High Court ruling went against the local council.

Epping Forest District Council had sought an injunction to stop the accommodation of asylum seekers, arguing it breached planning rules and caused regular protests. The court rejected the claim, allowing hotel owner Somani Hotels to continue operating the site under its existing terms. The Home Office says housing asylum seekers there remains lawful and appropriate.

The Princess of Wales and Queen Camilla have led Armistice Day commemorations across the country.

Catherine attended the national service at the Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, where the Last Post marked the start of a two-minute silence at eleven o’clock. Queen Camilla laid a wreath at Paddington Station in London, travelling there by train, while the Prince of Wales delivered a video message highlighting the importance of remembrance and the symbolism of the red poppy.

Twelve people have been killed and at least twenty-seven injured in a suicide bombing outside a courthouse in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.

The country’s interior minister, Mohsin Naqvi, said the attacker intended to strike inside the district court but was stopped at the entrance. Authorities are working to identify the bomber, and those responsible will be brought to justice. Suicide attacks in Islamabad have become rare in recent years.

British Transport Police have released images after a woman was racially abused and assaulted while with her family in central London last month.

The incident happened as the family entered Bond Street Tube station. One of the children was in a pushchair when a man and woman reportedly walking ahead collided with it. The man allegedly shouted racial abuse at the family while the woman grabbed the victim’s hair. Police are appealing for anyone who recognises the pair to come forward.

Targeted raids on High Street premises including mini-marts, vape shops, barbers and takeaways have resulted in more than 920 arrests, in the largest operation of its kind coordinated by the National Crime Agency.

Authorities issued over 340 notices for illegal working and renting, which could see businesses and landlords fined tens of thousands of pounds. Last week the BBC exposed a network claiming to erase illegal working fines for up to £60,000, alongside a Kurdish criminal network using “ghost directors” to manage company paperwork while avoiding day-to-day responsibility.

The UK’s unemployment rate has risen to its highest level since late 2020, according to new figures from the Office for National Statistics.

Joblessness climbed to 5 percent in the three months to September, up from 4.8 percent last month and above economists’ forecasts. It’s the steepest rise since the pandemic period of December 2020 to February 2021.

The rate stood at just 4.1 percent when Labour took office last year. Separate data from HMRC showed payrolled employment fell by 32,000 in October — offering little comfort for Chancellor Rachel Reeves ahead of the Budget.

Almost every hospital trust in England is missing the key NHS target for cancer treatment times, according to new analysis.

Just three out of 121 trusts are treating patients within the 62-day standard. Experts warn the delays could cost lives, as studies show every four-week wait reduces survival chances by around ten percent.

The government admits waits are too long but insists it’s investing to boost performance, pointing to new diagnostic hubs and faster referral systems being rolled out across England.

In Washington, the US Senate has approved a vital funding bill that could bring an end to the longest government shutdown in American history.

The measure passed by 60 votes to 40, with most Republicans joined by eight Democrats. It funds the government through to the end of January. The House of Representatives must now vote before President Donald Trump can sign it.

The breakthrough came after weekend negotiations between moderate Democrats and Republican leaders to get hundreds of thousands of federal workers back to work and reopen shuttered services.

With the Christmas shopping season underway, Thames Valley Police are warning against shoplifting as cases continue to rise.

In October, charges for theft from shops were up 21 percent on the same month last year. Officers say financial pressure can make temptation stronger, but those caught stealing will face arrest and prosecution.

Police are stepping up patrols and working with retailers to identify offenders quickly, stressing shoplifting harms businesses and puts staff at risk.

The UK’s Prevent counter-terrorism programme is “no longer keeping the country safe,” according to an independent commission.

It found nine in ten referrals are rejected because they show no clear ideology, yet some later go on to commit violent acts.

The report calls for a narrower definition of terrorism and regular reviews of groups banned under the scheme, as the Home Office faces a court challenge over its ban on Palestine Action.

Spare a thought for Britain’s most persistent learner driver.

Figures from the AA Driving School show one person has taken the theory test 128 times without passing — spending nearly £3,000. Another managed it only on the 75th attempt, at a cost of more than £1,700. The theory test costs £23 each time and must be passed before booking a practical exam.